I spent most of my childhood having my name mispronounced. You can't imagine that, as it's not so unusual now. Yet I got called Clara, Claire, and all sorts of variations. My name is Carla!
When I was born people called their children very traditional names. There were a lot of children called Susan, Jane, John and Stephen in my class. My mother was absolutely sure she was going to have a boy when she was pregnant with me. She had chosen a boys name, Charles/Charlie, the middle name of my grandfather, but no girls name. When I was born my parents were totally flummoxed as to what to all me. My lovely Aunty, who died last week, was engaged to an Austrian man and they came up with the name Carla. My parents liked it, and here I am!
Now a days, of course, it isn't considered unusual, but it was in the nineteen fifties. When the famous sitcom writer Carla Lane appeared I did think thank goodness someone else English has the same name as me. It's only now that I realise her real name was in fact Romana Barrack and she used Carla as her professional name.
People call their children all sorts of unusual names now. Celebrities in particular call their children outstanding names. Outstanding for the reason that they appear to have made them up! I suppose they want their children to appear different. I went very traditional with my sons just because I liked the names. Fortunately they like them. All children are called the name their parents liked before or when they were born, and that's it, because you are stuck with it for the rest of your life. You can change your name by deed poll if you want, but the original name will still have been registered somewhere in the archives of time. You can't escape it!
Having stood out all my school youth for my name, I know It took me years to love it. It's still not common, and I like that fact now. A fact I didn't like when I was young. I wanted to be the same as every one else and my name stopped that. I never had any problems making and having friends, but I do recall feeling a slight nervousness saying my name in a new class purely because of the reaction of 'oh that's unusual'. I wonder how the children called Porsche, Apple and Blue feel? I expect celebrates have their children all going to the same schools so maybe they don't stand out?
Shakespeare wrote 'A rose by any other name would smell as sweet' in Romeo and Juliet. A comment about their names being different but not mattering. Really my name never mattered. I was, and still am, the same person whether my name was and is Julia, Sarah or Carla! I am still me. But I do wonder if having an unusual name has an impact on how you perceive yourself, and as a consequence how you behave. I could never hide amongst the traditionally named people if there was trouble at school because my name stood out. There was no confusion as to who I was. For the record I was always well behaved at school, did my homework on time, etc. Did my name have something to do with that? Probably not, but I know my name was recognisable as different years ago. To be honest I felt that I could never live up to my name. I wasn't exotic looking or flamboyant, though I do have an outgoing personality. I didn't have raven black hair, flashing eyes and a red pouting mouth. Should I have had? Well the name is rather Spanish so I thought I should have been like that. Anyway, I have grown to love my name. It's me, and how I am, but it has taken years to feel that way.
The media do like to make fun of celebrity children's names. When Gwyneth Paltrow called her baby 'Apple' there was wide ridicule in the media. Katie Price called her daughter Princess Tiaamii and the media comments went viral. To be honest the naming of celebrity children are ignored now as almost 'attention seeking' because it's not so unusual to have an unusual name any more. Every celebrity does it.
I wonder if anyone else was given an unusual name and didn't like it? I trace my family history as a hobby, and have come across a few ancestors with unusual names but they were very often in religious families. Temperance, Love and Humility for example. One or two were known by their middle names in censuses, suggesting to me they preferred that one to their first name. I know that actors often have a 'stage name'. I wonder if that's what I should have done? I wonder what my stage name would have been...………..hmmmmm?
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/family/parenting/all-parents-should-beware-creative-baby-names---just-ask-my-son/
https://www.businessinsider.com/what-are-the-real-names-of-singers-and-celebrities-2015-1?r=US&IR=T
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