5 Points to consider when choosing a name for your baby

Whether you name your baby while you are pregnant or once you have met them, the naming process is usually fraught with disagreements, opinions from family or friends and uncertainty as to whether you have chosen the right name.

While the final decision lies with you (yes, not the traditional grandparents and over-excited aunts) there’s always a chance that you will one day suffer from naming regret.

Here are five points to consider when naming your little bundle of joy:

1. Excuse the pun

Some parents, whether intentional or by fluke, give their baby a name that can very easily be turned into a pun. Before you think that Justin Tyme (just-in time) is cute, think about what poor Penny (penny for your thoughts) will have to endure for the rest of her life. If the name you choose has an obvious pun or idiom, scratch it off your list. There’s enough pun in the world in the form of North West (Kim K and Kanye West’s little one).

2. Billy rhymes with

You guessed it. I didn’t even need to spell it out for you. Boozy Suzy, fatty Matty and prissy Chrissy join Billy in the list of names that rhyme.

Now, this may be cute to you and your significant other but it won’t be cute to the grade one bully who realises that your child’s name has a built-in teasing mechanism.

3. Pronunciation

Why spell Michael, Mykel? While it may seem unusual (and yes I know, special) to give your child a common name that is spelt differently, all you are actually doing is setting your child up to correct people for the rest of his life. When you choose a name, spell it like you say it. If you mispronounce the name when first reading it, chances are others will too.

4. Keep it simple

The length of your surname should have some effect on how long your baby’s first name will be. Life is hard enough as it is. You don’t want to give your child a tongue twister that they are only able to spell in grade four.

5. Celeb inspiration

One word: no. Celebs are great at inspiring fashion trends, but baby names… not so much.

Blue Ivy, Cricket Pearl and Bear Blu may roll smoothly off the tongue in celeb-ville but will not go down well in a South African classroom. Just because Beyonce’s child can pull it off, doesn’t mean your child can.

If you are at a loss as to what to name your baby, an old fashioned baby name book will probably set you off in the right direction. For those who prefer to turn to the internet, here are the top ten boy and girl names for 2013:

Boys:

1. Jackson
2. Aiden
3. Liam
4. Luca/s
5. Noah
6. Mason
7. Jayden
8. Ethan
9. Jacob
10. Jack

Girls:

1. Sophia
2. Emma
3. Olivia
4. Isabella
5. Mia
6. Ava
7. Lily
8. Zoe
9. Emily
10. Madison

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Lara Bestbier

Writer. Creative. Word-nerd. Aspiring photographer. Old wife. Brand new member of the elite society called mommy-hood. Mom to the only drama queen more demanding than me. “Life’s too short to keep a straight face”.

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