Have you ever wondered, "Hmm...I wonder if I'm the reason someone refused to name their child [insert your name here]?"
Well recently, u/TIFUstorytime posed the question, "What name is ruined for you?" in r/AskReddit, and people came FLOCKING in with their ✨negative name associations✨.
So, if you're wondering if your name/your child's name/another loved one's name is on this list, all I can say is scroll down at your own discretion! 🫡
1. "As someone named Milo…I’d have to say Milo. Nearly every Milo I meet in real life turns out to be a dog."
2. "As a teacher, there are several names that are forever ruined for me: Trevor, Travis, Dax, Jenica, and Ashlynn, to name a few."
3. "Aaron — thanks Key & Peele."
4. "I had a classmate in high school whose family friends named their daughter Siri literally two weeks before Apple announced their new virtual assistant technology."
5. "Katie. It's so strange because Kates, in my experience, are lovely people, but Katies are not. What goes wrong with that extra syllable?"
6. "Hermione. I first saw the '60s movie version of The Music Man in seventh grade in 1997 and fell in love with the character of the Mayor's wife, played by Hermione Gingold. I decided then that I wanted to name my first daughter after her. I'm still pissed at J. K. Rowling for ruining that name, even though I did grow to love Hermione in the books."
7. "Karen. My friend, Karen, is not taking the backlash against her name well. Breaks my heart."
8. "Harmony. I'm a teacher, and all the Harmonys I've had were not at all harmonious."
10. "I have a bad association with the name Alex. In college, I sat next to an Alex in art history, and he was always drinking coffee, and after every sip, he would go, 'Ahh!' Every two seconds — 'Ahh!' — and he would take, like, 40 sips. I had to drop the class!"
11. "Naomi because it's 'I moan' backwards."
12. "Astrid, because of that episode of The Office where Michael keeps pronouncing it 'a**-turd.'"
13. "I happened to know two women named Katrina — a bright, pretty, Scandinavian-sounding name — at the time of the catastrophic 2005 hurricane. I feel sorry for them in the sense that 'Katrina' is now shorthand for natural disaster and tragedy."
14. "Brock. What kind of name is that, anyway? Sounds like someone vomiting *BROCK*."
15. "Alexa, at least in terms of naming a child or pet, thanks to the Alexa device."
16. "Aiden, Brayden, Jayden, Cayden, Zayden, etc., etc. There are no names you'll hear screamed more at grocery stores."
17. "Chad. It's my name, and I hate that it became shorthand for entitled jerks."
18. "Jenny. (Forrest Gump ruined it. 'Jenn-NAY!')"
19. "Angel. Some guy I used to work with robbed the business, causing them to close down. Never trust a guy named Angel."
20. "Eric. All because of a silly and, at times, absolutely god-tier TV series (South Park). Screw you, Cartman, by the way."
21. "Lana, because of what it says spelled backwards."
22. "After dating three Jasons and two Joshes...definitely any 'J' names."
And lastly (and with no explanation needed):
23. "Donald."
Answers have been edited for length and/or clarity.