DH and I aren't planning on TTC for another year or so but my sister is pregnant. We were talking to her about names and told her that we if have a boy, we love the name Connor. She said that name would never work because our kid will be half black and half white and the name Connor is a white name. Is this true? I don't think it should matter....
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hmm that doesn't make sense to me at all. I think you are free to name your baby whatever you want. Connor seems like a perfect name for a little boy, regardless of ethnicity.
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Yeah, that does not make sense. If the name fits, the name fits.
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Totally doesn't matter. If you love the name, go for it! A close guy friend of mine (who is Chinese) named his son Tyrone and it suits him perfectly!
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I don't think it needs to match. LO is half Vietnamese and was born on Cinco de Mayo but we gave him an Irish name.
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Ehh yes I think to some extent it does (for us anyway). I would feel really weird naming our kid Liam or Pierre, which are obviously ethnic names, when we're not of that ethnicity. I feel like they would constantly get asked, "Oh so you're Irish/French/whatever?"
However, I don't think that connor is one of the more obviously ethnic names--I think it's far enough removed from it's original culture that it could work for anyone! And the idea that connor is a white name is ridiculous, IMO.
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To some extent I agree with your sister, but only for those extremely ethnic names (like Shaniqua or Roberto). Connor does not fit into that category!
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It seems like it is important to other people, but I think only if you have a name that is less 'typical'. Connor is, in my opinion, typical enough that no one would think twice.
We named our son Nico and we are always asked what the ethnic origin is of the name, which I find a bit strange. It has Greek origins but is popular throughout Europe. We just liked it. Now, we are both of mixed white ancestory, with my most prominent being Irish and DH's most prominent being Italian. Since our last name is Italian I thought Nico kindof matches. Funny thing is, when my aunt heard the name she said "What a great Irish name."
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DH and I always joke about giving our child a combination of very common ethnic name that's outside our ethnicity (e.g., Akiko Pooja Nguyen) But jokes aside, I think it's completely fine as long as the parents don't mind hearing questions about the naming!
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@banana: OMG a little Chinese boy named Tyrone? That's awesome!
@hilsy85: I agree with you. If it's a SUPER "ethnic" name (like Jose, Pierre, etc... I guess a "stereotypical" name), I wouldn't want to use it if I didn't fall under that umbrella. But to each his own.
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Agree with @hilsy85. Some names are too ethnic, however Connor is not one of them.
There are names taboo to Caucasians. I love the name Aaliyah but I'm not sure I could pull it off if I have a daughter.
We did consider some strong Irish/Scottish names because that's my husbands ethnicity, so Liam was a top name. DH also like Lachlan and Seamus. But was he not Irish/Scottish, I wouldn't have considered those names.
My sister had a hard time choosing a name for their song who is half Hispanic. She wanted something that translated well between both languages.
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I agree some names have strong ethnic ties and I think it would be strange to use them if you aren't of that ethnicity.
I'm Greek and would love to use a Greek name but I worry it will sound strange with our Scottish last name : (
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@hilsy85: agreed!!
You can tell your sis, our LOs will also be half black half white, and we love the name Seamus! Way more Irish than Connor! Although, I have Irish in me, so maybe that makes it less odd to her. I think if you choose a super traditional ethnic name and your LO appears to have an ethnicity that doesn't match, people will question it, but people question everything. Connor is a very popular name, used by all different ethnicities so I wouldn't worry about it.
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I also agree that to some extent that ethnicity of a name matters a little bit.
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@loveablebee: I think Tom Cruise's adopted son Connor is half black... I don't think that name is too ethnic at all
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I agree that Conner is not a white name
I love a lot of Indian names but I'm Korean and my husband is white so it would not fit our kids...especially with our generic last name.
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I think it matters, but in your case, I think Connor is perfectly fine! I don't consider it a "white" name even though I understand its roots.
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while i def think that there are "ethnic" names, def dont think Connor is one of them~
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17 comments