Every parent who has to name their baby knows the struggle of picking the perfect title for them. They can go the sentimental route and pick a name that honors a loved one, or come up with something completely out of the box. Either way, whatever they choose will impact their kid for the rest of their life.
This is why one mom was on the fence about naming her child ‘Harry Potter,’ as she wanted to pay homage to her dad, but also knew the impact of her kid having such a moniker. Unfortunately, folks were not on her side.
More info: Reddit
When parents want to name their children based on fictional characters, they should first consider how that can impact their little ones
Image credits: Mikhail Nilov / Pexels (not the actual photo)
The poster explained that she and her husband planned to name their child Louis Michael Potter, but after losing her dad, that plan changed
Image credits: freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)
Since the poster’s dad was named Harry, she decided to call her child ‘Harry Michael Potter,’ and also posted a birth announcement and photo of him online
Image credits: pikisuperstar / Freepik (not the actual photo)
Unfortunately, the child’s birth announcement went viral, and someone also posted it on a meme page, which led to the poster and her husband being shamed online
Image credits: Camandona / Freepik (not the actual photo)
Since the couple didn’t want to change Harry’s name, they wondered about dropping the ‘Potter’ and letting the child use her maiden name, Vaughn, instead
Image credits: freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)
Eventually, after a lot of feedback from netizens, the couple decided to change their child’s name to Harry Michael Vaughn, and to get their surname hyphenated as Potter-Vaughn
Image credits: ExcellentCondition4
The woman also felt annoyed at receiving so much backlash from people about her baby’s name, and she tried to explain that she was fixing her mistake
The poster explained that she had lost her father all of a sudden during her pregnancy, and it had caused her a lot of pain. She found it very tough to come to terms with the fact that he had gone, and she stated that even four and a half months later, she still found herself mourning his absence in her life.
According to mental health experts, the loss of a parent can greatly affect a person and also impact their sense of self. They might experience tremendous grief and need a lot of time to cope with the tragedy, even if they were not that close to their loved one.
That’s exactly why the pregnant woman decided that she wanted to honor her father in the best way possible, by naming her son after him. She knew that her child would then be called ‘Harry Potter,’ but she felt that it would be okay because it meant that he would be paying homage to her dad.
When most parents think of monikers for their little ones, they often try to come up with something sentimental, and the best way to do this is usually by using family names. This is a wonderful way to pass on something meaningful from one generation to the next, and also to honor a loved one.
What the poster didn’t account for when naming her son was how outraged other people would be about it. Unfortunately, her birth announcement went viral online and started being shared on meme pages. So the OP and her husband received a lot of hate from folks and were shamed for their son’s moniker.
The woman began to fear that they had made the wrong decision about their child’s name after people online began threatening to call Child Protective Services or the authorities on them. Although the OP knew that she had done nothing wrong by trying to honor her dad, she still felt afraid for her child’s future.
The problem with such unique or fictional character-based names is that they might cause the kids a lot of problems later in life. Children with such monikers could end up getting bullied or laughed at by their peers, and they might even be subjected to ridicule when making or using their identity cards.
That’s why, after a lot of thought, the poster and her husband decided to give their son her maiden name (Vaughn). They also planned to change their surname and hyphenate it as Potter-Vaughn, so that they could match their child. Even though it would be a long process, they knew that their son was worth the hassle.
What do you think about the couple’s decision, and do you think there would have been a simpler way to handle this situation? Do share your thoughts in the comments below.
People called out the woman for naming her son ‘Harry Potter,’ and felt that she truly didn’t understand how much ridicule her child would face in the future
