A teenager is desperate to change her name because of its unusual spelling.
Deciding on a name for a new-born baby is a pressured decision; you’ve got to find something both parents agree on, it’s got to suit a sweet little baby, and it also has to grow up with them into adulthood.
In recent years, some parents’ desire to choose something “unique” for their child often leads to invented and overly complex spellings of already established names, despite the pronunciation remaining the same and therefore nullifying the “unique” aspect they crave.
This appears to be the case for one 18-year-old girl whose name is Jennifer, only it’s spelled ‘Giniphyr’. On Reddit, she shared her story under a post titled “My name is like the queen of all tragedeighs”. The butchered spelling of the word ‘tragedy’ is a comedic and popular online nod to the tactic some parents take when adding extra letters or syllables to their child’s name in a bid to make it different.
The teen explained: “I’ve always hated my birth name so much, so I grew up with the nickname, Gigi. Nowadays, I go by a ‘nickname of my nickname’ and everyone just calls me G.
“I just turned 18 last month, so I plan on getting my name legally changed soon. Preferably something that also starts with the letter G.”
In the comments section, people shared their thoughts, as well as their tips for what name she ought to choose. One person simply quipped: “My condolences”.
Another said: “The first thing that came to my mind was also Georgia. Oh, Georgiana, if you like Jane Austin’s Pride and Prejudice!”
A third commented: “God, 18 years of being a tragedeigh. Baby-naming started going the hell off the deep end in the early 2000s when I was in my early 20s. It was noticeably bad, but we didn’t have big communities to talk about it online yet.”
Someone else replied: “It was earlyish 2000s when the Justin or Jason, and Isabel or Olivia were popular. The ‘creative’ spellings of some of those names made me wince but Auliviya took the cake in about 2012.”
When asked about her relationship with her parents, G replied: “I used to complain all the time to them about my name and how I wanted a new name, but they just kept telling me that it’s ‘special’ and ‘unique’. Currently, my mom doesn’t want me to get my name legally changed because it’s sentimental to her, but I think I’m gonna change it anyways.”
To change your name in the UK, you need to obtain a deed poll, which is a legal document that proves a change of name. You can change any part of your name, add or remove names and hyphens, or change the spelling.
If you’re aged 16 or over, you can make an ‘unenrolled’ deed poll yourself. You can also apply for an ‘enrolled’ deed poll, which means the new name will be on public record.
