Next in significance to life itself, a parent’s bestowal of a name upon their child stands as the utmost gift.
Even if the name is popular, it shows who you are and sticks with you throughout your life, always reminding you of where you came from.
This is a story about a mom who, just a week after naming her baby, is starting to feel unsure about her choice.
Keep reading to learn why one fan says the newborn’s name is “pretty terrible sounding.”
In early April 2024, a woman using the username Mean Wranglers posted her story on Reddit’s Name Nerds seeking support from the online community.
She tells the audience that she and her husband had a hard time agreeing on a name for their newborn daughter, who was just one week old when the mother made the post.
“We both had a favorite name that the other didn’t like. Mine was Ottilie and his was Aubrey,” the new mother explains. “We settled on Etta as a compromise, but he changed his mind shortly after the birth.”
After reconsidering, the original poster (OP) reveals that her husband suggested an alternative.
“He brought up Sigrid, and I thought I liked it, so I agreed,” writes the mother, who now regrets her decision.
Butt of jokes
According to the meanings behind baby names, Sigrid is a name that comes from Scandinavia and Old Norse, and it means “beautiful victory.”
However, the woman and her husband aren’t Scandinavian, and the new mom doesn’t find anything beautiful or victorious about a name that sounds like a bad habit.
“Now I’m worried she will get bullied for her name sounding like ‘cigarette,'” writes the original poster (OP), suggesting that the name Sigrid is too similar to the highly addictive tobacco products.
She also realizes that the nicknames Ziggy or Siggy, which her husband likes, sound like slang terms for cigarettes.
Seeking reassurance from the online community, the mom asks Redditors for their thoughts on her daughter’s name.
Many users support the name, even though it’s uncommon in many places.
“OP, I don’t see any problem with Sigrid. I have a common name and still got teased a bit with a nursery rhyme that had the name in it,” writes one user. Another says, “I think it’s a really cool name. I wouldn’t worry about teasing…I don’t think kids will bully her.”
Some users mention the connection the author made between the name Sigrid and cigarettes.
One Redditor first criticizes the name, saying it sounds “terrible,” and then makes a comment that could be seen as offensive to people from the U.S. South: “I’ve been thinking about it, and it sounds pretty bad to me. I’m not sure where OP is from, but as an American, the way I read it sounds exactly like how Southerners say ‘cigarette.'”
Another user defends Southerners, saying, “I live in the Deep South…the word ‘cigarette’ has three syllables down here, so I don’t hear much similarity.”
Meanwhile, another supporter offers encouragement to the new mom: “You’re only a week into being a new mom. It’s normal to feel a bit worried overall. Give yourself time to adjust before thinking about changing something as big as her name. See if it starts feeling more familiar over time.”
Before ending her post, the author says she plans to talk to her husband about changing the name. “I like Beatrix, and he might be open to changing it,” adds the OP.
What advice can you offer this Redditor? Please let us know your thoughts in the comments section and then share this story so we can hear from others!
