‘I despise my old-fashioned name so gave my son a unique one – my family are livid’

A man who has ‘always hated’ his common and old-fashioned name has decided to give his son an unusual one to break tradition – but his family are fuming over his choice

Everyone has different tastes when it comes to names, and while some parents will opt to give their children traditional monikers that have been popular for generations, others prefer uncommon and unique names that stand out from the crowd.

But one dad has caused a rift in his family over his choice of name for his newborn son, as he decided to break his family’s tradition of choosing “classic” and “old-fashioned” names in order to go for something unusual.

The man explained he has always “despised” his own name because of how “old man-sounding” it is, so he vowed not to commit his son to the same fate when the little one was born in November.

Instead, the man and his wife chose to name their son Cael – which, although it is a traditional Irish name, has been branded “ridiculous” by members of the man’s family.

Taking to Reddit to share his story, the dad wrote: “My wife and I welcomed our son into the world in November. We did not tell anyone his name before he was born, and he was three days old before we formally announced it because we decided to meet our son and feel out the name we chose first. Once we knew for sure our feelings were the same as they had been while my wife was pregnant, we announced the name.

“The name is very different from my family’s very conventional, classic, and old-fashioned naming style. The family has always followed somewhat of a pattern. My mum’s family have Elizabeth, Bernadette, Patricia, Nigel, Kenneth and Gerald. Then my siblings and I are Charles, Kenneth, Patrick, Elizabeth and Florence.

“The name Elizabeth appears multiple times in our family, same with Patrick and Kenneth. Everyone in my family is very fond of traditional names and names that are more old man/old lady sounding.

“I have always hated it. I despise my name. Always considered changing it but when I talked about it as a teenager, I was told I would thank them when I was in my 30s and settled in my life. I’m not 30 yet but still hate the name.

“My son’s name is Cael.”

The dad said his sister has been particularly outspoken about the name, and has even told her brother’s wife that she should have known better after living “28 years with a ridiculous name” herself.

But the couple are sticking to their decision, with the dad insisting that his family’s opinion isn’t wanted and they won’t be listening to their concerns on the matter.

He added: “My sister has been seriously outspoken on the name. She said it’s not a name, and it’s wrong to break from the tradition. She asked my wife how she could put her son through that when she’s spent 28 years with a ridiculous name.

“I stepped in and told her that we did not ask for her opinion. She said giving her opinion is important after seeing what we were going to do to our son and how he’ll hate his name in the future. I told her that could be true even with a name like ours, that I still hate mine, and that just because they think these are the names the family likes doesn’t mean everyone will.

“She told me she was entitled to give her opinion in response. I told her she was but it will never be welcome when it comes to what my wife and I name our children. I told her she was sticking her nose where it wasn’t wanted and is not appreciated.”

Commenters on the post were on the couple’s side, as many of them said that even if they weren’t fond of the name Cael either, it was the couple’s decision and no one else’s opinion should matter.

One person said: “It’s not up to other people what you and your wife’s child is called.”

While another added: “I mean, Cael is unusual but it’s not even weird or anything. I would only say something about a child’s name if it was wildly out of pocket and the kid was going to be teased. Honestly, your son is going to be lucky not to be the 20th person he knows with the same name.”

And a third wrote: “When she has kids of her own she can name them whatever she wants. She can offer her opinion all she wants but that’s just what it is – an opinion.”

Do you have a story to sell? Get in touch with us at [email protected] .