I’ve always hated my name so now I’m changing it as an adult – I’m worried I’ll offend my parents but I have good reason
DO you hate your name so much you’d change it if you could?
Well that’s the next step for one woman who dislikes her moniker so much that she’s keen to get rid of it altogether.
Her reasoning? Nobody seems to be able to pronounce it correctly, even though it isn’t that tricky.
Brittany Marie Fitzgerald shared her dilemma on the Baby Name Envy podcast, hosted by self-styled baby name expert and celebrity name consultant SJ Strum and her sister Naomi.
“Everyone calls me Britney instead of Brittany,” she dejectedly wrote, asking for the sisters’ advice.
“And I’m someone who really cares about grammar and pronunciation.
“I also feel my middle name is too boring.
“However, both my grannies are called Mary so my parents chose Marie as it sounded better than Mary.
“I don’t know how to bring it up with my family.
“I don’t want to offend my parents and it’s not their fault.
“I want to be named something nice and it’s just not my style.
“I don’t feel any connection to my name due to this mispronunciation.”
Brittany even exposed her own parents and grandparents for not pronouncing the name they chose for her correctly.
She made it clear that she refuses to go by Britney as it’s not her name.
“I also don’t really like ‘Brit’, unless it’s a nickname by my close friends,” she continued.
“It sounds too abrupt and short.
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When I was a child, all I wanted was one of those personalised keyrings with my name on it.
But no joy, the closest I could find was Rosie, Joseph (not great for a little girl) and Joanne.
Josie is short for Josephine, which is a French name, and I managed to reach my 20s without ever meeting anyone who shared it.
When I try to introduce myself to people, I get all sorts of random things – like Tracey and Stacey – which can be pretty annoying.
Although I have come into contact with a couple of Josies over the last year – there seems to be a few of us around my age – it’s still a much rarer name than most of my friends have.
On the whole I don’t mind it, at least it’s not rude or crazily spelt.
And it means I can get away with ‘doing a Cheryl’ and just referring to myself as Josie.
I’m getting married this year and some friends are shocked that I’m changing my surname, as it’s not seen as very cool or feminist to do so these days, but I explain to them that I’m not that attached to Griffiths as I’d always just say ‘hi it’s Josie’ when ringing a mate up.
I think it’s nice to be unique and I’ll definitely try and replicate this when naming my own kids.
It’s the rude names you’ve got to watch out for, so after nine years as a lifestyle journalist I’ll definitely be avoiding those.
“I don’t feel any connection to Brittany and I can’t seem to get anyone to call me that anyway.”
Brittany is toying with choosing a unisex name for herself or even one with a “darker meaning”, such as a moniker with mythological or ancient roots.
Name expert SJ empathised with Brittany wanting “a bit more identity” behind her name.
She recommended her choosing a craft name, which is a secondary religious name often adopted by practitioners of Wicca and other forms of Neopagan witchcraft.
Among SJ’s suggestions to fit Brittany’s “vibe” were Dayonis, Aradia and Caradoc, all of which were craft names for famous witches.