Poll: Is it [wrong] to name a child after a [video game character]?

[Liv's Runaway Snail]

I'm currently writing an article about this and wanted more opinions on this matter, so:

Is it wrong? Silly? Stupid? [even if its an established name like April and Nathan] Why?

Is it worse than naming your child after a movie/tv show/book character? Why?

Does it matter if there is a positive background story behind it? (i.e the character stands by good morals that are inspiring/meaningful to you).

Where should you draw the line? Between established and totally obscure. Does it matter?

Those are the only questions I can come up with now, but I might add some more later.

Please comment and vote, if you wish.

 

[Fappy]

Is it wrong? Silly? Stupid? [even if its an established name like April and Nathan] Why?

It's sort of silly I suppose, but then people get their names for silly reasons all the time.

Is it worse than naming your child after a movie/tv show/book character? Why?

It's the same thing.

Does it matter if there is a positive background story behind it? (i.e the character stands by good morals that are inspiring/meaningful to you).

Not really. You probably don't want to name your kid after a violent murderer/rapist character though.

Where should you draw the line? Between established and totally obscure. Does it matter?

That shouldn't matter. What matters is that the name doesn't sound stupid.

It really doesn't matter where the name came from, so long as it is not a ridiculous name.

 

[JoJo]

It doesn't really matter where a name comes from but it should be a reasonable name. For example when I eventually find Mrs JoJo and settle down, naming any offspring a normal name after a character in a game like "James" or "Sarah" is fine, on the other hand poor little "Cloud" or "Subject Delta" aren't going to get an easy ride through school. So really, it depends on the name itself more than anything else.

 

[Raikas]

I think it's fine (although a little silly) if it's something that's a real name (even an obscure one).

But if its something that was invented for the game and is well-known enough that people are going to know that that's the source then you're risking having people do some serious eye-rolling. I've met people who were named after obvious pop culture references from the 70s and 80s, and most of them spend a lot of time sighing and saying "Yes, my parents were huge fans of XYZ".

 

[HoneyVision]

If you genuinely like the name I don't see the problem, as long as it's not something utterly ridiculous I guess. I certainly think that names like Rinoa or Garnet are nice enough to use.
But if you're naming your child a video game name simply for the sake of the game then it's kinda abusive lol

 

[Eleuthera]

Really depends on the name, doesn't it. If I want to call my hypothetical future daughter Lara, no one is going to assume it's for a game/movie character. Same goes for Gordon if it's a boy.

If we decide to call them Arthas or Chell, we're going to have to explain ourselves, a lot.

EDIT: The most important part is the fact that the kid is going to have to live with it. Reasonably useable in more than one country is also a plus...

 

[Silvanus]

Naming a child after a video game character?! Absurd!


Now if you'll excuse me, I need to feed Daenerys Stormborn, of house Targaryen, Mother of Dragons and Queen of Meereen, Protector of the Realm, Queen of the Andals and the Rhoynar and the First Men.



OT: It completely depends on the name, just the same as with characters from novels or film. I voted 'no', because there's nothing inherently bad with a name like Gordon or Zelda, even if the choice is made for the videogame character.

(There is something wrong with naming a kid "King Bob Omb" or "Gargarensis", but it's all about where we draw the line).

 

[NightmareExpress]

Is it wrong? Silly? Stupid? [even if its an established name like April and Nathan] Why?

Some may describe it as silly, but silly isn't a wrong thing. If anything, it's one of the few nice things left!
At the end of the day, every name was crafted by someone else at some point in time...so I would have to ask what the difference really is apart from being modern?

Is it worse than naming your child after a movie/tv show/book character? Why?

I'd say it ranks about the exact same, really. Unoriginal, but quirky and potentially awesome.

Does it matter if there is a positive background story behind it? (i.e the character stands by good morals that are inspiring/meaningful to you).

Well, one would probably find those kinds of names preferable. But I'm sure that there's at least one fine fellow named Ganon out there, just as there's probably one modern gentleman named Adolf. You don't have to agree with or follow "evil" ideals to find a name good.

Where should you draw the line? Between established and totally obscure. Does it matter?

If the name sounds good, it wouldn't matter.

 

[lRookiel]

Depends what the name is.

Someone called their child Dovahkiin which is fucking stupid.

 

[Angie7F]

I have friends with crazy names. I used to think it was silly, but now I think it is cool because their names make an impression.

 

[Antari]

I'm currently writing an article about this and wanted more opinions on this matter, so:

Is it wrong? Silly? Stupid? [even if its an established name like April and Nathan] Why?

Is it worse than naming your child after a movie/tv show/book character? Why?

Does it matter if there is a positive background story behind it? (i.e the character stands by good morals that are inspiring/meaningful to you).

Where should you draw the line? Between established and totally obscure. Does it matter?

Those are the only questions I can come up with now, but I might add some more later.

Please comment and vote, if you wish.

In nearly all cases, the video or movie in question was not the first time the name was used. They just happen to be the most recent use of it. The name should fit the child, not the lifestyle of the parent. If the name fits the child, use it. If the child gets named just because the parent thought that character was cool, that is a bit stupid.

 

[Clowndoe]

Naming your kid Dovahkiin (example taken from above) is dumb but I'm totally naming my first-born Brynjolf.

 

[Bertylicious]

If you're a tool at school and you've got a normal name like David Schule then you'll get called a fool. If you're fun and nice* you can be called Theodore Lice and not have a problem.

Spoiler

* - "fun and nice" can be replaced with "super, super, violent" but it'll bugger up the aliteration.

 

[Baron von Blitztank]

It kind of depends on the name.
Something like Gordon, Isaac, Lara is perfectly fine. I'm even OK if you go a bit exotic with something like Valkenhayn, Mordecai, Asura or Zelda. Sometimes, however, the line can be drawn if you choose to name your child something like Dovahkiin.

 

[Wintermute_v1legacy]

My son is named Commander Shepard. When I have a daughter, her name will be Commander Shepard, too.

Also: http://blogs.babycenter.com/celebrities/robin-williams-explains-zeldas-game-name/

If it's a common name it's alright, or a name that sounds normal, at least. Zelda sounds normal enough. Naming your child Dovahkiin is pretty fucking stupid, though.

 

[Zantos]

Is it wrong? Silly? Stupid? [even if its an established name like April and Nathan] Why?
It depends, if you're looking at something like "I'm going to name my kid Spyro because I love Spyro the Dragon" then I'd consider sitting down and thinking about if it's a good idea. However, certainly names that you like the sound of, doesn't matter where you heard it really if it's a nice name.

Is it worse than naming your child after a movie/tv show/book character? Why?
Again, if you're naming after then it's just as bad, if you picked it because you liked the sound of it then it's no different.

Does it matter if there is a positive background story behind it? (i.e the character stands by good morals that are inspiring/meaningful to you).
Good guys do tend to get a lot of the good names, but essentially I'm all for liking the name rather than wanting to name it after the character, so not really.

Where should you draw the line? Between established and totally obscure. Does it matter?
On the one hand, they'll get bullied for having a weird name. On the other, they'll get bullied anyway because kids are shits. However, as much as you really might think Crash Bandicoot Smith would be a great name, I reckon they're going to struggle to get a job with a name like that. So I'd stick established/not too weird, or they're just going to have to change it anyway.

 

[Colour Scientist]

In a perfect world, you should be able to call your kid whatever the fuck you want to call them but to be kind to your child you should probably name them something that won't make their life more difficult.

If it's a video game name that isn't too out there, I don't see an issue with it.
Calling your daughter Lara is fine, Cortana, not so much.

 

[fezgod]

Naming your kid Dovahkiin (example taken from above) is dumb but I'm totally naming my first-born Brynjolf.

A name like Brynjolf can definitely work because if your kid doesn't like it, they can always use a nickname (Bryan) that sounds pretty similar to the actual name.

Is it wrong? Silly? Stupid? [even if its an established name like April and Nathan] Why?

I feel like a lot of video game character names could work, as long as they aren't incredibly weird or after an extremely famous videogame character, Pac-man, Mario, etc.

Is it worse than naming your child after a movie/tv show/book character? Why?

Nah, its pretty much the same. It could be interesting, or completely embarrassing for the child in question.

Does it matter if there is a positive background story behind it? (i.e the character stands by good morals that are inspiring/meaningful to you).

I'm not sure, I probably wouldn't name my kids after videogame characters because there aren't any videogame characters that I feel any real connection to, with the possible exception of the Fallout New Vegas companions. I also wouldn't name my son Vaas or after any other crazy, psychopathic videogame character.

Where should you draw the line? Between established and totally obscure. Does it matter?

Really, as long as the name isn't one that will cause your kid to be completely ostracized at a young age (or even as a young adult) or one that can't be easily changed into a common nickname.

 

[soren7550]

As said before, there's nothing inherently wrong with it, as long as you don't get ridiculous with it, such as naming your kid Dovahkiin, Master Chief, or 1-Up.

 

[King Aragorn]

There is nothing wrong with it. At all. I'd love to name my off spring off of a media character, and I don't see what's wrong with it. They're way cooler than normal names, anyways.
I mean, why are those names really so different? names don't just pop out, someone makes them. The only difference here is the name has been used in one or another medium.