Should children be judged on their names? Debate on This Morning

[arlene]

Mods, if this is better suited in the News& Debates section then please feel free to move it.

For the UK ladies here, did anyone see This Morning today? Katie Hopkins was on saying that she judges her childrens friends.by their names. For example, she would never let her children be friends with a Tyler, Chardonnay, Charmaine, Jayden or Brandon (those were names she quoted). In her opinion these children are obviously from working class families, they are the trouble makers at school and would be a bad influence on her children. She doesn't like season names, geographical names, celebrity names.

My personal opinion is that she's talking absolute drivel. While they are not names I would choose for my children, I certainly wouldn't stop my kids from being friends with them at school, it's cruel! What I find utterly laughable about this woman is that she was very critical of geographical names like London or Brooklyn but named her daughter India!!

Thoughts and opinions? Is this something you do as a mum or is it just another excuse for mums to judge each other?

 

[JJKCB]

she sounds like a prat lol

who is she to dictate who her kids can be friends with, when I was little my mam and the neighbors had a huge argument and stopped us kids playing together, before we where best friends and spent every day together and then we where 'forced' to hate each other - dont think it was nice for anyone, just made life awkward

as for names yes you make automatic opinions on names but NOT of the child, the child wasn't responsible for there name so that's not fair at all (i.e when I hate grace I personally think it uncreative or when I hear anything with an X or Z other than classics like Alex then I think trying to hard to be trendy but would think badly of the child, no offense to anyone who's chose those names)

what I judge a child on is there attitude but even that has to have a pinch of salt a young ages, for instance I was shocked the other day outside of nursery the kids where running everywhere and there parents just didn't care, I had to tell one mam repeatedly where her kid had run away to (he actually fell down a flight of stairs and hurt himself because she wasn't watching and was too busy chatting on the phone) and the others weren't much different, my son was the only one that sat down and didn't move - but once again how much is the child's fault and how much the adults fault?

 

[special_kala]

Children shouldnt be judged full stop and certainly not by adults.

 

[Kate&Lucas]

No, if course children shouldn't be judged on their names. There are those who do it though.

When I was pregnant the first person I went to with any potential baby names was a lovely colleague of mine who used to be a primary school teacher. She would tell me that the first impression her and her colleagues would get from a child was the list of names on the register, and certain names would be perceived as trouble makers before they'd even opened their mouths.
I originally wanted Lucas to be named Thomas (his Dad's name) but she talked me out of it because along with his middle name (John) he'd have been nicknamed TJ. In her words "every TJ I've taught was a little shit!"

It probably should have bothered me, but it really did! The last thing I wanted was teachers and other parents making judgments on my son. Now he has probably the most popular boys' name in my area so it doesn't really matter

 

[sue_88]

It isn't new, she's already written an 'article' (term used VERY loosly) about the exact same thing.

She's a prat and shouldn't be given the time of day, & no one should rise to her stupidity.

 

[Andypanda6570]

That is the most stupidest thing I have ever heard. Have NO idea who she is, but she must be an idiot

 

[xemmax]

I do judge people, not just children, on their names, yes. I make initial judgements of people on whatever information is available to me, it's completely natural.

Names conjure up stereotypes and that's what I think of. We all make assumptions about people before we know them and to do this we go by whatever we know of them.

Making an assumption about someone based on their name is completely different to treating that person differently because of their name though. Yeah I may assume someone may be X, Y or Z when I hear their name but that does not mean I would stop my children from playing with them on the basis of their name. That's discriminatory which is different.

 

[Pearls18]

No, I judge the parents for children's names I don't like lol (silently!!!!!)

 

[xemmax]

No, I judge the parents for children's names I don't like lol (silently!!!!!)

I definitely do this.

 

[Tasha]

I will just copy what I wrote some where else this morning about it.

Mine are probably what some would consider 'chavvy' (Morgan William, Naomi-Mae, Honey, Kaysie Blossom and Riley Rae) and I dont give a damn what people think, I adore their names and I think they all suit them. The next names we use will probably be what people consider chavvy too but again I love them, my little people love them, so why would I care what judgemental people think?

If someone name isn't to my personal taste then I would never consider it a reflection on either the child or the parents, other than we have different taste in names. Not exactly a big deal.

The thing is she is professional troll isnt she? Gets paid for writing the most judgemental thing possible, the bigger the reaction the more she gets paid next time

 

[arlene]

I agree she's nothing more than a professional troll. She was on This Morning a couple of weeks ago saying big is never beautiful. I'm sure her comment was "I'm sick of being told people who are overweight have emotional issues and we ahould feel sorry for them. They're just too lazy to exercise". She's a very small and close minded person. The funny thing this morning was that Phillip and Holly honestly didn't know what to say to her.

 

[Bex84]

I will just copy what I wrote some where else this morning about it.

Mine are probably what some would consider 'chavvy' (Morgan William, Naomi-Mae, Honey, Kaysie Blossom and Riley Rae) and I dont give a damn what people think, I adore their names and I think they all suit them. The next names we use will probably be what people consider chavvy too but again I love them, my little people love them, so why would I care what judgemental people think?

If someone name isn't to my personal taste then I would never consider it a reflection on either the child or the parents, other than we have different taste in names. Not exactly a big deal.

The thing is she is professional troll isnt she? Gets paid for writing the most judgemental thing possible, the bigger the reaction the more she gets paid next time

They arnt what i would think of as chavy. I love all your los names. I had someone tell me my los name is posh lol but it suits her and has personal meaning. I was a teacher and seen teachers judge by name alot. Me and dh got put off of certain names but only since we both connected names with certain children we taught. Doesent mean every child of that name is like that but it had negative connection for us. Children are more than a name and my lo can be friends with who she wants

 

[RedRose]

I do judge people, not just children, on their names, yes. I make initial judgements of people on whatever information is available to me, it's completely natural.

Names conjure up stereotypes and that's what I think of. We all make assumptions about people before we know them and to do this we go by whatever we know of them.

Making an assumption about someone based on their name is completely different to treating that person differently because of their name though. Yeah I may assume someone may be X, Y or Z when I hear their name but that does not mean I would stop my children from playing with them on the basis of their name. That's discriminatory which is different.

Yeah I was gonna say this, but in a much more clumsy and much less concise way

Lily is like a mega chav name apparently, and people literally recoil when I say Beatrix but anyone who treats them unfairly because of their name is probably someone I wouldn't want to be their friend anyway. So yeah, not a lot of friendships happening apparently

 

[xemmax]

I don't think Lily is a chavvy name at all, certainly not around here anyway! And Beatrix is gorgeous. Tasha I told my OH your children's names the other day and he says you have the best taste - which peed me off as I struggle soo much to get him to agree with me on baby names but he loves all of yours!

I have been told several times that Olivers are all really naughty (or 'little shits' as an old man once told me). We'll see

 

[Bex84]

Every oliver i have taught has been really sweet, and usually never at centre of any trouble

 

[xemmax]

Every oliver i have taught has been really sweet, and usually never at centre of any trouble

Oh I hope you're right!

 

[Bex84]

I really love the name oliver due to i have always found every little boy i taught named this to be really sweet and usually popular. Thats my positive steriotype lol there isnt any names i would pre judge a child on.

 

[Tasha]

Thanks Bex and thanks Mr Emma.

Lily is not chavvy here nor Beatrix.

I've known lots of Oliver's and they've all been lovely, except for my cousin.

 

[lhancock90]

Absolutely not.
What your parents choose to name you has no effect on the person you will become. It's ridiculous.

 

[steph.]

No I dont judge the children, and certainly wouldnt limit my kid's friendships because of names.

But i caught myself judging someone based on a name yesterday. I am on the market for a used car as I crashed mine last week, and called two different people with pretty much the exact same car. One was a retired gentleman named John, and the other was a young woman with what I would consider a bogan/chavvy/neddy name (I better not say what it is in case I offend someone here!). I cant help it, but I am much more inclined to buy the car from John , how unfair is that?!