choosing names for children

[meredith101]

I want to call my first daughter Elizabeth but my husband thinks that 'Beth' is better, and my choice is too quaint. But the birth certificate will hold 'Elizabeth' by default, is this correct?

[PortlandBill]

Birth certificate will say what you tell it to, the registrar will ask you to spell it all out. This s a freedom, hence the plethora of daft names about these days. My suggestion is to go for Elizabeth and then call your daughter beth indoors, that way she can choose to elaborate as she feels fit whens she comes of age. Daft names, without a bank account full of money or a very famous mum/dad are, IMHO, cruel.

[JK2]

The birth certificate will only say Elizabeth if that is what you register her as - you can still choose to call her Beth as a short version of Elizabeth but she will always legally be Elizabeth, known as Beth..

However if you intend her name to be Beth you could register her as Beth - and that will then be her name.

[VillageVicar]

When my daughter was born we preferred to take traditional Anglo names. Hence the first name of Mary. Her middle name is actually French, but is an amalgam of many traditional names that over time have been shortened in our society. Annisabelle. But what I found fascinating, just as with our son, was that from the moment of birth, regardless of what the children�s intended names were, our cornucopia of endearments always prevailed. Mary endured the name �Baby Mary� until she was about three, then became �Mary-Anne� for a brief period, then evolved into �Miss M.� Our son, whose Christian name is William Richard, from the seconds he was born became �Willem.� (or in gushing moments of adoration, �Willem-Dillum.� And over time, with moments of �Will, William, Wilbur (how cruel), he has comfortably and rather permanently nestled into Willem. I think what you�ll find is that with such a beautiful name as Elizabeth, it will always prevail. But no matter how you try, society, relatives, and Elizabeth�s friends will do some on-the-spot editing and whittle down her name to Beth. And if this is your first child, I�d suggest that when the moment comes when there�s laundry on the floor, water spilling out of the tub, a roast burning in the oven, a cat screaming from within the tumble dryer, and a couple of Jehovah Witnesses knocking at your door, you might find it requires the last breath of your life to utter the monosyllabic name of �Beth,� and you�ll quickly find your hubby�s slightly lazier approach to her name was actually a blessing in disguise!

Congratulations on your pending arrival! Fr. Bill
http://www.bigworldsmallboat.blogspot.com

[meredith101]

wow great answers thanks. monumental answer, vicar! Annisabelle sounds lovely. You should call one of your bells 'Ann'........

[natalie_1982]

My baby is due in April and if it is a girl we have decided on Bella, however I understand that she may not appreciate this when she is older and so we have decided to register her and Christen her as Isabella. I hope people never call her this, but it gives her the choice of adapting it when she is older if she wants to! Thus, if I was you I would put Elizabeth on the birth cert but call her Beth, that way she can choose herself what suits when she is older. Hope this helps x

[B00]

I love old fashioned names, like Beth and Isabella. My friend's daughter is called Isabella and it's always shortened to Bella.

[VillageVicar]

That's cute Meredith! My children certainly call me a ding-dong from time to time! Be well! +Fr. Bill

http://bigworldsmallboat.blogspot.com/2006/03/ book-in-attic.html

[natalie_1982]

Boo, someone reminded me that one of the Tweenies is Bella which is why we thought Isabella would be nicer for her. Could be worse though, Fizz or Doodles aren't on my name list.


Yet.

[meredith101]

too cool vicar, what a great site!

[VillageVicar]

meredith and all, I owe an apology as I provided that link. I didn't realise I ought not to have....so again..apologies. I wasn't selling anything... crum...I even get in trouble on a Sunday! :-)

[mrs_overall]

I know someone who had the identical dilemma to you!
Her parents registered as Elizabeth but called her Beth.
However, when she started secondary school she suddenly decided she wanted to be known as Lizzie. At 14 she changed schools again. There was another girl of the same name in the same class so she started calling herself Lil. She's 25 now and still prefers to be called Lil.

[Beads]

Hi Meredith - I can see your q has been answered but I just wanted to pop by and say how nice I think the Village Vicar is!

[VillageVicar]

Thank you Beads! That's awfully kind of you...don't suppose I get you to say that to my Bishop? :-)

Thank you again for your kind comment.

Be well

+Fr. Bill