A man has sparked a huge debate online after exposing his bitter battle with his wife over their baby’s name, claiming she had a ‘unique’ name while he wasn’t here for her ‘weird hippie’ – suggestions.
The man, 30, spoke about the argument on Reddit this week under the subreddit Am I the A**hole?
In his post, the father-to-be revealed that he and his wife, 28, are expecting a baby girl in March.
But he explained that they found it extremely difficult to find a name they both like, and admitted that he started to worry that they might never “come to an agreement.”
A man has sparked a huge debate online after exposing his bitter battle with his wife over their baby’s name (stock image)
The man, 30, spoke about the argument on Reddit this week under the subreddit Am I the A**hole? and begged the internet for help
He said they had “very different ideas” when it came to what they wanted to name their daughter, and that this has created a major rift between them.
According to the man, his wife is against anything that is “too classic or normal” and prefers names that he finds “much more modern and unique.”
He said he suggested names like Elizabeth, Emily, Natasha, Hannah, Katherine, Francesca, Matilda, Annabelle, Isabelle, Vivienne and Sadie, but they were all vetoed.
As for his wife, she has recommended names like Skye, Indie, River, Ocean, Seraphina, Atlas, Clove, Dove, Asteria, Lennox, Ember and Wynter.
“We have thrown out hundreds if not thousands of names,” the exasperated husband wrote.
‘Every time I ask her why she doesn’t like one of the more famous/common classic names, she says…she thinks they’re boring or old and she doesn’t like that.
‘I told her that it would be better for our child to grow up with a name that sounds normal, rather than one that was made up to be unique.
‘She told me she would never agree to a name like Elizabeth or Amelia (another name I suggested).
The man’s post quickly went viral, receiving nearly 4,000 comments and mixed reactions from users
“And I told her I wouldn’t agree with a unique or weird hippie name for our daughter.”
The man wrote that his wife said she would not be “forced to change her tastes” and described his “description of her names” as “dishonest.”
He begged the internet for advice on the subject, concluding: “I can tell she is bothered by my choice of words, but I can tell she is also frustrated and feels that our daughter’s due date is also hanging over us. Am I the hole?’
The man’s post quickly went viral, receiving nearly 4,000 comments and mixed reactions from users.
“You’re an asshole if you dismiss the names Asteria and Seraphina/Serafina as ‘modern’, ‘hippie’ names when they are hundreds if not thousands of years old,” someone replied. “Go find other reasons to say you don’t like those names.”
“You’re the asshole,” another agreed. ‘You are so opposed to all her ideas that you no longer dare to compromise.
“And honestly, if you don’t agree, doesn’t the person risking her life to deliver the baby get to choose?
“She’s doing all the hard work with all the fun hormones… let the woman name the baby.”
Someone else wrote: ‘You’re the asshole – you could have explained your choices without being rude and insulting.’
A fourth comment read: ‘You’re absolutely fine with having a name preference, but it seems like you’ve just decided that EVERYTHING your wife suggests is ‘modern and hippie’ even though it clearly isn’t.
Others, however, took his side. A fifth said: ‘Not that hole, and please show this to your wife – I’m a middle-aged woman whose parents wanted to give me a ‘unique’ name in the 1970s, something no one in England had ever heard of .
‘I spent most of my childhood telling people my name and laughing at them, mangling the pronunciation, and one teacher even refused to call me such a ‘silly name’.
“You’re not just giving a baby a cute name, you’re giving an adult a name, someone who will have to introduce themselves by whatever name you give them next.”
‘Not the hole. We’re expecting in May and the only thing we agree on 100 percent is to give the bub a name that is suitable for a baby, toddler, eight year old, sixteen year old etc.,” another user added.
‘One that sounds great to shout on the playground, but also to apply for a job in twenty years’ time.’
Some people said they were both wrong and gave them some advice on how to reach an agreement peacefully.
“You both need to be able to compromise,” one person urged. Someone else commented: ‘It’s okay to have different preferences but you insult each other. You’ll have to make a compromise.’
“It feels like at this point you’re both rejecting names for the sake of rejecting them and refusing to let the other person ‘win,’” another commenter theorized.
“I’d advise you guys to leave the subject for at least a week and then figure it out together, because if you can’t come up with a damn name for your kid together, you’re not going to work as parents.”
Go through old names, there might be one you both can accept (like Elvina),” another user suggested.
Another said: ‘What about flower based names? They have been used historically, but are also cool and give an impulse to the hippie trend that your wife loves.’