Many people pick their kids’ names based on movies they love. Think of all the kids that were named Luke after “Star Wars” came out.
But, some fantasy names are meant to stay on the big screen.
Redditor AITANameChoice33 encountered this very issue with his wife. So he turned to the “Am I The A**hole” (AITA) subReddit for moral judgment.
He asked:
“AITA For not wanting to name my son ‘Frodo’?”
The Original Poster (OP) explained:
“My wife and I are expecting our first born together. We hadn’t discussed names until we found out the gender.”
“It’s a boy, and when the family found out we received many many name suggestions and ideas from both families. Some were pretty cool and modern boy names.”
“However when I asked my wife when we were going to discuss the name of our son and talked about the cool ideas our families sent she told me to not bother because she’s already had a name in mind and felt strongly about it.”
“I was upset obviously since she said she already decided so that was selfish in my opinion. I asked what the name was and she told me ‘Frodo’ the name immediately rang a bell.”
“My wife is a huge fan of ‘Lord Of the Rings’ and her favorite character is Frodo. She went on about how cool and unique the name is but I really didn’t think she was being serious.”
“She said I should watch the movie and see how the name sounds and I’d love it. I said no way.”
“She asked why not the movie is popular and so is the name. To me that’s the problem.”
OP doesn’t have an issue with the name itself, but with its popularity.
“Don’t get me wrong, but it’s not a name we should go with I mean I already looked up the name and it’s meaning but was mentioned that it will always be attached to that character from ‘Lord of the Rings’.”
“To me that was an instant no.”
“My wife said I was being narrow-minded and called me a dictator only because I told her this name is my hill to die on. Our son deserves a reasonable name and not be attached to a character from a movie.”
“I snapped and told her she could love the character all she wants but choosing a name for our son is a serious matter and we both should get a say. She had meltdown, gets mad and claim I’m treating her as an incubator.”
“She then went to tell my parents about how unreasonable I was being. And they got mad only because we haven’t considered the name suggestions they sent.”
“So now, I find myself arguing with my wife and my family.”
“Her sister told me that my wife gets 80% say since she’s the mother and I needed to stop stressing her out like that. My brother suggested I stop arguing with my wife about it and go behind her back and put the name I want on the B.C. but I wouldn’t do that.”
“That’s not gonna solve anything.”
“The argument continues and I think I might be the AH for still arguing about it knowing that my wife is stressed out. But I just don’t think it’s fair.”
“AITA here? Am I overreacting?”
Redditors gave their opinions on the situation by declaring:
- NTA – Not The A**hole
- YTA – You’re The A**hole
- NAH – No A**holes Here
- ESH – Everyone Sucks Here
Most Redditors agreed OP was not the a**hole.
“NTA!”
“I say this as the mother of two:”
“Baby names are strictly a 2 yeses, 1 no category. What that means is you must have two yeses to agree on one, and each parent has veto power.”
“You two need to pick a name you BOTH agree on. And stay clear of fantasy genre names, for the love of all that’s holy. A kid named Frodo is going to be tormented for having hairy feet, being short, or just having an awful name before he even gets halfway through elementary school.” ~ aSeaPersonByNight
“Agreed entirely. What if the kid doesn’t like LOTR? Or Star Wars or Harry Potter or whatever fandom you named them after. Then they’re stuck with a crappy name like Jedi or Bilbo or something that they hate and then resent you for.”
“Two yeses, one no.”
“Frodo can be baby’s nickname if she’s that passionate about it and you agree to that. That way kiddo can decide if they want to stick with it or not. Give the kid a chance for school time without bullying, and a career where he doesn’t have to embarrassed to introduce himself.”
“NTA” ~ FuriousPI314
People shared other ruined names.
“I know a girl who named her baby Kenobi and his nickname is Obi.”
“Some people should just have dogs.” ~ Writer_Life
“I know someone that named their son Strider (using the name Aragorn was too nerdy) and their daughter Éowyn.”
“Their dog is named Mark.”
“Edit: I messed up aragorns name.” ~ Pancakedruid
“Agreed. Imagine having Frodo on your driver’s license or having to put ‘Frodo’ on a resume. Everyone will 100% think it’s a joke.”
“Unique fandom names are for pets — not human beings. It’s fine to name your kid Elijah, but not Frodo lol.” ~ DylanHate
“Hey, my name is Luke and I still get the god damn line constantly.”
“NTA, try asking her if Sam is good.” ~ StarvinPig
“I know a Hermione born in 1993. She bore it with great dignity.”
“It would be super mean to call a kid that after Harry Potter was published.” ~ diagnosedwolf
Redditors said that name will make their kid hate the movie.
“I guarantee the kid will hate LOTR, the moment he finds out the reason he’s being bullied.” ~ belginiusI
“This. Naming him Frodo will GUARANTEE the son will hate LOTR and resent his mother for it.”
“Take a look for the girl who is pissed at her mother because she was named after Hermione and her mom forced Harry Potter onto her all her life.”
“Get a pet and name it Frodo. My cat is named Xander after the BTVS character, he always gets excited when I watch it and he will watch it with me.” ~ Prydeb4thefall
Maybe try a different name from the franchise, like Samwise or Glorfindel.