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Redditor Urges Sister To Rethink Baby Name Inspired By Her Love Of The ‘Yellowstone’ TV Series

Kevin Costner in Yellowstone.
Paramount+

The sky is truly the limit when it comes to naming children.

Many parents like to stay conventional and stick with family names, even making some children the second, third, or fourth in their lineage.

Other modern parents like to be a little more inventive, sometimes naming their children nouns or adjectives which are not found on any list of the most common names.

Sometimes children embrace these unorthodox names as they grow up. Other times they are less than thrilled with their given name and waste no time changing it when they have the chance.

When Redditor No_Marzipan_8558 learned of the name their sister was planning on giving her daughter, they had serious reservations.

But when the Original Poster (OP) shared these reservations with their sister, their concerns were greeted with anything but appreciation.

Worried that they may have overstepped, the OP took to the subReddit “Am I The A**hole” (AITA), where they asked fellow Redditors:

“AITA for telling my sister she needs to name her baby like he will grow up and not give him a ‘cool’ baby name?”

The OP shared why they felt the name their sister was planning on giving her future son was going to backfire in the future.

“My sister is obsessed with the show ‘Yellowstone.'”

“Her husband is willing to do anything to make her happy.”

“They want to name their baby Cowboy.”

“I know I should have kept my mouth shut.”

“It’s not my circus or my monkey.”

“I just know the absolute sh*t that kid will go through.”

“So I told her to consider that she was naming a person who would eventually be an adult.”

“Our mom and dad at least had the decency to only give me Danger as a middle name.”

“Yes, I’ve seen the f*cking movie.”

“She thinks I’m an a**hole for calling her name choice stupid.”

“I think I’m trying to save him from a lifetime of bullying until he legally changes his name.”

“AITA?”

Fellow Redditors weighed in on where they believed the OP fell in this particular situation by declaring:

  • NTA – Not The A**hole
  • YTA – You’re The A**hole
  • NAH – No A**holes Here
  • ESH – Everyone Sucks Here

The Reddit community unanimously agreed that the OP was not the a**hole for urging their sister to reconsider naming her son Cowboy.

Everyone agreed with the OP that their sister’s child was bound to be bullied for his name down the line and was only thinking of their future nephew’s feelings.

“I’m surprised she didnt want to throw some flair on the spelling.”

“Maybe like Khaowbhoy.”

“NTA.”- rbfking

“As a veteran teacher, I thought I had heard all the awful names.”

“Nope, this one makes it to the top 5.”

“Tell your sister a teacher, who will have to call out that name at school every day, is telling her it is a terrible idea.”- Safe-Amphibian-1238

“NTA.”

“That name qualifies as a ‘tragedeigh’.”- Strawberry338338

“NTA.”

“I guess someone liked the guitar picker on Yellowstone.”

“Of course, if she paid attention, she might have noticed he called himself that so he wouldn’t have to give his actual name.”- srgonzo75

“Cowboy makes a fine NICKNAME for a baby.”

“Now what’s his legal name going to be?”- ParsimoniousSalad

“NTA that’s a dumba** name.”- twilight_sparkle7511

“Tell your sister that she should never name her child a name that the kid would be ashamed of if they got a job and had to sign documents.”

“I had a friend whose mom was into double names.”

“Missy May’s mom can’t figure out why she doesn’t sign her loan documents with her first name.”

“Yes, I didn’t say you couldn’t call the baby whatever you said you wanted to call it.”

“Nicknames are fantastic but give the kid a name that he can live with for the rest of his life.”

“NTA.”- sarcasticclown007

“NTA.”

“Lmao, I hope they never take the kid to an actual rodeo or cowboy town. He’d be bullied to death.”

“I live in Alberta, and I hate to think how the ranchers would react if I introduced my son to them with that name.”

“Seriously, if she wants to name him something Western, then go for something like Wyatt, Buck, Jesse, Jack, etc.”

“I mean, the ranchers I know personally are all called things like Bob, James, Scott, Tom, or John, but nothing screams Townie like calling your kid Cowboy.”

“I can’t wait to show this to the old timers.”- PettyTrashPanda

“Imagine being at an interview and having to tell them that your name is cowboy.”

“You’re NTA.”- Penncil_

“NTA.”

“You tried.”

“Poor kid’s gonna get hell in high school, college and rest of his life.”- avonpurple

“NTA.”

“Could have named the baby Rip. Kayce. John. Jake. Mo.”

“TEETER EVEN.”

“They chose Cowboy it ain’t right.”- keepingupwithcats

“NTA, that’s one of the dumbest names I have heard on here.”

“They are doing that child a disservice.”- SugarFries

“He’s going to hear, ‘Moo’, constantly from his classmates.”

“The names he will be called are going to be endless.”- Suspicious-Grand9781

“NTA!.”

“Can’t with some comments here.”

“Only Americans fighting for a name that’s not a name.”

“In Europe, it’s not even possible to name your child ridiculous things like that.”

“Sh*t like this is child abuse imo.”

“Poor kid gonna hear ‘yeehaww’ his whole life.”- Cherricochet

“I’ll be the first to defend an unconventional name choice, but this is just cruel.”

“NTA.”

“However, Cao Boi, the Vietnamese survivor player- super cool.”- Shelbasaur1993

“JFC.”

“Why do people hate their babies?”

“NTA.”- Specialist_Grass5323

“NTA.”

“Cowboy is a stupid name.”

“Interesting stat: women with weird names are treated the same as women with normal names (that is to say, not equal to men, but at least it doesn’t make things worse), but boys with weird names are treated as ‘less than’ (make less money, get fewer jobs) as boys with classic names.”

“Don’t mess up your boys – Give them normal names.”- FortuneTellingBoobs

“NTA.”

“I am an adult male, and my middle name is Maria because of some religious thing of my parents.”

“You are saving that kid some torment.”

“And probably some money for a legal name change as you said.”- Timely-Ask-1327

“NTA.”

“Signed an actual Montanan who laughs at everyone who thinks ‘Yellowstone’ is even remotely real.”

“This one made me laugh.”- montwhisky

“NTA.”

“Children need a name that won’t make them stand out as having weird parents.”

“Cowboy as a nickname or even a middle name is reasonable but not a first name.”-OwnedByACrazyCat

“NTA.”

“A lot of people are saying it’s none of your business, but I disagree, and here’s why:”

“This is horrible parenting.”

“They’re setting their kid up for years of bullying, which can lead to self-esteem and anger issues.”

“And if he gets bullied in school, that will definitely impact his learning.”

“Plus, once he’s an adult, that name will look awful on job applications, and even if he changes it, the original name will still be findable online or in the paper trail, so he can never completely leave it behind.”

“I think when we see people making horrible parenting mistakes, ones that can actually hurt their kids, it’s not just okay, but morally required to speak up.”- Acatinmylap

“NTA.”

“Name is whack.”- OpeningChipmunk1700

“Oh, good lord.”

“That poor kid.”

“Cowboy is fine as a nickname, but what the actual hell is she thinking?”

“Also, INFO: is she from somewhere out west where there are actual cowboys, or is she just a basic suburban white girl who wants to give her kid a ‘unique’ name?”

“I really hope someone is able to talk some sense into her before she goes through with it.”

“NTA for telling her the name is ridiculous.”- Artillery_Cat

“NTA.”

“Babies are people, not accessories.”- Chelular07

“NTA.”

“You said your peace, and when ‘Cowboy’ is 9 and mentions how much they hate their name, and you get to say ‘I tried to talk your parents out of it. Let’s go get ice cream’.”- caprainyoung

“All I can imagine is that poor kid filling out a job application.”

“NTA.”- xenelfie

“NTA.”

“Tell them to give it that as a middle name if they feel the need, but I agree that Cowboy is just stupid.”

“And well, my mother didn’t know that my first name means ‘idiot’ in Latin.”

“All she knew was that it is an uncommon but well-known name in Spanish-speaking countries.”- MX-Nacho

“NTA.”

“While I like the show Yellowstone, I can’t imagine a grown adult having the name Cowboy?”

“Sounds cute for a nickname or even a middle name, but how is he going to be taken seriously in the real world when he grows up?”- Serious-Day5968

It’s understandable that parents would want to be original when it comes to naming their children.

But ultimately, while it is their choice, it’s the children who ultimately must live with their decision.

And the last thing any parent would want for their children is endless bullying.

One can only hope that the OP’s sister will come to realize that a name like “Cowboy” practically begs to be ridiculed.

Written by John Curtis

A novelist, picture book writer and native New Yorker, John is a graduate of Syracuse University and the children's media graduate program at Centennial College. When not staring at his computer monitor, you'll most likely find John sipping tea watching British comedies, or in the kitchen, taking a stab at the technical challenge on the most recent episode of 'The Great British Baking Show'.