Psychologists are finding that more choices often lead to more paralysis and regret, and baby names seem to be no exception. "There isn't hard data, partially because I don't know of any accessible data on name changes," said baby-name expert Laura Wattenberg. "But as a percentage of my mail … remorse from parents who have already chosen names is rising."Further details and relevant links at Live Science.
According to Wattenberg, it took a list of six names to cover half of the population of children born in England in 1800 (U.S. Social Security Administration records don't begin until 1880). By 1950 in the United States, that number was up to 79. Today, it takes 546 names to cover half of the population of U.S. babies...
"I think we're all a little too scared about changing an infant's name," she said. Very young babies get called by a variety of nicknames anyway, she pointed out, and they're unlikely to care or notice a name switch early on.
But the best bet may be heading off name remorse before birth. 'The chances that you need to look beyond the 25,000 best names is very slim," Wattenberg said, adding that after a certain point, baby name books are just throwing in "the dregs."
Photo credit: This photo has circulated for years on the 'net, typically uncredited, and I've never been able to trace its source - until yesterday, when I backtracked it to a portfolio by Elliott Erwitt (via First Time User)
ليست هناك تعليقات:
إرسال تعليق