r/AITAH • u/Impossible-Staff92 • 18h ago
AITAH for changing my niece's stripper name when I got got custody?
I think it will become obvious that my sister and I have taken very different paths in life. I love her very much but she is not well. I have had custody of my niece since she was six months old. My sister is going to jail for at least the next seven years. She is ineligible for parole for that long. So that's a minimum.
My niece's name is s perfect example of my sister's thought process. Honest to God she named her Synnamin. Pronounced cinnamon.
I have had my sister's parental rights severed. My parents and her fought me on it. Don't care. My parents have never contributed to her upbringing. But they have given lots of unwanted advice.
I adopted my daughter and changed her name to Simone. My parents think I'm being cruel to my sister. What my sister thinks is not allowed here. The filters told me that particular obscenity wasn't part of posts here. It starts with a c. Try it yourself if you don't believe me.
So I feel completely justified in changing her name. I do not think I'm wrong. I am not looking for validation. I want to know if I'm missing something that my parents and sister can't communicate coherently.
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u/sapperbloggs 16h ago
I completely misunderstood the title and thought OP had just found a better stripper name for their niece
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u/Impossible-Staff92 16h ago
OMG
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u/AnneMichelle98 15h ago
In that case, you should have gone with ever classic name “Candy” or if you wanted to take a page out of your sister’s book “Kandi” 😂
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u/Dismal_Illustrator96 14h ago
"Khandeigh"
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u/rocky8u 12h ago
Ghengis' favorite sweet.
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u/MajorNoodles 11h ago
And Captain Kirk's least
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u/poorly-worded 10h ago
KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANdeigh
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u/avesthasnosleeves 10h ago
You both are making me laugh waaaaay too early in the morning! 😂
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u/Available_Leather_10 11h ago
Best served on rich Corinthian leather.
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u/Substantial_Shoe_360 7h ago
OMG, I just remembered the old Chrysler commercial with Ricardo Montalbon. God I'm old 😂
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u/ratsta 13h ago
I taught English overseas for a few years. Students all took an English name. It seems that a book of 100-year old British names gets passed around in primary school and many take a name from that so I taught a lot of young people (teens and uni age) with names like Tom, Victor, Florence, Amelia, etc.
A handful would make their own name which resulted in some interesting ones. At a uni I had female students named Girl, Secret and Bob, a guy named Greenleaf (he adored Lord of the Rings and named himself after Legolas (the name means green-leaf)) and one who named himself Ptchy, pronounced as a single syllable "ptchee". k...
But at least half of the girls gave themselves stripper names because the literal meaning was something sweet, cute or valuable. Candy was #1 by a mile followed by Kitty and Crystal but I also met so many named Jade, Amber, Cherry, Coco, etc. and I couldn't do anything about it! There's just no way that it was appropriate for a middle aged white guy to say to a girl/woman between 14 and 22 that she has a stripper name!
Best I could do was recommend at the start of each semester or intake that students hit the net, search popular baby names for their year of birth, choose one from the top 100 then let me know at the next lesson. That would ensure it's a widely recognised name that is appropriate for their generation.
{Please forgive me future people, for a generation of non-native speakers named Jayden, Brayden, Kaeden & McKensleigh!}
I did have one success though. A student about age 30 had a category one name, "Fanny". A hundred years ago, no problemo. Today? Yeah... potentially problematic. I couldn't tell her directly because that may have caused her great embarrassment, even if it was handled 1 on 1. Fortunately I had an opportunity to mention it to a mutual friend. I explained the US and UK meanings of the words. "Oh! I'll let her know!" Next lesson I greeted the student by name as I always did and with a slight smile she asked, "I'd like to change my English name, if that's OK." Certainly, what would you like? Pleased to meet you, Alice!
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u/quandjereveauxloups 11h ago
I explained the US and UK meanings of the words
I find it funny that they're two different things. For those who don't know, in the US, fanny is the butt. In the UK, fanny is the vagina (or vulva, I think?).
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u/LimitlessMegan 10h ago
Understandably, pros from the UK think the term “fanny pack” is hilarious.
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u/quandjereveauxloups 9h ago
I'll bet. That was actually one of my first thoughts when I found out the difference in meaning of the word. I grew up when fanny packs were super popular. We also called them butt-bags.
But the UK meaning was actually closer, because most people wore them in the front.
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u/Llyon_ 11h ago
I was teaching overseas in 2016 and most kids had those kind of names, but we had two "Ironman"'s. I told them Ironman's name was Tony, and they didn't believe me.
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u/DullBicycle7200 6h ago
To be fair, I find it very difficult to believe that that spoiled playboy Tony Stark is Iron Man. Next you're gong to tell me that Bruce Wayne is Batman?
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u/UsedCommunity1257 12h ago
my cousin taught elementary school in SC for many years and kept track of the “interesting” names. Hall of Fame: she had a kid in her class named Mustarda. She thought, Oh no she didn’t, looked for relatives in other classes, and no lie I promise—found Ketchuppa (unsure sp). OMG 😂
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u/PalpatineForEmperor 10h ago
We'll have to get them together with a girl I went to high school with named Pepper Ann Salt.
Maybe have them start a band named Condiment Protocol.
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u/JohnExcrement 9h ago
Be sure to invite my aunt’s friend’s daughter, Kai Ann Pepper (don’t know the actual spelling).
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u/Kimothy42 9h ago
Pepper Ann was a cartoon when I was a kid (born 1988) but Salt as a last name is just 🤯 and I can’t say I hate it… but I probably would if I had to hear how interesting it was throughout my whole life.
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u/UsedCommunity1257 11h ago
Runner-up: she chaperoned a student trip to DC. Maybe not a great chaperone, a girl got pregnant on the trip. She named her son…Trip D’Washinton. I swear on my mother’s eyes this is true 😂
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u/fuzzysteezehurder 9h ago
My wife teaches elementary and had siblings named a'miracle and a'blessin in her school.
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u/Turbulent_Display749 10h ago
most of the folks at work have picked an english name. Some are cool, some are not as much. but it's great that they get to pick.
I feel like life would be simpler if you could pick a 'professional' name at some point for a lot of people
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u/Lola7321 10h ago edited 5h ago
First let me say that I know this isnt your doing, but Ive always thought it was very sad that people in other countries felt the need to americanize their names or assimilate to English names. The expectation that everyone speak English is one thing, but can we not put effort into pronouncing someones given name? Names have so much meaning and connection to family and culture and the expectation that they lose/trade that is rather tragic.
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u/20I6 10h ago
There are alot of women called crystal, jade, amber and cherry though?
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u/ADHD_McChick 9h ago
When I was in 8th grade, my language teacher taught us Spanish, and assigned us all Hispanic (? I'm sorry if that's the wrong descriptor; I'm not sure how to say it) names. My first name starts with an L. So my teacher gave me the name "Lolita".
When I started my freshman Spanish class the next year (high school, different school), we again had to take names that fit the class, but this time we got to pick our own. I wanted to keep Lolita, because I was used to it. But my new teacher wouldn't let me, because of the book, and the implications thereof. Even though this was 1995, the book came out all the way back in 1955 (and the movie wasn't even a thing, because it wouldn't be out for 2 more years, at the time). It was a Catholic school, and she very consecutive teacher, even by the school's standards, lol.
But, it was her class, and her rules.
Thus, I became "Lucía".
And I learned about the book 'Lolita', of which I had never heard, until then, lol.
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u/Lmaris 10h ago
“Kitty” has been a diminutive of Katherine for centuries. I wouldn’t consider it a stripper name. Candy too comes from Candace…like Candace Bergen. Spelling matters. Kandi = stripper. Pussy = stripper. Candy & Kitty not stripper.
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u/iGlutton 14h ago
One of my high school teachers, the woodshop/drama teacher who was very good looking, got married the summer before I got into his class. When the class found out his new wife's name was Candy, the first thing a senior asked was, "Isn't that a stripper name?"
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u/MNConcerto 12h ago
I work with a Candi, that is her legal name. I question her parent's thought process on that because they are otherwise very stable and successful people.
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u/Signal_Historian_456 11h ago
Was super confused why your underage niece is a stripper and why your biggest concern with it is her name😭😭
But no, NTA
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u/skyfulloftar 14h ago
well, that IS a better stripper name. i like my strippers to be educated enough to hold a conversation or at least know how to spell condiments.
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u/mrandr01d 11h ago
Knowing the difference between condiments and spices is a plus too 😁
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u/anony-gurl 18h ago
NTA. I think you’ve made a really nice transition of her name that sounds great and is much easier to read and pronounce. The courts do not terminate parental rights on a whim. You have stepped up and kept your niece in the family and are now her mom!
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u/malorthotdogs 17h ago
The courts also don’t typically sentence someone to a minimum of seven years in prison before the idea of parole even begins to be thrown around on a whim. My dad had drug charges and a felony assault charge for beating up a minor and only got a total of like two and a half years and was out on parole in a little over half a year.
I don’t want to belittle anyone’s mental health or potential addiction struggles because that shit runs rampant in my family. I also don’t know the full story about whether there might also be some sort of systemic oppression/bias that maybe amplified legal actions taken against OP’s sister. But the quick loss of custody, total severance of parental rights, and amount of time in prison before parole is even the smallest whiff of a possibility is really adding up to OP’s sister being an incredibly shitty person who should not be permitted to raise children.
My excellent grandma wasn’t able to get us away from my trashbag dad and addict mom until I was technically already legally an adult and my brother was a teenager. OP, you have given your now daughter an immense gift. She has safety, stability, sanity, and love in her life with you. Every time your daughter’s birth giver and absent grandparents try to give you shit or guilt you, just remind yourself of all of the awful things and toxic bullshit she won’t have to go through because she’s got you in her corner and be proud of that you gave her that gift.
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u/Sugar_Kowalczyk 15h ago
Yes!
To add - I grew up with a long, unusual, MISSPELLED name my mom thought was pretty. I have had ONE person guess the correct pronunciation, my whole life.
It sucked. Parents who use their babies as personal branding suck.
Naming a child something difficult to pronounce is one thing - but impossible to pronounce AND tacky AF once you do is another altogether.
You did good, OP.
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u/StormBeyondTime 14h ago
My name is a far less common variation on a very common name. (There were three with the common version in my graduating class. I work with two alternate spellings of the common name!)
It was picked because it sounds good with my maiden last name. But besides English teachers, only a couple people have pronounced it correctly the first time. (The biggest problem is saying one vowel long instead of short.)
I don't even want to think what that poor little girl would have gone through!
NTAH
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u/TheVisciousViscount 14h ago
Is this a sort of "there's two girls named Kate and one girl named Cait" situation?
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u/StormBeyondTime 13h ago
Think more Katherine and Katrina type names. Only more closely related.
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u/UndrwhelmingGenitals 12h ago
I had to stalk your profile to make sure you weren't my wife 😂.
Same deal - fairly common name, but spelled and pronounced differently. My BIL told me he ended up with his baby momma at a party because he could spell her name correctly and thought he had the cheat code because "that's my sister's name". Except it wasn't. Her father apologized to her a few years before he died for giving her the name. She stopped talking to her family when, after 45 years her brother still spells her name incorrectly and did so in their father's obituary.
Just to pour a little more salt in the wound, she used to have a common last name (think Jones or Wilson) and when she took my last name got another name that is always misspelled and mispronounced. Poor girl can't catch a break. Lucky for me, she loves me so she puts up with it (and a lot more).
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u/tunavomit 13h ago
My mom couldn't spell at all, every one of our name is misspelled in the worst way, imagine Ys where there should be an I, etc.
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u/cardinal29 13h ago
The /r/tragedeigh sub is full of people who spell their baby's name wrong ON PURPOSE!
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u/Sugar_Kowalczyk 11h ago
Mine's too uncommon to post there. But I stand guard. We all stand guard at the Cusps of Tragedeigh To save the children.
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u/TheRoseByAnotherName 14h ago
My husband's uncle served 7 years of a 10 year sentence for manslaughter. He was eligible for parole at 5.
OP's sister either messed up bad or pissed off the wrong people if parole isn't on the table for 7 years.
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u/Stormtomcat 15h ago
I agree: Cinnamon to Simone is such a respectful upgrade.
It's not like OP renamed her to OP-Junior or something, eh?
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u/g2petter 15h ago
Cinnamon to Simone is such a respectful upgrade
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u/SalvatoreStephensh 14h ago
You didn’t change her name out of spite you changed it to give a child stability, dignity, and a clean slate. You’re the one raising her, protecting her, and planning her future. That comes with making hard calls her biological parents couldn’t or wouldn’t make.
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u/baron_von_helmut 14h ago
Simone is a much better name. The child will thank him for it when she's old enough.
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u/ApartmentSpecial2025 18h ago
NTA. Your child's gonna thank you later.
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u/NotACalligrapher-49 18h ago
I hope OP doesn’t live anywhere near her awful parents. You just know they’re going to take every opportunity to call that poor kid Synnamin. OP needs to keep Simone far away from the toxic grandparents.
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u/aPawMeowNyation 17h ago
What's worse is I almost read it as synonym, so you know the other kids definitely would have and the bullying would be insane. Op saved that poor girl from a lifetime of cruelty. NTA
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17h ago
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u/aPawMeowNyation 17h ago
Yup. My brothers nickname is hemorrhoid because his name starts with Roy and he's a major PITA. Our parents gave him that one. Image if the kids he went to school with knew what a hemorrhoid is. They would've tormented him with it lol
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u/Electronic_Ad_7742 16h ago
We nicknamed a friend’s little sister “malware”. Her name starts with “mal”, which is Latin for “bad”, and it fit for a while. The reason she was called that is because she would “get loaded and fuck shit up”. From what i can tell, she’s doing much better now.
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u/Confident-Purple205 16h ago
I dont think it’s terrible if the grandparents use it. Being called Cinnamon by some family members could be seen as a cute nickname… as long as the kid is otherwise growing up in a stable loving household.
OP, I’m glad your niece has you.
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u/Jello_Penguin_2956 14h ago
I googled her original name and I say the pronunciation is the smaller issue here.
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u/Confident-Purple205 12h ago
Oh sweet Jesus even with Safe search on I got nothing else
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u/Kristal3615 12h ago
Please save my search history... Was OP not joking when she called it a stripper name? If so I wonder if the birth mom knew and if she did that's so messed up... Like why set your child up with such a name??
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u/pretorianlegion 11h ago
The first 2 google hits are porn. The third one is an insta, that isn't tagged as NSFW. The fourth one is a Pinterest, with some girl, whos posting about baking, the Sims and stickers. So it's a mixed bag I guess.
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18h ago
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u/Brilliant-Tutor-6500 18h ago
This was bad enough as a name for Raj’s dog on TBBT - a deliberate joke even if spelt correctly.
NTA whatsoever. Your sister and parents should be grateful.
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u/eleg0ry 14h ago
Yeppp. As someone who changed their name because their birth name was a stripper name…. you did well for this kid OP.
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u/bubbleteabob 16h ago
I mean, back when I was a goth-inclined teen I would have LOVED an excuse to make people call me Syn…but for ages 4-12 you are definitely right.
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u/dnllgr 18h ago
NTA you saved her a lifetime of judgment by changing her name to something respectful
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u/Texuk1 11h ago
The only thing I would that OP should be aware of is that even if her mother has made bad choices and is going to jail, the child may still identify with her bio-mother. OP may want to consider carefully how she speaks about the bio mother, the name, etc. because if all you have to say are bad things about bio mom then the child may believe there is something wrong with them, they may begin to internalise the judgement. I say this because one of the clear links to her mother was this name and we are saying here it wasn’t good enough. OP reach down deep and make sure you do find some good qualities in bio mom to tell the kid about, stories from childhood, something. You don’t want her to grow up inadvertently believing they come from badness and embarrassment in her history.
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u/millennialfail 18h ago
Everyone over at r/tragedeigh will happily tell you you’re NTA.
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u/Ostey82 16h ago
Came here to say the same thing.
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u/chromaiden 13h ago
Me too. If OP decides they ever need validation they made the right move, those folks will provide.
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u/mykuna 18h ago
I think you still tried to honor the original name. Still begins with an “S” and has that “s-ih” sound at the beginning. You could’ve gone in a completely different direction and named her Nicole for example. Definitely NTA. And I think Simone is a beautiful name!
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u/lilcoughin 15h ago
Still sounds very similar to the original name aswell so really no harm done, she’s saved that child years of name calling and looks whenever she has to say her name or spell it out/pronounce it to someone
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u/Jellyka 9h ago
it's close enough that if her grandparents would want to nickname her cinnamon it would totally work and not be weird.
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u/swakner 7h ago
That’s exactly what I was thinking, cinnamon could totally be a cutesy nickname for someone named Simone
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u/OneGeekyBelgian 16h ago
You are clearly, and undeniably, NTA.
... but that title, tho. xD Initially read it like you adopted a stripper and wanted to change their professional name. As you might imagine, I was a bit confused. 😜
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u/Impossible-Staff92 16h ago
You are the second person to say that. I'm embarrassed. It totally reads like that
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u/Maximum-Cover- 13h ago
Don’t listen to your parents. They raised your sister so they’re hardly qualified to give parenting advice.
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u/FelineCompanionCube 13h ago
"Sorry, honey, if you want to go back on stage again, you're gonna have to do it under the name 'Chastity'. Much classier.
Now, the store was out of pudding, so the wrestling tonight is going to be in green jello instead!"
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u/neinneinballons 18h ago
NTA. You gave her a real name that won't make her life more complicated just because "it's interesting" for her mom.
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17h ago
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u/neinneinballons 17h ago
Some people don't even like Cinnamon, even if spelled correctly. And sounds more like a petite dog's name.
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u/Viola-Swamp 16h ago
This is a child, not a Yorkie. That name alone would have been grounds for losing her parental rights if I ran the world. NTA
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u/ZippyKoala 17h ago
Honestly, you want a unique name for a girl right now, Mary is a good pick. I can pretty much guarantee there won’t be another in the class or probably the school.
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u/Safe-Amphibian-1238 14h ago
This. From this teacher to OP- THANK YOU!! You absolutely did the right thing.
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u/plumeriarose 18h ago
NTA. When choosing my kids names I made sure to pick ones that would be hard to make fun of. Because kids (and adults) can be cruel and judgemental- even though we were taught not to judge a book by its cover.
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u/donttouchmeah 17h ago
I made sure they’d look approachable on a resume.
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u/Kitchen-Rabbit3006 17h ago
I imagined what they would sound like at a graduation ceremony. How did the first middle and last names sound when read out loud and when put on a parchment. And kids can be unbelievably cruel.
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u/Independent_Put8671 12h ago
My baby momma wanted to name our daughter Heaven, she was so ready to die on that hill. Then I mentioned some highschool kid saying, "I spent 30 seconds in heaven last night" and she immediately agreed to name her something more reasonable. Elizabeth.
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u/Blueporch 13h ago
I used to work with a lady named Robin, who said that in grade school, kids would throw worms at her. It’s really hard to pick names that can’t be made fun of. Good on you for doing that.
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u/TemporarilySkittles 16h ago
I did too and they have ALL come up and thanked me for it. no they're not little youngest is about to graduate high school, this isn't some 3 year old saying this lol. I gave them short easy to spell easy to read names on purpose darn it.
unrelated note if i ever hear someone singing at me about a red dress again i am legit gonna scream.
op is nta 100%
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u/BeautifulChaosEnergy 18h ago
Cinnamon is bad enough, but that atrocious spelling is what gets me
You need to protect your child as best you can. And giving her a proper name is a good start
Simone is a lovely name. As others have said, I hope you live far away from your parents and sister….
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u/invah 8h ago
Yes, Synnamin almost reads like a drug you'd see advertised on t.v.
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u/Interesting_Sock9142 18h ago
dear lord thank you for doing that because wtf is synnamin
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u/Impossible-Staff92 18h ago
My husband was the one that told me it's a stripper name
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u/FeeshCTRL 14h ago
I mean, if you type it in Google the first thing that comes up is a PornHub link lmao. Changing it was the right choice
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u/Omega_Zarnias 10h ago
After some research, that Synnamin does not look like she's doing amazing...
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u/Zytrax7 13h ago
Hell, it doesn't even sound dignified enough to be a stripper name. It's more like a name a normal person would give to an animal. Yeah, no, you did things 1000% right here. I think your daughter will grow up much happier knowing she shares a name with a decorated Olympian and one of history's greatest singers, instead of with Chief Wiggum's favorite pet rat on The Simpsons.
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u/gaiafaya 13h ago
My dad used to say anyone named after food is likely, or will be in the future, a stripper. Lol
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u/Immediate-Deer-6570 10h ago
We decided on stipper names as a theme for naming my chickens and Sinnamon was one of my girls. I did this as a joke - i never thought in a million years Id read something about an actual person named Sinnamon or a variation of that connotation. Now I had a wonderful nurse one time named Cinnamon - but that is just regularly spelled without the "sin" connotation. 😂 Anyway good on ypu for changing her name. Im sure she appreciates it!
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18h ago
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u/heckyescheeseandpie 18h ago
I suspect the parents are half the reason sister's in prison honestly. The way they jump to support the sister's dumbass naming choices tells me they've never checked her behavior at all
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u/RadRimmer9000 18h ago
NTA, you are preventing the kid from being bullied and helping their future employment opportunities.
I think it should be illegal to name kids something really dumb with a generic pronunciation. A prime example is Musk's kid, "X Æ A-12" and it means Ash or something.
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u/Brilliant-Tutor-6500 18h ago
My philosophy is that if it doesn’t sound ordinary if preceded by the words “The Right Honourable”, “Emeritus Professor” or “Chief Justice”, then it’s not a name.
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u/awkwardturtle234 17h ago
That's what most of these parents who name their children don't seem to understand. Like sure these stupid names might sound cute for a child but the parents tend to forget that these kids will grow up to be adults.
A name like Synnamin as an adult is going to get the poor girl judged when it comes to applying for things like jobs, college, etc. I know we say don't judge a book by it's cover, but the reality is that having a name like that will block her from a lot of things.
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u/llamadramalover 17h ago
Exactly!!!! Every time I see a stupid name I want to scream at those people they are naming an ADULT, a full grown human adult will carry that “name” for decades longer than a child, respect that responsibility as it should be and stop being stupid about it ffs.
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u/Flutters1013 16h ago
Because I spend so much time on reddit, I just read that as sysadmin.
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u/WeirdPinkHair 15h ago
Thats what we said when our eldest granddaughter was born. 'Thank god, thats a name a judge could have'.
Discussed it at the time with a colleague. She had a class mate when at Uni doing computer science; her name was Honey. She said it caused issues after as people judge based on names even if they don't mean to.
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u/fiachdubh01 14h ago
Just for clarity sake the greek X can be pronounced like 'K'. AE is 'ah'. A-12 is the twelth letter of the alphabet, or L.
It's just an stupidly edgy mans Kyle.
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u/LadyFoxfire 18h ago
NTA. When you adopted her, you promised to give her the best life possible, and that includes freeing her from that atrocious name.
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u/Beerasaurwithwine 18h ago
My wow characters name was Synnamin way back in the day. I cannot imagine a living person with that name. That's funny.
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u/Knickers1978 18h ago
Instead of the c word, use twat. It means the same thing, but is slightly politer and doesn’t set off the censors.
In saying that, NTA
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u/Impossible-Staff92 18h ago
LoL. Thank you I'll remember that if I EVER post again.
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u/sensibly-censored 18h ago
NTA, her original name is awful, and you've saved that poor girl from a future of bullying and therapy bills.
Your parents and sister can shut their mouths, she's your daughter (as you've adopted her). You don't need or want the advice from a sister who is a criminal and parents who are willing to criticise but didn't step up themselves.
You and your daughter go and enjoy your life. Your parents and sister can pound sand. Or rattle cell bars in your sisters case.
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u/Bangsilogii 18h ago
NTA. You’re her legal guardian and that name… yeah, not exactly kid-friendly. Changing it to something normal like Simone is just giving her a shot at a normal life. Your sister’s feelings don’t override what’s best for your niece.
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u/malorthotdogs 17h ago
OP doesn’t just have guardianship, she adopted her.
That isn’t just her niece anymore, that is legally her daughter to raise as she sees fit. Changing her tragedeigh of a name to an actual real name is just her doing what is right for her daughter.
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u/cinnamonsav 15h ago
Coming from someone named Cinnamon, NTA. As her legal guardian, you have the right to make important decisions for her. It sounds like you have her best interests at heart. And for anyone curious, I am a professional with an MBA. I may have been teased growing up (especially through my teens), but my name has been a great ice breaker when meeting new people. Also, for the record, I’m fairly confident there are strippers with the name Simone.
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u/Vivid-Isopod-7018 18h ago
Nta you are doing that child a favor by giving her name she can grow with
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u/Doggedart 18h ago
NTA
Thankyou for giving your daughter a stable and loving life with someone who thinks to the future. She's lucky to have you.
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u/rroseperry 18h ago
I used to work with a woman whose name was Cinnamon, but Simone is lovely. You did the right thing.
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u/Dull_Weakness1658 18h ago
NTA. You just love that little girl like she deserves. Protecting her from bullying is important, and the name change is a valid part of that.
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u/Major-Amoeba6576 18h ago
Info: how old is she now and does she have any memory of being called synnamin?
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u/Impossible-Staff92 18h ago
She's two. I have always called her Simone as has my husband and our kids.
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u/malaika890 17h ago
You did a really smart thing with picking her new same bc it’s also phonetically similar to her birthname so she won’t be confused. Proud of you for stepping up and fighting your family. You’re a great person. Need more people like you in the world.
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u/Vandreeson 18h ago
NTA. She's your child now and forever, and out of all the people around her you're the only one that actually cares about the child. Good for you.
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u/Katharinemaddison 17h ago
It’s a perfect substitution!
I’m not comparing toddlers to dogs in any value judgement way but I do think at that age there’s a similar level of name recognition as when we turned a Patch into Patrick and a Jed into Edward. The name is similar to adapt to, also easier for adults to remember in your daughter’s case - those of them who make the effort at least.
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u/Radio_Mime 18h ago
NTA. Odd names can lead to taunting in school, which can leave emotional scars. Also Simone is a pretty name. It will also look better on a resume when she grows up and applies for jobs. Some people really don't think about a child's future when they choose a name. It's more about drawing attention to themselves by having a child with a name that is intended to be unique, but ends up having negative consequences for the child.
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u/Mouse589 18h ago
Congratulations on escaping your origin family crazy. That's a big deal, so good for you. I'm glad your little girl can have a steadier start in life. Keep being the sensible in her life.
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u/Brainchild110 11h ago
NTA
What you're missing is that your parents want to stay in your sisters good books so they can have everyone come together when she gets out of the big house. That likely includes you giving her the child back, despite this being a very bad thing for the child. But that's how they'll get "peace" as they see it, so they're going to needle you for infinity until you make that happen.
Including wanting the name changed back so your dumbass sister won't flip out about that.
Because (and this is a guess), I bet they've spent most of your sister's life "handling" her to keep her happy and not make her kick off? Would I be right? While you've been left to get on because your emotional regulation actually works.
Either this, or they just plane dont like you at all.
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u/gojira86 18h ago
NTA, there's a reason you were granted custody. The court saw you are trustworthy and think of what is best for the child regardless of the pressure and emotional manipulation you face from others.
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u/anna-the-bunny 11h ago
The only thing that you've missed is that your parents and sister are completely insane. That's a child, not a stripper.
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u/Flinderspeak 17h ago
Hilariously, I have come across two bastardised Cinnamons in my life.
1) my brother’s ex girlfriend was a Cynnamyn. No, really.
2) one on my clients was a Synnamin. First phone call with her and I asked if her name was spelled like the spice. She replied, “No, it’s spelled S-Y-N-N-A-M I-N, like the spice.” Uh, no, not really at all like the spice.
Edited - absolutely NTA!
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u/slim_schmone 18h ago
NTA you did the right thing. Although I may be a bit biased because I'm also a Simone 😅
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u/skootch_ginalola 17h ago
In one of the name subreddits, there's a long post by an adult who was given a "creative" name. I think it was Bunny. She talked about how she was teased, the overt sexuality around it, and how people didn't take her seriously. All of her siblings had been given names like that and all changed them. Unless your niece is a grown adult who verbalized she's fine with the bame, it's good you changed it.
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u/CrazyButterfly11 17h ago
NTA and thank you for doing this for her. I have a unique name, no where near as unique as Synnamin, but people rarely pronounce it correctly.
You have just saved your daughter from being the kid in class that has to correct every teacher, in every class, multiple times! It got to the point where I would just raise my hand when the teacher was near my last name and took a long pause. I’ve learned to answer to quite a few names. Honestly, I turn when someone says “hey you”.
You did a very kind thing!
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u/Background_System726 17h ago
NTA. You picked a name that sounds a little similar without the ridiculousness of her birth name. She will thank you and your sister should appreciate all you've done.
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u/michiganstrange 15h ago
NTA, from a hyphenated sixteen letter name; I changed it to three letters the second I was 18.
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u/integral_red 11h ago
I've seen a lot of adopted kids have their names changed. I won't say it's the norm as I don't know ratios, but it isn't uncommon at all. Of course, that's without family involved. Most likely I haven't seen that happen when it's a family member adoption. For the obvious reasons you are experiencing.
Aside from it being fairly common, you would also be in the right based on the name alone. I see so god damn many fucked up kids' names these days and "Synnamin" is definitely one of them. Completely justified in changing that. "Cinnamon" would suck on its own, but adding in that spelling means that not only would the poor girl be called cinnamon, but she would constantly have to announce it as adults in her life try to sound out "Synnamin" and figure out what it is supposed to be. I make it a point to put in extra effort to get kids names right the first time when I see a fucked up spelling and you wouldn't believe the relief you see on their face when they anticipate having to explain it and don't have to. And that's just for relatively common names with strange spellings. Plus, Simone is close enough to not feel like a total slap in the face to the mother. You didn't go from Synnamin to Michelle, you kept a thread to her birth name even if it didn't deserve recognition.
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u/whenwillitbenow 18h ago
Thank you for thinking of the child even though you are dealing with the backlash from family NTA
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u/Unhappy_Ad_866 18h ago
FWIW, you did the right thing. Keep being awesome! Congratulations on the addition to your family!
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u/Synamon_ 16h ago
NTA. Nothing wrong with the name Synnamin for a game handle or OF, but I can't imagine going through life with it. I chose to use my version for gaming and Reddit because it is a little sarcastic and a little naughty, but I am an adult. Please don't give a porn name to a baby.
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u/GossipingKitty 14h ago
NTA Simone is an absolutely beautiful name. You did the right thing for your daughter.
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