Naming a tiny human is no easy feat. It’s no wonder that many parents get in their heads and overthink the process. You want your baby to have a moniker that is uncommon but won’t get them beat up on the playground. You want your infant to have a name with meaning that won’t haunt them their entire life. It’s a lot to juggle.
To help you out, we compiled a list of seven names you should avoid. Some are just overdone while others are just too out there. Other rules to follow include avoiding celebrity baby names and fictional characters whose story lines have not concluded. For more inspiration on what name to choose, check out these articles .
Nevaeh
If you look closely at this name, it is heaven spelled backwards. Giving a child this name is essentially calling them the opposite which just seems so negative. You could be possibly setting yourself up for a difficult kid and parenting it already hard enough. The social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, also agrees with us. The moniker was found and trended on the site with #uglybabynames.
Irelynn
This name is a spin on the country Ireland. Apparently the land of the leprechauns’ name is not quirky enough so some parents decided to give it a weird spelling. Instead it comes off as lazy and confusing. It is reminiscent of the many spellings of Amy and Ashley. There’s a better way to stand out from the crowd.
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Phelony
This name is another example of unique spelling. It is a play on the word felony. Beyond the questionable orthography, naming a child after a crime does not seem like a great idea. There are certainly more aspirational names out there.
Semaj
This name is pronounced seh-mah-zhay. It is simply the name James backwards. We can’t figure out why you would want to name a child this, but life is full of mysteries to unravel.
Daenerys
It’s tempting to want to name your girl after a favorite fictional character but let the name Daenerys be a cautionary tale. The character was seen in the popular HBO Series Game of Thrones and the source material books. She appeared to be all girl power and dragons but in the end became a murderous tyrant. Villains are fun but certainly not role models for children.
Shrek
While the fictional character Shrek is not a villain, it still seems an inappropriate and unfortunate name for a baby. It’s a cartoon character. He’s an ogre. Surely there are better names out there for a child.
Saint
We chose Saint for the purposes of this list but it's a good rule to avoid any celebrity baby name. It's just too much pop culture and on the nose. Kim Kardashian and Kanye West’s eldest son was given the moniker, which is great for him but not for your baby. Challenge yourself to come up with something more personal.
