Mom-to-Be Slammed for Choosing 'Intentionally' Hurtful Baby Name

Members of a popular internet forum were quick to call out one soon-to-be mother, whose preferred baby name has the potential to leave family members fighting for generations.

In a viral Reddit post published on r/AmITheA**hole, Redditor u/aitababyname_ (otherwise referred to as the original poster, or OP) said she and her husband are expecting their first child—a daughter, and revealed how one of the baby's potential names has already put a pair of brothers totally at odds.

Titled, "[Am I the a**hole] for picking the same name for my baby as my [brother-in-law's] unborn baby?" the post has received over 13,500 upvotes and nearly 6,000 comments in the last day.

"My (31F) husband (33M) and his brother...aren't super close," OP began. "But he does seem to be a bit jealous of my husband and...everything we have."

Continuing to explain that she and her husband are "pretty sure" of their baby's name, OP described the moniker as "pretty unique" for contemporary times and said she loves it.

OP also said there is a major issue with the couple's number-one choice: it was already chosen by her brother-in-law's former significant other, who passed away while pregnant.

"This is the name that [brother-in-law] and his girlfriend had picked out for their baby 3 years ago, but the baby unfortunately died," OP wrote. "His girlfriend chose the name from her favorite ballet.

"We were at a family event over the weekend and I mentioned that we had that name in mind," OP continued. "[Brother-in-law] looked kind of surprised...[and] started [asking] if we could reconsider.

"I got a little mad and told him that he doesn't own the name, and they should be hoping for a healthy baby rather than worry about names," OP added. "[He] dropped it after that, but my [husband's sister] told me and my husband that we don't care and we're intentionally hurting him."

Everyone, for better or worse, has their own opinion on baby names.

Whether a family member, a celebrity or even a co-worker's cousin who happened to become the subject of office gossip, baby names are hotly debated, both in the real world and across the internet.

But from Emily and Jacob, the two most popular name choices in the U.S. in 2001, to Liam and Olivia, the two most popular in 2021, baby names are almost always the result of contemporary trends, fictional fandoms and, in many cases, family tradition.

Naming a child after a relative—living or not—continues their legacy and can often, but not always, be an honor.

"It's always a sign of love to name your little one after someone in your family. But choosing a baby name this way can cause a few headaches," the Pampers website reads.

"If you're going to name your child after someone who is still living, that's fine—unless that means leaving someone else out," it continues. "Long-gone relatives won't be able to complain about being overlooked, but if you start naming babies after siblings, you're either going to run out of family tree names or run out of babies."

And like with often and always, the difference between honor and mimicry is major and has the potential to cause significant problems between family members.

Throughout the comment section of the viral Reddit post, Redditors acknowledged the negative connotations associated with OP's baby name choice and echoed her sister-in-law's sentiment that, although baby names cannot be owned, certain choices should remain off limits.

"[You're the a**hole]," Redditor u/mm172 wrote in the post's top comment, which has received nearly 43,000 upvotes.

"No, they don't own the name," they continued. "That doesn't mean they're wrong that you should reconsider when you've clearly known for years that it's special to them."

Redditor u/darkswanjewelry, whose comment has received more than 20,000 upvotes, offered a more pointed response.

"What you're doing is making sure [brother-in-law] will never again be able to look at the two of you or his niece," they wrote. "There are thousands of names out there, you can find another that fits.

"You 'can' legally do this obviously, but just because you can doesn't mean you should," they added.

"Name your baby this name if you want [brother-in-law]...to have to look at that child for the rest of their lives and feel sick and sad," Redditor u/keenbeeper chimed in, receiving more than 6,000 upvotes. "You're the one who gets to explain to your kid why her...uncle can barely stand to look at her."

Newsweek reached out to u/aitababyname_ for comment.