Expectations!
For those payin’ attention to this lil’ blog section, you might have heard I am expecting. I am in fact due on 11/11/11. By the time this posts, I hope my son is willing to stick it out one more day to make it to 11/11/11. What’s so special about that day? What isn’t?! First off, it has the awesome triple like digits. Second, for all the gamers that like to play game apps that pay real money, it is the release date for the long-awaited Skyrim. Third, if our son does make it out on 11/11/11, we are going to name him Dovahkiin. The reason being it is an awesome name… and, yes, it comes with a fantastic prize in Bethesda’s baby-naming contest to coincide with the release of Skyrim. Now, my husband didn’t know of the contest to start with. We conceived long before hearing of it. But it’s been a tough year and I wanted to do something special for my son. My daughter has a unique name. I wanted him to have a unique name as well. I am so picky about boy names that I was having a lot of trouble finding just the right one. We’ve toyed with Dovahkiin and the ramifications of naming a child that name, and that name being based on a video game character (however awesome), and what impact that would have on him. But the more I thought of it, the more I settled on Dovahkiin, contest or no. It helps that we told all our friends and family and very few are opposed to the idea. My mom thought it was neat! He will have a perfectly normal and common middle name if the first name becomes too much for him or us or we just want to call him a nickname (which is incredibly common. My sister went by her middle name for the first 20 years of her life and now chooses to go by her very unusual actual first name. She was incensed for years that we called her a middle name and not her real first name.)
I’ve read several posts on the site and most condemn anyone who would dare name their child such a thing, all for capitalism. Well, I really don’t play many video games (TB plays an ungodly amount though), and I would never name my child a name I found horrible or even terribly mediocre. I think we’re doing a great job with our daughter and will continue to be great parents for our son, too. Naming him something so unique may only have as much effect as any person’s opinion on another. That’s all they are. Opinions. We all have them; most of us voice them. But the ones that matter most are the opinions of your family and, more importantly, the opinion you hold of yourself. I think we can enable a high opinion of himself in our son because we’ve done so and will continue to do so with our daughter. The name won’t change my parenting.
But what if he comes early? Or late? Well, I’m bringing my list of baby names just in case but we really do like the name Dovahkiin. So here’s hoping we can celebrate the birth of our second child in a way that will be just as unique as he is. Did I mention he’d have his own theme song? More coming soon:)
Discussion (91) ¬
Congratulations! Here’s to the arrival of Dovahkiin! Cheers! :D
Llongyfarchiadau!
Good luck! Myself, I was 6 weeks late, and even then I had to be induced.
Heard JG was in labor yesterday… keeping my fingers crossed! ;D I just gotta say… coolest parents EVER.
Awww, thanks, RS:) Hee hee! Kyari is also very happy about her baby brother. She was the first to use his name officially and hearing it come from her was awesome!
Giving your kid a dodgy name for life to win a $30 video game? Cheers… here’s to parents of the year. Hahahaha.
I don’t find the name dodgy at all. As you can see my wife and I are rather fond of the name. There is no difference in us naming our child Dovahkiin than someone else naming theirs Elvis, Keanu, Clint, or even Luke (from the Bible). We wouldn’t have chosen the name if we didn’t actually like it!
LOL @ Luke from the Bible. You are totally right of course, but I thought of Skywalker first. Perhaps it was the context.
My daughters both have unusual names. We love them and are happy their names are different. So Congrats to y’all and Happy birthday to your new addition. Great name kid and dont let anyone tell you otherwise.
Bob you didnt read the article did you. Congrats on the boy and I hope everything works out for you :)
It is a lovely name, I think:) But then I’m the mom:)
First, congratulations!
Though at first I was a little concerned at the naming, after reading your post I think you explained it very well and you both thought it out greatly. Bethblog’s short summary of it unfortunately doesn’t have as much of an explanation. Naming him for a video game character actually didn’t concern me(all names have to come from somewhere), it would have been naming a kid to win a contest, but I can see now that wasn’t at all the case.
He may have his common middle name to fall back on, but I for one hope he does grow up loving his unique first name!
Thank you for the kind wishes :)! Dovahkiin has already learned that shouting at the top of his lungs gets him fed…that kid can eat man :).
You named him Dovahkiin purely for the games. You even said that you would take a list of names if he was born earlier or after 11/11/11.
Would you of named him Dovahkiin if he was born on the 12/11/11 I’m willing to say you wouldn’t have.
Do you realise what kind of school life he’ll have. Kid’s will bully/pick on other kids for any reason be it Hair Colour/Hair Style/Dress Style etc.
The fact that you gave your son a name that people can easily bully/pick on him for is what I would call bad parenting (You might not agree with me on that)
I was bullied during my school life due to my Hair Colour. It’s one of the worst things that can happen to a person. You can’t go to a teacher because the bullies would find out you ratted on them and bully you even more.
Sure you can go to your parents but they’ll do two things
1. tell you to toughen up and ignore it (How can you when it happens everyday)
2. They’ll go to your teacher. And then your son would be bullied worse due to the bullies finding out that your son ratted on them.
I wonder what the teacher would think when he/she reads the register (I live in the UK :D) so it might be named different in the USA.
You did it for the games. You wouldn’t have named him Dovahkiin if he was born before or after the 11th you said so yourself.
I will say though that I’m happy you concieved before the Competition was announced. There could of been alot more worser comments on OXM.com or Bethblog.com if you had concieved after the competition was announced.
I understand how you feel about the bullying Shadow. Both Jade and I were bullied severely in school as well, and guess what we had normal names. Bullies will bully you for no other reason than to show their power. We did not do this for GAMES, but we’ve already admitted that the contest was a large part of our decision. We have enough money to put up our own free webcomic that puts out 0 revenue, I think we can afford whatever video games we want. As I said before, we LOVE the name, you don’t. Anyone else that doesn’t like it doesn’t have to, and we will NOT be coddled into naming our son some nice, normal name just cause there are bigots in this world that will teach their kids to hate those that are different. Our son will be ready for these people. It is my fond hope that the next kid that gets bullied because of hair color will be defended by my son. You get picked on because of how you choose to react to bullying, and if its not a name its race, hair, voice, size, preference. We say bring it on bigots! Our son will be ready :)!
Hi:) As you can see, we don’t choose to censor comments at this time, even negative ones. I’m the wife/artist/webmaster/mom of Dovahkiin and, as word spreads of this event, we expect good and bad reactions. As for the naming, both my husband and I love the name. I had a list of other names but none really compared to Dovahkiin. I considered naming him Dovahkiin anyway if he were not born on 11.11.11 but it didn’t seem as “meant to be” as if he were born on 11.11.11. I worked a haunted house, took classes, did house chores and shopping and everything else while carrying him. I felt that if the fates had aligned to set this up, and if he stayed in me till 11.11.11, didn’t he deserve such an awesome name? Well, he made it and he did indeed get named something fantastic. That was the best reward of all:)
Yes, bullying comes and goes in school. I’m sorry for anyone who has to endure it but sorrier for bullies. I had a great childhood at home. School? Eh. Bullies? They must have a bad home life. I do feel sorry for them. In school, I was beyond being labelled as “nerd” or “antisocial” or any other clique. I was the weird one, the one they couldn’t categorize any other way. So I know what you mean. However, I would not change to fit in with people who would not accept me as I was. I wasn’t friendless, though. The friends I had were few but very good friends and that’s all that matters. Be yourself and you will attract more friends who care than posers or others who will try to mold you into what they see fit.
If anyone’s curious why I’ve been slow to respond, it’s simply due to the fact that I have a three-year-old and a 5-day-old LOL. I’m typing this while Dovahkiin is on my lap in a brief span of not needing to eat or be changed! But don’t worry:) I read all comments!
I think it’s a cool name. Friends can dall him “Dova” which sounds cool, and bullys… well, they are bullys dude, you can’t change decisions in your life because of them. Anyway, if he decides to live anywhere outside the country, the name will not matter. Im spanish and my name is Ignacio and I can tell you that few people outside Spain know the name or can pronounce it correctly… so… is a uncommon name bad parenting? I don’t think so. Sorry for my bad english.
This name is unique and makes this special. Enjoy the young years and enjoy your son :) .
I am intrigued – what’s your daughter called?
Our daughter’s name is Kyari Ari Kellermeyer. Kee-Arr-EE :)
Lovely. Thank you.
Congratulations on making sure that your child will get made fun of and teased to death at school. They will feel awkward fitting in and will have socialization issues for the rest of their life. I love video games but would never be that selfish.
Congradulatons on the birth of your child. I am a gamer and that it so awesome of a name. May his journey through life be amazing as those who dont understand. Yeah he may get bullied around but no matter what his name is, bullies will be bullies. Congratulations again :)
Well said!! Cheers!!!
I have to say, your sons name is BEAUTIFUL! Being Hawaiian we’re used to many different names that have various meanings. ‘Alohilohi meaning radiant, ‘Ano’i pua cherished flower, Kaipo sweetheart. It’s nothing new but unfortunately when living in America it’s almost like we need to mold into what everyone “wants” us to name our children but little do people know, IT’S YOUR CHILD! I always wanted a Hawaiian name but my parents gave me a normal English name instead. Though people can’t pronounce my last name, I still went through some horrific times in High School being Hawaiian which is considered different. Bullying is going to happen no matter WHAT your name is. I believe it’s the way you’re raised that gets you through bullying in school. If you’ve got the support system at home, that’s all you need. You guys seem like great parents!
Fantasy games are a great way to get names because like Hawaiian names, whether it’s Elvish or Dwarvin, they all have a certain meaning to them. I see your son growing up and LOVING his name! Because, I mean, who doesn’t want to be a Dragon Born? hahaha. As a side note, I LOVE your daughters name too. SO beautiful!
Thank you for the kind and supportive words Lani! I’m sure your parents did what they thought was right by you. Some people are so focused in ensuring they protect their kids from everything that they will do anything to make sure their kids stay under the radar. We don’t believe in that. We don’t believe in shielding our children from every harm that is going to come their way, we believe in giving them a shield and letting them defend themselves. Yes more bruises and bumps, but stronger, smarter, and happier individuals in the end. I’m very much hoping that our son becomes a person that I had a hard time being when I was young. The kind that will stick up for those that are too weak to defend themselves. This name symbolizes it, and I’m hoping he’ll wear it proudly :).
Thanks much, Lani:)
I believe that Shakespeare said it best:
“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet.”
A name does not necessarily make or break a person. And as other posters have pointed out, bullies will bully whether your name is Dovahkiin or Bob.
I personally believe that having an usual name is a blessing. It sets you apart from the herd, and makes you memorable. I was always the only Brooke in my class, whilst I was surrounded by Dawn’s and Christina’s aplenty. When my daughter was born, I chose a somewhat unusual name for her as well, and recently she told me, “Mom, I may not have liked my name that much when I was a kid, but now that I’m 20, I LOVE IT.”
All that being said, congratulations on the new addition to the family. It sounds like you two are doing a wonderful job!
Thank you:) What’s yourdaughter’s name?
Her name is Tabitha, and she was 17 before she met another person with her name. ^_^
Congrats! My husband and I decided on what our friends and family’s have called odd middle names, we consider them cool and/or pretty in the case of our middle child. Our eldest son’s is Ravenwolf, our daughter’s is Star, and our youngest son’s is Knighthawk. They have perfectly normal, though old, first names but because we did not want to give them too first names we went with names that we talked about and agreed upon. (Just so you know there first name’s are Alexander, Angelica and Samuel)
Also, good job on standing up to others on your choice of name, its up to the parent not to others what the parents want to name there children.
Thanks, and good for you!
I hope you played that theme as he was being delivered. The Greybeards have summoned him.
Oh, we did. The doc glanced over at the laptop once, a little surprised maybe. We played music during our daughter’s birth, too.
You are trying to justify that you did this for any reason other than publicity and games, but you are contradicting yourself in the comments. I would never tell my husband “If my son is born on *date*, then he will be named X. If not, then it’s not meant to be so back to the drawing board.” It’s not so much me not liking the name that bothers me, and it isn’t because he is named after something, it’s the fact that he will come to find out he was named in order to win a contest…and you can’t justify that you did it for another reason if you weren’t settled on that name no matter the date of birth. Another reason I can see you weren’t settled on the name is that you are saying that his middle name is normal if it becomes too much for YOU.
“But the more I thought of it, the more I settled on Dovahkiin, contest or no”
“But what if he comes early? Or late? Well, I’m bringing my list of baby names just in case but we really do like the name Dovahkiin.”
“I considered naming him Dovahkiin anyway if he were not born on 11.11.11 but it didn’t seem as “meant to be†as if he were born on 11.11.11.”
“We did not do this for GAMES, but we’ve already admitted that the contest was a large part of our decision. ”
“He will have a perfectly normal and common middle name if the first name becomes too much for him or us or we just want to call him a nickname”
“we will NOT be coddled into naming our son some nice, normal name just cause there are bigots in this world that will teach their kids to hate those that are different.”
Most people having children end up taking several possibilities of names for that child right up to the moment they give birth. My parent’s decided last minute on a different name for my brother and I have heard similar stories from friends. Its not that unusual.
If you got the idea for naming your child based on him being born on a particular date, and then he/she was not born on that date, you might seriously want to give it more thought. The same could be said for parents wanting to name their child Jesus if he was born on Christmas, or named after a relative for having the same birthday.
Never once have I seen these parents saying they are naming their child only because they can get free video games. Naming him because of the date or contest does not mean the same thing as naming him to WIN the games.
In the end, there are much much MUCH worse names for a parent to give their child, and in all likelihood people will not even recognize Dovakiin as something connected to Elder Scrolls by the time he is in school. He will certainly face ridicule, but that goes for any child that is different, and I hardly think its fair that we demand that every have common first names.
“Never once have I seen these parents saying they are naming their child only because they can get free video games. Naming him because of the date or contest does not mean the same thing as naming him to WIN the games.”
Naming him because of the contest is for the publicity. They are trying to justify that they did it for reasons other than publicity, but contradicting their arguments, which is what I wanted to point out. In the end, the kid is going to find out about it one way or another, and realize that he was named to get publicity. I’d be kind of peeved if I found out my parents did that.
As I’ve stated in the other blog post our intent and reasoning, I’ll just remind everyone it is there to read:)
I would give my kid a cool name like that.
Our names represent who we are. If you name your kid General he would one day learn to lead well, name his diaper and he’ll be come nothing and made fun of his entire life. Name him craper and he’ll make a toilet.
Name him Dovahkiin and he’s a dragonborn! One day he will have voice of a dragonborn (maybe the best singer ever) and his learning speed will be instantaneous! He’s going to be powerful that’s for sure.
My name is Tu come on. I’m just a guy trying to win in life.
I honestly thing the name is awesome. People need to realize “normal” does not really matter. No one is truly normal, I don’t care who you are. The more unique we can be in this day and age the better. Besides in this era of technology being named after a media character of any kind is more common. People name there children after all kinds of things from cars to fruit. You guys are awesome. The contest is just an added bonus to remember the beautiful birth of your child. No one should try and take that away from you, or tell you its wrong.
thing is suppose to be think….sorry bout that.
Selfish
Both of your kids’ names are unique and beautiful. As only a casual gamer, I have to say that I would never realize that the name came from a video game AND I’m willing to bet that most people won’t realize it either. So you got a cool name AND free video games to boot. Everyone wins!
Thats awesomeim happy for you i kind of think the name is cool too :D So congradulations!
You are morons, as are your supporters. Clear indications that GenY is of limited mental capacity and lacks any manner of maturity. Your kid will be no more unique than the rest of the planet whatever self-satisfying name you give to it. Great future for the kid, his parents are gaming freaks and are clearly too young to be having kids much less having sex. “Rock on,” idiots.
ROFL. Where do these people come from? I mean, seriously.
LOL, no idea. I guess I should mention I’m 36, huh? LOL!
I actually think it’d have been an awesome name either way. Congratz on your new child, and may he be forever guarded by the dragonkin! (I jest, but since names do have power, who knows what’ll happen…)
Indeed! If names didn’t have some kind of power, well, no one would be going on and on about this, no matter what side of the fence they sat ;)
you people are disgusting.
Wow some of the comments here are rude…like many people said before, kids will be bullied for all sorts of things. I was bullied because I was short. I learned to deal with the bullies and eventually it stopped. To be honest, I wish my name was Dovahkin. Mom named me after James Taylor, so its cool to be named after a famous singer.
(If the bullies are a problem he can always call on Odahviing to protect him)
Poor child, having such a nerd psycho parents :-) Maybe someday psychologist will get him well.
LOL@some of the people here.
Who cares about the reasoning behind a name? My parent’s named me Adam. Why? Just because. I think “to win a contest” is a better reason than “just because.”
Anyone in the comments have kids? Why did you name them whatever you named them? Is that reason any better than a contest, or are you just so intent on hating something different that you don’t understand?
I hated my parents and my name during all my Junior high and high school because of my name. I’m french so “Shawnee” it’s not a common name, and I know that “Shawnee” is female name in USA but I’m a male.
My parents were a little weird by choosing this name but they have their reasons, the loved the clan of american Indian called Shawnees that lived in Oklahoma.
But finally, bearing this name make me stronger and when I went to college I was proud of it because my name mean something and I’m an the only one that have this name in the all France. So it’s make me unique no ? And I kind of like it.
By going to college, you meet more adult person and most of them tell me that they loved my name.
If I have children (I’m 24) I will not choose a common name like (a give american example for the understanding) John, Mark, Julie… but a special name that mean something.
I’m in Scotland now, so for make more easy to prononce my name, I choose to tell everyone that my name it’s “Shawn” and I’m sure that your son can be called “Dov” if he wants to. So I don’t think there will be any problem.
So congratulation for your baby and happy Thankgiving.
Shawn
I think that’s a good idea to be honest, we need to come out with new names in my opinion, people have been using the same ones for YEARS. I think the name Dovakhiin is pretty cool to be awesome, it means dragonborn, do people realize how awesome dragons are? I think the reason people would make fun of it is because they are jealous of the meaning. It’s cool to be named after a dragon in my opinion. I am glad to see that and I kind of wish my parents named me something unique lol.
Edit: Pretty cool be be honest**** Sorry mis text there lol
I think it’s a great name and may he grow up to be as great as his namesake.
Congratulations! for the baby
is a unique name Dovahkiin