When Unique Turned Common

Naming your newborn is one of the most brain storming yet exciting task for the entire family.

While a huge list of names are available on search engines , a unique name is what parents look for. But be mindful that some unique names can also become complicated in terms of pronunciation, spelling or meaning. Hence here are some points you may want to consider before selecting that one special name. 

1. Does the name have a wonderful meaning, irrespective of unique or Common. 

2. Is it easy to pronounce and spell.

3. Is the name in line with the custom (if any) of choosing the letter based on date & time of birth. 

4. It's optional but does your baby's name fit in with the siblings or cousins if any. 

5. Again optional but some couples may prefer to see part of both their names in their baby's name.

6. Nick names are not an issue but you may not prefer your baby's name to be distorted while pronouncing or spelling. 

7. Most importantly, do you love the name , irrespective of whether it's unique or Common. 

I could share these points because of the experience I had while naming my son. My husband and I were in love with the name Aarav and after considering most of the above points we finalised the same. There were no complications or second thought regarding this. At that point, the only other Aarav we knew was celebrity Akshay Kumar's son. But if you go through the amusing incidents below, you will know "duniya kitni gol hai" 😂. 

It was now time to share few of my Son's pictures with his name  on the social media timeline. Where best wishes, love and blessings poured in through the comments, we got to know that one of our friends son is also Aarav.

Once at Kolkata airport, I saw a lady hastening towards me and shouting out "Aarav ...Aarav ". I just stood still with my Aarav on my lap as I was trying to recognise the lady who knew me or rather my son so well. The confusion was soon clarified  when she walked pass me to catch hold of her son Aarav who was running around and playing behind me .

What more!! In our apartment we found out that a family who stays just two floors above us has a 3 year old son named Aarav 😏.

The story just doesn't end here. In a queue during our paediatrician visit, a slight confusion occurred because the child before us was also Aarav . 😱.

Well, this is how the name we thought of so "Unique" just became common. We almost thought of changing the name after facing the co incidents but then we realised that we chose this name because we loved this name and found it apt for our son. Hence changing it just because it is "not so unique" absolutely didn't make any sense. 

So Unique or not, we have a birth certificate reflecting Aarav Viral Shah in bold and it feels good. 😃. And who knows, this common name might become some unique personality tomorrow. 😃. Being positive is the key to move on after all 😉.