Picking a name for your child is one of many huge decisions you have to make as a parent. And, considering as many as a quarter of all parents in the UK wish they had chosen a different name for their kids according to some surveys, it is not always an easy one to get right.
One mum-to-be has been left questioning the name she picked out for her son, as she unintentionally chose the same name as a very popular cartoon character. The woman said she was initially trying to choose between Calvin and Jasper as names for her impending arrival, but she and her husband have since started combining them into one name - Casper.
And even though they both love the name, the mum is now worried her son could be picked on for having the same name as Casper the Friendly Ghost, the Mirror writes. In a post on Reddit, she said: "My husband and I have two front runners for our July boy: Calvin and Jasper. Since we didn't want to commit to either one, and just for fun, we combined them and I started referring to him as Casper.
"But now it's got me thinking - is Casper actually usable? Could it be a contender? I know there's the friendly ghost association, but I'm hesitant to worry about that considering the show was barely relevant to me and I'm 30, so chances are my son's generation won't have a clue what it even is. And even if they do, it's not a bad association at all.
"However, I could be totally off here. Is Casper usable? And if not, do you prefer Calvin or Jasper?"
Commenters were split on the name, as while many of them thought the name was still a perfectly viable choice despite the cartoon connotations, others said they would avoid it themselves.
One person wrote: "I think it's useable - the ghost association isn't bad and it seems like Cassius and Caspian have been getting a bit more popular so it fits well with that. I prefer Calvin over Jasper but both are nice."
Subscribe here for the latest news where you live
While another added: "My son has a Casper in his class and I 100% can't think of anything other than the ghost. The children have no idea though."
And a third said: "Casper is a nice name. I think of the ghost, but that movie isn't controversial and I enjoyed watching it as a kid! His playmates won't know the reference anyway. If it's the name that speaks to you the most, that's enough."
But someone else disagreed, stating: "Guess I'm in the minority, but I am not a fan. I just think of Casper the Friendly Ghost."
"Apparently I'm very much in the minority here, but I think it's very unusable," another Reddit user posted, "I'm basing this off the strong association I have with the ghost based on general pop culture references. I've never seen it (show, movie, I don't even know), but it's far too strong of a connection for me."
