The Internet's Naming a Baby! How... Cute?

I guess the Internet really does everything these days. Somewhere out there, a man has decided to let the Internet name his daughter. And he actually seems... kind of not completely crazy. On the website he created, NameMyDaughter.com, he writes, "Hi, My name is Stephen and much to the disbelief of my wife, I have decided to let the internet name* my daughter." Cause nothing could ever go wrong with that plan.

Having foreseen potential... issues, however, Stephen goes on to add, "Unfortunately internet I know better that to trust you." He and his wife reserve the right to remove names from the list, and he stresses that, "We will ultimately be making the final decision, Alas my daughter shall not be named WackyTaco692. Sorry guys the wife wouldn't go for a free for all."

Sure, blame the wife. I kind of doubt anyone would be happy with a daughter named WackyTaco692. If for no other reason than that child would hate you. Can you just imagine the conversation? "Why is my name WackyTaco692?" "Well, sweetie, your mother and I decided to let anonymous strangers pick it out and they thought it was funny."

The shocking thing, though, is that the Internet has been surprisingly nice about the whole thing. While answering questions on Reddit, Stephen claims that he has had to delete "about 7" relating to STIs or sexual positions, but most of the names are surprisingly normal. As of press time, the top combination is Amelia Mae. Hmmm...Amelia Mae McLaughlin. It has a nice ring.

Of course, lots of the names are pretty silly. The Top 10 lists currently includes Megatron for a first name and All-Spark for a middle name. Megatron All-Spark McLaughlin does not sound like a name you'd want to grow up with. Other wacky suggestions include Cthulhu, Moose, Slagathor, Justice, Unicorn, ?, and Internet Jr. But it will be especially interesting to see what the couple decides to do if the winning combination turns out to be one of the strange but not ridiculous names up for vote such as October or Tesla.

It's also noteworthy how many of the names seem to be references. From Doctor Who alone, I count Amelia, Rose, River, Pond, and Song. Reagan and Hero have also been suggested, though it's unclear if they are intended as Shakespeare references. Also, Twilight and Bella are possibilities, and even Lord of the Rings is represented by Gimli, of all characters.

The baby girl, whatever her name may eventually be, is due to arrive in this odd world on April 4th, and presumably we can all keep voting until then. So think carefully Internet. You are choosing the name that a real, live human being will carry with her for the rest of her life. Twenty years from now, who knows what she'll think of this.

Image: Fotolia