Partner Who Thought Wife Was “Joking” About Baby Name Suggestions Not Prepared for Truth

A woman who assumed her wife was joking about her baby name choices realized too late that she was completely serious.

The woman and original poster (OP), Reddit user newbiesk8r, shared her dilemma on r/namenerds, explaining that she and her wife have always wanted kids and now, she is seven months pregnant.

When they found out about her pregnancy, the OP’s wife “jokingly” described feeling “left out” as a kid when ‘Mambo No. 5’ by Lou Bega was on the radio, as she didn’t have one of the names featured in the song.

The OP wrote, “Now we’re 2 or less months away from our baby being born and she is actually seriously dead set on naming our baby one of the names in the song.

“I’ve tried to reason with her – why does she want to name our baby after a song where these women are being like, hit on, or sexualized?

“My other big point – we don’t even listen to the radio, and even if we did, what are the chances of that song playing on the radio in 2025? Also, hopefully our baby has enough love in her life that her name not being in a song is like, not something she carries with her forever?!

“Anyway, she’s really insisting and I need to at least consider some of them. In your opinions, which are the least bad for a baby?

“Angela, Sandra, Pamela, Rita, Monica, Erica, Tina, Mary, Jessica.”

Reddit users were quick to weigh in, with responses ranging from disbelief to humor. One wrote, “I highly agree on the sexualization point. The whole song is from the male gaze and the women are objects that the singer simply trades.

“Honestly, I hope you’re trolling us and having a fun time, ’cause this is really baffling and a very wrong mindset about a young girl who’s supposed to learn how to move in the world.

“Also nobody knows about this song anymore.”

Naming Dilemmas

Others warned about the long-term consequences of choosing a name without mutual agreement.

“‘Your mom felt left out in a song by a one-hit wonder in 1999, and I picked the least bad name from the list, darling’ wouldn’t be what Little Rita would want to hear from you,” one Redditor quipped.

A blog post from Ohio Health suggests that parents should compromise by allowing each to have a say—perhaps one picks the first name while the other selects the middle name. The article notes that some parents opt to use a short list system, ensuring both are comfortable with the final choice.

In a related article by Newsweek, a couple’s baby name choices led to strong reactions from their social circle. Friends and family members pushed back against their selection, forcing the parents to reconsider.

Newsweek has contacted newbiesk8r for comment via Reddit.

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