Worst Baby Names - and Philippine names

An article on worst baby names on msn caught my eye today. There are indeed a lot of funny names in the world. Including mine.

In the Philippines, my name means 'first'. I can't remember how many times I've fielded the question: Is your sister's name 'Second'? And if you're curious, the answer is no.

The msn article mentioned some 'gems' in the world of bad baby names like 'Brock Lee' and Strange' - with an apostrophe at the end and pronounced 'Straw-ja' and Rusty Nail.

Filipinos are among the most creative and fanatical when it comes to naming their children. Long before Hollywood came up with Brangelina and Bennifer, Filipino parents name their kids combinations of their names. Even highschool sweethearts did that way back in the late 90's (as far as I know). I thought it was silly, but hey, even Hollywood started doing it.

Filipino parents usually have a 'theme' to their kids' names. Either they all start with the same letter, or they should just have the same first and last names all throughout. I know one family of seven girls all named Vivien (with different middle names) and another guy whose siblings are Fruto I, Fruto III, Fruto IV. Fruto II was my acquaintance and I'm not sure how many siblings he has.

My hubby knows someone named Saudi and another one named Pepsi. They're both Filipino. One time he told me that he has a friend whose last name is Mango-Bat. And he's Filipino. I was like, "a fruitbat?". No. It's the Americanized pronounciation for Mangabat.

At the school where my mom teaches, there were kids named Livingstone, Green Ranger, Princess, and countless numbers of kids named after soap opera stars and characters. Personally, I know a Girlie, a Queenie, a Dubai, Lovely, and Principe. One of my childhood friends is 'Romeo Romeo'. That's his full name.

I also know a 'Filipinas Manila'. That's her full name. And her dad said that he was going to name her Cebu Manila if she turned out to be a boy.

Only in the Philippines:
- A senator named Joker
- A cardinal named Sin
- A mayor named Jejomar - short for Jesus, Joseph and Mary.