This is why you shouldn't shoot down someone's ideas for a career... you never know what is going to be in demand. Years ago, people thought nutritionists and dietitians were going to be fad careers... now millions of people seek their expertise on a daily basis. So... YDI for chortling at someone's dream.

What the Hell is Chortled????!!!

I like this idea of changing our names. We could have an extra day every 10 years or so and call it a "name day". More gifts and parties. Happy name day to you!

You can do it every year if you're Catholic. You take a saint's name when you're confirmed, and then celebrate your saint's day as a name day. Either that, or the saint whose name you share. Or something. Any romans here want to help me out with this?

Don't be a dream squasher she has lifetime to be disappointed.

haven't you read a parenting magazine? lol they have articles written by baby name experts all the time. you have to learn a LOT in that career path since you'd have to know what a name means in different languages, what part of the world the name is derived from, how the way the name is spelled and pronounced, how the spelling can change where the name came from thus changing its meaning. also a baby name expert will "profile" you and your significant other in the sense that they'll give you names for the baby based on what they predict your parenting style is/will be. a name like William Thomas would be for parents who expect a lot out of their kids (generally) and a name thats really unique but dumb could potentially make the kid not strive for more. sorry for the rant. i just didn't appreciate the way you talked about your kid. if your kid says they want a job that you think is silly, so what?! even if it didnt exist, you should encourage your kid to go for it anyway and make it exist! atleast your kid wants to work a d make a living. not a lot do these days.

I think she'll most probably change her mind when she's older.

What, like actually knowing the meanings and origins of names and helping parents pick based on their combined ancestry and meaningful events and personages in their family histories? Because that sounds cool. If its about "No no no, 'Trystann' with a 'y' and two 'n's" then someone build a wall for me to beat my head against.

They exist but are also BROKE!

It's called onomastics, and it is a legitimate science. It does pay well, though it's more a research job than anything else. It falls under the heading of sociology. There aren't many schools in the US that offer a degree in onomastics; I think University of Oklahoma is the only one now. There was a chapter in Freakonomics on onomastics. It discussed whether a name influenced the outcome of a child's life, or if the parents' circumstances influenced name choices. It also discussed how name choices are often a good indicator of socioeconomic status. Names like Tiffany, Crystal, Chanel and other names that come from "rich" things are often given to poorer children. Abigail, Elizabeth, and (until recently) Emma are the province of the socially elite. Don't knock what your daughter loves. Onomastics is a good field of study. Bruce Lansky is probably the most noted onomastician. Take her to Barnes and Noble and pick up a couple of books. At least you'll know that your grandchildren won't have awful, contrived names like Jaeden, Braeden, or Kaeden. YDI, OP.