It’s the English name I recently chose because people kept having difficulty pronouncing my Chinese name after I arrived in England last year. I really like it, but I’d be interested to hear how it comes across to others, especially Anglophones.

  • homes@piefed.worldEnglish
    0·
    23 days ago

    My sister-in-law is Chinese. Her name is Lu Dong, but, here in the states, she is called Grace.

    Although I think it’s a lovely name, I prefer to call her by her real name. So does she

    I also, personally, dislike names that are also things. In English, a cliff is defined as a steep rock face, especially facing the sea. Personally, I would, at least, choose a different name than that one.

  • tangible@piefed.socialEnglish
    0·
    23 days ago

    Sounds a bit old-timey. I refuse to believe that there are people younger than 60 years old with that name.

    • Rhaedas@fedia.io
      0·
      23 days ago

      What’s old is new again. I’m pretty sure I’ve heard some recent baby names that I would place more in the turn of the 20th century. Reusing older, creating totally new, or taking known names and spelling them oddly. They’ll all have critics.

      • tiramichu@sh.itjust.works
        0·
        23 days ago

        Names like Agatha and Edith and Florence are coming around again in kids, because they were popular around the 1920s and so the generation who had them are mostly now all dead.

        Which means the names are once more free from expectations and ‘available’.

        If you name a child something that had a huge burst in popularity only sixty or seventy years ago however, the holders of the name are generally still alive and almost all old, so it still has a strong connotation of being an “old-person name”

        So yeah. Old names become new and fashionable again if you wait. But the trick is to wait long enough.

  • palordrolap@fedia.io
    0·
    23 days ago

    Older folks might think you’re making a reference to Cliff Richard, a guy who is quite famous here, so expect that to come up every now and then.

    Lots of people really don’t like the guy, or think he’s a bit cringe-worthy, but others regard him fondly.

    Anyway, like yourself, Cliff isn’t his real name, but most people know him by it.

    Do with this knowledge what you will.

    • Sergio@piefed.socialEnglish
      0·
      23 days ago

      Yeah same, I imagine it to be an old-time actor who played a lot of cowboys or soldiers. I’m not in England tho.

  • mystrawberrymind@piefed.caEnglish
    0·
    23 days ago

    It’s an old style name, short for Clifford or Clifton. Sounds direct and manly, not common today amongst young people. However, Cliff sounds cool! It is “classic,” like someone else said. It would be memorable to others for sure. :)

  • CandleTiger@programming.dev
    0·
    23 days ago

    USA perspective: I have a relative with that name (short for Clifford) who died in the ‘60s. Good name. Not common any more but ready for a fashionable comeback.