Copycat cousin uses woman's baby name because she gets pregnant first, then becomes ‘irate’ when the name is reused: ‘She said [the name] was pretty but not to her taste’

Author image for Lana DeGaetano
Lana DeGaetano • "Show me to me please."
Feb 8, 2026 6:00 PM EST

It's 2025. Let's face it. Baby names are a big deal.

If you had told me 15 years ago that people would be ranting on the internet about their extended family member stealing their future baby's name, I wouldn't believe you. Alas, here we are!

To parents, baby names are everything. After all, your child will have that name for as long as they decide they want it. We live in an age where folks want to change their names, and more power to 'em. Even with the normalized concept of changing one's first name if one feels like it, individuals are still obliged to find a baby name they like. It's impolite to "take" someone's name and act like you didn't do it solely to spite someone else. Yeah, that actually happens… quite frequently, in fact.

In this next story, you'll read about a woman who lets slip the name she wants to give her future child, and her copycat cousin decides to use that name because she got pregnant before she did. Now that the woman is finally pregnant, she tells her family that she'll be using the same name. After all, the cousin had no qualms taking the name; she didn't even ideate it in the first place. This cousin was preparing for her child to share a name with another person, so that's exactly what's going to happen. Scroll below to read the full story.

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  • pregnant woman holding her stomach while on the phone indoors
    via Getty Images For Unsplash+

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • "AITA for naming my kid the same thing as my cousin’s kid?"

    My (30, f) cousin (35, f) "Megan" feels like she's been trying to one- up me these last few years, and I decided I wasn't having it.
    via RayasOasis
  • First, she picked the same wedding date as me but one year earlier. My now-husband and I started dating over a decade ago on a specific date.
    via RayasOasis
  • Let's say March 9th. We got engaged a few years. later, also on March 9th. We told all of our wedding attendees (small wedding, so only family) that we'd be getting married on March 9th three years from our engagement date, which everyone, including Megan, said was adorable and meaningful.
    via RayasOasis
  • Between my engagement and wedding, Megan met, got engaged, and got married to her now- husband. When they were picking the wedding date, they said they liked how meaningful our upcoming wedding date was and wanted to do something similar.
    via RayasOasis
  • But their engagement date wasn't available at the venue they wanted, so they just chose the next date with the same digits.
    via RayasOasis
  • For example, if they'd gotten engaged on 01/14 they might have chosen 04/11. Well, the next date that met those rules was March 9th, one year before our wedding.
    via RayasOasis
  • When they called to tell us, they lead with "we know it's the same date as your wedding, but our special date just wasn't available, and won't it be fun to share an anniversary?
    via RayasOasis
  • Plus, you can dedicate a dance to us at your wedding!" Whatever. We had the DJ call them out during the couples dance.
    via RayasOasis
  • Then, in between that and the next big event (see below), a few more small things happened that really made us scratch our heads.
    via RayasOasis
  • We sent thank you cards right after our wedding, and then they sent their thank you cards right after that (yes, a full year after their wedding).
    via RayasOasis
  • We bought a new- to-us car, and they immediately bought a truly truly new car. Lots of things like that.
    via RayasOasis
  • Then the big event happened. Two years after the wedding, they found out they were pregnant with their first baby.
    via RayasOasis
  • We were all immensely happy for them and had a few celebrations throughout her pregnancy. At the first one, early on, people asked what she'd name the baby.
    via RayasOasis
  • She said she wasn't sure, and asked everyone what their dream baby names were. Everyone shared, and I told her my dream baby name was "Lina", the middle name of my sister I'm incredibly close with.
    via RayasOasis
  • She said it was pretty but not to her taste. You can guess where this is going.
    via RayasOasis
  • When she announced the name of her baby, it was Lina. To make a long story short, I ended up becoming pregnant in the last 6 months and have made it clear I will name my daughter Lina.
    via RayasOasis
  • Megan is irate, saying I'm ruining her daughter's special name and connection to her aunt (my sister), and Megan's mom is saying I'm going to ruin my own daughter's life by setting her up to be "Little Lina" or "the second Lina" and will always risk getting them confused.
    via RayasOasis
  • angry woman with red hair yelling
    via Julien L for Unsplash

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • So AITA for naming my daughter what I wanted to name her? Am I really setting her up for a lifetime of derision?
    via RayasOasis

  • At the end of the day, everyone will do what they want to, even if it means falling out of the good graces of someone else. We live in a self-centered society.

    Do you think either woman is being petty? Does anyone have the right to call dibs on a baby name? What would you do if you were in either position? Sound off your opinions in the comments below.

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Tags

family drama baby names pregnancy copycat wedding cousins
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