Dudley

The anonymous comment on 8/1/2019 was from me. I came back after (nearly) 5 years, as I wanted to give more insight about bearing the name Dudley. My personal situation is not a one-size-fits-all experience, so please take what I say with a grain of salt. Firstly, I'd like to say that I appreciate all (five, as of now!) upvotes on my original comment; I was 14 years old (I am 19 years old now), feeling trapped and worthless when I commented. Bearing my name had a lot of personal baggage over the years, due to my personal struggles. I endured countless bullying and taunting, during most of my childhood...my name being the butt of the joke (Some examples: "Wheelbarrow is so poor that he lives under a wheelbarrow!", "Wheelbarrow; just push him around while he carries your stuff!", and "Dudley the dud, you're nothing but a worthless dud!"). It started as simple teasing from my brother, but once the people at school overheard, I was dead meat. I encountered bullying from the first to eighth grade; I was an easy target, because I was shy, sensitive, and very unconfident with myself. As a very little boy, I actually liked my middle name; it began with my favorite letter (D), it was uncommon, and best of all...it was a family name, which made me feel special then. I guess that after years of being ridiculed (everywhere) for my name, I also believed their hurtful words. I saw myself as nothing but a joke, reciting, "Even my name is a joke!". As I grew up, I began to appreciate my first and last name more, making conversation-starters with it. I made fun of myself, which makes people laugh with you, rather than at you. When I was in NJROTC during high school, I (even) used "wheelbarrow" to help people to correctly pronounce my surname (people often mistake it to be pronounced like the word "borrow"); it helps everyone remember my name. Even still in college, I like introducing myself with, "My name is William Barrow, but you can call me Will if you want. My name is Will Barrow, just like a wheelbarrow!". It wasn't until recently that I began to appreciate my middle name more...I loathed the way that it sounded and painful memories still replayed. Yes, people may humor the name Dudley, but I now realize that there's advantages to bearing it. First off, it's a very uncommon name to have; it hasn't ranked in the charts since 1969, so you'll be unique! I vividly remember having people guess what "D." stood for, after asking (the dreaded), "What's your middle name?". Long story short, nobody could ever guess it until I hinted, "It's the name of a Harry Potter character, with the last name Dursley". Having a mega-popular name like William, I think it's cool that my middle name is unique for my time...it gets lame sometimes, hearing everyone bear your name (though, bearing popular names also has many pluses). Secondly, there's long history behind this name; as stated in the name-information, the surname originated from a place name. The town of Dudley (in Worcestershire, England) was named by conjoining the (Anglo-Saxon) name "Dudda" with the word "leah" (meaning "wood clearing), so hence the meaning "Dudda's clearing". As someone obsessed with nature, having a name connected to nature is awesome for me. According to the internet, the earliest records of the name Dudley are from "The Doomsday Book of 1086," spelled as "Dodelei". This must mean that Dudley has been in use, since at least around that time period (if the names are related at all). There's also a long lineage for the surname Dudley, so there's more added history with that in mind. Maybe I'm biased, as I'm a ginormous history buff, but I really enjoy that my name has long history. As for my third reason, you can make jokes about yourself! Life is too short to be serious all of the time; sometimes, you have to lighten-up and joke on yourself! People may have opinions about this name and that's perfectly fine; I have many names I dislike. There's no way to please everyone, as someone will always have a problem, no matter what. At the end of the day, only the people who respect you truly matter, not the ones who ridicule without knowing you. Combatting the personal ridicule, I've had a few people (my age and older) compliment the name Dudley, saying that they enjoyed the name. You know what they say...someone's trash is another's treasure. If you have the name Dudley or are considering it for a son, I say to embrace it. It is a respectable name and anyone's opinions about you shouldn't matter! Me personally? I have a great love for the name now. Dudley's of the world, we may be few, but we're all brilliant people; don't let anyone dim your shine! I hope that my hoard of words helps someone...it isn't easy, sharing a personal story with the world. However, I know that there may be people like I was, who feel trapped and unconfident about their name (and themselves). I'm living proof that it does get better, so please continue being strong; giving up diminishes any chances of improvement.

Very ugly.

It's my middle name. My name is William Dudley Barrow IV (the fourth) I hate it when I was little my brother would call me "Dudley the dud". I've thought of changing it but it would hurt my dad so I'm stuck with it.

What a lovely name.

My mother absolutely loved this name for a boy. I don't see the appeal at all... who wants "dud" in their name? It also sounds very... plump.

As a Harry Potter-fan, I don't like that name. Always reminds me of Dudley Dursley, a pathetic, spoiled bully. I doubt that name will be popular, while the Harry Potter-series still are really popular.

Awful. Just awful. The guy would be called Dud. The name sounds utterly silly.

If I'll ever have a dog, I would call it Dudley! I think it's a perfect name for a cute, cuddly, little doggy!

I like the "studley" inference. I hate the "dud" prefix.

A name for a dog, or a fat kid.