Some names are cute. Others are a linguistic nightmare. According to a speech-language pathologist who works with kids every day, certain names may sound great to parents but are practically designed to trip up tiny developing mouths.
Chloe Conrad, founder of Spunky Speech Therapy in San Diego, recently went viral for naming three popular names she’d never choose: Rory, Rowan, and Aurora. “They’re so hard to say,” she explained in an Instagram reel that racked up over 250,000 views.
It’s not about trendiness or taste. It’s about anatomy. In an interview with TODAY.com, Conrad explained the issue using a concept called facilitative context—how certain consonant and vowel combos affect speech development based on how the mouth moves during early language learning.
What Baby Names to Avoid
“Most young children substitute a W for an R, which is completely developmentally appropriate,” she said. But when an R is followed by a rounded vowel like O—as in Rory or Rowan—it gets harder. “The W sound is made with rounded lips, and O is also a rounded vowel. So when you put the two together, it becomes increasingly difficult for a young child to produce clearly.”
That’s how Aurora turns into Awowa, and Rory becomes Wowy, which might be cute now but gets old by the time preschool starts.
She also called out Laurel for pairing two common problem sounds: L and R. Both often get swapped out in early speech. (Run becomes wun, leaf becomes weaf.) And names like Axl, with back-to-back consonants, require precise oral motor coordination that most kids haven’t mastered yet.
To be clear, Conrad isn’t banning these names. She’s just saying to think twice, especially if your child is already working through speech sound development delays or articulation challenges.
Her comments section filled up fast with parents and speech therapists who’d guessed the names before she even said them. “Said Rory in my head before you started talking,” one wrote. Another added, “Thought Aurora before you said it!”
They’re beautiful names. No one’s arguing that. But if your kid spends the first half of their childhood introducing themselves as Awowa, don’t act surprised.
The post This Speech Therapist Says Avoid These Baby Names (Even if You Love Them) appeared first on VICE.
