Chris and Chris: do likes attract?

I used to have a boyfriend with the same name as me. The name thing was actually a turn off. We were attracted to each other in spite of our names. People commenting on it was lame, and got old fast. I think it is a matter of odds… nothing at all to do with the names.

i think it’s weirder when people date/marry someone who has the name of one of their parents.

I think initially when you meet someone and find out you share a name, you laugh about it and feel a slight connection. If you feel a slight connection you are more willing to date the person. Either you stay together or you don’t. There are waaaay many more couples who don’t have matching names but the same name couples just stand out in your mind. I don’t think it has any effect on the actual relationship.

It is really a matter of odds. It is human nature to imagine patterns where there are none. I thought finkelitis did a great job explaining this as an answer to one of my Qs. Also, add Brian and Brianne to the list. It was the first thought I had when I realized she was dating him. “Brian weds Brianne”. Sigh.

My brother-in-law’s name is Pat and his wife is Patty.
As for couples that I know that have the same name, that’s about it for me.

I have friends named Terry and Terry, it didn’t work for them.

haha…that sounds funny. The closest I’ve got is my parents’ first names both begin with the same letter.

My SO and I have initials that are mirror-images and our birth years (minus the 19—part) are as well. We like to say that it means we’re meant for each other, but I think if we had the same name, that would be a little much.

@La_chica_gomela, you have a 9-year age difference?

I don’t believe this common wisdom that opposites attract. This only applies to magnets and people seeking bad relationships.

It’s more accurate to say opposites intrigue each other for a short period but don’t last as a couple.

It’s most likely a coincidence and a serious statistical study might be able to give a more definite answer. Thinking about the question, though, one thing comes to mind which could explain the phenomenon you described. Parents choose the names for their newborn babies. Liking or disliking certain names might have a small ‘nature’ and a larger ‘nurture’ component (kind of both parents thinking alike). They pass this on to their offspring both genetically and also how they raise their kid. Let’s say his name is Chris, a boy. The same happens when looking at the other parents and how they raise their girl, named Chris. Later Chris and Chris meet and immediately strike a chord and initiate a sense of belongingness. Here you go.

I never knew any couple with similar names.

I know a couple, Lee and Lee. I never really thought about it, because the woman doesn’t go by Lee. I think she uses her middle name actually. I call her by a nickname..
Lucky for me, I’ve never had to deal with this..my name is strictly for females

@epony I don’t see what’s weird about that. I don’t call my parents by their first names, in my mind they’re always “mom and dad” lol

@casheroo I dunno. Weirds me out.

@The_Compassionate_Heretic, where did someone say “opposites”?

@Jeruba: I didn’t say that. Based on the information I gave we could have a 9 year difference, or 18, 27, 36, 45, or etc. year age difference. What’s it to you? ;-)

Yes, 9 or any multiple of, true enough. Curiosity only. In the larger sense, none of anybody’s personal information is anything to me, but here we offer tantalizing bits of it to each other all the time, and it is usually not taken amiss if someone expresses interest. No offense intended.

none taken

@Jeruba No one did. That’s just the thought that came to me at the time. No disrespected intended.

Ok. When you said ”this common wisdom,” I thought you meant it was being offered here. I was actually proposing the opposite.

@Jeruba I’m absolutely with you there. I was speaking more generally. I’ve just watched people I know go into situations with that thinking and seen it go really awkward and/or bad.
Done it myself once or twice. heh

I know what you mean! Opposites may attract, but they don’t necessarily hold. Compatibility and like-mindedness, and especially like values, make a much better adhesive.