For Second Hand Owners - Your stance in changing the doll's name

Of the dolls I bought secondhand, I only learned the previous names of two. I think both times it was due to seller messages along the lines of "Please take good care of (name.)" One of my girls had a name almost identical to her mold name, like "Dolly" instead of "Doll." It didn't feel like a big step to rename her. For the other girl the name I chose was alliterative to her old one, so it didn't seem like a stretch to go from "Doll" to "Daisy."

 

ive only known a dolls name prior to receiving it once and it was from a friend so i kept the name even tho he is reshelling the character because it stuck and i couldnt come up with anything better lol.

 

I’ve bought a lot of secondhand dolls but im kinda surprised that I don’t know the previous name the owners gave to the dolls before selling to me.
But I don’t think it’s a big deal to change the name. I don’t think I would personally keep the previous name

 

All the second hand dolls I have don't have a name from previous owners, and I wouldn't have any way of contacting them even if I wanted to since most are from Mandarake. There is one that I can ask since that one is not from Mandarake, but it feels a bit silly to do so. I probably would keep the name if it suits the doll since I don't like changing the clothes/eyes/hair/face from previous owners.

 

I sometimes feel sad when I sell doll that they’re going to ‘lose’ the name I gave them, but I would never expect their new owner to keep it. In fact, in many ways I prefer them to give the doll a whole new identity to complete the separation, so-to-speak. Likewise, I don’t reuse names with my own dolls, if I sell a doll that name is gone, I won’t give it to another one.

 

I feel like being respectful is important in every part of life, but personally with dolls, I think you have the right to change the name, faceup, and more if you paid for them. I don't think anyone should be intentionally hurtful, I know that we all get very attached to our dolls! But if you sell the doll, unless it's to a friend or something, I feel like you are letting go of the right to control over creative aspects of the doll, in my opinion.

 

All of the bjds I have bought second hand pretty much arrived as blank slates. No faceups, blushing, or any signs of their previous identity (if they indeed had one, as some were likely sculpts that didn't work in the first place and were sold on due to that fact). As a result—none of them retained their previous identity (if they had one) in any regard. Considering I'm purchasing them to shell already existing characters, there's likely very little chance they would retain any of that prior identity anyways.

In reverse, I have no issue with sculpts being moved on to new homes having their name/identity completely changed. I tend to wipe them clean before I list them for sale, so they're pretty much sold on as blank slates for the new owner to make of them as they wish.

 

Most of the time I don't even know the previous "name" of the doll. I do remember buying my second Pukipuki and her owner had given her the name 'Blair' and I changed it to 'Briar' but that's the only real instance I remember.

I change my dolls names, because once they come to me I get difference vibes or have a different character planned.

 

I've only bought second-hand dolls a couple of times but I've never seen a problem in changing the doll's name. Even if I have learned it, I am a character-driven collector so I carefully decide my doll's characters and their backstories, personalities and such (usually prior to purchasing). Keeping another person's name for a certain doll (or style or whatever) will surely make me feel like it is less mine for one and less itself as it would crash with my own idea for it. It wouldn't end well.

 

I totally get the feeling of wanting to be respectful to the previous owner. Sometimes people still feel attachment to things even when they decide to let them go. Personally I have a hard time getting rid of things but if I know someone else will put it to better use, then it makes it easier. When it comes to names, I might keep the name just because it once held significance to someone else and I'm just sentimental like that lol But personally I wouldn't mind if someone changed the name of a doll after I gave it to them so I would change the name myself too if I found a name that held more significance than the one it came with. But all in all, don't feel bad about changing the name of a doll. You paid for it, so it's rightfully yours now!

 

As mentioned before, if so, I would ask permission to keep the name of the doll.
I own second hand dolls and I always looked for those sculpts to shell my characters. It'll feel out of place to create a character and keep a name that doesn't suit at all the personality or that I don't like at all.
Same as faceups. I like to do own to suit better my character.

 

Most of my dolls have been directly bought from companies or stores that are distribute the dolls so I have no problem changing the names as some company names I can't pronounce properly. Second hand or even third hand deserves a new name as they are starting a new way of being perceived by me. New name, style, backstory all are what is a new for them.

 

For me when you buy it you already owned it, so definitely you can change the name! You are the owner now!

 

I have never owned any second-hand dolls, but I have sold one of mine, years ago. The way I saw it, as soon as the doll was sold, she was no longer mine, and the new owner could do whatever they pleased with her.

 

I’m seconding the people who’ve talked about preferring the new owner changes the name. When I sell a doll, I’m not selling my character, I’m selling some resin that character is no longer involved with.

Most of my characters have a lot more backstory and a lot more going on with them than I necessarily describe online—entirely because the content in some of my backstories does not belong in places people don’t expect it (meaning: my fics in Ao3 with warning tags). The handy thing about this is that people online couldn’t find enough on most of my characters to “keep” a character if they bought a doll, but I’d be grumpy if they tried, especially if it was down to minute details, or involved really specific lore.

If, for instance, I sold Aura’s last head, and her next owner kept dressing her like I did, well, I don’t own pink as a concept, and her faceup looks good with pink—that’s totally fine. But if they dressed her up like that, and they named her Aura, and I found out that her father’s name was Auratus, and she was a magic user without wings and dating an assassin, etc, you’ve now taken a lot of my writing that wasn’t a part of the sale.

There’s also a difference in reusing names—Eve would get a pass, because what are the odds someone even got that from me—if you ask the bible it’s one of the oldest names in the book. Same goes for any mythological characters—Cassandra, Lucifer, and Lilith all mean different things to different people, but are all names I’ve seen plenty of other people name dolls.

Names like Vidania, Venestus, Zilvriia, Nirathos, Coris, Kyorlin, etc would stand out a lot more of someone kept them, because a lot of these are names I’ve made up from fish names, or dnd elvish prefix/suffix name generators. But if the names was all they kept from like, Zilvriia I’d learn to get used to it. If they also made their Zilvriia a shadar kai bard, with a cult backstory and an arranged marriage from hell, that’s where I’d be really Not Thrilled.

Caveat: if one of my friends from the DnD party Zilvriia features in bought her and kept the name, because they’re also shelling our party, I’d think that was adorable, actually, and I’d want to do a photoshoot with their versions of our party and mine and make jokes about them all being cosplayers at the same expo. And/or get a mirror-frame and do photos like that. But the difference is that that friend is also a part of that story—they’re from the party as well, and they’d have my full permission to keep that doll Zilvriia, wipe her and make her into anyone else they want, whatever they like!

 

I think if I thought of the dolls as "just a doll" I think I'd be less apt to change names, but I buy dolls for my characters, so I automatically intend to change their names. If someone didn't want me to change the doll's name before selling one to me, I would be cautious about buying from them. If you want control of the doll you're selling, you don't want to sell it.

 

I would feel more weird about keeping the name- while it’s now my doll, the previous owner’s character is not mine. I have a secondhand doll where I absolutely loved the name the previous owner gave him, but it was the name of one of her OCs who she was re-shelling. It didn’t feel right to keep the name for him, so I renamed him & ended up using that name for a completely different doll later on.

 

My first adopted out doll wasn't getting along with his first owner's plans. I don't recall him even having a name previously. He's very happy being Ceil, despite the major hacksaw surgeries done on him (evil laughing for ten seconds...). Dolls will surprise you when they take on their own characters. Don't be surprised if they change their own names. I've come to accept that it's not ME who's crazy, okay? Most of my dolls I consider anime cosplayers, so they switch names w their clothes. I think it's perfectly fine to change a dolls name. After all, how are they going to get to a psychologist to complain?

 

I don't have a second hand doll, but it seems fine to change the name. It's just a name. It doesn't really change the doll just because it's name changed. If you paid for the doll it's under your ownership now, so there's no need to ask the previous owner for permission in my opinion.

The doll isn't a living creature and will not end up confused if you change it's name unlike a living breathing creature like a dog or a cat. If it really bothers someone you can always give it two names. A new name you like for the doll and it can keep its original name if the previous owner insists, but I don't think it's the previous owners right to insist that a new owner keep the original name. That seems a little controlling and entitled. I lost my train of thought. I can't remember my point.

Anyway name the doll whatever you want. If people dictate how one should do things, behave, etc then the entire world will be shaped by people with the loudest voice screaming how things should be done or run. It's your doll and it's your choice to do what you want like what it will be named. Telling someone not to change a name once ownership is switched kind of reminds me of those people who insist how someone else's culture should be shaped like theirs because in their opinion how things are run or done or etc is the right way and the only way. I think this was my point I lost my train of thought. I hoped this made sense.

 

If the previous owner objected to a name change, then they should not have sold it. Once a doll is sold, the previous owner no longer has any say in the doll's name or character or story.