My mother named me LaToya back in the 70’s when the name wasn’t too popular. She liked it because it was not a common name at the time.
I was named after Michael Jackson’s sister LaToya after my mother discovered the name in a Jet magazine back in the day.
My mother named me LaToya, though she never called me “LaToya” while I was little or as I grew up.
It was rare to hear my name in its entirety.
She as well as everyone around me, including family, friends, and neighbors all called me either “Toy” or “Toya”.
The only time I heard or was called LaToya is by professionals like at the doctor’s office, at school by my teachers, and by classmates.
My grandmother (my mother’s mother) never pronounced my name correctly. For some reason she always called me “La-Toe-rah”. She was originally from Virginia, carrying her southern tone.
I absolutely love my name, always have. But I really loved how everybody acknowledged me as “Toy” or “Toya”. I still do!
