The Baby Name Wizard

Not expecting yet - we're trying. Top contenders now are Alison, Meagan, Kirsten, Lorelai and... Caroline or ,aybe AnaCathryn? I still can't quite take Cameron off my list, but I know I should. :-) But I've been addicted to names since upper elementary school, so it's natural for me to pour into it now that we're actually looking at a baby in the near future. A bunch of DH's cousins are using the Katherine/Kathryn name, so I'm hesitant to use it for mine, even though it's a family name. I am a little bummed that Cameron has been taken out of the running, but I know his sisters didn't like it when it came up in conversation, so I'll just say that my BF's choice to take it saved me grief later on. :-) At least it's going to a baby that I'll love.

My friend named her daughter Alison when I stupidly piped up "I LOVE the name Alison" - I wasn't even dating at the time so when she exclained, "OH Jen-that's perfect!" I couldn't say anything! If my husband liked it I would still use it. My cousin and I are 3 weeks apart and are both Jennifer's. We LOVED sharing our name when growing up (different last names). Both our moms loved the name so they agreed they would both use it. You - and your child has to live with the name you pick so don't settle for something else if you really LOVE that particular name.

By the way - I also have 2 cousins named Matthew, yet my husband and I still LOVE then name and will use it if the time comes!

Also, for the person naming your 4th child, what about Kieran for a boy or Kiera for a girl?

Christiana,
I feel for you! I think you're handling the situation well. In fact, it does get a bit crazy when people talk about 'stealing' names. It just goes to show how important they are to us!
One of my best friends called her little girl Josephine Alice recently, and I was a bit disappointed for us, as I like Josephine a lot. However, just last week I found out that my DH doesn't like either name, so I guess it wouldn't have been a contender.
My favorite name for a girl has been Francesca for about twenty years, and he doesn't like that either. He says it's a name for a dark-haired girl and as we're both fair, it's unlikely we'll have one of those! I don't know what we're going to end up with(we're trying right now).

I found out today that Ewan Mc Gregor and his wife have two daughters, Clara Mathilde and Esther Rose,and have recently adopted a four year old girl from Mongolia (which interested me, as we've been considering doing that). Does anyone know what her name is? BTW, Clara's one of my favorites too

I've been looking for a good combo to go with Aidan and Kaleigh. I've gotten a lot of great suggestions! Thanks! I really love Keiran and Brennan. I couldn't do Keira for a girl because I have an acquaintase who just had a baby named Keira and frankly I don't really care for their family. So the name has been kind of ruined for me! But I do like Keiran for a boy. I think Brennan could go for either a boy or a girl.
Christiana- I love Cameron for a girl. we were considering that as well, and calling her Cami for short. But I'm trying to stick to Irish/Celtic names. I can't wait to find out the sex of the baby, so that way I can narrow my search a little better. Only 6 more weeks to go until we know boy or girl!!

Terri - Cameron is a Celtic name - it's a clan name in Scotland. While I'm sharing my list, I'll add Kirsten and Sabryn (which is Celtic for Princess) to the Celtic suggestions. Brennan is probably still my favorite for matching your children's names and at one point I had it on the long list for both boy and girl. I love the nn Cami and also Cam. Keiran also has a great sound, but I always think of Kieran Culkin (Macauly's brother who layed on the father of the bride movies amongst others) when i hear it.

Christiana, Something similar to Kieran(if it's not quite what you wanted),is Tiernan. I also just met a baby named Kiernan. I like it, kind of a combo.

I feel for you about Camryn. I also LOVE this name. Perhaps we have a similar style so I will give you a few of my other favs and won't be cross if you use them!(all are on my list for girls only)
Teagan, Rhys, Kinlee, Bryony, Aubrey, Bronwyn.

Back to Lauras'post for a bit, I think one of the popular name endings for girls in the past, maybe, 5 years has been LYN. (Kaitlyn,Jocelyn, Kaylyn, Madelyn, Jaylyn)

also I seem to hear a lot of ELLE/ELLA and ANN/ANNA endings.

Christiana, of those girl names you list, I like Lorelei, but spelled the German way with two 'e's, since it comes from a German legend. Here's an entry from an encyclopedia of myth about the origin of the name -- it's a sad but very pretty story: http://www.pantheon.org/articles/l/lorelei.html

The name sounds classic, with echoes of Laura and Laurel, but it's also fresh and unusual. To my ear, it's nicer than any of the girl names you list, with Caroline a close second. Alison, Meaghan and Kirsten all sound a little date-stamped in the 70s or 80s to me. But if this site teaches us anything it's that names sound wildly different to different people.

Lizpenn - I think Alison & Meagan are a bit outdated, too, but that's why I feel it's safe to like them - there's minimal chance that they will find 12 others with their names. Kirsten seems more old-fashioned/modern (I know, weird combo) - the trend of using Celtic names, etc. I got the spelling of Lorelai from my favorite TV show - Gilmore Girls. But that seems to be the only place I find it spelled that way. I've read the german myth before in researching the name. We like Alison/Allison (still debating on 1 or 2 Ls) since his favorite teacher is named Alison, my favorite character on his favorite Tv show is Allison Cameron and the heroine of my favorite book is Allison, nn Allie.

Val - i was just thinking the same thing about the -lyn ending. Katelyn, Madalyn, Shaylyn, etc. In Laura's book it's one of the syllables for the "make your own name" trend. Teagan & Kinley are both on my longer list and I love the sound of Bronwyn. I also love Aubrey, but there is a cousin named Audrey & that is too close, IMO.

Does anyone have any opinions on the names Cara (Friend), Kara (Sweet Melody) and Kera (Pure)? (all pronounced similarly, but they mean different things)

I think I like Kara the best--based on the look of the name. I think it looks more down-to-earth than Cara and less hippie than Kera. Plus Kera might get pronounced Kira, if that bothers you.

My feminist side turns me against girls' names that mean pure (=virginity=desire to control women's sexualiity).

I think I like (or have liked) all the names on your list. Allison and Megan have sort of fallen out of favor for me cuz I'm a trendwhore, but I also agree with your reasoning for using these outdated names.

Christiana, personally I like Cara. It sounds modern but has a warm old-fashioned look.

A note on one of the posts above: not all Scottish names are Celtic. Wilson, for example, is the name of a Scottish clan, but its etymology is about as English as you can get.

(Of course, what really matters is if the name sounds right to you.)

Hi there! Hope you are all well today. Christiana, I like the name Cara, and Kara. I like the nn "Kay". Sorry your Cameron name got taken. I'll keep trying to think of an alternative, does Laura's book have any sib suggestions?Lizpenn, I like Allison and Meagan too-- I do know a four year old with each name, but the names seem classic to me and grow up well.
Do you guys have any suggestions for me? I'm looking for girl and boy names to go with my son Joshua. I like names that grow up well. I've always hated the feathery softness of my name "Heather" yet I like the sweetness of the current girl name trend. Names I like for a girl are Elise and Lily and for a boy are Griffin and Henry but my hubby dislikes all but Henry. I came across the name Clara the other day... anyhoo, I'm open to suggestions! This site helps me pass the time waiting for invitro and I hope to not make another comprimise like we did with Joshua's name (though it suits him very well it was never one of my favorites). Thank's

HN: How about Zoe, Alexander, or Ezra? (These are names considered or used by some folks I know who have a Henry.)

HN - To go with Joshua how about Emily for a girl and Andrew for a boy? Joshua seems so classic to me. Or you could go with the biblical route - David, Gabriel, Jonah, Samuel, Noah, Joel, Isaac, Joseph, Caleb, Judah, Jeremiah for a boy and Elizabeth, Esther, Lydia, Ruth, Naomi, Miriam, Chloe, Anna, Julia, Rachel, Rebecca, Abigail... etc. I like Caleb and Judah best for boys and Abigail, Julia and Miriam best for girls. I also love Naomi and Lydia, but they don't flow as well with joshua. You do run into the "pairing" of Joshua and Caleb, so consider that if you like it well enough to use it. I like your choices of Elise and Henry. I used to love Lily but it has just gotten SOOOO popular that it has lost some of it's sparkle for me. Of course, i still love Lillian, so it hasn't comletely disappeared from my long list. You seem to like names that are deffinately feminine or masculine. Boy names on my list include Ryan, Garrett and Landon. Girly names include Cecelia, Sabrina, Felicity and Analiese. Hope it helps

My nephew Joshua has a sister called Eliana, which might be an alternative to Elise. And his middle name is Marcus, which I think goes well with Joshua as a potential brother. But Henry and Elise are both really nice names.

Christiana, I can't wait for you to have a baby! The lists will just get longer and longer...

HELP! i'm due in three weeks, already having contractions, and i have no idea what to name our little boy! well, i do have some ideas, but you know how sometimes you look at a name for so long you start to get sick of it? that's kind of happening to all the names we already have picked. so if you guys could help me, i'd really appreciate it. here are the possibilities as of right now:
charles finn (to be called charlie or finn)
henry
asher
if we don't go with charles finn we'll probably use my husband's name as the middle name. (nathan)

feel free to make any other random suggestions as well. help! i don't want to go to the hospital without a clue about naming our child!

Jo - i really like Charles Finn. Henry is also very classic. Sounds like you really like English names. Edward, maybe? How about Harrison? If I have 2 sons, they will be Charles Allen and Theodore Robert. How about Connor, Landon or Lucas?

Keren - My husband refuses to look at my "really long list" (it was 3 pages, typed, small font), so I've had to make a shorter "long list" which is down to one page. We'll choose from there. :-) I can't wait to have a baby, either. Ha ha.

jo: it might help if you tell us what you like about each name and what your misgivings are. like i think asher sounds really trendy but if trendy doesn't bother you, then that's no big deal.

i like henry, but it does seem to be going up in popularity. charles finn is also great.

you could also do what some have mentioned--you've got a few in mind, so just see what seems right after baby's born.

THank's Christiana, RobinT,and Keren! That was helpful :) Keren my cousin just named her baby Eliana! I love it, but can't use it now :( Robin T I love Alexander, that's now going on the list :)
Christiana you are such a sweetie thank you. YOu are right about Lily, it is getting overused. I do like Andrew, and Elizabeth, I love Jonah and Julia too but worry it would get to be "JjJJJ hey you get over here" in this house with two J names already. I love Annelise too. but my hubby doesn't. He likes Sarah, which feels so overused (I already have a Joshua which makes me feel like I didn't try hard enough) what do you think of Sarah?
Jo: how about Griffin? You could call him Fin. BTW, I have a brother who went by his middle name and it was VERY hard on him. But I love the name Charlie, Asher doesn't seem to be a name I would want as an adult, though I love it for a litte boy. Of course, I'm partial to Henry right now, that would be my first pick

HN-
My daughter's middle name is Lucille- named after my husband's grandma. It seems to go along with names like Lillian. I love it and would have liked it as a first name, except I'm from Germany (American husband, and we're living in US), so none of my family would have been able to pronounce it.

Jo-
We did not find out the sex of our baby before she was born, and she would have been Andreas Karl if she had been a boy. Maybe too German for you! :-) I also liked Benjamin, Markus, and Nikolas (nn Niko, pronounced NEE-ko-- again, a German thing!) Good luck.

I think Sarah might be quite unusual for babies right now - more of a 1960s name in the UK anyway. I like Sara better than Sarah - or how about Zara?

Yay, HN! Glad to help!

I also like Sara better than Sarah. I think efficiency is important to me.

About going by middle names, is the problem always having to correct people? A friend of mine goes by his middle name (and hates his first name) but still wanted to give his son the same first name and call him by his middle name cuz it's tradition.

My cousin went by his middle name among family but at school some called him by his first name. (I also went to school with him so that was interesting.)

Actually I know a lot of people who go by their middle names. I think it's a Hawai'i thing for the somewhat common occurence of people's first names being "American" and their middle names being Hawaiian. I think you do have to be mellow about people using the first name though. Cuz it's gonna happen.

NB: Love Niko.

Christiana -- if you decide to use it, go with Alison. ;) While I have spent the last 19 years of my life correcting people's spelling, I have always enjoyed having my name be a little bit different. There are three "Allison's" on my floor in my dorm, but I'm the only "Alison!" I'm not so ubiquitous as the 'two L-ers.' Anyway, just a thought -- glad you like the name!

...Back to lurking!

Jo, I like the names you've picked(especially Asher) .It seems anyone who asks me, lately, for a boy name gets the following answer,
Spencer, Jonah(nice for Jo), Tristan, Tait or Gavin.
How about Kendrick or Davis.
But Fox, and Mica and are my "wild and wonderful" favs.
Hope this helps.

About a brother for Joshua, I have taught 2 boys with the name Josh and their brothers were Ted(sometimes called T'Jay) and Zachary.

About Sarah, I like this name and the alternative someone suggested, Zara. You might also like Amara(can be pron. as a rhyme to Sara).

Christiana,
I am smiling thinking about you hunched over a three-page list in 8 point font! Good for you! I hope your first child is a girl so you get to use a name off your list. Do keep us posted (I realize this could happen three years from now, but I'm patient).

Jonas is also an alternative to Jonah. I like both.

I would beware of "Tait" as it is REALLY close to "taint"--which has two negative meanings! Tate is better but I would still be wary since my husband and his friends are very fond of the word taint.

Sarah is clearly not more of a 1960s name in the UK. In my sixth form it sometimes seemed like every girl was either Sarah, Hannah or Rachel. The boys' names were a lot more varied, oddly enough.

Yes, you're probably right Abi, I meant 60s/70s/80s...but not now.

I have a Henry myself so I'm partial to that name. Although lots of little Henries seem to be springing up around me lately. Full name is Henry Thomas, and we're expecting #2 in the spring and our short list for names includes George, Leo, Theodore (nn Ted), and Hugh. George will probably win. Girl names are Margaret (nn Maisie), Alice, and Gwendolyn. Incidentally, I know another family with a Josh and a Henry! There are four kids and their names are Jacob, Joshua, Abigail, and Henry. Hope that helps!
Hearing lots of little Ashers around as well. Don't know if it is just a cluster in my community or if it is getting popular everywhere.

You are all so great thank you! NB I love Lucille, and Lucia, thank's. Val and Angela thank's for the sibling pairings, I love the family names and it makes me feel better about my Joshua choice too. I do like the spelling Sara, though Zara is cute, I think I'm realizing that while I'm drawn to the trendier names I shy away from using them. RobinT my brother always had to correct his teachers to use his middle name, and gave up in college-- for him it was a nusaince. While I Like the name Henry and the flow of Jack Henry but still calling him Henry I would probably legally name my son Henry Jack and just call him Henry or Jack Henry if he got in trouble. Confusing enough hee hee :) But it's good to know that my brother's issues may be just his own, and others may not find it annoying to correct teachers/substitute teachers, etc.
Okay, so I re-bought Laura's book last night (gave the other away) and am thinking I like the name Lea (LEEAH). What do you think?
Heather

Anyone have any other ideas of a good sibling name to go with Aidan and Kaleigh?? We are thinking about Quinn, Quinlan, Finlay (boy) and Delaney or Brynn for a girl...I used to really like Teagan, for a girl, but now I'm not sure how I feel anymore. I kinda of want to pick a name that does not start with A or K, its a wierd balance thing.

Anyone have any other ideas of a good sibling name to go with Aidan and Kaleigh?? We are thinking about Quinn, Quinlan, Finlay (boy) and Delaney or Brynn for a girl...I used to really like Teagan, for a girl, but now I'm not sure how I feel anymore. I kinda of want to pick a name that does not start with A or K, its a wierd balance thing.

I LOVE the name Sarah or Sara - everyone I've ever known with that name has been very sweet. My college roommate was Sara. She had minor difficulties getting people to spell it without the H, but no major problems. It seems alittle less common without the H.
I like Lea, but prefer the spelling Leah. I've known both. As a kid, Lea had no problems, but as she got older more and more people tried to pronounce it "LEE". My DH's cousin just had a daughter and nameed her Leah Kathryn. Good luck!

Keren - now you know what I do at work during my down time! I seriously hope it doesn't take 3 years... :-) I might go stir crazy. I want my first one to be a girl, too - I can't wait to use one of these names!

I like Lea, but I think I like the Princess Leia pronuncation. Just something a little different. It seems less biblical and more... "ethnic," which is an awful way to put it.

My middle name is Leea, which is some kind of plant.

Jo - You could do a twist on your husband's name and use Nathaniel. I think Charles Nathaniel has a lovely flow.

Does anyone else feel like this is something of an exercise in futility...? It seems to me that each of us is looking for the perfect classic-but-still-modern-sounding, unusual name, and feeling upset (whether we express it or not) when someone else (especially someone within our own family or social circle) "steals" it. It occurs to me that, even if you do find this perfect name, and it's not currently part of a giant trend, that other people will hear your child's name and decide to use it. Which makes your child the equivalent of a Jennifer born in 1965... a little ahead of the trend, but still, in people's minds, just another Jennifer. No one will care that you were the first mom in your town to choose "Emily"! If we want our kids to have unique names, what we should try to do is find names that everyone besides ourselves will find objectionable, I guess, and that way no one will "steal" them. Or else, stop worrying about uniqueness, and just use the names we like, even if they're super-popular.

Terri I love the name Finlay for a boy! How about Payton or Quin for a girl?

Jen,
That is a great analysis of the zeitgeist! When I was pregnant with my daughter, I wanted to choose a common name because I didn't want her to be teased. By the time I had my son, however, I had succombed to the notion that trendy was somehow bad and wanted to choose a less common name. If I have a third, maybe I'll search for an "objectional" name! :),

Jen B: very funny! it does kind of remind me of being in high school and claiming that "I liked Blink 182 before they were cool." but you know we can't choose names everyone else hates--cuz that would include the kid, our parents, etc... oh, what a nightmare. i realize you were not seriously recommending this, but... i guess it just shows all the different concerns people face.

i think that it's just fun to talk about and i do feel good when someone appreciates my recommendation.

i have a friend though who has chosen a name and does not want to read this board. i totally understand why. i'm sure she would start to notice the negative aspects of the name and realize the millions of other options...

I like Payton and Quinn, thanks for the suggestions! For some reason my husband thinks that Payton sounds "country" I don't really know why???? I love Finlay, but I'm not sure about the nickname Finn, if it'll just be too odd.

Blink 182 were cool? Seriously?

On Finlay - fantastic name, I was in love with this name when I was about 11 - convinced that if I had children when I grew up they'd be Finlay and Megan. Finn is a fine nickname, reminds me of Finn the Irish Wolfhound. My parents plan to get two deerhounds in their retirement and call them Finn and Gelert.

I know two boys called Finn, One short for Fintan, brother is Milo, the other just Finn, brother is Lachlan.

Jen B. - Interesting take on our obsession with finding the perfect name - I think that's why some people want names that were once popular, but now have fallen - they're common enough, but not likely to rebound as quickly. I think back to childhood though and realize that people were drawn to friends with similar names. I knew 2 Jessica Lynn's in school and they were best friends. My best friends were always Katies and Kellys as a child. It was always exciting to find someone with your name. Will our kids feel the same - especially if it's harder to find someone with that name?

Terri - I always though Payton/Peyton was kind of a high-society name. I first heard it on the night time drama Savannah in the 90's and now it's on One Tree Hill. I think it sounds "cool and trendy" these days. It has possitive connotations to me. I love FInlay. The nn Finn could go either upscale or rugged, depending on the connotation (think polo club or Huckleberry Finn).

I agree with Payton sounding country. I also think Clayton, and Hayden sound very country, but I know these names are pretty big right now b/c of the whole rhymes with Aiden thing.

I really hate this trend, b/c I love the name Caden, but don't want my son to end up in a class where most of the boys names rhyme with his. I know that may seem exaggerated, but where I live right now, the Aiden craze is really bad, all the boys, and a few of the girls are named Aiden/Braydon.... Funny how name trends are so localized.

I read on here all the time about Finn, or short girls names lime Eva, Ava, but have never one in my area.

RobynT - I could see why someone would stop looking at the boards after deciding with certainty on a name. No more ideas jumping out, no negative comments, etc. Especially if you hemmed and hawed and aren't totally hung up on one name. It would be hard to hear people knock it or whatever.

A propos the name Lachlan which Keren mentioned- I just got back from a trip to Oz and Lachlan (pronounced Lochlan) is huge over there. I think it's part of a big Celtic trend over there, partly because there actually *are* a lot of people with Scottish/Irish ancestry! I think the Celtic trend is even bigger than elsewhere, from what I can gather.

I love the name Lachlan. DH thinks it's a little too Celtic, but I just love it. I read a book once about a man named Lachlan MacLachlan. It reminds me of this romantic, rugged Scotsman.