5-2 Need Baby Boy Name Help ASAP
I had my precious baby boy 4 weeks early yesterday, and he still doesn't have a name. All along I thought I wanted to use the family name Tr3mp3r which was my grandfather's middle name. At first it was going to be Tr3mp3r Joseph as I thought my other grandfather named Joe was short for Joseph, nope it's Jody, and I don't like Jody. So then I've thought about using my grandfather's complete name John Tr3mp3r as a double name. My grandfather was Jack and we have too many Jack's in the family to use again. I'm Southern so a double name for a boy is not out of the realm of possibilities but I have a friend who named her son a double name and he now goes by his initials. I'm not in love with the initials J.T. so I worry about him eventually using those initials.
So if I go with Tr3mp3r as a first name, any suggestions for middle names. There aren't many family names so really it could be anything.
then the night before he was born I dreamed of the name Sawyer. Even though I never watched Lost that's immediatley what the name brings to mind, but Lost is off the air will people still asociate the name with lost 5, 10, 15, 20 years down the road? And using Tr3mp3r in the middle name spots is a lot of "er" in the name.
My last name is super generic, a top 10 boy's name so I want something at least a little distinctive but then again,I am considering using John.
Help!
Wed, 05/02/2012 - 1:01pm
Replies
Oh L'autre C, this is easy for me! I would definitely go with Tr3mp3r Joseph! My BNW book isn't handy at the moment, but another of my favorite sources (behindthename.com) says Jody is probably a diminutive of Joseph; I'm pretty sure I've read Jody as a nn for Joseph in other name books as well. Using the mn Joseph to honor grandfather Jody isn't a stretch, and it fits your taste better -- sounds like a great compromise. And your little Tr3mp3r will always have a funny story about his mn, and every time he thinks of it or tells it he will bring Grandpa Jody to mind.
I have a J0hn D0minic (fn mn), and I call him that often, so I'm not at all averse to J0hn Tr3mp3r, especially since it's your grandfather's full given name (ours is named for great-grandpa J0hn D0minic). But since you don't want him to be a Jack (I have a family member who insists on calling my J0hn Jack even though we officially told everyone he wasn't going to be a Jack), and you don't want him to end up J.T., and you have a "super generic" last name, I would caution you against it.
I don't care for Sawyer Tr3mp3r or Tr3mp3r Sawyer -- if a name like Tr3mp3r or Sawyer is chosen it's usually my preference to pair it with a more traditional name. Additionally, it is a lot of "er." I wouldn't mind Sawyer Joseph or Sawyer John or John Sawyer, but Tr3mp3r really gets my vote. (Tr3mp3r John is nice too.)
Congratulations on the birth of your baby boy!
I don't see why you couldn't still use Joseph-or even just Joe as the middle in honor of grandfather Joe/Jody. I think most people would understand not wanting to use Jody for a boy now since it has "gone girl" in more recent years.
I agree with tralee that Tr3mp3r J0seph is a wonderful choice! My Nora is named after my two grandmothers who both have NOR in their names, but neither is Nora.
If you decide against J0seph as a middle, Tr3mp3r John is nice, and a twist on the original namesake. I don't like Sawyer cause of the repeating -ers. But some other ideas for middles are Samuel, Lee, James, Jackson, Phillip, Charles, George. Personally I think Tr3mp3r Charles or Tr3mp3r Samuel sound great.
Tr3mp3r John was on my list but I was worried it sounded too much like Trapper John MD. Thoughts?
I had to google to figure out the Trapper John reference. The Sawyer reference from Lost is much fresher in everyone's mind. So I think Tr3mp3r John is usable. I do prefer John Tr3mp3r as you indicated that your last name is a common boy's first name. I'm thinking that he'll have his first and last names mixed up frequently.
First, congratulations on your new little boy!!
I did think of the Trapper John issue before you mentioned it, but then I'm a big M*A*S*H fan and I think it would not be a big deal for most people. I still prefer John Tr3mp3r, though, if only because Tr3mp3r doesn't feel quite like an easy FN to me and I'd like the idea of him having the option to use the double name, or just go by the first, as he prefers. I also like the symmetry of him having FN LN FN as his name (since you said your surname is a common boy's FN), which sounds better to me than LN FN FN. Not that this is a huge deal, but if his name looks like LN FN FN, some people (marketers? various administrators?) may assume it was written with the last name first, and incorrectly assume that his name is Joseph Jacob Tr3mp3r, or whatever it would be.
I wasn't even sure which show Trapper John, MD was from, and yet that association immediately came to mind.
However, that said, I think that both Joseph or John sound very good with Tr3mp3r and really, you need to listen to your instincts. Choose the name that both evokes your grandfather for you and is a name that you would be proud to announce when introducing your child to others. If you want to use the double name, John is an easy one to pair because it is short and light sounding. If you're happy enough using one name, I'll just throw my opinion out there and say that I'm personally partial to Joseph over John.
Congratulations on your baby boy! Has he "told" you his name yet?
If you're still deciding, I'll just echo the crowd that Joseph works just fine as a namesake for Joe/Jody. I can't comment on the "Lost" association, but I would say that whatever Sawyer's merits, my instinct in the surname-as-given-name realm would always be to go with one from your family tree or with a special personal association over one from someone else's that you have no significant connection to. Plus, Tremper is distinctive and interesting, while Sawyer has become popular enough that it feels a bit generic to me.
I'd also echo the caution about potential for confusion about which is the first vs. last name - but how much of a concern this is depends a lot on your last name, and ultimately I don't think I'd let this stop me from using a name I really loved.
Do you like the initials TJ? A lot of folks seem to find that combination appealing, and I like the idea of your son having the initials-as-nickname option so he gets his "own" name within the family, if he wants, at the same time as the tribute name(s). Personally I'm biased towards Joseph over John, and I also like how using Joseph gives you namesakes from two branches of the family tree. So, I like Tremper Joseph the best (not knowing the surname), but I can see upsides to all your options.
Hope you and your wee one are both well!
- kalmia (not logged in - hope this is still useful, since it's been several days now; looks like my original comment didn't post so I'm trying again)
I still have not decided. Debating between John Tremper and Tremper Joseph. So far most of the votes have gone for John Tremper because that was my grandfather's actual name. The Jody joseph would be for is a great grandfather and so has no personal connection. I just think its funny with such a generic last name that is extremely common, I originally thought I wanted a distinctive name but I've circled round to the classic John. I have a feeling he's going to end up John Tremper though I've been calling him Buddy all weekend. Maybe I need to stop that.
I had to sign a form to be able to leave the hospital without a name and have a limited number of days left to decide. I've told myself that i have to make a decision by Monday.
and the two (living) Jacks in the family have both urged me to call him Jack. too funny!
I like John Tremper best--both because of the family association and because John gives him a more traditional option. I think he will be one of the only Johns in his class... I am a teacher, and in seven years and maybe 900 students, I have never had a boy named John in any of my classes. (Actually, I can't think of a boy named John in my entire school at the moment.) I think it's one of those names everyone assumes is too common to use, and therefore it's actually becoming fairly uncommon.
I don't know if I'm too late or not. If you have decided I'm sure we would all love a post in the "Announcing..." forum. If you are still thinking then let me offer these thoughts:
I like Tr3mp3r although it is very distinctive and he may want a nn or other such (initials) to revert to in Junior or High School. Tr3mp3r John does make me think of Trapper John but I'm sure that association is limited to a select demographic (age group and place). John Tr3mper seems rather plain to me but doable. Sawyer with Tr3mper in any form seems like too many -er's. I like Joby, or Colby, or Cody or some other kind of sound alike. There is even another poster here who's son is J0ly0n. That would work too!
Cody Tr3mper; Colby Tr3mper; Joby Tr3mper; Jolyon Tr3mper. Best wishes!
I don't remember where, but the announcement was quietly made in the middle of another post. His name is John Tr3mp3r :)
I LOVE John. It's great you had the courage to use it. It's so simple and elegant. Beautiful name!
Karyn, Thanks for making my announcement for me in this thread, and I didn't even realize that there was an announcements forum.
Guest: I am warming up to John, never been a huge fan of it, but its growing on me. I realize that most people use names because they love them, but I really wanted to name the baby after my grandfather and using his exact name just proved to be easier. Plus, if it's going to be shortened to initials J. T. is not bad. it'll be curious to see what his name settles into being over time.
I *really* hope that you don't feel like I stole your announcement. I would have linked to your casual mention of your final choice, but I had absolutely no clue where it had been. I'm really sorry if I shouldn't have said anything.
No. No worries at all about "stealing" my announcement. I too have no clue where I mentioned the name I chose, and was glad that you saw the post and updated this one for me.
Phew, okay, good!
You can make your own official announcement in the announcement forum thread, if you'd like :)
Acer is a good name. you can use it if You want. It is a unique and unusual name.