Help Name Our Next Child

SED · Post by **SED** » Fri Aug 20, 2004 11:03 pm

We need a good boy name. Feel free to suggest a playa handle to go with it.

Key info: Baby will be born in early March. Has older brother Named Finn. Last name will be Bridgham, pronounced bridge 'em (like what you do to rivers).

I have no choice in the matter, but all names will be suggested to Mom.

bdongray · Post by **bdongray** » Sat Aug 21, 2004 12:41 am

SED wrote:We need a good boy name. Feel free to suggest a playa handle to go with it.

Key info: Baby will be born in early March. Has older brother Named Finn. Last name will be Bridgham, pronounced bridge 'em (like what you do to rivers).

I'll own up to not hearing the name "Finn" before (except possibly as a last name), so I guess you're looking to us to suggest some "not so normal" names?
ie not: Andrew, Brian, Charley, David, .... Zach.

When naming children I had two "rules":
1. both Mom and Dad must both like the name, so either have the power to deny any name the other suggests, even if they absolutely love the name, they must respect the other may not like that name (for whatever reason), as both parents are going to live with the name for a long time. A name that is absolutely loved by one, a "must have", would probably be the middle name, which in turn gives the other parent more "rights" over the first name - as in, if there are two or three names you cannot decide upon, but they're all agreeable to both, the final decision would be made by the parent who didn't choose the middle name.
2. each new child has a different first name initial to the brothers and sisters, and the parents too. It makes life so much easier with even simple things like xmas stockings, gifts, and jewelry being labelled with a single letter. You don't ge any fights over who's is who's.
I guess #2 wouldn't work if Mom & Dad have the same initial letter to begin with anyway.

I find it strange that some people name their first boy after Dad - but I come from England, where that tradition died out before the Victorian era. Doing that must cause confusion (and maybe embarrassment) at times.

I feel that naming a child after some relation is a dangerous thing to do, it can cause problems with other members of the family (or other parents family, when they discover who the child is named after).

I also think about when the child goes to school, other kids need to not to have amunition to ridicule the child based on their name.

SED wrote:I have no choice in the matter, but all names will be suggested to Mom.

Before I go assuming anything (and wondering about you saying "no choice"), what is your relationship to the Mom?

JezebelinHell · Post by **JezebelinHell** » Sat Aug 21, 2004 2:33 am

I've always loved the name Gabriel for a boy. Devlin and Jaiden are other interesting ones that have caught my attention.

Isotopia · Post by **Isotopia** » Sat Aug 21, 2004 3:23 am

Baby names?

You DON'T want to go here http://www.notwithoutmyhandbag.com/babynames/1.html.

Post by **AntiM** » Sat Aug 21, 2004 7:30 am

NOT Jaiden or any variation thereof. It is the (boy) Jennifer of the 2000s. I already know six Jaidens or Jaden or Jayden all under the age of seven.

Find a list of the most popular and the most trendy and avoid them like the plague. Take this from someone who has worked in a classroom, it gets repetitive calling the same name over and over again, even if it is spelled 17 different ways.

I like the different initials for each family member; in Utah it is traditional to name all seven or eight kids with same initial names. My cousin has Tyler and six other Ts, all of whom I forget. I also know a family with all Js, Justin, Jesse, John and a few more. Very confusing. My neighbor kids are named Easton, Colter, and Tucker. I intensely dislike those names, although Easton is growing on me.

I like one traditional name and one unusual name and then the child can choose whichever one suits as an adult.

Write the name down and see if strangers can pronounce it. Stand at the kitchen door and scream the name repeatedly, to hear if it becomes grating or ridiculous. Check for silly rhyming words (Tucker Fucker!) and shortening nicknames : Margaret = maggot. Avoid "brand' names like Tyson or Disney or Nike. Yep, a kid named Disney.

This advice is from someone who has family members with the names Sandy Stone, Winter Rose, Sunshine Castle, and Heavenly October.

I always play devil's advocate when it comes to child names, just want people to think things over carefully even with the best names possible. And just because you know a really cute kid with a trendy or weird name, the cuteness of the kid does not make the name cute too. Feel free to ignore any or all of my opinions, he's your son after all.

Larry, there's the great comic name of the 20th century.

Traditionally,
Anti M

bdongray · Post by **bdongray** » Sat Aug 21, 2004 7:54 am

I should have added:
Be careful of initials meaning or spelling something.
A high school friend was "V.D.Lastname" - got hell because of it (I decided not to put his real lastname).

AntiM wrote:Write the name down and see if strangers can pronounce it.

Or say it to the stranger, and get them to spell it?

AntiM wrote:Avoid "brand' names like Tyson or Disney or Nike.

And how does one pronounce "Nike"?
Knee-kay? Nigh-key? Or to ryhme with Mike?

AntiM wrote:I always play devil's advocate when it comes to child names, just want people to think things over carefully even with the best names possible. And just because you know a really cute kid with a trendy or weird name, the cuteness of the kid does not make the name cute too.

I agree and feel this is important for parents to do/think about.

AntiM wrote:Feel free to ignore any or all of my opinions, he's your son after all.

As ever... here. My opinions too.

PS The problem with trendy names is the trend may occur *after* your child is named. My daughter Emily born 1981, was a fairly unique name then. But a few years later, we noticed it started to become popular (at least in England). She knows several other Emily's or Emma's who are 5 to 10 years younger than her.
I guess I was a trend setter

Tancorix · Post by **Tancorix** » Sat Aug 21, 2004 8:17 am

Shamelessly swiped from another online location, here's a website for everyone reading this discussion:

Baby's named a bad, bad thing.

http://www.notwithoutmyhandbag.com/babynames/1.html
http://www.notwithoutmyhandbag.com/babynames/index.html

The second link is kind of an eye opener if you're thinking about trendy names.

shitmouse · Post by **shitmouse** » Sat Aug 21, 2004 9:03 am

a boy, named Sue.

-- Gant
-- Ren
-- Shifter
-- King
-- Basse -(pronounced bass as in guitar)
-- Toren
-- Uvee

after reading a recent science article about how children's names effect whom they blossom into, it brings interesting thought to the table.
--- have you thought about naming thru your ethnic lineage? an old world name?
-b

SED · Post by **SED** » Sat Aug 21, 2004 9:44 am

Finn has a number of origins. Finn McCool was a prechristian warrior chief in Ireland. Killed giants, stuck it to the druids, etc. But we're not Irish and we gave it to him because were into literature. There's Huckleberry Finn, of course and there a character froma book called A Separate Peace named Phineas. It's also easy to shout over a distance. We like the way "Finn Bridgham on the course" might sound coming out of the speakers at the Olympics, too.

My wife gets final approval only because the kids get my last name. We both have to like it, of course. Thanks for all the advice. I've seen enough Madisons and Taylors and Jakes at the totlot to last me a lifetime.

Keep 'em coming!

Stormy · Post by **Stormy** » Sat Aug 21, 2004 10:05 am

My nephew is Callahan. Might go with that last name. As for playa names, it's best if they come about situationally.

Hotspur · Post by **Hotspur** » Sat Aug 21, 2004 2:21 pm

Two rules:

The pronunciation of the name should be obvious from reading it.

Don't make a normal name "hip" by spelling it funky.

Other than that, knock yourself out.

Icepack · Post by **Icepack** » Sat Aug 21, 2004 4:06 pm

There are lots of websites with baby names and definitions. Maybe check them out to make sure the name doesn't come out meaning something you aren't comfortable with.

I've seen families go with the all the same first initial, and then the middle name is after a family member thing... that can be kind of cool if you like that kind of thing.

I also knew a family that had a child named Willow, another named Autumn, another named Auriel, and then they named their son Mike or Matt.

You say your first is named after a historic warrior something, how about Alexander (the Great) or Thor or something like that?

Don't go for a name that could be unisex. My grandfather's first name was Francis, and the stone that went on top of the coffin (in the ground) said "Frances". Duh!

bdongray · Post by **bdongray** » Sat Aug 21, 2004 8:43 pm

Icepack wrote:I also knew a family that had a child named Willow, another named Autumn, another named Auriel, and then they named their son Mike or Matt.

You say your first is named after a historic warrior something, how about Alexander (the Great) or Thor or something like that?

I've noticed baby names are more often (if the unusual type) are sweet and cute, etc. It's rare to hear of a baby called "Thor". As a result when older, anyone called "Thor" is assumed to have changed their name, or it's a stage name.

Also boys names like "Adolf" and "Judas" are not very popular! Not surprisingly, but I've always thought that some heavy Christian type might want their child named Judas, as the Chirstian should believe that without Judas, Jesus would not have been nailed, died, and ressurected.

Icepack wrote:Don't go for a name that could be unisex. My grandfather's first name was Francis, and the stone that went on top of the coffin (in the ground) said "Frances". Duh!

I hope they got it fixed (or a refund).

SED · Post by **SED** » Sun Aug 22, 2004 12:20 am

Actually, Thor tops my list. I'd also consider Ragnar.

JezebelinHell · Post by **JezebelinHell** » Sun Aug 22, 2004 1:59 am

Conlan was an ancient warrior of some sort, although his origin escapes me at the moment. Anyways, my friends just had a little boy, and here are some of the names they were tossing around.
Cash (I should mention they're big Johnny Cash fans)
Sid (also big Sex Pistols fans)
Giovanni (and they're Italian)
Aries (unless he IS an Aries)
Jhonen (pronounced joe-nin)
Pearce (I don't know how I feel about that one)

Tancorix · Post by **Tancorix** » Sun Aug 22, 2004 7:39 am

When it comes to names I use this site frequently:

http://www.kabalarians.com/cfm/surf-by.cfm?Baby=Yes
http://www.kabalarians.com/Index.cfm

You can search alphabetically, by culture, and more. I used some of the names on there for sock puppets on this board a while back. (I no longer have sock puppets though).

Help Name Our Next Child

Help Name Our Next Child

Re: Help Name Our Next Child

Thor!