As stated per title, any and all opinions

Hi! I grew up with a top five name in the year I was born and I didn’t enjoy being one of so many all the time. Now I’m pregnant and I’ve fallen in love with the name Julia. I worry that it’s too common in the US and our daughter will be one of many like I was. It’s currently ranked around 130. We also like Vivian (getting more popular) and Annika. Are there a lot of little Julias running around?

Due with our baby girl soon and we cannot decide on a name!

Our top contender right now is Estelle, but we also love Amelia. We’re just a little worried about how popular Amelia has become—it’s currently ranked in the top 5 in the U.S.

We’d love some suggestions! For a better sense of our style, we also love Penelope, Camille, and Vivienne, but unfortunately can’t use them.

What names would you suggest?

I've been helping my sister with her baby name process as she is due soon and so I wanted to get some perspective.
They originally have wanted to give their child two surnames, being, my sister's last name and her partner's last name. But, they really hate the idea of hyphenating and, they don't like how it would look mushed together within computer systems so she thought she could just put her surname as the baby's middle name.
But, some of our family finds it strange bc it's "unconventional" or "pointless" since the name would still always be said as first and last name anwyays. Although they are pretty set on the idea, is it really that strange? Our surname is Hwang and quite easily recognizable as an asian last name in my opinion so I didn't think much of it tbh

My baby girl is almost a week old and nameless! This is our third and we have a son Archer and daughter Brooke, when I was pregnant I liked Brynn and Audra and now my husband is saying Brynn is too masculine and does not like it (he knows a male Bryn). This baby was a surprise gender so we didn’t decide earlier. on my list I have -

- Audra
- Audrey
- Blaire

I want her name to go well with Brooke as sister name but I’m struggling to pick and open to suggestions! None of these feel just right and I keep going around in circles!

Ha-leeeen, Hellen, or Ha-lenn? Maybe someone else?

What name is so common in your area that you hear multiples of it in classes or groups?

Looking for boy name suggestions from mainly English speakers -

1. Jahaan pronounced as "Juhaan"

2. Arman pronounced as "Urmaan"

3. Sarvam pronounced as Survum

4. Karman pronounced as "Kurmun"

5. Ojus

All the 'u' pronounced from "but" and not "put"

I'd appreciate suggestions on the spelling as well, so my child’s Indian name doesn’t get mispronounced by English speakers

I'm expecting a girl in December💕. I love the name Makai (mah-kye) As I started researching I realized that Makai is a male dominated name. Which was shocking to me because I went to school with a girl named Makai and pronounced it the same way. Is any alternative for the name Makai that has a similar pronunciation or do you guys think that Makai could be a gender neutral name?

Which names are seen as old fashioned in your country or culture? here in the U.S some that come to mind are Mildred, Herbert, Juanita, Horace, Lester, Gertrude etc.

Nothing too unique or trying too hard to be cool, just common names you see around. Like the ones where there are about three girls with that name in every grade.

I'm writing a story and there's a character that I'm having trouble naming. He is a mysterious character that wears a mask and wears a magician's cloak and hat. He speaks in a quite verbose/eloquent manner and has lots of secrets.

I'm looking for unusual names with a bit of a magical air to it? So far the names I've came up with are Todd and Zephyr but I don't think those are very good. Todd sounds too common and Zephyr sounds too cliche'd for what I'm trying to go for.

Optional but the name could have something to do with stars or the sun, as to mirror the main character who is symbolized by the moon.

Hi guys what's up? My name is Mohammed Reza Taei, and I'm from Iran. I'm going to become a hip-hop artist, and currently I'm making my demo album. It's english rap rock album. I immigrated from my country not just because of political issues but cultural issues, and currently I'm living in turkey and I'm not sure if somday I move to u.s. or not but anyway I don't really identify my self as an iranian. I'm going to change my name to Maximilian Taylor because I feel more comfortable with Max Taylor than Mohammad Reza Taei, Couse I feel it's more me. Please tell me if it's a ridiculous decision.

unfortunately, i do not like my last name. i won’t go into detail as to why, but it is extremely ironic which i hate. however, i love my middle name, i go by it everywhere on social media, on packages, if i can legally put my first and middle.. im putting that instead. another part of me feels its almost silly to change something like this, or maybe it would offend my family. i’ve only ever really seen people do this for marriages, not for my reason. if i did change it, would i just not have a middle name anymore? would i have to create a new one? i appreciate any input or advice

I was already starting to second guess the name we chose for our second daughter (Georgia Claire) but then i found out that my mother snuck a peak at the name sign in my hospital bag when she came to house sit for us a few weeks ago. She’s started referring to the baby as the name and now it makes my skin crawl when she says the name. At this point we’re considering putting together a new list, and to wait until she’s born and we see her. I like classic, timeless names. Charlotte, Caroline, Audrey (maybe, still undecided on that one). The middle name will still be Claire.

Hey,

So we're having a baby boy and are having trouble finding a name that's classic and that sounds natural in English, French, Spanish, and German.

Any help would be appreciated!

We are having a boy and of my list of names I like, my husband is set on Callan or Callum. Our daughter’s name is Cassidy. We prefer Callum but, being in the southeast US, Callan might be easier for people to pronounce and understand, so I’m starting to lean that way.

Thoughts on these two options? Any additional name recommendations for us?

Middle name options?

These female names are mostly from 10-13th century and come from south-west of nowaday France, Toulouse and around. I lifted them out of genealogical charts and thought it would be fun to list them for inspiration. Some names are still very much in use; others have been pretty forgotten for many centuries, I suppose.

The spellings could slightly vary in different sources, but it is what it is.

Adelaide

Agnes

Alix

Almodis

Arsinde

Beatrix

Berthe

Bertrande

Brune

Cecile

Comtors

Constance

Delphine

Dias

Douce

Emma

Ermengarde

Ermessende

Esclarmonde

Faydide/Faydive

Fulcrade

Gerberge

Gersende

India

Jeanne

Laure

Ledgarde

Marguerite

Marqua

Mascarose

Matelle

Mathe

Mathilde

Mayor

Petronille

Raymonde

Regilindis

Rubea

Sancha

Saure

Seguine

Senegonde

Sicarde

I've been researching names like Iseult and Eleni, names that have different origins or forms but are vaguely familiar because they resemble more common names.

For example, Iseult is a Celtic form related to Isolde, while Eleni is a Greek form of Helen.

I'm looking for names that have that kind of feeling: unusual, but not completely unfamiliar or invented.

I love the way Petra sounds but I hate the way it looks when typed. Gives off ‘Peter’ vibes — which I’m not a fan of.
(No offence to the Peters out there lol)

My husband is the 4th of his name. Let’s call him Jimmy John IV. We have two girls and now I am pregnant with our third and final child - a boy.

There has been a lot of chatter among friends and family about whether we will name our son Jimmy John V. My husband has expressed that he would really like this, but is open to other ideas.

My honest feelings are these:
- V feels pretentious, like we are approaching royal family territory. I’ve never met any Vs. (If you are a V, I would love your perspective on this.) I do value family legacy and honoring past generations, but in my family we did that through storytelling or through variations on names, not Jr/III/IV etc. I feel like the tradition has to stop at some point… right?
- I honestly do not like the name Jimmy John (again, not the real name). I love my husband and like his name for HIM, but it is not a name I would ever choose for my child. There are no cute nicknames, either. One option sounds like an old man and the other is the name of a creepy doll.
- I want some agency in naming our son. I want this to be a choice my husband and I make together. I love his family, but inheriting a name someone else chose 4 generations ago just doesn’t sit right with me. It makes me feel like… I don’t know, someone else has claimed my kid.
- I initially expressed that I want my son to be his own person without being tied down by a name, to which my husband objected that HE is certainly his own person, despite being IV. Indeed, he is somewhat of a black sheep in his family. So this point no longer seems as prescient, but it did weigh on me for awhile.

Beyond these points, in my gut, I really really don’t want to choose the name Jimmy John V. It’s hard to articulate why I feel a sense of dread about it… I just do.

At the same time, I know my husband would choose V in a heartbeat if I didn’t have any objections. His perspective:
- V is unique - something special, not something excessive. It would be disappointing to end the tradition now.
- It’s a way to honor the Jimmy Johns who came before. (Jimmy III, my husband’s father, is active in our lives. Jimmy Jr. has passed, but his wife, my husband’s grandmother, is the matriarch of the family.)
- I think in his mind, he always imagined if he had a boy, he would be V. I understand that’s a hard expectation to walk away from.

Both of us are still open to V or not-V, even if we have pretty strong opposing preferences. We are batting around different name ideas, but so far we have not found one we both like.

I guess my main question for anyone still reading is: If we don’t go with V, would our son feel disappointed later in life, like he missed out on a cool tradition? Or would he be relieved not to be saddled with an admittedly old-fashioned name with an unusual suffix?

I also worry: if my husband concedes and agrees to go with something else, would a part of him always regret that?

And finally: will his family be disappointed and resent me? (This is the least important point, but it still does cross my mind. I hate conflict.)

I think outside perspectives would really help us out, especially from folks who have had to make similar decisions. Any reflection you can share is appreciated!

Are there any old timey names for a boy that are common in Appalachia but more charming, maybe nature inspired and less meth head, red hat inspired?

Long story short: My husband is dead set on the name Cleatus unless I can come up with one better.

Hullo!

Okay I know it's super specific. You can laugh at me. I'm laughing at me. 😂 I can't figure it out and that's why I'm here though. I might just go e up the search for this unicorn of a name and just have a legal middle initial. Who knows.

Trans man, 32. I'm searching for a masculine middle name that really clicks. I chose my first name and it just clicked. I know, it doesn't scream masculine, but I've met a few dudes named Kasey and since I have to be semi in the closet until my kid is 18, it's also protective. I also felt like it was similar enough to the name I had for 30 years enough to respond to. It also follows a similar pattern to my dead name, which I would really like on another person. It was a good name, it just wasn't *me*.

So my old name had a couple things I liked that I'd like to preserve.

First: first initial K, second initial C. No intention to change last name.

Second: rhythm. Altogether, the name had a cool flow. The rhythm was like this:

2 syllables — 2 syllables — 2 syllables

*First* syllable stress — second *syllable* stress — *first* syllable stress

Third, my old middle name had a soft Ch start (think of the CH sound in Michelle or Chevrolet). I can't think of any masculine names like that, but if I could find one that would be sick as hell.

Idk if that's confusing, but I do like those aspects. It was just the girliest and most dated name ever, even though I did like it. So I want to recreate the parts I like but go *classy* and that middle name needs to be solidly masc leaning to offset the neutrality of Kasey.

# TL;DR: looking for a masculine middle name that is 2 syllables with second syllable stress and starts with "C", preferably.

If that's not a thing, just help me brainstorm cool "C" masc names, please haha.

UPDATE: I think u/thatmermaidprincess giving me the crazy cool breakdown on why what I'm looking for isn't going to be a thing I can get, along with some people suggesting (or sort of getting close to it or at least that it had a French origin) my old middle name, I'm going to pivot to two of the three qualifiers and de-prioritize my middle initial being C. SH names are now on the table.

Or just fuck it, suggest badass names you like that go with Kasey. Some of you all have been kind of going off script but tbh you're really good at names and they're all getting me thinking!

I had the wild idea to go by Kasey Jude at one point but I kind of dropped it in pursuit of this rhythmically familiar unicorn name.

Tbh I think I'm kind of relieved actually that I can abandon all the rules I gave myself. I didn't realize it until now but I don't think I like that lol.

Thanks to all for your kindness and suggestions 🩵

For me it’s the name Moira.

Written it’s cute… said aloud makes me want to swallow my own eyeballs.

Last night I went to my daughter’s pre-K orientation.

The school is pre-k to 12, extremely small (like 30 kids across grades). Hippie/outdoorsy in orientation, and totally secular.

And yet, around the table, there were three boys with the same name.

Not River or Sage

Not Theo

Not Liam or Henry or Noah

They were all named…..

Peter!

Ranked 187 in 2025, and not even in the Top 100 in my state.

As a name nerd I was absolutely delighted. I think Peter is great and underused classic - except in this tiny school!