Baby Girl or Boy, Sibling to Suki

Kobi writes:

I am looking for some help with a boys name. My husband and I can’t seem to agree on a boys name and our baby is due this month.

We have a 2 year old daughter, Suki Margaret, pronounced Soo- key and luckily if we have another daughter we have agreed on Bronte, pronounced Bron- tee, after the beach in Australia but can’t seem to agree on a boys name.

If we have a boy his middle name will be either William after my husband & Grandfather or Franciscus after my Father. My husband likes Kainoa (pronounced Ky- noah) or Grayden, whereas I like Flynn, Ryder or Jake. Hawaiian names seem to be my husbands favorite and I am open to suggestions.

I’m a 2-legged stool, because I don’t know even one single Hawaiian boy name. I looked up the top 100 names by state on the Social Security Administration’s baby name site, but that’s mostly Ethan and Jacob just like the rest of the country—until it gets out of the top 50, at which point I see Kainoa and also Kainalu, Nainoa, and Kaimana. So….I’m winging it.

I like the sound of Kainoa. Both Kai and Noah are familiar, so a name that sounds like a combination of the two won’t be too difficult for people to adjust to. The nickname Kai reminds me of the names on your list.

Greyson. That’s my second suggestion. It’s similar to Grayden, but I feel like the Names That Rhyme With Aidan (Braden, Cayden, Greyden, Hayden, Jaden, Kaden, Rayden) are melting together into one big nice-sounding mass. I suppose a person could say the same about the Mason, Jason, Casen, Greyson group, but that group seems so much less smaller and so much less current.

Grady: again, similar to Grayden, but avoids The Group.

Griffin. Grayden + Flynn.

Please, help me out here, everyone. I am floundering.

23 thoughts on “Baby Girl or Boy, Sibling to Suki

  1. Saskia

    I like the sound of Kainoa, but it’s very similar to quinoa, the grain that’s growing in popularity in the US. Just something to consider.

    Reply
  2. Cassie

    What about Kale? Kale William is nice. I did a quick Google search for Hawaiian baby names and Kale popped up right away. If meaning matters to you, it means “strong and manly.”

    Reply
  3. Frazzled Mom

    That should be a new style family for The Baby Name Wizard, “Hawaiian Names.”

    I went to behindthename.com, and low and behold, there was a Hawaiian category! Jackpot!

    I quickly looked through the boy’s names and here are some I feel are more user-friendly. Some of the names I wasn’t sure how to pronounce and therefore eliminated them:

    Kale
    Hawaiian form of Charles. Of course this is also some kind of cabbage. I don’t think it’s that big a deal, but felt compelled to mention it.

    Kapena
    Means captain in Hawaiian.

    Keanu
    We all know Keanu Reeves. This could be a big deterrent, but otherwise at least it’s familiar.

    Kekoa
    Means the brave one in Hawaiian.

    Kimo
    Hawaiian form of James. I think this sounds feminine. Unless I’m mispronouncing it. I’m pronouncing it like Chemo for Chemo therapy.

    Mikala
    Hawaiian form of Michael

    Pika
    Hawaiian form of Peter

    I think Mikala and Pika are my favorites.

    For more you can go here:
    http://www.behindthename.com/nmc/haw_m.php

    Reply
  4. Anonymous

    Is Kale pronounced like the vegetable (kayle) or like Kah-leh? I think hawaiian (not knowing anything about it really) and I hear Kah-leh, which I prefer. Thoughts?

    Reply
  5. Meg

    First off, I love Suki – you got it from Gilmore Girls, right? It’s sooo cute!

    The other Hawaiian girls name I love is Leilani, I just think it’s so sweet.

    For a boy, what about Bane? Meaning Long Awaited Child? Other names I thought were cute….

    Bane
    Apona
    Haku
    Inoa
    Kapono

    Bane William?
    Kapono Franciscus?

    Reply
  6. Anonymous

    I think Kainoa is a great name. Kalani is also nice.

    Other suggestions:

    Keoni (John)
    Lopaka (Robert)
    Kamuela (Samuel)

    For girls, there’s also Keala (like Keala Kennelly the surfer).

    Reply
  7. Anonymous

    Love your little girl names!!!!!! hhe sooo cute:D

    Kainoa does remind me of quinoa… except i think quinoa is prounounced QeenWa…. not Kin-Oh-Ah

    so i tink Kainoa is okay:)
    like it a lot!!!

    Reply
  8. Anonymous

    Flynn was in the running for my little guy as a first name, or as a middle to Henry. We went with Henry Isaac but I kind of miss “Flynn”. Should have went with it, I hope you do. It’s a great name! :)

    Reply
  9. tracynicole22

    This is a tough one. The names you and your husband like are all SOOO different from each other! From your list I like Kainoa and Ryder. Both very different from each other but neither seem to clash with Suki. Not a fan of Grayden, but LOVE the name Grayer. I like the above suggestions of Kale & Kapono. I want to like Kimo. When I first read it, I liked it a lot, but the association with “Chemo” makes me not so sure. I looked up names of surfers to look for some other Hawaiian names, but ended coming up with a list of not-so-Hawaiian names that I liked:
    Layne
    Shane
    Donovan
    Maz
    Laird
    Btw, love the girl pick, Bronte! Good Luck!

    Reply
  10. Anonymous

    I absolutely love the name Bronte, mostly because I absolutely love that little beach in Sydney! My husband and I have some great photos and memories there (we lived in Sydney for a few months).

    I also like Graydon, Grayson, and Grayer. I think Graydon is my favourite. Good luck!

    PS Kainoa also reminded me of quinoa, but it wouldn’t stop me from using the name if I loved it. Which syllable is stressed in that name?

    Reply
  11. Deniselle

    I’m Finnish and I thought of two names that are popular here. Not sure if they’d fit your tastes, but there’s
    Kai
    Which is pronounced like ky, and
    Kalle.
    This is the Finnish form of Charles, and it’s pronounced like KAH-leh.

    There’s also Kalevi, which is a form of Charles again (KAH-leh-vee).

    The Hawaiian names suggested are gorgeous, though.

    Reply
  12. lili

    There have been several Gray- name suggestions.. what about just Gray? I love this name but cannot use it for various reasons.

    LOVE Suki :)

    Reply
  13. StephLove

    I know a teenage boy whose family lived in Hawaii when he was born and his name is pronounced Ka-VEE-ka. I have no idea how it’s spelled.

    I like the suggestions of Grady and Gray.

    Reply
  14. Anonymous

    Thank you Swistle and everyone else for your help!

    My husband and I have read every comment and have now come to a short list:

    Kainoa (of course)
    Kale
    Keoni
    and….
    Gray.

    I will keep you all posted, I am going to go practice calling them out at the park and feel which one fits best :o)

    Thanks again, Kobi.

    Reply
  15. TweePopACap

    I’m going to second what many people have been saying: Kainoa does remind me of quinoa, visually.

    However, if I loved it, I wouldn’t let this stop me, because it doesn’t SOUND the same at all. quinoa is pronounced “keen-WAH” and Kainoa is, like you said, pronounced “ky-NO-ah.”

    But my major hang up is that, because it looks so similar to quinoa, whenever I see the name Kainoa, I keep wanting to pronounce it either “ky-NWAH” or “kane-WAH.”

    Reply
  16. MAmanda

    I like both Kainoa and Kale, perhaps Kainoa a bit more. Also, Gray. I think any of the names from your short list would be awesome.

    Reply
  17. -Jennifer

    Brighton is a Hawaiian name that was on our list for our June delivery…

    Can be used either boy or girl…

    Bright for a boy is so cute! I liked it because it was such a description of personality… big beautiful eyes, aware, and smart!

    Reply

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