Anne writes:
My husband and I are expecting our first child in early February 2011. We don’t know the sex, but I have a sneaking suspicion that it’s a boy. This is a bit of a problem, since we are all set for girls names, but can’t come up with anything boy-friendly.
My family is French Canadian, and I really want our children to have names that work in both French and English. We are hyphenating our last names, with my name coming second, so the baby’s last name will be Coe-Thériault.
The only name that I’ve come up with that I like is Emile, but my husband says that it makes him think of a little boy in a sailor suit, which to me sounds kind of adorable, but apparently not to him. He prefers Charles, but I’m not too keen on that. Other possibilities that we’ve thought of have been Henry, Felix, Lucien and Theodore. The baby’s middle name will be Ernest, after my grandfather.
Any suggestions? I would love to hear them!
And:
So Charles is pretty much out (I think that my husband has come around to the fact that I’m not going to love it). I still love Emile, but I find that a lot of English-speaking people aren’t familiar with it and might have a hard time pronouncing it. Also, I worry that he (if it is a he!) will end up being called Emily. So right now the main two we’re considering are Theodore and Isaac.
So my question is basically fourfold – is Emile awful? Or am I over-thinking this? Is Theodore (n.n. Theo) super dorky? I’m worried he might get teased. Is Isaac too popular? We’d like to avoid anything over-used. Do you have any other suggestions?
Also, it occurred to me that it might be helpful if I explained how to pronounce our last name. Coe is like Co. (as in Tiffany & Co.) and Thériault is like the back half of Ontario.
Thank you!
Emile definitely isn’t awful—but I agree with you that it’s too much like Emily for the U.S. (especially with creative spellings so common). Not IMPOSSIBLY so, but I’d avoid it. I think the spelling Emil works better, but maybe that ruins it in French?
Theodore definitely isn’t too dorky, and it’s coming into style nicely (that is, it’s rising just a little, so the name won’t seem weird, but it’s not rising in a rapid, worrying way), and the nickname Theo is great. My main hesitation is that Theo Coe-Thériault is so rhymey: theO cO tariO. Maybe Sebastien instead? Sebastien Ernest Coe-Thériault.
Isaac, Henry, and Felix are three of my favorite boy names. Isaac is currently the most popular of all the possibilities: #40 in the U.S. in 2009, according to the Social Security Administration, but I think of #40 as a very nice place for a name (especially a boy name) to be: familiar but not EVERYWHERE. The C in Isaac runs together a little with the C in Coe, but not so much as to be a deal-breaker—just enough to want to consider it beforehand.
Henry is next-most-popular at #71. Felix is the biggest risk at #339: I’ve noticed when considering it on my own lists that the generation before us finds it shocking—but then, they find the name Henry shocking, too. (Heh—this suddenly reminds me of my late mother-in-law, who would complain that people weren’t using NORMAL names anymore, names like [list of names in the top ten when she and/or her own children were born].)
Another possibility is Pascal. Blaise Pacal is a cool sciencey-mathy namesake, and since he was French I assume his name works well in French. Pascal Ernest Coe-Thériault.
With the rest of the name, I think my favorite is Henry. Henry Coe-Thériault, Henry Ernest Coe-Thériault.
I’ll leave other suggestions to people who know which names work in French.
Name update! Anne writes:
I am writing to give you and the commenters on your blog a huge THANK YOU for your help. Theodore Ernest Joseph Coe-Thériault made his appearance three weeks early, on January 17th. Theodore was seriously the only name that ended up being able to agree on, and I’m glad we chose it, because Theo really suits him. It is a bit rhymey with his last name, but only if you use the nickname, so I’m not too worried about that.
Thank you guys for giving me the confidence to go ahead and use it, and not worry about it being too dorky. Everyone loves the name so far!
Simon works with your last name and I like it in French and English.
I like both Theodore and Isaac though. Good luck!
I don’t think Theodore is too geeky. I know two Theos, plus one Teo (all under 5) and it’s very cute on them.
I like Isaac, too, though. How about Julien?
The top 10 boys’ names in Québec in 2009 (most recent stats) were:
William
Olivier
Thomas
Nathan
Alexis
Felix
Gabriel
Samuel
Antoine
Xavier
http://www.rrq.gouv.qc.ca/en/enfants/Pages/banque_prenoms.aspx
There’s ‘your’ Felix, and most of the others would work in the U.S. too.
I also have French Canadian ancestry and my maiden name (which I use as my middle name) reflects that also. If you have genealogy info for your family, you may find some possible boys’ names to consider. Among my French Canadian ancestors Louis was a predominant name. Sandra Bullock just named her son Louis (pronounced the French way as Lou-ie). Louis Ernest Coe-Thériault sounds very distinguished, with Louis pronounced the English way in the given name, but maybe the French way as a nn.
Here are two very good French baby name websites:
http://meilleursprenoms.com/
http://www.aufeminin.com/idees-prenom.html
A couple of suggestions: I think it’s important to know how a name from another language is viewed in the countries where that language is spoken (current or terribly old fashioned or not used at all as a first name — more likely with girls’ names like Elle). And it’s probably best to consider first how the name will be regarded in the country/language where the child will be growing up (thus the concern about Emile on a boy growing up in the U.S.).
Henry (Henri – pronounced awn-REE – in French) is a favorite of mine. I think it sounds nice with your English-French surname and with Ernest as the middle name.
Best wishes!
My Pepere was French-Canadian…he was Gerald. His brothers were Eugene, Maurice, and Lucian. My French-Canadian cousins (that I know of) are Charles, Raymond and Roger. More distant relatives have really strange names that I don’t know if are French or just strange…Calix, Doria (can’t believe this is a boy’s name)
I don’t know if that helps, but I really love Gerald and Maurice.
My host brother from when I lived in France is named Emilien. I love that name. I wonder if that would be a good alternative with the Emile/Emil nickname while at the same time giving him the more masculine fallback option so that new acquaintances don’t call him Emily?
I LOVE Pascal. I think it is a super cool name that most people couldn’t pull off. But you are French Canadian, so it’s great. I especially like it with your last name. I would say that is my first choice.
I hate to say it…I can completely see some Americans having problems with Emile. Which is to bad, because it is a beautiful French name. And considering how popular Emily and all its varient spellings are, he might not like that growing up.
I love Felix, as well as Rufus…But I think they are becoming too American and are loosing the European connotation for what your looking for.
I also like the French pronounciation of Henry better, but that would be a constant struggle.
Other French names I like that would work well in French and English…
Auguste
Marcel
Beau- My favorite but would it work with your last name?
I think Beau is one of those “names” that sounds like a French name (because the WORD “beau” is French) but not actually used by French-speakers as a person’s name.
Oh, I wish you had told us your girl name choices…
Emile isn’t awful at all, but I have to admit that I see the problem English speakers might have with it.
I like Isaac and Theodore for you, although Theo Coe is not ideal. (I notice that many kids with hyphenated names get shortened to the first one, I don’t know if it’s the same in your area?)
I suggest:
Frederic (with or without accents)
Henri (spelled the French way, pronounced either way)
Leon
Phillippe
Vincent
Good luck!
I really like Theodore! I think you will likely run into problems with Emile, especially because of all the creative spellings people are using these days. Would you consider Emeric? Emeric Ernest has a nice ring to it.
What about using Leo(n)? I think its one of those names that is easily pronounced in any language (okay, some will say lee-on and others will say lay-on, but is that a deal breaker- all it takes is to pronounce it once for people to get it?)
Or
Luc Ernest
Adrien Ernest
Arthur Ernest
Cyril Ernest
Damien Ernest
David Ernest
OOh, Pascal!! Or Theo. Or Felix!! You can’t go wrong. I don’t know if Pascal is current in french Canada or not (or whether that is of concern to you); but it is a fantastic name. Good luck!
Thank you to everyone for your comments! I loved reading your suggestions, and you’ve given my husband and I the courage to go ahead and use Theo (if we end up deciding on it) and not worry about it being “geeky”. Also, it was funny watching my husband scroll through the comments and hearing him mutter things like, “Adrien, I never thought of that one!”
To Patricia – I have been SCOURING that Quebec government website that you listed – it’s a great resource! – but I hadn’t seen the other two you mentioned. Thank you!
To the person who asked what our girls names were, they are Esmé and Eloise. Who knows if they might end up changing, though.
Thank you again!
Esmé – love it! My nephew — who bears our French-Canadian surname — and his wife had a baby girl in Nov. and named her Esme (pronounced the same as Esmé but without the accent mark). I’m not sure that they chose the name because it’s French or just because it’s unusual, but I think it’s a great choice for their daughter — Esme Be@u___. Our Esme has a French middle name too — Jeannette, for a grandmother of each of the parents. Their son, perhaps by chance, also has a French-related name – Dashiell, again chosen for it’s rare usage (not in the Top 1000 — yet…; same with Esme).
It sounds like you’re a thorough baby name researcher so you may have come across what I found about Esmé after I heard that our Esme was born and her name announced. (I’ll see if I can find that and post below.) Before her birth Esme’s parents revealed her middle name and that the first name would begin with E. Such teasers! Eloise was one of the names my sister-in-law guessed, but then she recalled they had liked Esme for their first child if a girl. She kept that to herself so as not to spoil their big surprise. (Eloise is nice too, but I personally prefer Esmé.)
Theo (Theodore) is a fine name too. My 2nd grade twin grandsons have a classmate named Theo (his given name), who is also in their after school care; I see him daily when I pick up the twins. I’ve never heard any remarks about Theo’s name, and he seems to be a ‘regular’ boy with plenty of friends. Theo is another fine name that’s under used: http://nameberry.com/blog/unusual-names-for-boys-below-the-top-1000
From “A is for Atticus: Baby Names from Great Books”:
“Esme: Think of emerging from your great-grandmother’s attic, just having found an exotic and lovely heirloom somehow no on one else had unearthed previously. This is the sentimental, distinctive, and altogether wonderful feeling the name Esme carries. The French shortened Esmeralda a couple of centuries ago and Esme caught on as its own entity. Meaning “beloved,” Esme is the star of a cherished short story by J. D. Salinger, “For Esme—with Love…” This rarest of names sounds accessible due to sharing qualities with chart toppers Emily and Emma.”
Theodore is also listed in this book: “Theodore: If most of the old standbys don’t ring your bell, but you have a more conservative taste, take a look at Theodore. It boasts a verve and creativity that most stalwarts like… can’t touch. The chief asset of this name is its fabulous short form: Theo brims with warmth, energy and that yummy ‘o’ ending… Theodore Dreiser wrote “Sister Carrie” among other novels…”
[I came across this baby name book at Half Price Books recently and like the interesting write-ups for the literary-connected names — many of them somewhat unusual — that author Lorilee Craker included.]
From my notes about the name Esmé/Esme:
I checked out how parents are spelling Esme. You can tell from the various spellings that some parents are pronouncing the name as EZ-mee. Here are all the American baby girls who were given the name in 2009:
Esme 231 girls
Esmee 25 (which would be pronounced the same Esmé if any of these parents were using the old French feminine spelling of the name without the accent mark: Esmée; otherwise, they’re saying EZ-mee)
Esmae 18
Esma 12
Esmay 5
Esmie 5
Ezmae 5
Esme may get a big push from it’s popularity in the UK where it ranked #95 in 2009.
Unusual Names for Girls: Less Popular Than You Think [USA]: http://nameberry.com/blog/unusual-names-for-girls-less-popular-than-you-think
Originally a male name, Esmé is now predominantly female, and is traditionally spelled “Esmé” with an accute é and pronounced as EHZ-may. It can also be spelled “Esmée,” with the same pronunciation.
It can also be spelled “Esme” without an accent, and this is usually still pronounced as EHZ-may. But as a BabyNameWizard blog reader said, “… in Britain there is that very old and honorable tradition of taking Continental names and rendering them “Anglicized” — thus an old name like “Esme” is just as legitimately pronounced as “Esmee” in English, rather than the French way “Esmay”.”
The origin is linguistically Old French: esmé (feminine esmée), “esteemed”, past participle of esmer, “to esteem.” That said, Esmé is not a common name in France.
The original masculine name was carried by the Norman French who came to Scotland in the 12th century by way of England. An early recorded appearance in Scotland is of Esmé Stewart, the 1st Duke of Lennox. Several subsequent holders of the title Duke of Lennox were named Esmé.
In modern years, the original masculine Esmé has become acceptable as a feminine name. The original feminine version of the name, Esmée, is now given less frequently than Esmé.
Song “Esme” (sent to me by our Esme’s “Grammy”):
Regarding the name Theo Coe-Thériault (theo co-tario): I like it! Theo Coe wouldn’t work, but for me Theo Coe-Thériault has a very appealing sound.
How about Theo as the given name with his rather lengthy, hyphenated surname. (Theo would be a good match with Esmé too.)
Nameberry: “Many modern parents–including some celebs– are bypassing the Grandpa name Theodore and skipping right to the hip nickname Theo. Short and ultra-chic, Theo’s a cool, contemporary choice. Nameberry authors Rosenkrantz and Satran recommend *Theo as a “best bet” (names we find to be particularly appealing) in their book “The Baby Name Bible”.
But, of course, with Theodore you get both names — and perhaps that would look even more distinguished on a diploma, degree, etc.???
Anne, rereading your letters, it occurred to me that you most likely are French-Canadian living in Canada, so I guess you can disregard all the US baby name popularity stats. My family is of part French-Canadian ancestry, living in the US for several generations, and I had been thinking your situation was similar. The accent mark in your surname should have been a clue that that isn’t so…
It appears that baby name popularity for Canada is given by each province with no official government list for the entire country (just like Australia). Perhaps popularity isn’t an issue for you anyway, while wanting a name that works in both French and English is understandable.
Now I’m wondering about Theo: would you pronounce it the English or French (tay-o?) way? Or maybe both? According to this website (with lots of popular boys names in France, but probably not official stats???), Théo is well-liked there. I noticed Mathéo is also on the 2009 list — that might interest you as another way to get to “Théo” as the nn.
http://www.naissance.fr/prenoms.php?annee=2009
Now that I know girl name possibilities (thank you!), I have a few more boy name suggestions: Alexandre, Florian, Francis, Martin.
Good luck!
My father in law’s good friend is named Emil, and it is pronounced A-Mil here in Missouri. I thought it was pronounced a french way, too. I thought you might want to know that piece of info.
I really think Theodore is great. It might be a tad geeky, but it is so sweet. I am thinking it with the American pronunciation, if that matters though!
I think Theodore is a great choice! But I also love your other contenders. My husband is French Canadian, and our top names were Felix, Olivier and Henri. I love Isaac as well, but our best friends have a son with that name.
I love Pascal as well – Pascale was actually our favourite girls name for years, but a falling out with a colleague by that name ruled it out.
(We’re having a girl and going with Charlotte)
My husband’s name is Emil, and I absolutely love that name. We live in DC, and have never had a problem with mispronunciation. We’ve had a bit of an issue in the midwest (where I’m from), with the pronunciation EE-mill, but it’s easily corrected. I think Emil is more masculine than Emile, but I still wouldn’t confuse the latter for a girl’s name.
I think Theodore would work great- it’s a current favourite of mine. Actually was suggesting Theodora to hubby for upcoming little girl, but he’s not keen on it, though he likes Theodore for a boy.
If you’d like to check on a name and are able to read French, I do recommbend this website:
http://www.linternaute.com/femmes/prenoms/
it’s great to read up on statistics and perceptions. Also, I like Felix, but I feel like it’s becoming a ‘trendy’ name (at least where I am – Belgium).
Love Theodore and he is beautiful! Congratulations!
Congratulations from one Theo’s mom to another!
Congratulations on the birth of your beautiful boy! I’m glad you went with Theodore “Theo”. I love the sound of Theo Coe-Thériault, and his full name is absolutely grand. Best wishes!