Natalie writes:
My husband, Micah, and I are expecting our first baby in April. Our last name is Kemp. We can’t seem to land on a great first name. We’d like to stay away from any of the rhymes with -ayden names that are so popular. We like more traditional names. I work in a school setting which makes naming even more difficult. Many names have a negative connotation for me! I’d like to stay away from a name with a /h/ because we have many cousins in the family with H names (Harper, Hudson, Hunter…)
We have some nominations for the middle name, but nothing is set in stone. Here are some of our top picks for middle names:
-Oliver (Micah likes, I feel like its more fitting for a puppy)
-Sullivan
-Dean
-Jack (Micah doesn’t like because there is a politician named Jack Kemp)
-Noah (Micah doesn’t like)
-HenryI can’t decide about naming him something with a /k/ sound. If we end up thinking that /k/ sound is okay here’s some contenders:
-Connor
-Carson (my mother’s favorite!)
-CollinAlso we are Aggies, and would like to incorporate A&M into the name. We are one of the last ones in our group to have a child so that leaves not too many choices. Sullivan does have an Aggie connotation. Our friends have already used Reed and Kyle.
Thanks for your help!
There! I just spent a good long time learning about Texas A&M and getting kind of choked up about the 12th Man and the official school yells and the Century Tree and the Aggie Muster and addressing the mascot dog as “Miss Reveille, ma’am.” Where were we? Oh, yes, naming a baby.
I think your middle-name idea of Sullivan would be a great choice for the first name (after former A&M president Lawrence Sullivan Ross, for those of you who haven’t clicked the links and are getting more and more lost), and I also think Ross would be a good one. Or Lawrence, especially as a middle name. Sullivan Dean Kemp, or Sullivan Ross Kemp for a much stronger tie-in. But maybe that’s overkill, especially if that name might be awkward if he attends there himself one day.
James Earl Rudder (the A&M president who made Texas A&M co-ed AND desegregated it) would be a good namesake as well. James is not as distinctive a reference as Lawrence or Sullivan or Ross, but is worth keeping in mind to perhaps pair with one of the more distinctive names. Sullivan James Kemp, maybe, or James Sullivan Kemp.
Or E. C. Jonas designed the school ring, and the ring sounds like it’s a pretty big deal. Jonas Kemp.
Or while I’m still a little teary-eyed about the 12th Man story, Gill might make a very nice middle name. Jonas Gill Kemp.
Another possibility is to use first and middle initials “A.M.” August Micah. Austin Micah to Texas it up a notch. [Edited to add: the comments section is pointing out that Austin is a rival of Texas A&M, so never mind.] Andrew Micah. Arlo Micah. Anderson Micah. Archer Micah. Asher Micah. Aaron Micah.
If you’re not sure about using a name with a hard-C/K sound in the first name slot, it might be a good middle-name option. Dean Carson Kemp. Henry Carson Kemp. Sullivan Connor Kemp.
If you like the sound of Carson but decide against the hard-C, I wonder if you’d like names such as Lawson and Mason and Wilson. Wilson Dean Kemp, Wilson Jonas Kemp, Wilson Ross Kemp.
I’ve been very keen on the name George recently. Geordie is a cute nickname. George Kemp, Geordie Kemp. Maybe George Sullivan Kemp.
Or Charles is nice. Charles Kemp, Charlie Kemp. Charles Sullivan Kemp.
I’m with Swistle: Sullivan really stands out from your list! Sullivan James or Sullivan Jonas would be great with your last name.
Oooh. I like the initials “A.M.” That probably says “Texas A&M” to me more than a name like Sullivan or Jonas or Gill or Ross.
But, I do also really like Sullivan. Sullivan Kemp. That’s a nice name!
What about Carter?! Sounds like Carson, but with a sofisticated twist.
George Sullivan Kemp is wonderful! Jonas Gill Kemp would be my 2nd favorite.
Ooh ooh ooh—all lovely suggestions, and I, also, particularly love Sullivan. Also Jonas and George. Beautiful.
I have a feeing that the Original Poster will feel/say this too, but I just wanted to mention, as a University of Texas at Austin grad, that UT Austin is A&M’s main rival, and “Austin” as a baby name would probably provoke jeers at the A&M reunion!
Best of luck! (Insert one more plug for Sullivan and Jonas and George!)
As an A&M grad myself, I love this question. Swistle’s idea about having initials A&M would be sweet. I love Sullivan – even as a first name. More obscure names from campus that would be good names: Bryan, Bowen, Sterling Evans (love), Harrington, Duncan, and Olsen. Good luck, and congrats on your new little Aggie!
Is there a place or building on campus that’s special to you? I ask because my son is named for the dorm where my partner and I met. Otherwise, I think the initials idea is a good one.
doubt Austin is in contention; that’s where the Longhorns play!
Oooh – I’ve had a soft spot for Sullivan for a while but it didn’t work at all with our surname.
I also like Johanna’s suggestion of Harrington (above) – very distinguished. However, I know you are trying to avoid an “H” sound.
So many great suggestions here – I don’t think you can go wrong.
Don’t forget to come back and let us know what you decide!
How about Judson with the nickname Judd? Or Jedd? Both would work with Sullivan in the middle name slot. Judd/Jedd Sullivan Kemp!
If you do decide to use a “C” name, I suggest Coulter. good luck!
I’m an Aggie too – Swistle, you did a great job! My suggestion: Zachry. I’ve always loved the twist on the spelling, and I think Zachry Kemp is adorable. Congratulations!
another Longhorn chiming in here to say Austin probably wouldn’t fly for an A name since that’s the home of (former?) arch-rival UT (sorry that I couldn’t resist the SEC reference!)
however, George has a nice tie-in to A&M as the George H.W. Bush presidential library is at A&M.
and, someone else has already mentioned it but are there any dorm or hall names that would work? or a street name?
good luck with your new little Aggie!
I like the idea of using the initials A.M. Kemp for your tie in. It was my first thought before I even read the post.
Micah would be the obvious middle name choice, and I also really like Mitchell for you.
As for first names starting with A, Alvin reminds me a lot of Sullivan.
Alvin Kemp
Alexander Kemp
Abram Kemp
Angus Kemp
Anton Kemp
Asher Kemp
Atticus Kemp
Also, FYI, Ross Kemp is a British actor, not that that’s likely to be a problem but just so you know.
Cheers.
Andrew Micah would have my vote!
What about August? You could call him Auggie, which is very close to Aggie. (I could see that might not be the most macho of nicknames, though.) August James: A.J.
Another cool “A” name is Abbott. Similar to Emmett…
Hi Natalie!
I really like the suggestion of using the initials A & M. Especially if most Texas A&M names are already taken by friends.
Although I love the idea of using the initials A. M., Sullivan gets my vote. It’s my favorite boy name, and has been for a while! If you do go with AM, August gets my vote.
For a boy, a name begining with “Am…”:
Ambrose
Amon
Amos
And for a girl:
Amber
Amanda
Amelia
Amy
Or containing the letters “am”:
Cameron
Campbell
Tamara
Tamsin
(also incorporates the T from Texas)
Also, Tama (pronouced Taaa-ma) means “boy” in Pacific languages and TAMA could stand for Texas A and M Alumni/Affiliate/Associate/Athlete/etc
Fellow Aggie here! My first thought was Sullivan Ross. Ross is also good. I like names associated with the school better than A M initials personally. Love the idea of using the name of a building where you met, unless you were in the college of Ag– Kleberg and Scoates just wouldn’t work! Aston and Zachry are nice though.
You could also name your child after some famous aggies: Robert Earl Keen, Roger Creager, Lyle Lovett, Stephen McGee, Granger Smith (jk but the name Granger is cool :-))
Good luck! Can’t wait to see what you come up with!
One more thing. Patton! That would be a very good name to reference A&M.
Thank you so much Swistle for the research! A&M is an awesome school. We met off campus on Azalea Dr. Micah lived in Aston, which I love. I think Sullivan is one of the front runners! We are getting much closer!!! Only 6 more weeks to decide. :)
I like the AM initial idea (gasp :-) ) I also like Sullivan and Ross. OK the Austin comment cracks me up. I can’t think of an Aggie that would name their kid that. I like the name Alexander it is classic.
I love this discussion! We are also Aggies and due in September. I have been trying to convince my wife for months to name our baby Sullivan and thanks to my persistance, and this discussion, I am getting closer!
Careful with the Granger Smith comments, Abigail! We are a fan of his entire catalogue!
B.t.h.o. Parenthood!
I just wanted to check back in and share with everyone that our baby was born on September 8 and we chose the name James Kyle. Thanks for all of your comments on this thread. They really helped us in our decision making. Sullivan had strong support, but we ultimately decided on Kyle.
Gig’em!