Erin writes:
My husband and I are expecting a baby girl arrival on March 2, 2013. This is our first child and we plan to have 3-4 children. My name is Erin and my husband’s name is Daniel. Our last name is Bruce. Yes, two first names :) (actually, three if you count the middle name). We have been following your blog since the beginning of my pregnancy and have spent a lot of time tossing around name ideas for the baby – thanks for making this so much fun!
Ok, here’s the current dilemma. My husband and I have had a feeling we were having a girl since we discovered I was pregnant. We fell in love the name Olive. We like it for various reasons … the sound of it, the strong feeling it gives, the non-traditional feel while still being pretty, the biblical connotation of Olive coming from the olive tree meaning peace, etc. We began calling the baby “olive seed” once we found out about the pregnancy. This was great until we started saying the full potential name out loud “Olive Bruce” …
[Note from Swistle: While reading this letter for the first time, I paused here and said the name out loud to see if I would discover the same issue: I wanted to see if it would occur to me if I didn’t have it planted. I’m putting a big space here in the letter so you can do the same.]
… and discovered that it might sound too much like olive juice when stated! Ah! I have said the name over and over in my mind so much that I have lost all unbiased and objective view on it. I especially love the full name Olive Amelia Bruce and kind of have my heart set on it. BUT, I want to consider all options for our baby girl and don’t want to put undue hardship on her by giving her a name that reeks havoc on her Bruce last name. What do you think? Would you eliminate Olive as an option with Bruce as a last name?
The runner-up option right now is Esme. Esme Bruce (not sure on middle name). We love this name, too. I picture a completely different little girl, but I still love it. We have ruled out all first and middle names starting with a B. We also have interest in the following names:
Nell (possibly Penelope with nickname Nell or as a middle name)
Emerson (Emmy)
Sinclair (Claire)
Dree
Lowen
Harlow
ElodieBasically, we are all over the map. Names we would use if the baby was a boy: Julian (Jules), Elliot, Pierce, William. Any help is MUCH appreciated.
THANK YOU!
In my opinion, Olive Bruce does not sound too much like olive juice. When I was first reading your letter, I got to “This was great until we started saying the full potential name out loud…,” and I deliberately looked away from the letter and said the name out loud—and couldn’t figure out what the issue was without reading on.
The main thing for me, I think, is that “olive juice” is not a thing I would say. I’d say “olive brine”—and olive brine doesn’t come up in conversation very often. If the name in question was Apple Bruce, or if the name sounded like orange juice or lemon juice, or if I had more opportunities to refer to olive brine and also frequently called it olive juice instead of olive brine, I might feel differently.
Also, if I were saying “olive juice,” I’d emphasize it differently than if I were saying the name Olive Bruce: I’d put more emphasis on the first syllable of the word olive and under-emphasize the word juice: I’d be saying it adjective-noun instead of name-name.
Also-also, even if other people thought it sounded like olive juice, olive juice is not a negative thing. It would be different if the name sounded like something really awful or embarrassing, but saying “Ha ha, your name sounds like olive juice!” or “Olive Bruce, olive juice!” seems like low-impact teasing.
But if you decide against Olive, Esme is also a wonderful name.
Let’s have a poll over to the right to see what everyone else thinks. [Poll closed; see results below.]
Poll results for “Olive Bruce (read post first)” (533 votes total):
I thought of the issue; it’s a deal-breaker – 45 votes (8%)
I thought of the issue; it’s not a deal-breaker – 42 votes (8%)
I thought of the issue; I can’t decide – 27 votes (5%)
I didn’t think of the issue; it’s a deal-breaker – 12 votes (2%)
I didn’t think of the issue; it’s not a deal-breaker – 375 votes (70%)
I didn’t think of the issue; I can’t decide – 32 votes (6%)
when I said it out loud I didn’t get Olive Juice at all rather to me it sounded like 2 tree names, Olive Spruce, which in my opinion isn’t problematic at all. If you hadn’t said it sounded like olive juice I wouldn’t have gotten what the issue was at all, but even seeing it now I don’t think it’s an issue.
I didn’t get Olive Juice either, but after I said it a few times, I started hearing “I love Bruce” with a sort of Southern accent.
I too thought of spruce. Two tree names. Or an olive colored spruce tree. I think it’s a pretty name and am not bothered by the things Bruce rhymes with.
My mind also went to “I love Bruce”, not “Olive Juice”
I think it’s a nice name.
I got I love Bruce too.
I thought of Olive Juice immediately. My friend and I always say “olive juice” to each other as a was of saying “I love you” (they sound alike), so that’s why it had such a strong connection for me.
But I don’t think it’s a BAD thing. If you love the name I think you should go for it.
I didn’t get olive juice… Like others I immediately got “I love Bruce”.
It is a nice name and I think that it would be adorable but I would have a hard time “unhearing” the creates name. I would go with Esme :)
Good luck!
My thought was ‘I love Bruce’, too. And, that was really only becase I paused to look for something in the break in the letter.
I like Olive Bruce, and I think you should go for it.
I also thought of I Love Bruce. I would never have thought of olive juice. If your last name sounded like OIL then Olive wouldn’t work for me. But I don’t see a problem with Olive Bruce.
Good luck!
Another one who heard “I love Bruce” instead. Of course, now I feel like we are all introducing another issue! But I don’t think it is one! Use Olive, it’s so adorable!
Also heard “I love Bruce”, but it’s not a deal breaker for me. I had to say it five or six times before I started hearing that, and how often will people be saying her name five times in a row quickly?
Add me to the list who heard “I love Bruce.” But I don’t think that’s a deal breaker either!
I also got Olive Spruce when said out loud. I don’t think that’s a big deal though.
As soon as I read it I though Penelope Bruce sounded beautiful
I hear “I love Bruce”, not Olive Juice.
I think it’s a good name
I heard olive spruce as well
Am I the only one that jumped to olive branch?
Olive is a nice name though so don’t discard it.
I didn’t get Olive Juice at all. I also did not hear I love Bruce. What first came to mind for me was Olive & Bluto from Popeye. Doesn’t seem this is a common association though. Olive Amelia is lovely, I say use it.
I agree with Sarah that Penelope Bruce is SO ADORABLE. Good nickname choice (current sounding but not overused), works young or old, can be elegant or cute — I totally vote for that one!
I also heard I love Bruce, but most any name can come up with something like that, that it can “sound” like. I don’t think it’s an issue at all!
When I said it out loud, the only thing I came up with was “all of Bruce.” I would have never gotten to “olive juice,” and like Swistle said, I don’t think it’s a terrible epithet anyway.
I’d go with Olive Amelia! (but keep Esme tucked away – Esme Bruce is great, and Esme and Olive would be so sweet!)
I never would have thought “Olive Juice” either. I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone say ‘olive juice’ as it’s not like it’s something you drink. I’ve never called the water in the can of olives “juice”.
I did think “I love Bruce” because your last name sounds like a first name. But I don’t think that’s a dealbreaker either. You can always leave a little longer space breath between Olive and Bruce, so it doesn’t run together.
I would definitely use Olive if you like the name best.
I did end up with olive juice, but because I often try to guess the problem based on the headline. However, I kept trying to say it, because olive juice seemed too much of a stretch and not problematic enough. I kept looking for a more troubling issue and couldn’t find it! Basically, her name will rhyme with olive juice – and you love the name! As much as you love it, I suggest you go for it. Alternatively, you can hold your two favorites, Olive and Esme, and see which one she is when she arrives.
I got “I Love Bruce” when I said it aloud. I am southern, so that might have something to do with it. What about Olivia Bruce? I think that solves the problem. You would nickname her “Olive” but formally she would be Olivia Bruce. She could then decide when she is older if she prefers to be called “Olive” or Olivia”.
Even if someone thought about it…it’s not really one I’d worry about. It’s not crude in any way.
I adore the thought of Olive Amelia Bruce. It’s such a gorgeous name.
I immediately thought Olive Juice before I saw that this was your concern. BUT… I don’t see it as a bad thing. I think of Olive Juice like in that movie (can’t remember what it was) where the character said Olive Juice because it looks like I love you if you can only see it and not hear it. That’s exactly where my mind went. Then, it went to I love Bruce.
Awkward? Maybe a little? A dealbreaker? I don’t think so!
I’m a little shocked that out of all the comments only one mentioned the “olive juice – I love you” connection.
To me, that is a widely known thing. My friends and I and my little cousins joke that all the time. In fact, when I google “olive juice” there are 7.6 million results and an urban dictionary page for it. Even a “did you mean olive juice i love you” option.
The theory is that if you say “olive juice” it lip reads as “I love you,” so commonly people shorten I love you to olive juice as a joke- along the lines of 143 in text talk or ily.
I do think changing the name from Olive to Olivia takes it away from that with the extra syllable, though.
In my opinion Olive Bruce is a great name, but love all of your options! Esme, Penelope, etc.
I think that Bruce is a rhyme-y name and you may come across the issue you are having with many first names. But I think sing-song feel of the name is to its benefit! Plus she may not have the last name Bruce her entire life, but will always be Olive (or Esme, etc).
Any decision you make, I think this lucky girl will have a great name!
Save Esme for a future daughter I think. Olive is the name you’re picturing for this baby, and the fact that you’ve been calling her the olive seed all along seals the deal in my mind. Olive Bruce is a nice strong sounding name. “All of Bruce” only came to mind for me because I was striving to figure out the problem during the pause :)
p.s) You never said whether you determined the gender, if it’s a boy would you call him Oliver? :)
Olive juice certainly isn’t a common kind of juice like orange juice or apple juice, so I don’t see Olive as problematic with your surname. But the name Olive itself reminds me of Olive Oil (Popeye cartoons) and for that reason and others e.
On the other hand, Esme — sometimes written as Esmé (and either way pronounced as ‘EZ-may’) — is super cute for a young girl and super sophisticated when she’s older. I have an almost 2-year-old niece named Esme. Her parents sometimes call her “Ezzie” — so cute! I’d go with Esme for your baby girl.
(omitted above)
…and for that reason (Olive Oyl) and others I wouldn’t recommend the name Olive.
decidedly NOT a deal-breaker. It’s your favorite name. If it ever becomes an issue, I would think all you’d have to do is tell her to brush it off. And, I know I’m looking way ahead, but chances are that eventually she’ll be married, and if she takes her spouse’s name, she’ll spend the majority of her life as Olive Somethingelse.
I only heard “I love Bruce,” and neither olive juice nor I love Bruce would be a deal-breaker for me. I had never heard of the olive juice/i love you thing, but I think it’s a cute coincidence! In fact, because I’m a chronic sing-songs-about-people sufferer, I started singing the end of “Skinny Marinky Dinky Dink,” subbing “Olive Bruce” for “I love you.” Do it!
I did wonder, since Bruce is also a first name, if “Esme Bruce” would ever be mistaken for “It’s me, Bruce” in conversation/introduction. Probably not, but throwing it out there. I do know a woman named Bruce though, so maybe that’s confusing me.
You have great name options listed. I don’t think “Bruce” limits you much, if at all!
I immediately thought of olive juice/”I love you.” But hey, you might like that as a hidden message?
Thanks for putting the gap in there, Swistle – I liked trying to figure out the issue before it was put into my mind. And I could not find an issue! If I stretched, I heard “spruce” or “all of Bruce.”
I think Olive Bruce is a great name with no deal-breakers. Esme Bruce is beautiful too, so you could see who this baby is once she’s born and go from there. You can’t go wrong with either one. Congrats!
I thought “All of Bruce” which isn’t bad…just a little odd, maybe.
If you love it I don’t think there is any need to change it.
If I had to vote between Olive and Esme I’d choose Esme though. I like the softness of Esme with the more ‘solid’/’abrupt’ last name of Bruce.
Please write back and let us know what you decide!
Is there such a thing as olive juice? If so, I’ve never heard of it and I eat a lot of olives.
Olive Juice would NEVER occur to me. It’s a great name. Go for it!
I guessed “I love Bruce,” too. I think olive juice shouldn’t be an issue and “I love Bruce” would only be embarrassing if she had a classmate named Bruce at some point in the future, but that seems like a pretty slim possibility. I don’t think it’s an up and coming name.
I didn’t get olive juice…I said the name over and over and was waiting for it to sound like something very tragic, but I got nothing. Lol I love the name Olive, definitely think you should use it. Of your other choices, I think Emerson and Sinclair are cute!
I definitely got the Olive Juice connection but I think it is a nice thing since the reference is to what you say to be lip read as I love you. Adorable. Very sweet. I say use it since you love it! Esme Bruce is particularly wonderful too, though!
During Swistle’s added pause, I thought and thought hard about what may be the problem. When you said it sounds like olive juice, I was shocked! I didn’t even know there was such a thing as olive juice, and I eat 1-2 cans of olives every week ;-) So I say it’s not a problem at all!
What I did think of, and only while straining to come up with an issue, was Olive Spruce and Olive Branch. Not problems either way!
Let me just say I LOVE the name Esme! We named our first cat this, and since we don’t have kids yet (despite our best efforts), our kitties are seriously our kids…..As a huge name nerd, I like to name pets real people names, and names that I really like but don’t think I’d ever name a child. So we named her Esme….and let me tell you, it is such a great name that you never get tired of saying! And we get so many compliments on the name! And of course, now I love it so much that I sometimes wish we’d saved it for a daughter!
My vote is for Esme. If you don’t use Esme this time, please save it for a 2nd girl!
How about Olivia Bruce with Olive as nickname
I don’t think Olive Bruce is necessarily bad, but with such a short last name I think a longer name sounds much better. Penelope Bruce sounds fantasti!
Also, the sounds in Olive Bruce are a little discordant, to me. It’s a little clunky. Even though Esme is two syllables, Esme Bruce sounds much prettier to me than Olive.
I love how clearly swistle can pinpoint exactly what’s going on with a name. I love the “adjective-noun” vs “name-name” distinction in pronunciation. I wouldn’t have been able to put my finger on it, but that’s the difference in sound that I hear too. I didn’t notice the olive juice issue at all. I kept thinking that maybe you were thinking it sounded too much like “I love abuse” or something (which I don’t think it does).
I do happen to prefer the flow of Olivia Bruce, which was suggested by a previous poster, but I think that might complicate the use of Amelia as the middle. I’d stick with the name you love!
I prefer Olivia Bruce to Olive Bruce. But what about Amelia Olive Bruce? I adore the name Amelia and I think that Amelia Bruce is a lovely name. If Olive is just used as a middle the “Olive Juice/I Love You” connection doesn’t really matter. She could be nicknamed Olive or called Amelia Olive. I do think that Esme Bruce sounds like – “It’s me Bruce”.
My vote is Amelia Olive Bruce or Olivia ______ Bruce – nickname Olive. I think that all the runner-up options work as middle names – Olivia Esme Bruce, Olivia Penelope Bruce, etc. Congratulations!
I didn’t notice the problem at all, and think Olive is a lovely name! Esme is nice, too, but stick with Olive…I love it!
Didn’t think juice, but Olive just sounds like “I’ll live” so I said it out loud and heard “I’ll live, Bruce”
I’d put it in the middle, but if you can live with it, go for it :)
I never would have made the jump to olive juice.
Though I would pause at giving a girl the initials O.B. because it makes me think of the tampon. Sorry!