Baby Boy Banish, Brother to Leo and Henry

(Today I have several posts I ran out of time to answer at usual length in the week after they arrived, but I’d jotted down a single suggestion in the spreadsheet. I’m going to post several in a row today with my extremely brief response, so that others can work on them further if they want to.)

Rebecca writes:

Help! I have two beautiful boys and am due with another boy on Christmas Eve. But I just can’t find a name that I really love. My other boys names are Leo Xavier and Henry Jude. Our last name is like Banish. I love their names and I want something equally special. But because this is our third boy, I kind of wanted to name him something a little less common but still sticking to the old fashioned English sounding names. Names we have thought of so far are-
Alfie (probably number one at the moment) but not sure about a grown man with this name and not sure if I could do Alfred.
Oscar- I loved this name for a few weeks but now I don’t know about it. Something just doesn’t feel right.
James (nickname jimmy)- very, very common though
Rupert- too old man like??
Franklin- quite long compared to my other boys names
Atticus- LOVE this name but husband is not convinced
Edward or Edmund- love the nicknames Ted, Ned, Teddy etc. prefer Edward but worried about the twilight thing.

Possible middle names (but haven’t really thought that far ahead yet!) are Luke/Lucas, Sonny, Noel (Christmas baby).

I really want to find a name that I love for this precious little guy but I’m running out of time and nothing seems to fit!

Kind regards (and pleas for help)

I suggest Felix! It’s one of my own favorites, and I think it’s wonderful with Leo and Henry while also being less common. And it means happiness and luck, which is lovely.

Name update! Rebecca writes:

I had my beautiful third boy five days ago so thought I would update you on the name we chose for him. We decided on Oscar Noel for our precious little guy. It suits him perfectly and nothing else seemed right for him. Thanks for everyone’s help and suggestions! 

26 thoughts on “Baby Boy Banish, Brother to Leo and Henry

  1. Meg

    I think swistle nailed it with Felix. I’ll add Charles and Jasper as suggestions. Both are kind of loosely tied to Christmas. Charles after Charles Dickens (A Christmas carol) and some accounts say Jasper was the name of one of the kings that visited baby Jesus (others says Caspar or Gaspar).

    Reply
  2. Christina Fonseca

    Rupert was the first to come to mind when I read you wanted something less common this time around. Instead of Oscar, how about Otto?

    Longer than Franklin but with nicknames: Frederick nn Fred, Freddie or Fritz.

    Other ideas to go with Leo and Henry: Theodore (another way to get Ted or Teddy), Ambrose, August or Augustus “Gus”!, Everett, Gilbert

    Reply
  3. Anonymous

    I 2nd Miles. It seems perfect with Leo & Henry. I’ll also suggest Charles, Oliver, Arthur, Evan & George. I also really like Jack with Leo & Henry, but I suspect it might be more popular than what you are looking for.

    Reply
  4. Manday

    I agree Alfie is more nickname and, to me, does not hold up as a “whole life” name
    I like Rupert, it makes me think of Rupert Grint (an Actor), who is not at all old. Charles is going to be very popular, if that is ok with Charles/Charlie is adorable. There are plenty of little boy Charlies running around right now, so I dont think it being a girl name is an issue. Henry and Charles are in the EXACT same vein in my opinion. Both are growing in popularity rapidly. Also, Franklin goes fine with your other boys names in my opinion. I like Edmund too! But yes, Twilight is an issue!

    So I tried to think if there were other “old fashioned English” sounding names and I came up with the following:

    Nigel
    Alister (Al for short?)
    Elliot (also very popular right now)
    Arthur

    Also, just looked it up and Alfie can also be short for Alfonso if you like that. Or, change it up a bit and you get Alvin/Alvie (which I actually like better!)

    Reply
  5. Moomoo

    Alfie to me is too nicknamey and not really manly. Miles or Myles goes well with the brothers. And I extrapolated Christmas Eve from Eve to Evan. Miles and Evan. Evan Miles also works together.

    Reply
  6. Anonymous

    Go with Rupert! I think it has everthong you are looking for. Felix is a good choice as well.

    Theodore
    Silas
    Edwin
    George

    Reply
  7. Sue

    Oh, Noel is such a great name. I think it would be a fabulous first name. And you have an excuse to use it, with a Christmas baby! Good luck!

    Reply
  8. Gail

    With Leo and Henry, I’d suggest using either Calvin or Ezra–they strike a similar tone while being less used. I do like Rupert, but find it quite British in a way that is different from Leo. As a brother just to Henry, Rupert might work quite well, though. If you have the courage, Edmund is the suggestion on your list I find the most tantalizing with your boys. I do like Atticus, but think it’s way trendy and lacks really good nicknames, unless you love Gus.

    Good luck!

    Reply
  9. Mrs S

    Leo, Henry and Rhys. Rhys Atticus, Rhys Alistar?
    Leo, Henry and Atticus Rhys.
    Leo, Henry and Felix.
    Leo, Henry and Oscar. Oscar Bennett ?
    Leo, Henry and Declan.
    Leo, Henry and Samuel. Samuel Lucas
    Leo, Henry and Lucas. Lucas Samuel

    Reply
  10. Amie

    I have brothers named Henry and Franklin. I think Franklin is a great classic name! If you like Edward and Edmund, you might like Emmett or Everett as well. Another uncommon classic name is Truitt. Truitt Cathy is the founder of Chick-fil-a. Love all the names you are considering!

    Reply
  11. Wendy

    Since you like Alfie but maybe not Alfred, what about Albert instead with the nn Albie? Then you also have the nn possibility of Bert, which I like a lot.

    Reply
  12. AmyRobynne

    I’ve got 3 boys including a Leo — my others are Peter and Timothy, both between #100 and #200 on the popularity lists. They’re familiar to everyone, but not often found with little boys now.

    Reply
  13. Rita

    I really like:
    * Rupert Luke Banish. Leo, Henry, & Rupert.
    * Edward Noel Banish. Leo, Henry, & Ned.

    What about Theodore? Theodore Noel Banish. Leo, Henry, and Teddy.

    August(us) would be nice too. August(us) Luke Banish. Leo, Henry, and Gus.

    Or Ignatius instead of Atticus. Ignatius Luke Banish. Leo, Henry, and Iggy.

    If you like Alfie but not Alfred, why not something like “Alexander Franklin or Alban Felix?

    Reply
  14. Jess

    I suggest Callum (my own son’s name). It’s unusual in this country but a common name in the UK. It’s actually Scottish, a derivative of Malcolm, and it means “dove.”

    Reply
  15. Nicole

    I’m not big into Alfie… It doesn’t sound like it fits with the other siblings.

    What about Oliver?

    I like Edward. It is my grandfather’s name, so regardless of the Twilight thing, I’d vote for Edward. It would be different if one of your sons was named Jacob.

    Reply
  16. SM

    Use Edward!! This is my son’s name, he is 6. He was named right before Twilight really exploded and when he was a year or so I got really nervous that there would be a boom of Edwards. DIDN’T HAPPEN! In fact, in 6 yrs I’ve only met 1 other small child named Edward. Go for it!

    Reply
  17. Mary

    I think Alfie is adorable and goes well with Leo and Henry. Archie is similar and I like that each name stands completely on its own (no repeating endings) but still sound like they belong together.

    I wonder if Oliver could work to get Alfie as a nickname? Ollie definitely but Alfie might work too.

    Arthur, nn Archie or Artie could be an option?

    Or Archer, nn Archie?

    Instead of Oscar, what about – Otis, Otto, Orson

    Rupert – a bit old man-ish but not ancient ;) Would Rufus appeal to you?

    I don’t think you have to worry if this name will be longer than the others, unless you just really prefer shorter names over longer ones. That’s a different matter altogether.

    Some ideas for names, with short nicknames are:

    Angus, nn Gus
    Rafferty, nn Rafe
    Finley or Finnegan, nn Finn
    Sebastian, nn Sebas or Bas
    Francis, nn Frankie
    Kieran, nn Kier

    Or simply Keegan? Leo, Henry and Keegan?

    Reply
  18. nieke

    Leo, Henry and Oscar are wonderful! And Felix is a great suggestion, although it has become quite popular.

    An evil media mogul has unfortunately ruined Rupert for me. Franklin is really sweet! I never would have thought of that. It’s still just two syllables, so not too long with the others.

    A few more suggestions:

    Leo, Henry and Claude
    Leo, Henry and Gene
    Leo, Henry and Victor
    Leo, Henry and Iggy
    Leo, Henry and Stellan
    Leo, Henry and Rafael

    Reply
  19. 3lovelyboys

    Wow! Thanks so much for all the responses! Well I actually feel a lot more positive about Rupert. Didn’t know that people would respond well to that name. And also Franklin. That has gone back up my list. Love swistles suggestion of Felix. It was a big contender for when I was pregnant with Henry. Might just put it down on my list for this baby! It didn’t even occur to me this time for some reason.

    I do actually love Theodore but worry about Leo being too similar sounding (Leo and theo??). Also loving Edward with nickname Ned. Leo, Henry and Ned does have a nice ring to it.

    I have had Miles on the list and taken off so many times. I like it but don’t think it will be the one for some reason. Just can’t imagine myself with a Miles. And I would use Charles in a heartbeat but my cousins name is Charlie so that’s not an option. I am kind of liking the nn Gus but not sure if I really like August (us). Hmm, something to think about.

    Well everyone has really helped me out. I’m going to read these comments over and over to get some inspiration! Keep the opinions coming and I will definitely update when baby is born :)

    Reply

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