Miriel writes:
Swistle! Help!
My husband John and I are expecting our first baby at the end of October and we just found out today that it’s a boy! This is very exciting, except that we have absolutely no idea what to name him. (We had a girl name all lined up and ready to go for this baby, whom I was convinced was a girl…of course.)
Our naming criteria are pretty straightforward:
1. My first name is very unusual and often misspelled or mispronounced, and our last name is also unusual (spelled Reneau, essentially pronounced reh-NO). I want the baby’s first name, at least, to be pronounceable when read and spellable when heard by the average person.
2. I tend to like longer boy names, but ones that have built-in nicknames if the child decides he WANTS a nickname. (My name has no natural nicknames. It is a great trial to me.)
3. We hope to have more children – we’re not sure how many, exactly, but somewhere between a few and a great big bunch – so I don’t want our first to set us on some sort of baby naming track that greatly restricts our options in the future. I think this means (a) nothing too trendy and (b) nothing too outlandish.
We tend to prefer names that are not gender-ambivalent, and I think our combined preferences tend toward the classic/old-fashioned end of the spectrum.
Here are some boy names that I really like, but can’t use for specific reasons (the baby has first cousins by that name, the name has negative personal associations, stuff like that):
Andrew
Matthew
Daniel
Gabriel
Isaac
Henry
EdwardAnd here are some of the names we are currently considering:
Christopher
Benedict
Gregory…and that’s pretty much it. Surely there are more options, right?
Of course we will also need a middle name, though I feel like that won’t be quite so difficult once we have a first name. And I can think of a few middle name options off the top of my head (Francis, as an honor name for my dad, or Thomas, which is my maiden name, or potentially one of the names listed above), and I just feel like a first name is more IMPORTANT.
Can you help?
Thanks!
There was a fun conversation about this on Twitter the other night, and after awhile I was thinking, “Okay, by now I think everything I would have suggested has been suggested”—so I am not sure I will be much help. But let’s try anyway, for the fun of it!
The category of “long boy names with good nicknames” is shorter than we’d like it to be, but there are SOME. A long boy name can be long in letters or long in syllables; I think of a true long boy name as being long in both, but I’m going to include names with three or more syllables even if they’re on the shorter side letter-wise. I’m also including Gabriel (which you can’t use) and Christopher and Gregory from your list. I’ve taken your tastes into account (though stretched them a bit if a name seemed like a good one to have on this list for reference later on), but I haven’t filtered for your surname.
Abraham (Abe, Bram)
Alexander (Al, Alex, Xan, Xander)
Alistair (Al)
Anderson (Andy, Anders)
Anthony (Tony)
Augustus (Auggie, Gus)
Benjamin (Ben)
Carleton (Carl)
Charlton (Charlie)
Christopher (Chris)
Davison (Dave)
Dominic (Dom)
Donovan (Don)
Elias (Eli)
Elijah (Eli)
Everett (Rett/Rhett)
Ezekiel (Zeke)
Finnegan (Finn)
Frederick (Fred, Rick)
Gabriel (Gabe)
Gregory (Greg)
Harrison (Harry)
Jameson (Jamie, James)
Jedidiah (Jed)
Jefferson (Jeff)
Jeremiah (Jem, Jerry)
Jeremy (Jem, Jerry)
Jonathan (Jon)
Joshua (Josh)
Josiah (Joe)
Leander (Lee)
Malachi (Mal, Kai)
Matthias (Matt)
Nathaniel (Nate)
Nicholas (Nick, Cole)
Nicholson (Nick, Cole)
Oliver (Ollie)
Phineas (Phin/Finn)
Raphael (Raph)
Robertson (Rob, Robby)
Sebastian (Seb, Bas)
Solomon (Sol)
Thaddeus (Thad)
Theodore (Theo, Teddy, Ted)
Tobias (Toby)
Zachariah (Zach)
Zachary (Zach)
If none of these are quite right, one way to get a longer name is to call the child by first and middle. If the child prefers, he can easily drop the middle name later on, making a “nickname” out of his first name. John Louis can later be just John, for example, or Paul Thomas can be just Paul, or Calvin Thomas can be just Calvin/Cal. This is the kind of idea that I wouldn’t have expected to work well, except that I’ve seen it work well. That is, when I’ve met a child named something like Paul Thomas, I’ve thought, “Hm, that doesn’t seem natural,” and then a couple of weeks later I’m calling him Paul Thomas without even thinking about it and it seems PERFECTLY natural.
Back to the list. At first I was thinking there were three main paths here:
1. the Jonathan/Christopher/Alexander path
2. the Ezekiel/Jedediah/Malachi path
3. the Theodore/Augustus/Sebastian path
But the more I tried to sort the names into these categories, the more I noticed overlap, and the more I realized that “long name with a good nickname” can be a theme of its own. That is, I still might not pair up Christopher and Jedediah as brother names—but on the other hand, if I picture a big sibling group that contains a Theodore/Teddy, an Ezekiel/Zeke, and a Christopher/Chris, the names go together better because of their name/nickname set-up than they would if they were, say, August and Judah and Evan. It’s kind of like a shared initial: a shared initial doesn’t fully unite the styles of, say, Josiah and Jayden, but it’s a STEP towards uniting them. In a group with Josiah, Jayden, Jeffery, and Jared, there’s a connection that cancels out some of the style difference. I think the name/nickname connection has a similar effect.
Also, I noticed in my own family that as the number of children increased, the expectation of name coordination decreased. When it’s harder for people to think of all the sibling names at once, style differences stand out less. On the other hand, in a larger group, one single name of a different style can stand out more: John and Maverick could be a family-tradition-requirement name and a name of the parents’ own style; John, Edward, Henry, and Maverick feels like someone is excluded from the group.
For a first child, when you’re not sure what your tastes will be or what the eventual sibling group will look like, I might encouraging erring toward the middle. That is, if you have three names you like equally, and one is very popular and familiar, and one is very unusual and distinctive, and one is both familiar and distinctive, I might go with option 3. This gives you more freedom to adjust either direction on the spectrum for subsequent children. But this is only if you like all the styles equally: if you find you have a strong preference for one of them, and also like names that feel like good sibling names for it, I’d go with that style even if it’s at one of the far ends of the spectrum.
I’m very drawn to your idea of Gregory. Gregory was in the Top 100 from 1945 until 1996—a nice long stage of popularity, not at all spikey. The few Gregorys I’ve known have all gone by Greg, so using the full form gives it a freshness similar to when kids started going by James and William instead of Jimmy and Billy.
I agree with Swistle. It seems that longer boy names with nickname options do tend to read more classic/timeless. Of your choices I love Benedict. I’ve been trying to get someone to use that name forever, so I am very excited to see it on your list!
I also quite like the idea of Edward or Theodore because they offer multiple nickname options (Ned, Ted, Ward, Teddy, Theo, etc). It seems that many classic girl names have tons of nickname options (Elizabeth, Katherine, Margaret) but boy names are usually limited to only one or two.
I also like the idea of using less traditional nicknames that have fallen out of fashion. Obviously, some have fallen out of fashion for good reason (Richard/Dick comes to mind). But others like Nicholas/Cole or Christopher/Kit seem to have fallen out of fashion for no particularly good reason. The option of this type of nickname allows a person to make a statement or stand out when they want to, but without resorting to a full name that is unusual or made-up sounding.
I LOVE Benedict too – a thought: we named our son Bennett, along the same lines. It still means ‘blessed’ and we liked the ‘Ben’. Our other favorite boy names include Sebastian, Theodore (Theo), Augustine, John Paul (probably nicknamed ‘Jack’), Dominic (probably nicknamed ‘Nick’), and our top name is Xavier (cannot think of a nickname, but we love it so much that it probably doesn’t matter).
This is my favorite category of boy names. I love classic sounding long versions and also the versatility of nicknames. Gregory/Greg has always been a favorite of mine if only for the Gregory Peck namesake–handsome, classic, strong, and versatile. Swistle gave such a wonderful and thorough list to choose even more favorites as well (I am earmarking this post for myself!). Out of the large list, I’m partial to Theodore (my biased choice because it’s my son’s name), Benjamin (I also like Benji and Benny as a nickname for this one), and Frederick (with Fred and Freddy as nickname options).
Congratulations and good luck on your name choice!
When I was growing up, there was a neighborhood kid named “Michael James.” Everyone in his family and the neighborhood called him by both names — “Michael James.” I LOVE this! It makes for a longer name, turns a fairly common name, Michael, into something unique and memorable, and has a great rhythm. Plus, he can go by Michael or Mike later in life (I think my neighbor kid is probably college-age now and goes by Mike).
Another option for Greg as a nickname is Gregor. Also another nickname for Everett (my son’s name) is Ev. Which might seem feminine but I know a grownup male Ev and love how short and simple it is.
1. I’m quite disappointed to have missed the Twitter discussion.
2. My son’s name is Paul Thomas! We just call him Paul so it’s not that huge of a coincidence, but I liked seeing it written out several times. (Come to think of it, though, he does get called Paul Thomas quite a bit since two-year-old boys tend to get in a lot of trouble.)
Guys I know that go by two names: David Michael, David James, John Thomas, Scott Anthony, Paul Francis.
A long boy name I like that isn’t on Swistles list: Macallister – possible nn. Mac or Al
Although I like Benedict, I feel that it is slightly leaning more towards trendy vs. old classic, but maybe it’s just me?? I do like the name though.
My favourites:
Oliver nn Ollie. I am biased though as my son’s name is Oliver. We just love it and have had so many positive comments on it.
My next favourite: Fitzpatrick or Fitzgerald. Fitzpatrick Reneau. Fitz Reneau. Ok. Love this. As if Fitz isn’t the cutest name ever. plus you could always use Pat or Patrick as nn too.
Theodore is on our short list as well.
What about Franklin? I love Frankie.
Walter – nn Walt. So cute. Love this name.
Maxwell – Max or Wells
Oscar or Oswald. Nn Oz.
I love Charlton. Classic yet unusual. I do also love Charles too. Nn Charlie.
Maguire. Could use nn Mac. I feel this one ties more into the same feel as Benedict.
What about Sullivan? Sully is super cute. Same styling as Benedict and Maguire to me.
Good luck and keep us posted!!
Fitz works for Frederick, too — very German but a cute nickname and fairly commonly used where I grew up!
Meant to say that I also really like Sebastian, Abraham or Abram (Bram is so awesome!) and Raphael.
Hopefully there are no repeats from above. Sorry if there are! Some of these stretch further from the nucleus of popularity into practically unused… but maybe one will suit your son.
Nicodemus (Nic or Nico)
Redford (Red or Ford)
Washington (Wash)
Uriah (Uri or Ry)
Jonathan (Jon)
Dagwood (Woody)
Woodrow (Woody or Row)
Charles (Charlie or Chaz)
Edmund (Ed or Eddie)
Josiah (Joe or Joey)
Raleigh (Rawls)
Barnabas (Barnes or Barney)
Gordon (Gordo or Gordy)
Cornelius (Neil or Nels)
Anderson (Anders or Andy)
Trevor (Mr. T or Tor)
Lowell (Wells)
Wilson (Will)
Conroy (Roy)
Baxter (Bax)
Shaffer (Shay)
Shaunessey (Shaun)
Mortimer (Mort or Morty)
Ferdinan (Ferdy or Dan)
Hershel (Hershy)
Solomon (Solo or Saul)
Chester (Chess)
Nigel (Nyg)
Percival (Percy)
Victor (Vic or Tor)
Best wishes to you as you welcome your wonder son!
That list was so comprehensive I don’t think I have anything to add but here are my favorites from it, and I think they would all coordinate well together:
Alexander, Benjamin, Christopher, Elijah, Jeremiah, Jonathan, Joshua, Zachary.
I actually had Joshua and Zachary (Josh and Zach) on my list for twin boys when I was pregnant with my (singleton) daughter. (I wanted to cover all my bases.)
I am a fan of Gregory from your list and also Zachary and Jonathan and Benjamin. I think you have the right idea about what names go with your last name, and I think pretty much any from Swistle’s list will fit.
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you, Swistle! My son’s name is on your list and now that I’m expecting again, I’ve been struggling to decide on another boy name. These are great and give me some good ideas. Thank you!!!!
My son’s name is Benjamin. Its a great name. When I got pregnant with #2, I debated a ton on whether to continue the “long classic name w a nickname (I loved Frederick), or switch to other names we liked. Our top contender was actually Roark, nn Rory. It didn’t matter in the end because we are having a girl, but I understand the dilemma and might face it again in the future.
I am curious what your girls name is, since you hope to have more kids it very well might be used.
All that said, I wanted to recommend Frederick. I love it and think its under used…
Agreed, I think Frederick is a great name and Fred/Freddy a perfect nn!
Fritz is a great nickname for Frederick. I prefer it over Fred.
I would love to hear what you had picked out for a girl, or some of your favorite girl names!
I really like the name Benedict, or Benjamin, but I’m not sold on the nickname Ben with your last name.
Nathaniel stands out to me. It achieves that middle ground Swistle mentions, not committing you to a specific style with your future children. Nathaniel Thomas, Nathaniel Francis – both look and sound very nice. :)
My personal favorite in this category is Theodore, nn Ted or Teddy. Good luck!!
Adding to the “Long Boy Names with Good Nicknames” List:
– Cameron (Cam)
– Constantine (Stan)
– Emmanuel (Manny)
– Edison (Ed)
– Leopold (Leo)
– Macalister (Mac, Cal)
– Samuel (Sam)
– Sullivan (Sully)
My own married daughter has a similar surname that also starts with “R” & is expecting a 2nd boy this coming October. A surname beginning with “R” can be tricky because so many good options, such as Christopher, Gregor, or Alexander, have a tendency to smoosh right into it. One of the solutions I’ve landed on to deal with this have been first names that end in “L”, such as Daniel, Samuel, & Nathaniel. Not sure about Raphael & Emmanuel, though, except in the middle name slot……
Good luck, I love Gregory for you.
I know a two year old named Emmanuel who is usually Manny. It wears well. Come to think of it, I also know a Raphael, this time a 35 year old. It would have seemed like a fanciful name before, but now that I know a Raphael it seems totally down to earth ( it probably helps that he’s a down to earth kind of guy). He sometimes goes by Ralph.
I love the idea of using Thomas, your maiden name, as his first name. I’m always jealous of people who have names that work for that! It’s a classic, easy to spell/pronounce name, with a great nickname. In terms of double names, I know a Jon David, which I’ve always liked saying together and sort of slips off the tongue easily.
MIRI! I love that it’s YOU as the ask-er today!
Here it is, the name you have been waiting for (or not, but I felt like building it up):
***Bartholomew***
I LOVE THIS NAME, and it’s unusual yet classic (plus historic and Biblical), and I have known a Bartholomew who went by Barty, which was very cute.
I am also a huge fan of
Frederick
Kenneth
Timothy
Wesley
Anselm (maybe too far on the unusual side of the spectrum, but I think it’s not crazily out there)
And of course, Felix.
Timothy – GREAT suggestion!
Ollie can also be used as a nickname for Bartholomew….
AAAAHHH! This is all so great! I am loving having so many options! Thanks for the suggestions, Swistle, and everyone!!!
Freddie Reneau! Teddy Reneau! Timmy Reneau! Sammy Reneau! You guys have such a great last name, and I LOVE the idea of using Thomas for the middle.
I don’t know that this is right for you, but maybe it will spark something else: I grew up with a little neighbor boy named Stevenson. Maybe something last-namey like that will end up giving you a good nickname?
Franklin? Nickname Frank or Frankie. Maybe that seems too “nerdy” (impossible!) but I am just drawing from your love of U.S. politics (although perhaps you dislike FDR.)
I once knew a Damian whose last name ended in U as yours does. Always sounded really cool to me. Damian doesn’t really have a built-in nickname, though. (Ed: But OMG I just googled and Damian was the patron saint of physicans?! Tell me that is correct. Too perfect.)
I love the name Charles with your last name. I realize that it is not long, but has lots of nickname choices (Charlie, Chuck, Chazz).
I also like anything that shortens to Frankie as a nickname, so Franklin, Francis, etc.
Alexander – was my back up name for my youngest – Alex, obvs, but also Lex, Xander, etc.
Theodore would work well with your last name too.
I am torn between loving Benedict and not loving it, as it still has a Benedict Arnold connotation. (Thanks, Brady Bunch!) I realize that you are probably looking at it from a Catholic point of view, rather than an American historian point of view, lol!
I think Theodore is my favorite. Teddy! Baby Teddy! Love it.
I really love the idea of Gregory with the nickname Rory!
I also love Christopher nn Kit and Alexander nn Xander
Benjamin (Ben)? Roderick (Rick)?
Benjamin nn Benji and Timothy are my favorite favorites so far. I think both sound great with your last name. The world needs more baby boys named Timothy!
Other long names, hmm. Montgomery comes to mind. Oh, Sylvester? Sylvester Reneau sounds lovely.
I love many of the names you’re considering, but how is it that Thomas is not high on your list? It’s old-fashioned and classic, and Tom and Tommy are great nicknames. And, ahem, it’s your maiden name so it’s perfect! We were going to name a boy Thomas for obvious reasons, but had three girls. There is *no* acceptable feminine form of Thomas. But if you don’t use it–and maybe even if you do–I’m hoping one day one of our girls will have a little boy named Thomas. :)
I also have a friend whose maiden name was Thomas and chose this as her son’s first name. Her family were thrilled with the choice and it’s connected him to her side of the family. Thomas is also a great bridging name for your different styles (which seem to be biblical and traditional English), so you wouldn’t need to feel locked in with your first child dictating the names you use later.
Having said this I also really like Jonathan nn Jonty. I think it’s spunky but classic together. Good luck.
P.S. It’s also Biblical!
I like all these suggestions! As Miriel’s mom, I’d like to add some family name suggestions (which she is OF COURSE free to reject):
Richardson (Rich, Rick)
McClellan (Mac)
These two are her grandfathers’ middle names. Going further back:
Franklin (Frank or Frankie)
Isaiah (Ike)
Willis (Will) — OK, maybe too odd, but easier to spell than Jedidiah
Terence (Terry)
I’m going to stop before I start suggesting Chester or Austin…
I happen to really like Willis :)
Miriel, it’s your episode! I still love Nathaniel, Sebastian, and Zachary for your son. I can’t believe I forgot about Jonathan (though that might be weird to name him kind of like John but not), and I love Gregory.
Also, I love that Jeremiah and Jedediah made the list ;)
Ooooo Richardson and McClellan! Those are great ones! Also, Nana’s cousin Anderson (who went by Andy) and was a legitimate true explorer and Jesuit priest. Pretty awesome family legacy there.
Theodore/Theo is one of my my VERY FAVORITE boy names. I also know a little boy named Simeon who goes by Simi, which is cute, and a Desmond who goes by Dezi. I was going to suggest Tobias/Toby as well but it looks like Swistle beat me to it! I also second the idea of using two first names or a having him go by his first and middle names.
Love Benjamin, Nathaniel, Christopher and Alexander!
I’d also like to suggest Maximilian nn Max.
Good luck!
So many good suggestions already!
At the risk of betraying my abiding love of Anne of Green Gables, could I add “Gilbert” (Gil) to the list? Or is that too short?
I love Frederick and Gregory! Some suggestions:
Nicolin (Nick, Colin, Cole)
Solomon (Sol)
Leopold, Leonardo (Leo)
Elliot (Eli, Lee)
Barnaby (Barney)
Everson (Evan)
Jameson (Jamie, Jay)
Some new thoughts,
Lincoln. Linc
Weston, Wesley. Wes
Bennett, Benson. Ben
Kirkland. Kirk
Nathaniel and Theodore are my favorite classic but different names that have been suggested already. I think a family name for the middle name is always great too.
These are totally my style, as I realized when I saw all three of my boys’ names on this list (Abraham-Abe, Sebastian-Seb, Malachi-Ky)! I was going to suggest that a nice nickname for Gregory is “Grey.” I do like Greg also, but Grey sounds fresher to me.
One more: Philip (Phil)