Baby Boy M., Brother to Claire

I’m looking for help! We need a baby brother name to go with big sister Claire Monroe M. We like traditional and are leaning towards Graham, but nothing feels just right yet. We’ve also discussed Sam, Henry, Ben and Charlie. Do you have any other suggestions? What sounds best with Claire to you?

Thank you so much for any input.

Marie

 

I am wondering if the -m of Graham and Sam runs into the M- of the surname.

If I were working just with the name Graham, I might suggest Simon, Oliver, Theodore, Everett—names like those. But I notice that Sam, Ben, and Charlie are all nickname names. This makes me wonder if your style is nickname names for boys, or if what you like about Sam, Ben, and maybe also Graham (depending on your pronunciation) is that they’re all one-syllable names. My list of suggestions, then, is made up of shortish and/or nicknamey names:

Abe
Alec
Alex
Dean
Del
Drew
Eli
Grant
Jack
James
Jay
Joel
John
Leo
Lou
Luke
Mark
Nate
Neil
Paul
Reid
Rhys
Theo

I’m particularly drawn to Grant and Reid and Rhys and Dean, because I think they have the Gentleman sound of Graham, with the shortness of Ben and Sam. I’m also particularly drawn to Leo and Jack, because they’re nickname names but also stand-alone names. I love the names Paul and John; I think they’re underused, and great with Claire.

If I were choosing from your list, I would have a hard time; I think they all sound very good with Claire, but in different ways. Claire and Graham sounds sophisticated to me; Claire and Sam/Ben/Charlie sounds friendly; Claire and Henry sounds sophisticated and also friendly.

28 thoughts on “Baby Boy M., Brother to Claire

  1. Kelly

    I have a Claire. Her older brother is Andrew and I’m expecting another boy in January. I’m really struggling with names for him … But we have Matthew, James, Michael and Patrick on the list. I also like Charles NN Charlie, but not sure I love it with Andrew and Claire which are both sophisticated classic names to me.

    Reply
  2. TheFirstA

    I really like the suggestions of Jack and Rhys for you.

    I also noticed that Sam, Charlie & Ben are nicknames. I’d probably go with the full given name on the birth certificate, but they are lovely and work well with Claire.

    I’ll suggest August, Miles/Myles, Max, Trevor, Owen, Liam & Milo.

    Reply
  3. TB

    Nate or Joel are two favorited. I like that everyone knows the name but they are not popular or trendy.

    I like Claire and Connor together.

    Reply
  4. Laura

    Oh James, I think James sounds wonderful with Claire. Or if you were looking for a full name to nickname, what about Robert (with nns of Rob, Bert, and Bob)

    Reply
  5. Claire

    I’m a Claire and I have six brothers! Their names are southern but here they are:

    Francis Rutledge, Andrew Burchart, Roman Vincent, Dayne Martin, Abram Glover, Drayton Marshal

    Middle names are mostly honor names. My oldest brother goes by Rutledge. I like Henry and Graham from your list best. They go well w Claire.

    Reply
    1. Downtown

      I have a Claire and Henry. The names go great together. I love that their names are older-style and classic.

      Although Henry is increasing in popularity, I’ve only heard a few other boys with this name (mostly at a park or restaurant), but none within our social circle or our children’s’ school.

      Number three (a boy) is on the way, and many of the names mentioned are ones we’ve also talked about.

      Reply
  6. Kelsey D

    What about Arlo? Claire and Arlo. It’s short, classic, and not totally common. LOVE this name. We have an Oliver, and I too love his name – it totally suits him, but had I come across this name before he was born, he definitely would’ve been an Arlo!!

    I really like Arthur, George, Theodore, or Henry to go with Claire as well.

    Good luck and keep us posted!!

    Reply
  7. Jd

    Grant! Charming masculine classic! Claire and Grant. I also have a special spot in my heart for Rhys. It is such a sophisticated name.

    Reply
  8. Candice

    I have a Claire! Her older brother’s name is Vaughn.

    I also gravitate towards one syllable names. I also like George with Claire. But it’s really such a classic name almost anything goes with it !

    Reply
  9. Lindsey

    I have a daughter named Claire and we just welcomed a baby boy in September. Our shortlist was: Brooks, Connor, Hayes, Henry, Knox,and Spencer. We decided on Henry and could not be happier with it! We’ve gotten lots of comments on how well Henry and Claire go together. Good luck!

    Reply
  10. Reagan

    I really like the name Graham qnd I think how much of an issue it is with your last name depends on the sound of the name to me Graham Mathews sounds to my hears like Granma Thews. Graham Morrison doesn’t seem like a problem at all probably because Grah is not name in and of it itself so I distinctly hear each name.

    That said, I do think Grant is a delightful alternative. I know a 1 year old Grant and the name suits him very well. With Claire, I also like the idea of name that is either already a nickname (Ben, Charliie, Sam) or one that doesn’t naturally get shortened (Henry).

    Of the suggestions so far, in addition a to Grant, I really like Evan, Drew, George, and Theo. Miles might be a great choice if you don’t mind alliteration. Some other suggestions:

    Glenn
    Nolan
    Jared
    Wade
    Roger

    Reply
  11. Sarah

    I have an Abram and a Claire, and hopefully a 3rd on the way. We are struggling with boy names as well. We were thinking Dane or Graham. If it’s a girl we are thinking Nora or Norah (not sure on the spelling just yet).

    Reply

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