Here is the game we are playing:
We are going to pretend that we are naming a baby and that the name MUST start with a certain letter, and so we will need one name starting with that letter for a boy and one name starting with that letter for a girl, or else one name that would work for either, EVEN IF we don’t like any of the names that start with that letter enough to Actually In Real Life choose them. It is just a game where we place artificial restrictions on reality in order to create the kind of tension that makes games fun—like when you have to choose what foods you’d eat if you could only eat three foods for the rest of your life: the fun is in thinking it over AS IF it were a real forced decision, while KNOWING it is not. There is a baby! It MUST be given a name with a particular letter! That is the game.
After that basic concept, we can decide our own sub-rules, based on what makes the game fun and not stressful. Some examples:
• I’m not planning to play that the name has to fit with the names of my other children or with the surname, though this would be an option for anyone who would LIKE to play it that way; I think I will have more fun if I pretend it is a stand-alone baby and that the surname is not an issue, though I may change my mind as we go. (And if I narrow it down to a few options and can’t decide, I might use siblings/surname as a tie-breaker.)
• It is also fine to narrow it down to a few finalists without getting to The One Name.
• The boy name and girl name don’t have to work TOGETHER: we are only naming ONE baby, so you’d only use one or the other. But you MAY play that the names have to work together, if that’s more fun.
• It is fine to wave aside issues such as a friend who already used that name, a famous person with the name, etc., if that makes it more fun and less stressful to choose. This is just pretend, so you can pretend that those things aren’t issues if you want to. (Or you can let the issues stand as they are in real life, if THAT is more fun.)
• We can also all make our own decisions about whether the names have to be ones we think we’d ACTUALLY USE in that hypothetical scenario, or just our FAVORITE names starting with that letter, regardless of whether we think the names are practical; I am not sure which way I will play it, and I likely won’t be consistent.
• If you already have a child with a name starting with the letter we’re working on, you get to pick again from all the names that remain; you don’t have to choose your child’s name as your favorite just because it WAS your favorite: this is a FRESH baby, and you wouldn’t give it the same name as your existing child. (If you would normally prefer not to repeat an initial within a sibling group, you can just pretend that’s NOT a preference for the sake of the game.)
• You can do as much or as little explanation as you like in your comment: you can just list the names you chose, or you can explain your process/preferences/reasoning/runners-up, or whatever is most fun.
Today’s letter is I. For a girl, I already have Ivy and Imogen on my list. I also like Isabel/Isobel and Iris. I would choose Ivy, ignoring my concerns about Poison Ivy playground taunting.
For a boy, I already know: Ian, which I couldn’t choose in real life but am delighted to choose for the game. (I also like Ike, Isaac, Ivan, Ira.)
Now you! If you want to! Only if it’s fun and not stressful! Feel free to adjust the game-play to be fun and not stressful!
Ian and Isobel
Well, my daughter IS named Irene but I also like Ione.
Ivo for a boy.
My daughter is Irene, too. My other girl name (when waiting for #3) was Inez, but then I CAME TO MY SENSES and realized it’s the same name as Agnes… which is my first daughter’s name. Lol.
I have strong stylistic preferences. ;)
My Irene is named for my mother Irene who passed away when I was 18. My firstborn was a son and Irene was NOT on the list — I wasn’t ready emotionally to use the name. But I was 5 years later and I’m thrilled that I did.
How old is YOUR Irene? Mine is nearly 21…..
I like Ilana and Izzy, as a stand-alone and since I don’t like Isabel or Isobel and Isabella is very common where I live.
For boys I like Ian and Isai.
G – Izzy
B – Ian
For a boy – Ian. Hands down, no question. It’s one of the few “regret we didn’t get to use it” names from our list. I also really like Isaac/Ike.
For a girl, I like Insley, Imogen. I’m not a fan of any of the names that could be shortened to Izzy (Isabella, Isadore, etc). I’m going to go with Isla.
I:(f) Isla – (m)Ian
J: (f) Jones Elise – (m) John Elliott (Jett)
K: (f)Kathryn – (m)Kirk
L: (f)Laurel – (m)Liam
M: (f)Miriam – (m)Miles
N:(f)Naomi – (m)Nigel or Neil
O:(f)Olivia – (m)Orion
P:(f)Penelope(Poppy) – (m)Porter
PH:(f)Phoebe – (m)Phillip
Q:(f or m)Quimby
R:(f)Ruth – (m)Russell or Rhett
S:(f)Simone or Sierra – (m)Seth
T:(f)Tessa/Tess – (m)Tucker
U:(f)Ula – (m)Umberton
V:(f)Viola or Vivian – (m)Vaughn
W:(f)Wynn – (m)Webb or Whit
X:(f)Xanthe – (m)Xavier
Y:(f)Yara – (m)York
Z:(f)Zella – (m)Zeke
I know several little ones named Isla/Ila, and one named Ily (pronounced eye-Lee, and extra adorable because of the I Love You connection)
I think I’d pick Ian for a boy; it’s just a nice, friendly name. I also quite like Ivan, but it feels distinctively Russian to me and I have no Russian heritage. For a girl, I’d probably go with Iris; it’s a pretty floral name that is recognizable but not too common.
Hmm. I do like Irina, Isla, and Iona but I love Iris so I think I would go with that for a little girl.
For a boy, there aren’t a lot of I name that I like but I think I would go with Issac.
Ivy and Isaac. I love Ivy, Isaac is fine I just don’t really love any I boy names.
Igor and Ines!
Imogen for a girl. Ilan for a boy if I had to, but this is not a letter where there are any boy names I would realistically choose.
Isabella for a girl. It’s popular for a reason — it’s gorgeous!
I’m not sure about my boy choice. Ignatius is a bit of a guilty pleasure, but I wouldn’t pick it as a first name. Maybe Isaiah or Ivan? Leaning toward Ivan, but I prefer it more if pronounced Ee-van, which might be tough to inforce.
Isaac is a top contender for if I have a son! Love the meaning
I’m not sure for a girl; no I names really jump out for me.
For girls I have a few: Isadora, Isabelle, Iris, Idalia and Isla. None of these I would probably use in real life, but for this exercise I pick Idalia, nickname Ida or Lia. For boys, I don’t feel quite as strongly about any one name, but I like Isaac, Ivan and Ian. I pick Isaac. Isaac and Idalia.
I would choose Irene for a girl. None of the boy names really strikes my fancy; Idris is my favorite but it seems SO specific to Idris Elba I don’t think I could do it. (Let us take a moment to think about Idris Elba.)
This is my favorite comment. 😁
Thanks for this – I DID like taking a moment to think about Idris Elba. ;)
Gotta go with Isla and Indigo (my fantasy favorite name)
Let’s take several moments to think about Idris Elba !! Sigh !! Love his name ! Was
Totally misread that as Inigo and thought of the princess bride!
Hmmm, I’m stuck between Ingrid and Iris for a girl. For a boy I love Ignazio, but would more realistically use Ian.
I find I to be difficult. I’m going to go with Isla and Iden. I will say girl names are much easier than boy names.
I: Isla & Iden
J: Jane & Jacob
K: Keira & Keegan
L: Laurel & Lowell
M: Millicent (nn Millie) & Miller (my maiden name and I am still salty I didn’t use it for my last son)
N: Nina & Noah (Nina is a family name)
O: Ophelia (nn Phee) & Oliver (nn Ollie)
P: Piper & Porter (runners up: Poppy & Payton)
Q: Quinn (either boy or girl)
R: Ruby & Rafe (runners up: Riley & Remy)
S: Seraphina (nn Phee) & Sawyer (runners up: Sutton & Sebastian)
T: Tallulah (nn Lulu) & Tyler (runner up: Talia)
U: Urla & Ulric
V: Vashti & Varden (runner up: Violet)
W: Willow & Winter (runners up: Wren & Willa)
X: Xiomara & Xavier
Y: Yara & Yates
Z: Zola & Zachary
Iolanthe (Io) and Ignatius (Iggy?).
I was going to go with Ignacio before I remembered Ivan. Tough choice. I like Isadora and Isla, but I think Ilana is more my style. So I guess today I’ll go with Ivan and Ilana.
For a boy, Ivan (probably nn Van). I also like Ignatius, nn Iggy.
For a girl, it’s much harder. I’ll go with Ingrid. Also like Ivy, Ines, Irene and Isadora.
Girl: Ivy, followed by Isabelle
Boy: Ian or Ilan
TLDR: Irene, Isaiah
I had two girl names with I on my lists for my boys. Irene and Ivy. Ivy is spunky and fun, and there are all of the Ivy and Bean books, which would be extra fun to read, but in the end I would chose Irene– it is so pretty, and I already sang Goodnight Irene to my boys (using their names instead of Irene). It is a great association.
I actually used an I name for my eldest middle– Isaiah. It is lovely, an honor name for my grandfather, and so soft and gentle. When I hear it on other children (which doesn’t happen that often) I feel a kinship to it, and wonder briefly how it would have gone if I had shifted the order of my son’s names (I am still glad I did not). I also really like the Ilya which has that same soft, gentle sound. If we are playing that we need to choose again than I feel no hesitation in choosing Ilya.
Isaiah and Ismae (or maybe Ismay)
I was really easy for girls, not so much for boys. I have had Imogen on a list forever and think it’s such a great name. I like others like Isla, but girl would definitely be Imogen. Boys, not sure. I like Isaac, Ivan, and Ian. Isaac came to mind first. Peered over the I list for boys and saw Iver. I really liked that. Imogen and Iver.
I – (F) Imogen, (m) Iver
J – (f) Joy, (m) Julian
K – (f) Kendra, (m) Keith
L – (f) Louisa, (m) Logan
M – (f) Mallory, (m) Marshall
N – (f) Nadine, (m) Neil
O – (f) Odette, (m) Oliver
P – (f) Pia, (m) Parson
Q – (f) Quincy, (m) Quaid
R – (f) Ramona, (m) Roger
S – (f) Susanna, (m) Sullivan
T – (f) Thora, (m) Tatum
U – (f) Uma, (m) Umber
V – (f) Virginia, (m) Vaughn
W – (f) Whitney, (m) Wade
X – (f) Xaida, (m) Xander
Y – (f) Yardley, (m) York
Z – (f) Zoe, (m) Zachary
Girl: Ida
Boy: Ignacio
Ichabod! Nicknamed Ike. I’m not brave enough to use it, but it has atmosphere.
For girls, I love Ivy, but today I choose Isolde!
Isla & Isaac
I have an issue hearing initial names and word names instead of the way they’re intended. So Ivy becomes IV, Iona is I Own A, Ida is I Da (the). Iris is beautiful but bad family association. I like Imogene and Ione. An acquaintance has an iola and they have to spell it lowercase all the time, but cool sound. I know a sweet Ilke. But I’ll choose Ingrid.
For a boy, Ivan is tempting (family name) but I’ve always loved Isaac. Close second Ira. Liking all the love for Ignatius nn Iggy! Love to meet a boy by the name.
G: Ingrid
B: Isaac
Ilana for a girl for sure. It was almost our middle name choice if we had a girl, but I went with grandmother’s maiden name instead because I knew how much it would mean to my mom (complicated story). I love the sound of it.
For a boy, Ian or Isaac.
Irving is my guilty pleasure girl name, I hope one day I’ll be brave enough to use it. Or Ingrid, which has been a long time love.
For boys I would choose Issac or Iggy.
Girl: Ione
Boy: Izzy
I like several I names for girls, but don’t love any of them. Isla, Imogen, Iris, Isabella. I think Ida is my favorite, so I’ll go with that.
For boys, I think Isaac is my favorite.
For a unisex name, I like Indigo, nn Indie.
Isolde was a middle name contender had we had a girl – so that’s my girl choice. I always seem to pick boys names based on crushes I’ve had and this is no different – cute guy in university was named Ivan, so that’s my boy choice, lol!
For a girl I like Ivy, Isla and Imogen. I’d probably choose Imogen – I recently read a book with my 6th grader and this was the heroine’s name. Immy would be a cute nickname.
For a boy I’d go with Isaac. My friend calls her son Isaac “Ice” which I think is a cool nickname idea.
Ivy or Iris for a girl, Ivan for a boy
Iris definitely for a girl. I’m torn between Ian and Isaac for a boy, but I think I’ll go with Isaac.
I: Iris and Isaac
J: June and Jude
K: Kestrel and Kellan
L: Leia and Lance
M: Magnolia and Miles
N: Naomi and Nathaniel
O: Ophelia and Owen
P: Pippa and Peter
Q: Quinn and Quill
R: Rosalie and Roan
S: Susanna and Simon
T: Tessa and Thaddeus
U: Umbria and Urban
V: Vera and Valerian
W: Wren and West
X: Xymeria and Xavier
Y: Ysabel and Yarrow
Z: Zelie and Zebulon
Turns out I love I girl names! I’m very interested in Inez, and Ingrid, and love Io as a middle name, but am intrigued by Iolanthe as mentioned above! Ivy and Isla are beautiful but too popular for me now. Favourite has to be Iris though, I just can’t shake it.
I have always loved Ira, so so much and am devastated it doesn’t really work with our last name situation. I like Idris mentioned here too!
Obviously couldn’t use both but Ira and Iris are my picks!
My grandma’s name is Inez! And my other Grandma was Illa (pronounced Isla). Both great names.
There are a few “i” names that I really like and wouldn’t use due to popularity, such as Ivy, Isaiah, and Ian (might use it as a nickname for a name ending in “-ian,” though), and maybe even Isla is too popular. Another one is Isaac (Ike), which I also couldn’t use with my son’s name anyway because the two syllables of Isaac are basically the same two syllables as my son’s name in reverse.
Isai doesn’t work for a boy because it ends the same way as my son’s name.
Irina and Irena (which I would pronounce differently) are nice for a girl, but they are almost the same as my own name.
Again with “i” names, there are several I like that couldn’t be used if I had both a boy and a girl to name. Ilan and Ilana, Ilario/Ilarian and Ilaria, Ivan and Ivana (though that name feels ruined and replacing it with Ivona or the Polish spelling Iwona doesn’t work with Ivo/Ivor and probably Iver). I am not sure which name I would rather have, the male version or the female version with any of them. Probably not Ivan because of the different pronunciations.
Names that I love that sound like someone else’s child: Ivelisse, Imogen, Ilse, Indra, Idony/Idonia. Names I would consider in the middle spot: Izel, Iridia, Iolanthe, Ianthe, Iola, Inara, Illyria, Ismene, Ismay for a girl and Ignatius for a boy.
I think after meeting the child, I would end up choosing between Inigo (Iggy) and Idris for a boy or maybe Ilan and Ione, Iona, Ilaria, and maybe Idalia (Ida, which is a a family name) for a girl.
Iris and Ian
I love Irene, and Idun, and Ida. Ina is a family name that I also love but probably wouldn’t use because it’s so singularly associated with Ina Garten now. I’m going to go with Irene instead. For boys, I love Ivo and Isidore. I would probably pick Ivo, because I don’t love Izzy as a nickname. So, Irene and Ivo.
Definitely Ian for a boy. It was on my short list during my second pregnancy. Isaiah was on the longer list.
For a girl, probably Ivy, but I like Iris, Imogen, and Irene, too. (Partly I’d be tempted by being able to sing “Goodnight Irene” as a lullaby.)
Isaac and Iris or Ivy.
Isaiah (have a 15 yo nephew we still call Zay)
Isadora, Izzy
Ivor
Or
Idris (Idris! Elba! Almost too handsome. But not!)
And
Isabel or Iolanthe
Oooh! I love Irene, Ivy, Imogen, and Ingrid. I’d pick Ingrid.
For a boy – Ianto, Iestyn, Isaac. Hmmm…probably Ianto! Or INAUGURATION!!!
Ingrid (g), Ianto (b)
India (girl), Ian (boy)
Iris for a girl and Ira for a boy
Isabel and Isaac, 2nd place goes to Ivy and Isaiah.
(I wouldn’t actually _use_ Isabel. If we’re having an Elizabeth variant, we’re going with mine; it’s been a family name for generations.)
Iris 100%. I also love Isadora (a CLOSE 2nd), Irene, and Ines and I have an Ilaria/Hilaria. There are so many fabulous I names. My husband adores Isaac, and I really like it, so realistically that, even though I like Isaiah better. Probably prefer the story of Isaac to Isaiah. Irenaeus and Ignatius are my over-the-top faves. Isidore is also way cool.
I: Iris and Isaac
J: Judith and Julian
K: Kestrel
L: Louisa and Luke
M: Mae and Matthias
N: Nicola or Nicholas
O: Octavia and Oliver
P: Paulina or Paul
Q: Quartz and Quentin
R: Rosa and Raphael
S: Sylvie and Samuel
T: Theodora and Timothy
U: Una and Ulysses
V: Vera and Valerian
W: Willa and Walter
X: Xenia and Xavier
Y: Yvaine and Yves
Z: Zinnia and Zachary
Ivy for a girl and Ilan for a boy. Ilan means “tree,” so I like that both of these are botanical names.
Other I names I like…
AFAB: Imogen, Irene, Iris, Ilana, Ivelisse
AMAB: Ira (not my actual name), Isaiah, Ignacio, Ivo
Any gender: Izzy, Imani, Indigo
I: Ivy, Ilan
J: Julia, Julian
K: Katrina, Kade
M: Mirah, Matteo
N: Nadia, Nathaniel
O: Ocean
P: Patrick, Pearl
Q: Quill, Quiara
R: Ramona, Raphael, River
S: Simone, Sylvan, Sage
T: Talia, Theodore
U: Uma, Uriah
V: Vanessa, Vaughn
W: Wednesday, Wade
X: Xiomara, Xavier
Y: Yvonne, Yonatan, Yael
Z: Zora, Zayn
Irene for a girl and Ignatius for a boy.
Ivan is a name I quite like that my husband nixed for any boys (which we didn’t end up having) because of family members with the name (my husband has a huge extended family and no interest whatsoever in naming any children after any of his family members, even the ones he likes, which resulted in a lot of unusable names that are otherwise quite nice). For a girl, Isabeau.
Isabeau and Ivan
Ian and Inge.
I love many, many “I” names!
I’ve been playing this game by imagining renaming my existing kids, which sometimes leads me to different choices than if I chose theoretically. I’m going with Isabel/Izzy and Isaac.
Our second-choice name for our son was Itai, which I like a lot too, but I’m playing the game as if I don’t have the “modern Israeli name” restriction.
Illyria and Irving.
I’m pregnant with a baby of unknown gender and the two lead names are, strangely enough, Isolde and Isidore (no, I’m not obsessed with the Is sound, this is coincidental).
I have an Ivy whose best friend is Ian. :-)
Oh, Ivy and Izzy! Cute!
Boy: Iver (was our name choice if either kiddo had been a boy).
For girls: Ivelise
The whole Yves-family of names just has a special, medieval appeal for me.
Ignatius (nn Nate) and Isabel
Late to this but I is easy for me. Iris! Isaac! Honorary mention Isaiah!
I: Isaac and Iris (honorable mention Isaiah)
J: Jasper and Jane
K: Kieran and Kathryn
L: Leland and Louisa
M: Matthew & Margot
N: Neil & Nadine (strong second place Naomi)
O: Oscar & Opal
P: Patrick & Paloma (close seconds are Peter & Pearl)
Q: Quinn (for either, because I already have a Quentin)
R: Robert & Ruth (special shout out to Ramona)
S: Sawyer & Sylvie
T: Toby & Tabitha
U: Uriel & Una
V: Vincent & Veronica
W: Walter & Winonah (honorable mention to Warren)
X: Xavier & Xia
Y: Yusef & Yolanda
Z: Zachary & Zelda (but upon reflection I think maybe Zinnia)
Oh maybe I’m not late, haha
A lot of the I names I like are ruled out by my current kids’ names or our last name (and I am playing this game by pretending this is our actual 4th baby so I have to take their names into consideration). I like Ian the most, but my son is Sebastian and it seems weird to have a second son whose name is just the last three letters of his brother’s name. For girls I like Imogen but it makes the word “gender” when combined with our last name. I also like Imogene but one of my daughter’s has a name that ends in the “een” sound already and that’s too matchy for me (especially because I have another daughter whose name wouldn’t match her sisters). Our last name starts with a D so Ingrid blends weirdly.
So for a boy I’d go for Isaac and a girl I’d go with Isobel. I was *shocked* when I looked on the SS Name database right now and saw Isobel isn’t in the top 1000. How can that be?! Isabella and Isabelle are so popular I figured for sure Isobel would be right up there, too, but no matter how many times I typed it in it told me it has never been in the top 1000. My main hesitation with Isobel is that it’s too popular, but I guess that particular spelling isn’t all that popular. True, it still just sounds like Isabelle, but it’s got the Downton Abbey association, which I appreciate! So, Isobel it is.
I want to take this chance to vent about Iris. I’ve had it on my list for years- we have these beautiful irises that my mom planted at this house when she was but a girl, they’ve been alive and kicking for longer than I have. They’re beautiful, unique flowers. They’re sentimental. As I’ve grown into an adult name nerd, I also loved that it’s at least a double nature name (“rainbow”!) and it has a single spelling. I think the fact that it’s part of an eye is rad! Imagine all the cool eye motifs you can do! I had a guy call his daughter “rainbow” as a nickname at the store the other day and I swooned! It’s so, so beautiful
and it’s the name of an ex-coworker who didn’t leave the best impression on me, who is the only person who I’ve met with that name, and who also stole at least a few hundred, if not a few thousand dollars worth of product from our company AND who would steal from peoples’ purses every chance she had.
So yeah, it’s ruined.
Anyway, my choices are currently Ingrid and Ivy for girls, Indigo and Ignacio for boys. :)
A boys name I love but would never be brave enough to use seems perfect here: Inigo. For a girl, hmmmm. I love Imogen, Ivy and Iris but they’re all very popular in the UK which makes them feel a bit more familiar and less special. So I think I’d go for Ida.
This past year I have become a convert to a few vintage girls’ names that begin with I. I would’ve named my last baby Ida if he’d been a girl, but it was specific to that pregnancy. I know I wouldn’t use it for another kid so I want think of a new one. I really like Ines, Ivy and Iris as of late. Ines and Iris are names that I’ve commonly heard in Central America for years but seem to only recently be making a comeback in the US. Of the three, I like Iris best.
I also like a lot if I boys’ names that lean toward guilty pleasure names for me like Icarus, Ignatious, and Iago. I think Inigo would be fun.
G: Iris
B: Inigo
Some beautiful I girls names, in my opinion: Isobel (my favourite spelling), Isolde, Iselin, Io, Ines, Iris. I chose Iselin for my 2020 alphabet list but today I’m really feeling Io.
My partners name is Ian so I choose that. I never used to like it but it means love to me now!
Ignatius nickname Ziggy
Imogen or Isobel
Ian and Ivy
India & Isaiah
Isadora & Irving