I have been collecting baby names since I was eleven and my mother was pregnant with my brother and I was obsessed with naming him. I pored over baby name books, wrote down the names I liked, said them aloud with our last name, mentally envisioned actually calling my future baby brother by the name. Much in the way I now pitch ideas and talent to my bosses, I pitched names to my parents, making a case based on sound, meaning, originality and societal context (some names immediately bring to mind a nerd, or a jock, etc.)
My parents ultimately chose the name I suggested, over their previously favored Evan and my then seven-year-old sister’s suggestion of Mitchroll (yes, Mitch-roll.) I’m kind of kicking myself, because now I can’t name my son Jeremy, and damn I love that name.
Ever since then, I have been compiling a list of my own and, luckily, M indulges me in playing the baby name game. In fact – though he’d never admit it – I think he really enjoys it.
We’ve fought over names before, usually names that he likes that I can’t fathom calling a son or daughter. However, we do have a running list of names that we are seriously considering, names that may actually be transferred to an actual human being that, like, comes out of me and into our lives.
And, since I’m bored and don’t feel like doing work and don’t really have much else to say, I will present that list here with the disclaimer that if we are ever real-life friends, you cannot steal the damn names. (Or, you can, but I’ll secretly always think “bitch stole that from me.”)
Boys:
Lukas/Luke: Pretty much a given, the product of his favorite movie being Cool Hand Luke and my days as a 90210 junkie. The name, in both forms, goes well with M’s last name and to me it conjures up an image of the cool guy in the class, the strong and silent one who is pretty much oblivious – as he plays lacrosse, or soccer – that the girls standing on the sideline are fawning over him. And yes, I want my son to be the hot guy in school. Shut up.
Evan: My mom’s favorite name, until I pitched Jeremy so well. I don’t really know why I talked her out of it, as I adore the name. Maybe I had the foresight to hoard it for myself? I was a sheisty adolescent.
Braden: One of my favorite names, but I have yet to convince M that it’s not some “celebrity baby bullshit name” but something we could actually call our child. Think of the possibilities! We can call him Bray. Or Brady (I actually tried to work the “just like your favorite teams’ quarterback’s last name!” angle; didn’t work.) Braden actually goes the most beautifully with M’s last name, which is an awesome last name, and omigod I wish I could tell you what it is, just to prove my point, but GRR ANONYMITY.
Bennett: I like Ben, but I don’t like Benjamin. I do, however, like Bennett. I love first names that could be last names. M’s take? “It sounds like old money.” To which I replied, “…and, your point?”
Hudson: There is not an ice cube’s chance in hell that M will let me name our son after the damn river that separates Manhattan from New Jersey, but I think it’s cute. And symbolic. And a hot guy name.
Jack/Jake: I never liked Jack until a certain Bauer came around and SHUT UP HE IS REAL AND PROBABLY SAVING US ALL FROM DYING A GRISLY DEATH RIGHT AT THIS MOMENT. Jake, I’ve always liked. I don’t know which one I like better. Also, nicknames are a problem with one-syllable names and I am big on the nicknames.
Marty: M’s favorite name for a boy. Not a chance in hell.
Girls:
Ella/Elle: We will probably go with this. And, if the psychic who read my palm in 8th grade is right, I will only have one girl and therefore only one chance to name her. Her full name will probably be Elizabeth, in honor of my mom, but she’ll go by Ella or Elle. I just love that the name(s) are so feminine and girly. And watch, she’ll be a total tomboy, because the universe likes to fuck around.
Annabelle/Mirabelle: I love, love, LOVE love these names, to the point that I can’t decide between them. There’s just something so girlie about them. I’m seriously considering giving my daughter one of the names, calling her Elle/Ella/Ellie/Mira and then honoring my mom with the middle name of Elizabeth.
Emma: I love the name Emma. M loves it too. I’ve never actually met an Emma, so the name is pretty pure for me. I think that’s part of the appeal.
Olivia: Oh how I love this name. I don’t know why, but I do.
Audrey/Audra: I love Ms. Hepburn and everything associated with her – specifically sophistication, beauty, and awesome-ass hats.
Rory: Maybe I’ve watched too many episodes of Gilmore Girls in my life, but I think the name is absolutely adorable.
Samantha/Sam: I had the Samantha American Girls doll when I was younger and I always vowed that I’d name my daughter after her. (Yes, after a doll/the star of a fictional book about Victorian-era America.) I’m less enthralled with the name today, but I still like the idea of an adorable girl having a boy’s name. I’m drawn to Frankie in the same way, even if I don’t like any of the names it is derived from.
Julia: M really likes this name, and it has grown on me after I worked with an utterly gorgeous and lovely Julia. It’s classic and I love the idea of calling her Jules.
Lily: Unfortunately, one of my best friends has a dog named Lily so the name is now associated with an adorable Westie and not my future daughter, but it’s still a contender because it is so darn cute. (But maybe not so cute when older? I have an inner conflict about that.)
I’m kind of obsessed with names and I love hearing names that other people like. So, go ahead, spill. I promise I won’t steal ‘em.
I have a tough time with boy’s names but girl’s!? I love the name Ruby!!
My gf has two little girls, Harper and Hanlon, and I think those names are cute as well! BTW- I love Braden!! I like names a little off the beaten bath!
I loved Lindsay, until Lindsay Lohan became such a train wreck and ruined it. My best friend named her youngest son Braden, and I always thought it was a made up name, I guess I was wrong!
The boyfriend has 7 brothers, so half the names I like are already taken by either one of them or one of their 183 kids.
I love Lilly as a nickname for Lillian, and Nora for Eleanor, which both sound great with his last name (and Lillian has the bonus of being a family name on his side). My grandmother’s maiden name was Joy, which would be a great middle name. Boy-wise, my late father’s name was Thomas, though J would happily name his child after a football player, or anyone associated with the program at his alma mater — I might have to suggest Braden/Brady, because no way in hell am I naming my child Ara. Or Lou. (I do kind of like Charlie, though..)
I like Benjamin but not Ben. So we are opposite on that.
Aiden - hubby likes this one and it’s grown on me, but not so sure with our last name.
Elias - a new suggestion from me but hubby is unsure; sounds good with our last name.
Holden - Catcher in the Rye, anyone?
Nora - we both like it (I think he does…)
Curtis - taken from 24, I admit–not b/c I like, am attracted to or anything that person on the show, but I just like it!
Caroline - a classic name we both like
That’s the quick list : )
We play the baby game at least once a week - not because we’re prego or trying - just cuz it’s fun (and we can get some names sorted out early on!)
Finn for a boy and Ava for a girl. Haven’t run them by himself yet but I don’t think it’s on his radar somewhat! His two year old niece is called Olivia and she is one of the coolest people I know, so that gets my vote.
I love playing the name game!
Boys:
Austin (family name, goes really well with the last name and my husband loves it. The icing on the cake was that there was a super cute Austin in my freshman dorm.)
Mason (I just like this one, my husband isn’t totally in love)
I agree with the Ben and Jack. Those are on my top five list
Girls:
Amelia but she would go exclusivly by Mia unless I needed to needed to make a point!
Ava Grace (Because its just so pretty)
Madison (Its getting a little popular but I still love it.)
I love the idea of naming a girl Elizabeth and calling her Elle and Ella. Gorgeous!
I like your girl names. Not sure about the boy names though, Hudson? Really?
Anyways, I have a dog named Lily too
If I accidentally spawned, I would go with Kendall (after my g-ma) for a girl and probably Mason for a boy.
Umm, your list is practically identical to mine, give or take a few. Weird. Love Jack and Ella, but I kinda want something more uncommon. And I’ve always loved Oliver and Olivia (one or the other, not both) but now my ex’s GF is Olivia, so there goes that one. I am drawn to Old Testament names, but some can get pretty iffy, like Ezekiel (call him Zeik) but I also like that as a dog’s name. And Lily rhymes with my nickname, Tilly, so there’s always that. Ok, now that I basically blogged on your blog. Good talk. Bye.
please do not name your kid something in the top 20 most popular list — ie emma ashley olivia etc. there will be 400 other emmas in their class.
IW - I’m definitely conscious of which names are popular, as I don’t want my son/daughter to be one of four kids with a particular name. M has a VERY popular first name and he hates having such a familiar name. I, on the other hand, have a fairly unfamiliar name and I like that it’s a bit unique.
I like your names! I have a five year old brother named Jack and so first hand I can tell you its a terrific name.
My sister and I are fighting over who gets to name their daughter Elliot (yes, like from Scrubs). I also like Madeleine, Molly, and Mavis (like the typing tutor program… yes). Olivia is good too. I used to like “Bronwyn” which I totally though I had made up but then I met a girl named Bronwyn who was a total bitch and now I hate that name forever. My sister had a friend named Rhian (ree-in) and I like Reese as well.
Boys: Nolan, Owen, Ben (Bennet is better than Benjamin you’re totally right!), … I don’t know, I’m not huge on boys names. I better have some girls. I’ll think on this and then steal your idea and post about it. Sorry- thievery okay?
oh also Caleb I totally forgot. The End. Sorry for double posting
No I’m even going TRIPLE post. Mainly to give you this website: http://www.babynamewizard.com/namevoyager/lnv0105.html the source of approximately endless hours of enjoyment.
Also to mention Hazel, Eleanor, Daphne, Ramona. I’m into that era (I forgot that I was. Whoops!)
hate to burst the bubble, but as it’s been an issue with me since the gilmore girls came out, i feel the need to inform that Rory is a boys name… a la King Rory of Ireland. baby books, or the ones i’ve been told about, refer to it meaning “red king,” or just plain “red.”
just saying, you know, in case your years of research hadn’t turned that one up…
Here’s another fun site (you plug in the names you like, it gives you other ones you might like): http://www.nymbler.com
I love the site that lisa posted as well; IMHO it’s so cool to type in a name and see its popularity over time.
I work with a lovely Marshallese young lady whose name is Lili, and know a 8 year old girl with the name Lillian (Goes by Lilly). It’s adorable for a little girl, (and I don’t know if it’s because of association or not) but for a woman it’s very sweet and endearing. Not too immature for a woman at all. At least, she is able to pull it off.
I like all of those names. Jack and Samantha are the ones B. and I have discussed and decided we like–I guess we’re in good company! It’s funny, there’s just something about those names that’s so…*so.* They’re awesome.
Lukas & Evan are particularly good ones…
I completely endorse Luke (Cool Hand Luke is also my favourite movie.)
I suddenly find myself wondering if I am your only male commenter…
I am SO not creative when it comes to this stuff so thanks for the ideas! J/K…
LOVE Hunter for a boy and Isabella for a girl.
Remember the other day when I wrote that TB had a niece and her name was Eleanor Grace? Ella’s older brother is named Bennett Jude. Adorable names, I think.
I also personally like Gabrielle (Gabby), Olivia, Sophia and Emma (which was my great grandma’s name) for girls. As for middle names, I have the same middle name as my mom, grandma and great grandma, so as long as I have a girl, I’ll continue the tradition. For boys, I like Liam, Xavier and Jacob (Jake).
Oh, and Marty? Is M for real?!
Lately BFF and I have been tossing names to each other with little agreement. So far the only one that we are definite on is Caroline. We haven’t even begun to look at baby name websites or books, that might overwhelm me right now.
I do love the name Jackson but BFF won’t even consider it. Sigh. Soemtimes compromise sucks.
The baby name game is always a fun one. So here I play:
BOYS:
-Vance
-Jackson/Jaxon (though I deplore when people spell their child’s simple name, Amy for example, and make it Aimee or something like that.)
-Chase
-Channon
-Cash
-Rich
GIRLS:
-Ava (but that will never happen, seeing as how it is very pooular)
-Catalina
-Selma
-Clink’s real name (coincidentally, my mom’s cousin shares your name)
-Valentina
-Paz (means peace in Spanish)
Oh, and no middle names for any of them. I just want them to have a strong first name that goes with the last name.
Please steal away. I doubt I’ll meet any of yall.
Loved reading everyone’s name ideas! What fun!
I personally love the name Sophie (a classic!), and Kaleb (but I now have two friends with sons named Caleb… so that’s out- guess if I really wanted that name so bad, I should’a had a child sooner!)
I prefer more rare or unique names- probably because my own names are kind of boring.
Hey, Peter.
You’re not Clink’s only male commenter. I’m here with you. Was laying off this topic, however.
But, more importantly, here’s my question for you, does Clink ever post on your blog?
Mike
My list of names is very very very long. Let’s just say I’ve been thinking seriously about them for many many many many MANY years. Sadly, my boyfriend’s sister just had her baby last night and she stole one of my names! I can’t really get mad about it, though, considering that I have so many in my cache it would have been a miracle for her NOT to choose one!
I love Ben and Jake for boys. Very simple names. For girls, there is somthing about L’s and V’s that I love & is apparent in my choices: Evelyn, Vivian, Lillian.
oh and I forgot Beverly.
Awww, thanks Erin. I used to not like my name as a kid, but I think I’m slowly growing into it.
Holy crap. Ho-ly crap. I have a list of names that I want and you pretty much have every single one the same for the girls. Audrey, Emma, Lily, Rory, Ella. As for guys, I have weird ones. I love Sirius and Atticus. I’m with you on the Braden and Hudson too!
I literally just stumbled upon this but had to share:
Our girl name shall be Addison Sloan (Sloan is from Entourage!) and we’ll call her Addie, most likely. I also love the name Caris (Care-iss) for a girl, but Mike (husband) says “not a chance in hell” as well. Other middle names in the running… Kate and Brooke. Oh and I like the name Milynn (Ma-lynn).
Boys… oh boys… we’re not in agreement. I like Ethan or Tanner and he likes Tyler. It’ll probably be Tyler because I’m okay with Ty and the middle name will be Michael. I would love that to be the first name, too, but my Mike hates the thought of a Jr. (shiver).
There you have it!
Oh, and hi! Nice to meet you!
Okay, so not stalking you, really, but I just did a name post, too!
(this is Anna who works next door to Molly and Mike.)
http://hankandwillie.wordpress.com/2007/08/08/i-think-madysynne-could-use-one-more-y/
My preggo friend is looking for a name. Think the Internet will find it for her?
Aww, Emma is my real name! I sometimes like it, sometimes not. I was named Emma when it wasn’t a very popular name, which means not many people my age have it, which is nice.
On the other hand, everyone is naming their kid Emma these days. I think it was the most popular name a couple years ago? I think it’s such a cute kid name, but for doesn’t fit me, really. Ah well.
I love the names Ava and Sophie for a little girl, and Matthew and William (Will when he’s a boy, Wills when he’s a baby) for a little boy. I also love the names Elle and Grace, but it doesn’t really work with my M’s last name . . .
Guys names are difficult. I like the name Theodore for a guy because you end up with the nicknames Ted or Teddy… too cute for words. Also, I’ve become obsessed with this name for the past 26 years because my parents would have named me this if I had turned out to be born a dude. Just as you think your mom has good taste, I think the same about my mom.
For girls I like Lorraine, Isabelle, and Lila. Did you ever read the Sweet Valley High series? I adored those teenybop books, and especially liked the character Lila Fowler. She was an only child, and for some bizarre reason, want only one child. Heck, there is an overpopulation crisis going on in our world. Is this selfish of me? I mean, my poor ‘lil boy or girl would have no “instant gratification playmates” lined up, right in the comfort of their own home.