Reactions to the name Merlin

[nijntje]

Hi
I would love to get some honest reactions to the name Merlin ...
I'm not British or living in the UK right now, but my boyfriend's British. We'd like to find a name that works well in English and Dutch. My boyfriend loves Merlin, but I 'm not sure how strange it sounds to British ears ...
Please let me know what you all think.
Thanks!

[southeastastra]

honestly no it's a bit silly.

[zippitippitoes]

to me it sounds quite new Age!

[hana]

Merlin - not a big fan. Am inclined to say Merlin the Magician....
there must be some other boys names that work equally well in Dutch/English?
someone will be along with more help!

[iota]

I had a cat called Merlin

[Twiglett]

I would PMSL

[FrannyandZooey]

I know a woman called Merlin and I think her name is so cool and suits her perfectly.

I am a rather unsure for a boy - it does seem a bit Gandalfy, doesn't it? However I do like unusual names, there are certainly worse ones you could pick.

[Twiglett]

There was a Merlin character on Casualty once .. didn't he shag his own sister??

[southeastastra]

it reminds me of this

[Carmenere]

I knew a really sweet boy called Merlin, but it is a bit of a heavy handle to go through life with imo

[SSSandy]

I'm not a big fan of fanciful names ,in particular for boys but I actually find Merlin ok. Everyone will immediately think of King Arthur of course. Not sure I like the initial "Mer" "er" sound too much though.

[MrsApronstrings]

I also had a cat named merlin

[beckybrastraps]

If I had a Merlin on my class list I would giggle. Sorry.

[MrsApronstrings]

not meant to put you off - i do after all have a son named felix!!!

[Twiglett]

at mrsapronstrings .. that's v. funny

[Blandmum]

It would sound very silly to my ears. Like becky, having a merlin on the regester would test my ability to stiffle a giggle. They kids would just laugh.

[YeahBut]

Hmmmmm, I think the piss-take possibilities for a name like Merlin are enormous.
Lots of more traditional names work well in Dutch and English (we're British but living in Den Haag atm). Ds was born in January and we've called him Alexander - lots of approval both in Holland and the UK. Also Tom, Robert, Oscar etc. Or are they a bit conservative for you?

[donnie]

I like Merlin but it is quite eccentric and amusing IMO. However it is far better than a lot of the vile chavvy names which proliferate these days!! At least Merlin is resonant of Arthurian legends.

[trinityrhino]

merlin just makes me think of wizards, sorry

[zippitippitoes]

it seems to be a popular name for scientific companies so perhaps not completely silly

[LiliLaTigresse]

I'd say no to Merlin
friends have a lovely dog called Merlin and someone thought the dog was in fact called Vermin
so definitely no.....

[PinkTulips]

peter
jan
aaron
adam
marc
martin

theres tonnes more that would work in both languages! merlin is definitely a bit odd... go for it if your really love it but if your unsure i wouldn't tbh.

theres loads of dutch names here theres tonnes that would work in holland and britain

(i was born in holland by the way, left when i was five though)

[MrsApronstrings]

where will you mainly be living - a dutch name could be nicely different if you were going back to uk - unusual names picked for a genuine reason - like being half dutch are the best imho

[aprilmeadow]

I think it is very sweet. There are far more 'silly' names out there!!

[Coriander73]

NOOOO.....think of him at school...