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Baby names

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Original poster

Help French boys name!

188 replies

wildswimmer20 · 09/05/2023 17:22

Pregnant with no. 2, hubbie is French but we live in the UK. 1st child has an unusual Celtic name and this time would like to choose a French name but struggling! Needs to be fairly easy to say/spell in both languages. Wouldn’t probably go for a very traditional French name.

Top choice at the moment is Artus, like the nicknames Art and Artie. Would be pronounced quite differently in French and English, does it sound ok in English?

Other options -
Léon
Sylvain
Mathis / Matisse
Malo

Open to suggestion!

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Peppermaynt · 12/05/2023 18:10

rosed1008 · 12/05/2023 17:27

Missed your reply but if its about sounding girly thats a compliment to us! We have a boy and a girl and we wanted both names to be gender neutral and european friendly.

No it doesn't sound too girly to me at all. I just said Sacha reminds me of my childhood (Sacha Ketchum). I think it's a really beautiful name.

rosed1008 · 12/05/2023 17:27

Missed your reply but if its about sounding girly thats a compliment to us! We have a boy and a girl and we wanted both names to be gender neutral and european friendly.

anonymous98 · 12/05/2023 15:43

It may be too Biblical but I really like Gabriel.

CharlottenBerg · 12/05/2023 15:35

Peppermaynt · 12/05/2023 15:27

Sorry, i meant it in a cute way, it's a very beautiful name

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Guitry, Distel, Baron Cohen...

Peppermaynt · 12/05/2023 15:27

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Sorry, i meant it in a cute way, it's a very beautiful name

Peppermaynt · 12/05/2023 15:27

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JustanothermagicMonday1 · 12/05/2023 15:22

Kevin was a temporary trend witnessed across Western Europe as a result of the Home Alone series….

rosed1008 · 12/05/2023 15:21

We have a Sacha, went for the french spelling 🥰

CurlewKate · 12/05/2023 15:06

Realistically if you live in the UK it has to be something you can cope with being murdered!

CharlottenBerg · 12/05/2023 14:13

AuxArmesCitoyens · 12/05/2023 14:03

Kévin is not a popular name for kids these days, even in the banlieue. It peaked in the early 1990s and has dropped like a stone since.

I did once read about an experiment where people sent job applications to a number of employers. If they used names like Mourad, Khaled or Farida, very few were asked for interview. If they used the same work history, qualifications, etc, but with old fashioned français de souche type names the response rate was much higher. I have a feeling Kévin is treated much like prénoms maghrébins.

AuxArmesCitoyens · 12/05/2023 14:03

Kévin is not a popular name for kids these days, even in the banlieue. It peaked in the early 1990s and has dropped like a stone since.

CharlottenBerg · 12/05/2023 13:50

LightlySearedontheRealityGrill · 12/05/2023 12:40

When I lived in Paris I was told popular or trendy names are considered gauche. Definitely for the banlieue.

That's exactly the impression I have. Kevin being the canonical example.

LightlySearedontheRealityGrill · 12/05/2023 12:40

When I lived in Paris I was told popular or trendy names are considered gauche. Definitely for the banlieue.

oldwhyno · 12/05/2023 12:04

Michel,
Loic
Ambroise
Pascal
Laurent
Benoit
André
Baptiste
Gaston 😁

checktoolate · 12/05/2023 11:37

AuxArmesCitoyens · 12/05/2023 10:50

I suggest Bôgosse for the unique spellers

bien vu !

NameChange30 · 12/05/2023 11:30

@thelengthspeoplegoto
Sorry but your husband was right! Hope you found a name you were both happy with Smile

thelengthspeoplegoto · 12/05/2023 11:11

@NameChange30 I just love it. Wanted it for my second son but my husband was having none of it. Confused

AuxArmesCitoyens · 12/05/2023 10:50

I suggest Bôgosse for the unique spellers

AuxArmesCitoyens · 12/05/2023 10:48

Dax is not a French boy's name. It has not been used as a boy's name since 1920 according to official statistics. It's used as a name in the US but in France it's the name of a small town.

CharlottenBerg · 12/05/2023 10:41

puttingontheritz · 12/05/2023 06:57

That'd be the equivalent of calling a boy Handsome in English. It's not a name. As much as English people can do what they like, this child is going to have French grandparents and so on, they would be so embarrassed.

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But you can have Belle and Linda ('pretty' in Spanish) for example.

CharlottenBerg · 12/05/2023 10:39

AuxArmesCitoyens · 12/05/2023 08:37

Calling a child Dax would be like calling an English child Thetford

I knew an English girl called Dax in the 1980s, although it is a recognised boy's first name in France, and personally I think Thetford is quite a cool boy's name.

AuxArmesCitoyens · 12/05/2023 08:37

Calling a child Dax would be like calling an English child Thetford

Thighdentitycrisis · 12/05/2023 08:11

I love Benoit and Ben is a lovely name in English

NameChange30 · 12/05/2023 08:11

StillWantingADog · 12/05/2023 08:10

people have called their daughters Beau.

my colleague was thinking of it before I gently suggested it wasn’t a good idea

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Yes I had a colleague who actually called his daughter Beau! Terrible!

NameChange30 · 12/05/2023 08:11

checktoolate · 12/05/2023 07:58

@NameChange30 In that case I think people should go all the way and call the child "beaugosse" ;-)

"Voici mon Beaugosse" sounds better than "voici mon fils Beau"

🤣🤣🤣

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