Teddy Oliver or Edward Oliver

I just don’t think a hulking great teenager is going to want to be called a Teddy.

Just like all the Garys and Kevins and Tims...

I would either go with Edward Oliver or Ted Oliver instead of Teddy.

I meant more traditional name not famous name . I don't know where that came from!

You are right: both Teddy and Edward are classic and not at all comparable to Apple.

Myself, I see Teddy more as a "classic diminutive" and not a classic BC name. I'd go with Edward and call him Teddy until Ted or Ed feels more natural - which time may never come, or might come sooner than you expect.

That whole "group" of names are nice.

This is a no brainer- Edward.

Then he can remain Teddy if he wants. Or Ted, Edward, Ed, Eddie.

Sorry I know you're getting it a lot but Teddy won't age well with him. Id change it to Edward and have Teddy as a nickname so he has a 'proper' name when he's an adult.

Fwiw, my dad's name was Ted, rn Edward, and he HATED Teddy...

I personally would just stick with Teddy if thats what you call him all the time. I really don’t understand the need to have an “official name” it’s outdated.

When your Teddy is older he will be amongst a sea of Nevaeh’s, Jayden's, Evie’s, Persephone-Bluebell’s he wont stand out.

I would give not one shit if a teacher, policeman or Judge was called Teddy it doesn’t affect how they will do their job.

He never called himself Teddy it was always Ted or Edward. Edward was his given name.
Teddy just sounds particularly babyish I don't think names like Tony, Bill , Harry or Charlie sound babyish like Teddy

Put Edward on his birth certificate.
My husband was given a name like Teddy that is cute for a child but sounds wrong for a 60+ man. He hates it and wishes he was called the more famous name.

I gave DC2 an Edward type name on the birth certificate but everyone has called them the Teddy-style name since day 1. It was a deliberate decision - If DC2 wants to be a DJ, they can carry on calling themselves Teddy but if they decide to be a high court judge they might want to use the more formal and serious Edward name.

I have an Edward. He was Teddy when very little. We now call him Ted at home. If anyone referred to him as Teddy from the age of 5 onwards he hated it. He’s now 15 and goes by Edward or Ed at school. We are still “allowed” to call him Ted at home. Edward when I’m cross :-).

Edward - gives him options if need be.

Prior to having kids I only knew adult Teddys and loved both the name. Loved it on yer man in the 90210 reboot etc. I have a family member whose parents used a formal name on the birth cert and a diminutive his whole life and it drives him nuts that they don't use the diminutive on his birth cert. So basically you can't do right for doing wrong. When he's an adult he'll be tripping over other Teddys. I have a name that was the top 5 for about 20 years and in spite of that I still had to regularly spell it on the phone because people hear me wrong. So there's no safe guarding the future.

Edward.

Opens up possibilities in the future which your son may appreciate.

Definitely Edward. Teddy is fine and quite cute for a toddler but even mid-primary age would seema bit babyish I think so would rather give him the option to go by other names, if he wanted. That being said, I know an Edward who goes by Ted and always has and it completely suits him. Maybe it’s what you’re used to.

Edward gives him options, teddy is cute for a baby but perhaps not to be taken seriously at work

He can still use Teddy though, if he likes it.

I don't hate it, but I think Ted has much more swagger. Lots of good strong role models.

I'd definitely go for Edward, which gives loads of flexibility.

I also much prefer Ted to Teddy and he would then have more freedom to start using that instead.

I'm a big fan off full name on birth certificate and then they can use the diminutive or not. Both Edward and Teddy are lovely, so having the option is best. Our DS is 14 and always known by the diminutive, but the full name is there if he wants to use it later.

Edward gives more options. I’d personally go with that. It has some dignity unlike Teddy. You can still continue to call him Teddy.

I personally find Teddy much more childish than Alfie or Jamie. I think that it’s because it’s also the name of a well known toy. l’ve met a few young children called Teddy and it still seems twee to me on a 3 year old and utterly ridiculous on a grown man, unless they’re famous then they can just about pull it off. And I don’t agree that people always become their names. I’ve met several people whose names didn’t seem right for them.

I think a lot of the replies aren't taking current naming trends into account. Especially ones about GPs, politicians etc.
This.
There are people called Molly, Evie and Poppy where I work. They're just names - just like Penny, Sally and Sue are.

I don't think 'Eww, I can't take a data analyst seriously because Poppy is an infantile name'.

Princess - 42 registered in 2024
Superman - none registered since 1996
Apple - 10 registered since 1996

Teddy - 3 registered in 1996, in the top 100 since 2013, in the top 50 since 2015.