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Baby names

Find baby name inspiration and advice on the Mumsnet Baby Names forum.

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Original poster

If you like the name Archie... Advice please

29 replies

MuddledMum · 26/10/2010 19:49

We have a truly adorable little baby boy named Archie. I love him and, popular or not, I love his name. Recently though my DH and I questioned whether we should have given him a more longform name on his birth certificate (Archibald or Archer are the only two we can think of).

So my question is, if you have an Archie or are considering using the name what would you or did you put on the birth certificate. Day to day we will be using Archie but does a longer formal name give him more future name options? Or given we are unlikely to use it regularly, does it confuse things? He is only a few months so we have time to change the birth certificate if we wish but just can't decide.

Oh, and I know you don't have to like Archie to help me but I just didn't want anyone thinking I was asking for opinions on the name itself. It's his name and I adore him so negative Archie remarks would be most upsetting!

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Tootlesmummy · 26/10/2010 19:50

I love Archie and I would stick with it. Archibald is terrible (sorry!), and Archer......!?

Stick with Archie, that's the name you use and that's the one you love.

Dracschick · 26/10/2010 19:53

I have a Sam who on his birth cert is Samuel and he never uses that full title.

I have a Nicholas who has told his headteacher that the only person who can call him that is the woman who carried him for 9 months and who washes his dirty PE kit everyone else must call him Nick

At risk of outing myself our 3rd ds also uses the shortened version of his name- none of our children use their full titles.

leddeeburdee · 26/10/2010 19:55

I have an Archie too and went through the same thought process. We stuck with Archie on the birth certificate as we loved the name but didn't like Archibald, and didn't want it being used on formal correspondence/ at the doctors/ on the school register etc. We figured this way there was no room for confusion.

chocolateshoes · 26/10/2010 19:59

I have an Archie & is Archie on birth cert. Agree with Leddee & as a teacher often formal names are on the class list when you get them so didn't want him being called that at school. I think often people use shortened name of birth certificate. Poeple often comment on what a lovely name Archie is.

brittan76 · 26/10/2010 20:12

I would stick with just Archie (lovely name BTW) as Archer is a surname and Archibald is not a nice name (especially if he ends up bald).

SilveryMoon · 26/10/2010 20:17

I do like the name Archie, it was on my list years ago but my best friend beat me to it.
She has Archie on the birth certificate, but personally I think I'd put Archer on it.

LoopyLoupGarou · 26/10/2010 20:18

I would keep it Archie.

ja9 · 26/10/2010 20:19

I'd go for Archer - think it's a great name. x

jellybeans · 26/10/2010 20:38

I agree, Archibald is terrible, sorry! Archie on it's own is much better, I would stick with it. I know what you mean as I gave one of mine the short form of a longer name. I did wonder whether to use the long one but people hated it in general and we feared he would get teased. We stuck with the short name and don't regret it, the short form is by far more common is his case and also with Archie so they won't be alone. They can always change to the full form if they want later in life.

ValiumSkeleton · 26/10/2010 20:44

Archie is a cute name. I would have considered it for my son except I knew ONE. Just one! He lived near us and now I live somewhere totally different and I don't know any.

Archibald is a bit pompous or over the top old man chic, and Archer is a sur name and makes me think of an archer shooting arrows. Archie sounds like a name. It's a good name!

BuntyPenfold · 26/10/2010 22:07

I know an Archie and he is called ArchiBALD at nursery, although they know it is not his name.
Not sure how you can influence people determined to do the opposite thing.

beaditAli · 26/10/2010 22:51

I considered Archie but we went with Jack. (i know it's popular! but we loved it)
Also really like Archer but I don't think they're the same name..... I consider Archer very different from Archie.
Archibald is awful and Archie is a name in it's own right nowadays so I'd stick with it. It's a great name for you little one!

spiderlight · 26/10/2010 22:59

I love the name Archie (it's our dog's name :o) - I'd keep it as just Archie.

nooka · 27/10/2010 06:11

I have a friend with an Archie, not Archibald (I wouldn't have thought of Archer, probably because I don't really consider that to be a real name). Personally I don't like calling children diminutives because I would hate to have a "cute" name and I think that having options is important. My ds has a name in a similar genre which is usually shortened with an "ie" which is fine as it's his choice but I really don't like it being used in formal documentation (at school etc), because it just seems too familiar.

beccagrace2 · 27/10/2010 06:31

ours is just archie, i wish we had used archibald sometimes, when he was a baby his nn was baldie! totally suits our tree climbing, worm collecting, lives in his wellies, 6yr old!

Original poster

MuddledMum · 27/10/2010 08:59

Thanks all. It seems the majority view so far is stick with Archie on the birth certificate which is probable the way we are leaning as well. Bizarrely I'm not completely adverse to Archibald particularly after your story Beccagrace but A) I think that makes me a bit loopy and B) I really don't think we'd ever use it in anything other than formal documentation and to be fair I'm not sure he would ever want to either. I've met a couple of adult Archies in passing over the years so I guess I've never seen it as just a cute child's name and I'm confident it will grow with him. I suppose it's more that I wondered whether people in the future would expect him to have a formal longform version and whether the lack of that would prove irritating to him.

Honestly this name business is so confusing. I have two very close male friends with unusual formal names (both often celebrated on MN). One loves it and has spent his whole life using it, the other loathes it. I mean really loathes it! He only ever uses the diminutive and frankly would have got married in secret if his wife had agreed just to avoid his friends hearing his formal name announced during the vows!

My DH suggested I search Birth Announcements to see which is used more frequently so I've done a search on the most recent announcements in the Daily Telegraph. There were 331 Archies, 27 Archibalds and 4 Archers so a pretty accurate reflection on what all you lovely lot think to. Just Archie it shall remain I reckon... Unless any Archibald fans can convince us otherwise!

OP posts:

Original poster

MuddledMum · 06/11/2010 11:25

Sorry ladies... Me again.

Mentioned posting this to a close friend and she threw two other longform versions into the mix if we wanted to give Archie a more formal alternative. We were pretty convinced on sticking with Archie on the birth certificate but this has fired the question up again...

Archard (but I think this may sound made up even though it isn't) and Arthur. I had never considered Archie as a nickname for Arthur but apparently for a lot of old men Archies it is?! I do like Arthur alot but worry that as it's a popular name now in it's own right Archie short for Arthur might prove confusing rather than useful for DS later in life. So, for the last time, stick with Archie on his birth certificate or change to...

Archibald (still weirdly not 100% adverse)
Archard
Arthur (but still use Archie day to day)
Or even the previously hugely unpopular suggestion of Archer

Thank you all for debating this with me and being so supportive and diplomatic. I read far too many anti-Archie comments on here and sometimes it really gets to me! X

OP posts:

TooImmature2BMum · 06/11/2010 11:29

I like Archibald too...DH not convinced (although point now moot as having girl). There's just something so cute and old-fashioned about it. I also don't like names that are a diminutive. Give the baby the full name and then they can choose!

bigbluebump · 06/11/2010 14:33

Arthur is a very different name and has a different feel. I'd shorten Arthur to Art if at all.

Personally, I'd put Archibald on the certificate as it is a proper, classic name and imo the obvious long form for Archie (which to my ears does sound a bit babyish/nicknamey). There are obviously others who are happy with Archie alone, but you did ask for honest opinions .

fel1x · 06/11/2010 14:42

Stick to Archie.

Archie feels like a nickname to you now because its a recurrance of an old name that used to aalways be short for Archibald.

BUT its become quite popular now in its own right and nearly ALL the recent Archies are just Archie rather than Archibald.

When your Archie is older and searaching for a job and putting 'Archie X' on his CV it will be by then a totally normal full name, not a nickname! Chances are that even if you do add Archibald to the birth cert now, he will never feel the need to use it later.

Its not like you've named him Ben and are umming and ahhing over adding Benjamin, which IS still the most common way of doing it iyswim

AbiAbi · 06/11/2010 14:52

Stick with Archie, it's gorgeous as it is.

mopsyflopsy · 06/11/2010 16:13

By using the full name Archibald you will give your son MORE options. He will still be able to be known by Archie. I actually think Archibald is quite cool .

(whereas Archie is a little too trendy for my liking - there are so many little Archies, Alfies, Tillies, Millies... and I'm not sure how they well they will date.)

LittleOne76 · 07/11/2010 18:14

Personally, I wouldn't give my kid a "nickname" for a name. As in, give them the proper full name and have that on the birth certificate and then the appropriate nicknames/short names can be used day to day. So for me, I wouldn't have thought of using Archie on its own as a name as to me that's a nickname. I'm pretty conservative with these things though so that's me. I would just go with what you feel is right..!

evamummy · 07/11/2010 19:14

Imagine your ds as an adult. By giving him a 'proper' name he will be able to choose which form of his name to use in which situation. Why take that option away by calling him a nickname from birth.

I also agree that names like Alfie, Archie, Millie, Tillie etc are very trendy and may date more as they fall out of fashion.

Thissideofchannel · 08/11/2010 14:29

I'd also give him a full name, as it gives your son more options later on. He can still stick to Archie if he wants to but he may well like the option of a longer name. I think Archibald is cool actually. It is also less 'trendy' and common as Archie.

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