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Baby names

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

Original poster

Derek? Brian?

39 replies

RakeABedOfTyneFilth · 27/07/2013 08:14

Right, now that I've got your attention...

DH's family is full of seriously 70s names. The above, Keith, Graham, Arnold, all very of their time. My family's names are all very New Testament, except for a Douglas which crept in once in the 1950s.

Having DC2 in the next 6 weeks, don't know if it's a boy or a girl but I have no stand out winner boy name ideas and DH and I haven't really had a names conversation at all. DS is George.

So here are some boy names which I like but for one reason or another won't work (too close a relative already has it or sounds silly with our surname, which is the other word of this series: John, ..., George, Ringo).

Philip (Pip)
Christopher (Kit)
Anthony

Don't like many of the very popular boys names of the moment - William, Jack, Alfie, Harry, Oscar, Oliver.

I like (but don't love) and can't see anything against:
Richard
Matthew
Michael
David

Can anyone help with more ideas in that vein? Quite 'safe' and traditional but a bit less used.

Middle name might be Carrey (a family surname)

OP posts:
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DoItTooJulia · 27/07/2013 08:15

Alan is growing in popularity and Sam, nn Sammy. And John, nn Johnny.

MoreThanWords · 27/07/2013 08:17

Not Sam with your surname!

Tidypidy · 27/07/2013 08:17

James
Timothy
Benjamin
Thomas

curlew · 27/07/2013 08:19

Patrick
John
Peter

MoreThanWords · 27/07/2013 08:20

I think Jonathan rather than John;
Patrick?
Alex(ander)
David?

AKissIsNotAContract · 27/07/2013 08:23

Benedict.

AnathemaDevice · 27/07/2013 08:27

Nicholas.

Original poster
RakeABedOfTyneFilth · 27/07/2013 08:29

Oooh responses already my goodness! thank you!

John/Jon [surname] would sound a bit like I'd named him after the Pope, maybe I should have put that in the 'like but can't use' list.

We know a Ben and a couple of Thomases in quite close friends. I should have also said I have an aversion to Thomas the Tank Engine characters. So Thomas, Edward, James, are not so much out but pushed down the list.

I would place Alan in the 70s with Keith, sorry! Also (from TtTE) Gordon.

Patrick and Peter would alliterate with our surname, which I don't mind but am wary of.

Alexander as a sibling to George is rather ... royalist and of the moment?! Also, female form is used in very close proximity in our family.

I like Timothy!!!

OP posts:
Original poster
RakeABedOfTyneFilth · 27/07/2013 08:30

OOOOOOH BENEDICT!!!

OP posts:
VelvetStrider · 27/07/2013 08:31

Simon
Henry
Alvin
Benji
Stefan
Nicholas
Martin
Robin

Littlecherublegs · 27/07/2013 09:24

Nicholas
Simon
Robert
Mark
William
Christian
Andrew
Marcus
Damien
Owen
Martin

Like Anthony & Benedict which have already been mentioned too.

JamieandtheMagicTorch · 27/07/2013 09:41

I love Matthew,

And Michael
And Patrick - seriously under-used

I also love Marcus

What about:

Leon
Ray

JamieandtheMagicTorch · 27/07/2013 09:44

Daniel - not sure how popular it is atm

Original poster
RakeABedOfTyneFilth · 27/07/2013 10:11

I'm on the ONS website now to see whether my perception of (over)popularity is right or not. To answer JatMT, Daniel is 14th in 2011 (the 2012 stats come out in a couple of weeks).

James is 8th (Jamie 49th in its own right)
Benjamin is 25th (Ben 97th)
Matthew is 43rd
Sebastian 47th
Michael 53rd
Aidan 101st
Christopher 111th (Kit 781st)
Andrew 141st
Nicholas 148th
Anthony 153 (Tony 495th)
Richard 237
Martin 244
Timothy 298
(it gets difficult to scan through at this point in the list because there are loads of interesting spellings)
Benedict 420

OP posts:
sleepingbeautiful · 27/07/2013 12:01

Fraser
Dominic
Gerrard
Theodore
Howard
Joseph
Eric
Stephen
Gregory
Malcolm

JamieandtheMagicTorch · 27/07/2013 17:40

yy to Dominic and Gregory

Original poster
RakeABedOfTyneFilth · 27/07/2013 17:57

Hmmm, I am not really taken with sleepingbeautiful's list although I can see the style direction it has taken and appreciate it. :) Stephen is already in close family but I like it, Joseph I like too but a little too biblical, Theodore nice but does it go with George (DS)? I think DH's family would take the piss of anything they thought was poncey. I would fight back for Benedict, I am just not sure I would defend Theodore as much...

I have remembered I previously started a thread about unisex names and rather liked Laurie, which would be Lawrence for a boy.

I think my list now stands at (in no particular order)
Matthew
Lawrence
Benedict
Michael
James
Timothy
Anthony
Andrew

They could all be the names of trustworthy tradesmen or authoritative academics, couldn't they?!

OP posts:
sleepingbeautiful · 27/07/2013 19:00

I think so.
Maybe Lawrence will fall into your poncy category though if your family couldn't take Theodore/Theo. Also likely to get Larry not Laurie.
James is a lovely name, but so popular.
Timothy, Andrew much less so at the moment.
Other suggestions: Alistair, Edwin

sleepingbeautiful · 27/07/2013 19:04

Julian

StealthPolarBear · 27/07/2013 19:06

Les? :o

rockybalboa · 27/07/2013 19:20

I know of brothers called George and Timothy, lovely combo!

SconeInSixtySeconds · 27/07/2013 19:32

I love Benedict (biased) :o I think you definitely need a multisyllabled first name with your surname.

SconeInSixtySeconds · 27/07/2013 19:32

SPB :o :o

WafflyVersatile · 27/07/2013 19:36

My brothers are called Derek and Brian! Angry Grin

Standautocorrected · 27/07/2013 20:53

Matthew and Lawrence were both on my list for dc3 who turned out to be a dd!

I personally wouldnt go with michael if you already have a George.