John, Max or Alfred?

[bassingtonffrench]

What do you think? Any other thoughts?

We like fairly traditional names which are easily recognisable. However, nor do I want the name to be too common (ideally not top 10). Our other DC names are outside the top 200.

DH names I have vetoed, Henry, James (they're nice but I basically hear these names a lot and would prefer something a bit more unusual)

My suggestions DH has vetoed = Owen, Joseph, Luke, Nathan

John, I love it.

Thanks i see there is another thread on John! I like names which seem due for a comeback!

I love max and think john is a bit dull ( sorry) Alfred ( Freddie nn) is sweet but max is a good strong name for child or adult

I love max and I would choose it without hesitation but our surname begins with an S so Max ends up sounding like Mack e.g. Max Stevens = Mack Stevens.. I've had a thread in this before and tbh I would still use Max but obviously John and Alfred don't have that issue.

I like Max but think it is way too popular to meet your requirements.

Alfred I don't like mostly because I'm not a fan of Alfie as a nn

I like John to most.

What about:
Andrew
Peter
Christopher
Alastair
Jonathan

Of those I like Alfred best. It's a great, traditional English name. Can be Alf, Alfie, Fred or Freddie as well as full name.

The other two names are good too - very strong and simple. But Alfred feels more of a classic to me, as I love Anglo-Saxon names. Lots of people think Alfie is a name that dates, but that's not a problem if he goes by the full name.

kantha you are definitely on the right lines as those names are also on our list!

Yes I worry Max is a bit too popular and this is the reason our first two boys are not called this. But i've not gone off it in ten years and I don't mind too much about its popularity.

cottonwool - yes I love Anglo saxon names too!

John, or Alfred... Please not Max

My ds has two of the names you are considering, so obviously you have fantastic taste! The only issue with Alfred is that Alfie has had such a popularity boom, so if you want something a bit unusual it's probably no the name for you. Less used but not really weird Anglo Saxon names:

Edmund
Edwin
Edgar
Harold
Roger
Wilfred

John. Love it and so underused. Really dignified. I like David too for the same reasons.

Nat Why please not Max?!

Nooka you obviously have fab taste! Agree re Alfie. I notice it was no.4 in the baby name charts recently and I'm afraid that really puts me off. it also puzzles me a bit as Alfred is far less popular. I'm a full name on the birth certificate kind of girl so to me that seems strange. I prefer Freddie to Alfie as a nn, but i would let a nn just evolve from alfred, rather than dictating it from the beginning.

I love all the anglo saxon 'ed' names and would seriously consider Edgar.
Wilf is a bit 'twee' sounding for me.
bizarrely we are currently calling the bump Roger. We both love the name and would use it were it not for the unfortunate sexual connotations. such a shame, i can't see it making a comeback for this reason. I also like Roland.

Merry Marigold I love David but have ruled it out because I'm not a fan of 'dave'

My Alfred is Alfred to his teachers, Alf to his brothers, Freddie to me and Alfie to his mates. Each nn has just evolved over time. dh is known to call him Alfredo sometimes. Ask him his name and he'll say Alfred. Its so versatile he can do what he wants with it as he gets older. Go for it!

Alfie has been in the top ten for over 10 years now I think, it really boomed in the early 2000s after an EastEnders baby I believe (ds was named prior to the boom, but it is a typical 'grandad' name so not surprisingly popular I guess). We've actually met very very few and where we live now (not the UK) it's very rare, so much so that it gets misspelled, and I've been told it sounds like a girls name .

Roger was a bit tongue in cheek

haha, ref Roger being tongue in cheek - you never quite know on mumsnet!

eatyourveg thanks, good to hear of a versatile Alfred!

I often call my Alfred 'Fee' - I think that's probably a mum only name! Both my children like having different versions of their names for different occasions, and I remember as a child liking having a home/family nn and a school name and getting very cross if any of the teachers dared call me by my home name (my mum taught at the school).

We had a neighbour called Roger, I can't remember ever thinking twice about it really, but then my parents have a great friend known as Willie, and my brother had a friend called Dick too.

Which reminds me have you considered Richard? Our ds was going to be Richard (well actually Ezra, but we thought we'd put Richard first in case Ezra was a bit too much). Our best man was a Ritchie.

Richard is fab!

But i seem to be getting no clear preference for Max, Alfred or John overall which is not helping me choose!

John and Max are both nice. I know one small Max. Not keen on Alfred or the NNs but I know 3 Alfie and 3 Freddie. Both very popular although none are Alfred.

Our Alfred is Freddie, Fred, Fredster, Freggle, Alfredo, Freddo and numerous other names depending on where the mood takes us. I'm so pleased we chose it, it really suits him :)

I like Alfred

Max is lovely.

John is nice.

Alfred is awful.

Alfred is a great name.

John

Max is a great name. John is a bit 'bland' imo, Alfred is a good enough name but just not to my taste.

I have a very common traditional boys name (think Royal Family) for DS1 and then DS2 is called Joseph. Why has DH vetoed it just out of curiosity?

He is 3.5 now and he is the only one at nursery despite there being 2 Max's and 3 Freddies!