Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Baby names

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

Flip

1 2

Original poster

Don't shoot me down, but...

44 replies

madasabadger · 13/09/2015 15:00

Okay, so we have 3 boys and they all have 2 middle names (family tradition) so the upshot is we've used all our favourite boy names. We're expecting again, and I want to know (if we have another boy), would it be weird to call it Douglas, which is my eldest's middle name? If I'd thought there were going to be a chance of this many boys (or even kids) when we started, I'd have saved some names for later! I think the answer is yes, it is weird, but just wanted some thoughts from you guys. Thanks

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

lovelyconverse123 · 13/09/2015 17:24

I don't think its weird............people never really use their middle names (round here anyway !), but surely there's a million other names you can choose ?

BertrandRussell · 13/09/2015 17:51

Kids compare names all the time! He will very soon learn that his name is the same as his brothers. My two kids love each other very much and never fall out, but one of the things ds used to tease dd about is that his 3 names are all family names and only two of hers are, so we must have loved him better than her!

Original poster

madasabadger · 13/09/2015 17:59

Thanks everyone. BertrandRussell - maybe you're right. Jack has been my favourite for ages, but was put off by it being top. We may end up emigrating overseas at some point so it won't be as common then either!

OP posts:

BertrandRussell · 13/09/2015 18:10

Only 1 in 65 baby boys called Jack. So the chances of being 2 in a class at school still pretty low!

Original poster

madasabadger · 13/09/2015 18:25

OP posts:

pilates · 13/09/2015 19:59

Yes agree with a previous poster make his name special too and Jack is one of my favourite boys name.

DandyDan · 13/09/2015 20:53

Fourth boy should have his own unique names. There are lots still available, you have used only 9 of the hundreds out there.

HackerFucker22 · 13/09/2015 20:57

MN is weird.

It seems universally OK to use the same name as family or friends as "no-one owns a name", yet reusing a middle name that people rarely use as a first name is weird ??

Personally I would use it.

Ham69 · 13/09/2015 22:06

I really don't see the issue here.

Lucked · 13/09/2015 22:11

I would give him his own name. You will find one.

Apart from Douglas what names do you like? are you Scottish?

Benzalkonium · 13/09/2015 22:14

If you look on the ons site, you can find top 10 names regionally
so you may find that Jack is actually much less common in your region than across the national averAge.

StevieJo · 14/09/2015 03:16

I agree that seeing as he is going to already bc sharing so much with his older brothers he should at least have his own name and Lightbulbon many people go by either both their first and middle name or just their middle.

Lightbulbon · 15/09/2015 08:00

I don't think an elder DC would go by their middle name if it was their younger sibling's known name!

There are very few boys names I like so for me a 3rd would mean using a previous middle name. My DCs have 2 middle names so quite a few have been used up!

Lunastarfish · 15/09/2015 09:34

Yes, I think it is weird but I Love the name Douglas. It's a serious contender if I ever have a son

Burnet · 15/09/2015 10:55

I think it would be nicer for him to have his own name, otherwise he might feel a bit second hand.

PosterEh · 15/09/2015 11:00

I know several people who share names with older siblings. I don't think it's weird at all.

harryhausen · 15/09/2015 11:18

I don't think I'd do it, although I don't think it's weird.

My ds has a middle name the same as all the boys in our family past and present. It's a family thing. He's quite proud of it. I only have 1 ds and chose a very common name for him. We didn't choose it because of it's popularity, but it had a family connection for us and we decided we really wanted it. There's one other in his class, but it's fine. Also, we chose a name in the top 10 when my dd10 was born (again because we just loved it). Out of 450 pupils in her school she's the only one!

Re Jack. I know statistically it's supposed to be really popular but I know a tonne of children from both my dd's year 2005 and ds's 2007 and loads in between and I've never Known a Jack!

waxweasel · 15/09/2015 15:16

My friend did this recently - DS2 has DS1's middle name as his first name. She really agonised over it and is very very quick to explain herself and always looked a bit embarrassed when discussing the new baby's name. I understand her reasons, and sympathise as I used both my favourite girl names up on DD, but still find it weird.

Another friend recently sort of did it - her DS's middle name is the boy version of her older DD's first name. The boy and girl versions are very close. I dont think she's even twigged (and tbh it's not the worst thing about the poor boy's name!) but struck me as odd.

Kaekae · 20/09/2015 00:08

I love my DDs middle name and did think that I might like to use it should we have another girl. However, I put it to my DD and she wasn't keen.

Flip

1 2