Hard baby name quandary - looking for a Scottish/saint name for a boy to go with older sister Grace

[Busylizzy17]

Hi everyone,

My husband and I are a bit stuck on boys names and would love some suggestions if you've got any! He wants a Scottish name, I want a saint's name, but we are having trouble finding one that we both like. Just to make it harder, it has to go with our daughter's name, which is Grace Elizabeth, and the names Andrew, Matthew, James and Ian/Iain are out for sure. Open to suggestions for first or middle or both. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

There are Scottish saints Magnus (Viking) and Fergus (Pict) and Kenneth , also St John Ogilvie (killed during Reformation conflicts) and medieval King and Saint David I.

St Giles is of course associated with Edinburgh cathedral. Other saints are associated with several Scottish towns: www.rampantscotland.com/know/blknow30.htm

St Finnan well known and commemorated in several place names.

St Finnan was from Ireland, and there are many more Scottish saints who came from there (eg Colman, Cathan, Finbar etc etc).

St Donnan, St Oran, St Ninian, St Blaine (or Blane) St Serban and St Drustan/Tristan all have names that are usable, if adventurous, today.

You might like to work your way through this list. The names are mostly male - but do check!!!! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_saints_of_Scotland

Thank you. I quite like Tristan but not sure my husband would go for it. I couldn't find good attribution for Fergus but that is a possibility. My husband suggested Angus and I did find one so that's in the running too, but I feel like none of the more Scottish names go with Grace. I was leaning more towards things like Thomas or Henry, but as much as Angus is a great name, not sure Angus and Grace or Fergus and Grace go, you know what I mean? With our daughter my husband didn't particularly want a Scottish name but now he seems quite set.

Mungo? Patron saint of Glasgow

Lachlan.
Aiden.

Sorry-Lachlan isn't a saint, but I do love it.

I have a Grace and a Patrick-I think they go together brilliantly.

I love Mudoch (Murdo)

There's William of Perth?

BertrandRussell, that's my favourite! I love Patrick and Grace but my husband thinks it sounds too Irish and isn't a fan. I've been trying to sell him on it!

I like Aiden, although I'm a teacher and don't have good experience of that one 😂. I also like William, that one is maybe usable but only if we don't use my husband's first name as a middle because it's my husband's middle name!

Ronan?

Gordon
Douglas
Ruaridh
Rory
Donald
Campbell
Hamish

Oops sorry just spotted the saints name part.

No worries, you've got a bunch my husband really liked! It doesn't have to be exact (like there is a saint with Douglas as a surname). We just can't seem to hit on the right one so any inspiration is welcome!

Re Fergus, this is hardly an unbiased source, but it does have Tradition on its side: www.newadvent.org/cathen/06042c.htm
Please excuse me if you've seen it already.

Grace is a nice name that goes with several different styles. The suggestion by previous poster of Patrick sounds good. In the past, I've met boys in France called Patrick, so it's not exclusively Irish.

Lots of the saints associated with Scotland were originally Irish missionaries, anyway, so there's a fair crossover.

You could have Colm/Colum (short for Columba), Colman, Finnan?

Magnus

Florascotia2, I hadn't. Thanks so much! I do love Patrick, I'm hoping my husband does come around! I think they are lovely together, and some sources peg St Patrick as Scottish anyway so that's my selling point 😉

I like Magnus and Colum (possibly Callum as well)! Thanks, I hadn't thought of Colum/Colm.

Saints names I like, with Grace:
(Scottish links at saintsplaces.gla.ac.uk/browse-saints.php?letter=A )

Alexander
Anthony
Andrew
David
Edward
Felix
Finnian
Frances
John
Joseph
Laurence
Luke
Mark
Martin
Nicholas
Peter
Phillip (Pip!)
Ronan
Steven
Thomas

I understand what you mean about "going with" Grace. Rufus, Angus, Fergus are nicer as middle names than firsts. Would your husband be okay with a more scottish name in the middle, if you went with one of the above scotland-linked saints names as a first?

Why do siblings names have to match? They’ll be living apart for the vast majority of their lives

Archbishop of Banterbury, I would suggest that but he wants to use his name as a middle (which is Graeme, so already Scottish). And he's very fussy 😂. I like almost all of your list but he's nixed Alexander, Anthony, Andrew, Luke, Nicholas, Philip and Stephen! I'm trying to keep Patrick on the list but he doesn't really like it. I love that man but he is hard to baby name with! 😉

Honestly, when was the last time you met a woman of your generation who gave her baby her own name? I'm not keen on 'naming the baby after X', anyway, but what is it with men and their desire to call their sons after themselves? Not to mention the desire to stamp their surname on their offspring like one of those library date stamps.

My daughter has my name as her middle name, although more because it's a family name than because it's my own.

Angus and Grace sound fine imho😃

I love Angus, and I think it sounds fine with Grace because they both have the 'g' sound.

Can you compromise on the Saint requirement? Who had the upper hand in choosing your daughters name? He's not being overly specific, requesting a Scottish name, given there are heaps of them, but you seem to be poo pooing everything he likes. Why the insistence it has to be a saints name, and trying to force him to choose a name you like, more Irish than Scottish- i.e. Patrick?

Angus