[ Baby Gertrude? ]

[Cinderella812]

We are to name our future daughter after my DH's grandmother, Gertrude.

Not a particularly pretty name in my opinion (so sorry if that offends some lovely Gertrudes out there!)

She went by "Trudy", which I think is sweet.

However, is Trudy enough of a first name in itself? Could we just name our daughter Trudy, or is that too nicknamey?

I'm thinking of her future career etc... and children whose first names are just nicknames can be harder to take seriously professionally, especially little girls.

Does anybody think Trudy is alright as a stand-alone forename? All suggestions welcome!

Nope. It's a hideous name.

I like Trudy.
I also like Gerda (from the snow queen) and Greta, though they might be a stretch.
I don’t think I’d be brave enough actually to use Gertrude - but do agree with pp that names that horrify us now will probably be very cool in 20 years time.

I don't see what's wrong with Trudy as a given name?

DS has a more formal first name (just in case he became someone who needed to sound responsible). He's now 23 & is known by his nickname whether he's being responsible or a complete drunken idiot.

Nowadays there's such a diversity of names that I don't bat an eyelid at most of them. If I'm honest I really don't like the name Gertrude as it sounds so ugly & clunky, but you may not like the names I picked? We used my grandmother's name as a middle name for DD. This did create its own problem because we then needed to find a first name that went with her middle name. Sometimes it's better to start afresh with a new name & honour an ancestor in another way.

Why not give baby her own name in her own right?

Trudie is a lot better than Gertrude but that is really not saying much. I mean, do you HAVE to name her after great-grandmother? You don't actually sound very keen on either of these names (and I don't blame you)--why not choose something you like? I am assuming that your daughter is not going to inherit a fortune conditionally on having GG's name or something...?

I actually really like the name Trudy. I only know one other who is c45 and she's so lovely. She is sometimes nicknamed Trudes but she is mainly Trudy. I don't like Gertrude. There's a reason that it is a jokey name.

Have you thought of combining Gertrude and Isabella and going for Gabriella?

Hideous. Trudy is sweet, but why do you ultimately have to use the grandmother's name? Surely, surely you can choose a name you love?

Trudi/Trudy definitely the better of the two but neither are great imo. I’d not have wanted DD to name her girls after my DM because even my DM didn’t like her name. I’m glad and I’m sure my DM would be glad they have lovely names in their own right while their middle names are variations of their GGMs.

Some great comments!

I'm sorry if I was not clear in my original post, but we will be naming her after DH's grandmother. That is not negotiable. Our daughter will also have her "own" name because nobody ever born has had her combination of middle and surnames. Definitely unique!

My question really was whether Trudy/Trudie was suitable as a standalone first name. It seems that many of you think that it is (and it is so lovely to hear from some Trudies directly!)

I quite like Gertrude. It reminds me of the famous mock-medieval painting and poem (The Blessed Damozel) by Dante Gabriel Rossetti:

" ....We two,’ she said, ‘will seek the groves
Where the lady Mary is,
With her five handmaidens, whose names

Are five sweet symphonies:—
Cecily, Gertrude, Magdalen,
Margaret and Rosalys..."

Trudy is fine; so is Trude (True-duh).

why is it non negotiable?

I think Trudy is fine on it's own!

But in your OP you said you dont think Gertrude is a very pretty name, so why go with it?

If you’re happy with Trudy then go with it - I don’t like it but tbh I don’t like half of what’s being chosen these days & im sure there’s no name everyone would like. Trudy just sounds like a name I wouldn’t choose whereas Gertrude makes me cringe. I love Theodora though so another shout out for Theodora with Trudy as the nickname

Does your daughter stand to inherit a Highland castle or something if she takes on GG's name? Sorry, but I find this so odd.

And to be honest, giving a baby an adapted version of someone's name really isn't much of a compliment. It's like saying out loud "Your name sucks."

Gertie is much lovelier than Trudy

I like Gertie and it's a shame it rhymes with dirty.
Do you like Gerda, very pretty and Hans Andersen. Avoids the rhyme and keeps the initial G.

Trudy is okay. There was a really nice one in my class at school. It's funny how these things influence us.

I know a very distinguished adult Trudy with a professional career. I usually think using the full name on the birth cert is preferable but not in this case as it’s not a fluffy little girl name like Betsy

Trudy is lovely, I'd definitely go for that on the birth certificate. Doesn't sound too nicknamey at all to me.

Kokeshi but it’s not adapted, OP said in first post that the grandmother went by Trudy.
Trudy is definitely acceptable as a stand-alone name, I love the nn Tru but unfortunately the Kardashians ruined that one🤨

OK, fair enough. I still don't get why the baby HAS to be named after GG though. It doesn't sound like the OP is in love with either name.

I really like 'Trudy' as a name, but not Gertrude. If 'Trudy' is acceptable as a standalone name, and not too 'nicknamey' for her, then I love it!

I love the idea of naming babies after special family members. I think it's lovely for children to have that sort of link to their relatives before them. Better still if the relatives have nice names! I don't think I could, in good faith, saddle my daughter with Gertrude! Trudy, on the other hand, I am rather fond of.

Trudy is really sweet! Just go for that.

I think Trudy is lovely actually. And I think you're very wise not to lumber her with the horror that is Gertrude.