Traditional boys name, for a girl

[Sixofseven]

Just wondering how mean it would be to give a girl a name which is traditionally for boy, like Matthew or Michael. Does anyone here (an adult woman) have a boys name and what was it like as a name? Did it embarrass you growing up?
I’d like to name my daughter after a male family member but it’s not a unisex name and I don’t want to make her struggle as my other daughter has a very feminine name.
TIA

Completely depends what it is and how it sounds, You could still spell it feminine maybe?

I only know the following to have been called what I would perceive male names and in America; does it make them unisex and I am behind or are they predominantly male still

Kyle
Elliot
Adrianne- feminine spelling Adrian pronunciation

A feminine name can usually be found as an equivalent which may have a happier ending for your DD growing up

Wow! Thanks for all the replies! I haven’t read them all yet but I thought I’d pop on to answer some questions.
The name is Malcolm. So not the most popular name anyway! But it would honour a family member who did a lot for me and my family, and has been gone a long time.
It’s actually my DH who would want to use the name, I’m on the fence. Exactly for the Star Trek reason, the name Michael really suits the character and I think she could grow to make it a great name (that sounded better in my head!)
I would prefer to have 2 girls so it’s not about wanting a boy at all, I would have been happy with either.

@PlanetPuddle

I'm thinking Cameron Diaz, Glenn Close and Blake Lively.

Until someone does it it seems strange but those names all seem normal to use for girls to me now.

They are all originally surnames - I’m not keen on Mackenzie either.

I can't think of any adult women with traditional male names e.g. Thomas, Matthew etc. and think it might be hard to be a girl with a name that means she's forever explaining that she's a girl, especially if her sister has a very feminine name.

One of my DDs has a traditional female name but the abbreviated form she uses is fairly ambiguous gender-wise (along the lines of Kit or Pip). For a few years from about age 7 she had very short hair and the combination of that plus her short name regularly resulted in her being assumed to be male, sent to use the boys toilets etc. She wasn't overly bothered by it but started introducing herself using her full name and then saying, "but I like to be called Kit/Pip" to avoid that - at least she had that choice.

I think I'd worry that a young girl with a male name may find that those around her may be tempted to overcompensate and encourage her to make choices that make her 'look like a girl' in a way they don't for her sister.

There’s a British woman lawyer called Gareth (I forget which case she was on but she used to pop up on tv).

There is a female artist (?) called Quentin Jones and she’s so cool she pulls it off beautifully

Could you just call her Mal?

Can you use it as a middle name? I've heard Malcom as a surname, so it's not beyond the realms of possibility for a girl to have it, but I can't imagine it as a first name.

I like Alex then they can lengthen it if they want.

*Malcolm.

Malcolm means 'devotee of St Columba', Columba is related to doves so could you go for a girls name with a similar meaning? Iona, Jemima or Paloma might work?

It certainly raises a lot of questions regarding gender stereotyping doesn't it?
Personally I wouldn't. It's all very well having your own good reasons regarding baby names, but ultimately it's the poor child who has to live with it.

I think it would be fine, but always a talking point for her and something to explain.

I have a feminised male name (say it's Charlotte) and have always gone by a male nickname (eg Chuck). I like it, but I still have an official female name on my ID card etc.

Did Malcolm have a nice middle or surname that you could use to honour him instead?

Life out there in the big bad world is hard enough without being saddled with a clompy, heavy, male name such as Malcolm and you're female. Even if its means your emails do get opening more often.

Think of another way of honouring this relative. How about his middle name, or even his surname (and I am no fan of using surnames as first names).

I knew someone whose parents had done this to her. She hated it.

Very odd thing to want to do. Shall you be dressing her in boy's clothes as well.?

What's the name?

I know someone named their dd Michaela after their dad Michael. I think for most names there's a close female alternative.

Middle name?

Ah just read its Malcom 😂

Malina?

I would either use a Mal girls name (always had a soft spot for Malia and Malin)

Or Malcolm as a middle name would be nice.

I really can't see it working as a first name.

Please don’t call her Malcolm... it will lead to a lifetime of raised eyebrows and bullying during school years. Is there a middle name you could do something with instead of initials as someone else suggested?

How about Malia, or Malaika?
Then nn could still be Mal?

No, you really can't, I am so liberal about names but this is just going to seem very very odd.

Plus Malcolm is not that nice anyway so doubly unkind!

Sorry, I know it is a special name, but the name should be for your child, they may really really hate you for doing this to them.

I absolutely would not give my daughter a boy's name.