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

Literary boys names

23 replies

ElmtreeMama · 07/05/2021 10:01

I really like the following names

ATTICUS
RHETT
HOLDEN

They're my current faves in that order.

I know they're not everyone's bag, but just wondering if people can think of anything dreadful about them that I've not considered, also happy to have other literary names suggested :)

OP posts:
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sadpapercourtesan · 07/05/2021 10:05

Hillary
Evelyn
Wildeve
Gabriel
Jolyon
Ashley
Heathcliffe
Hareton

Cleverpolly3 · 07/05/2021 10:14

Cecil
Jay
Pip
Bertie
Sawyer
Huck
Silas

custardbear · 07/05/2021 10:17

Lysander
Rupert
Malise
Declan

... perhaps not THAT type of literature 😵🤣

romdowa · 07/05/2021 10:18

Holden is a name of a car in Australia, not saying it's a bad association but maybe one you might want to consider

ElmtreeMama · 07/05/2021 10:19

@custardbear

Lysander Rupert Malise Declan

... perhaps not THAT type of literature 😵🤣

I actually really like Lysander as well but don't think it goes with surname unfortunately 😕

Lots of other suggestions here though, thanks everyone :)

OP posts:
ElmtreeMama · 07/05/2021 10:19

@romdowa

Holden is a name of a car in Australia, not saying it's a bad association but maybe one you might want to consider
I didn't know that!! Thanks :)
OP posts:
bridgetreilly · 07/05/2021 10:50

Atticus is very cool.

Horatio (Hornblower)
Peter (Wimsey)
Sebastian (St Cyr)
Percy (Blakeney)

Yes, I have a type. ;)

ElmtreeMama · 07/05/2021 10:52

@bridgetreilly

Atticus is very cool.

Horatio (Hornblower)
Peter (Wimsey)
Sebastian (St Cyr)
Percy (Blakeney)

Yes, I have a type. ;)

Haha me too!!

Sebastian is going to be my nephew's name!

I like Percy but reminds me of blackadder!

OP posts:
Veronika13 · 07/05/2021 10:54

Holden is a popular car name in Aus, would be like calling a kid Toyota

I know he doesn't live in Aus... but he might. And might have Aussie friends who might cal him Ford Fiesta 😐

aprillfestival · 07/05/2021 11:27

Fitzwilliam
Edward
Laurie
Matthew
Gilbert
Oliver
Pip
Abel
Lemuel
Randle
Huckleberry
Hal
Dean
Sherlock
Don
Orlando
Leopold
Bertie
Jay

Helenahandbasket1 · 07/05/2021 11:29

Silas

Please don’t use Holden, it’s a middle of the range car brand in Australia. It has the same badge as a Vauxhall in the UK. Grin

Curioushorse · 07/05/2021 11:35

Hmmm.

What about the associations with the characters? Can you really consider Rhett to be a 'good' character? I'm mean, he's a patronising prick who's a philanderer?

Holden Caulfield is also not somebody I'd want to consciously name my child after. Definitely not aspirational, and what about when they're an adult? It's a definite 'teenage' name.

Atticus? Isn't he also a little problematic, because although he is a 'good' character, I'm not sure that the associations with the book will always be positive (white saviour complex).

All of the names are great, of course, but if you're consciously going for a literary name, then I think you'd need to use a character name that is largely positive. Rhett definitely isn't, Holden is a little odd, and Atticus will always be linked with Mockingbird.

BellaVida · 07/05/2021 12:03

I prefer Atticus from your list. Here’s a few other suggestions:

Sawyer
Lawrence
Landon
Phineas
Radley
Byron
Orwell
Conrad

clpsmum · 07/05/2021 12:35

I love all your names but I absolutely love Rhett if I had another he'd be Rhett!

ElmtreeMama · 07/05/2021 12:41

Thanks everyone

Holden is now off the list!!

Lots of food for thought there :)

OP posts:
ElmtreeMama · 07/05/2021 12:41

@BellaVida

I prefer Atticus from your list. Here’s a few other suggestions:

Sawyer
Lawrence
Landon
Phineas
Radley
Byron
Orwell
Conrad

I love Landon!
OP posts:
toastofthetown · 07/05/2021 15:05

'Literary' names are always tricky to suggest, because most names have been in a book at some point. I'm sure I could go through most of the top hundred names to find a literary reference somewhere. I really don't like Atticus. To me it seems so try hard: almost like the parents are so desperate to seem well-read and cultured. I still think it's better than Holden or Rhett though.

My favourite boys name with many literary references though is Peter. Between Narnia, Peter Pan and Peter Rabbit, there is a lot of established children's books with strong characters called Peter. I think it matters more to a child than an adult. As a child I loved books with characters with my name in, but as an adult I really couldn't care less.

TatianaBis · 07/05/2021 18:52

Orlando (nn Landon?)
Sebastian
Demetrius

IamnotwhouthinkIam · 07/05/2021 18:53

My fave obviously literary boys names (as opposed to "normal" names that just happen to have been used by a book character) are Maxim and Caspian (I like Heath too but Heathcliff is a bit much). Atticus comes a close third though, so would be my pick of your choices.

Willow5643 · 08/05/2021 20:59

Oscar
August
Ernest
Cormac

ElmtreeMama · 08/05/2021 21:11

Great suggestions thank you

OP posts:
NameChangedForThisFeb21 · 08/05/2021 21:15

I think Ernest is seriously underrated.
Laurence
Victor

Consider last names - Willoughby (even though he was a twat), D’Arcy, Rochester,
authors names such as Hugo, Huxley etc

There are some awesome names in the Poldark novels...

Serpenta · 08/05/2021 21:17

The thing about literary names is that if you want people to think 'oh they must be named after X from that novel' you have to pick a really obvious and quite out there one. Whereas most of the great characters just have ordinary names Grin

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