Are we ready for 60s names yet?

[Foosfa]

Due a daughter in a few months and we'd both like to honour our late mothers. Their names were Susan and Deborah.

Are these just too dated?
Susan Deborah or Deborah Susan
We keep flipping from yes we are definitely going for it to noo!

Thoughts please!

Susannah is much prettier

Susannah Deborah sounds fresher.

I had a Susan in my year group at school and I'm 32 so there's always been kids with the name. I also know a Debbie who must be about 35 ish.
I do prefer Deborah. Debbie is cute for a little girl and a teenager would definitely suit Debbie, Deb, or Debs.

Theoretically we won't be ready for 1960s names again until the year 1960...

That said, I do know a Deborah and a Susan who are the same age as me (in their 20s) so I don't find them to be unfathomably dated on a younger person. They're both Biblical names that have stood the test of time and I can picture them on a range of ages. The nickname Suzy or Suki for Susan is very sweet too.

Susan can easily be tweaked to Susannah if you want a more "current" name.

^Sorry, I meant 2060 rather than 1960!

Another vote for Susan Deborah shortened to Susie which doesn’t seem too dated to me.

Although now I am saying that a toddler called Debbie is quite sweet

I'd use them both as middle names. I'm not keen on either of them really, and I think I'd rather give a child their own name.

I prefer Susan Deborah. I really love Susannah, which is getting a lot of love on MN at the moment and is a combination of the two names but maybe you don't feel you would be honouring them if you don't use the exact names?

If you might consider using a different form of the same name, as well as Susannah, I love both the Hebrew names they are derived from - Shoshanah and Devorah.

In general 1960’s names aren’t ripe for revival. Names tend to follow a 100 year cycle, so it will probably be a while yet. In general now we prefer softer sounding names: Susanna and Susy rather than Susan and Sue.

That doesn’t mean you can’t use them though. I do agree with a pp that I prefer children to have their own first name (which is their own identity) and family names in the middle. In this case too, having them in the middle means that there isn’t one grandparent who is more ‘named after’ than the other.

For reference, in case anyone is interested, this was the top ten in 1964. I can’t see any of them, other than possibly Jane, making a comeback any time soon.
SUSAN, JULIE, KAREN, JACQUELINE, DEBORAH, TRACEY, JANE, HELEN, DIANE, SHARON

They are both good names, much better than some of names that are fashionable now, eg Wren and Elsie (I still can't get over that one being back as I find it so old-lady ish, though objectively it sounds quite nice I suppose). There is nothing 'lol' about Deborah, it's a biblical name with a nice soft sound, yes it was last popular in the 60s.

There is nothing wrong with Susan either (perhaps a little plain) but could you change it up a bit to Susannah, which people would probably not criticise as outdated so much? Susannah Deborah would be lovely.

If you feel you need to stick with Susan then I would go with Deborah Susan.

Both names would be very refreshing these days

Susan and Deborah aren't as dated as some other 60s names, which will definitely have to complete the 100 year cycle before they are used (like Alfie, Ada and Clara et al did)

Do prefer Susanna/h though, so pretty.

Susannah is nicer than Susan. I think it's just too soon for 60s names. I heard a "yoo hoo, Sue!" Called across sainsburys just this morning

I don't mind Susan as a middle name but not a fan of it as first name as it was so overused in the past and Sue is ultra dull. I agree with a PP that Susannah is much nicer

Deborah is much better imho so I would opt for Deborah Susan rather than the other way round. Debbie and Debs still sound incredibly dated but Deborah sounds fresher for some reason

I'd use them as middle names. Susan I'd awful, although I love Suzie ! Deborah is okay.

Me too
Deborah is just too harsh for a baby or little girl.

Suzy is okay. Susan is a no from me.

Susannah is lovely.

But think she is her own person and deserves her own name - maybe use them as middle names? I just think Deborah is too harsh sounding for a little girl

Yes my daughter has MILS name as a first name (it's surprisingly fashionable now although dated when MIL was a kid) and another family name as a middle name so I felt obliged to give her a third name just for herself. We never use it but I hope she'll like knowing it's there when she is older.

I suspect Susan won't be back in fashion for a while but Deborah is a classic. Susie, Susannah, much easier to wear just now imo

I think they’re both awful sorry. Could you do middle names?

I prefer Susan.
I think using one of the two rather than both would be what I'd do.
Or neither....

Both sound old fashioned to me, but everything is cyclical and they'll come back around eventually. Dora is a cute nickname for Deborah.

Susan and Deborah both nice names and long overdue a comeback, I do actually know an 8yo Susan! I suppose you decide which way around to use them by deciding whether you prefer Sue/Susie or Debs/Debbie, which she will inevitably get shortened to. That said, I agree with a previous post, why not give her her own name - she is her own person - and use both of these as middle names.

Not keen on Susan although I do like Susie or Susanna/h.
I think Deborah is lovely though, so I would go for Deborah Susan.

I have the same first name as both my grandmothers, my Dad's sister, my mother's first cousin and doubtless many other female relatives. I like the connection to my family. I gave it to my daughter as a middle name for that reason.

Deborah is a good solid name (much prefer that spelling to Debra - Deborah is the spelling you see in the Bible). Susan is a classic. I like Susanna/Susannah too, but there's nothing wrong with Susan. I think I'd go for Deborah Susan, but Susan Deborah is fine too.

How can Dora can be a nickname for Deborah? Dora is surely related to Dorothy/Dorothea/Doris, not Deborah.

Debbie-Sue