Cool but traditional not overused boys name needed!!

[Purplefoxes]

We are stuck trying to name our second son. Our first is Oliver, a name which we liked due to the flowy sound and the olive tree (and peace) connections. He is anything but peace loving in reality 😂. Unfortunately two years later this name became highly popular for a while and he had three in his class so we are hoping to choose something this time which doesn't go to the top of the list! I like traditional names that don't sound made up but have a cool edge or nickname. I like European/Mediterranean names but dislike anything that sounds very American. Surname is two syllables and starts with a P. Also looking for two middle names that flow nicely with the first name as our first son has two family middle names. No pressure! 😅

Does any one have any we might not have thought of?

So far on our list we have:

Issac
Elliot
Alexander
Sebastian
Lawrence
Rowan
Felix
Leo
Jude

Not feeling definite about any of these as we did with Oliver! 🫤

Any ideas welcome! Thank yoooooou! 😄

Linus

Xander
Alec
Michael
Stewart/Stuart
Jacob
Ryan

@theremustonlybeone I like Toby but sounds a bit posh and Tobias is definitely private school material, we will be mainstream! One of Oliver's middle names is Henry so can't have that. Friends baby called Hugo can't have that. I like Julian. But worried it's a bit girly and they will be teased? I like Christopher but again as child of 80s it was really common and Kit sounds old to me. Old school friends baby called Jasper so can't have that. I like Oscar but I think it's quite common at the moment? I like Arthur but again quite common. Michael too many in the 80s. I'm too picky aren't I?!! 🤣

@Crazykefir Peter is a good strong name but too alliterative with our surname unfortunately.

I love the name Dexter - Dexy for short

Or Robin

Sebastian.

That won’t be the official list. Almost nothing has been ahead of Oliver since 2009 - it’s been #1 for a long time. Harry briefly took the top place in 2011-2012. Leo is currently #6, and rising in popularity.

Isaac is lovely but frequently misspelt.

Peter was my first thought on reading your OP too.

@Cyclingforcake possibley not same surname because ours is quite unusual (and annoyingly misspelt all the time!). I like Reuben but I think it clashes with our surname. I like Benjamin but had discounted it as our son has a friend in his year called Benji. But actually this one will be in a totally different year as there is a 6 year gap so I'll add it back to the list 👍

Jason? Hardly heard now, Jason and the Argonauts can’t get more classic Mediterranean than that.

Luke? Or Lucas.

someone sgested Rhidian the other day which I think is lovely.

Oliver's friend's brother is called Dexter. All the unusual ones are taken eh! Also does make me think of Dexter's lab on children's TV a bit, anyone remember that? 🤣

I thought Toby as soon as I read the OP but also love Jude.

I know an Oliver who has a brother called Harry.

I wonder if it’s the same annoying one I married? 🤣

Our baby is Max. Pretty classic, cool sounding and not that popular anymore.

Child of the 80s so lots of Jason's in my year and same with Luke! I prefer Jacob but its quite common I think...might use as a middle name though. I like Rhidian, it's more of a Welsh name but unfortunately it seriously clashes with our surname which has a strong phonetic "i" sound in it or 'ih'.

Your prejudices are a bit out of date. At the perfectly ordinary state comp where I teach we have a Tobias, two Tristans, a Sebastian, a Hugo, and a Jasper. All happy children who aren’t teased for their names.

John
David
Steven
Peter
Paul
Mark
Matthew
Andrew
James
Francis

Raphael - Raffy
Zach
James/Jamie
Louis
Thomas

I really like Max, I think it's cool and unfussy. Although I can imagine my opinionated father saying oh like 'mad max'? 😡 Also one of our NCT group used it so feels like a copy cat move. Argh why is this so difficult!

I don’t understand why you can’t have a name because your son’s friend’s brother is called it. Immediate family and perhaps very very very best friend’s child yes, but otherwise who cares. Highly unlikely the children will spend much time together as adults when it really matters!

I agree with PP that Max goes well.

Nicholas
Seth
Adam

All traditional names that aren't that frequently used. There's one of each of those in my son's year of 90 at school.

Luca?

If popularity is important to you then the best thing is to use the ONS name data. names.darkgreener is really useful to see popularity over time. I’m afraid you gave DS1 the most popular name in the country so it’s not surprising that there are multiples in his class.

A shame you can’t have Peter. It’s one of my favourites.

James
Henry
Robert
Dominic
Luke

Benedict
Patrick
Alexander/Alistair

Raphael is quite classic but cool? We have a Laurie and there don't seem to be many of them around, I'm pleased we went for it. It does get a bit misheard as Rory - that's nice too.