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Baby names

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

Francis or William

36 replies

Robot278 · 26/03/2023 14:02

Which of these do you prefer? We love both but not sure which to go with..

Francis William
William Francis

OP posts:
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ClaraThePigeon · 26/03/2023 14:04

William is infinitely nicer than the very wet Francis so William.

simonthedog · 26/03/2023 14:04

William Francis

PhotoTakenOnAToaster · 26/03/2023 14:04

William Francis.
I don’t know any men called Francis (I see a lot of older men during my work) that are actually called Francis. Many use their middle names as their preferred nam, some are just known as Frank.

Robot278 · 26/03/2023 14:16

The popularity of William puts me off. I actually love Frank

OP posts:
Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g · 26/03/2023 14:17

Can't you just call him Frank? It's a very well-established name in its own right.

Nap1983 · 26/03/2023 14:18

Oooft.. Frank/Frankie or Willie/Dick…. If I had to choose Francis

FirstFallopians · 26/03/2023 14:26

I love both.

My exP is called Francis, but we called him Fran. He was anything but wet, and never got teased about his name.

My DS is called William, day to day called Will. I still love it, it’s a solid, masculine name.

We’re in a part of the U.K. though where traditional saints names like Francis wouldn’t be unusual, and William wouldn’t be used by 50% of the population, so we don’t have the problem of having 2 or 3 in each class.

Sadiegirl87 · 26/03/2023 15:04

I'm not a fan of Francis but think Frank or Frankie is a better alternative. I like William, it's a classic name and he'll likely go by will when he's older

Barleysugar86 · 26/03/2023 15:05

William by fair. I think it's a beautiful strong name. Francis is a bit feminine in comparison to me.

BrainOnFire · 26/03/2023 15:05

William Francis

Findyourneutralspace · 26/03/2023 15:06

William Francis. William is an excellent name and Will/Billy are great shortenings.

ourflagmeansdeath · 26/03/2023 16:27

William Francis - but I love the other option too so you can't go wrong!

midsomermurderess · 26/03/2023 16:36

Francis, going by Frank day to day. It's not 'wet' to my ear, in fact, I think it's strong, and quite fresh. You see it more frequently on here though.

AcrobaticCardigan · 26/03/2023 16:49

William Francis is much nicer.

Robot278 · 26/03/2023 17:10

Oh DH is very happy with the comments on here. Francis was my favourite as it is a family name

OP posts:
pinkberet · 26/03/2023 17:24

Every William I have ever taught has been a bit wet and weepy.
Francis, nn Frank/Frankie by a country mile for me

MyOtherUsernameIsDave · 26/03/2023 18:54

William.

I can’t stand Francis, to me it’s so wet and dreary. Almost pathetic sounding. I don’t know why, I’ve always thought it.

Twoinapod · 26/03/2023 19:49

William definitely. Francis is such a drippy feminine sounding name, don’t know why you’d do it to a kid

fairycupcakes · 26/03/2023 20:33

Francis!
I love it and love the nn choices of Frank or Frankie x

LazJaz · 26/03/2023 20:39

Love Francis
it’s a family name for us, and my son has it as a middle name.
I definitely don’t see it as “wet” OR “drippy” per PP as the original family Francis was an amazing figure in his lifetime. It feels to me that people don’t like boys names with close female equivalents (Frances) because perhaps they feel there is something undesirable in having any connotation with femininity in men. That’s a sad state of affairs for me - and all the more reason to choose unisex sounding names.

either way around is lovely but personally I would go with Francis William because it is more unusual.
Frankie is a very cute nickname for a toddler too, and Frank can be “worn” easily enough as a teen if desired.

lovely name either way - congratulations!

Robot278 · 26/03/2023 20:51

@LazJaz so nice to hear someone like the name. It is also a family name hence why I am more drawn to it.
I do like William but not as much but so many people seem to think Francis is ‘wet’

OP posts:
BeanzToastie · 26/03/2023 21:02

I prefer Frank or Bill to either Will/William or Francis

bumblebeees · 26/03/2023 21:30

Francis is a fab name

Sadiegirl87 · 26/03/2023 21:32

If you prefer Francis then you should go for it, you'll only regret it if you go for a name you don't like based on other people's opinions. Once he is born and you use the name a few times you'll just see it as his name and you'll forget all these comments.

WhisperingAutistic · 26/03/2023 21:51

MyOtherUsernameIsDave · 26/03/2023 18:54

William.

I can’t stand Francis, to me it’s so wet and dreary. Almost pathetic sounding. I don’t know why, I’ve always thought it.

Agree with this
I've no idea why it does, but it just does.