Why are boy names so hard?! :(

[winterbabyrose]

Currently pregnant with #2 and unsure of the gender as of yet. We have a girls name chosen and have had for a while, but are struggling with finding boys names we like. We like the more 'unusual' boho / nature themed names. This is the current list of names I like, but not love yet, so you get an idea.

Bear
Elijah (I like this but potentially too 'common')
Tate
Hendrix
Fox
Oren
Lennox
Wolf

@cassy16 I used to know someone called Rainbow!...middle names was Blue.

@cassy16

"😂😂😂😂 I know so many men that are just dying to be known as the king of elves or named after a wizard"

To be fair, my DH would absolutely love to be known as king of the elves or named after a wizard! He's the biggest lotr geek you've ever come across. 🤷🏻‍♀️

I’m not usually a fan of unusual names but for a boy I love the name Indy. Not sure id ever be brave enough to use it though!

Sorry you're right, not twice as popular, and also this is changing - I'm a bit out of date.

But it's true that if you look at the actual percentage/number of children given names in the top positions, there are generally a lot more boys named the top positions than girls, especially if you go to 2016 or earlier.

For example, in 2016, the top two names were Oliver and Olivia. 6623 Olivers, only 5017 Olivias.

It adds up to quite a big difference if you add up all the top 50 names or so. I'm not going to sit and do that now, but I did it for a thread the other day (and didn't save it) I can promise you a lot more boys have a "top 10/20/50" name than girls do, and particularly before 2016 - which if you think about the names that you know as a prospective parent, most of them will be from people older than 7.

Also, you've got to think of names in the current context - the name stat things only go back to 1996 - but to pick some names which were "trends" then and probably seemed unusual at the time:

Tyler
Cory
Brett
Jay
Zack/Zach
Jesse

They just seem like perfectly normal names now. Not quite classics, but not remarkable or ridiculous.

When my daughter was younger, I would always meet people in the park with the same name. It's a variation of a name I loved way before I thought about having children, so no regrets.

She is definitely unique (I guess we all think that about our children 😊), and does not care what people think about her individual choices... she's not super wacky, or anything...she just likes things that are not necessarily cool, or some people might think are not grown up enough. (She's early teens)

Pick a normal, human name for him, and you'll be grand.

Crew - only heard of this name recently and personally I really like it (this is coming from someone with kids with very 'traditional' names 🙂).

Also like Brodie

Can you imagine in 70 years time them all sitting round chatting, with these names. Fantastic! It should be made obligatory to have a long beard.

Poor little bastard.

Who the hell is Binky??

Sure, Jan. 🙄

Brodie
Bodhi
Arlo
Ezra
Abel
Albie
Lucas
Hunter
Axel
Leo
Nico

I know a lovely little boy named Orian (I think rather than Orion) they pronounce it O ree an as it is spelt so no long vowel.

Not gonna lie, I'm more of classic boys name fan but these are some of my DCs' classmates for inspiration:

Bodhi
Loki
Archer
Oakley
Huxley
Hudson
Rowan
Jasper
Issa

With all due respect to those who have commented. I posted on MN to find ideas for similar names to those we already like and are thinking of, ie the list in my original post.

I did not ask for opinions, or what you personally feel about those names. Or how you feel they shouldn't be used, and even a comment on my parenting I saw in there somewhere!! I should have known better posting on MN to be honest!

Genuine thank yous to all those that have contributed to my original query. Much appreciated.

I personally don’t like any of those type of names except Asher. It’s a nice name which I don’t think I’ve ever heard of before.

You can’t stop people giving their opinion especially when it comes to names. Best you just ask your friends or family for suggestions instead.

@Ameanstreakamilewide
I grew up with a boy who had a very "normal" name.
He had 3 sisters. I remember Tiger lily and Tinkerbell. The other had an extremely ridiculous name. All 3 names were hyphenated but we're talking nearly 30 years ago so I can't remember. But it happens!

Love Lennox, Tate and Fox

Ohh Elijah very sweet. Or Elias for variation?

I’ve had all my kids but I’ve always secretly wanted an Apollo…

With so many people trying to come up with an original name you might stand out more with a traditional one.

I would stay away from bear, what if he becomes a short or stick thin man? Then the name would be ill fitted.

@winterbabyrose I posted my boy list years back and someone took the time to individually ruin each one for me..
I err on the more traditional names but went with the one I liked anyway and don’t regret it. Hopefully once baby is born you can look at their little chubby baby cheeks and a name will suit them 🥰

@hotcandle I showed my 19 Yr old DD a similar thread on here awhile ago & she said she'd have killed me if I'd named her some of the awful names that were being bandied about. Names like Wolf, Bear & Fox are brilliant pet names but just silly baby names imo. My daughter is anxious & a bit shy & introducing herself (at Uni for example or at her recent summer job) with an outlandish name would have been her worst nightmare! I much prefer Elijah & I don't know anyone with that name so it's clearly not common around here.