Connotations of names Barnaby, Roland or Jethro?

[goody3shoes]

A friend of mine has married an Englishman, actually he is from Devon. They have taken her surname but he wishes to name their first child, a boy, due in 4 months. He is keen on the above three names but my friend is uncertain of how they would be thought of to an Englishperson and asked me, as I have some experience in the English culture. Still, I thought it would be best to get you guys on the case! Any thoughts and suggestions appreciated.

Barnaby - cute.
Roland - rat.
Jethro - far right misogynist Jim Davidson-esque dead "comedian"

Jethro makes me think of the Cornish comedian

I would steer clear . Especially if the family are from Devon 🤣

Barnaby totally normal

Roland is ild fashioned

Twattish middle class names

Barnaby: mainstream and nice, trending towards middle class. Quite sweet, goes with names like Henry.
Jethro: slightly edgy ‘creative’ middle class (media, artists etc)
Roland: not sure. I see it as still a bit 1970s but nothing wrong with it.

I like Barnaby and Jethro

Also Jago which is a Cornish name.

Jethro is a Cornish comedian as PP have said. Maybe suggest your friend looks him up, because he’s probably the first Jethro people in Cornwall/Devon would think of when they hear the name.

Barnaby is ok - a bit wet
Roland is the chubby child from Grange Hill or Rat, and as far from posh as you can get
Jethro is Tull or the grubby farmer from the West Country with 11 fingers and fewer brain cells than the average person

This is what I see when I hear these names.

Jethro Tull was an inventor. An innovator whose inventions helped drive the Agricultural Revolution.

Also a prog rock band from the 70s!

Jethro Tull is also this!

OP: WHATEVER the names are, there will only ever be highly subjective responses, many negative, prejudiced etc. For any name. From William to Wayne to WaxxonGee.

I like Barnaby /Barney and I like Roly, I know a Roly and I think when he was younger he was very conscious of not being overweight with that name. So it seemed cool on a fit guy.
Jethro I don't like. Get images of banjos, hillbillies reporting sightings of UFOS, "there were 3 uh them un they had greeeen heads"

I quite like WaxxonGee.

Roly was the name of Den and Angie’s dog on Eastenders.

Also chubby Roland in Grange Hill.

And the aforementioned Rat.

None of these are inherently awful characters, but no Mr Darcy either!

As long as they are not hanging out with too many people steeped in 1980s TV they should be fine. It’s probably due a revival.

I do completely disagree that it’s a posh name though. It perhaps lends itself a bit too well to “Roly Poly”, but those sorts of nicknames and expressions are dying out now anyway.

Interesting that the man took the woman’s surname OP, but it’s a nice one so can see why. Are you happy with how the names would be pronounced in your language? “Jethro” could be quite a mouthful for an Italian, if you are all Italian?

Barnaby - bear
Roland - fat kid off grange hill, type of synthesizer, Roland rat
Jethro - Tull (I think a 70s band)

Of the three I would pick Barnaby. I know one and it suits him. He's neither wet nor posh. I also know an adult one who goes by Barney, and an adult Barney who is really Barnabas.

Roland is ok but will be Roly. Prefer the Rowland spelling.

Jethro seems a bit like a 'peasant in a Hardy novel' sort of name. Also makes me think of Jethro Tull.

None of the names go particularly well with the surname.

Our last dog was Barnaby (his KC name was “Barney-Bee” and we mainly called him Barney) and he was the best dog in the whole wide world. I do think on it as a pet name though.

Roland I am also of an age where I think rat/fat kid.

Jethro I don’t like very much. It feels funny in my mouth.

None of these three go particularly well with the surname, which is beautiful. Two of the names under consideration have 'O' sounds so the Devon dad seems to like that. How about an Italian name like Marco or Gino?

Barnaby - teddy or dogs name
Roland - reminds me of the fat kid from a Grange Hill
Jethro - sounds like death row

I think Jethro could be in for a revival with that surname, I quite like it! All are fine.

@ALonelyRoad Sorry, not the point of the thread but what irish singer is named Roland? I'm Irish and I'm stumped.

Always interesting to see the point at which cultural references 'wear off'! I'm 49 and all those names have instant mental images for me (Roland = Rat/Ro-Land from Grange Hill; Jethro = Jethro Tull prog rock/terrible West Country comedian; Barnaby = Inspector Barnaby of Midsomer) but all those are very 70s/80s specific. While I'm sure the same pictures won't pop up in the minds of anyone under 40, it's possibly why Roland in particular hasn't been very popular in the last few decades....

Kevin Rowland from Dexy's Midnight Runners?

Roland is the best with the surname. Jethro is a sort of joke name for a farmer, quite funny that he is from Devon and likes this as it's kind of what you'd call a very stereotypical joke character from Devon. Barnaby has no good short versions and too long with long surname.

Roland would be better with the surname.