Has the tradtional boy's name Sidney been ruined by the US trend to use it on girls?

[artichokes]

This is a slightly premature thread as I have only just found out I am pregnant. But if this is a boy then I would love to call him Sidney after two of my great-grandfathers. One was Sidney known as Sid, and the other Sidney known as Sonny.

I love Sidney known as Sonny (although am trying to find out if that is a traditional diminuitive or just my great-gramps). However, DH thinks that people now associite the name Sidney with girls named after US soap characters. Is that true? What do people think of a boy called Sidney, shortened to Sonny?

I see it as unisex, in fact I think it's pretty equal on the national statistics website. The girls are normally Sydney though. I think it's still fine to use for a boy as it's so well known as a boys name.

I disagree about Stanley. Stanley will never be a girls name.Cameron Diaz had very little effect did it?! Finley/Dylan/Noah/Rory on girls is just an American thing. It will not cross over to here.

Nothing wrong with Unisex names anyway. I wouldn't feel sorry for a boy Charlie because it's now popular with the girls!

Back to Sidney, go for it - my friend has just had one actually.

I like it as a boys name and don't think of it as a girls name at all.

Sydney, spelled like the Australian city, (with two Ys) became very popular in the US as a girls' name at the time of the Olympics.

Spelled with an I, it's a boys' name, imo.

Cameron is very much a unisex name in the US, and there are variants in spelling, like Camryn (Manheim).

Stanley Ann Dunham was Barack Obama's mother's name, btw. However, I think it has such 'old man' associations in the UK and also the US (where it's an old-fashioned blue collar Polish name) that it won't become a popular girls' name. Finley I can see crossing over though, maybe with the E spelling, leaving the A spelling to boys. Ainsley has made the transition. Anything with an EY ending will end up in the girls' camp eventually (except Stanley will take longer, if it goes there at all) imo.

Ryan and Sean/Shawn are already used for girls in the US, but I think there's enough Irish influence in the UK to prevent that particular plague from breaking out.

Never say never, though, when it comes to names. Ashley and Madison/Addison were originally boys' names.

Cameron Diaz didn't have an effect on the name in the UK in should have said. Surely Finley is far too popular on boys in the UK to suddenly be taken over by girls? It hasn't increased in popularityfor a girl but has for a boy. I find it very funny that some people seriously think Stanley will be a girls name?!
I've never met a girl called Ryan, Sean, Finlay, Stanley or Rory. Met plenty of females with surnames though like Bailey, Mackenzie and Taylor.

And I've now noticed that this thread is over two years old!

Just been Looking up my DS name Sidney and found this thread!

Lottoluvin.....made me comment. We were considering Ned, Stanley, and Sidney when our son was born. I secretly thought Stanley would be the chosen name though...but one look at him and I knew he was a Sid! AND the name top of our list for our next baby IS.....Victor! LOL Your post made me wonder if i'd wrote it in my sleep?!?!?

I know a 2 year old Sidney girl in the UK actually.

Hilary. Joyce and Vivian were all originally boys names. And Evelyn too, and probably a great many more.
They are all accepted now.
I like Sidney very much.

Sidney has always been a unisex name to me - the Mitford example has been noted above and I worked with a female Sidney who must be in her 50s by now.

Ashley is still a unisex name still (think Ashley Peacock in Corrie), and, going the other way, Big Daddy the wrestler was Shirley and I was at school with a male Tracey.