Thoughts on the name Rafferty?

[Csang]

I'm due to have a baby boy in a few months and we still can't find a name we both agree on. I love Raffie and Raphael is a lovley name but our kid is likely to be ginger, light skinned and freckly so Mediterranean Raphael vibes might seem a bit ridiculous! Raffie is also short for Rafferty which I'm not immediately drawn to. Any thoughts?!??!

God awful name 😖😖😖

I love it

I like it, I know one 15yo who goes by Raff and it really suits him.

I know two blond kids called Raphael and it doesn't seem weird. Generally called Raffy/Raf.

But otherwise I'd go for Rafe or Ralph and use Raffy as the nickname.

Raphael/Rafael is pretty popular here in South London so the others might be a bit different. I do not love Rafferty but it's also ok.

Lovely surname but fussy as a first name (you don't often see 'fussy' applied to a boy's name but that's how I'd describe it!). Rufus, Raphael, both lovely. Not Raffie on its own.

Rafferty sounds like he might be a bit of a cad.
You could train him to be a card sharp and shake down other toffs

Raffles the Gentleman Thug?

My Sil's dd has a Raffi. Absolutely love it.

Awh I love it! I think it suits a little red head perfectly

@Marblessolveeverything the family I know who are using are Irish

Prefer Raphael
But Rafferty is ok too

If you are very posh it’s probably fine. If not then no.

It wouldn't be typical. Generally the people who use Irish surnames are "Irish heritage" about 8 generations ago 🤣

I don’t think Raphael is just a Mediterranean name. I really like it, and love the nn Raffy.

Rafferty is awful.

Raphael isn't inappropriate for a red-haired being. Lots in Renaissance art. Look at Botticelli's Birth of Venus or Piero della Francesca's Nativity.

hate it. sorry. reminds me of a brutal murder of a child.. gorgeous Victoria Stafford .

I think it’s a lovely name, probably partly because the Rafferty I know is a really nice little boy.

Loads of Scottish surnames are used as first names, why not Irish?

(eg. Brodie, Cameron, Campbell, Innes, Mackenzie, Broderick, Ainsley, Bruce, Clark, Clyde, Craig, Douglas, Findlay, Fraser etc, etc)

I'm Irish and know two Raphaels growing up, both pale and freckled.

Rafferty isn't great, imo.

Raftery is a nicer name, if you want to go down the Irish surname route. It's the name of a famous blind Irish poet who lived in the late Georgian era, the last of the wandering bards.

It's a Scottish naming tradition to name a son after the mother's maiden name. This has in time broadened into using other surnames. I don't know whether this tradition has ever existed with Irish names

Just call him Raphael, I'm French and lots of pale blond kids I grew up with were called that. I personally am not a fan of surnames as first names.

OP you will get people saying they like it, others saying they hate it but it's your decision. If both you and DP love it - go for it.
The only thing I would remind you is it's your baby's name once they are an adult too. So think of your baby as an adult called Rafferty. If you still like it - go for it.

Yes, try the name test -

“Is Rafferty coming out to play?”
“I love you, Rafferty”
”Is Rafferty ready for promotion?

I don't usually like surnamey names but I do have a soft spot for this one. It just makes me think of a very friendly, energetic and enthusiastic person somehow.

Cute, mischievous (raffish) and bohemian. Screams 'my parents are boho types'.

He'll probably become a banker and change it to John.

That really would be revolutionary. No one’s called John now.