Roy - as a middle name

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We’re thinking of using Roy as a middle name. This is after a close family friend of DH, who played a significant part in his upbringing.

My family hate it. You’d think we’d picked something like Adolf or Lucifer. I don’t mind it. I know how much it would mean to DH to use it. Plus it is short, easy to spell and goes with lots of first names.

Have I lost my mind? I thought the whole point of middle names was to honour someone significant?

Well, no. That's the name of a place - literally 'Roy's town'.

Roy is fine as a middle name.
It is not the same ilk as Adolf or Lucifer.
Your family members get to name their own children, not yours.

I like Roy too, perfectly in keeping with all the little Stanleys and Alfreds these days. 🙂

Fitzroy would be making quite a statement on the identity of his father though!

That's incorrect. My OH's late grandfather (born 1902) was named Reginald (equally dated), middle name Royston. Hated the name Reginald so took up Royston, universally abbreviated to Roy as was common until maybe the 1970s(?).

What if you did 2 middle names, and had it as the 2nd one?

The salient point is that 'Roy' is a diminutive; however you make a decent point in that you draw attention to the fact that - criminally - diminutives are clearly allowed on birth certificates today. Investigating the subject I find that the generally accepted son of 'the Sussexes' was not christened' 'Archibald' as one would assume but 'Archie'. A shocking decline in standards, in particular by the boy's father Prince Henry Charles Albert David, known as Prince Harry - although had he been born today he would most likely be Prince Harry Chas Bert Dave 🤯

I love it! And it's a middle name and no concern of your family's. I suspect it'll be due a comeback soon - just the kind of next in line dad/grandad name that could, plus after Ted Lasso.

It's a great middle name.

I'd wind your family up further and say you're going with Roy as a first AND middle name. Roy Roy Smith.

https://www.ancestry.com/first-name-meaning/royston

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roy

You misunderstand me. Royston may well derive from the name of the town (going to ignore the Prikipedia reference as that is an untrustworthy source), but Roy as a diminutive of the Christian name Royston is indisputable. See for example the 'comedian' Royston ('Roy "Chubby" Brown') Vasey, or Royston ('Roy' or 'Rainy') Wainwright - bass guitarist of the musical combination Discharge 🤨

100% agree. We didn't share either of children's names until after they were born and we'd decided. We still got a few shitty comments, and our kids both have very normal, classic names. People are weird!

Yes, you can shorten Royston to Roy. But Roy is a name in its own right.

And the Royston history is from Ancestry.

My Dad is Roy - it is definitely a name in its own right and not a diminutive, has been used as a first name since medieval times I believe.

It isn't a name I'm crazy about, but if I'd had a boy I was considering giving him Roy as a middle name after my Dad.

Just make sure it sounds suitably stern when combined with the rest for occasions when you need to pull out the full name telling off card!

In my family the middle name was the name of the Godparent or other family name. Made no difference if it was a nice name or not.

I would not choose my middle name but I only use it for official documents so it doesn't matter

Why does your family think they have a say in the naming of your child?

It's so hard to 'think current' re names that were associated with horror when you, yourself were growing up. I HATED my middle name because it was old fashioned to me when I was a child and dreaded it being called out on the register as a child, or my friends finding out what it was.
I think the 'name and honour a family member' concept is fine, so long as it's not really embarrassing to the child on their own generation.
I would draw the line at Darren, Wayne, Jason or Gary - even if 'great grandad Gary' had won the Nobel peace prize.

I really like it and it's a good short, sturdy middle name. Makes a bloody change from Archie.

Ray = diminutive of Raymond. I have known Rays and one Raye. All abbreviated from Raymond 😧

DH is Roy. Not a diminutive. As a middle name it's fine. As a first name, the number of people who think he's Ray (short for Raymond) is alarming, but you won't have that irritation.

My 91 year old Grandad is just Roy, and so it’s certainly not a new thing that this diminutive is used as a standalone name.

It isn't a diminutive! There have been far more Roys than Roystons in the world.

Thank you for all your comments.

I can confirm that DH’s family friend is definitely called Roy (and not Royston).

DD already has a family name as a middle name (Olive - from my side of the family), so it seems only fair that DH gets to use a name that is significant to him this time around.

I wonder if this is at the route of the issue with my family - I’m not using the family name (Thomas). Mind you, it skipped a generation even in my family. It was my grandfather’s name and it is my brother’s middle name, but my father doesn’t have it as part of his name. So I don’t feel obliged to use it!

We won’t be using Roy as a first name. DH has a name that begins with “R”. I had the same initial as one of my parents growing up and it was a PITA, so we’ll be avoiding that!