Parker, Abraham or Howie for a boy?

[Twelvelegs]

So stuck, I can't tell you.....

I would never burden my child with a name like Jesus, way too weird and as I am an atheist I think it would give the wrong message. He may as well be called please follow me around the playground and beat me!!!

If you are a confirmed atheist why not have a look for historical eg. Medieval names rather than biblical ones. Can't think of any boys names off the top of my head but e.g. Boudicca for a girl

Yet Cohen isn't weird for an atheist? This is what I don't get. It is a religious name.

MMMMMMMMMM, I am looking!!

• good point, well made Tryingtoleave

Merlin - Arthurian legend + type of falcon

Aethelflaed

Trying, agree with you about Cohen - very odd idea for a Gentile to use a Jewish surname as a first (Christian?) name. But Biblical names in general are fair game, I think - I don't know why people think Naomi is a Jewish name, it may well be very popular among Jews, I dunno, but it's from the Bible which has been a key text in this country for 1,500 years! And Rebecca was jolly popular in the 70s.

Demerae - Jamaican meaning 'A boy of Joy'

ooh, actually, Trying, you might be able to answer a question for me. Could the Dutch surname Coenen be a variant of Cohen? Dh's maternal great-grandad was a Coenen and it would amuse me if it is Jewish as his grandparents converted to Jehovah's Witnessdom (thankfully dh's mum was a very determined little girl and refused).

Yup - edamdepompadour - agree that any of the biblical names are ok for anyone from any sort of Abrahamic faith (e.g. Jewish, Christian or Moslim). But Cohen is as specifically Jewish as Jesus is Christian or Mohammed Muslim and I think those names don't really translate across cultures. And for an atheist to chose such a name would just be odd.

Thanks LuLuBai.

Didn't mean to hassle you twelvelegs - name choosing is difficult. FWIW, I have no problems with Howard and Howie as a nickname. And my grandfather was Abraham (which is why we have thought about it as an option). Everyone called him Aybie (don't know how he would have spelt it but that's what it sounded like) which is quite nice, I think. He was a real patriarch though - suited his name.

Yup, agree, using Cohen is very odd if you aren't Jewish (and maybe a bit odd if you are, I've only come across it as a surname).

I don't think of Naomi or Rebecca as jewish, Edam. I think of them as biblical. Some biblical names only used to be pretty much only found among Jewish people, like Reuben, Solomon, Seth, so if you heard them you might guess that the person was Jewish. But as I said that is no longer the case since they have become generally popular. As Lulubai says, Levi and Cohen are a bit different. I would not name a child of mine Christian or Christabeau, which I think are very pretty names, because it would suggest they were Christian. It seems to me cohen is in that class.

I don't know about the Dutch name, Edam, but it sounds like a possibility.

And now I'd better get to bed. It's past midnight here.

Parker is a wooden puppet from the Thunderbirds

Howie? no, nonononononon

Abraham at a pinch

Religious names are only religious if you care about religion or they are very obvious, have to say I don't and so to me they are just names a few letters put tgether to make a word. Levi is a nice name, too.

MB, not Howie then?

I know this thread is VERY old but I wondered if you did go for Howard.

I have a baby Howard who we call Howie and not come across another yet.