Xavier is 5wks but I cringe when asked his name! Help!

[auntymel]

I like Xavier as a name but when anybody asks his name nobody can repeat it back and nobody says that's nice! I'm now at the stage of avoiding striking up conversation or lying and saying his name is John to strangers! Have I made a mistake is it horrible and too pretentious and will Xavier have a horrible time his whole life? My other DS is Sebastian and I always get compliments.

absolutely gorgeous name ! my dd2 has a rarely heard name and i freely admit is percieved as a "posh" name , i was abit similar at first becasue people used to say " umm thats nice" but in a tone that said " who do you think oyu are royalty". now she is 5 and i really do not care one tot , stick to your lovely name ( btw both oyur choices on our name lists when was expecting but had girls!)

love it - was one of choices for dc3 - sadly vetoed by mr boring

I think its a lovely name, but I like John too, but its how you feel that matters, it would be easier to change it now rather than later.

My Daughter was Niamh. ic hose the name after my 20 week scan when I found out I was having a girl. I love the name but because people were using it before she was born coupled with the fact my DS insists on prononcing it n-EEE-ve put me off it. It didnt feel like 'her' name for months, and I reverted to calling her one of her middle names for a while, but it has grown on me.

Good luck with whatever you decide

I like it, I think its quite a grown up name so I can understand why you think it doesn't really go with your tiny 5 week old baby. Just think of a handsome little toddler boy stomping around, do you like it more if you imagine him at a similar age to your other son?

I love Xavier, either with a Z or a H,as others have said he'll grow into it.

I love these threads when posters are mysterious about the names of their chldren, I spend ages trying to guess what they might be. I mean you mummydoc!!

Is it Clarissa? I love Clarissa!

Oh yes absolutely about it being 'grown up'. It's a name to grow into and will be fantastic for a man and a boy.

That's the trick of naming babies - bearing in mind that they'll be wearing the name for more years as an adult thatn as a baby/little child. It has to suit both age groups and this one def fits the bill alright!

Said with the appropriate accent it doesn't sound pretentious at all.

Not sure it passes the 'shouted down the aisles of Asda' test though.

My nephew is called Xavier and although we do shorten it to Xavi occasionally (he is 3) I think it's gorgeous!

For yelling down a street we use Xavs (pronounced Zavs).
Or if we really want to get his attention then Shusha works, as that is the only way he could pronounce it as a child

How is it pronounced then?

It's your baby, who cares what anyone else thinks?

My BIL is still a little narked that we didn't call DS Xavier (disclaimer- he is half french)... but it is too religious a name for an atheist and a buddhist. (goes well with Sebastian, obviously)

How do you pronounce it in English? Is it like Saviour?

Its a great name, and it goes very well with Sebastian.
I dont think it is that unusual, and I wouldnt think of it as being an odd name.
I expect that when he is older he will be pretty pleased with his name - cool initial, and he can use Xav/Xavi/Xayv as shortenings if he wants.

If you are having strong doubts now, I would change it. Alexander goes well with Sebastian, and this could be shortened to Xander.

Xavier is a fantastic name. Stick with it.

Thanks for all your kind comments as a result we have decided to keep it. When I was out today and people asked his name I was a little more confident when I said it ( pronounced Zav-ee-eh!) and it seemed to be met with slightly more positive response.

For those of you that suggested using his middle name it's Atticus. . . . This is when I think maybe I have completely lost the plot! Do you think I have high hopes?

I think it's a great name. It's a name that will suit someone of any age. At least there won't be 5 of them in his class when he goes to school and it's easy to spell!

I love this name. If you love it too then stick to your guns!

It was my father's middle name, and has therefore been used quite a bit in my extended family (so unfortuately I won't be able to use it myself if our baby is a boy!). Not sure why some people think it's only appropriate for French/posh folks - it's got a long history of being used amongst Catholics outside of France (eg my father was born in rural Ireland in the 30s for instance).

I like it. Have a friend who has a Sebastian and a Xavier. Obv a good choice!

Lovely name I think - certainly not pretentious if you are Catholic?
I love Atticus too but then I do have a dd with middle name Harper!

My ds is Louis Xavier, I think Xavier is a fab name, and X is such a cool initial

I felt a bot like this with DS's name at first. I knew I loved it and I knew it would suit him, but it does sometimes require some "explaining" i.e. repeating or spelling.

I got over it, even though I have had mixed reactions (one woman plainly told me, to my face, that "you can't call a baby that!". I was proved right, and it does really suit him. Now he is 21mths and all our friends who were either or at least when we first announced it admit that it is a really cool name now that they're used to it.

I also think that so many babies have what are considered unusual names now that people are quite shocked if you do end up with a James/Matthew/Thomas type of name. IYSWIM.

Xavier is a lovley name BTW.