Middle names

[BettyButterknife]

Just wondering what criteria you use for choosing a middle name...

I was saddled with one of the boring but ubiquitous 1970s middle names (Jane) and when I asked my parents their thinking behind it, they said they thought it was a good second choice if I didn't like my first name

My thinking is totally different - middle names are a bit unnecessary so if you're going to have one it ought to be really interesting or unusual.

What do you lot think?

DS's middle name is my all time favourite boys name and DD's is after a late family member

DS's name is one that tends to divide opinion on MN so he can use his middle name when he becomes Prime Minister

ds is called harley miles...the miles has no significance!

dd is called bella amira tasha
bella-beautiful
amira-princess
tasha-my sister is called natasha

so she is beautiful princess if u miss the tasha bit out!

Son has same middle name as his father & grandfather.

Daughter has same middle name as my maternal grandmother.

Mine's Louise...because it went with "Emma"...seems hundreds thousands of parents that year had the same idea!

Unique, i am not!

MilkNoBrandy, I am your opposite - it seems that either 'Louise Emma' or 'Emma Louise' were the names that went together

I love the name Emma though.

DD1 has my MIL's name as a middle name. DD2 is due in March and while we have her first name more or less sorted, we're not so sure about her middle name yet.

It's the slot for honouring friends and family.

I don't understand those Jane/Louises of the 70s and the Mae/May/Mais and Graces of today (unless of course they are used to honour a specific May or Grace). You might as well use "Ummmm" or "Ahhh". They're just meaningless fillers.

I don't have one. Not sure if I will give my children middle names. Probably only going to be able to have one now so might just give it loads if I manage to get pregnant!

My boys have 2 middle names after a member of each of mine and DH's family.

DS1's middle names are Anthony (my Dad) and Stiva (BIL)

DS2's middle names are Luca (DH's name) and Italo (DH's Grandad)

IMVHO I like a reason for a middle name rather than just a random name because you like it.

If I had had DDs they would have been called Annabel Amy (Amy being Dsis)

and

Claudia (DH's aunty)Oriele (DH's grandma)

Family names make great middle names. They're a great way of honouring relatives.

DS has 2 middle names, grrr. I love the second one (a family name), but I don't like the other (rubbish name that DH likes). It was his first name for a while though as I stupidly agreed to it after the birth. So now when I think how much I don't like it, I'm just thankful that it isn't his first name anymore!

Our DD1 has my Grannie's name as her middle name. DD2's middle name is Hope - we'd had a series of failed pregnancies including a ruptured ectopic which saw half of my reproductive system being removed so weren't expecting to be able to have a second child. Hope may be cheesy but it's meaningful to us!

Yes, I agree - they are a respectful nod to your favourite family members. DS1, due in Jan, will have my grandad's name and the name of a dear departed friend as his middle names. It's much nicer than just using the standard middle-name name of the age.

(It's nice to have one, though, even if it's boring - DH does not have a middle name, and has always felt slightly cheated)

Family names here as well.

We all got standard boring middle names as our first names, and then family names as second names. I am happier that way round, as are my sibs.

Mine's Louise too, as is my cousins born 5 years later lol

Family names here too. DD has 2 middle names, one is my mum's name and the other is DH's grandmother's name, it's is a very unusual Ukrainian name that she may hate us for when she's a teenager . Any subsequent DCs will have one middle name from each side of the family.

our dc just havwe random middle names. really wish we'd gone for family names in retrospect, but didn't like the obvious ones that would have been appropriate to both families

I too went for family names,
DS1 has DP's late father's name
DS2 has my brothers name