Taylor for girls & boys

[NickiSue]

We've decided to call baby no2 Taylor if it is a boy (my Grandad's surname, he would have been so pleased). What do you think of Taylor as a girl's name? I have heard of it before, but am looking for opinions

I realise that many people do not change their name when they marry, and that the number who do is declining..............but......... What if she does get married, and her dh has Taylor as a surname?

Personally I think of it as a surname, or possibly a middle name.

I don't like surnames as first names, although where I live now it's very common, particularly for some reason those associated with old fashioned occupations (I know a Cooper, Tanner and a Mason as well as Taylors of both sexes).

dd has posters of both Taylor Swift (the singer - female) and Taylor Lautner (the actor - male) on her walls - slightly weirdly they were dating for a while.

Sashh - what if she names her daughter Carol and she marries someone with the surname Carroll? That's what happened to a friend of mine....

Most Taylors I know are girls, though I do know a few boys named this as well. (Am American :) )

I have heard that the American custom of using surnames as middle names for girls is actually an upper-middle-class American habit. The older families would do this to keep old names from the mother's side in the family, that might have hailed from very early days of colonization. So not at all chavvy in origin.

However, I would be tempted by the middle name option for a girl (depending on what your surname is, of course). I can imagine that might sound retty good.

That's true Sun :) It is a bit chavvy now to use names that have no relation to you (all the Madisons, Kennedys, etc) but in this case it's fine as it is the OPs relative's name.

There are 4 Taylors in ds 's year at school- 2 girls and 2 boys, all different spellings. And several others in other years. If that matters to you.

I don't like surnames as first names - my surname is used as one and it always sounds weird to me.

From this thread I've learnt that if you choose the name Taylor, you ought to give your child an unambiguous middle name to make their sex clear (unless, of course, you intend on being like those parents who chose not to reveal the sex of their baby to anyone).

Are you naming the baby Taylor to please your dearly departed grandfather? Is your other half's family members not just as important?

All sorts of issues go unspoken in a family when a child is named after someone. Like "I'm family too and I thought we were close so why didnt they pick my name?" etc etc.
From my own point of view I was named after someone and I always wanted my own identity. As a result my child will have their grandparents names as middle names and they will get their own first name.

For what it's worth Taylor isn't a bad name, I like it. But children should be important enough to get their own first name I think.

A few years ago I would have said Chav name but I 've changed my mind now. I teach a lovely girl named Taylor. Really suits her and I think it's quite unusual in the UK. I actually like it now!

This thread is over 2 half years old and I think the baby would have been named by now

Ha ha whoops all I saw was all the Friday 20th of June replies. Why do posters keep bumping up old posts?

i would use it for either, if you really like it, its nice x

All our DCs have a family surname as a middle name - DS1 has Taylor. We are the antithesis of chav!

I wonder why some occupations are used as first names (like Taylor) and others not (like Miller, Smith or Thatcher) How about Mr and Mrs Smith naming their child Smith Smith?

"And this is our eldest, Pimp. Our daughter, Banker, and not forgetting the baby, Editor"

RustyBear

Does your friend use her husband's name?

I hadn't thought of girls names being surnames.

Yes, she does. I would have kept my maiden name myself, but it doesn't seem to bother her!

Taylor as a girl's name is extremely popular in the US. I don't particularly like it, but if it's a family name that's much nicer IMO. It's good for a boy or a girl.

Oops just saw how old this thread is - sorry!

Lovely idea to honour your granddad.

Personally, I would go for Taylor as a middle name if it were a girl.

i prefer Taylor as a girl's name

Awful name.