Pregnant with my 3rd & not finding out the gender. Girls name is set but really struggling with a boys name. Our eldest sons are [name_m]Isaiah[/name_m] & [name_m]Malachi[/name_m]. Narrowed it down to our top 5 and would love to get some ideas/opinions!
[name_m]Elias[/name_m] (I love but partner isn’t sold)
[name_m]Noah[/name_m] (We both love but it’s so popular)
[name_m]Rafael[/name_m] (just not 100% sold)
[name_m]Cassian[/name_m] (love but it means hollow )
[name_m]Romero[/name_m] (just like that it’s quite unusual)
Hey! I love your sons’ names! [name_m]Malachi[/name_m] and [name_m]Noah[/name_m] are in my top boy options as well (but [name_m]Noah[/name_m] IS so popular)!
Despite Noah’s popularity: it’s a classic and soft name that ages well. It also completes your sibling set very nicely (Isaiah and [name_m]Malachi[/name_m] are also relatively popular/classic Bible names).
[name_m]Elias[/name_m] is my other favorite from your list. [name_m]Strong[/name_m] and unique without being too “out there”, and has the cool nickname option of “Eli”.
[name_m]Cassian[/name_m] is such a fun and unique option too! I’ve never heard that name before, but think it sounds good with your first two sons’ names.
Without knowing your last name: I’d pick one of those! Your other two name options are also lovely, but [name_m]Rafael[/name_m] and [name_m]Romero[/name_m] have a very different vibe than your other two boy’s names (in my opinion).
Isaiah and Malachi are so handsome together!
From your list, I think my favorites are definitely Elias and Cassian. They both have that strong, biblical sound and aren’t too popular, either. Cassian’s meaning could easily be fixed by adding a middle name that cancels out the negativity – for example, Cassian Oliver means “hollow tree”, which no longer has any sort of connotation to it. Cassian Josiah’s meaning could be manipulated positively as well, meaning “God heals the hollow”.
Rafael would be my third favorite, with Noah following in fourth, just because I feel like Noah’s popularity makes the name fall short when standing next to the sturdy Isaiah & Malachi.
Similar alternatives:
Elias = Eliam, Elian, Eliezer, Ezekiel
Noah = Jonah, Noam, Nolan, Enoch
Rafael = Rafferty, Rufus, Reuben
Cassian = Caspian, Casimir, Caspar
[name_m]Noah[/name_m] is such a handsome name! He’s soft, peaceful and handsome. A really gorgeous choice that I have loved for years and years! Yes [name_m]Noah[/name_m] is popular but he is in keeping with your gorgeously named boys. He’s familiar, timeless, rich in biblical history and fashionable. I think [name_m]Noah[/name_m] is really fitting with I & M and just feels purposeful rather than predictable like a lot of overly popular names can feel. Honestly I would go with [name_m]Noah[/name_m]. But also thought [name_m]Jonah[/name_m] could be a good alternative.
[name_m]Isaiah[/name_m] and [name_m]Malachi[/name_m] are lovely!!
Of your choices, I love:
[name_m]Elias[/name_m] → sleek, stylish and bright
[name_m]Rafael[/name_m] → charming, arty and international
I also like [name_m]Cassian[/name_m] for sounds and [name_m]Romero[/name_m] is distinctive and unusual, but familiar too. [name_m]Noah[/name_m] is gentle and handsome - popular, yes, but for a reason.
[name_f]My[/name_f] first thoughts with [name_m]Isaiah[/name_m] and [name_m]Malachi[/name_m] are [name_m]Silas[/name_m], [name_m]Jude[/name_m] and [name_m]Gideon[/name_m]
Congratulations! Your eldest sons’ names are lovely. Out of your top 5, I really like [name_m]Elias[/name_m] & [name_m]Raphael[/name_m] with brothers I s a i a h & M a l a c h i [name_m]Noah[/name_m] is definitely popular, but if you really love him I wouldn’t take him out of consideration just because of his popularity. Here are some other ideas I haven’t seen mentioned yet inspired by your top 5
[name_f]My[/name_f] favorite of these with your boys’ names in [name_m]Elias[/name_m]. But it kind of sounds like the only name you guys both love is [name_m]Noah[/name_m], so you should use it. Names become popular because there are lots of reasons to like them, and even then, only 1 in 100 boys were named [name_m]Noah[/name_m] last year, he won’t share his name with that many people…
Congratulations!
I love [name_m]Elias[/name_m] and [name_m]Noah[/name_m] best with your boys’ names! [name_m]Noah[/name_m] is popular but I wouldn’t consider that a big deal. There’s a great article by the baby name blog “Swistle” called “Even the Top Ten Isn’t Necessarily the Kiss of Death” that explains this really well. I also wouldn’t consider the meaning of [name_m]Cassian[/name_m] a problem because often what a name means to you is equally or more important than what the etymological meaning of the name actually is. For example, I like the name [name_f]Cecilia[/name_f], which means “blind” I wouldn’t choose the name based off the meaning but for St. [name_f]Cecilia[/name_f].
Thank you all so much for the comments!! I think I’m definitely leaning towards [name_m]Noah[/name_m] as dad is really not keen on [name_m]Elias[/name_m]!
Thank you for this! I had a read of the article and it really did change my perception of choosing a popular name! And thinking of it, I’m a primary school teacher and never actually taught a Noah!!! that’s definitely a big plus!
I love [name_m]Noah[/name_m] so if you guys can accept the popularity I would definitely go with him!! Such a strong yet gentle, classic name. I also really like [name_m]Elias[/name_m]
From your top 5 my absolute favourite with [name_m]Isaiah[/name_m] and [name_m]Malachi[/name_m] is [name_m]Cassian[/name_m]!
Not that I think matching and cohesiveness needs to be a priority with naming but I am very much one of those people that needs names to fit together in some form for them to really work for me
But with [name_m]Cassian[/name_m] it is a similar length to [name_m]Isaiah[/name_m] and [name_m]Malachi[/name_m] when it doesn’t feel too short or too long, and it has the A and I like both of your boys’ names do
I know hollow isn’t the best name meaning out there but you can look at it as if this baby is a boy he would be completing it more, like filling in any hollow spots. I’m not sure if that’s something that would help. But I saw a video a while ago, I forget the username on Instagram (I’ll comment if I find it) but she had said about turning negative meanings into positive ones with just a different outlook on them so that may help you guys
Besides [name_m]Cassian[/name_m] I also love [name_m]Elias[/name_m] (same cohesiveness just a pinch shorter for me) and [name_m]Rafael[/name_m] (fits the vibe for me) with your boys’ names!
Go with [name_m]Noah[/name_m], it’s a very nice name. [name_m]Elias[/name_m] is good too, but if you combined the similar [name_m]Elijah[/name_m], [name_m]Eli[/name_m] and [name_m]Elias[/name_m], I reckon there would be more.
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[name_m]Noah[/name_m] is definitely popular, but if you really love him I wouldn’t take him out of consideration just because of his popularity. Here are some other ideas I haven’t seen mentioned yet inspired by your top 5 
that’s definitely a big plus!