Angel

I was a little surprised to see that [name]Angel[/name] has been in the Top 100 for US boys for a good 10 years… and even more surprised that it first charted in the Top 1000 in 1888 and every year from 1916 on.

I know it’s not everyone’s taste. I have known boys/men named [name]Angel[/name] and they didn’t seem to take any flack for it, but they were Latino, and we’re not, nor do we have a Spanish last name. I just love a lot of Spanish names.

WDYT? Usable? MN only?

[name]How[/name] would you rank it against, say, [name]Aidan[/name]?

I also love [name]Angel[/name] but it’s usually pronounced AN-HELL by Hispanic/Latino communities, I think. I think it’s gorgeous on a boy, but where I live, it’s strictly a girls name (sigh) so I think maybe it would be best as a middle name. [name]Angelo[/name] might be more acceptable, which you could nickname [name]Angel[/name]? Then again, why should race make a difference if you love the name? I prefer it to [name]Aidan[/name] definetly as I not only love the sound of [name]Angel[/name], but what it represents too.

I am not a fan of [name]Angel[/name] as a name… for a boy or girl. But if you love it, go for it!!

I only know boys named [name]Angel[/name], most of them are Hispanic, but I live in a community where there aren’t many Hispanics. They pronounce it the English way. I don’t like it for a girl, [name]Angela[/name] is better in my opinion. I think it would be a good name for your little boy!

I actually love [name]Angel[/name] on a boy, and I prefer the English pronunciation “[name]Ayn[/name]-jul”.
I prefer it over [name]Aiden[/name], and I can see it picking up speed in the next 5 or so years.

I know some Latino boys with this name who code switch, it’s pronounced the Spanish way in Spanish and the English way in English. I knew one who was [name]Angel[/name] (Ahn-HELL) in Spanish but [name]Angelo[/name] in English. I mean I think [name]Angel[/name] was the legal name but that was what he went by. He made it work.

An Anglo [name]Angel[/name], with the English prn - it’s a truly uni name to me. I would probably guess boy, but only slightly.

I prefer [name]Aidan[/name], just by sound. Although I like this spelling and of course it’s not the one anyone uses : D.

I immediately think of [name]Buffy[/name] the Vampire Slayer and [name]Angel[/name]. As someone who’s watched every episode of both shows and grown accustomed to hearing the name on [name]David[/name] Boreanaz’s Irish vampire, it doesn’t phase me a bit. Like you said, [name]Angel[/name] is very popular in the Hispanic community. For a girl [name]Angel[/name] feels like a cheesy pseudo-spiritual name in the vein of [name]Trinity[/name] and [name]Destiny[/name]. For a boy it feels exotic, maybe because most Hispanic names come off that way?

If you aren’t sure about it, use it in the middle spot. However, any name that ranks at #52 is surely usable for a boy.

I know a Hispanic [name]Angel[/name] who goes by the english pr with his friends and coworkers but the spanish version with friends so I think the name is versatile and fwiw I never thought it was weird on a guy but that might be because he’s Hispanic. I would say this is mn material if you’re not Hispanic.

I’d prefer [name]Angelo[/name] for a boy and [name]Angela[/name] or [name]Angeli[/name] for a girl. [name]Angel[/name] is nms.

Agreed.

  • [name]Athena[/name]

My husband has had a boy named [name]Angel[/name] in class almost every year. It is in the top 5 for boys in [name]Texas[/name]. He did have a girl named [name]Angel[/name] once too. They were all Hispanic, and they all pronounced it the English way. Around here, it would definitely be usable, but I would think a boy named [name]Angel[/name] would have problems in other states. It might be ok as a middle name, but [name]Angelo[/name] would be more manly. A little boy might be embarrassed of [name]Angel[/name] as a mn, but I could be wrong. It sounds like a strange name to me still, but it is definitely more common than I ever realized.

I think it’s fine enough on a non-Hispanic boy. I would think of [name]Angel[/name] [name]Clare[/name] from [name]Tess[/name] of the d’Urbervilles, and also of [name]Buffy[/name]'s [name]Angel[/name].

Yes, I was thinking I know a lot of guys who code-switch and make the hard j English pronunciation work for them.

If it makes you feel any better, the ONLY spelling of [name]Aidan[/name] I’d use is this one.

Haha yes that’s pretty much just how I feel too. I do like [name]Seraphina[/name] or [name]Celeste[/name] for a girl but [name]Angel[/name] doesn’t do it for me at all on girls.

lol, maybe we need to move to [name]Texas[/name]. :slight_smile:

Thanks everybody, I appreciate all the input, from likers and dislikers alike. Sorry I was offline yesterday for a thing, didn’t mean to not reply.