We are expecting our third boy, and fourth child. Our other children are [name_f]Penelope[/name_f] [name_f]Claire[/name_f] ([name_u]Penny[/name_u]), [name_m]Jack[/name_m] [name_m]Harvey[/name_m], and [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] [name_m]Patrick[/name_m]. We have such a hard time naming boys! I think the name we both like, and flows well as a whole, is [name_m]Henry[/name_m] [name_m]William[/name_m]. However, [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] and the baby will only be 18 months apart, and I worry that people will confuse their names.
My husband’s other favourite is [name_u]Freddie[/name_u], which I really like, but I dislike [name_m]Frederick[/name_m] (or at least, can’t imagine ever calling him that) and [name_m]Fred[/name_m].
We also like [name_m]Samuel[/name_m], but I think [name_m]Samuel[/name_m] [name_m]William[/name_m] has too many L’s in it.
We cannot have any names with a “sh” or a “tch” sound in it, as it clashes with our surname.
[name_m]Oliver[/name_m] was on the cards, but it’s so ridiculously popular in Australia, that my son has 3 [name_m]Oliver[/name_m]'s in his class.
At first I would have said no, that the names [name_m]Henry[/name_m] and [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] weren’t too close. But once you mentioned how close in age they are I started to wonder.
I have a ton of family members so I know how easy it can be to mix up names. A popular one in my family is mixing up [name_m]Christian[/name_m] with [name_u]Tristan[/name_u] even though they’re 12 years apart.
But at the end of the day my opinion always is… If you both love the name, go with it! It’s not the end of the world if someone stutters or trips over their names, almost mixing them up. The only similarity is really the first letter. Besides that, they’re totally different.
For me, [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] and [name_m]Henry[/name_m] are too close. I wouldn’t be too concerned about how [name_m]Samuel[/name_m] flows with [name_m]William[/name_m] but rather how it flows with your surname. He will seldom say his first and middle name together and most people only use the middle to fill our registration forms, etc. I would avoid [name_u]Freddie[/name_u] if you don’t like [name_m]Fred[/name_m] because it will likely default to [name_m]Fred[/name_m] as an adult. I really like [name_m]Samuel[/name_m] for you if it sounds nice with your last name.
I don’t think [name_m]Henry[/name_m] and [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] are too close at all. They do start with both an “H”, but that’s the only connection. I say go for it.
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] [name_m]Williams[/name_m] is lovely.
I’ve heard parents call their 2 kids, [name_m]Harvey[/name_m] and [name_m]Harry[/name_m]… now for me, that is too close!
[name_m]Hugo[/name_m] and [name_m]Henry[/name_m] are fine to me! Not too close at all, as they both have a different sound. I would go with that if it’s your first choice. Also, I’m fond of [name_u]Freddie[/name_u], as that’s my son’s name––but I’ve been very explicit about not calling him [name_m]Fred[/name_m], so I see your concern. So go with [name_m]Henry[/name_m]!
I do not think [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] and [name_m]Henry[/name_m] are too similar. They both start with H and are 2 syllables… But all other sounds are different and to me they have very different vibes.
I don’t know the reasoning behind [name_m]William[/name_m] as a middle name. But my suggestion is [name_m]Wilfred[/name_m] to get to [name_u]Freddie[/name_u] and honor [name_m]William[/name_m], if [name_m]William[/name_m] is indeed being placed in the middle for honor reasons. Then, obviously, pick a new middle.
I don’t think [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] and [name_m]Henry[/name_m] are too close. The only sound they share is the first H. But isn’t [name_m]Henry[/name_m] pretty popular these days? If you’re worried about [name_m]Oliver[/name_m], I’d probably be worried about [name_m]Henry[/name_m] too. (The three Australian boys I know under 3 years are [name_m]Henry[/name_m], [name_m]Lachlan[/name_m], and [name_m]Jasper[/name_m].)
Yes, [name_m]Henry[/name_m] is popular, but not as popular as [name_m]Oliver[/name_m]. There were almost double the amount of [name_m]Oliver[/name_m]'s born vs [name_m]Henry[/name_m]'s last year. I’m not that worried about popularity, but just in my area the amount of [name_m]Oliver[/name_m]'s is insane. There are currently no [name_m]Henry[/name_m]'s in either my daughter or my son’s class. Obviously my other son is [name_m]Jack[/name_m], but that was for a family tradition.
I really love [name_u]Sam[/name_u], also, but my husband’s issue with [name_u]Sam[/name_u] is that my mothers name is [name_f]Samantha[/name_f], who gets called [name_u]Sam[/name_u]. He thinks that will get confusing, I disagree. Our surname starts with a “Sh” sound, and is short.