I am currently in love with many old-fashioned male names that start with the letter A.
[name_m]Arthur[/name_m], [name_m]Alfred[/name_m], [name_m]Alaric[/name_m], [name_m]Alastair[/name_m], [name_m]Amos[/name_m], even [name_m]Albert[/name_m] I love.
But [name_m]Arnold[/name_m]… [name_m]Arnold[/name_m] I loathe. It actually makes my skin crawl (no offense meant to any Arnolds out there).
It can’t be because it’s nerdy or clunky, because those names charm me.
[name_m]Benedict[/name_m] [name_m]Arnold[/name_m] may influence me as may [name_m]Arnold[/name_m] Zeck, [name_m]Nero[/name_m] [name_m]Wolfe[/name_m]'s arch nemesis.
I might be put off by that unattractive boy in college, though as I remember his name was as much a turn-off as his teeth.
Maybe it has to do with the word sounding or looking like gnarled, gnarly. Or the -nold or -old ending, but I even appreciate Theobold, not exactly a hip young name.
I’m curious how others feel about [name_m]Arnold[/name_m] ([name_m]Arnie[/name_m], another count against it), especially those like me who do enjoy many of the other clunky, nostalgic A male names.
I really like all the other names you mentioned, but I have to agree [name_m]Arnold[/name_m] doesn’t sound right. Although I do like [name_m]Arnie[/name_m], it has a ring to it.
…I love [name_m]Ambrose[/name_m], [name_m]Alastair[/name_m], [name_m]Amos[/name_m], and [name_u]August[/name_u]. I even love [name_m]Alan[/name_m], which is in old-but-not-old-enough-to-be-cool for a lot of people.
Ar- names…
…I love [name_u]Ari[/name_u] and [name_m]Arturo[/name_m], [name_m]Arthur[/name_m], [name_m]Aryeh[/name_m], & yes even [name_u]Ariel[/name_u] on a boy.
But [name_m]Arnold[/name_m] is very difficult to like. I liked an [name_m]Arnold[/name_m] in the family (old man, WWII vet) very much, cool guy, but since there’s a condition under which I’ve promised to name after him, I’m glad that in naming after him that my family usually initial-matches, and that his religious name was a form of [name_m]Aaron[/name_m]. [name_m]Aaron[/name_m]/[name_m]Aron[/name_m]/[name_m]Arun[/name_m]/[name_m]Aharon[/name_m] is easier for me to deal with, I’m not sure why. Though I guess “less clunky than [name_m]Arnold[/name_m]” is not a high bar?
I love all the other names you list, but [name_m]Arnold[/name_m] just sounds very unattractive to me. All I can see when I hear the name is Hey [name_m]Arnold[/name_m]! I did love the show, but the name is ugly.
Yeah, I can’t stand the name [name_m]Arnold[/name_m] either. It doesn’t sound attractive. I think of Schwarzenegger first, and then [name_m]Benedict[/name_m] [name_m]Arnold[/name_m], neither of which is a positive association. I also did think of Hey [name_m]Arnold[/name_m]!, which was a cute show, but then I just think of [name_f]Helga[/name_f]'s nickname for [name_m]Arnold[/name_m], “football head,” which kills it even more.
I like a lot of the names you listed but, I agree [name_m]Arnold[/name_m] is hard to love. There really isn’t a great nickname for [name_m]Arnold[/name_m]. Since nicknames are huge right now I think it turns most of use away from [name_m]Arnold[/name_m]. I personally liked ‘Hey [name_m]Arnold[/name_m]’ when I was younger. Though not enough to think of [name_m]Arnold[/name_m] as useable.
I actually like the name [name_m]Arnold[/name_m]. I don’t know if I like it enough to use as a first name though. I think I like it because it has personal meaning to me - growing up we would always go to our summer lake home in the city of Arnolds [name_m]Park[/name_m]. I prefer many other A names as first names however and I would like to avoid a repeating first initial which means [name_m]Arnold[/name_m] is only middle name material. If it wasn’t for the personal connection I don’t think I’d like [name_m]Arnold[/name_m] as much.
I agree, I love a lot of clunky, old A names ([name_m]Alfred[/name_m], [name_m]Albert[/name_m], [name_m]Arthur[/name_m]), but [name_m]Arnold[/name_m] has never charmed me. I think of the cartoon character and his wacky hair lol, or a creepy old man! Could work as a middle, I guess, if it has a family connection x