benjamin, oliver, or elijah?

These are our top 3 choices right now-- last name is [name]Smith[/name]. I’m interested in thoughts/feedback. What is your reaction when you hear each of these names?

I lean towards [name]Oliver[/name]! I love it! [name]Benjamin[/name] seems too “plain” in comparison to the others, but I’m totally in love with [name]Bennett[/name] (if you like that option). I really like [name]Elijah[/name] as well. The nn [name]Eli[/name] is so spunky and fun!

[name]Benjamin[/name]!

I love [name]Elijah[/name], and [name]Eli[/name], but somehow with [name]Smith[/name], [name]Benjamin[/name] seems to flow better.

[name]Oliver[/name] is cute, but a little nerdy.

[name]Benjamin[/name] [name]Smith[/name], [name]Ben[/name] [name]Smith[/name] - handsome
[name]Oliver[/name] [name]Smith[/name] - I really love the name [name]Oliver[/name], but with [name]Smith[/name], I love [name]Benjamin[/name] more.
[name]Elijah[/name] [name]Smith[/name] - this is also handsome, but my fave with [name]Smith[/name] is still [name]Benjamin[/name].

I totally agree with this post. Because your LN is so common and plain you can afford to use a FN that unique and/or full of flair! I would definitely try to go with that. You could even use a totally out there middle name just to create some excitement :slight_smile:

Right, with our last name being [name]Smith[/name] we do need to spice things up a little! But I know I want something classic, just not boring. I’m drawn to [name]Oliver[/name] right now but have this hesitancy that I can’t put a finger on. Is it that I don’t know any Olivers? Is it too Dickensian? It’s a name I had never though of using before. But it’s charming I think…

[name]Benjamin[/name]/nn [name]Ben[/name]-- both handsome names, classic, I’ve always liked… is it really too dull?

My husband would like the middle name to be [name]Stephen[/name] after his father and I fully support that. Who uses their middle name anyway?

[name]Hi[/name]! I love [name]Oliver[/name] and [name]Benjamin[/name], but with [name]Stephen[/name] in the middle, I’m going to vote for [name]Oliver[/name] [name]Stephen[/name] [name]Smith[/name].

Good luck! :slight_smile:

I’d vote for [name]Benjamin[/name], mostly because [name]Ben[/name] is such a solid, everyman kind of nn. He can sound scholarly and distinguished with [name]Benjamin[/name], and then just be one of the guys with [name]Ben[/name]. [name]Ollie[/name] and [name]Eli[/name] don’t offer the same as nns for their formal versions in my opinion.

I vote for [name]Oliver[/name] because it’s not as over-processed as [name]Benjamin[/name] or [name]Elijah[/name]. [name]Oliver[/name] is unexpected (depending on where you live) and there are other nn’s aside from [name]Ollie[/name] that you can use such as [name]Ol[/name], [name]Noll[/name] or [name]River[/name]. :slight_smile:
Best of luck and congrats!

My reaction to these names

[name]Benjamin[/name], Boring, overused, tired, nn of [name]Ben[/name] okay
[name]Oliver[/name], Classical English name, don’t like nn of [name]Ollie[/name], very popular
[name]Elijah[/name], Too far out for my naming taste

Having said it is too far out I like

[name]Jeremiah[/name] [name]Smith[/name]
[name]Reuben[/name] [name]Smith[/name]
[name]Jamison[/name] [name]Smith[/name]
[name]Preston[/name] [name]Smith[/name]
[name]Langley[/name] [name]Smith[/name]
[name]Carmichael[/name] [name]Smith[/name]
[name]Cameron[/name] [name]Smith[/name]
[name]Timothy[/name] [name]Smith[/name]

[name]Oliver[/name] [name]Smith[/name] has my vote as its on my list too! Has the bonus of [name]Ollie[/name]/[name]Olly[/name] as the nn. I love [name]Benjamin[/name] but find [name]Ben[/name] a little dull (sorry!). Not too keen on [name]Elijah[/name], not sure why, maybe because i have never known anyone with this name

all are lovely so you cant go wrong. [name]Oliver[/name] is my favorite .

[name]Oliver[/name] [name]Stephen[/name] [name]Smith[/name] happens to be a very complimentary set of sounds together. It makes for a really handsome name!

[name]Benjamin[/name] [name]Oliver[/name] [name]Smith[/name] and [name]Elijah[/name] [name]Oliver[/name] [name]Smith[/name] are other nice options.

I’m pregnant at the moment and [name]Oliver[/name] and [name]Elijah[/name] are both on our list - nice choices!

I like [name]Benjamin[/name] too - but more as a middle name.

I was reminded that [name]Stephen[/name] is fairly definite for the middle name. (I love [name]Stephen[/name]! I strongly considered it for my sons.)

Of your top three names with [name]Stephen[/name], I like them in this order:

(1) [name]Oliver[/name] [name]Stephen[/name] [name]Smith[/name] (ultimate flow of names)

(2) [name]Benjamin[/name] [name]Stephen[/name] [name]Smith[/name] (It might not matter at all, but a slight drawback is the ending “in” sound in both [name]Benjamin[/name] & [name]Stephen[/name]). Nonetheless, the more I think about this combo, the more I like it.

(3) [name]Elijah[/name] [name]Stephen[/name] [name]Smith[/name] (It might just be me, but doesn’t seem to flow quite as well. All very handsome names though!)