Boy names on girls

Hello! “Boy names” on girls is kind of a sore topic here, and I want to get some opinions.

I have never met an [name_u]Emerson[/name_u] or an [name_u]Emery[/name_u] that was a boy. I didn’t even consider it as a boy name until I joined nameberry in the fall. Its actually on my list for girls, but as with all unisex names, it did need a feminine middle. [name_u]Emerson[/name_u] [name_f]Lily[/name_f] is probably one of the names on my favorites list that has been there the longest.

I have always liked unisex names. [name_u]Leighton[/name_u] is very girly in my opinion, but I’ve been told on different sites that it’s strictly for boys. I disagree entirely, [name_u]Leighton[/name_u] [name_f]Rose[/name_f] is one of my most favorite names, and [name_u]Leighton[/name_u] was given to more girls than boys in 2013, 2012, AND 2011. I haven’t searched up years before then. [name_u]Reese[/name_u] is a name I love for both sexes, but [name_u]Reese[/name_u] [name_f]Chloe[/name_f] and [name_u]Reese[/name_u] [name_f]Hannah[/name_f] were brought up by my sister, and so now It’s on my favorite list for girls. I’m also crushing on [name_m]Maddox[/name_m] for either. Being a [name_m]Matt[/name_m] myself (My name is [name_u]Mattie[/name_u]) I don’t think it’s damaging to give a child a boy name. Actually, I prefer [name_m]Matt[/name_m] when I am getting a name tag or something, because people spell [name_u]Mattie[/name_u] with D’s as in [name_f]Maddie[/name_f].

[name_f]Do[/name_f] you have any you love of or hate? Your opinion on unisex names?

[name_m]Just[/name_m] because a name might be more common on girls doesn’t mean it isn’t a boys name.

Also, just because you hear more girls being given a name doesn’t necessarily mean anything. That’s just your area, the world is so much bigger than just that area.

Giving boy names to girls is so silly. [name_m]Will[/name_m] you name your son [name_f]Susy[/name_f] or [name_f]Isabel[/name_f] or [name_f]Maude[/name_f]? No? Then don’t give your daughter a boys name.

Unisex names are a personal style or taste. There is nothing wrong or even strange about them at all. Boys and girls are not so different that we need to set limits on names, and I think that doing so would actually be more damaging then letting them share names. That is my opinion.

Anyways, [name_u]Emerson[/name_u] has a great literary reference. [name_u]Eliot[/name_u] is great too (for [name_m]George[/name_m] [name_u]Eliot[/name_u] who was female).

Maybe I wouldn’t name a boy [name_f]Isabel[/name_f] or [name_f]Maude[/name_f], but I would name one [name_u]Ashley[/name_u] or [name_u]Darcy[/name_u], and [name_f]Lynne[/name_f] is a male family name.

Also, a boy who acts like a girl would get teased. A girl who acts like a boy is just a tomboy. I’m not saying that’s right, but kids can be mean.

I am [name_m]Matt[/name_m], and my name doesn’t make me feel like a boy at all. Actually, I love my name.

This is why I hate boys names on girls: once a boys name gets popular on girls, most parents of boys run in the opposite direction away from that name because now it is deemed “girly” so once again, another fantastic boys name is lost to the girls. I don’t like how slapping a boys name on a girl makes that name unisex, as if calling it unisex justifies it. If you name your son [name_f]Emily[/name_f], people would chastise you for giving your son a weak and girly name which apparently isn’t ok. But it is ok to name your daughter [name_u]Ryan[/name_u] because “it’s such a strong name”. What that comes down to in my opinion is that people still view femininity as weak. You can’t name a boy a girl name because that’s weak, and why give a girl a feminine name when she can have a strong name. It’s a giant double standard and really shows how people view femininity. That’s my problem with it. I know not everyone who names their daughter a boys name does it for that reason, but for those who do, it drives me nuts.

^ I second what ad10 says

For the record. I only know boy Emersons and Emerys (and the name [name_u]Emery[/name_u] is 100000% tied to the film [name_f]Rose[/name_f] [name_u]Red[/name_u] for me, and just gives me creepy shivers when I hear it).

[name_u]Ashley[/name_u], [name_u]Darcy[/name_u], and [name_u]Lynn[/name_u] are all names that were boy names originally, so naming your kid [name_u]Ashley[/name_u] isn’t giving a boy a girl’s name. It’s giving a boy a boy’s name that was taken over by girls. If you wouldn’t dream of naming a boy [name_f]Isabel[/name_f], then I would suggest you reconsider why you’re willing to name a girl [name_u]Emerson[/name_u]. While it might not be your view, society in general views femininity as weak and inferior, and this is why that male names on girls are seen as “so cute/spunky/fun”!! while feminine names (or even unisex names) on boys are snickered at, and those parents who do choose to bestow them are often given snide comments. It might not be what you want or what you endorse, but if you’re against that societal attitude, you might want to reconsider how your taste in names supports that same attitude.

That seems harsh/blunt, and it isn’t directed at you, just at namers in general. But if you don’t want to see a boy named [name_u]Emerson[/name_u]/[name_u]Ashley[/name_u]/[name_u]Mackenzie[/name_u] bullied because he “has a girl’s name,” maybe stop stealing the boy names and giving them to girls. And if you want girls to be seen as equal and not inferior, don’t reinforce the idea that masculine is superior by giving them masculine names.

It bothers me when people say things like “Well boys will be made fun of if they’re given girl names, but girls aren’t made fun of so it’s ok for girls” because these two points are related. Boys are made fun of for being given girl names BECAUSE girls aren’t made fun of for being given boy names; Because masculinity is viewed as superior and femininity is viewed as weak and inferior. It drives me nuts when people act like those points aren’t directly related to each other. It’s not just a random coincidence.

And to the pp, [name_m]George[/name_m] [name_u]Eliot[/name_u] wrote under the name [name_m]George[/name_m] [name_u]Eliot[/name_u] because she lived in a time where women writers weren’t taken seriously; She didn’t adopt a man’s name to be fresh or fun, she did it because women writers were considered frivolous and silly at best, and she wanted her writing to be taken seriously, and the only way she could do that was under a false name. Because of that, I don’t think it would exactly honor her contribution to literature to name a girl [name_u]Eliot[/name_u]; if you love her writing and desperately want to honor her, I think it would be much more appropriate to use her real name: [name_f]Mary[/name_f] [name_f]Ann[/name_f] [name_m]Evans[/name_m].

^exactly 100% how I see it, you just expressed it much better than I could ever do haha. I must add on that names such as [name_f]McKenzie[/name_f] or [name_u]MadiSON[/name_u] etc on girls drive me nuts because [name_m]Mac[/name_m] or Mc means “son of” and names ending in -son (except Allison) denote “son of” so why name your daughter a name meaning son? I don’t know ha. I can’t help but give my opinion on this topic

Boy names on girls is one of my biggest pet peeves for baby names. It’s tied for first with made-up names and ridiculous spellings. When there are countless names that are beautiful and feminine and actually meant for girls, why would you limit yourself to following a trend and choosing a masculine name? It’s something I’ll never understand. There are SO many girl names. Why take from the boys?

I hate hate hate boys names or unisex names or even ‘girl names that used to be boy names’ for girls. And I agree with ad10 and ameliawilliams, this is not just a matter of taste it’s also a matter of feminism. Of course everyone will do what they wanna do, but you wanted opinions. I just HATE it.

And maybe you are ok with being named [name_m]Matt[/name_m], but your child might not be. I sure as hell wound’t wanna be named anything that ends with -son for example. Why in the world I would want my name to mean ‘son of __’? I wouldn’t want any other boys names too, even with an agender meaning. The only thing I can stand is proper girl names with masculine nns, ie [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f] nn [name_u]Charlie[/name_u].

Exactly what the last few posters have said! (Though the exception to the -son rule is [name_f]Alison[/name_f].) I just don’t see the appeal. I had little girls (twins) names [name_u]Stanley[/name_u] and [name_m]Zachary[/name_m] (and in fairness they had a little brother named [name_f]Layla[/name_f].) absolutely horrible for those kids!! The names can’t even be shortened into something slightly feminine.
Those crazy examples aside, even names that are currently “gender ambiguous” such as [name_u]Jordan[/name_u] and [name_u]Riley[/name_u] get under my skin.

I’m really sorry, but I absolutely loathe boy names on girls. Cannot. stand. it.

Some are OK, although I prefer nearly all of the unisex names on boys anyway. I’d say names like [name_u]Emerson[/name_u] and [name_u]Darcy[/name_u] are OK to give to girls, but I prefer both on boys. Names like [name_u]Ryan[/name_u] and [name_u]James[/name_u] on girls just irk me, though. Why would you do that? Girls have plenty of strong, feminine names. I’d rather meet an [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] or an [name_f]Arabella[/name_f] than a female [name_u]Ryan[/name_u] or [name_u]James[/name_u].

I am going to be the odd one out and say I [name_u]LOVE[/name_u] boy names on girls. Now, I definitely don’t love all boy names on girls. (Like, I CRINGE when I hear of a girl [name_u]Ryan[/name_u] or [name_u]Dylan[/name_u].) But [name_u]Leighton[/name_u], [name_u]Rory[/name_u], [name_u]Remi[/name_u], [name_f]Charlee[/name_f], and [name_f]Brighton[/name_f] are some of my favorite names. They just feel spunky to me and I love it.

People on Nameberry can be pretty judgmental of certain naming styles; I got chewed out a few weeks ago over my love of the name [name_u]Remi[/name_u] for a girl. If you like boy names on girls, I say go for it.

I have to disagree with the fact that giving a boy a girl’s name will end up with them being teased, I know a male [name_u]Leighton[/name_u], [name_u]Jody[/name_u], Jayd, [name_u]Remi[/name_u], [name_u]Ashley[/name_u] and [name_u]Emerson[/name_u]. [name_u]Emerson[/name_u] in Australia tends to be more commonly used on boys here, my cousin [name_u]Ashley[/name_u] had two female [name_u]Ashley[/name_u]/[name_f]Ashleigh[/name_f]'s in his year group even though [name_u]Ashley[/name_u] is still considered more unisex than a girl’s name like it is in Australia and elsewhere now, [name_u]Jody[/name_u] had a [name_u]Jodie[/name_u] in his class, Jayd knew several [name_f]Jade[/name_f]'s, [name_u]Remi[/name_u] dated a girl [name_u]Remy[/name_u] and [name_u]Leighton[/name_u] shared his class with [name_f]Leigha[/name_f]/[name_u]Leighton[/name_u] and [name_f]Leeanne[/name_f]'s. I think only one of them ever has an issue with their name, and talking to them they didn’t mind they that shared a name with several females who shared their names, they might of been teased by some friends as a joke in High School but it resulted in no bullying or name changes.

I think the names you have chosen are considered unisex, but I just don’t like the idea of giving my daughter a name that means ‘son of’- I think their are plenty of girls names that have a strong sound to them ([name_f]Clover[/name_f], [name_f]Millicent[/name_f], [name_f]Fern[/name_f], [name_f]Scarlett[/name_f], [name_f]Gwendolyn[/name_f]) but there are also plenty I think work on either sex ([name_u]Leighton[/name_u], [name_u]Morgan[/name_u], [name_u]Rory[/name_u] and [name_u]Darcy[/name_u])

I don’t like just any boy name on a girl but there are a few I like. I think for the most part the trend has gone over board. [name_f]My[/name_f] husband and I are also considering [name_u]Emery[/name_u] as our girl name. I also like…

[name_u]Avery[/name_u]
[name_u]Madison[/name_u]
[name_u]Reese[/name_u]
[name_u]Amory[/name_u]

But things like [name_u]Hunter[/name_u], [name_u]Bentley[/name_u], [name_u]Chase[/name_u] or [name_u]Blake[/name_u] on a girl is just ridiculous!

I just posted this one another thread (which is why the first bit won’t make much sense) but here’s why I have no problem with unisex names and why I actually like them.

We discussed a similar thing at my uni the other day (we even brought up the pink was for boys and blue was for girls thing!) - the ideas of masculinity and feminity aren’t changing, but perceptions of the two are. Gender (which is different to sex) is slowly being recognised as a social construct rather then a biological one. As well as that, the perception of what it is to be female in particular is changing, which is why we’re probably seeing a growing trend in more “masculine” names for girls ( by that I just mean ones that aren’t so frilly and lacey and delicate - not that there’s anything wrong with those traits of course) and traditionally boys’ names becoming more unisex. There have also been studies showing that the more liberal parents (when I say liberal, I mean the traditional meaning, not the Australian political party, which is an ironically named conservative government) actually prefer boys names with softer, lighter sounds - which would probably have been called feminine only a couple of decades ago. (If I can be bothered to find the article again, I’ll try and post it. I think it was also based on American parents, so it might not apply to everyone).

And for the record, I love [name_u]Leighton[/name_u], [name_u]Emerson[/name_u] and [name_u]Emery[/name_u] on both boys and girls names, so they’re my favourites from the ones you listed. As for whether people like unisex names or not, that’s their opinion and if you really love these names, you shouldn’t change your mind because of what some random people on the internet say.

I tend not to like unisex names, or and boys names on girls irritates me… Especially as my favourite boy names are currently being taken over by girls. ([name_u]Austen[/name_u], [name_u]Elliott[/name_u], [name_u]Elisha[/name_u])

However- I [name_u]LOVE[/name_u] long feminine names that can have boyish nicknames, I think it’s really cute! For example, [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f]-[name_u]Charlie[/name_u], [name_f]Matilda[/name_f]-[name_u]Mattie[/name_u], [name_f]Josephine[/name_f]-[name_u]Jo[/name_u] (my name), and so on.

And I also want to add in that the lines between gender are blurring. We see it in clothes, art, music, careers and jobs and now we’re seeing it in names. (And to those people who say that you wouldn’t use [name_f]Arabella[/name_f] and [name_f]Caroline[/name_f] and [name_f]Diana[/name_f] on boys, well I wouldn’t use [name_m]Arthur[/name_m] and [name_m]Frederick[/name_m] and [name_m]Barney[/name_m] on girls either. So what it comes down to for me - and for lots of people - is the sound and the meaning rather then the traditionally intended gender and if that’s the worst thing a parent is ever going to do to a child - name their kid unisex names - then they must be pretty damn good parents).

And also the idea that there can’t be names for both genders (people who say “my favourite names are being taken over by the other gender!”) is isolating and divisive and it in turn reflects the idea of an unequal society, where there have to be clear lines between boys and girls.

I named my daughter [name_u]Emerson[/name_u], and it suits her perfectly. We toyed around with used it for a boys name, but any diminutive of it sounded ridiculously girly. [name_f]Em[/name_f] or [name_f]Emmy[/name_f] is girly, and it was scratched as a boys name option.

[name_f]Do[/name_f] I like boys names for girls? shrug We actually like last names, but that’s a whole other silly debate that gets people’s knickers twisted in a knot.

To use the excuse that naming your daughter with a “Mc” or a “son” referring to son of, as why not to use it! would ONLY be valid if you also professed to say it was wrong to use that name incorrectly on a boy. After all, [name_u]Emerson[/name_u] means “son of [name_u]Emery[/name_u]” and if neither you or your partner is named [name_u]Emery[/name_u], then it’s just as ridiculous claiming it as it would be for its “son of” definition for a girl.

I like nameberry… Lots of judgemental people yes, but at least they attempt to say it in a nice way. Go to WTE [name_u]Baby[/name_u] Name Game, and you get all the nastiness coming out there. So congrats to everyone for at least keeping it classy despite disagreeing :slight_smile:

On a side note: I now know three [name_u]Emerson[/name_u]'s in Australia, not a single one of them is a boy.

I have a unisex name and have never liked it. That’s why any daughters I have will have long, frilly, beautiful, feminine names!