I really like the idea of “[name]Junior[/name]”. My husband does, too. His name is [name]Christopher[/name] [name]Richard[/name]. I love his first name, but not so much [name]Richard[/name]. The only nickname I like for [name]Christopher[/name] is [name]Chris[/name] (I like [name]Kit[/name] but my mom is [name]Kitty[/name], and I don’t much care for [name]Topher[/name], plus my [name]MIL[/name] absolutely hates it). I don’t like the idea of calling my son the same thing as my husband, and I also wouldn’t lie call in him [name]Junior[/name].
Then I realized just now that we could call him [name]Hart[/name] for [name]RicHARD[/name]. Which is one of my very favorite nicknames for a boy! And I’ve never been in love with any longer forms of it. I feel like [name]Ive[/name] missed out on a golden opportunity, though!
So what do you think? Is the first son the only one who can be a junior?
Unequivocably, yes – to the question of whether a junior can be the second, third, or fourth son. The “junior” in the family is whichever boy is given the same name as his father. Although it is commonly the firstborn son, it is not always the first, and it is just as valid if it is the tenth son.
I am glad to hear you think so. [name]Do[/name] you think that it’s generally acceptable? My husband is not so sure…
I posted a reply on your other thread, but the bottom-line answer is that – it is absolutely fine and acceptable! In a round-about way, when it occurs on a second (or later) son, it paints a picture of both parents being fully on board with the decision. It is so sweet that you both feel good about it! There are many instances of this, but I’ll check on the frequency within a large family tree database I have.
In my database of 4,900 families, there are 379 Juniors. (This does not include sons who were III, IV, etc.)
First-born juniors = 258
Later-born juniors = 121
Of the later-born juniors:
Second sons = 72
Third sons = 26
Fourth sons = 13
Fifth sons = 8
Sixth sons = 1
Seventh sons = 1
Often, it appears that the parents met other naming ‘obligations’ first before using the father’s name. For example, sometimes the first sons were named after the husband’s father, and/or the wife’s father, or a brother first and then a later son was a junior. Other times, the parents just used one or more non-family names first and then decided to name a junior.