deciding between slightly japanese names for our nugget

Boy Names
1

[name_m]Little[/name_m] nugget’s father has two names he absolutely has his heart set on, leaving me to choose between:

[name_u]Akira[/name_u] (like the 80’s anime)

and

[name_f]Sora[/name_f] (yes, like Kingdom Hearts)

Thankfully I’ve been able to veto all the other names I really didn’t like but I can be happy with one of these two if I find a middle name I like with them. Can you guys help me think of some names that will flow as middles? Our last name starts with H and is two syllables, which does make it a little tricky I feel like. They don’t have to be any certain type of middle names, I’m open to whatever may flow and sound nice with one of the names.

Side note: do you guys think [name_u]Akira[/name_u] sounds girly or will it come across as a male or unisex name? I just would hate to have the equivalent of naming my son “ashley” or “tracy,” something that is usually feminine. But I do know the websites I’ve looked at have listed the name as male. [name_m]Just[/name_m] let me know what you think. Thanks. :slight_smile:

2

[name_u]Akira[/name_u] and [name_f]Sora[/name_f] both sound more feminine to me. Are you and/or your son’s father Japanese? If so, perhaps your baby can pull off one of these names. If not, these seem like odd choices. I’m admittedly not into anime or video games so the references mean nothing to me, but that will be true for the majority of people your son meets throughout his life.

It sounds like you’re also not thrilled with either of these, to be honest. Choosing a baby’s name (I think) should be done jointly – not having baby’s dad give you a short list of options and you settling on one you “can be happy with”. It might be worth going back to the drawing board and thinking of names you each like and then looking for compromise.

3

I know a Japanese male called [name_u]Akira[/name_u] so it is definitely a boys name.

Both are nice, hard to decide… I think I like [name_f]Sora[/name_f] a little better. It has great imagery

4

Both sound more feminine to me because of the ‘ra’ ending, but [name_u]Akira[/name_u] less so because it reminds me of Akhil.

What about [name_m]Akiro[/name_m]?

I love Japanese names, but these both seem like odd choices if you are looking to avoid the “[name_u]Ashley[/name_u]/[name_u]Tracy[/name_u]” problem in an English-speaking country. I also agree that it doesn’t sound like you like them that much.

[name_m]Akio[/name_m]
[name_m]Hiro[/name_m]
[name_m]Hiroshi[/name_m]
Mamoru
[name_m]Koda[/name_m]
[name_m]Kenji[/name_m]
Kenta
Koji
[name_m]Jiro[/name_m]
Shiro
[name_m]Takeo[/name_m]
[name_m]Toshio[/name_m]
[name_u]Yoshi[/name_u]

[name_m]Akiro[/name_m] [name_m]Jonas[/name_m]
[name_m]Akiro[/name_m] [name_u]James[/name_u]
[name_m]Akiro[/name_m] [name_m]Joshua[/name_m]
[name_m]Akiro[/name_m] [name_m]William[/name_m]
[name_m]Akiro[/name_m] [name_u]Everest[/name_u]
[name_m]Akiro[/name_m] [name_u]Elliot[/name_u]
[name_m]Akiro[/name_m] [name_m]Cove[/name_m]
[name_m]Akiro[/name_m] [name_u]Finn[/name_u]

5

I like [name_u]Akira[/name_u] a little better–comes across as slightly more unisex and avoids the “sore” syllable. Both could work, though, even if they do sound a little feminine. People name their boys [name_u]Luca[/name_u] and [name_m]Joshua[/name_m], so I don’t think [name_f]Sora[/name_f] and [name_u]Akira[/name_u] are all that far out of the norm anyway.

[name_m]Akiro[/name_m] is a great suggestion. It has that more masculine feel you want but still sounds almost exactly like Dad’s precious [name_u]Akira[/name_u]. If he’s willing to compromise even a little, I think it could really work well for your family.

Okay, middle names! Here are some ideas:

[name_u]Akira[/name_u] [name_u]Michael[/name_u], [name_u]Akira[/name_u] [name_u]Parker[/name_u], [name_u]Akira[/name_u] [name_m]Wyatt[/name_m], [name_u]Akira[/name_u] [name_m]Thomas[/name_m], [name_u]Akira[/name_u] [name_u]Lane[/name_u], [name_u]Akira[/name_u] [name_m]Dalton[/name_m], [name_u]Akira[/name_u] [name_m]Vincent[/name_m], [name_u]Akira[/name_u] [name_m]Zachary[/name_m], [name_u]Akira[/name_u] [name_m]Nolan[/name_m], [name_u]Akira[/name_u] [name_m]Nathaniel[/name_m], [name_u]Akira[/name_u] [name_m]George[/name_m], [name_u]Akira[/name_u] [name_u]Finn[/name_u], [name_u]Akira[/name_u] [name_u]Jordan[/name_u]

[name_f]Sora[/name_f] [name_m]Timothy[/name_m], [name_f]Sora[/name_f] [name_m]Daniel[/name_m], [name_f]Sora[/name_f] [name_u]Dylan[/name_u], [name_f]Sora[/name_f] [name_u]Charlie[/name_u], [name_f]Sora[/name_f] [name_u]Jace[/name_u], [name_f]Sora[/name_f] [name_m]Felix[/name_m], [name_f]Sora[/name_f] [name_u]Carter[/name_u], [name_f]Sora[/name_f] [name_m]Cole[/name_m], [name_f]Sora[/name_f] [name_m]Dominic[/name_m], [name_f]Sora[/name_f] [name_m]Jasper[/name_m], [name_f]Sora[/name_f] [name_m]Quentin[/name_m], [name_f]Sora[/name_f] [name_m]Nicholas[/name_m], [name_f]Sora[/name_f] [name_u]Tate[/name_u], [name_f]Sora[/name_f] [name_m]Leander[/name_m]

Honestly, most of those middle names could probably work for both [name_u]Akira[/name_u] and [name_f]Sora[/name_f]. Or even [name_m]Akiro[/name_m]. I don’t really know what style you like, but if you’re compromising on the first name, the middle is your place to mix and match as much as you want to. Go wild. :slight_smile:

One last thing: don’t forget that your opinion is equally valid as his in this process. It’s so important that even if you don’t love the name you end up picking, you at least have some kind of connection or feel like it’s going to grow on you. You don’t want to end up resenting anyone because of the name. Right now you sound less than enthusiastic, but not actively opposed–which could be a good thing or a bad thing. Of course, I can’t see inside your brain, and I don’t know what kind of conversations you guys have had before this. The best thing I can tell you is to trust yourself.

Best wishes and good luck with little nugget!