To me both spellings are all-boy, and I haven’t met a child with either spelling so it’s hard to imagine it on a girl as of now.
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I think it’s a masculine name too. It’s just my personal opinion but think it’s kind of disappointing that all these male names have to be hijacked and used as unisex names. Isn’t there enough girl names out there lol? [name_m]Just[/name_m] my opinion though.
I think of [name_u]Finley[/name_u] as the more masculine option.
In [name_f]Scotland[/name_f], [name_u]Finlay[/name_u] is very common on boys and doesn’t really rank for girls, whereas [name_u]Finley[/name_u] ranks much less higher than [name_u]Finlay[/name_u] for boys, and also ranks for girls. So if you want the Scottish version, [name_u]Finlay[/name_u] would be the better choice. I also personally think [name_u]Finlay[/name_u] looks better. [name_m]Findlay[/name_m] is also fairly popular here in itself, and is very masculine.
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Thanks. That’s helpful. I much prefer [name_u]Finlay[/name_u]. [name_f]Do[/name_f] you see [name_u]Finlay[/name_u] as more of the name option and [name_m]Findlay[/name_m] the surname?
Not really to be honest! I know a few men/boys who’s first name is [name_u]Finlay[/name_u] and a few people who’s surname is [name_u]Finlay[/name_u] in roughly equal amounts, but [name_m]Findlay[/name_m] I’ve only ever seen as a first name (but obviously it is also used as a surname).
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I don’t find either spelling more or less masculine, but I do prefer [name_u]Finley[/name_u] visually.
Honestly, [name_u]Finley[/name_u] seems very feminine to me. [name_m]Finnian[/name_m] or [name_m]Finnegan[/name_m] seem more masculine. However, I would say the [name_m]Findlay[/name_m] spelling is the most masculine, imo. But if that’s not an option then [name_u]Finlay[/name_u]
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I am debating between [name_u]Finlay[/name_u] and [name_m]Findlay[/name_m] at the moment.
But it’s only a middle name. It’s to honour my partner’s side and Scottish roots. Our surname is very Scottish. Thanks all.
It looks like both have been used for boys historically. [name_u]Finlay[/name_u] is uniquely the spelling used in [name_f]Scotland[/name_f], but [name_u]Finley[/name_u] is also used in [name_f]England[/name_f] and [name_m]Wales[/name_m] and the US.
To me I am not sure that one spelling is more masculine or feminine over the other. This is a bit like the [name_u]Lindsey[/name_u] vs [name_u]Lindsay[/name_u] debate and the [name_u]Leslie[/name_u] vs [name_u]Lesley[/name_u] one. [name_u]Lesley[/name_u] is said to be more feminine than [name_u]Leslie[/name_u] because it ends in -ey. But then [name_u]Lindsay[/name_u] is said to be more feminine than [name_u]Lindsey[/name_u] because it ends in -ay. It’s so confusing and inconsistent that I don’t think there is an actual rule anymore.
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Finlay is the more popular spelling in [name_f]Scotland[/name_f]. Changing one letter does not make it any more or less masculine.
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Both are all boy to me but if you’re in an area where it’s being used for girls I’d go with [name_u]Finlay[/name_u]
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Thanks yeah I was actually just looking for the Scottish version of the name, with the knowledge that it was now considered a unisex name.
If [name_u]Finlay[/name_u]/Findlay is the more traditional Scottish version then that is what I will be using.
Also from the Midwest and know one little girl [name_u]Finley[/name_u] and one 25 yo boy [name_u]Finley[/name_u], but multiple Finns in the preteen to teen age group! I’ve never met a [name_u]Finlay[/name_u] and [name_m]Findlay[/name_m] is a place here but I think [name_u]Finley[/name_u] or [name_u]Finlay[/name_u] is fine!
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I love this name. More so for girls but I’m also Scottish so I love that it fits with my heritage. I like [name_u]Finlay[/name_u] or [name_m]Findlay[/name_m]