A little rant… So my husband and I had decided on a name for our son. It was a long process because I’m not from the US and I want a name that won’t sound out of place in either country, isn’t too popular in either country and about a dozen other criteria. Finally we found [name_m]Hugo[/name_m].
A few weeks ago we had a little party and we mentioned the name to DH’s aunt. She immediately hated it and she thinks it’s “too latino”. Now, I don’t care about her opinion and I don’t think it’s tied to any one culture (it’s been used in my northern European country for hundreds of years and I’ve met Hugos from several different countries). At first DH didn’t really care either, but lately he’s been having second thoughts. As they said it in ‘[name_m]How[/name_m] I met your mother’ “name a chubby white kid [name_m]LeBron[/name_m] and he’s the one getting stuffed in the hoop”. I’ve been trying to get him to forget about that, but I think some opinions from outsiders would help.
So my questions for you guys:
[name_m]How[/name_m] would you picture a [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] if you just saw his name on a paper? (Our last name is very Scandinavian and ends in -son)
Can you picture a blonde haired and blue eyed [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] or is that a mismatch?
Have you met any Hugos?
[name_m]Hugo[/name_m] does not have much of a latino vibe to me (not that this would be a bad thing) whereas a name like [name_m]Diego[/name_m] does. I can picture [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] on a child with any color eyes/hair. I picture someone who is an intellectual and perhaps athletic. It’s very multi-cultureal to me.
It is #6 in [name_u]Sweden[/name_u], so there are plenty of Scandinavian Hugos running around.
It is unfortunate that you shared your name choice with family as it can shake your confidence when someone makes a negative comment when they have no right to do so. This is your child to name and she probably had her own children to name. I would try to move on and choose what both of you love and it seems as though that name was [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] until those comments were made. For me, [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] fits into most any culture and I can definitely picture a blue eyed, blonde [name_m]Hugo[/name_m]. If [name_m]Hugo[/name_m]'s popularity is #6 in [name_u]Sweden[/name_u] you have nothing to worry about.
[name_m]Hugo[/name_m] actually gives me more of a Scandinavian or European vibe than Latino. there is a movie called [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] about an orphan boy living in the walls of a train station in 1930s [name_u]Paris[/name_u]. the boy in the movie has brown hair and blue eyes, and it didn’t seem odd or out of place.
I would not associate [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] with anything other than European / Scandinavian vibes, personally! I think of a blond or brown haired boy who loves to read.
But if I had to think of an association it would be to the movie about a little boy in [name_u]Paris[/name_u] … so I don’t associate it with a Latin vibe at all
I could totally picture a blonde blue eyed [name_m]Hugo[/name_m]
I wouldn’t get a latino vibe from the name [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] at all. It annoys me that his aunt would even consider that a bad thing, though… But anyway, you should have confidence in the name you love! We didn’t tell anyone our daughter’s name until she was born, because we knew a lot of people wouldn’t love it the way we did. But now (she just turned three last week) everyone agrees - [name_f]Alice[/name_f] [name_f]Pearl[/name_f] fits her perfectly!
I think, based on the criteria you listed and your last name, [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] is a wonderful choice. I can absolutely picture a little blond haired blue eyed [name_m]Hugo[/name_m]!
Im from latin america and [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] is not that common. I have a friend white as paper and ginger called [name_m]Hugo[/name_m]. So no, for me is not a latin name like [name_m]Francisco[/name_m] or [name_m]Rafael[/name_m].
[name_m]Hugo[/name_m] strikes me as [name_m]French[/name_m]… probably because of the author [name_m]Victor[/name_m] [name_m]Hugo[/name_m].
From Wikipedia - [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] is a surname and male given name of Germanic origin [name_m]Hugo[/name_m], meaning “[name_u]Bright[/name_u] in Mind and [name_f]Spirit[/name_f]” or “intelligence”.[1] The English version of the name is [name_m]Hugh[/name_m], the Italian version is [name_m]Ugo[/name_m]. For detailed history and etymology of the name, see [name_m]Hugh[/name_m] (given name).
[name_m]Hugo[/name_m] is one of the most popular given names in Europe, ranking as high as #9 in Spain,[2] and #8 in Belgium in 2006.[3]
Oh my goodness! It’s terrible that his aunt would be so rude! I don’t know any [name_m]Hugo[/name_m]'s. Other than seeing it on Nameberry, my only other association is [name_m]Harry[/name_m] [name_m]Potter[/name_m]. I think it is a very cool, handsome name that has a sweet yet mischievous sound. I don’t really picture [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] belonging to any one culture or having any certain features. I mean, I can easily picture a blonde haired blue eyed boy or a brown haired brown eyed boy, etc.
Also, you live in NY. Your state is quite the melting pot. I’m sure there are all kinds of people with all kinds of names from all sorts of different cultures walking around, and they get by.
[name_m]Hugo[/name_m] still strikes me as a very upper-crust British boys name to me, somethinf you’d hear from the upper classes. [name_m]Light[/name_m] brunette curls, perfect blue eyes, that kind of thing. Not to say it doesnt work for other cultures or ethnicities, but that’s what I first imagine when I hear the name.
When I think of a [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] I think of a European not Hispanic. I really hate it when family members think they have a say in what someone names there child. Some of my family member are nameing there kids (not born yet) some names that are horrible in my opinion BUT they like them so when they ask my opinion I say theyre cure names regardless of how I really feel. Idk how hard that is for a family to realize, not their kid not their choice.
I can imagine it on a kid of any nationality, and the idea that it’s only a it’s too Latino is rather rubbish to me–why is that a bad thing?! [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] is a lovely, international name that works on any nationality, and he’s so incredibly handsome!
For what it’s worth, the only [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] I have ever met was Brazilian (a ridiculously cute little boy with a baby sister named [name_f]Marina[/name_f]!), but obviously, [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] isn’t just used in [name_u]Brazil[/name_u], and it sounds like [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] is a perfect option for your international baby!
I’m Latin American myself (born and raised) and [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] doesn’t strike me as Latino at all. [name_m]Diego[/name_m], [name_m]Manuel[/name_m], [name_m]Javier[/name_m], those sounds very Latino but [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] is completely international for me. It’s never even been too common in my country, and mostly used in my parents’s generation (so if anything it strikes me as a dad name not a Latino name). The one [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] in my age range I met had paper white skin, hazel eyes and light brown hair, there’s a movie about a black haired blue eyed [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] and, like others have said, it’s a popular name in many European countries.
It’s a very handsome name and you love it, use it. Tell your aunt it’s your kid to name and that if she doesn’t like it she’s very welcome to keep her (slightly bigoted) opinions to herself.
Ok maybe don’t say that, but don’t let her opinions sway you
I don’t associate [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] with any particular culture. It has a UK/European vibe for me, in a good way, but not from any one country. I really like the name and think it is sophisticated and charming but very wearable. I would use it!
[name_m]Hugo[/name_m] is a super diverse name, definitely not just latino! I know a Latino [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] and a [name_m]German[/name_m] blonde-haired blue-eyed [name_m]Hugo[/name_m] who both wear the name perfectly. I definitely definitely don’t think this is a concern and I love the name!