I am due with my fifth child in about a month and we need help naming him. We have 4 kids already: [name_m]Nels[/name_m], [name_f]Greta[/name_f], [name_m]Jakob[/name_m], and [name_m]Anders[/name_m].
As you can tell, our children all have a similar style of name. We are Finnish, so the name needs to be either Scandinavian or Russian (although we might change the spelling to make it easier). We have a few options already, but would also appreciate suggestions.
[name_u]Isak[/name_u] (pronounced ee-sock): This is our top contender at the moment, but I’m not sold. I’m afraid that it will always be pronounced as “[name_m]Isaac[/name_m]”, and it just doesn’t feel quite right…
[name_m]Nikolai[/name_m]: We really like this one, but it might be too long, and we are afraid that it will get shortened to [name_u]Nick[/name_u] which we do not like.
[name_m]Jens[/name_m]: Seems like a good option but DH is concerned that it’s too close to [name_m]Nels[/name_m].
[name_m]Leif[/name_m]: Neither of us like this one quite as much but it is still on the list.
I would love to hear any opinions you have on these names or any other suggestions. Thanks in advance!
Is [name_u]Niko[/name_u] (just [name_u]Niko[/name_u]) a possibility instead of [name_m]Nikolai[/name_m]?
As an English-speaking person living in the U.S., I would instinctively say “[name_m]Isaac[/name_m]” — depending on where you’re located, this may or may not be a big issue for your son, unless you move or he ends up communicating internationally for his work, or something similar. But if you’re in the U.S. or another predominantly English-speaking country, then yes, I imagine you’ll likely hear [name_m]Isaac[/name_m] a lot.
Either way, I think [name_m]Nikolai[/name_m] (or [name_u]Niko[/name_u]?) is my favorite. I like [name_m]Jens[/name_m] too — similar to [name_m]Nels[/name_m], but I don’t think it’s too close.
Other ideas:
[name_m]Emil[/name_m] (too close to [name_m]Nels[/name_m]?)
[name_m]Henrik[/name_m]
[name_m]Lars[/name_m]
[name_m]Luka[/name_m]
[name_m]Oskar[/name_m]
[name_u]Love[/name_u] [name_m]Nikolai[/name_m]. I would go to [name_u]Niko[/name_u] as a NN as I pronounce the name ‘nee-ko-lie’, but even saying it with a ‘nick’ sound - [name_u]Niko[/name_u] a pretty well established NN anyway.
Others:
[name_m]Alexei[/name_m]
[name_m]Emil[/name_m]
[name_m]Luka[/name_m]
[name_u]Jensen[/name_u] (as an alternative to [name_m]Jens[/name_m], which can be a nn)
[name_m]Mikael[/name_m]
[name_m]Matias[/name_m]
I really like [name_m]Nikolai[/name_m]! [name_u]Niko[/name_u] is a great nn as well. While [name_u]Isak[/name_u] is a lovely name I think most people will pronounce it [name_m]Isaac[/name_m]. In my opinion [name_m]Jens[/name_m] and [name_m]Nels[/name_m] are a little bit too close. [name_m]Leif[/name_m] is cute but sounds more Swedish than Finnish/Russian to me (I’m Swedish).
Some other ideas:
[name_u]Elias[/name_u]
[name_m]Maxim[/name_m]
[name_m]Petri[/name_m], [name_m]Peter[/name_m] or [name_m]Petr[/name_m]
[name_u]Mikko[/name_u]
[name_m]Vilhelm[/name_m] or [name_m]Willem[/name_m]
[name_m]Anton[/name_m]
[name_m]Axel[/name_m]
[name_m]Andrei[/name_m]
[name_m]Ivan[/name_m]
[name_m]Fabian[/name_m]
[name_u]Love[/name_u] [name_u]Isak[/name_u]! Out of interest, how is [name_m]Jakob[/name_m] pronounced? I’m assuming “YAK-ob”, in which case you probably get mispronunciations wuite a lot. Does that bother you?
[name_m]Nikolai[/name_m] is wonderful too, though [name_u]Isak[/name_u] fits in a little better with your other children’s names to me - it’s got the punchiness and brevity and also a different first initial.
[name_m]How[/name_m] about [name_m]Lev[/name_m]? Similar to [name_m]Leif[/name_m] but perhaps a bit bolder - it’s the Russian equivalent of [name_m]Leo[/name_m], meaning “lion”.
Thank you for the suggestions! I like both [name_m]Anton[/name_m] and [name_m]Matias[/name_m] but my husband is not a fan of [name_m]Matias[/name_m] and he has a cousin named [name_m]Anton[/name_m] that he doesn’t get along with. We both like [name_u]Mikko[/name_u] and [name_m]Henrik[/name_m], so they have been added to the list.
We are beginning to think that [name_m]Leif[/name_m] is not a great option for us so that is probably out.
Also, [name_m]Jakob[/name_m] is pronounced “YAK-ob” which means it is pronounced wrong quite often. However, it doesn’t bother us much and [name_m]Jakob[/name_m] definitely likes having a unique name which is why I don’t think the [name_u]Isak[/name_u]/[name_m]Isaac[/name_m] thing would be a huge deal.
