I absolutely adore the name [name]River[/name] (while a lot of my other choices for boys are more traditional) and word names in general. I can´t help how much I love it, but people´s opinions about the name make me hesitate about using it. I´m curious what the berries think about this name. Can you imagine a businessman or an [name]Ivy[/name]-leaguer with this name? [name]Will[/name] people make assumptions (negative or positive) about his parents? [name]Will[/name] they think twice about giving him a interview when they see his name on his resume? Is it unclassy?
To add a little bit of trouble… my children will have a double last name. One is 100% stereotypically American and the other is 100% stereotypically Spanish. [name]Do[/name] you think having such a completely American first name and one that may err on the side of professional, etc. would clash with the last name? Would it feel even less classy?
I can absolutely see [name]River[/name] as a businessman (or firefighter or artist or teacher or astronaut). People will definitely make assumptions. But it’s either “wow, what cool parents you must have” or “wow, what weird parents you must have”. In my book, you win either way. If you’re really nervous about it, give him a more traditional name in the middle. He can go by that if he sees fit.
To your second query, I think a double last name will have little bearing on the first name selection. It won’t matter that much in the long run. Our world is constantly getting more globalized. And more and more families are deciding to use a double last name. I don’t think it will be a problem.
Right now, I’m loving [name]River[/name]. But…[name]River[/name] Song is a hugely important character in the new [name]Doctor[/name] Who world, so there will be a strong association with her for some people (like me, who loves the name because of her). However, she is portrayed by [name]Alex[/name] [name]Kingston[/name] and is a lot of fun–sassy, irreverent, adventurous, brave, intelligent, loyal, and she’s also a doctor and a professor (and I can’t tell you much else because it would only be Spoilers Oh yes, except that she has the most fantastic shoes in the universe. Tumblr )
There is also the association with the actor, and a smaller one with [name]Diego[/name] Rivera. At any rate, not bad associations.
I wouldn’t worry about this name limiting him in future job hunts, either. I think people are kind of over the 60s association with most nature names, though some of the newer names still cause some consternation. It still has an edge to it, and I would expect a [name]River[/name] to be someone who carved his or her own path through rock, so there is a strength to it as well.
[name]River[/name] [name]Phoenix[/name] was a promising young actor who died of a drug overdoes on the sidewalk outside of an LA club in 1993. When I see or hear the name [name]River[/name], it always makes me feel sad and it reminds me of a life that was cut short far too soon. It’s a little too hippyish for my taste but I think it would work in the middle spot.
I don’t think [name]River[/name] [name]Phoenix[/name] and his demise is as well known as some might assume but a name can remind people of anything. I personally don’t know what to think about [name]River[/name] as a first name. I feel like it may be “tired” or dated but I’m not sure. I want to love it and in theory I do but I don’t know if I’d use it. It doesn’t sound “fresh” or terribly interesting to me. It’s definitely not “out there” in my opinion or “too hippy”.
I think it’s really nice and can span a lot of situations. I’d definitely think [name]River[/name] had nature-loving parents, but it doesn’t seem as hippie as lots of other names. A more traditional middle would balance it well if you’re worried. It’s almost like one of the “classic” nature names now; not too many people would look at you like you’re crazy
I like [name]River[/name] a lot! I know a couple who named their son this and they aren’t overly hippie! I think the name can be pulled off well into adulthood but if you were worried about that, you can always give him a “normal” middle name to fall back on.
[name]River[/name] used to seem hippy to me, but that was back in the day of [name]River[/name] [name]Phoenix[/name]. I think it has been used enough since then that I would not classify it as a hippy name. Nature names are much more common now, and I think it’s a perfectly useable name for a child & adult.
I like the name pretty well and I’ll add into the mix: Surname names have become so popular that my brain sort of parses this name both as the word and as part of the trend to give names that end in -er! Dunno how widespread that is, but it certainly makes the name seem less hippy to me than it used to (as does the passing of time).
I don’t think the double-last name has much of an influence: if anything, the Spanish last name kind of would make me wonder about whether [name]River[/name] had a different vibe within another cultural context: it again seems to take out some of the hippiness. Good luck!
My own children have a hyphenated last name, and the only problems we have had with that were when we moved to [name]Florida[/name] – computers in Pensacola can’t handle hyphenated last names. I have many students with traditional Spanish surnames (they just drop out the y) so I don’t think that will be a problem. I think [name]River[/name] has gone from hippy-ish in the days of [name]River[/name] [name]Phoenix[/name] to mainstream. I don’t think that [name]River[/name] is treated any more differently these days than [name]Ash[/name] or [name]Brook[/name]. If you add a classic name, then it becomes very distinguished.
Or you could go more Hispanic: [name]River[/name] [name]Diego[/name] (nice play on the artist), [name]River[/name] [name]Joaquin[/name], [name]River[/name] [name]Luis[/name], [name]River[/name] [name]Antonio[/name], [name]River[/name] [name]Hugo[/name], [name]River[/name] [name]Rafael[/name], [name]River[/name] [name]Edmundo[/name].
I kind of feel like [name]River[/name] is a little more of a girl’s name right now, although I don’t think it’s too hippie. There are two female [name]Rivers[/name] as major characters on two popular sci-fi shows: [name]River[/name] Song on Dr. Who, and [name]River[/name] [name]Tam[/name] on Firefly. I do love the name, though!
I love the name [name]River[/name] because of [name]River[/name] [name]Phoenix[/name]! I have considered it, even considered using [name]Phoenix[/name] as the middle name because I love the way the name flows. I think it’s a great name and I can imagine anyone with any career with the name!
It was great to get such a wide variety of opinions and some new things to think about. I know I can´t make everyone happy with a name, but it´s nice to know I´m not saddling my child with a rough name. I love the idea, ShellezBellez, of carving his own path through a rock! More than anything, I can totally picture my child with this name, which doesn´t happen very often even though my baby name list is really long!!
Thanks for the middle name suggestions Miloowen!! I love [name]Diego[/name], but I think we would save that for another son. My Husband is set on [name]Mateo[/name] as well. So I think if we have three sons we would end up using a Spanish middle for [name]River[/name] and then Anglo-[name]Saxon[/name] middles for [name]Diego[/name] and [name]Mateo[/name].
Oh yes, except that she has the most fantastic shoes in the universe. 