So I am due with a baby girl in [name_u]July[/name_u] YAY. My husband and I have had the name [name_u]Addison[/name_u] picked out since we were in high school. [name_m]Just[/name_m] recently my sister in law had a baby girl and named her [name_u]Madison[/name_u]. Should I consider a new name because they are so similar. Kind of upset about the whole thing
No. I have nephews named Bastion & [name_m]Boston[/name_m]. No one gets them confused, and hardly anyone comments on it. If anything, they think itâs cute! They might even grow up to be bffs!
If you love it you should use it. I think cousins having similar names isnât a big deal. You shouldnât feel like you have to drop the name youâve wanted to use for so long just because someone else in your family happened to have a baby first.
[name_u]Madison[/name_u] is a common enough name and there are enough popular names that sound similar ([name_u]Addison[/name_u], [name_f]Madeline[/name_f], etc.) that your sister-in-law should expect her daughter to meet people with similar names. If you arenât sure, maybe check with her first- she may be totally fine with it! But if you really want something different, what about [name_f]Addie[/name_f], [name_f]Adeline[/name_f] or [name_f]Ada[/name_f] which are more different?
Oh, I sympathize. My husband and I had our favorite girlsâ name picked out for years before I got pregnant with our daughter and I was nervous with every baby girl born in our families that someone would use it first! As to your dilemma, in the end, your daughterâs name is entirely up to you, so if you donât mind having a daughter [name_u]Addison[/name_u] and a niece [name_u]Madison[/name_u], then thereâs nothing to outright stop youâbut in my opinion, itâs worth weighing if it will cause ill-feelings in the family, or simply if it might be confusing to shared grandparents/other relatives/in family gatherings.
Personally, I would talk with your sister-in-law and see whether she minds. I know sisters who have daughters with rhyming names (think [name_f]Mia[/name_f] and [name_f]Leah[/name_f]) and they and their daughters think itâs fun. On the other hand, I personally would not love for my child and their cousin to have such close names.
I think if youâre prepared to not use the name, you should go ahead and ask your sister-in-law for permission (that way, if she says no, you havenât lost anything, and if she says yes, it would be a kind gesture from you to show your concern with her feelings). However, if you decide youâre going to use it anyways, it would probably be best to give a polite headâs up/explanation in advance, but not frame it as a question. I also feel like the fact that you are currently pregnant with a girl (and maybe already were when baby [name_u]Madison[/name_u] was born?) gives you a lot more liberty to say, âwhat a coincidence, weâre naming our baby [name_u]Addison[/name_u]! Itâs been our favorite name since high school!â rather than claiming the name for a hypothetical future daughter.
In terms of alternatives, I like the idea of [name_f]Adeline[/name_f] (still gets you the [name_f]Addie[/name_f] nickname) or [name_f]Adalyn[/name_f], or [name_f]Adelaide[/name_f]. Thereâs also [name_u]Adair[/name_u] (Uh-dair, so a little bit of a different âadâ sound), but has a little bit of the same feel as [name_u]Addison[/name_u] to me. I also love [name_f]Adele[/name_f] and [name_f]Adalia[/name_f].
Or perhaps itâs more the â-sonâ ending that you like, in which case thereâs of course [name_f]Alison[/name_f], but Iâve also heard [name_u]Emerson[/name_u] used more on girls lately (and [name_f]Emmy[/name_f] is a cute nickname).
I sympathize entirely. One of the names on my list is [name_f]Isla[/name_f] but I have a new niece named [name_f]Lila[/name_f]. I have stroked the name off my list because the family is so close and I know they would get confused.
If you donât think it would be a problem in your family though, I would go for it.
I know of cousins named [name_f]Ella[/name_f] and [name_f]Emma[/name_f], [name_u]Morgan[/name_u] and [name_f]Megan[/name_f], [name_u]Beau[/name_u] and [name_m]Bodhi[/name_m].
[name_u]Madison[/name_u] and [name_u]Addison[/name_u] are close but I donât think it means you canât use [name_u]Addison[/name_u]. As others have pointed out, both names are common enough that each girl will meat plenty of other girls with very similar names ([name_f]Maddy[/name_f], [name_f]Addy[/name_f], [name_u]Mattie[/name_u], [name_f]Adalyn[/name_f], [name_f]Madeline[/name_f], etc.) Who is to say they wonât end up with a best friend or neighbor with a similar name in a few years?
If you plan to give your sister in law a heads up I would say something like, âwe just love [name_u]Madison[/name_u]'s name! Actually, weâve been planning for years to use the name [name_u]Addison[/name_u]!â As long as you compliment her name choice and let her know [name_u]Addison[/name_u] was your idea for a while and you didnât just get the idea from her, I donât see how she can object!
Good luck!
Too close for my taste. Iâd definitely do what the previous poster said and talk to your [name_m]SIL[/name_m] and [name_m]BIL[/name_m] first. It would be an awful shock to me if my siblings chose a rhyming name to my child for their new baby. Thatâs your niece, right? Iâm sure it would confuse your mutual family.
[name_f]Madeleine[/name_f] and [name_u]Addison[/name_u] might be passable but your [name_u]Addison[/name_u] is just [name_u]Madison[/name_u] without the M. Why not try to find a name you love equally that lets her be an individual. I wouldnât even go for an [name_f]Addy[/name_f] long form. Scrap it. Push [name_u]Addison[/name_u] to the middle if you need.
I would definitely use the name, since youâve loved it for a long time.
Personally I donât think itâs too close and in fact, if I had named my child say â[name_m]Oliver[/name_m]â and my brother turned around and said heâd always wanted to use [name_m]Oliver[/name_m], I think Iâd be fine with having two in the family, theyâd probably just need to have little family nicknames to tell them apart. It would be a bit weird yes, but Iâd prefer they got to use the name that theyâd always dreamed of.
However, I do know a family where this kind of situation caused a major riff. So I think itâs best to check with your [name_m]SIL[/name_m] first, I think sheâd appreciate the jester and is probably more likely to be on board with it if you ask rather than tell her youâre usinf [name_u]Addison[/name_u].
I think using the name you love and have had picked for years is fine. They might rhyme but they are not the same name. In my family there are cousins [name_u]Allie[/name_u] and [name_f]Hallie[/name_f]. I have never once considered this a problem. I even know sisters who are [name_f]Maddie[/name_f] and [name_u]Addison[/name_u]. For me it would be no big deal to have cousins with rhyming names.
This is a hard one! They are very similar names but I know what itâs like to have a favourite name for many years. If [name_u]Madison[/name_u] is always called that and your baby is called â[name_f]Addie[/name_f]â most of the time then they can be different as well. Personally for me itâs a reason to put it in the middle spot and keep looking.