Is it okay to give your baby 2 first names??

A lot of people have 2 names, so I don’t think it would be very unusual-
I know a [name]Mary[/name] [name]Grace[/name], [name]Mary[/name] [name]Kate[/name], [name]Anne[/name] [name]Marie[/name] etc.

I guess it depends on the names you use, though. What are some names you like?

I think giving a child two names would work just fine. I have a step-sister who has two first names: [name]Lisa[/name]-[name]Marie[/name]. Her family always called her by both names or her nickname, LM while some of her friends called her [name]Lisa[/name]. So there are a lot of options with having two first names. I say go for it!

I’ve never heard of anyone giving up a middle name when they got married. Last name, yes, but not middle no matter how many middle names they were given at birth.

As pp said, many girls have 2 first names, so I think it would work well depending on what the 2 names are.

Good luck!

[name]Martina[/name],

It’s not my cup of tea, but people certainly do it. I know a [name]Mary[/name] [name]Julia[/name] who goes exclusively by “[name]Mary[/name] [name]Julia[/name],” and I used to know a [name]Tegan[/name] [name]Olivia[/name] who went by both “[name]Tegan[/name]” and “[name]Tegan[/name] [name]Olivia[/name].” I just think it is a bit of a hassle - two first names is like the anti-nickname in my opinion. I’m not much of a nickname lover, though I do really think some are sweet, but I personally wouldn’t want to call my child “[name]Tegan[/name] [name]Olivia[/name]” all the time, nor would I want to be called “[name]Tegan[/name] [name]Olivia[/name]” - or some other double name - all the time. It’s just too much for me.

It’s a matter of personal preference, for sure. But, in any case, it depends on the names. Some names, like [name]Mary[/name], lend themselves better to being double names than others, like [name]Evelyn[/name]. And, I don’t think your child would have to give up her middle names when she marries - who’s to say [name]Lucy[/name] [name]Evelyn[/name] [name]Harriet[/name] [name]Johnson[/name] can’t be [name]Lucy[/name] [name]Evelyn[/name] [name]Harriet[/name] [name]Smith[/name]?

Good luck!

[name]Lemon[/name] :slight_smile:

When I got married they let me choose whether I wanted to keep my middle name or “adopt” my maiden as my middle. I chose to keep my middle name and drop my maiden altogether.

I like 2 first names as long as they flow well together (obviously LOL.) I used to love the idea of [name]Sarah[/name] [name]Michelle[/name] as a double first name.

We named our DD [name]Emery[/name] [name]Jane[/name] and we pretty much always call her [name]Emery[/name] [name]Jane[/name] or EJ… sometimes I think about giving her another middle name because we call her by both first names.

Good [name]Luck[/name]

Well, I think it is perfectly fine if you use names which are easy to say together, or often come in a first name pair, like [name]Mary[/name] ___ ([name]Mary[/name] [name]Louise[/name] is nice), ___ [name]Jane[/name] ([name]Cara[/name] [name]Jane[/name]) or [name]Anna[/name] ____ ([name]Anna[/name] [name]Laurel[/name]). Also, two names which you would shorten to nicknames that flow well is good - [name]Elizabeth[/name] [name]Mabel[/name] becomes [name]Betty[/name] [name]Mae[/name], for example.

However, I think the names have to go together well in style and origin, must be very easy to say together, and have no possible confusion in the spelling. You could not use two unusual names, because [name]Arabella[/name] [name]Theodosia[/name] or the like would be an awful lot of name!

Also, be flexible with what you allow your child to be called. I have known a couple of people with long, hard double names - things like [name]Honora[/name] [name]Amelia[/name], which are a mouthful and blend together - who will not allow any shortening of this, whether it is using only one of the names, or any nickname, and this is so irritating. You can’t protest, because it is their name, but it is hard to say, and must be a great pain on forms et cetera.

You should also remember that, should you only give one name, you can always use the child’s middle, or put the names together to get a nn; my friend named her daughter [name]Penelope[/name] [name]Rose[/name], and she calls her [name]Posy[/name], for example.

Good luck!

That is so strange! Over here ([name]England[/name]) a lot of people have two middle names, and I know a lot of women who now have three, because they added their maiden name. None ever had to drop their middles …

Many women completely drop their middle name and move their maiden name to their middle when they get married. I didn’t want to give up my maiden name or my middle name…so I just added my maiden name to my middle name instead. So now I have two middle names.[/quote]

[name]Martina[/name],

I know some do - but some don’t. I think a woman always has an option. [name]Lucy[/name] [name]Evelyn[/name] [name]Harriet[/name] [name]Johnson[/name] can become [name]Lucy[/name] [name]Evelyn[/name] [name]Harriet[/name] [name]Smith[/name], or she can become [name]Lucy[/name] [name]Evelyn[/name] [name]Johnson[/name] [name]Smith[/name], or she can become [name]Lucy[/name] [name]Evelyn[/name] [name]Harriet[/name] [name]Johnson[/name] [name]Smith[/name], or she can become [name]Lucy[/name] [name]Evelyn[/name] [name]Harriet[/name] [name]Johnson[/name]-[name]Smith[/name], or she can become [name]Lucy[/name] [name]Evelyn[/name] [name]Johnson[/name]-[name]Smith[/name], or she can become [name]Lucy[/name] [name]Evelyn[/name] [name]Smith[/name], or any other combination heretofore not considered. I think there is a world of possibility when it comes to changing - or not changing - a woman’s name when she marries, personally.

Also, I just wanted to second Twinkle’s comment about names needing to sound good together, perhaps be of the same origin, and definitely be within the same style to be used together in a double name. Or, as she mentioned, something like [name]Rebecca[/name] [name]Jane[/name] [name]Cordelia[/name] [name]Burch[/name] can be shortened to [name]Becca[/name] [name]Jane[/name] [name]Burch[/name], should she and her parents wish it to be…

Good luck!

[name]Lemon[/name] :slight_smile:

I think the rule is three middle and three first names is the maximum, at least it is in [name]California[/name]. My cousin has 3 of each, but he would have had more if they’d let his parents put more on the birth certificate. I would assume that would be the rule for changing your name, too. I really don’t see how having 2 middles vs. 2 firsts would make a difference either way. It’s really just up to your personal preference. I think 2 firsts is fine as long as they sound good together and have a good flow so that it feels natural to say them together all the time.

Hmm, I have no idea where you would go to check that… I guess the Social Security Administration.

You would have far more choices if you give your child a first and a middle name that has a variety of nn’s and the child can choose which nn they prefer.

eg [name]Caroline[/name] [name]Amelia[/name] [name]Jones[/name]

could be [name]Cara[/name], [name]Calla[/name], Caz, [name]Carly[/name], [name]Carolina[/name], [name]Carol[/name], [name]Caro[/name] and if she decides to use her mn then the choices for [name]Amelia[/name]'s nn’s could be [name]Amy[/name], [name]Mel[/name], [name]Mia[/name], [name]Mimi[/name], [name]Lee[/name], [name]Leah[/name].

If she decides to keep her maiden name or use it in conjunction with her married name there is no problem

eg [name]Caroline[/name] [name]Amelia[/name] [name]Jones[/name] [name]Smith[/name] is not too large a moniker to handle.

You would never drop a [name]Christian[/name] name just because you married that is part of you that is set in stone!

Surnames are the ones you can play around with and get all sorts of combos as explained already.

Another option would be to go with a hyphonated first name. I think this was popular in the UK at one time, but I’m not sure. Some hyphonated name ideas:

[name]Mary[/name]-[name]Louise[/name]
[name]Ella[/name]-[name]Grace[/name]
[name]Sarah[/name]-[name]Grace[/name]
[name]Sarah[/name]-[name]Olivia[/name]
[name]Ollie[/name]-[name]Mae[/name]
[name]Laura[/name]-[name]Kate[/name]

It depends on what the names are if they are very simple and short yet lovely like [name]Lily[/name]-[name]Rose[/name] then I guess it is fine but if they are long like [name]Jacqueline[/name]-[name]Margret[/name] then you might want to reconsider.

It’s okay, but I am not a big fan of double first names; although, my own dear mother was named “[name]Mary[/name] [name]Jane[/name]” [name]Ernestine[/name]. Her first name was considered to be [name]Mary[/name] [name]Jane[/name] (fashionable back then) and mn after her grandmother. I have a cousin who has always been called “[name]Mary[/name] [name]Lois[/name]” with no additional middle name. Coincidentally, just this morning, I was introduced to someone through e-mail named LesleyAnne with the two names blended together. There are endless options, but as pps have pointed out, the flow of the two names is very important and anything too long will likely feel cumbersome.

Haha. This is an interesting question. I was convinced for years that my first boy would be called [name]Tad[/name] [name]Anthony[/name] (as his first name) and we would only call him [name]Tad[/name] [name]Anthony[/name], never either one. I understand that it is a little different with girls because of [name]Mary[/name]-[name]Jane[/name] and [name]Bobby[/name]-[name]Lynn[/name] or whatever, but my personal feeling is that it’s too much of a hassle, especially for really long and uncommon names trying to be smashed together. Chances are, after a few months, one of them would get dropped altogether.

My baby will be [name]Elodie[/name]-[name]Rose[/name] with the hyphen. I think it’s brill and beautiful