Hey Berries,
[name_f]My[/name_f] name is [name_f]Ayla[/name_f] (pronounced [name_f]Kayla[/name_f] without the K) & since I have a more unusual name and I’ve always loved having the name, I’ve had people tell me I should carry it down to my daughter in one way or another. It got me wondering how acceptable it is for a woman to pass her name down to her daughters, since it’s not strange at all to carry a man’s name to his sons?
I don’t think I could handle having a daughter [name_f]Ayla[/name_f] because of the confusion (& honestly it does seem kind of strange) but maybe for a middle name? [name_m]How[/name_m] do you think people would feel about that? Does it seem odd to you? [name_f]Do[/name_f] you know anyone who has done this?
All thoughts welcome - I’m not even sure how I feel about it. Also, throw in your favorite girl names for (what I’m expecting to be) a little blonde haired, blue/green eyed girl! -[name_m]Just[/name_m] for fun, I’m still kicking around names with my hubby (who does not seem as interested in names as me, of course).
Here are my favorites:
[name_f]Thea[/name_f] Soma
[name_f]Lilah[/name_f] Soma
[name_f]Elsa[/name_f] Soma
[name_f]Chloe[/name_f] Soma
[name_f]Chleo[/name_f] Soma
[name_u]Nile[/name_u] Soma
[name_u]Ember[/name_u] Soma
[name_f]Lucy[/name_f] Soma
[name_f]Ivy[/name_f] Soma
I like [name_f]Thea[/name_f] and [name_f]Ivy[/name_f] off of your list. I share the same middle name with my mother, so I think it is normal. I do know several moms that named their sons after themselves. Ex. [name_u]Macon[/name_u] for [name_f]Macy[/name_f] and [name_m]Cason[/name_m] for [name_u]Casey[/name_u]. I personally don’t care for the trend, but I have never liked the idea of naming sons after fathers either. I do think that it is just as warranted to name the kids after the mother…maybe even more so? They are usually already using the dad’s last name.
I love [name_f]Thea[/name_f]. You might like [name_f]Esme[/name_f], [name_f]Willa[/name_f], [name_f]Tyra[/name_f] or [name_f]Phoebe[/name_f]?
For a middle name I guess it’s okay, but for the most part I find it incredibly dull and narcissistic when people name their kids after themselves.
That being said I do really love my own name too, and I do like it paired with some of my favourites. I don’t think I could bring myself to ever use it as a middle name, unless maybe my child’s father really loved it too.
I love [name_f]Thea[/name_f], [name_f]Ivy[/name_f], and [name_f]Lucy[/name_f]
Also, I don’t really like naming kids after people, because as you said, it’s confusing, but naming a child after the mother isn’t that strange. That’s how [name_f]Martha[/name_f] [name_m]Stewart[/name_m] got her name.
Other names:
[name_f]Athena[/name_f]
[name_u]Avery[/name_u]
[name_u]Skye[/name_u]
[name_f]Philippa[/name_f]
Mother’s name as daughter’s middle is very normal. It’s a great tradition. I’ve seen mom’s first and mom’s maiden used this way a lot. I think it is fantastic.
However, all your first name choices are vowel-heavy and they don’t flow off my tongue very well with [name_f]Ayla[/name_f].
I love [name_f]Thea[/name_f] and [name_f]Ivy[/name_f]! I wouldn’t personally want to use my name as my child’s middle. I think there would be some confusion. However, [name_f]Ayla[/name_f] is a very pretty name
[name_f]My[/name_f] g-mother’s first name is my mom’s middle. Then it went back to me as my first name and is now my daughter’s middle name once again. I never thought twice because I wanted to honor gma and mom so it felt natural.
You carried that kid for 9 months and went thru hours of labor before giving birth. I think it’s acceptable for the mom to name their babies after them. You earned the right to slap your nap on the kid. lol. [name_f]Ayla[/name_f] is a beautiful name too.
To me it’s not any weirder than naming a son after his father. I think one of the reasons it’s not done very much is what parent wants to call their daughter [name_m]Junior[/name_m]?
I’ve known two girls names after their mother, as in named exactly the same first and middle(s). One of them went by their middle name, the other went by a nn. I never thought it was weird, but it’s certainly not as common as fathers and sons. I’ve known many more that have their mothers name as a middle name.
You have a lovely name and I’m sure your daughter would love it as much as you do.
Wow, thanks everyone for your opinions! The only reason I was thinking about it was because my husband (and my mom, obviously) really loves my name and said “let’s name her [name_f]Ayla[/name_f]!” Obviously at first I said “Umm…no? That’s weird.” That’s why it got me thinking “why does that seem weird, but not when the fathers do it?” Anyway, I don’t think I will end up doing it, but it was fun to talk about! Thanks again fellow Berries!
I love the name [name_f]Ayla[/name_f] and I don’t think it’s at all weird to name your daughter after you! I would also recommend the name [name_f]Aya[/name_f] (eye-uh) as it’s similar but at least a bit more distinguishable if you don’t think you’d like having the exact same name. I also have a friend named [name_f]Mela[/name_f] (pronounced may-luh). [name_f]Thea[/name_f] and [name_f]Clio[/name_f] are two of my favorites. You’ve got great taste (imo) so I don’t think you can go wrong at this point!
I agree with everyone else – it is a beautiful name and there’s nothing wrong with passing it on in some way to your daughter. I understand your hesitance – I love my name and it was the name of my grandmother, her mother, my other grandmother and her mother, so I really wanted to pass it on, but I couldn’t do it. It’s [name_f]Catherine[/name_f], though, so not anything like [name_f]Ayla[/name_f]. I just decided to trust that my grandkids would look back on their family trees when they have kids (as I did), and say “Wow, that’s a great name and it meant so much to my ancestors. I’d like to use it for my daughter.”
Of your names, I think the only one that sounds good with [name_f]Ayla[/name_f] as the middle is [name_u]Ember[/name_u]. [name_u]Ember[/name_u] [name_f]Ayla[/name_f] – really beautiful and different. And besides, it’s not like you’re honoring yourself by doing it – you’d really be honoring your mother, I think. And maybe you’d be starting a tradition of your own!
Thanks so much! Yes, I agree that the only name that would fit with the middle name as [name_f]Ayla[/name_f] is [name_u]Ember[/name_u] [name_f]Ayla[/name_f]. [name_f]My[/name_f] list isn’t tailored to the middle name [name_f]Ayla[/name_f], I would have to try to come up with some different names if I wanted to use my name as the middle name. But [name_u]Ember[/name_u] [name_f]Ayla[/name_f] Soma does kind of have a nice ring to it You are so lucky to have such a pretty and prevalent name in your family tree! The only family names I have are [name_f]Sue[/name_f], Ethell, and [name_f]Linda[/name_f].
Thanks for your input!
A daughter sharing her mother’s name in some way would be very sweet. I used to not like juniors but now I very much want to use [name_m]Charles[/name_m] for a son, after my husband and husband’s grandfather. [name_f]My[/name_f] husband says it’s to confusing as his and his grandfather’s mail were always getting mixed up. I like names to have meaning which is why my kids have family names.
I think it’s a beautiful idea to give your daughter the middle name [name_f]Ayla[/name_f]. [name_f]My[/name_f] mother’s double first name (old-fashioned name, I know) was ‘[name_f]Mary[/name_f] [name_f]Jane[/name_f],’ and I love it more than I can say that she gave me the middle name [name_f]Jane[/name_f]. (Granted, I am sentimental about it because she died when I was seven. However, getting part of her name only gives me positive feelings and makes me think she did it out of love. It adds to the connection between us.) It wasn’t lack of imagination: my twin sister got the middle name Claire, no family connection, which was a rare name at the time.
Of course, I gave my daughter the middle name [name_f]Jane[/name_f] too… and my daughter says she will do the same someday for her daughter. (Incidentally, my twin sister’s daughter and now her baby granddaughter both have the middle name Claire.)
I don’t think it’s strange at all, in fact I think it was quite a common practice in bygone eras, especially for the first born. [name_f]My[/name_f] brother shares a first name with my father. [name_f]My[/name_f] self and 2 nieces all have the same middle name, I would have given my daughter that name (even though what we chose) to continue a little family tradition if it had of occurred to me!
You are so lucky to have such a pretty and prevalent name in your family tree! The only family names I have are [name_f]Sue[/name_f], Ethell, and [name_f]Linda[/name_f].