Hey folks, today I’m on the market for your very valuable opinions considering baby names, siblings names in particular.
So you see, for the longest time my two favorite boy names have been [name_u]James[/name_u] and [name_u]Jude[/name_u]. I love them both to pieces, and they flow well in my opinion with the family names that I wish to include as middles ([name_m]Patrick[/name_m] and [name_m]Keith[/name_m] and respectively). They also both go with [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] and [name_f]Eliza[/name_f], my two favorite girl names. All in all, they’re perfect to me!
However, I have never really been a fan of the ‘all siblings having the same first initial’ thing. I find it way too matchy-matchy. So, here’s my dilemma: Are [name_u]James[/name_u] and [name_u]Jude[/name_u] too close to be brother names? What about if they had sisters named [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] and/or [name_f]Eliza[/name_f]? Would that solve the problem, or are they condemned by their sharing of a first initial?
Any insight on this is greatly appreciated, so thank you in advance
Where possible I always prefer it when each sibling has a different initial. So I can see your dilemma.
That being said, other than sharing the same first letter and both being one syllable, they’re quite different names. My main test for if a name is too close is to shout it from across the house (to a partner or a friend trusted with knowing potential names), if they/you find it hard to distinguish which name is being called, they’re too close. [name_u]James[/name_u] and [name_u]Jude[/name_u] I think would be quite easy to distinguish when called, so aren’t too close in my book.
I think if I met two brothers, [name_u]James[/name_u] and [name_u]Jude[/name_u], I wouldn’t think ‘oh that’s so matchy’ or at least the thought wouldn’t last long. And if it was [name_u]James[/name_u], [name_u]Jude[/name_u], [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] and [name_f]Eliza[/name_f]. Or [name_u]James[/name_u], [name_f]Eliza[/name_f] and [name_u]Jude[/name_u]. etc. I definitely wouldn’t feel they were particularly matchy. I think they only time I’d think they were too matchy is if they were twins.
As a side, it appears we have very similar taste in names! I love pretty much all of the ones in your signature, some are in mine and some are ones that just didn’t make it into this particular one for the time being, we even have [name_m]Simon[/name_m] [name_u]James[/name_u]!
They share nothing other than the same initial. Personally it doesn’t bother me at all. [name_u]James[/name_u], [name_u]Jude[/name_u], [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] and [name_f]Eliza[/name_f] sound wonderful together. 
@maerad: Thanks so much for the opinion, and I agree, we do have very similar taste in names. I absolutely love your combos, they’re almost like they came right out of my own mind! I’ve even been thinking about changing [name_f]Eliza[/name_f] [name_f]Maeve[/name_f] in my signature to [name_f]Eliza[/name_f] [name_f]Jane[/name_f] for the longest time.
The yelling-names-across-the-house test actually sounds like a fantastic idea, I’ll have to try that. Thank you
@luneth: Thanks for your input! I really love some of the names in your signature, very ethereal, by the way
I agree fully with this.
I do not feel anything is a pattern until there are three or more. And there is nothing wrong with families choosing to have a pattern, it’s a personal decision.
I don’t think they are too close at all. Expect for twins as a previous poster suggested. For twins, they would seem too matchy to me.