Respondents: 149 (This poll is closed)
I actually grew up with 2 boys named “[name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f]”. I’m not sure how they spelled it but they were [name_f]Haitian[/name_f] and Josselin is the masculine [name_m]French[/name_m] form so I’m guessing that was it. I thought it was a boy name until I met my first girl [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f] when I was a teen. The name still feels boyish/manly to me
I lovelovelove Joscelin! I like [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f], I know guys named [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f] ([name_f]Jocelyne[/name_f] is the girl name to me), but I never loved it… however, Joscelin really seals the deal for me.
Aaaaand I just realized we’ve already discussed this, hahaha.
In any case, you have my full support for [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f]/ [name_f]Jocelin[/name_f]/ Joscelin!
Re: Nat108’s mention of Josselin, that’s also really handsome!
I would spell it Joscelin for a boy.
I’m sorry but [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f], no matter how it is spelled, will always be a girls name to me.
I love [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f] (and [name_u]Meredith[/name_u], [name_u]Ashley[/name_u]!, etc.) for a boy! I quite like them for girls too- [name_f]IMO[/name_f] they should be truly unisex. For what it’s worth, I live in [name_f]Canada[/name_f] and don’t recall ever meeting a [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f] of either gender.
Ok… I’m pretty aware of my different views on names, and I actually really like the sound of [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f] on a boy. Quite a bit!
But I asked my husband, and he gave an very, very definitive ‘no’. I asked the following questions:
What do you think of the name [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f]?
A: It’s OK. It’s pretty
[name_m]How[/name_m] about [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f] on a boy?
A: Oh… NO!!
If you had gone to school with a boy named [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f], would he have been teased?
A: Absolutely.
What if your name was [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f]?
A: I don’t know. Thankful it’s not
We are in the US, and he is 28 years old. His very strong, very quick reactions kind of surprised me! I would definitely talk with more non-berries (especially males) for ‘real-life’ reactions.
I’m sorry!
Good [name_m]Luck[/name_m] & [name_f]Happy[/name_f] Naming!
Thanks to everyone for the responses so far! I’m definitely looking for honest opinions, so don’t feel bad about telling me you hate [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f] for a boy or that it’s only a girl’s name to you. Special thanks to aggielou for your detailed questions and your husband’s opinion. That’s valuable. You’re right, the next step would be talking to non-Berries. I’m not considering [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f] for a real baby (at least not now)–just trying to decide if it gets a permanent place on my “guilty-pleasure” boy list.
I love [name_u]Joss[/name_u] for a boy (in fact, it’s currently top of our list and I was very surprised that DH was so keen but then we are ‘Whedonites’ so maybe I shouldn’t have been so shocked) and before we knew the sex of our son [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f] was on our list for a girl. However, I wouldn’t use [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f] for a boy. I quite like it for a boy but I’d be too worried about teasing potential to actually use it myself.
I too love [name_u]Joss[/name_u] for a boy, but would not use [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f]. I knew a female [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f] growing up, so it will always be female to me. If you like/want [name_u]Joss[/name_u], I have [name_m]Joseph[/name_m] nn [name_u]Joss[/name_u] on my list ([name_u]Joss[/name_u] Whedon’s full name is [name_m]Joseph[/name_m]!).
I second that notion!!
I think spelled Joscelin it will suit a boy nice. I used to have a girl mate called [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f] and she was the only person with that name I have ever met so it doesn’t scream girl to me. Like [name_u]Shannon[/name_u], I find it surprisingly fresh if being considered/used for a boy.
I lived in [name_f]France[/name_f] for a short bit and knew a few Jocelyns–exclusively male there, I think (could be wrong). They would often go by the nickname [name_u]JoJo[/name_u]. (But then, the [name_m]French[/name_m] really did seem to love their double syllable pet names–[name_u]JoJo[/name_u], JuJu, GuiGui, BerBer. . . . and those were just dudes that I worked with.)
Anyway, I don’t [name_f]LOVE[/name_f] the name, but I like it, and I wouldn’t bat an eye seeing it on a guy.
It’s all girl to me, and I’m Canadian 
Never heard it on a boy, but know a few young girls named [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f], including the toddler daughter of a co-worker, who goes by “[name_u]Joss[/name_u]” or “[name_f]Jossie[/name_f]”. I think a boy would be teased unmercifully with this name.
To me, with the “[name_u]Lyn[/name_u]” sound on the end, it really sounds feminine.
[name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f] WAS and still IS a boys name and that goes for [name_u]Meredith[/name_u] and [name_u]Lynn[/name_u] too. I’m getting so tired of the double standard. So it’s ok to use boys names on girls but not the other way around even when the name was originally a boys name in the first place? Sorry, that misogynist, defeatist mentality doesn’t sit well with me. I’m a lot older than most posters here on Nameberry and I thought that the younger crowd would be more apt to dismiss this gender bias. I guess I was wrong. Society hasn’t change a lot deep-down, has it? Personally, I would be THRILLED to meet a brother duo named [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f] and [name_u]Meredith[/name_u]. To see the names as they were originally intended to be - borne by the male gender - would be awesome.
Sorry, but the lyn ending feels very feminine to me. Whether it was historically so or not really doesn’t make much difference to me.
I like [name_u]Joss[/name_u], but I think to me it would be more a bonus feature of [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f] than a reason to use it. I like [name_m]Joseph[/name_m], too, but I also like nn’s [name_m]Joe[/name_m] and [name_u]Joey[/name_u]…and [name_u]JoJo[/name_u] is cute…
I could follow the [name_m]French[/name_m] trend as described by smintonian–name a son [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f] and call him [name_u]JoJo[/name_u]–and really mess with American minds!
Sweet! And a third brother could be [name_u]Aubrey[/name_u]!
I love [name_f]Jocelyn[/name_f] for a boy - nn [name_u]Joss[/name_u] is cute.
[name_f]Susan[/name_f]