My husband and I both like the name [name]Julian[/name] for our son. My husband likes it so much that he will not even consider another name.
Here are my concerns:
My mother thinks that it is too feminine and that he will be made fun of by other kids.
We have a daughter named [name]Josephine[/name], and we call her [name]Joey[/name]. I’m concerned that “[name]Joey[/name] and [name]Julian[/name]” sounds too cutesy-cutesy.
What are your thoughts? Any advice would be much appreciated!
We are also trying to think of a middle name for [name]Julian[/name]. I would prefer one that is shorter, maybe even just one syllable.
I wouldn’t worry about the second problem: [name]Josephine[/name] and [name]Julian[/name] ([name]Joey[/name] and [name]Julian[/name]) go together fine and don’t seem overly cutesy at all.
I can see a little bit of the former concern - not really that it’s too feminine ([name]Julian[/name] is definitely a male name), but it does have kind of a soft, sensitive feel to it that runs against traditional views of masculinity.
If you don’t mind that, name away. Styles are changing a lot anyway, so I don’t think your son [name]Julian[/name] would stand out (in the unwanted way) for his name. But it’s also important that you know the image you’d be projecting by choosing that name beforehand.
I think that [name]Julian[/name] is very much a male name so that wouldn’t bother me. But when you pair [name]Julian[/name] with [name]Joey[/name], it does seem more feminine than his sister’s name. It still feels like a boy’s name, but [name]Joey[/name] feels even more boyish. I’m also not a fan of sibling names beginning with the same letter (that’s just me though”I don’t think it’s horrible, just not something I’d do).
Names that have the same feel as [name]Julian[/name]:
Yeah, because your older daughter is named [name]Josephine[/name] nn [name]Joey[/name], I would not use [name]Julian[/name]. It is a cutesy combo, and [name]Julian[/name] does sound feminine next to [name]Joey[/name]. I love the above poster’s suggestion of [name]Adrian[/name], but it does sound kind of feminine next to [name]Joey[/name], too.
What about [name]Julius[/name] or [name]Jules[/name] or [name]Jude[/name]? They start with “J” just like [name]Josephine[/name] though. [name]Josephine[/name] and [name]Julius[/name] are too similar. But I love [name]Josephine[/name] and [name]Jules[/name]. Cutesy but very cool. Because [name]Jules[/name] has only one syllable, they are not so matchy as [name]Josephine[/name] and [name]Julian[/name].
I really wouldn’t worry about the [name]Julian[/name] and [name]Joey[/name] thing. It’s not like [name]Joey[/name] is your daughter’s name; it’s just a nn and likely one she will outgrow. With [name]Josephine[/name] and [name]Julian[/name], it is clear who is the boy and who is the girl. You might even find it kind of cute to have a [name]Joey[/name] and a [name]Julie[/name] but [name]Joey[/name] is the girl and [name]Julie[/name] the boy (by the way, this is only at home; he does not have to bring the nn [name]Julie[/name] to the playground with him or to junior high).
On the other hand, [name]Julian[/name] is on the feminine side, while still decidedly a masculine name. I don’t think he’ll get teased, and I personally love the name, but you should be aware that there are girls named [name]Julian[/name] and [name]Julian[/name] is pretty close to [name]Juliana[/name]. If you’re looking for a masculine name that has a softness to it, though, which I happen to like, I think this is a great name.
Back to the issue of whether it matches “[name]Josephine[/name]”: while I don;t think the gender confusion is a problem, I would say that [name]Josephine[/name] and [name]Julian[/name] are not the best pair. First off, there are a lot of similar sounds, both starting with a j and ending with an n. Also, [name]Josephine[/name] is a vintage name, while [name]Julian[/name] feels more like an underused classic and has a slightly more modern sound to it.
[name]Josephine[/name] might pair better with:
[name]Vincent[/name]
[name]Frederick[/name]
[name]Franklin[/name]
[name]Walter[/name]
I love the name [name]Julian[/name]. It is on our list too and I don’t think it is too feminine. My husband has been pretty sensitive to the masculinity factor of our potential boy names, and he hasn’t raised that concern with this one. I am not someone who thinks sibling names have to complement one another, but that said, I think that [name]Julian[/name] goes great with [name]Josephine[/name].
My sons name is [name]Julien[/name] [name]Alexander[/name], he is almost 2 yrs old now. We have had 99% positive comments, only a few of our friends did not like it. I have met a couple of other children named [name]Julian[/name], but none named [name]Julien[/name].
About the name-calling: Kids will give you nick-names no matter what if they want to. One of my friends growing up was nicknamed “Biscuit”, and one of my brothers best friends were nicknamed “Muffin”…
We chose the name [name]Julien[/name] (french spelling of [name]Julian[/name]) because we have lived abroad and hope that when our son grows up he will too. [name]Julien[/name] is a name that is easy to say in many languages, and is not too common.
Wheter or not it mixes with “[name]Joey[/name]” is irrelevant I think:-) Good luck!