[name_m]LINUS[/name_m] - I like [name_m]Linus[/name_m] a lot; some people think it’s too strongly tied to the Peanuts character, but I think it’s a sweet, smart name with more than one notable namesake, and it’s uncommon enough (in the U.S.) that he won’t be [name_m]Linus[/name_m] LastName his whole life.
[name_m]LEVI[/name_m] - I know a few grown-up Levis who are so different from one another that the name has taken on more versatility than the original sort-of-cowboy vibe I got from it.
[name_m]CROSBY[/name_m] - The musical connection is cool, but if I were considering it to honor either [name_m]Bing[/name_m] [name_m]Crosby[/name_m] or [name_m]David[/name_m] [name_m]Crosby[/name_m], I’d ask myself whether I wanted to be more or less specific. [name_m]David[/name_m] is more subtle, [name_m]Bing[/name_m] is more obvious, and [name_m]Crosby[/name_m] is a middle ground, although since it’s a surname it does quickly bring to mind its famous bearers. It just depends on how much flexibility you’d like when telling the world how you came up with your son’s name.
[name_m]SHEPHERD[/name_m] - [name_m]Say[/name_m] “Yep” to [name_m]Shep[/name_m]! I don’t know what it is I like about this name, but it’s so good. I’ve been suggesting it to my sister, who wants an alternative to her partner’s favorite, [name_u]Shaw[/name_u], but it hasn’t taken hold. I can picture it on a cosmopolitan gentleman or a good ol’ boy. It’s tough but gentle, straightforward but poetic.
[name_m]DASHIELL[/name_m] - My partner and I have this on our short list for the little one due in [name_f]September[/name_f]. The only strike against it is it meaningless meaning. Otherwise, it has a great sound, a fun nickname, a talented namesake, and is just beyond “too popular” for us.
[name_m]ORSON[/name_m] - This name is so classy, but I have a hard time picturing it on anyone other than a big, rugged, broad-chested bear of a boy/man. It’s the kind of name I couldn’t settle on until meeting the baby, but then I might say something like, “Here you are, of course, it’s [name_m]Orson[/name_m].” (Here’s hoping for that much certainty when the baby arrives!)
[name_u]ROSCOE[/name_u] - We named our dog [name_u]Roscoe[/name_u] a year ago, and it took a while to stick (he was briefly [name_m]Zeke[/name_m], [name_m]Django[/name_m], [name_m]Aldo[/name_m], [name_m]Japhy[/name_m], and [name_m]Jupiter[/name_m] before [name_u]Roscoe[/name_u]), but we love the name so much now that I sort of wish we’d saved it for a baby (maybe because we love the dog so much, or because I got pregnant only six months after adopting the dog). I like the sound; I like the meaning; I like the idea of a kind, laid-back, adventurous guy named [name_u]Roscoe[/name_u]. I basically just anthropomorphized my dog into a little boy, but whatever. It’s an awesome name.
[name_m]FINBARR[/name_m] - probably the best variation of the [name_m]Fin[/name_m]- names out there.
Brothers [name_m]Orson[/name_m] and [name_m]Shepherd[/name_m], [name_m]Shepherd[/name_m] and [name_m]Dashiell[/name_m], [name_u]Roscoe[/name_u] and [name_m]Dashiell[/name_m], [name_m]Finbarr[/name_m] and [name_m]Orson[/name_m], [name_m]Shepherd[/name_m] and [name_m]Levi[/name_m], [name_m]Linus[/name_m] and [name_u]Roscoe[/name_u], [name_m]Crosby[/name_m] and [name_m]Levi[/name_m].