Hi! I feel like I’ve been on here a lot lately… but time is so if the essence right now. Ugh.
Question is: Could [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] be used for a little girl? I do love the sound, and the literary connection, but I worry about what will happen if, well, she’s actually quite reserved. Or worse, she has a little extra energy than some kids…?
I also typically think names like [name_u]Hunter[/name_u], [name_u]Tanner[/name_u], And [name_u]Cooper[/name_u] are kind of lame and trendy, and I’m wondering if this is like that?
We REALLY need a W name. I’m a few days overdue.
We CANNOT use:
[name_f]Willa[/name_f]
[name_u]Willow[/name_u]
[name_f]Wilhelmina[/name_f]
Or anything starting with W-I-L
We also don’t like:
[name_u]Winter[/name_u]/Wynter
[name_u]Waverly[/name_u]
[name_f]Wisteria[/name_f]
Weslyn/Westlyn
We had considered (and are still considering):
[name_f]Winnie[/name_f]/Winny
[name_u]Wren[/name_u]
[name_u]Wallie[/name_u] (possibly Wallice/Wallis)
Wavey
[name_u]Wren[/name_u]
Wyette
Middle name must start with J. (I know, I know… so specific…)
Wilder [name_f]Jane[/name_f]? [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] [name_f]Josephine[/name_f]? This is so stressful.
I’m going to just be blunt, I hope you don’t mind that! I think it’s a bit too odd as a girl name. There’s plenty of unisex names that are great or traditionally male names I think work perfectly fine on a girl, but [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] is not one of them. So far I’ve only ever seen it on boys. I have also heard it pronounced as “[name_m]Will[/name_m]-der” in real life too. This kid was Hispanic. I googled it and that pronunciation seems to be typical in non-[name_f]English[/name_f] speaking countries (Germany for instance), however. If you really love it, then follow your heart! I looove [name_f]Winnie[/name_f] and [name_u]Wren[/name_u] btw!
I think [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] sounds cute on a girl, although I do see why you would be hesitant to use it - it does have some possible connotations & could set up expectations for her behaviour (I don’t think this a gender specific problem though - I would be concerned about the same things using [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] on a boy too.) I love the literary connection too, though.
Of course, your daughter could always go by her middle name later in life if that turns out to be preferable? (A lot of my family members, including me, go by their middle names and it hasn’t really caused any issues.)
From your other options, [name_f]Winnie[/name_f] and [name_u]Wren[/name_u] sound especially lovely to me. Other W name that has a literary connection could be [name_f]Wendy[/name_f].
Other middle name options could be [name_f]Juliette[/name_f], [name_f]Jade[/name_f], or [name_f]Jasmine[/name_f] (although to be honest I like [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] [name_f]Jane[/name_f] and [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] [name_f]Josephine[/name_f] more than what I have come up with here!). Also, [name_u]Wren[/name_u] [name_f]Josephine[/name_f] or [name_f]Winnie[/name_f] [name_f]Jane[/name_f] sound great.
I’m personally not a fan off [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] for a girl feels really masculine. It just doesn’t have the unisex vibe that names like [name_u]Peyton[/name_u], [name_u]Oakley[/name_u] and [name_u]Devon[/name_u] do.
I really like [name_f]Winnie[/name_f] & [name_u]Wren[/name_u] they are pretty choices! I also think it’s hard when your limiting yourself to just names beginning with W when it’s an obscure letter and you’ve dismissed a lot of W names.
Suggestions…
[name_f]Winifred[/name_f]
[name_f]Winona[/name_f]
[name_f]Whitley[/name_f]
[name_f]Wendy[/name_f]
[name_f]Winry[/name_f]
[name_f]Wednesday[/name_f]
[name_u]Wynn[/name_u]
[name_u]Winslow[/name_u]
I like it. If [name_u]Hunter[/name_u] and [name_u]Carter[/name_u] can work for girls then why not [name_u]Wilder[/name_u]? I love the combination [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] [name_f]Jane[/name_f].
Other W possibilities…
[name_f]Wanda[/name_f]
[name_u]Walker[/name_u]
[name_u]Wade[/name_u]
[name_u]Wallace[/name_u]
[name_f]Wednesday[/name_f]
[name_u]Wyn[/name_u]
[name_u]Winslow[/name_u]
[name_f]Winslet[/name_f]
Wilder [name_f]Josephine[/name_f] is cute but i think you have too many doubts for it to be the one for you!
[name_u]Wren[/name_u] and [name_f]Winnie[/name_f] are nice
Wren [name_f]Josephine[/name_f] or [name_u]Wren[/name_u] [name_f]Juliet[/name_f] maybe? [name_f]Winnie[/name_f] [name_f]Jane[/name_f]?
Winona and [name_f]Winola[/name_f] are other W names
I think it works. The first famous [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] who springs to mind for me (and many others, I’m guessing) is [name_f]Laura[/name_f] Ingalls [name_u]Wilder[/name_u]. I love it with traditional middles, like [name_f]Jane[/name_f] and [name_f]Josephine[/name_f].
But…
Does [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] not start with WIL too?
I also agree with @Greyblue that you don’t sound very confident in your choice. With a name as eye-catching as [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] (especially on a girl, when it’s rising so fast for boys), I think you really need to have the confidence of your convictions. Otherwise, every little comment and raised eyebrow will really get to you.
I’m liking [name_f]Winnie[/name_f], [name_u]Wren[/name_u], [name_u]Wallis[/name_u], [name_f]Winslet[/name_f], [name_u]Wynn[/name_u], [name_f]Winifred[/name_f], [name_f]Winona[/name_f], [name_f]Wilda[/name_f] and [name_f]Wednesday[/name_f] from your options and the other suggestions so far.
Something like [name_f]Winnie[/name_f] [name_u]June[/name_u], [name_f]Winnie[/name_f] [name_f]Juno[/name_f] or [name_f]Winnie[/name_f] [name_u]Juniper[/name_u] would be gorgeous! Like you, I like the literary vibe that [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] gives off but I think it’d be quite hard to pull off for a girl… as you say, what if she’s very reserved, or on the other end of the spectrum, energetic and gregarious? I actually have the same concerns about its use on a boy; for that reason I’d personally only ever use it as a middle name I think. In addition to [name_f]Winnie[/name_f], I think [name_f]Winona[/name_f] is an awesome name. I really love [name_f]Winona[/name_f] [name_f]Juno[/name_f] as a combo!
[name_u]Wilder[/name_u] [name_f]Jane[/name_f] is gorgeous! It sounds like a literary name to me. Personally I think it can be used for a girl and it’s a refreshing choice. I don’t think there’s any need to worry about her personality not suiting her name, there’s probably lots of girls named [name_u]Sunny[/name_u] out there who have a moody personality. A name is a name after all, and if you love it, use it!
If you need any middle name suggestions here’s some more:
There’s also the awesome bonus (if this is your first child) that [name_f]Winona[/name_f] means “first born daughter”.
I’ve also just remembered that we had a poster a year or two ago whose daughter was called Winnemere “[name_f]Winnie[/name_f]”. I remember thinking what a beautiful choice that was
My favorite is [name_f]Winnie[/name_f] from your list! I love [name_f]Winnie[/name_f]. I don’t really like [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] on a boy and I don’t like it on a girl. I do think it’s usable if you like it though. I’d suggest [name_u]Wylie[/name_u]/Wiley.
I love the idea of [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] for a girl - so strong and sassy sounding! [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] [name_f]Josephine[/name_f] is a gorgeous combination! Of the other names you listed, I also love [name_u]Wren[/name_u].
I think [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] works for a girl–I would assume it was a literary or family namesake, if I saw it! Lots of names that are widely accepted as girls’ names don’t necessarily have sounds that I would specifically consider feminine, and the long “i” sound in [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] actually aligns nicely with the popular [name_f]Isla[/name_f]/Ivy/Iris/Lyla set of the moment, imo. [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] [name_f]Jane[/name_f] is lovely. She could always go by [name_f]Jane[/name_f] if [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] doesn’t seem to suit. From your list I also really like [name_f]Winnie[/name_f] and [name_u]Wren[/name_u]; I’m loving the previous suggestions of [name_u]Winslow[/name_u]/Winslet/Winry nn [name_f]Winnie[/name_f] for you. Also seconding @Babies123456’s idea of [name_u]Wylie[/name_u], which shares a lot of [name_u]Wilder[/name_u]’s sound and its boyish feel but might be a bit more familiar on a girl (still not top 1000 for girls though). [name_u]Wylie[/name_u] [name_f]Jane[/name_f] would be adorable. I’m sorry this has been stressful for you; I do think you have a great list! Good luck!!
I think [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] is cute and it sounds more like a surname name than a word name to me. What about [name_f]Wendy[/name_f]? Or [name_f]Wednesday[/name_f] even. I love that one.
To be quite honest, I don’t care for it—but I have to say it’s not really my style on a boy either. I actually totally forgot about [name_f]Laura[/name_f] Ingells [name_u]Wilder[/name_u]—I can see how it could be more appealing (and feel more feminine) if you are a fan of hers. Normally I’d say [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] would be a nice choice for your daughter’s middle name, but it sounds like you’re committed to the W.J. initials.
I think [name_u]Wren[/name_u] would be a great choice for you. I also like [name_f]Winnie[/name_f] from your list but to me it’s a little on the “cute” side, whereas [name_u]Wren[/name_u] has a bit more of the spunky, outdoorsy feel that [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] has, without such a masculine connotation (though I’m the first to admit that gender associations of names are arbitrary and, in the US at least, frequently changing).
I am a big fan of going with what you love! And if you love [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] go for it! I like your combo [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] [name_f]Jane[/name_f]
Personally I don’t love the name [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] on either gender for a first name. But I do think it is unisex. I do appreciate [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] in the middle spot but think it’s hard to live up to as a first name
Other W names: sorry for any repeats
[name_u]Whitney[/name_u]
[name_m]Westin[/name_m]
[name_f]Wistaria[/name_f]
[name_u]Winslow[/name_u]
Wexley
[name_u]Wylie[/name_u]
I think [name_u]Wilder[/name_u] would work for a girl, particularly when paired with a feminine mn. It’s less descriptive than Wavie to me. There is actually a more recent post I just noticed that mentions a girl by this name.
Another suggestion I have is [name_f]Whimsy[/name_f].
from your options and the other suggestions so far.
Of the other names you listed, I also love [name_u]Wren[/name_u].