I had thought I was certain on [name_m]Louis[/name_m] [name_m]Khalil[/name_m] if baby is a boy, but looking back at our long list, it has made me reconsider this certainty, lol. I love the idea of [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m] [name_m]Khalil[/name_m] or [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m] [name_m]Liban[/name_m]. My SO is a huge fan of the Russian culture, so with time he really warmed up to [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m], despite it not being all that common and traditional - I think it’s a very strong contender. [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m] is a name that is special to SO and I love it just as much.
[name_m]Louis[/name_m], on the other hand, was the first name we both agreed on and that we both equally loved, so you all can see how difficult it’s been for me to make a final decision - and I really want to before baby arrives. I waited to choose [name_f]Ziva[/name_f]'s name when I met her and although I love it, I wish I had chosen something else… I don’t want anymore name regrets and thinking what if - so no more making name decisions right after giving birth!
Also, would be lovely if you berries could suggest some other Arabic middle names for a possible [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m].
To me, [name_m]Louis[/name_m] feels like the natural choice. [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m], especiall this spelling, looks just so very Russian it feels out of place with your kids / I’d expect that your new partner was Russian and [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m] could speak Russian (which might not be a problem for you or him).
I love [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m], it reminds me of The Brothers Karamazov. I like [name_m]Louis[/name_m], but only if pronounced without the -s. Otherwise I prefer [name_m]Lewis[/name_m].
I pronounce [name_m]Louis[/name_m] without the s (like “[name_m]Louie[/name_m]”)! And thanks for your input, I personally haven’t yet read the Brothers Karamazov.
I love [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m], especially with the sibset. I think it bridges the gap between your bolder girls’ names and the more classic [name_m]Alexander[/name_m] really nicely. I particularly like that the boys’ names have Greek roots (and also work in Russian). [name_m]Louis[/name_m] is nice, too, and I definitely prefer that spelling over [name_m]Lewis[/name_m] or [name_m]Louie[/name_m], but the two possible and legit pronunciations seem like it would be a bit of a pain.
I like both of your name choices. Other middles you could pair with [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m] include Zakariya, Zakir, [name_u]Zaki[/name_u], Miraj, [name_m]Amir[/name_m]/Emir, [name_m]Omar[/name_m]/[name_m]Omer[/name_m], [name_u]Mika[/name_u], [name_m]Yusuf[/name_m], [name_u]Ali[/name_u], [name_m]Musa[/name_m], [name_m]Bilal[/name_m], [name_m]Ismail[/name_m].
If you do go for [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m], I prefer that spelling but I don’t know if some people may struggle to pronounce it if it’s written that way, if so the other spelling may be preferable.
I actually was only aware of English usage of the [name_m]Dimitri[/name_m] spelling before [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m] was mentioned quite a bit on Nameberry; my main source of familiarity coming from the movie “[name_f]Anastasia[/name_f]” in which they also used the [name_m]Dimitri[/name_m] spelling.
I think to me it just doesn’t look like it belongs in the English language (nor most other Germanic languages) as sounds are usually (always?) spelled out, there are no “inserted vowels” as there are in Slavic languages and while the prn. of [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m] would be clear to many people, I do think that few would spell it correctly and that many would still say “dm-itri”, not inserting the invisible vowel because they are unsure of what you were going for with this spelling.
Behindthename says that [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m] is a variation of [name_m]Dmitry[/name_m], the Russian form of [name_m]Demetrius[/name_m] which are both prn. as DMEE-tree while [name_m]Dimitri[/name_m] is the Church Slavic Spelling as is prn. [name_f]Dee[/name_f]-MEE-tree, so the only difference is that the first “ee” is clearly pronounced. The latter also currently ranks at #905 in the US, making it the most popular spelling (and therefore probably the one people will misspell [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m] as; basically what I mentioned above).
I suppose in the end it really is look vs. practicality (though I do think that [name_m]Dimitri[/name_m] looks very handsome, too) and how closely you want the name to be associated with [name_f]Russia[/name_f].
Oh wow! Thank you @opheliaflora for being so thorough and bringing in numbers - I hadn’t yet considered looking up the popularity and such. I guess this is something SO and I will have to discuss, although for me either one is very handsome. It’s a very close tie between both names.
I love the name [name_m]Amir[/name_m] that you’ve suggested, but it’s very popular within my family and I’m trying to avoid using it. Miraj is very, very handsome and similar to my beloved Miraz. Thanks for the suggestion! I love your son’s name by the way, Zakariya is very strong and handsome, I also love the -a ending.
I like the pronunciation of [name_m]Lewis[/name_m] rather than louie, so I am preferring [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m] in this case. However, I think that if you’re living in an English speaking country that you should probably spell it as [name_m]Dimitri[/name_m]. l like the Russian flare and am a fan of Russian names myself.
here are a few Russian suggestions if you’renot completely set with what you’ve got.
Thanks for your feedback and suggestions. I’m afraid we already have an [name_m]Alexander[/name_m] nn [name_u]Lexi[/name_u] and so [name_m]Alexei[/name_m] wouldn’t work. The others are lovely as well, especially [name_m]Nikolai[/name_m], but they don’t appeal to us as [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m] or [name_m]Dimitri[/name_m] do.
Thanks for the insight, sweetie! We love [name_m]Louis[/name_m], but [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m]/[name_m]Dimitri[/name_m] has stolen our hearts! We’ll see…
At last another [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m] lover! I can’t understand why it isn’t mentioned here more often. It has the perfect balance of exoticism and familiarity - not unlike [name_m]Nikolai[/name_m] - and rolls off the tongue delightfully. Though it isn’t a conventional addition to your sibset, I think it links your children’s names quite nicely. As for the spelling, I prefer [name_m]Dmitri[/name_m]; it’s trimmer and doesn’t have the problematic “Dim” part. I love [name_m]Louis[/name_m] too, but it lacks the same oomph that your other names have.
