My husbands Brother was [name_m]Matthew[/name_m] he likes [name_f]Mattison[/name_f] for a girl to honor him. He has passed away young due to a heart defect. NN is [name_u]Mattie[/name_u]. Thoughts?
I would go with [name_f]Mattea[/name_f]/[name_f]Matea[/name_f] instead, since that’s a feminine form of [name_m]Matthew[/name_m].
He isn’t a fan. I also suggested [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] but that was also shot down.
My condolences for your husband’s brother. I think there are better ways to honor a Matthew… There are a couple of reasons why I don’t think Mattison is a great idea:
- Mattison is very similar to Madison, and will often be misspelled because they sound so similar.
- Mattison has the -son ending, and names with this ending traditionally mean “son of…”.
I think Matilda is a great name that carries the nickname Mattie (which is a great connection to Matthew) as is Mattea, which is a feminization of Matthew and would have a stronger connection to his name than Mattison.
EDIT: Argh, I posted right after you! Maybe search for a name with the same meaning? You could also use something else that connects to him, such as his birth month, birthstone, etc. If he was a birdwatcher, find a type of bird/name that means bird. If he was a history buff, think about his favorite historical figures. Have fun with your search!
Good luck!
Well, since he doesn’t like [name_f]Mattea[/name_f] or [name_f]Matilda[/name_f], what about using a female version of his brother’s middle name instead? I agree with namelover77 that [name_f]Mattison[/name_f] will most likely get mistaken for [name_u]Madison[/name_u] all the time and that the -son ending doesn’t make it very feminine.
I know the -son ending means “son of” but it seems like that rule of thumb isn’t followed so closely these days. My parents named me Raechel. Note the extra e and I survived it.
So if it gets confused with [name_u]Madison[/name_u] I’m not too upset. If it makes my husband happy… I named the first two girls… He’s found it on a few websites where it says its a female version of [name_m]Matthew[/name_m].
I’m struggling with it here
I like the name [name_f]Mattison[/name_f], though I’ve only heard it used as a last name so far.
I agree it sounds like [name_u]Madison[/name_u], but I do not think that is a bad thing as it may make it easier for others to accept the name. i.e. That the name is so similar in sound to a popular name that might make the name easier accepted.
Not a fan of [name_f]Mattea[/name_f] (at all) but I can see the connection with [name_f]Matilda[/name_f].
I find [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] to be an old person name… but people seem to like the ‘vintage’ nowadays and it seems to be making a comeback.
Meh… go with [name_f]Mattison[/name_f] if it makes him happy.
Especially as you named the first 2 girls.
I prefer to have each adult alternate naming children as I have a very particular naming style and I’d rather name one child a name I loved than end up with 2 names we agree on but I may not love or connect with as much.
Normally I would really dislike a name like this but given the significance and that your husband doesn’t like any other variations of [name_m]Matthew[/name_m] then I think you should use it.
It’s different for sure and honestly if it wasn’t my kid I might side eye it a bit BUT said out loud I like the sound. I like the nickname [name_u]Mattie[/name_u] and I [name_f]LOVE[/name_f] significance of the name. I think the last piece trumps my reservations.
Like other people have said, the -son ending is exclusively masculine – I would understand appending it to ‘[name_m]Matt[/name_m]’ if you were having a son, but with a daughter? It makes no sense. Also, think of the incredible difficulty your daughter will have throughout her life: her name will be constantly mispronounced and misspelled. As someone whose own name is constantly mispronounced and misspelled, I can tell you that it’s a huge annoyance and, now that my career is gaining traction, a potential professional liability.
I appreciate that this name has a great deal of significance for you, but it just isn’t practical to use. I would suggest using it in the middle or finding an alternative. [name_m]Bear[/name_m] in mind that you may very well have a son, in which case you’ll probably want to use [name_m]Matthew[/name_m] as his first or middle name.
As for alternatives, how about…
[name_f]Matthea[/name_f]
[name_f]Amata[/name_f] or [name_f]Amatia[/name_f]
[name_f]Clematice[/name_f]
[name_f]Matita[/name_f]
[name_f]Mattolina[/name_f]
[name_f]Matya[/name_f]
[name_f]Tamatha[/name_f]
There is a great deal of pressure when someone wants to name a child in this manner. It is really hard to say no. I think that it’s a bit one sided to say you not only want to name somebody to honor somebody else, but that there is only one acceptable way to do so. I would not want my child being named in this way. I would want some options, and I think the important thing is not what I think about the name, but what you think about the name and whether your husband is being reasonable about [name_m]HOW[/name_m] he wants to honor his brother. Either way I am sorry he lost his brother and wish you all the best.
Have you considered using [name_u]Mattie[/name_u] as the full name, instead of [name_f]Mattison[/name_f]? I agree with you that the rule of -son endings equaling boy isn’t so stringent today but it does still sound really masculine to me. I knew a [name_u]Mattie[/name_u] who was named that because her parents didn’t like any of the full names ([name_f]Matilda[/name_f], etc). Since it’s the signficance you’re after, does it work? Out of curiosity, what are your other girls named?
I’m going to disagree with the mispronunciation and misspelling claims being made.
[name_m]Just[/name_m] looking at it, I think the pronunciation of [name_f]Mattison[/name_f] is very straight forward.
As for spelling, if someone said [name_f]Mattison[/name_f] the only error that may happen is that someone may omit the second ‘t’… which is something fairly common with most people who have spelling with a double letter.
Growing up with someone (female) who had the surname [name_f]Mattison[/name_f] none of these things were ever an issue.
You found a cute nickname and you yourself appreciate the significance of it… I’d go for it.
[name_m]How[/name_m] about [name_u]Matisse[/name_u], for another [name_u]Mat[/name_u] name?
People finding false information like the second sentence create issues like the first sentence 
What are your other girls names? If they are very feminine and/ or traditional, then [name_f]Mattison[/name_f] will really standout as different. A [name_f]Mattison[/name_f] with sisters [name_f]Elizabeth[/name_f] and [name_f]Isabelle[/name_f] is very different than [name_f]Mattison[/name_f] with sisters [name_u]Piper[/name_u] and [name_u]Sloane[/name_u].
Also, if you love [name_u]Mattie[/name_u] why not name her that or a hyphenated version of that? [name_u]Mattie[/name_u]-[name_f]Rose[/name_f], [name_u]Mattie[/name_u]-[name_f]Jane[/name_f], etc.
I’m afraid I’ve still not come to terms with people using “-son” names on girls. I mean, of course at the end of the day it’s your choice but as for my opinion I don’t like it.
[name_m]Just[/name_m] another note : [name_f]Mattison[/name_f] makes me think of [name_f]Carrie[/name_f] Mathison in Homeland. For me that’s a good thing because I like her character, so it does redeem the name a bit in my eyes But it’s just something to be aware of, I mean I understand if not everyone likes her, she is mentally unbalanced and has her own set of morals.
We have two unisex names for our other girls [name_u]Morgan[/name_u] and [name_u]Allison[/name_u]. Who goes by [name_u]Allie[/name_u]. I know [name_f]Mattison[/name_f] doesn’t sound great as a sibling set but she won’t be the odd one out with a masculine name. I think the meaning is the most important thing. We will give her a girly middle name and if she hates it she can go by that. I’ve never seen homeland although its high on my list:) thanks everyone for your advice. I was half expecting a lynch mob for my name choice. I also love that [name_m]Matthew[/name_m]/[name_f]Mattison[/name_f] means gift from god since she was quite the surprise baby:)
In response to some comments
Not having another baby so there will be no sons to give this name,( dear god isn’t 3 girls enough;))
And most of the [name_m]Matt[/name_m] girl names except for [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] and [name_f]Matea[/name_f] are harder to pronounce.
I’ve not given up on a change to [name_f]Matilda[/name_f]. We will see.