[name]Hi[/name] Berries…just wondering everyone’s opinion on the name [name]Michael[/name]. I do realize the popularity, however I love strong, classic names. My other son is named [name]Connor[/name], and while there are many Gaelic names that I love, it seems as though they are becoming uber-trendy these days. Opinions welcomed!!!
[name]Michael[/name]'s okay to me. It is a solid classic, but definitely as overdone as a solid classic can be. I like the sound of it, I really do, and I generally don’t care about popularity, but [name]Michael[/name] is just ridiculous. It’s overdone to the point of insanity. I’d bet there’s not a block in [name]America[/name] without at least one [name]Michael[/name] living on it. And so as nice as it is, I can’t like it because it’s just so dreadfully boring. Still classic, still a nice name, but very, very boring to me.
You really can’t go wrong with using a solid and classic name like [name]Michael[/name]. I think a person would rather have the name [name]Michael[/name] than…gosh I don’t know… [name]Aydyn[/name] or [name]Dodge[/name] or [name]Kelvin[/name].
(just make sure you spell it right-- I’m really disturbed by the # of [name]Micheal[/name]'s born each year…)
Honestly? I find it very boring. There were over 64,000 Michaels born the year that I was. That is enough Michaels to account for nearly everyone living in my town.
Names that have the same feeling as [name]Michael[/name] but arent overdone:
[name]Isaac[/name]
[name]William[/name]
[name]Nathan[/name]
[name]Samuel[/name]
[name]Thomas[/name]
[name]Daniel[/name]
[name]Lucas[/name]
[name]Zachary[/name]
I do like the name [name]Michael[/name], but not particularly the nickname [name]Mike[/name]. (When I was in 6th grade, unbelievably, there were four or five "[name]Mike[/name]"s in my class that year!) It would be fine to use, but I think [name]Michael[/name] shines brighter as a middle name.
[name]Trust[/name] your instincts. There’s a reason why you’re reluctant with the overused [name]Michael[/name]. There are other less used classics. No one wants to be known as “the other [name]Michael[/name]”. Why don’t you explore names that make a better fitting sibling set with [name]Connor[/name]?
I like [name]Michael[/name] in comparison with the everlasting popularity of [name]Elizabeth[/name] which I think has been done to death. In fact if I hear of another [name]Elizabeth[/name] I will scream. I think [name]Michael[/name] is a nice touch for children of today. It is a refreshing choice because nowadays there aren’t many Michaels under the age of 10 y.o. I like [name]David[/name] for the same reason. I think a [name]Michael[/name] is a good name and it would be a shame for it to disappear from sight for another 20 years or so.
I really don’t like the modern equivalent of [name]Michael[/name] which is [name]Micah[/name]. I think it sounds like someone forgot the ‘l’.
So what if it is a very well known name. I am sure it won’t reach the most popular name list anytime soon and isn’t popularity the thing that the nameberry type of namers dread the most?
We are considering [name]Miles[/name] which is a derivative of [name]Michael[/name]. My dad’s middle name is [name]Michael[/name]. [name]Do[/name] you like [name]Miles[/name]?
I think that if you like a name that is as popular as [name]Michael[/name] is, you can’t really worry about its popularity b/c there will ALWAYS be other Michaels.
Another idea would be to use initials, like call [name]Michael[/name] [name]James[/name] MJ. ([name]Just[/name] an example.)
It’s a nice name. A solid name. And too overused for my liking. My hubby’s name is [name]Michael[/name] and I’ve told him from day one that there is NO [name]WAY[/name] that will be our son’s first name if we have a boy. He wants to pass on the naming trend (my FIL is [name]Michael[/name] as well) and I told him his son would still be [name]Michael[/name] C., just ________ [name]Michael[/name] C instead of [name]Michael[/name] __________ C. It can be a middle name, but I’m just totally against the first name.
I hope you like your last name’s initial because as a [name]Michael[/name], he’ll be [name]Michael[/name] S., [name]Michael[/name] J., or whatever. Why not just pick [name]John[/name] and truly go blah?
Wow, I’m kinda surprised by how put-off people are by this name! It’s interesting. Yes, most likely there will be other Michaels in his school or even his classroom, but is that the end of the world? I didn’t personally have to go by my last initial in school, but for those here that did – did it really hurt you in some way? (that lasted beyond the 4th grade?) Sorry, I’m being a bit snarky, but just putting it into perspective. Being a name-nerd doesn’t mean you automatically have to dismiss a popular name right? If it’s a name you love, use it. Pair it with a rock-star, unique, or slightly offbeat mn if you need to have more creativity in naming.
I may be biased because I know a few great Michaels and Mikes though.
[name]Michael[/name] is a strong, biblical classic. Is it the most exciting, breathtaking name out there? No. But will it get your son teased, will it be spelled wrong constantly, will people question your sanity if you use it? Of course not. It’s been used for decades for a reason. It’s handsome and can fit any type of guy. I’m not huge on the nickname [name]Mike[/name], maybe because I went to school with tons of them. But I think [name]Mikey[/name] is cute, and [name]Mickey[/name] is really adorable and vintage. [name]Mick[/name] could be a cute nickname as well. An interesting spin on the name could be [name]Micah[/name] (MY-kuh), another strong biblical name. I went to school with a [name]Micah[/name] and always loved his name. Good luck!
Yeah, it’s nice that some of us know a few nice Michaels but honestly who doesn’t know a [name]Michael[/name] or six Michaels? Literally for decades it’s been the #1 name. It’s the post-modern [name]John[/name] or male [name]Mary[/name] of our time. “Not that [name]Michael[/name] but the taller/muscular/richer/(insert adjective here) [name]Michael[/name].” Take your individual great Michaels that you know aside and see the name for what it truly is: a biblical classic that’s been overused to the point of decades of redundancy, uninspired thinking, and overall indifference. You already have a son named [name]Connor[/name]. Picture it if his name was [name]Christopher[/name] or even [name]Charles[/name] and give it that bland spin that [name]Michael[/name] gives off. You can seriously do better than the #1 for the last of the 20th century.
@crunchymama- I’m with you on not knocking a name because of popularity alone, but really [name]Michael[/name] is just so overdone it’s lost any appeal it had. It’s been in the top 10 for sixty-seven years, and never out of the top 100. Sure, it’s a beautiful, enduringly classic name, but really? Any name that was #1 for over forty years will become boring. [name]Michael[/name] is sort of the new [name]John[/name], but at this point [name]John[/name] is a far more unique name, at least for a baby. [name]Jennifer[/name] at its peak may have had a higher percentage of babies with the name born, but over time there has been way more Michaels. [name]Just[/name] the logistics of tens of millions of people in our increasingly expanding world with the same name is crazy to think about. My first name is only around the three hundreds and my last name is in the 5000’s in the US and there’s still four other people with the same name as me on facebook-I even had to tell my friends which one was me in the beginning. One of my friends, a [name]Gregory[/name] with a common last name, actually missed a flight once because his name (a different person with the same name, I should say) was on the no-fly list. It all got sorted out pretty quickly, but it was pretty inconvenient at the time. [name]Imagine[/name] being a [name]Michael[/name] [name]Anderson[/name]- those situations would be your whole life!
I realize that may come across as a little harsh, and I really don’t think it’s a bad thing to name your kid [name]Michael[/name], I just wanted to express my opinion as clearly as possible. [name]Michael[/name] is a name that I fear will actually cause endless beauraucratic confusion, not one that I think is stylistically bad. I wouldn’t want to experience those headaches on a regular basis and I can’t imagine anyone else would either.
Thanks [name]Daisy[/name]! the “no fly” example is actually a good one to consider. I think any issues being the 3rd [name]Michael[/name] in your class cause as a kid are probably VERY insignificant. However, issues you may have as an adult can severly impact your life and I didn’t consider that. Thanks for bringing that up. The only thing I can say to that is that technology is forever moving forward and I anticipate there will soon be more ways you can “prove” your identity in these situations. You know what I mean? In 20 years, we could be getting some sort of instant fingerprint or DNA scan whenever we enter an airport! lol
I suppose missing a flight really is not the worst thing in the world either because all of those measures are in place for our security.