OK so here’s my situation. My husband is obsessed with the name [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] and if we were having a boy, I think the name [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] would be perfectly fine. We found out that we’re having a girl which he’s happy about, but he still wants to name our baby [name_u]Kyle[/name_u]. I was diametrically opposed to it for the longest time until I started seeing some positives. One thing my husband and I talk about is choosing a name that would look good on a resume. Let’s face it! We live in a patriarchal society although I won’t go into a feminist theory rant, but I could see the benefit of a woman having a name that is typically reserved for males. I also thought that a nickname for [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] could be “[name_f]Kylie[/name_f]” and even though [name_f]Kylie[/name_f] reminds me of that Kardashian kid, I think that would be such a cute nickname for a little girl named [name_u]Kyle[/name_u]. If she ended up not liking her name in the future, she could go by [name_f]Kylie[/name_f].
So my question is, what do you think? I know ultimately it is me and my husband’s decision, however I wanted to get some perspective. [name_f]Do[/name_f] you think this a terrible idea or an awesome one? Or do you think it is fine either way. One of my primary concerns, besides the fact that [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] is a male name, is that I’ve noticed that it is becoming trendy to give girls traditionally male names. I actually know a couple who named their baby girl [name_m]David[/name_m] as her name and they call her [name_f]Dee[/name_f] for short. At the risk of sounding hypocritical, I think [name_m]David[/name_m] as a girl’s name is absolutely hideous. I apologize if anyone has any personal connection with that name, but I just don’t like it at all for a girl.
If we do decide to name our daughter [name_u]Kyle[/name_u], here are some of the first and middle name combinations we had in mind!
Hmm. I really like the names [name_f]Kyla[/name_f] and [name_f]Kylie[/name_f], which can stand just fine on their own. Plus, unisex and traditionally masculine names for girls IS indeed a trend, so I would venture to say that the people hiring staff in 20yrs will have a very different set of names to look through and won’t assume anything, so I’m not sure you’d give her a leg up there. It isn’t a top 20 name for boys now, but it spent some good years down under the Top 30 in the US ('94-'99.) So she would be meeting male Kyles most of her life. Would you consider [name_f]Kyla[/name_f] instead?
There is nothing wrong with being female, nothing wrong with femininity. [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] on a girl sounds silly, like you wished you’d had a son instead. Why not [name_f]Kyla[/name_f]?
It’s a male name for me, not unisex. I know a handful of Kyles and they’re all male. However, [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] is a Scottish surname so it doesn’t really belong to a specific gender, but I still wouldn’t do it.
What about [name_f]Kyla[/name_f]? I like that name for a girl and have it on my long list… It feels a lot more girlie than [name_u]Kyle[/name_u]. Or call her [name_f]Kylie[/name_f], which in my opinion isn’t a name totally tied to [name_f]Kylie[/name_f] Jenner, and I’m a massive Kardashian fan.
It’s ultimately you and your DH’s decision, but I wouldn’t go for it personally because I can’t picture a little girl wearing that name. It’s not a bad name but it’s just masculine for me. If you did use it, I’d definitely go with a frilly middle name to even it out ([name_f]Isabella[/name_f], [name_f]Olivia[/name_f], [name_f]Amelia[/name_f], [name_f]Francesca[/name_f], [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f]…)
Congrats! I don’t mind [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] for a girl, I kind of like it. I agree [name_f]Kylie[/name_f] would be a cute nickname. Or just [name_m]Ky[/name_m] (not sure about the spelling). I know a [name_f]Caeli[/name_f] pronounced the same as [name_f]Kylie[/name_f] who is often called [name_f]Cae[/name_f] (prn [name_u]Kai[/name_u]).
Are these middles family names? They seem a bit dated to me (ie, [name_f]Michelle[/name_f], [name_f]Nicole[/name_f], [name_f]Christine[/name_f]). I also feel like since most of them are variations of male names ([name_u]Francis[/name_u], [name_m]Nicholas[/name_m], [name_u]Michael[/name_u], [name_m]Simon[/name_m]), they don’t bring a ton of femininity to the combo. [name_f]Daphne[/name_f] is the most feminine to me. It’s not my favorite for flow, but [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] [name_f]Daphne[/name_f] is very sweet. That would get my vote.
I gotta say I’m not a fan. [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] is adorable on a boy, but I really wouldn’t use it on a girl.
I like the suggestion of [name_f]Kyla[/name_f]. Or maybe go for a completely other name that you’d like for a girl, and save [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] for a possible future boy
I’m not a huge fan of [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] on a boy, and definitely not on a girl, sorry. If that were my name, I would have the (probably erroneous) feeling that my parents had been hoping for a boy, and just couldn’t be bothered to find a new name. As I say, probably not true, but not nice either. Names that have similar sounds could be something like [name_f]Lila[/name_f] or [name_f]Mila[/name_f], both lovely choices.
I know about 6 male Kyles and 2 female Kyles (one is in her 30s and one is probably 13) so while I do consider it quite masculine, I have seen it on girls so its not crazy to me. I think it sounds ok on a girl. It is definitely trendy to use traditionally male names on girls.
I think my favorite combo is [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] [name_f]Daphne[/name_f]!
You’re right that giving girls traditionally male names is a big trend these days. The problem that I have with it is that it’s only happening in that direction - there are no boys being named [name_f]Jessica[/name_f] and [name_f]Katherine[/name_f], it’s always girls being named [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] and [name_m]David[/name_m]. You’re right that we live in a patriarchal society, but I would argue (respectfully) that using that as a rationale for giving your daughter a masculine name is akin to saying, “ahh, well, that’s how it is” rather than pushing for that not to be the case. It screams at me, “if you can’t beat 'em, join 'em”, which feels like a really defeatist attitude to adopt while naming any child.
Naming a girl [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] isn’t the worst idea I’ve ever heard, but I don’t like it for the above reason. I don’t watched the Kardashians’ show, but I do know the girls’ names on it, and I haven’t inextricably linked [name_f]Kylie[/name_f] to [name_f]Kylie[/name_f] Jenner. There’s also [name_f]Kylie[/name_f] Minogue, but apart from either of them I think I’ve heard the name out in the world enough that I don’t strongly associate it with either of them.
Separate from the gender question, there’s apparently a Nascar driver named [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] and my friends who are Nascar fans took to calling him “Cryle” and I’ve never gotten that out of my head. Now half the time when I hear the name [name_u]Kyle[/name_u], Cryle echoes through my head. (This may just be me and not a decent reason for anyone else not to get on board with the name!)
I agree with the suggestion above of saving [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] for a possible future boy.
I think [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] works well as a strong female name. Personally, I do not care for [name_f]Kylie[/name_f] (seems ditzy to me) and Kila is ok, but kind of a buzz kill-ah lol.
Not a fan, for pretty much all the same reasons previously stated, sorry. Are there any other girls names you are considering? If not, would you consider…
I think it is okay to use it for a girl but I think the name is terribly over used. I know at least 5 [name_u]Kyle[/name_u]'s really well and know of about 5 more. I think it would be unique for a girl but I also think she wouldn’t stand out much because of the name being so popular.
I would hate having a name, that on paper or before meeting me, everyone assumed I was a boy. You do mention that [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] would likely be the name chosen if this had been a boy, and well, to your daughter I think it will look like you were hoping for a boy. I think you should save [name_u]Kyle[/name_u] for a possible future son and choose another name for your daughter.
Besides your daughter perhaps thinking that you would have preferred a boy, I think using traditionally male names on females has the potential to suggest to children that there’s something wrong with femininity, or that having a name that identifies them as a female somehow makes them weak. I would rather teach my daughter to appreciate femininity and its inherent strengths.
What about something unisex, such as [name_u]Kai[/name_u]?
I actually know two female [name_u]Kyle[/name_u]'s. They are both my age (mid to late 20’s) and they are super cute! I think it will be fine on a girl and [name_f]Kylie[/name_f] would be the perfect girly nickname.
This trend of giving traditionally masculine or masculine-sounding names to girls, seems to give the impression that female names are not good enough, that they’re not strong enough.
Look at all the incredible women from history - the majority of them had or have PROPER female names - names that are strong and distinguished. It didn’t do them any harm.
It really is time to leave the boys-names-on-girls thing alone now.
I love the name [name_f]Kyla[/name_f] as an alternative, however the thing that would keep us from using that is that we actually already have a [name_f]Kyla[/name_f] in the family on my husband’s side. The thing that sucks is that [name_f]Kyla[/name_f] is actually her middle name, but nobody calls her by her first name.
