Narrowing down the list

General Name Discussion
1

Hey, I’m [name]Honor[/name], and this is my first post on Nameberry :slight_smile: My husband and I have narrowed down our boys list. Tell me which one you’d vote for! Suggestions are welcome, but we’re pretty set on the first names.

[name]Oliver[/name] [name]Lyman[/name]
[name]Oliver[/name] [name]West[/name]

or

[name]Griffin[/name] [name]Oliver[/name]
[name]Griffin[/name] [name]West[/name]

Other first names we might consider are [name]Hugo[/name] or [name]Napoleon[/name] (nn [name]Leo[/name]).

Thanks!
:slight_smile: [name]Honor[/name]

2

I love your name, [name]Honor[/name]. :slight_smile:

[name]Oliver[/name] [name]Lyman[/name]: I [name]LOVE[/name] [name]Oliver[/name] (it’s one of my all-time favorites)! This combo is more L-heavy than [name]Oliver[/name] [name]West[/name], but I think it’s very distinguished and handsome.

[name]Oliver[/name] [name]West[/name]: I think [name]Oliver[/name] [name]West[/name] sounds really handsome, but it does kind of remind me of [name]Oliver[/name] [name]North[/name], from the politics of the 1980s. (I’m in my 30’s…)

If you have a short last name (like [name]Jones[/name]) or if your last name has two syllables (like [name]Baker[/name]), I’d go with [name]Lyman[/name] for the flow ([name]Oliver[/name] [name]Lyman[/name] [name]Baker[/name]). With a longer last name, I think I’d go with [name]West[/name]. I think it depends on your last name, and how it sounds with the middle names.

[name]Griffin[/name] [name]Oliver[/name]: I definitely prefer [name]Oliver[/name] to [name]Griffin[/name], but I like the flow of [name]Griffin[/name] [name]Oliver[/name] over [name]Griffin[/name] [name]West[/name]. (Something sounds off with the F in [name]Griffen[/name] paired with the V in [name]Oliver[/name], but it’s probably just me…)

[name]Griffin[/name] [name]West[/name]: I think this combo sounds too clipped/blunt, but that’s just me. :slight_smile: I think both names are handsome.

[name]Hugo[/name]: I really love [name]Hugo[/name]!

[name]Napoleon[/name] (nn [name]Leo[/name]): I [name]LOVE[/name] [name]Leo[/name], but I’d personally stay away from [name]Napoleon[/name], not only because of the [name]Napoleon[/name] Complex, but because of the movie [name]Napoleon[/name] Dynamite. Have you considered [name]Leopold[/name] as a source of [name]Leo[/name]?

From your list, I [name]LOVE[/name] [name]Oliver[/name], [name]Hugo[/name], and [name]Leo[/name].

Good luck! :slight_smile:

3

I love [name]Griffin[/name] [name]Oliver[/name] or [name]Oliver[/name] [name]West[/name]!!!
Beautiful!

4

I [name]LOVE[/name] [name]Griffin[/name] [name]Oliver[/name]! [name]Griffin[/name] is one of my favorite boys’ names.

5

[name]Griffin[/name] [name]West[/name]! Although all of your options are good!

6

[name]Hi[/name], [name]Honor[/name]!
[name]Oliver[/name] [name]Lyman[/name] - love
[name]Oliver[/name] [name]West[/name] - love

or

[name]Griffin[/name] [name]Oliver[/name] - love, make sure initials go with your last name’s initial.
[name]Griffin[/name] [name]West[/name] - love

Other first names we might consider are [name]Hugo[/name] - love
or [name]Napoleon[/name] (nn [name]Leo[/name]). - I think [name]Napoleon[/name] is timely. If [name]Romeo[/name] works, then [name]Napoleon[/name] could, too, I think. NN could also be [name]Leon[/name].

[name]Love[/name] [name]Jill[/name]'s idea of [name]Leopold[/name] more than [name]Napoleon[/name] though. Also love [name]Lionel[/name].
But [name]Napoleon[/name] would make a fantastic Hipster name.

My fave ideas are [name]Griffin[/name] [name]Oliver[/name] and [name]Leopold[/name] or [name]Lionel[/name] nn [name]Leo[/name]. Needs a middle name. [name]West[/name] would be good.

Thanks!
You’re welcome!

7

My favourite is [name]Oliver[/name] [name]Lyman[/name] - I think it flows nicely.
Personally, [name]Oliver[/name] [name]West[/name] and [name]Griffin[/name] [name]West[/name] sound like they might be districts, so I wouldn’t choose them.
I prefer [name]Oliver[/name] to [name]Griffin[/name], as I think it has a nicer sound.
[name]Hugo[/name] is a lovely name, cute for a child but also suitable for an adult - how about [name]Hugo[/name] [name]Lyman[/name]? [name]Hugo[/name] [name]Oliver[/name] is a bit of a mouthful.
I would suggest using [name]Napoleon[/name] as a middle name if you like it - although I love [name]Leo[/name], [name]Napoleon[/name] Bonaparte isn’t exactly a desirable figure to share the name of!
I hope this helped!

8

Thanks for all your votes and comments! [name]Every[/name] piece of advice is really helpful :slight_smile:

[name]Jill[/name] - My last name is short, one syllable, and I think I agree that [name]Griffin[/name] [name]West[/name] sounds a bit clipped. I hadn’t thought of the possible [name]Oliver[/name] [name]North[/name] connection, so thanks for alerting me to that. I have considered [name]Leopold[/name], and many other ‘[name]Leo[/name]’ sources, but [name]Napoleon[/name] was the only one that grabbed me. I’m hoping the [name]Napoleon[/name] Dynamite reference will fade (maybe I should hold off on this name for a later child?) and I actually don’t mind both the [name]Napoleon[/name] Bonaparte/[name]Napoleon[/name] Complex connection. [name]Do[/name] you think [name]Leo[/name] could stand on its own with a short last name?

[name]Susan[/name] - Thanks for the positive feedback :slight_smile: While I think [name]Lionel[/name] is a nice name, I just don’t really like it for my son. DH is also leaning towards [name]Griffin[/name] [name]Oliver[/name], but we’re considering both [name]Oliver[/name] and [name]Griffin[/name] (maybe [name]Hugo[/name] or [name]Napoleon[/name], but DH seems to want to save them for a later baby) equally as firsts right now…we’ll probably end up taking both to the delivery room with us :slight_smile:

Twinkle - I actually really like how [name]Hugo[/name] [name]Lyman[/name] sounds, and I agree, [name]Griffin[/name] [name]West[/name] and [name]Oliver[/name] [name]West[/name] do sort of sound like districts…[name]West[/name] [name]Griffin[/name] probably more so, though. I’ll keep that in mind. Your advice was definitely helpful :slight_smile:

Possible new combos to consider:

[name]Oliver[/name] [name]Napoleon[/name]
[name]Hugo[/name] [name]Lyman[/name]

9

[name]Hi[/name] there, [name]Honor[/name]. :slight_smile: Okay. So your last name is short, with only one syllable. [name]Just[/name] for experimentation purposes, I’ll pretend it’s [name]James[/name].

[name]Griffin[/name] [name]West[/name] [name]James[/name]: Yeah, for me, the flow isn’t the best. I think [name]Griffin[/name] needs a longer middle name here, like your idea of [name]Oliver[/name]. [name]Griffen[/name] [name]Oliver[/name] [name]James[/name]. I’d stick with somthing at least three syllables long in the middle.

[name]Oliver[/name] [name]Napoleon[/name] [name]James[/name]: Like I said, I’m just personally not a [name]Napoleon[/name] person, but I do think the flow of this combo works with a very short last name. I think [name]Oliver[/name] [name]Leopold[/name] [name]James[/name] sounds really cool, too.

[name]Hugo[/name] [name]Lyman[/name] [name]James[/name]: I think [name]Hugo[/name] [name]Lyman[/name] sounds really great, but with a short last name, I think the combo sounds rather blunt. I think a longer middle name, like [name]Hugo[/name] [name]Napoleon[/name] [name]James[/name] flows better (although both have the long O). It’s just my personal preference, though. :slight_smile:

With [name]Napoleon[/name], I’d just be worried about potential teasing. If kids don’t know about the historical [name]Napoleon[/name], they’re more likely to know about the odd [name]Napoleon[/name] Dynamite. I don’t think it’s a problem in the middle, but I personally would be too concerned about teasing to use it up front.

For what it’s worth, I definitely think [name]Leo[/name] can stand on its own, and I think it sounds very handsome with your (fake) last name! :slight_smile:

[name]Just[/name] for fun:

[name]Leo[/name] [name]Benjamin[/name] [name]James[/name]
[name]Leo[/name] [name]Donovan[/name] [name]James[/name]
[name]Leo[/name] [name]Everett[/name] [name]James[/name]
[name]Leo[/name] [name]Finnian[/name] [name]James[/name]
[name]Leo[/name] [name]Gideon[/name] [name]James[/name]
[name]Leo[/name] [name]Gabriel[/name] [name]James[/name]
[name]Leo[/name] [name]Harrison[/name] [name]James[/name]
[name]Leo[/name] [name]Julian[/name]/[name]Julius[/name] [name]James[/name]
[name]Leo[/name] [name]Maxfield[/name] [name]James[/name]
[name]Leo[/name] [name]Nathaniel[/name] [name]James[/name]
[name]Leo[/name] [name]Phineas[/name] [name]James[/name]
[name]Leo[/name] [name]Raphael[/name] [name]James[/name]
[name]Leo[/name] [name]Solomon[/name] [name]James[/name]
[name]Leo[/name] [name]Sullivan[/name] [name]James[/name]
[name]Leo[/name] [name]Xavier[/name] [name]James[/name]

Good luck to you! :slight_smile: