need help with a double name!!

General Name Discussion
1

[name]Reynolds[/name] is a very special family name on my husbands side. We are having a girl - our 2 boys are [name]Walker[/name] and [name]Shepard[/name]. Initially we liked [name]Mary[/name] [name]Reynolds[/name] as a double name however we have deciced we don’t like [name]Mary[/name] so much. Now we are TORN and need help. In the south it is very popular to take a family name and put [name]Ann[/name] or [name]Mary[/name] in front so we have come up with the following…
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Reynolds[/name]
[name]Ann[/name] [name]Reynolds[/name]
[name]Reynolds[/name] [name]Virginia[/name]
[name]Reynolds[/name] [name]Katherine[/name] “[name]Reynolds[/name] [name]Kate[/name]”
These would all be double names…if we don’t use reynolds we are considering
[name]Lola[/name] [name]Kate[/name]
[name]Lola[/name] [name]Elizabeth[/name]
[name]Eliza[/name] [name]Kate[/name]
[name]Sullivan[/name] [name]Kate[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Sullivan[/name]
HELP!!! We thought we had things figured out but we are right back to square 1!!!

2

I’m from the South too, so I can appreciate the family name as first name deal. Although I’m sure some will tell you that those names aren’t feminine or something, these types of names are usually adorable on a little girl and also distinctive. That said, [name]Mary[/name] [name]Reynolds[/name] and [name]Mary[/name] [name]Sullivan[/name] are the only ones that really flow for me. [name]Ann[/name] [name]Reynolds[/name] is OK, but it sounds more like a first and last name. Of your combos without the family names, I prefer [name]Eliza[/name] [name]Kate[/name]. I don’t think the saucy [name]Lola[/name] goes as well with your boys’ more elegant names. Overall, I like [name]Mary[/name] [name]Reynolds[/name] or [name]Eliza[/name] [name]Kate[/name] the most.

3

Also, I really don’t think the combos with [name]Reynolds[/name] out front work well. [name]Reynolds[/name] [name]Virginia[/name] sounds like a town in [name]Virginia[/name], and is a mouthful besides. [name]Reynolds[/name] [name]Kate[/name] is still awkward to me. What about [name]Anna[/name] [name]Reynolds[/name]? That flows better than just [name]Ann[/name] [name]Reynolds[/name], I think. Or just [name]Reynolds[/name]?

4

I’m not from the South, so to me [name]Mary[/name] [name]Reynolds[/name], [name]Ann[/name] [name]Reynolds[/name] etc. sound a bit too much like a first name/last name combos, while [name]Sullivan[/name] [name]Mary[/name] sounds like a last name/first name mix up. But that’s only because I’m from the Northwest where double names with a surname is very uncommon, and would almost certainly be mistaken for a fn/ln or ln/fn.

That said, I absolutely [name]ADORE[/name] [name]Eliza[/name] [name]Kate[/name] and [name]Lola[/name] [name]Kate[/name]!!! [name]Love[/name], love, love!!! I think [name]Eliza[/name] [name]Kate[/name] is my overall favorite.

5

My favourite from your list is [name]Eliza[/name] [name]Kate[/name] - [name]Eliza[/name] [name]Katherine[/name] would also work.

What about [name]Mary[/name] [name]Virginia[/name] or [name]Eliza[/name] [name]Virginia[/name]?

6

One more thought!

You could do “[name]Eliza[/name] [name]Kate[/name]” or “[name]Lola[/name] [name]Kate[/name]” as a first name and then “[name]Reynolds[/name]” or “[name]Sullivan[/name]” as a middle name. (I prefer “[name]Sullivan[/name]” to “[name]Reynolds[/name]” personally.)

What do you think of “[name]Eliza[/name] [name]Kate[/name] [name]Sullivan[/name]” ? I really like it!

7

I’ve been thining about this one! What about [name]Rose[/name] [name]Reynolds[/name]? I like it!

8

It seems like your double first names are essentially a first and middle, but you would always use both. I like this idea much more than, say, MarieTess, or [name]Isabella[/name]-[name]Eleanor[/name].

I really like [name]Mary[/name], and like the sound of [name]Mary[/name] [name]Reynolds[/name] and [name]Mary[/name] [name]Kate[/name].

But I also think [name]Eliza[/name] [name]Kate[/name] and [name]Eliza[/name] [name]Reynolds[/name] flow excellently, as does [name]Lola[/name] [name]Kate[/name] if you don’t mind the fact that [name]Lola[/name] is getting popular.

Also, I think you could try [name]Katherine[/name] [name]Reynolds[/name] rather than [name]Reynolds[/name] [name]Katherine[/name] - [name]Katie[/name] [name]Reynolds[/name] (or [name]Katie[/name] [name]Rey[/name], which I think would sound cute on a small child?) flow well, and I think [name]Kate[/name]/[name]Katie[/name] is a great nn.

Good luck! [name]Auburn[/name]

9

[name]How[/name] about this:
Use a double name, but use [name]Rey[/name] or [name]Rae[/name] for the double name:
[name]Lola[/name] [name]Rey[/name]/[name]Rae[/name]
[name]Eliza[/name] [name]Rey[/name]/[name]Rae[/name]
[name]Anna[/name] [name]Rey[/name]/[name]Rae[/name]

10

Okay. I totally hear you on using family names. I have never ever regretted using a family name and honoring ancestors, no matter how clunky the name was at first.

As I see it, you’ve got several options:

  1. Go ahead with _____ [name]Reynolds[/name]. (would you be using the full name + [name]Reynolds[/name] whenever you’d address your daughter?) and we can help you find a good short first name.

  2. Pick whatever first name you like, and relegate [name]Reynolds[/name] to the middle position. That way you’re using it but not always tripping over it.

  3. If option #2 doesn’t sound like enough honor for the family name, then use [name]Reynolds[/name] as the official first name, and call her by the middle name of your choice.

  4. Shorten [name]Reynolds[/name] to the slightly more user-friendly [name]Ray[/name], [name]Rae[/name] or [name]Rey[/name].

  5. Have [name]Nephele[/name] anagram [name]Reynolds[/name] for you and use that. :smiley:

or, one of my favorite approaches to clunky names,

  1. Use [name]Reynolds[/name] as first or middle, plus another name of your choice, and then use a marginally related nickname.

You do not have to justify nicknames with reasonable-origin first names. I have a daughter named [name]Bronwen[/name] I’ve nn-ed [name]Buffy[/name]. Nobody has a problem with it.

One of my friends has a daughter named [name]Annika[/name] that she’s nicknamed Squish, a nn universally beloved in my social circle.

So, if I were you (and you should be grateful I’m not! :D) I’d think of a nickname I really like and either use it as the other name besides [name]Reynolds[/name], or in addition to the names you feel duty and honor call you to use.

btw [name]Eliza[/name] [name]Ray[/name] does sound nice, as does [name]Mary[/name] [name]Sullivan[/name]. [name]Sullivan[/name] [name]Mary[/name] is also good.