I have always loved hearing stories of how parents named their children so to the parents of Nameberry: what lead you to name your kids the names they have? Was it a name to honor a family member/friend? Did you pick out names you like? Or was it a name you have always loved?
My parents have 6 kids. I am the oldest.
Calla [name_f]Rachel[/name_f] - [name_f]Calla[/name_f] because my mom loved the name so much and her neighbors name was [name_f]Calla[/name_f], and rachel because it was a biblical name and it sounded really pretty with [name_f]Calla[/name_f].
Kelsey [name_f]Mae[/name_f] - [name_u]Kelsey[/name_u] was her sisterâs best friends name and my mom loved the way it sounded. [name_f]Mae[/name_f] is a really old family name, all of my grandma, great grandma, great great grandma, etc, have the middle name [name_f]Mae[/name_f].
Jonathan [name_m]David[/name_m] [name_m]Jr[/name_m]. â[name_u]Jay[/name_u]â - that is my dads name exactly so we call my brother [name_u]Jay[/name_u]!
Wayne [name_m]Isaac[/name_m] - [name_m]Wayne[/name_m] was adopted from Uganda. We decided to keep his name because wayne is my grandfathers middle name and wayne was the founder of the orphange that wayne was adopted from. [name_m]Isaac[/name_m] because one, it is a biblical name that my parents loved, and two, because one of our family friends name is [name_m]Isaac[/name_m] and he gave us a lot of donations to help with adopting wayne.
Parker [name_m]Matthew[/name_m] - [name_u]Parker[/name_u] because my mom always loved thatname and my dad liked it too. [name_m]Matthew[/name_m] because it is my moms favorite book of the Bible and it was the book of the bible that her bible study was going through when he was born.
Caroline [name_f]Paige[/name_f] - [name_f]Caroline[/name_f] was a name my mom had always wanted to use and [name_u]Kelsey[/name_u] was going to be [name_f]Caroline[/name_f]. [name_f]Paige[/name_f] is another family name and my mom thought it sounded good with [name_f]Caroline[/name_f].
My momâs name is [name_f]Carly[/name_f] [name_f]Diane[/name_f] and my dadâs name is [name_m]Jonathan[/name_m] [name_m]David[/name_m].
Thanks!
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When we were first married I wanted 3 girls and 3 boys: Anna, Lily and Isabel, Samuel, Benjamin and Gabriel. I ended up with 5 kids, and used 4 of those names⌠here they are.
[name_f]Shayna[/name_f] [name_u]Maria[/name_u] - born premature and we didnât know gender or have name picked out so were not prepared at all, husband chose [name_f]Shayna[/name_f] bc someone mentioned it at a baby shower and it was one of three names he wrote down and the only one he remembered. [name_u]Maria[/name_u] is my fn. (I wanted [name_f]Anna[/name_f] [name_u]Maria[/name_u] and had a dream a few nights before she was born that we had a girl and named her Shadle. Funny that [name_f]Shayna[/name_f] is kind of a hybrid of [name_f]Anna[/name_f] and Shadle! If she were a boy she would probably have been named [name_u]Bridger[/name_u] [name_u]James[/name_u] which was a geographical name near our home.)
[name_m]Samuel[/name_m] [name_u]Merritt[/name_u] - I was obsessed with the names [name_m]Samuel[/name_m] and [name_f]Isabel[/name_f] after watching Legends of the Fall. Didnât know gender, so when he was born [name_f]Shayna[/name_f] took one look at him and said his name is [name_m]Samuel[/name_m] or nothing at all. [name_u]Merritt[/name_u] is my great grandfathers middle name. Had he been a girl I wanted [name_f]Lily[/name_f]/Lilia, [name_f]Anna[/name_f] or [name_f]Isabel[/name_f] ([name_f]Lily[/name_f] and [name_f]Anna[/name_f] are family names, [name_f]Isabel[/name_f] again from Legends of the Fall).
[name_f]Anna[/name_f] [name_f]Virginia[/name_f] - finally got our [name_f]Anna[/name_f]! I still wanted [name_f]Lily[/name_f] or [name_f]Lilia[/name_f] but Husband chose [name_f]Anna[/name_f] bc his great aunt [name_f]Anna[/name_f] whom he was really close to just passed away shortly before birth. [name_f]Virginia[/name_f] is my momâs middle name. Had she been a boy she would have been [name_u]Gabriel[/name_u] something.
[name_u]Spencer[/name_u] [name_u]Gabriel[/name_u] - first child we found out the sex of beforehand. I had [name_u]Gabriel[/name_u] Kaning picked out (Kaning is a family surname and [name_u]Gabriel[/name_u] just âwentâ with [name_m]Samuel[/name_m]) but dad wanted [name_u]Spencer[/name_u] - I have no idea why, he just liked it. I fought him for a whole week when finally I caved and we named him [name_u]Spencer[/name_u] [name_u]Gabriel[/name_u] (incidentally he is our only child without a family honor name). I couldnât picture him named anything now except [name_u]Spencer[/name_u]!
[name_f]Isabel[/name_f] [name_f]Elena[/name_f] - we knew this was going to be our last child and knew she was a girl. BC my husband had chose all the first names for our other kids and I chose the middles, he âlet meâ choose both her names bc she was our last. (eyes rolling). I had decided on [name_f]Lily[/name_f] [name_f]Clarisse[/name_f] or [name_f]Lilia[/name_f] [name_f]Clarisse[/name_f] (both family names) before she was born, having tried to use it for the past decade only to be vetoed. But when she was born she just didnât LOOK like a [name_f]Lily[/name_f]. So I used my other favorite name I had had stashed away⌠[name_f]Isabel[/name_f] (which was NOT that popular at the time she was born). [name_f]Elena[/name_f] is my middle name. (Had she been a boy we had [name_u]Benjamin[/name_u] Reimer picked out. I liked the idea of 3 boys nicknamed [name_u]Sam[/name_u], [name_m]Gabe[/name_m] and [name_m]Ben[/name_m] - even though once of them was actually [name_u]Spencer[/name_u] lol, and Reimer is another family surname.)
There you go - hope it made sense!
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I have 5 children and they were all named slightly differently:
[name_f]Hermione[/name_f] [name_f]Elise[/name_f] - I had always loved the name [name_f]Hermione[/name_f] and loved the [name_u]Harry[/name_u] [name_m]Potter[/name_m] books as a child so when it came to having to name my own daughter, I wanted to give her a name which had personal meaning and [name_f]Hermione[/name_f] was a perfect fit (and wasnât vetoed by DH!). Her middle name was DHâs choice as he is half [name_u]French[/name_u], he wanted a name that honored that. DH is also half Greek so [name_f]Hermione[/name_f] fitted that perfectly. If she was a boy, she wouldâve been [name_m]Cedric[/name_m] [name_u]Gabriel[/name_u]. We loved her name and that was that. Sheâs 8 now and her nn is [name_f]Mimi[/name_f].
[name_m]Ferris[/name_m] [name_u]Jay[/name_u] - DH and I share our favorite film; [name_m]Ferris[/name_m] [name_m]Bueller[/name_m]'s day off! so when it came to having our second child, we wanted to use another name which had personal meaning. We were stuck between [name_u]Cameron[/name_u] & [name_m]Ferris[/name_m] (and he wouldâve been named [name_u]Sloane[/name_u] [name_f]Ava[/name_f] if he was a girl) but decided to go with [name_m]Ferris[/name_m] in the end as it had a bit more fun to it and paired nicely with [name_f]Hermione[/name_f]. As an added bonus, [name_m]Ferris[/name_m] is an Irish name which honors my Mom who is half Irish. [name_u]Jay[/name_u] was an honour name that we both liked, short and spunky, and went really nicely with [name_m]Ferris[/name_m]. Heâs now 6 going on 7.
[name_u]James[/name_u] [name_m]Theodore[/name_m], [name_f]Evangeline[/name_f] [name_f]Hallie[/name_f] & [name_f]Lucia[/name_f] [name_u]Teagan[/name_u] - When I found out we were having triplets, it was a shock to the system but I was also very excited about the names I could use. [name_u]James[/name_u] is a family name on my side. It was my grandfatherâs name, my uncleâs middle name and I loved it and wanted it to be my sons name as well. [name_m]Theodore[/name_m] is originally a Greek name which DH wanted to use to honor his heritage and [name_u]James[/name_u] [name_m]Theodore[/name_m] sounded sweet so we went with it. [name_f]Evangeline[/name_f] is also a name of Greek origin which I had loved for years and DH agreed (although he preferred [name_u]Evelyn[/name_u]). [name_f]Hallie[/name_f] is an [name_f]English[/name_f] name which we used to honour my Mom, who is half [name_f]English[/name_f], half Irish. We also loved the film âThe Parent Trapâ and thought the name was a great way to honor that. [name_f]Lucia[/name_f] is a variation of [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] which is another family name. Itâs my Momâs name and my eldest sisterâs middle name. We thought [name_f]Lucia[/name_f] was a nice twist on the traditional name and worked well with [name_u]James[/name_u] & [name_f]Evangeline[/name_f]. [name_u]Teagan[/name_u] is an Irish name which we again used to honor my Mom. We were struggling with the final names and they were almost very different. Our back-ups if you will were, [name_u]Sacha[/name_u] [name_u]Benjamin[/name_u], [name_f]Audrey[/name_f] [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] & [name_f]Cora[/name_f] [name_f]Aisling[/name_f] but we decided to not to use them (although I still love the names). They are now 2 and Evangeline & Luciaâs nicknames are Eva & Lucy respectively.
[name_f]Sophie[/name_f] & [name_u]Jonah[/name_u]: I am currently expecting twins which we are planning to name [name_f]Sophie[/name_f] and [name_u]Jonah[/name_u] which are both Jewish names which honor both DH and myself as we are both Jewish. We are struggling with middle names a bit. For [name_f]Sophie[/name_f] we are down to [name_f]Noelle[/name_f] & [name_f]Maren[/name_f]. [name_f]Maren[/name_f] is just a name we both like and [name_f]Noelle[/name_f] is [name_u]French[/name_u] and also would be notable as she will (most likely) arrive around [name_u]Christmas[/name_u] time. For [name_u]Jonah[/name_u] we are between [name_u]Flynn[/name_u] and [name_u]Blake[/name_u], but probably leaning more towards [name_u]Flynn[/name_u] as it is an Irish name and flows slightly better with [name_u]Jonah[/name_u]. Theyâre due in around a month.
Sorry this is a bit long, hope it all made sense!
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Those are beautiful names to honor your families/heritage. Good luck with your twins!
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Thank you!
There are so many names I love, but wouldnât use because they donât have meaning to me. I need to connect the name on some deeper level so that when my kids wish they had the same name as the cool character in the latest teen drama in 10 or 15 years, I have some justification for the names I gave them.
My daughter came to us through foster care, and when we decided to adopt her we knew her bold personality and gave her the name [name_u]Arie[/name_u]|a (meaning lion of God) nn [name_u]Ari[/name_u] to encourage that boldness. Her mn E|ena is the Latin version of the mn that my [name_f]Mil[/name_f] and SIL share, and Iâve always thought it was a strong, feminine name. Iâm guessing her name sounds princessy to our US friends and family, but in Spanish itâs a nice sweet strong combo.
With my son, I was team green and connected to a girlâs name first - [name_f]Ida[/name_f] after [name_f]Ida[/name_f] B [name_m]Wells[/name_m]. I decided to use [name_m]Wells[/name_m] as a middle name for a boy. The name ÂŽď¸uben was one I hadnât considered before the pregnancy, but it kept coming back up in my mind. I liked the way it flowed with my daughterâs name and the mn [name_m]Wells[/name_m], and I loved the nn [name_u]Rue[/name_u]. ÂŽď¸uben means âbehold a sonâ, which I wasnât that excited about, but thereâs a Bible verse that says âblessed are the peacemakers for they will be called sons of Godâ. In a very chaotic year, I liked connecting the idea of him being peacemaker with the legacy of [name_f]Ida[/name_f] B.
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I donât have kids, but can I reply with why I love the name [name_f]Vela[/name_f] so much?
Iâll edit later, I have to go right now. 
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Zà chary the name came to me in a dream. I instantly liked it plus it sounded cool with our surname MackenzÎe. I liked the assonance of the Z. His middle name is Georgè. [name_f]My[/name_f] mum is Georginà , so he honours her. [name_f]My[/name_f] mum was in the delivery room with me and my partner and watched him being born.
AlexĂ nder. Again I had a dream but not so much about the name but in my dream was a golden haired baby boy. Iâve always liked the name AlexandĂŠr and it makes me think of [name_m]Alexander[/name_m] the Great, who was fair haired. Aâs middle name is [name_u]Theo[/name_u]. We picked [name_u]Theo[/name_u] because both my sister and I both liked the name, I also like how both AlexĂ nder and [name_u]Theo[/name_u] are Greek and I have Greek heritage on my dadâs side.
We will TTC 3 in a couple of months and our top boys name is [name_u]Elias[/name_u], we like this because we feel it really pairs so well with our other boys names and it has the soft sound which we like. We are unsure about a middle name but some names we like are [name_m]Fraser[/name_m]/Fox/Frederick. So we do like the idea of a F first letter middle name.
Any girl would be a TabithĂ because itâs my ultimate dream baby girl name and ties in with brothers names as has a biblical meaning. Not sure for her middle either but we like [name_f]Rose[/name_f] or [name_f]Nell[/name_f] or [name_f]Maeve[/name_f]. I personally quite like [name_f]Nell[/name_f] as it honours my partner who is a [name_m]Daniel[/name_m] ( honours in an offbeat kinda way)
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Yes! I would love to hear why 
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I currently have two daughters and we are having a third baby in [name_u]August[/name_u].
For my oldest daughter, my husband wanted to name her [name_f]Xochitl[/name_f], a Nahuatl name/word meaning âflowerâ. Since we live in the US, I knew no one would be able to pronounce or spell her name, so I said we could use it for a middle name. I had a list of names, and my husband liked [name_f]Noemi[/name_f], [name_f]Kiana[/name_f] and Kiany (he made that one up) best. We ended up going with [name_f]Noemi[/name_f], which I had heard on a little girl a year or two before, but spelled Nohemy.
When we found out our second was also a girl, my husband still liked the name [name_f]Kiana[/name_f]. I had suggested other names, but we decided on [name_f]Kiana[/name_f]. I wanted to come up with a middle name that didnât end with an a because our last name also ends with an a. I suggested [name_f]Rosalie[/name_f] and my husband agreed.
We had said for the past 7 years that if we have a boy his name would be ZenĂłn after my husbandâs grandfather. When I was pregnant the last time, I thought about using a name to honor my grandfather [name_m]Joseph[/name_m] â[name_m]Joe[/name_m]â as the middle name. So possibly [name_m]Zenon[/name_m] [name_m]Joseph[/name_m] or [name_m]Zenon[/name_m] [name_m]Jose[/name_m]. Iâm not going to bring up names with my husband until we find out what we are having this time.
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Iâd always loved the name [name_f]Claire[/name_f]. I liked that [name_f]Claire[/name_f] was classic but still uncommon. However, my husband has a cousin named [name_f]Clarisse[/name_f] and she goes by [name_f]Claire[/name_f]. Gossip Girl introduced me to the name [name_u]Blair[/name_u]. I liked a lot about it: classic, uncommon, a little masculine, preppy feel. [name_f]My[/name_f] husband had no qualms about it.
[name_f]Elizabeth[/name_f] is from my pseudo grandmother. [name_f]My[/name_f] biological grandparents live out of state and Iâm not really close to them. [name_f]Beth[/name_f] adopted me as one of her own grandchildren, and I asked her to be at the birth of my daughter.
Sorry, I accidently said someoneâs full name and have to respect their privacy
@novembermom Claire is my middle name lol. I would love to go by it but I think itâs too late. I probably will name a future kid Claire. It is also my grandmotherâs middle name. Having kids is still 15-20 years away for me though. Also, congrats on your baby!
@jenni_lynn91 How do you pronounce Xochitl? Just curious. Also, congrats on being about to have a baby if you havenât had him/her yet, otherwise congrats on the new baby!
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[name_f]Xochitl[/name_f] is supposed to be pronounced Sho-cheecl in the Nahuatl language that my husbandâs family speaks. The tl is a sound not made in [name_f]English[/name_f] or Spanish so itâs hard for most people to pronounce correctly unless they speak Nahuatl.
Also, thank you! We are having our third girl in just two months, she will be [name_f]Magali[/name_f] [name_f]BelĂŠn[/name_f].
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[name_f]My[/name_f] daughterâs name (Amelie) was one that Iâd mentioned early on in our relationship and I remembered my partner liking (this is a few years before I got pregnant). Then, when I was pregnant, I thought Iâd brought it up again and that he no longer liked it, but then at around 20 weeks, after suggesting countless names he didnât like, I threw it out there again. He didnât recall me mentioning it at all since Iâd become pregnant and immediately said yes, I love it. She was pretty much [name_f]Amelie[/name_f] from then on, although there were one or two other options we threw around until the end, the main one being [name_f]Matilda[/name_f]. I still adore [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] and am sad Iâll probably never be able to use it but itâs so much more popular here in Australia than [name_f]Amelie[/name_f] is so that affected my decision, as did the fact that my partner preferred [name_f]Amelie[/name_f]. Also, I watched the film the night before I went into labour and, yet again, fell in love with its aesthetic and whimsy!
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Beautiful name!
Okay, so I donât have kids but me and my brother are both trans so I can tell you what made us pick our names!
[name_f]My[/name_f] twin brother chose [name_u]Dylan[/name_u] [name_u]Skye[/name_u] as his name and middle name. He chose [name_u]Dylan[/name_u] because it was a name that he always loved and one of his favourite singers is named [name_u]Dylan[/name_u] [name_m]Saunders[/name_m] and so [name_u]Dylan[/name_u] was a super easy choice for him and it felt right. He kept [name_u]Skye[/name_u] as it was his birth middle name and he liked it and it was gender neutral anyway so he thought there was no point in changing it.
[name_f]My[/name_f] middle name is [name_f]Starr[/name_f] and Iâve kept it even though Iâm a trans guy and itâs quite fem. The reason is that itâs my birth one and links to my brothers and also that my parents said that I was given that after [name_m]Ringo[/name_m] [name_f]Starr[/name_f] or [name_f]Star[/name_f] in lost boys. I chose [name_u]Tristan[/name_u] for my first name. It was quite a gruelling job trying to rename myself after years of being my birth name. At first I scoured babu name sites (largely nameberry!) And then I thought Iâd have to link it to my birth name somehow, began with J and 7 letter long. However, I soon realised that I kept thinking about [name_u]Tristan[/name_u] and so I chose it. Plus, [name_u]Tristan[/name_u] in Stardust was my favourite character growing up and so now it seems so perfect.
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When i was born, my siblings were 10 and 12. [name_f]My[/name_f] parents wanted a name everyone liked so the rule was if a name got vetoed, it was out. [name_f]My[/name_f] name was the only name in the baby book that didnât get vetoed by somebody 