River for a girl?

General Name Discussion
1

[name_m]Hi[/name_m] everyone :slight_smile:

So i thought I had my third baby name choices decided, until my husband announced that he felt it would be our last baby - I knew that anyway really’ but hearing it made me think of all the beautiful names in the world that I would never -after our third child - get to use. This made me rethink our choices…

I’ve always had a massive name crush on the name [name_u]River[/name_u]- my husband would not consider it for a boy but will a girl…sooooooooo…

I am now thinking [name_u]River[/name_u] [name_u]Jean[/name_u] for a girl.

What do you think?

She would have two older siblings Esmé and [name_u]James[/name_u]…would [name_u]River[/name_u] work?

Names we already had were [name_f]Orla[/name_f] [name_u]Jean[/name_u] or [name_u]Arlo[/name_u] [name_m]George[/name_m] for a boy.

Really keen to hear your thoughts

Thank you x

2

Despite my love for [name_u]River[/name_u] for a girl (thanks to [name_u]Kelly[/name_u] Clarkson’s little [name_u]River[/name_u] [name_f]Rose[/name_f]), I do think [name_f]Orla[/name_f] [name_u]Jean[/name_u] fits in better with Esmé and [name_u]James[/name_u] than [name_u]River[/name_u] does.

3

I absolutely [name_f]ADORE[/name_f] your naming style. It’s so pretty and unique; yet keeping it modern and not too far out there.

[name_u]River[/name_u] is perfectly acceptable for either gender, in my opinion. I think of [name_u]River[/name_u] [name_u]Phoenix[/name_u] and [name_u]River[/name_u] Song instantly ([name_u]River[/name_u] Song comes from [name_m]Doctor[/name_m] Who if you’re not a geek like me lol)

I don’t quite like [name_f]Orla[/name_f] near as much as [name_u]River[/name_u] which I think matches [name_u]Jean[/name_u] awesomely. However, I love [name_u]Arlo[/name_u] [name_m]George[/name_m] and it fits the siblings quite well too. [name_u]River[/name_u], [name_f]Esme[/name_f], and [name_u]James[/name_u] or [name_u]Arlo[/name_u], [name_f]Esme[/name_f], and [name_u]James[/name_u]. Either one is a great addition. (: Good luck!

4

I love the name [name_u]River[/name_u], for either boy or girl. I have always thought of it for a boy but my husband said he prefers for a girl…which I don’t mind either!

[name_u]River[/name_u] [name_u]Jean[/name_u] is a fantastic combo I think. If both of you love it, go with it! It’s beautiful!

5

I love [name_u]River[/name_u] for both girls and boys. Sibset cohesion is never my top priority as long as the names aren’t wildly mismatched, so to me Esmé, [name_u]James[/name_u] and [name_u]River[/name_u] are just fine together. Stylistically, [name_f]Orla[/name_f] may be a better match but I wouldn’t let that prevent you from using the name you really want to use.

Also, I love [name_u]River[/name_u] [name_u]Jean[/name_u]. [name_u]Jean[/name_u] is a favourite middle name of mine with just about anything and it gives [name_u]River[/name_u] such vintage sass. So much fun but will age well too, I think.

6

I agree completely with this.

We talk a lot about sibsets on this message board, and I’m completely guilty of this, but I think it’s more important to use the name you like best than it is to make sure your child is a part of a matching set. It’s one thing when you’re talking about names just for the sake of talking about names like we do on this message board, then of course you’re going to pick apart every little piece, but in real life I think I would only notice mismatched names on siblings if they were really jarring, like [name_f]Cordelia[/name_f] and [name_f]Hayleigh[/name_f] or something. [name_u]River[/name_u], Esmé, and [name_u]James[/name_u] are all lovely names and wouldn’t strike me as being mismatched if I met them.

7

I adore [name_u]River[/name_u] - more so for a boy but I did recently consider it for my girls as well. However, I think [name_f]Esme[/name_f], [name_u]James[/name_u] and [name_f]Orla[/name_f] are perfect together so it would be a shame to mess that wonderful sibset up.

8

I think this is really well said. Also, I think [name_u]River[/name_u] is lovely on either gender. It has a very different feel to me than [name_f]Orla[/name_f]. (I’m honestly not a fan of [name_f]Orla[/name_f]'s - I find it really grating and [name_u]River[/name_u] really calming yet still very dynamic, if that makes any sense.)

9

I absolutely [name_u]LOVE[/name_u] the name [name_u]River[/name_u]! And honestly I always thought it was a cuter name for a girl than a boy so my vote is go for it!

10

I vastly prefer [name_f]Orla[/name_f] [name_u]Jean[/name_u]. I dislike [name_u]River[/name_u] on a girl. I used to love it for both genders, until I met a girl [name_u]River[/name_u]. I didn’t like it at all. She was cute & well-behaved, so the problem wasn’t her. [name_u]River[/name_u] just felt so masculine and ill-suited. It’s been off my girl list ever since.

If you told me your kids names, I’d think you had 2 boys- [name_u]James[/name_u] & [name_u]River[/name_u]. And the mn [name_u]Jean[/name_u] doesn’t help. [name_u]River[/name_u] [name_u]Jean[/name_u] is very ambiguous, but I’d lean towards masculine. Nothing wrong with a masculine/ambiguous name but just know that there will be confusion since she’ll have nothing that points to her being female.

Is [name_u]Jean[/name_u] set in stone? If not, [name_f]Orla[/name_f] [name_u]River[/name_u] or [name_u]River[/name_u] [name_f]Orla[/name_f] are nice combos. If you don’t mind 2 mn, then [name_u]River[/name_u] [name_f]Orla[/name_f] [name_u]Jean[/name_u] or [name_f]Orla[/name_f] [name_u]River[/name_u] [name_u]Jean[/name_u].

11

I think they go together well. [name_u]River[/name_u] works well on a girl.

12

Thank you everyone for your comments :)it’s been very helpful and given me a lot to think about.
…still not quite sure…debating [name_f]Orla[/name_f] [name_u]River[/name_u]~[name_u]Jean[/name_u] but i’m not sure if it’s just too much? Hmmmm naming can be tricky xx

13

Thank you everyone for your comments :)it’s been very helpful and given me a lot to think about.
…still not quite sure…debating [name_f]Orla[/name_f] [name_u]River[/name_u]~[name_u]Jean[/name_u] but i’m not sure if it’s just too much? Hmmmm naming can be tricky xx

14

Ugh I would never name a girl [name_u]River[/name_u] it’s to masculine , brooke would work for a girl … I love [name_u]River[/name_u] for a boy!

15

Would you care to explain how [name_u]River[/name_u] is masculine? Assigning genders to bodies of water is just a bit ridiculous. Of course [name_u]River[/name_u] works for either sex. I know male [name_m]Rivers[/name_m] and female [name_m]Rivers[/name_m]. It’s a lovely name on both with nice imagery. I do prefer [name_u]River[/name_u] over [name_f]Orla[/name_f]. The latter reminds me too much of the world oral.