Hello,
I am a first time poster but am a nameberry fanatic. We are due in [name]July[/name]!
Warning, many of my names sound British but I live in the States. Are these usable?
[name]Conan[/name]
Alfred nn [name]Alfie[/name]
[name]Bear[/name] or Orson
[name]Thayer[/name]
[name]Rigby[/name]
Thank you!
[name]Hi[/name] there, Well I live in the UK and apart from [name]Alfie[/name] I can assure you that you would get odd looks when people heard the rest of the names! [name]Bear[/name] is the only one I’d say was unusable as a full name - could use it as a nickname for a name meaning [name]Bear[/name] though? Eg. [name]Armel[/name], [name]Arthur[/name], [name]Barrett[/name], [name]Bernard[/name], [name]Oberon[/name], Thorben. [name]Hope[/name] thats of some use to you! D x
Congrats on your pregnancy!
[name]Conan[/name]: absolutely a one-man name here, thanks to a certain red-haired talk show host. [name]Do[/name] you like [name]Conall[/name] (Irish, ‘little wolf’), [name]Colm[/name] (variant of [name]Malcolm[/name]/ [name]Columba[/name], ‘dove’) or [name]Callum[/name] (same)?
[name]Alfie[/name]: this trend is going to blow over really, really quickly. [name]Alfred[/name] nn [name]Alfie[/name] is adorable; [name]Alfie[/name] as a given name is too cutesy to last well.
[name]Bear[/name]: only if you host a wilderness show or are, in fact, Jools [name]Oliver[/name]. Lots of great [name]Bear[/name] names though: [name]Bernard[/name], [name]Bertram[/name], etc nn [name]Bear[/name]; [name]Orson[/name]; Ormont (‘mountain of bears’), [name]Bjorn[/name] even…
[name]Thayer[/name]: a [name]North[/name] [name]Carolina[/name]-based manufacturer of fine furniture. Also sounds lispy, like a [name]Sawyer[/name] who got punched in the mouth.
[name]Rigby[/name]: besides a Beatles references that grows ever-fainter as the years wear on, this is a solid and interesting choice.
Suggestions based on the above:
[name]Colby[/name]
Bixby
[name]Crosby[/name]
[name]Callan[/name]
[name]Keir[/name]
[name]Ramsay[/name]
Wolfram
Emeric
[name]Fielding[/name]
[name]Rainier[/name]
[name]Gunther[/name]
[name]Leander[/name]
[name]Whitaker[/name]
Thank you! Well, I’m starting to like [name]Callum[/name] but I really love [name]Conan[/name]. As for [name]Alfie[/name], I was debating about using [name]Alfred[/name] and thought I had put that in the post. Must’ve slipped my mind! He would be [name]Alfred[/name] nn [name]Alfie[/name]. [name]Bear[/name] is my husbands choice as he is very much an outdoorsman! I’m going to try to convince him on [name]Orson[/name].
Thank you again for your feedback!
I think [name]Alfie[/name] is the most usable. It’s a name most people will recognize and where there won’t be a lot of comparisons.
Not only is [name]Conan[/name] really synonymous with the talk show host, it’s also synonymous with [name]Conan[/name] the Barbarian.
[name]Bear[/name] - Is too hippie for me. If you want a different idea…maybe [name]Arthur[/name]. It means [name]Bear[/name], but isn’t so obvious.
[name]Thayer[/name] - I haven’t even heard of this before. But sounds like an occupational name.
[name]Rigby[/name] - It’s my second favourite from you list…but there’s too much of an [name]Eleanor[/name] [name]Rigby[/name] association for me.
Good luck. [name]Orson[/name] is a really cool name, “son of the bear.” [name]Orson[/name] Welles is a pretty decent namesake, too.
A great rule of thumb is to choose a name you would like to have yourself. A lot of people advocate the ‘Starbucks test’: have your husband go to Starbucks, order a coffee, and tell the barista his name is [name]Bear[/name]. If he likes the reactions and doesn’t feel ridiculous saying it, then it stays on the table.
I will definitely use that! I might try out my girls list on my next coffee run!
I’m in [name]England[/name] and I second the PP - [name]Alfie[/name] is the one I would say is common here. And at the moment it is VERY trendy here, I have met probably about 20 little [name]Alfie[/name]'s in the last year alone.
If its less popular in the states though, I think [name]Alfred[/name] nn [name]Alfie[/name] could be cute.
I like the idea of [name]Bear[/name] but it may get some strange looks. [name]Orson[/name], [name]Conan[/name] and [name]Thayer[/name] I’m not keen on.
[name]Rigby[/name] I really like!