We are about to give birth to our second child, gender unknown. Our first daughter got my husbands mums name as her middle name. We are wanting to do the same for my mum if this baby is a girl. Her name is [name_f]Susan[/name_f] which I’m not crazy about. [name_m]Even[/name_m] [name_f]Sue[/name_f] seems hard to work with. We’re thinking of calling a daughter [name_f]Clara[/name_f]. [name_f]My[/name_f] mums middle name is [name_f]Maree[/name_f] so [name_f]Clara[/name_f] [name_f]Maree[/name_f] could be nice but I don’t want to upset her not using her first name.
[name_f]My[/name_f] mom is also a [name_f]Susan[/name_f], and although I love her I am also not a fan of the name, so I’ve thought about alternatives quite a bit.
[name_u]Maree[/name_u] is nice and I think that’s a good option too, but if you want to go with a [name_f]Susan[/name_f] based name:
I suggest telling her that you would love to honour her and that you really like her middle name. See how she feels about it as I would think she would be fine with it, and may even prefer her middle name! Another thought…would her maiden name work in the middle spot?
I completely agree with @WhiteGardenia I would speak to your mum & suggest using her middle name as a honour to her see how she responds. She may be absolutely delighted with this or as @itsjustjack suggests maybe look at ‘[name_f]Susan[/name_f]’ alternatives personally I love [name_f]Susannah[/name_f]. I think [name_f]Susannah[/name_f] is gorgeous and I actually really like [name_f]Clara[/name_f] [name_f]Susannah[/name_f] it has a really sing song vibe feels very pretty.
I was going to suggest [name_f]Clara[/name_f] [name_f]Lily[/name_f] as well! Tbh, I think that she will feel honored either way. And if she doesn’t, I think it’s a bit ungrateful. Clearly you’re putting a lot of thought into your daughter’s beautiful name though and I think she will see that!
My mum’s name is [name_f]Susan[/name_f], and I wanted to honour her but also wasn’t keen on the name. I opted instead for [name_f]Susanna[/name_f]. Perhaps a variation of the name could work. Or if not, perhaps you could use a [name_f]Lily[/name_f] name to honour the name’s meaning.
I agree with those who have suggested using a variant of the name, like [name_f]Susannah[/name_f]. However, I think [name_f]Clara[/name_f] [name_f]Maree[/name_f] works, too, if that’s the name you prefer – it still directly honors her, after all.
Fwiw, though, if you do decide to go with [name_f]Susan[/name_f], [name_f]Clara[/name_f] [name_f]Susan[/name_f] sounds so sweet as a combo!!
Have you thought about [name_f]Lily[/name_f]? [name_f]Susan[/name_f] does mean “lily” so while it’s not her name directly, it is the same meaning. You could also go with something like [name_f]Susannah[/name_f]! But I would definitely talk to her if you still have reservations. [name_f]Maree[/name_f] does work beautifully as well though
Talk to your mother about using [name_f]Maree[/name_f] or look into [name_f]Susan[/name_f] alternatives ([name_f]Susannah[/name_f]?). However, at the end of the day, you are not obligated to use an honor name, especially if it means giving your child a name you don’t love!
I’ll be the voice of dissent here, because I almost always advocate for keeping an honor name as similar as possible. I know not everyone agrees with me, but I’d rather use the name of a person I love than use a name I love. At least for a middle name.
However, you have some flexibility here: [name_f]Susan[/name_f], [name_f]Sue[/name_f], and [name_f]Maree[/name_f] all sound great with [name_f]Clara[/name_f] and are all true honor names. If your mom is good with it, I’d say you could get away with any of them.
I think it’s all about what YOU like, and if it’s an honor name, that’s amazing, however you do it.
My oldest is [name_u]James[/name_u] [name_m]Russell[/name_m]. [name_f]My[/name_f] dads name is [name_u]James[/name_u] and his other grandpas middle name is [name_m]Russell[/name_m]. Did one first name honor one middle name. Didnt do first names for both because then he’d be [name_u]James[/name_u] [name_m]John[/name_m] and Im not about it.
My second is [name_u]Atlas[/name_u] [name_m]Earl[/name_m]. [name_m]Earl[/name_m] is after my grandma [name_f]Erlene[/name_f] who was so special to me who passed away years ago.
I’m pregnant and using [name_f]Renee[/name_f] for a middle name for this girl- that’s my grandma, my moms, and my middle name.
If I have more which I think I will I’ve thought about what other names to use. [name_f]My[/name_f] moms name is [name_f]Debra[/name_f] and I don’t love it for a middle name so won’t use it lol. Maybe [name_f]Paige[/name_f]- that’s my sisters name…
Anyway!! I think a middle name is fine and it should be about what YOU like!!
