Which Month Names Work?

Girl Names
1

I’m seeing more month names pop up on Nameberry, if not (alas) in my classroom.

I have my own associations with these words/names and am eager to see what others think. Which of these are cool words and which of these are actually viable names?

(I put this in the Girls Forum because [name_u]August[/name_u] seems the only viable boy option to me, though I am open to debate).

My Month Name Associations:

[name_u]January[/name_u] and [name_f]July[/name_f]
For some reason, these sound like cheerleader yells to me (J-A-N-U-A…) and I don’t favor them.

February
[name_f]Lovely[/name_f] month in Northern [name_u]California[/name_u] and the feb- beginning matches the early spring fever we experience, but the “bru” sound is unfortunate.

[name_u]March[/name_u]
Great word, reminds me of singer [name_m]Richard[/name_m] [name_u]March[/name_u] and [name_u]Alcott[/name_u]'s [name_u]March[/name_u] sisters, but a trifle commanding and [name_m]John[/name_m] [name_m]Phillip[/name_m] Sousa for a first name. I would like to name a cat Marchpane though (English for marzipan).

[name_f]April[/name_f], [name_f]May[/name_f], [name_u]June[/name_u]
An acquaintance once told me her inner child was named [name_f]April[/name_f] and I’ve been off it ever since. [name_f]May[/name_f] is lovely and old-fashioned, though brief, and I adore [name_u]June[/name_u], both the name (I like [name_u]June[/name_u] Cleaver) and the month (for a teacher, [name_u]June[/name_u] is the Holy Grail).

[name_f]September[/name_f], [name_f]October[/name_f], [name_u]November[/name_u]
Maybe it is because fall is my favorite season, but I love all of these. Each seems so much stronger and more vital than the dreaded [name_f]April[/name_f]. Any parent choosing these would have to let go of nickname control.

[name_u]December[/name_u]
Cozy month, but I don’t like the harsh-sounding first syllable and it might lead to “De” or “[name_f]Dee[/name_f]” as a nickname, not my favorites.

Any thoughts?

2

I think February’s fine for a boy. The month is named after the [name_m]Roman[/name_m] God Februus which I think is a better name though.

For a girl I like [name_u]June[/name_u], it’s very pretty and sweet, like a fresh breeze. [name_u]January[/name_u]'s kind of cool, and I find [name_f]September[/name_f] charming. That is because I’ve just read a gorgeous book with a little lovely [name_f]September[/name_f] in it though (The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making). [name_u]Ember[/name_u]'s a cute nickname. I don’t like [name_u]November[/name_u] - what a dreary month, [name_f]October[/name_f] sounds masculine. [name_u]December[/name_u]'s my favourite month but it sounds wrong as a name. [name_f]July[/name_f]'s pretty cute, [name_f]April[/name_f] too. [name_u]March[/name_u] has got something… but I think of mud. And that leaves [name_f]May[/name_f] which is cute as a button and [name_u]August[/name_u] which is perfectly fine - for a boy.

3

I love [name_f]May[/name_f] and [name_u]June[/name_u] for a girl and [name_u]August[/name_u] for a boy.

4

[name_u]January[/name_u]- makes me think of the child with schizophrenia as that is the only time I’ve ever heard it used.
February- sounds like a quirky character in a novel, aka the result of it not being usable in real life.
[name_u]March[/name_u]- would make a great mn for a boy in my opinion, but that might be because it’s my birth month.
[name_f]April[/name_f]- seems rather dated to me, as it’s a month names that was most often used on girls… in the 80’s.
[name_f]May[/name_f]- a very cliché middle name a la [name_f]Mae[/name_f], but I can see it working as a first to honor a great aunt perhaps.
[name_u]June[/name_u]- another more often heard name, that would work for a girl but doesn’t seem all that original anymore.
[name_f]July[/name_f]- this is an interesting one, I think it could work for a boy or a girl, but I would prefer if it was just a nn.
[name_u]August[/name_u]- a perfectly NB accepted and boringly trendy boys name. I prefer flourishes like [name_f]Augusta[/name_f] or [name_m]Augustus[/name_m].
[name_f]September[/name_f]- would take a certain kind of person to pull off, but I can see it worn on a boy who goes by [name_m]Seb[/name_m].
[name_f]October[/name_f]- also seems masculine to me due to many of the nn’s that can be pulled from it. [name_u]Toby[/name_u], [name_m]Otto[/name_m], [name_m]Bo[/name_m].
[name_u]November[/name_u]- I actually like this one for a girl, again due to the nn’s more than the full version. [name_f]Nova[/name_f], [name_u]Ember[/name_u].
[name_u]December[/name_u]- I suppose a girl could go by [name_u]Ember[/name_u] here as well. A boy could go by Dec (ie: [name_m]Declan[/name_m]) or [name_u]Desi[/name_u].

5

I actually have a friend named [name_u]March[/name_u] (male) He loves his name and is definitely one of a kind

6

My favorites are:

[name_u]January[/name_u]
February
[name_f]May[/name_f]
[name_f]September[/name_f]
[name_u]November[/name_u]

[name_f]September[/name_f] especially! I kind of prefer it on a boy, but I’m not sure how well it would wear : /

7

I like [name_f]July[/name_f] and [name_f]May[/name_f] for girls. I like [name_u]March[/name_u] pretty equally for both genders (I’m a [name_u]March[/name_u] baby, and I’ve always loved the way it sounds, and I just like [name_u]March[/name_u] as a month in general, despite the whole spring thing. I find it ironic, since my birthday almost invariably lands on the first day of spring, but spring is my least favorite season. Plus, I like the whole military imagery. Not in a violent, death and destruction, ultra-masculine sort of way, but I come from a military family and I just like the tie. And I think the [name_u]March[/name_u] sisters are pretty cool. :)), and I love [name_u]August[/name_u] for a boy. I also quite like the idea of [name_f]October[/name_f] nn [name_u]Toby[/name_u] for a boy, but I find it a wee bit over-the-top and not too name-sounding for me to actually use. Honestly, the only reason I think I’m drawn to it is because I love [name_u]Toby[/name_u] and I love autumn.

8

[name_u]January[/name_u] I really like this one, but am not sure about the [name_u]January[/name_u] [name_m]Jones[/name_m] connection. But there is the nickname [name_u]Jan[/name_u]. And I love this name!
February definitely sounds like a girl to me. [name_f]Debbie[/name_f] is a girl and [name_m]Huey[/name_m] [name_m]Dewie[/name_m] and [name_m]Louie[/name_m] have a girl cousin named Webby. ([name_m]Hughie[/name_m], [name_m]Dewey[/name_m] and [name_m]Louie[/name_m] being related to [name_m]Donald[/name_m] Duck and Scrooge McDuck.) So Febbie sound super-feminine to me, and it’s adorable.
[name_u]March[/name_u] is a unisex name to me and it’s cool.
[name_f]April[/name_f] is sweet, but not my favorite.
[name_f]May[/name_f] seems a little dated, a little Southern, and a little sultry (think [name_f]Mae[/name_f] [name_u]West[/name_u]).
[name_u]June[/name_u] I like [name_u]June[/name_u] for the reasons you mentioned. Also a little southern.
[name_f]July[/name_f] I used to love this one. I think it sounds too you lie kind of. Not a favorite any more.
[name_u]August[/name_u] Definitely a guy. I like the nickname [name_u]Gus[/name_u].
[name_f]September[/name_f] ok When I was in high school, I loved the idea of girl boy twins named [name_f]September[/name_f] and [name_f]October[/name_f] nn Temy and Tober. Temy was going to be girl. Now I think it’s too out there, but I would try to get away Sept sounds.
[name_f]October[/name_f] I loved this one even more from my twin set. [name_u]Toby[/name_u] and Tober (cp to [name_m]Topher[/name_m]) seem like obvious boys names to me. Unfortunately since joining Nameberry some character named [name_f]October[/name_f] nn [name_u]Toby[/name_u] who’s a girl has turned all the namers against [name_f]October[/name_f] for a boy. sigh.
[name_u]November[/name_u] I also saw as a boys name, nn Nove. This too may go girly. The boys’ have so few monthes, and it seems they can’t catch a break.
[name_u]December[/name_u] While I love this month, it’s the one I would be least likely to use as a name. I think the nickname [name_f]Dee[/name_f] could work since it’s the only month with the letter D in it. I also think the unisex nickname [name_u]Desi[/name_u] could work. This month is completely unisex to me.
Those are just my thoughts on the months. I could be wrong. Good [name_m]Luck[/name_m]!

9

I’m here to defend February- one of my guilty pleasure girl names!

She’s purple, spunky and insightful, loves playing in the snow. For some reason I imagine her with dark hair in two braids, full front bangs and freckles. I think I had a doll that I called February when I was younger. Absolutely love it.

10

I love [name_f]October[/name_f] for a name, both for a boy or girl. I just can’t see myself being brave enough to use it, even though I love uncommon names.

11

I like the sounds of [name_u]January[/name_u], [name_f]July[/name_f], [name_f]September[/name_f], and [name_u]December[/name_u] for girls.

[name_f]July[/name_f] was actually the name of an orphan in [name_f]Annie[/name_f].