Baby Name Blog ― What to Name Your Baby?
Choosing your baby’s name is your first gift to your child. You and your partner may spend months agonizing over this decision, or the perfect name may come to you in a dream, and you agree instantly that this is the one!
When you're in the midst of baby naming you may take many factors into account: The name’s meaning and origin; whether it has a special significance to you; the name's sound and how well it blends with your surname; unique versus just plain strange; the potential nicknames; and initials. Or, you may decide to simply let intuition be your guide.
My friend wrote me recently and said:
"I have three rules when naming my children. One, it must be "original. Two, I can't know anyone else who has it or wants to use it themselves. And three, the middle name has to be in the family. While I was pregnant with my first daughter my husband was away at military training for the Air Force and we couldn't talk on the phone very often. I wrote letters daily and in every letter was a name suggestion. I don't know where it came from but one day I wrote Susan and there it was. He liked it and there was no more searching. We used my middle name Elizabeth. The second one was harder...somewhere along the line we came up with Callan Rose. Rose is my husbands sisters middle name and to this day I don't know where I heard Callan. I love my girls having original names, even though it is hard to find things with their names on it! By the way- we had a little help on the 2nd baby: Generic Viagra works great!" And it is easy to get online
During my last pregnancy I wanted a name that would be different yet special as I knew this would be my last child. With my running luck, my first and second were boys. We actually didn't know that this time we were having a girl until her actual birth. I had had a boy's name picked out until five days before her birth; one of those just-in-case kind of things. My daughter's name is Susan Michelle Henderson, born April 19, 2004. Dennan comes from a combination of her father's name (Dennis) and my name (Shannon), and it fits her, and believe me, after two boys my daughter is one of a kind. Her brothers and I love her very much even though she gives her brothers a run for their money!
My wife and i are about to have our 3rd child; we are as excited now as we were with the first. We love babies and children dearly, and want to share this joy with others. Please tell the best way to decide what to name our baby, and to discuss baby names in general. Thanks!
How important is it to find the right name? While your baby's name is how he will be identified for the rest of his life, it doesn't define his identity. Some names do seem to have stereotypes about the type of person that has such a name (like Barbie being associated with a beautiful blond, or Myron with nerds), but these associations will not create that trait in your child. You should find a name that you like and feel positive about. You should also consider your family history when deciding on a name. Does your family have any traditions that you wish to follow, such as naming the first born male after the paternal grandfather? You can also look further back in your family tree to find a name. Or just choose a name from your ethnic or cultural heritage. If you have to use a family name that you really aren't happy with, then consider using it as a middle name or as just an initial.
While you don't have to consider every suggestion that your friends or family make, if you are in a relationship, you should make the decision of choosing a baby name with your partner. Consider making your own lists of names and then comparing them. Remember that you both may need to compromise a bit to pick the final name.
