Not so common names.

[Makali]

I'm having twins (one of each) and really like uncommon names and here's my list so far:

Girls:

Seren
Aurora
Jocelyn
Persephone
Liviana
Leyla
Meldoy

Boys:

Aldous
Dawson
Hunter
Isaac
Pierce
Leon

Will be picking a first and middle name for each but really can't decide.

Any advice?

I've made a poll so please choose a boy and girl name you like above the rest.

Unfortunately I was unable to include Leyla, Persephone and Dawson as there were limited spaces on the poll so if one or both or any of them are your preferences let me know and I'll add that to my calculations at home. Thanks.

[nuthinbutpink]

I'm not a fan of names that kids will have to always 1. State their name, then 2. The person says, "excuse me?" And 3. They end up having to spell it for them.

Aldous? It means old. That wouldn't be my first pick. I like Dawson and Isaac. And Melody, Jocelyn

[maidentomother]

Leon & Melody...though Dawson> Leon, now that I see that option. Dawson & Melody sound even better together, too. :) I love the name Jocelyn but ONLY for boys, not girls, and I prefer a different spelling.

I very much agree with NBP. Also not a fan of Aldous at all. And I dont approve of Persephone as a FN, but great MN choice (if first and last names are on the shorter side).

[Makali]

Ah well, it may educate a few people.

Thanks, Jocelyn and Isaac are awsome. The only problem I'd have with Melody is if people shortened it to 'Mel' ( me no likey!)

I chose Aldous, not so much for the meaning as I'm a fan of Aldous Huxley's literature.

[Makali]

Do vote for the ones you prefer though.

I like Persephone because of the meaning and the sound Per-seff-a-nee (not the spelling, although rather sophisticated which I think is positive). Can be shortened to Seff, Seffy, or Percy. I'm aware it's not everyone's cup of tea but neither are so many other names out there.

[Makali]

I'm jotting down 2 votes for Dawson as well.. Thanks x

[nuthinbutpink]

Aldous named his son Matthew! I am not sure how it would "educate" people. When this comes up it strikes a cord with me because I am one of those that has had to spell one of my names and it gets old.

[Makali]

It would educate in learning about and spelling names that are different for those who are open to it. It's not always a struggle for a child. Some people love their unusual names. Others say that any 'struggle' they may have had with them only helped them stengthen character and they wouldn't change their names for the world. I like unconventional names and would rather my child correct people than conform to mediocrity just to please complete strangers who would prefer everyone to be the same.

I'm sure there are loads of people who would disagree and have struggled with their names. There are also many who appreciate them. And my preference in no way takes away from the beauty of common names either. They're just not what I like.

My eldest daughter is called Maia (My-ah) and not only do we have to sometimes correct others' spelling but it can get annoying when people mispronounce it as May-ah or Mee-ah. She still loves her name though and so do I.

[nuthinbutpink]

I do not believe names that are easier to spell are mediocre. That's very arrogant. Good luck with your decision!

[Makali]

Ok.

Cheers, you too. :-)

[sweetdream]

I would like leyla and dawson

[Makali]

Too bad Dawson didn't make the poll as a boys catagory because it's winning so far. Leyla - 1 (jotted down)

[mommymachine]

I picked Aurora because I am bias:) DD2 is my Aurora:)

[mommymachine]

Oh and I have a very common name (Catherine) and I still have to spell it for people a lot. When people don't ask me how to spell it they assume it is with a K. So then I need to correct them, and that was hard for me when I was a shy little girl. So even with common names you can get frustrations with spellings! People ask me how to spell my DS1 name (Jackson) because some people spell it Jaxson. So what can do you?? Right?

[nuthinbutpink]

It may be common but it's not mediocre!

[mommymachine]

It may be common but it's not mediocre!

Thanks NBP! I have always liked it, just the spelling part can get annoying.

[Pebbles&BamBam]

I vote Aurora and Hunter. I know am Aurora in real life and she's lovely. I don't however like the nickname associated with Aurora which is Rory. Also, I thought about naming my son Huntington and using the nickname Hunter..something different :-)

[mommymachine]

I vote Aurora and Hunter. I know am Aurora in real life and she's lovely. I don't however like the nickname associated with Aurora which is Rory. Also, I thought about naming my son Huntington and using the nickname Hunter..something different :-)
I don't like Rory so much either. We call my Aurora "Rora".

[atomic sagebrush]

Isaac and Jocelyn

[atomic sagebrush]

Oh and I have a very common name (Catherine) and I still have to spell it for people a lot. When people don't ask me how to spell it they assume it is with a K. So then I need to correct them, and that was hard for me when I was a shy little girl. So even with common names you can get frustrations with spellings! People ask me how to spell my DS1 name (Jackson) because some people spell it Jaxson. So what can do you?? Right?

:agree: I HATED my name growing up(Kristin) because at the time it was considered super unusal and no one could ever spell or even pronounce it. It sounds like I am making a mountain out of a molehill but it was really awful (every teacher, every doctor or dentist visit, every club or sport) and people were just utterly rude about it. That has changed somewhat now because there are more unusual names and spellings, but still.

The thing that is hard though is that people can't spell even names that seem super common and easy to spell/pronounce, like Wyatt, Clark, and Tate. You would not even BELIEVE the spellings and pronunciations that I have heard on these names which, when I selected them, seemed like no-brainers to me. So when the last two came along and I ended up with Marshall and Susannah really I don't feel too bad about that because there's no accounting for stupid, LOL.

[Makali]

I vote Aurora and Hunter. I know am Aurora in real life and she's lovely. I don't however like the nickname associated with Aurora which is Rory. Also, I thought about naming my son Huntington and using the nickname Hunter..something different :-)


Did you vote in the poll or shall I tick it for you? It's so much easier.

I love Aurora, I find it elegant and the meaning enchanting. It's just so difficult to choose right now.

[Makali]

:agree: I HATED my name growing up(Kristin) because at the time it was considered super unusal and no one could ever spell or even pronounce it. It sounds like I am making a mountain out of a molehill but it was really awful (every teacher, every doctor or dentist visit, every club or sport) and people were just utterly rude about it. That has changed somewhat now because there are more unusual names and spellings, but still.

The thing that is hard though is that people can't spell even names that seem super common and easy to spell/pronounce, like Wyatt, Clark, and Tate. You would not even BELIEVE the spellings and pronunciations that I have heard on these names which, when I selected them, seemed like no-brainers to me. So when the last two came along and I ended up with Marshall and Susannah really I don't feel too bad about that because there's no accounting for stupid, LOL.

I know! Especially when people such as Health visitors ask you how it's spelled and pronounced and yet still get it wrong after you've corrected them a couple of hundred times. We just laugh about it. Most people don't have a problem though. Other people's ignorance or stupidity is not my problem.

Would you mind clicking Isaac and Jocelyn if you revisit this post? I will do it on your behalf if you don't, but it's going to give the impression that I'm favouring certain names over others.

[maidentomother]

I HATE Rory as a nn for Aurora and EVERY Aurora I've known (several) has gone SOLELY by Rory. To me Rory is a boy's name, ugh! Aurora is beautiful but bc it takes a while to say and doesn't roll off the tongue, I think it inevitably gets shortened. Rora is definitely far better than Rory but I still don't like it enough. Maybe Aurora would also be better as a middle name?

As for Persephone, I think you misunderstood me, I think it's lovely as a middle name but I wouldn't use it as a FN bc it seems very arrogant & pompous to me to name a child directly after a god/des. But I plan to give all my children MNs after gods as that I consider acceptable, like a nod to their patron gods.

I actually love the name Isaac but it is unfortunately very popular (I avoid top 100 names, so top 10 is horrifying to me), also it has many different spellings so that could be quite an issue.

Bc Melody flows so well, I've never known one who went by Mel and I doubt it would be shortened to that often unless you started it yourself. As for alternative nn, how about Dee?

Even though I really like Dawson, it is definitely on the rise in terms of popularity and for sure in the top 100. Thus why I chose Leon - I've never met one or even heard anyone mention knowing one, despite traveling all over the world including in several Latin countries.

Where exactly do you live?

[Dreamofpink]

Seren as it's Welsh for star & I love that meaning. Isaac as I have a precious little ds3 with that name & he really lives up to the meaning 'he laughs' :)

Sent from my LG-E400 using Tapatalk 2

[Nahri]

I like "out there" names that arent commonly used. You can only have so many jessica's and brittneys (no offense to any J or B's in here) I voted in the poll for Jocelyn and Seren and Isaac and Hunter. Our DD on the way will be Aria Mae. I chose the non traditional spelling of May to go a bit different. Im surprised Lochlan didn't make your list. I love that boys name.

[wannabowbaby]

Jessica here, no offense taken LOL. If this sway I'm planning now is successful her name will be Sabriel. You couldn't PAY me to give my kid a name on the top 10 list, and I really don't even like being in the top 50 because rankings can change in just a few years...

[ejk741]

All of my children's names are in the top 50 names (my twins are both in the top 10). I.don't think that their names are mediocre... They are strong and timeless names. My name is Elizabeth and I love it. I never had to spell it out. I was called Lizzy when I was little and I can introduce myself as a professional as an adult. I HATE cutsey names. I think names need to last a lifetime whether it is common or not. With that being said I vote for Isaac for the boys name :).

[TRL]

My vote is Leyla, and Pierce. Although Leyla and Leon are super cute twin names.


3 boys and 1 HT princess!

[atomic sagebrush]

Jessica here, no offense taken LOL. If this sway I'm planning now is successful her name will be Sabriel. You couldn't PAY me to give my kid a name on the top 10 list, and I really don't even like being in the top 50 because rankings can change in just a few years...

Love those books! :) (Sabriel)

[atomic sagebrush]

All of my children's names are in the top 50 names (my twins are both in the top 10). I.don't think that their names are mediocre... They are strong and timeless names. My name is Elizabeth and I love it. I never had to spell it out. I was called Lizzy when I was little and I can introduce myself as a professional as an adult. I HATE cutsey names. I think names need to last a lifetime whether it is common or not. With that being said I vote for Isaac for the boys name :).

I read an article about "top 10" names and it turns out that because there are so many more names out there, even the top 10 names are really not all that common, unlike when we were growing up and there were 7 Jessicas and 12 Jennifers and everyone else was named Ashley. The pool that people are choosing from is way, way bigger now and so even with names that seem very popular, they aren't given to as many kids (I hope that makes sense it's kind of difficult to explain). The most popular names are being given to fewer kids than they used to be and so it isn't as much of a pain in the butt as it was for those of us growing up with very common names (because most peole were giving their kids common names)

[maidentomother]

Yep, if you look at the top 10 names from the 80s they were like, 5%+ of all kids that year, but these days top 10 names are less than 1%. But that's still too common for me, plus more babies being born now! I prefer to think about, how many people born that year, as well as the previous 5 years, have that name?