Baby Names
AngelxxRose
member
For those that dislike unisex/boy names for girls
AngelxxRose
member
in Baby Names
You can see in my signature that my daughter's first name is Cameron which is a unisex/boy name. Also, I really love Emerson for a possible future daughter's name. I completely understand that those names are not everyone's style but I am asking seriously, am I doing my daughter and possible future daughter a disservice by using boy names? For the women here that have "boy" names, did you have any problems growing up or as an adult due to your name?
Thanks!
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Re: For those that dislike unisex/boy names for girls
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Ok, well in the case of Allison, my guess is that it's the men having the issues. OP, I am not sure. You are picking unisex names and not boy's names so while they may have an issue here and there, it's nothing like what a female Maxwell may face.
Well, I'm not the person to ask because I don't HATE all unisex names. However, IMO, it depends. And even then, I think the "damage" is pretty minor.
In the case of Cameron, which is commonly unisex, and has a very famous female face attached to it, I don't think there's much risk of any major, detrimental mix-ups occurring. As with Taylor and Jordan, most people are aware that Cameron is used on boys and girls alike.
With Emerson, the effect is even less so---the name was barely being used on either sex until Terri Hatcher named her daughter this. Then it skyrocketed in popularity for girls. As with Aubrey and Avery, if I (or most informed people) saw the name Emerson on the wall of a kindergarten class, I would assume girl; if I saw it on a nursing home door, I'd assume it was a man. It's a "flipped" name.
My name is Allison too. I have never EVER met a male Allison.
With Cameron and Emerson I do not think you are doing your daughters a disservice. I like Cameron for a girl, but dislike Emerson for either gender. Regardless, those are unisex names.I wouldn't automatically assume those were males or be surprised to find that they are females.
I don't think it's a good idea to name your daughters Owen or William, THAT is a problem for me and I think could cause problems for your daughters.
I love Cameron!
I'm Jaime... and that's both male/female...
It never seemed to bother me
I have no advice for your situation. I just wanted to be nosy and ask if you're continuing with a flower/plant theme for your dd's middle name?
Because if so, I think Cameron Rose and either Emerson Ivy, or Emerson Violet would be adorable.
Francesca Pearl is here! Josephine Hope is almost 3!
My Grandma's name was Rose and she passed away when I was young. I hadn't thought about using a flower again but that is a cute idea! I do want to use a definite girl name for the middle name though. At the moment I like Emerson Scarlet (which I guess is a color theme with Rose!)
Thank you all for your input!
I grew up with a Mikah (f) and a Micah (m, NOT siblings!) and they never had any problems. Both were in my 3rd and 4th grade classrooms, too. People loved Mikah's name.
People shudder when they hear Allison suggested as a boy's name, but the truth is that if a name ends with -son, it is technically, originally a masculine name. You'd have a hard time finding a newborn Allison or Madison that are boys nowadays, I think, but the moms are naming their daughters what essentially means "___'s son." Not that I'm going to judge a parent for naming their daughter Allison
I think Emerson and Avery go both ways. Dylan, too. Our boy's name is Julian and I've seen people get confused and ask if someone would really name a BOY Julian. Well, JULIAN is a boy's name; Julianne, Julianna, and Julienne are girl's names, but Julian is a boy's name, pure and simple. It's as much of a boy's name as Andrew is, just like Andrea is a girl's name.
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FWIW, I teach pre-school and one of my students (adorable little girl) is named Emerson. Her NN is "Emmie." To be honest, it never even occurred to me to think of Emerson as a "boy" name. I think it's cute.
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My name is Alexis, but from the day I was born I was known as Alix (my parents were told that spelling it with an "i" was the girl way). So basically I have had a boy's name my entire life.
I have never once regretted it or wished for a different name. Actually, the only thing I ever wished for was going by "Lex" instead, which I thought sounded even more tomboy-ish than Alix. I love my name. As much as I have always thought Alexis was a really pretty name, I have always preferred going by Alix and liked it better, I think Alexis sounds a little snobby and way more girly-girl than I am. I never had any problems: I was popular all through school, had tons of boyfriends, never felt weird or was judged due to my name. Don't over-think it.
I will say that when submitting my resume after college, I did put Alexis on there instead of Alix just so potential employers would know I am a female (not that it should matter).
I have always really liked the unisex names for girls. My daughter is names Everett, after my dad & granddad. We very purposely gave her a very feminine MN (Jane, after my mom) so that A) she could go by that down the road if she hated Everett, and
so that on any future resumes she could put her whole name and people would know she was a girl.
Cameron is much more of a girl name and Emerson (IMO) can ONLY be a girl name, so I really don't think you need to worry.
Seriously, don't worry about it. As long as you raise your daughter as a confident, independent girl, everything will be JUST FINE. I promise.
I don't have a unisex name, but I know some people that do, and they are just fine.
I did get called Christopher once because the nurse was too lazy to look up in the waiting room. It made me angry.
My name is Devon, and out of all the Devon/Devins I knew or met, I was the only girl. In fact, a supply teacher called my name once and refused to believe I was in fact Devon because it was a "boy" name.
That being said, I consider it more of a unisex name, and loved it growing up. I like the uniqueness of it and honestly, think the unisex aspect can be an asset when looking for employment (the feminist in my hates to admit this).
I like unisex names so much that both my daughters have them as well.
At least your Parents spelled your name the feminized way and not the traditional Boy's name of Casey. Probably saved you from having a lot of issues.
Just for my $0.02, I don't care for unisex names at all.
My sister is called Alexandrea, but has gone by Alex her whole life, and I know she hates how when people she doesn't know don't know her sex before they meet her, and that's been a lifelong issue for her...
I agree. This is really my issue with boy's names on girls in general, even if the name has become unisex. Even though the name Cameron has become a fairly unisex name nowadays, it IS traditionally a boy name. I happen to love the name Cameron for a boy, and it frustrates me to see so many little girls with the name now because it makes me hesitate to use it. I don't want him to be mistaken for a girl.
That said, your daughter will be fine, I'm sure. I think it's easier on a girl to be mistaken for a boy than the other way around, for those cases when it does happen. And she'll probably grow to love her name.
The reality is that so many little girls are being given unisex names these days that for her cohort it will be totally normal. Your DD, or any future "Emerson" you may have will fit right in with a whole generation of girls with similar names.