How do you pick a name???

fryrat · April 2012

Seriously. DH and I sat down and came up with about 2 dozen possibilities for our little girl. We've been going over names for a month now, and are unable to narrow down the list, at all!! I don't want to end up with her in my arms, and make a snap choice, since DH may not be able to be there.

We've eliminated all the ones that are people we know, etc. but can't get any further. Got any ideas?

TheWop · April 2012

Eliminate all the ones you're even a little "Eh" about. Walk around for a day with each name. Give your name at the coffee shop or restaurant as one of the names on your list. Say the name to yourself in the mirror "Hi, I'm _____". If you don't like it, cross it off the list. Write each name down and see if you like the way they look on paper. Put each name on a fake resume and see if you like it. I did this for DD. I actually didn't like the way one of our names looked, so it was off the list. It may seem stupid, but if you're really having a hard time narrowing down the list it might help.

TheWop · April 2012

Here's a baby name test drive:

https://www.babynamegenie.com/baby-name-test-drive.php

CiderWench · April 2012

www.parenting.com/build-a-name

Plugging in names here always helps me. Good luck!

caramia582 · April 2012

One thing that helped me: Whenever out and about, I would look at kids that could possibly be mine (similar complexion). I would try and picture the name on that actual child. Try it with babies, teenagers, and adults. It helps make it more tangible. I found that some names, especially on awkward preteens (the mall has tons of 'em!) sounded completely ridiculous to me. Eventually one name will rise to the top. Good luck!

Aligator28 · April 2012

Each of you take the list an write down your top five-ten favorites and also least favorites on the list, then compare lists. You can see if you have any commonalities among least favorites and most favorites.

fryrat · April 2012

These are great ideas. I'll try anything!

erb82 · April 2012

I try out names when I'm talking to the baby. (I'm not the only one talking to my baby bump, right?) See how it feels when you're actually talking to her.

jlsimon56 · April 2012

Do a bracket with them all. Take two names, decide which one you like more, and keep the winner on your list. Keep going until you have one left!

MnNsAngel · April 2012

personally, i based mine on meaning,letters i wanted and didnt want (as far as first letters of fn and mn) also trend or no trend, and if it was greek, or german or so on....hope that helps. oh- also wrote down down some i was on fence about. then researched each name and if it had the criteria we wanted. After looking at about 10 baby books(yes, its possible to view that many..lol) and picking two names we like we then looked into what looked and sounded better for firsst and middle(if ur giving her a middle) and then with last name also. so then how it all sounds together. we are still in process of middle, narrowed down to about four now.

srs5624 · April 2012

H and I both made our own separate lists. From those lists, we threw out anything that we didn't both write down. There were 4 that we both had on our lists... Ryan, Zackary, Jonathan, Aaron.

Out of those 4, Aaron just felt right so that's what we went with. His name has suited him from the minute he was born. He's definitely not a Ryan, Zackary or Jonathan. No way. He's Aaron.

Coincidentally, he was born on St. Patrick's day and he's huge and freakishly strong. I have yet to have one person guess his age correctly. Most people say 2 years +.

Aaron = mountain of strength, Irish

NessaLovesJC · April 2012

Everyone's name is their identity, therefore do not go by just the way the name sounds. Search for names that have meaning. I chose my names on the basis of:

1) First name had to be a Biblical name

2) Their 2 middle names had to be a virtuous name and after loved ones for instance all my girls' middle name start with Anna which means gracious: Annaliese, Annalee, and Anna Mabel (bc I couldn't choose between AnnaMae and Annabelle). Crazy yes they have 2 middle names. The 2nd middle name are named after me and a loved one, for instance one of them has Vania bc my name is Vanessa and my teenage nieces are Annia and Tania.

May sound silly but it was important to me that they'd have a biblical name, a virtuous name, and named after family

zaramarie81 · April 2012

TheWop:
Eliminate all the ones you're even a little "Eh" about. Walk around for a day with each name. Give your name at the coffee shop or restaurant as one of the names on your list. Say the name to yourself in the mirror "Hi, I'm _____". If you don't like it, cross it off the list. Write each name down and see if you like the way they look on paper. Put each name on a fake resume and see if you like it. I did this for DD. I actually didn't like the way one of our names looked, so it was off the list. It may seem stupid, but if you're really having a hard time narrowing down the list it might help.

This. I had a looong list, and once I started "testing" the names out, I realized I didn't love some of those names so much on a real child/person. Some were too flowy/fancy to be taken seriously (for me), others far too plain. Here's another way to eliminate: Pair all the names with your last name. Is your ln common? Would a common fn make for a "boring" combo? Is your ln unusual and in need of a more classic fn? Also, think syllables. Some of the best flowing fn-ln combos have varied syllables.

For example, our ln is a common, two-syllable, British name. When I began testing names I realized: 3- and 1-syllable names do almost always sound better with our ln AND I also realized I wanted a less common fn due to the common nature of our ln.

ljanette85 · April 2012

make a list and do trial runs with each name... we would use a name for a week or so and then realized we didnt like it. after we said scarlett about a million times we realized that we liked it, the same with noah... but it took a lot of names to get to those two!

mommytoconnor · April 2012

When I was picking out names, we sat down and wrote down the alphabet and the names we liked starting with each letter. Then narrowed down that list to about 5 or 6 that were real contenders and when I saw my son for the first time I knew what his name would be. It also helps if maybe you have a middle name you already want to use and if you don't think it goes with first name then don't pick that name. Good luck, it's hard I know.

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