# name--male or female? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 14, 2005, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257 "2005-06-14T19:19:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2005, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/1 "2005-06-14T19:19:29Z")
Help! I need to send letters out at work and have a correspondent named “Sukhbir”. What is your best guess as to male/female? If I don’t know, would “Dear M. Lastname” be OK? ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2005, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/2 "2005-06-14T19:28:41Z")
It sounds like a male, but even I couldn’t be 100% sure. How formal? I assume you can’t put Dear Sukhbir. I’d go with Dear Mr. Sukhbir, if he’s anything like me, he’s used to people constantly confusing him. So speaks Anaamika :)…take it for what it’s worth. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2005, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/3 "2005-06-14T19:36:57Z")
Well, their letter was signed “Sukhbir” but it is an “that job’s already been filled” letter so I thought I would try to be “official” 🙂 I’m glad I didn’t get a bunch of Reed/Taylor/Baileys where it’s also tough to tell. A friend recently had a Ryan and I thought, what beautiful boy, until I found out otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![FatBaldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecd19e/32.png) [@FatBaldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FatBaldGuy)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2005, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/4 "2005-06-14T19:57:55Z")
In the context of that type of letter, I would see no problem with “Dear Sukhbir Lastname.” ---
**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2005, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/5 "2005-06-14T21:37:44Z")
Well, I googled Sukhbir and it seems to be A.) Indian and B.) male. The only think I got for Sukhbir, Mrs. were woman married to men named Sukhbir. So I’d say your pretty safe with male. ---
**Author:** ![Podkayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Podkayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Podkayne)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2005, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/6 "2005-06-14T22:54:13Z")
As someone with a unisex first name (IRL, too, not just “Podkayne”), let me tell you that it _annoys me beyond all reason_ when people “guess” that I’m male and address correspondence with Mr. I _much_ prefer “Dear Firstname Lastname,” which I think is perfectly polite in business correspondence. (And if you’re sending me personal correspondence you goddamn well better know me well enough to have noticed the bumps up front.) ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2005, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/7 "2005-06-15T05:32:57Z")
My first name is gradually turning into a girls name, so I get more and more stuff addressed to a Mrs. Miller. It never bothers me when it happens. They’ve got to pick one or the other; half the time they’re going to pick wrong. It’s not like it’s insulting, or anything. Although I did take exception when my health insurer kept refering to me as Ms. Mostly because I was afraid it would hurt my coverage. “I’m sorry, Mr. Miller, but we’re not going to pay for your prostate exam. According to our records, you don’t have one.” ---
**Author:** ![Orville\_mogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/aeb1de/32.png) [@Orville\_mogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orville_mogul)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2005, 10:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/8 "2005-06-15T10:01:10Z")
Sukhbir is a Punjabi Indian male name. ---
**Author:** ![Orville\_mogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/aeb1de/32.png) [@Orville\_mogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orville_mogul)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2005, 10:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/9 "2005-06-15T10:09:21Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > My first name is gradually turning into a girls name Yeah, so is mine. When I was a kid, it was just an uncool guy’s name, and I got teased for it. Now it is actually quite trendy and cool, but dammit, only if you are a girl! :mad: I mean, it’s not like the origin of the name is ambiguous either. The guy started a very famous war over 2000 years ago by slaying a demigod, kidnapping a princess, and generally being a pain in the ass. Most definitely a guy… Buy hey, just do a TV program of questionable taste and film some skanky videos with someone else’s boyfriend, and you become a household name! ---
**Author:** ![Large\_Marge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/50afbb/32.png) [@Large\_Marge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Large_Marge)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2005, 10:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/10 "2005-06-15T10:30:12Z")
A quick search on Yahoo pulled up almost all male Sukhbirs. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2005, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/11 "2005-06-15T19:42:43Z")
> [@Endemic](#): > > I mean, it’s not like the origin of the name is ambiguous either. The guy started a very famous war over 2000 years ago by slaying a demigod, kidnapping a princess, and generally being a pain in the ass. Most definitely a guy… Lemme guess: Paris? My first name is Gallic for “Son of the handsome man.” Can’t get a whole hell of a lot more masculine than that. ---
**Author:** ![Orville\_mogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/aeb1de/32.png) [@Orville\_mogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orville_mogul)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2005, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/12 "2005-06-16T06:58:54Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Lemme guess: Paris? > > My first name is Gallic for “Son of the handsome man.” Can’t get a whole hell of a lot more masculine than that. On the first try. Nice job! As for yours, is it [**Mackenzie**](http://www.behindthename.com/php/view.php?name=mackenzie) by any chance? ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2005, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/13 "2005-06-16T16:55:25Z")
That’s me! ---
**Author:** ![TJdude825](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dec6dc/32.png) [@TJdude825](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TJdude825)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2005, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/14 "2005-06-17T03:31:11Z")
I think you can pretty much use the name they said. If someone introduces him/herself as “Sukhbir” in person or in writing, that’s what you should call them, until you’re told otherwise, I think. That seems like the most logical answer to me. ---
**Author:** ![kniz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c37758/32.png) [@kniz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kniz)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2005, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/15 "2005-06-17T18:19:19Z")
As in the upcoming wedding of Paris et Paris, our second son married a girl with the same first name as his. His older brother’s daughter calls her “Uncle girl Jodi”. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2005, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/16 "2005-06-17T23:16:09Z")
> [@Podkayne](#): > > As someone with a unisex first name (IRL, too, not just “Podkayne”), let me tell you that it _annoys me beyond all reason_ when people “guess” that I’m male and address correspondence with Mr. > > I _much_ prefer “Dear Firstname Lastname,” which I think is perfectly polite in business correspondence. (And if you’re sending me personal correspondence you goddamn well better know me well enough to have noticed the bumps up front.) I always thought you were a guy. How dreadfully embarassing! ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2005, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/17 "2005-06-18T01:27:46Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > I always thought you were a guy. How dreadfully embarassing! :dubious: One assumes you don’t read much Heinlein. Hmmm… We’ll let that pass… for now… Podkayne of Mars. One of Heinlein’s juveniles. Not a bad book. Go check it out of the library. ---
**Author:** ![Fern\_Forest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/71c47a/32.png) [@Fern\_Forest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fern_Forest)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2005, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-male-or-female/308257/18 "2005-06-18T19:35:31Z")
[Geoff’s Gender Guesser](http://cgi.sfu.ca/~gpeters/cgi-bin/pear/gender.php) says > [@](#): > > Based on popular usage, it is 17.458 times more common for Sukhbir to be a boy’s name.