I don’t like Sagan, but like it about 10 times less for a girl. I think the (inexplicable to me, but I imagine others have their reasons) movement towards last names, boy names, etc. that don’t sound nice to the ear for girls is very ‘now’ and not necessarily apt to be appreciated further down the road. So for me that would also apply to “Ripley”. I would despise my name if I were named either of those (of course I’m not your daughter, and I’m sure there are cultural factors to consider too). I personally love unusual names dearly. Just not ones that don’t sound nice to my ear when spoken. And I’m not fond of tying people to movie characters or celebrities so strongly in this way in the first place anyway (with ‘Ellen,’ for instance, she can bring up the movie reference if she feels like it, and it’s a nicer sound). It almost…limits them, in a sense. Sure, makes for an easy conversation topic, but what if she doesn’t feel like constantly talking about it? Or she doesn’t even like the movie? I think the posting party here is a skewed demographic on that.
I mentioned this in the last babynaming thread - I hate my first name (because I don’t like the sound of it - it was sort of a name-of-the-times thing but not as bad as some unfortunate peers) and it really has affected my self esteem and way I’ve related to others at points throughout my life. I never told my parents because I figured it’d offend them needlessly, and if they’d ever asked me, I would have lied.
I’d make the first name the more accessible one, too, most definitely. I like my middle name all right, but for the most part I was never aware that I could switch if I wanted to (I didn’t grow up in the kind of family that lets you do what ‘feels right’ anyway). I only just now started to really use it, and it still doesn’t really work - my brother refuses to use it, my boyfriend’s mother is traditional and doesn’t ‘get’ not using your given name, people I do business with are confused by my banking info calling me something else or think I just made up my middle name as a nickname, etc, etc. I HATE explaining these things over and over; I feel like it makes me sound silly and obsessive. But it’s either that or go on with a name I think is ugly.
So it won’t do to assume they like it or it doesn’t affect/bother them just because they don’t complain. They are their own people, and they’re not going to thank you for imposing your values about something completely esoteric like movie/writer preference on them, unless they turn out to be nuts about the thing themselves, perhaps. Or maybe it’ll turn out that they do indeed love the sound, or think that different automatically equals good, or whatever. You’ll never know for sure.
Barack is really growing on me. Name him Barack!
I like Sagan for a boy and Ripley for a girl.
Sure Sagan isn’t a trendy name yet. But someday, there will billions and billions of them.
That was my nick for a bit. I liked it. (except for one group of people who couldn’t seem to wrap their heads around it and so called me “Neil”. :rolleyes: ).
Not only is “Ellen” Ripley’s first name, but “Ellie” is the name of the main character in Sagan’s novel Contact. If it’s a girl, that’ll connect to both names.
<little aside> This is one of those unexpected cultural gulfs I’ve found with the US (or between my perception of NZ and, as you said, mainstream America, due to the far more secular nature of my local culture): I would never have created any mental association between Sagan and Satan (or even Pagan), and even now would consider the single character differences to be unimportant and irrelevant. But, if US Dopers think that folks there will see a connection and create a negative mental image thereby, then perhaps Diogenes would be best to consider that.</aside>
I like it a lot. It’s unusual but at the same time it’s a real name, great source (great conversation starter when the kid starts school), and even has a nice flow (unless your real life surname is Nader or Agan or something).
As for people making fun of the name, my name is Jon, pronounced exactly like John, one of if not the most common boy’s name in the U.S. in the 1960s (my full name’s Jonathan, but I never went by that in school) and kids found ways to make fun of it, so… there’s no avoiding that.
I don’t think anyone here equates the man who had the name with Satan or anything like that. I think they were just going by the sound of the name. I see Sagan/pagan better than Sagan/Satan, but that’s just me.
I don’t like Ellen Sagan as much as Eleanor Sagan, and not just because Ellen isn’t my name. I like the 3 syllables/2 syllables cadence. Plus, Ellen and Sagan both end in “-en” sound, which sounds repetitive. So much to consider, it’s a wonder any kid gets a name at all.
I grew up in part of the US Midwest where the local accent gives “sag” and “Sagan” pretty much exactly the same vowel sound. So if she moves there …and even if she doesn’t I think the similarity will be enough for kids and teens to ridicule. Between that, “billions and billions,” and “Could it be … Sagan?*” I think the poor dear would get good and sick of it.
*Dana Carvey Saturday Night Live “Church Lady” reference.
Yes, fair enough. I was really just responding to the comment that the sound of the name Sagan might evoke the sound of the name Satan, and so carry some negativity.
Perhaps my experience in the area is atypical anyway; as someone whose surname happens to include a diminutive of Richard it was liberating to know that no matter what my wife and I named our son it was hardly likely to exacerbate any teasing he might get at school. 
Sagan does nothing for me one way or the other, but I hate Ripley! Such an ugly name for a little girl, and it sounds so odd when paired with the sisters - Wendy, Sophia and Ripley. Sounds like two little girls and their intrepid hound dog.
I haven’t read the whole thread, I’m going to message board hell, …
I have a ‘normal’ IRL name. It’s four letters and one syllable. I still put up with stupid name jokes (one of which is actually wryly entertaining).
AND people manage to misspell it.
(As for the OP, under no circumstance can that name be used for a girl.)
Where in the Midwest is this? I’ve never heard Sagan pronounced with a short “a” as in “sag”. I live in IL, but also have lived in IA.
Kids will tease no matter the name. I was Eleanor/Smellenor or Rigby or Roosevelt or even Aquitaine (the honor students). That’s just kids.
Definitely not. Maybe Sage instead?
Another vote against Sagan (or Ripley, for that matter). Again, it sounds ridiculously trendy to me, along the lines of Payton or Madison, which make me cringe.
I love different names, though I find I like them better when they’re different because they’re from other culture. I’m not sure why - one part of it is that they often have a powerful meaning behind them even if it’s not readily apparent. They also don’t sound like the parent made them up to be cool. That being said, I’m sure that there are lots of parents who probably loathe those parents that made names like Payton and Madison cool because those names for whatever reason are meaningful.
So I guess my bottom line would be to name your kid whatever the hell you want, but keep in mind whether you think the kid would get pummeled for it all through school or not and whether they’d grow into it even if they hate it when they’re young.
Well, my first thought was “Marley and Me,” the book and soon-to-be movie about a dog! I like it as a human name, though. Just something to think about; Penny is a popular dog’s name, including our female who came to us with the name, and I have two friends named Penny who roll their eyes every time they meet a Penny-dog. I’m envisioning Marley becoming THE doggie name in the near future.
Not so crazy about Sagan and Ripley (esp. since the only Ripley character I could think of was The Talented Mr., and I couldn’t figure out why that was thrown out as a girl’s name; that it came from the other Ripley doesn’t make me like it any better, but I do like it better than Sagan)
Hi to Wendy Sue from a Wendy Kay, and congrats on #3!
Oh, and my mom had a student once named Metallica (girl), and Metallica’s younger brother was either Halen or Roth; Mom couldn’t remember which, but knew it had something to do with Van Halen. So props for not going THERE!
Bumping this to mention that at the graduation ceremony I attended tonight, there was a female graduate called Sagan.
Other unusual names on the program were Corinna, Aleyna, and Marino. There were also some interesting middle names like Khrystyne, Tamar, Jule, Marquette, and Kesed.
I like Ripley, but hate Sagan as a first name for any child.
Some names cross over well - this one does not.