# Non-Parent Dopers: Do You Have Baby Names Picked Out? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 2, 2012, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162 "2012-08-02T12:07:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/1 "2012-08-02T12:07:53Z")
Mrs. Homie and I don’t have kids and won’t have kids, but for shits & giggles we’ll sometimes discuss our hypothetical kids. We even have hypothetical names for them. You see, back when we were trying to have kids, we agreed on names. We had some general principles in mind: [ul] [li]Nothing “trendy,” like Kayla or Aiden or McKenzie.[/li][li]Nothing “old man/old lady” like Myrtle or Floyd.[/li][li]Biblical, but not common like Matthew or John, and not obscure like Zebulon or Gomer[/li][li]Meaningful to us - as in, referencing people we love or admire[/li][/ul] So for a girl we came up with Holly Grace [our last name]. Holly is the name of a friend we went to college with, who died tragically in a car accident her senior year, and Grace because it’s Biblical and I like the name. We would call her Grace, because Holly doesn’t work with our last name. For a boy we came up with Elias William [our last name]. Elias is the middle name of Walter Elias Disney, a man I admire. Mrs. Homie didn’t want to call him Eli or Elias, so we settled on calling him by his middle name, Will. Yep. Our hypothetical kids are Will & Grace. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/2 "2012-08-02T12:35:23Z")
Not a parent, not married nor in a relationship, but occasionally I have thought that a name wokld be a good one to give to future children (if I ever do reproduce). ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/3 "2012-08-02T12:47:08Z")
I named my son Christopher when I was in college. He wasn’t born for another 14 years. That’s a long pregnancy! \ ---
**Author:** ![Moonlitherial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Moonlitherial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonlitherial)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/4 "2012-08-02T12:47:58Z")
I had names picked out before I got pregnant for my hypothetical boy and girl. I don’t remember what they are because when I got pregnant they didn’t feel right and were changed. Heck my son’s name changed the day after he was born as we were filling out the birth certificate. ---
**Author:** ![Student\_Driver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3da27b/32.png) [@Student\_Driver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Student_Driver)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/5 "2012-08-02T13:01:54Z")
Yeah. Actually had names picked out several times; I start fresh with each long term girlfriend, I guess. With the ex-wife: Tristan, Sheridan, Trent, Robert. Ex-fiancee Heather: Lola, Isobel, Geoffrey, Robert, Louise. Ex-fiancee Sarah: Adele (chosen before the popularity of the current singer… it was Sarah’s grandmother’s name), Rose, Lily, Lila, Violet. And Robert. Ex-g/f Annie: Anything other than Annie. And considering one of her brothers was named Robert, she was really fond of using it. The Robert thing bugs me. It’s my name, and a traditional name in my family. Every generation in my family has a Robert (Bobby/Bob/Robby/Rob), going back as far as anyone’s been able to trace the family tree. And _every single woman_ I’ve had a relationship with thinks it’s an uber-awesome tradition and immediately puts it at #1 for their preferred male baby names, whereas I’d like to just put it out of its misery. ---
**Author:** ![Lsura](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7993a0/32.png) [@Lsura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lsura)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/6 "2012-08-02T13:07:47Z")
> [@Student\_Driver](#): > > The Robert thing bugs me. It’s my name, and a traditional name in my family. Every generation in my family has a Robert (Bobby/Bob/Robby/Rob), going back as far as anyone’s been able to trace the family tree. And _every single woman_ I’ve had a relationship with thinks it’s an uber-awesome tradition and immediately puts it at #1 for their preferred male baby names, whereas I’d like to just put it out of its misery. I really dislike the name Robert & it’s variations. I’d ask you if you wanted to go out, but you’re named Robert. 😛 As for the OP, at one point I did for girls, though not for boys: Stephanie Frances Brianna Susanne There are names I like for boys - like Oliver, Wesley, Arthur - but none were ever “I’d name a baby boy this” names for me. ---
**Author:** ![kmshrader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b782af/32.png) [@kmshrader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kmshrader)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/7 "2012-08-02T13:26:59Z")
The ex and I had this conversation as a joke – his suggestion was ‘Racecar’ for a girl. 😛 I lean toward ‘Adelaide’ or ‘Ivalo’ for a girl, and ‘Ernest’ for a boy. I’m not picky about middle names, but then I figure the hypothetical father should probably get a say. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/8 "2012-08-02T17:33:44Z")
I did have theoretical kid names picked out when I was a teenager, but not anymore. I won’t ever need to name a child because I never plan to give birth (I have strong feelings about overpopulation and the inferiority of my own genetic material). However, I have thought that it would be really funny to name a daughter Rachel Jr., because \*nobody \*does that for girls. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/9 "2012-08-02T17:42:20Z")
My wife had a name picked out for a hypothetical boy before she had ever met me. I liked the name too, so it was the name we eventually gave our son. ---
**Author:** ![Blackberry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecd19e/32.png) [@Blackberry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blackberry)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/10 "2012-08-02T18:04:12Z")
I keep an ongoing list of names I like, and I don’t plan to have any more kids. I want to name someone else, but I don’t suppose that alone is a good reason to have a baby. Only girl names are fun to me though. I want the father to have a last name starting with Y because then the nickname I’d want to call her would be the initials of the name I want to give her. That would be awesome! ---
**Author:** ![anu-la1979](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/47e85d/32.png) [@anu-la1979](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anu-la1979)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/11 "2012-08-02T18:19:48Z")
My fiance hates every name I like because they are too old fashioned by his standards. Pretty much the only one we both agree upon is Aniket,\* which is my favorite name for a boy and which he likes because he has a good friend by that name. He also likes my second favourite name, Anirudh, but thinks it would be too hard for Americans to pronounce. Which I am not at all sympathetic towards given my own first name but whatever. However, he’s gunning for Anish, which I’m not entirely sure is even a real Indian name but would be a combination of our two first names. Thus far we have not found a girls name we both like. \*We’re both Hindu Indians. The baby is going to have a Hindu name. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/12 "2012-08-02T18:53:07Z")
A lot of my favorites went and got popular. Like Sophia, goddamn it. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/13 "2012-08-02T21:07:08Z")
My kid’s name will be Gilgamesh. If, in 20 or 30 years, any of you meet a Gilgamesh, that will be my kid. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/14 "2012-08-02T21:32:42Z")
> [@anu-la1979](#): > > Anirudh, but thinks it would be too hard for Americans to pronounce. Do tell. > [@](#): > > However, he’s gunning for Anish, which I’m not entirely sure is even a real Indian name but would be a combination of our two first names. I don’t know the provenance, doesn’t seem short for anything, but sure it is used. [Anish Kapoor](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anish_Kapoor), best known for [“that weird mirror thing that’s shown in every movie taking place in Chicago”](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud_Gate). [And some more](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anish). > [@YogSosoth](#): > > My kid’s name will be Gilgamesh. If, in 20 or 30 years, any of you meet a Gilgamesh, that will be my kid. Please name another kid Enkidu. Or the Lurker at the Threshold, assuming you’re using your real name here… I don’t have anything picked out especially to the extent of my gf’s choices, and I get bugged about it sometimes. My rules are similar to the OPs, except Biblical isn’t necessary, and “trendy” can be split into “trendy” and “stupid,” with some overlap between the two. Trendy is basically anything in the top 10 for the last several years. I thought Adele was a pretty good name before the singer, now I wouldn’t because people would assume that it’s from her, and I’d have to explain that I’ve heard her big song but couldn’t hum it because I don’t remember how it goes. I don’t prefer names like John, Robert, etc. because I like enough uniqueness so that the kid doesn’t need to be called “Robert 3” or “Jessica 2” or “John-117.” But the opposite extreme is bad, I’m not naming my kid Mykynzy. ---
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/15 "2012-08-02T21:39:15Z")
I only had boys, so I can still play with girl names, right? If I had a girl, I would have named her Sasha. I love that name. But not with my current last name, as it would be a tongue-twister. ---
**Author:** ![lew\_cody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e274bd/32.png) [@lew\_cody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lew_cody)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/16 "2012-08-02T22:07:24Z")
I don’t plan on having kids (ever), but I’ve thought about the names I’d bestow. For a girl, maybe Constance Viola or Edith Frances. For a boy, Wallace James or Charles Raymond. The girls’ names sound a little 1895-ish, but that’s OK with me (I would absolutely never give a child an -aiden name, or anything like Madison or McKenna). There are more names that I like that I haven’t matched with a middle name: Margaret/Marguerite, Jacques, Eugene, Dmitry, Leo, Lorraine, Dorothea. ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/17 "2012-08-02T22:29:34Z")
My other half is adamant that we’re done and I hold no hope of changing his mind, but I still think about what I’d name a hypothetical future child. I wish I’d have the chance to use the name Alice. I love it for it’s own sake, but it would also make my last living grandparent happy because it was her mother’s name. I would pair it with Violet, from the other half’s grandmother. It’s not the name we’d chosen if our son had been a daughter (we’d have gone with Eloise Iris), but our son is named after his grandfather so I think it’s my side’s turn “next time”. My imaginary future son is Alexander. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/18 "2012-08-02T22:59:30Z")
> [@Alice\_The\_Goon](#): > > I only had boys, so I can still play with girl names, right? > > If I had a girl, I would have named her Sasha. I love that name. But not with my current last name, as it would be a tongue-twister. Sasha Seashellseller? ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/19 "2012-08-02T23:28:54Z")
Yup. Owen Ready and Nicholas Danger. I haven’t settled on what Christopher, Jeremy, or Henry’s middle names would be if I had more than two, but they’d follow the same theme: being able to smugly say “actually, my middle name **is** \_\_\_.” You notice that there are no girls’ names because my imaginary children are all boys. ---
**Author:** ![Drain\_Bead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47774/32.png) [@Drain\_Bead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drain_Bead)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2012, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162/20 "2012-08-02T23:47:19Z")
My husband and I had the name Benjamin Owen picked out for years. Then his cousin named her son Owen Benjamin. When we got the phone call after he was born we laughed and laughed. We ended up having a girl anyway. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-parent-dopers-do-you-have-baby-names-picked-out/630162.md?page=2)