I haven’t had my sonogram yet, but for some odd reason I’m feeling very strongly that I’m having a boy. Call it Wimmin’s Intuition
Anyway, the name we like is Hayden . It was my grandfather’s name. I like that it’s a family name - and hell, it sounds good with our one syllable last name. Don’t let that stop you from beating the name down with a spiked club.
I’m looking for opinions…So what do you think? Too trendy? Too pretentious? I looked on the Top 100 names and was dissapointed to find it listed. I was hoping that it hadn’t been discovered yet. (It was only at 65, but still) Someone told me it may become more popular due to the actor Hayden Christensen rising in the Hollywood ranks.
Unless somebody makes the name more famous, he’s going to be stuck with telling people how to pronounce it (I for one aren’t sure), and also telling them there’s an ‘e’ in there.
I’m not sure that ANY name linked with the execrable Star Wars prequels is advisable. So don’t name the kid Qui-Gon, Dooku, Palpatine or (obviously) Jar-Jar either.
Love it, always have. My husband says it sounds too snobbish but I don’t get that. Can’t understand why people wouldn’t know how to pronounce it… Hay-den. It’s phonetic. I have an elderly distant cousin named Haydn and the name suits him well so I feel that it works across a wide age group.
I don’t think your average American would confuse it with “Haydn”, so I wouldn’t worry about the pronunciation problem. As a general rule, though, I don’t like the trend of using surnames as first names, so I would rule it out on that basis. But that’s just me.
Congrats on the baby. I like the name Hayden. I would not consider it pretentious or trendy. Actually, my main association with the name is the defunct 90s sitcom “Coach” (the main character was named Hayden Fox). I’d be surprised if most people remember that show though.
I personally think the name is sort of pretentious. But then again, I think all names except the very basic ones like Bob, Joe, and John are. I’m not a good reference point.
It’s a family name, which really helps avoid the trendy stigma, IMO. When he’s asked where his name came from, he’ll answer “It was my great grandfather’s name” and not “My mom saw it in a movie”.
I like it, with one reservation. How do you see yourself shortening it? I’d hate to hear a kid called “hey” all his life.
It sounds like a last name because it IS a last name; do a Google on it and you’ll find far more surname hits than first name hits.
It’s extremely trendy-sounding, owing in large part to #1. It’s already in the Top 100 for all male baby names in the United States and has gained in popularity every year for 15 years. It’s gaining in popularity among females, too, though it’s still in the 500s.
It’s gender-ambiguous.
There’s a significant chance it will end up being associated with a famous actor or actress.
No frickin’ way I’d use it. Horrible choice, IMHO.
I like it. I like that it’s a family name that you have a connection to, I like the way it sounds and the way it’s spelled.
True, some people can’t figure out how to pronounce things that are spelled exactly how they sound and vice-versa. I guess they weren’t taught phonetics when they were taught to read. Don’t worry about them, there’s nothing you can do. My last name is spelled exactly as it sounds, sounds exactly as it’s spelled, with no extra letters thrown in, and people often still ask me how it’s spelled.
That would be a good argument, if it were applicable to the name in question. But it isn’t - there isn’t an unambiguous way to identify the pronunciation of ‘Hayden’.
Since my grandfather’s middle name was Hayden as well, I love the name! In fact, my son would have gotten it for his middle name, had my IVF not failed.
I really like it although it’s a bit trendy to me – but then it’s kind of popular around here. It’s not so popular though that your little boy will have four other Haydens running around the room in kindergarten, though.
So I vote go for it! What a nice tribute to your grandfather. I’d love to name a son after my Grandaddy but I don’t think little Marvin would like his mom very much.
As far as shortening it goes, people will not shorten Hayden’s name if they see his parents calling him Hayden. My daughter has a long, beautiful name – most girls with the same name go by the nickname. I don’t mind if people call her by the nickname, but I find that they don’t because they see me and the Mr. calling her by the long version.
I don’t think that’ll be a problem. I’m guessing that the name is pronounced as it is spelled, i.e. “hay-den”. The composer’s name should be pronounced “high-dn”. How is the composer’s name pronounced in England? British speakers of English do seem apt to anglicize further the pronunciation of foreign names than Americans do.
I think it’s an excellent name. Who cares if other kids have the same name? If you like the name, and it suits his precious little face when he’s born, ignore the critics and call him Hayden. Unless you name him Kerfligganupht, he’s going to share a name with somebody.
So what if famous people have his name? If someone asks him if he’s named for that Star Wars guy, he can answer with pride that it was his great-grandfather’s name. Besides, we’ve seen Anakin act - nobody will remember his name in 5 years.
It’s not a sissy name, it’ll age well, and I want to steal it for when I have a kid. Don’t worry, though, it’ll be at least 10 years before I get to that point and I’ll probably change my mind by then.
I like the name Hayden. I would not consider it pretentious or trendy. Actually, my main association with the name is the defunct 90s sitcom “Coach” (the main character was named Hayden Fox). I’d be surprised if most people remember that show though.