Help me to decide...

[rj_anderson]

Carried over from my most recent blog entry:

[Poll #530318]ETA: "Nathan" seems to be definitely in the lead, but I just looked it up and it's #20 on the Baby Naming Hit Parade as of 2004. In other words, it's trendy, and I'm already peevish that Nicholas's name has become so common, so that tends to put me off the idea. "Nathaniel" isn't as common according to the wizard, but we already know two young Nathaniels -- wait, no, three -- so that's not really a viable alternative. Bah.

Comments

[peacockharpy.livejournal.com]

I've always liked the name Nathan. I like Nathaniel even more. (Of course, I named one of my villains Nathaniel... but I still like the name!)

Plus I think it's in the same sort of "sound" as Simon and Nicholas, where as Paul and Joel aren't. But this could just be me.

[rj-anderson.livejournal.com]

Unfortunately, like I said to Naomi below, I've just found out that "Nathan" is one of the Top 20 trendiest names right now. Nathanael is just as bad or worse, so no joy in that direction...

I'm already rather peeved that "Nicholas" is so popular, or at least has been in the last couple of years -- I've always liked that name and didn't realize it was in the Top Ten for the year I chose it. And now "Simon" seems to be gaining popularity on this side of the pond, too. Alas, how to find a name I like which is classic, simple to pronounce, and unlikely to be misspelled or otherwise abused by teachers and classmates, and yet not too egregiously common? The naming of cats sons is a difficult matter.

[peacockharpy.livejournal.com]

The naming of daughters, too. I'd always loved the name Madeleine, but now it's something like number #20 on the girl name list.

(And I guess all of us voting for Nathan is kind of an indication in that direction, eh?)

I have several naming books that track by trend. What type of name (qualities, historical reference, Biblical, etc.) are you interested in? I can look things up for you. :)

[celisnebula.livejournal.com]

Are you 100% sure that you're having a boy this time? I do like Nathan, but you've already got a Nicholas and a Simon so Paul would probably be a bit more fitting.

[rj-anderson.livejournal.com]

Yeah, 100%. The technician checked twice to be sure, but it was so obvious on the ultrasound, even I could see...

[shellebelle93.livejournal.com]

I guess I'm in the "small but critical" minority for Joel...:) But all the names are great.

Just my experience--

[(Anonymous)]

We had 5th grade promotions last month, and of 87 10yr olds, there were 4 Nathans. Not as bad as Jason some years back, where every other kid had that name, but still....
(Not to mention the 3 Michaelas, all of whom spell their names differently.)
Me, I've always liked Joel. Goes well with his surname, too.

Naomi (mother of William and Randall)
who considered Malcolm and Conrad, and firmly rejected the notion of naming one after DH's grandfather....Adolf.

Re: Just my experience--

[rj-anderson.livejournal.com]

Yes, I've just looked up all three names and discovered that Nathan is the #20 most popular boy's name right now. In other words, it's trendy *shudders*. And we know two Nathaniels in our small circle of friends already, so using the longer form is out of the question. Sigh.

[penwiper26.livejournal.com]

Hmm, yes, I had thought Nathan was a bit trendy right now.

Paul, on the other hand, has a nice connotation of active, cerebral, and sensitive. In an unimpeachably masculine way, of course. ;)

Also, I currently have the hots for the guy playing Paul Ryan on The Inside. So that's a factor, at least for me. :))

[penwiper26.livejournal.com]

Uh, that would be Jay Harrington (http://tv.zap2it.com/photos/index/0,1237,zp_fromThumb%7C93439%7C99382,00.html). Yeah.

[rj-anderson.livejournal.com]

Ooh, the pretty! *admires*

I lean toward Paul myself. I would never have thought of it, since I already used that name for the hero of Knife, but my husband suggested it and after the initial surprise I thought "Well... why not?" I mean, it's not like the book's published or anything anyway...

[penwiper26.livejournal.com]

Well, and even if Knife does get published, it's not like Paul is such an obscure name that your kid will always have it hanging over him that his mum named him after one of her characters OMG! Especially since you didn't. :)

Hee.

[kerravonsen]

Yes, but would it come back to haunt him later?

Naw, I take it back, don't worry about that. Because I am reminded of the naming dilemma of a friend of mine, whose first son was born not that long after the first Highlander movie came out, and he was concerned about naming his son Connor, because the full name would be "Connor McHarg", which is rather similar to "Connor Mcleod". I said, naw, don't worry about it, by the time he's schoolage everyone will have forgotten about that movie, and besides, Connor was the hero.

Then the TV series came out, with a new hero, Duncan Macleod. Guess what my friend's name is. That's right, "Duncan McHarg".

It just proves that you have no control over what names popular culture is going to throw up. So don't worry about it.

[rj-anderson.livejournal.com]

Yeah, exactly. When I was in Grade Three, I had a classmate named Shaun Cassidy. Poor kid, how were his parents to know that "Da Doo Ron Ron Ron" was going to become a major North American hit, and that cheesy posters of their son's namesake were going to be plastered on locker doors everywhere for the next year and a half?

[dr-c.livejournal.com]

I used to have a friend named Ed Haskell. Somehow his parents must never have heard of "Leave it to Beaver...."

[dr-c.livejournal.com]

Paul, on the other hand, has a nice connotation of active, cerebral, and sensitive.

Cerebral, perhaps; active, maybe a little; I can't speak for the "sensitive" bit.... :-)

[(Anonymous)]

So, I guess Severus was never in the running, huh? ;-D

Mary Anne

[labellerose.livejournal.com]

I'm leaning toward Paul. 'Nathan' is a bit too close to 'Nicholas' for my taste. I think they should have their own initials.

For boys names I like the middle of the popularity bell curve. Not so trendy that when the kindergarten teacher says 'Name' 5 little guys stand up, and not so obscure that he's going to get teased because, you know, boys.

I picked 'James Edward' for my son. Of course he's now announced that he wants to known as 'Jim Ed' but we at least tried for a little dignity.

[camillofan.livejournal.com]

I have an 11-year old Paul--Paul Joseph, in fact--and he's always the only Paul in his class (Scout troop, etc.).

Incidentally, my 13-year-old is named Stephen, so you can imagine what it used to be like at our house whenever the Sunday School lesson included Acts 7:54-8:1 ("But he was still *Saul*, then," I would remind them, in vain).

[rj-anderson.livejournal.com]

Incidentally, my 13-year-old is named Stephen, so you can imagine what it used to be like at our house whenever the Sunday School lesson included Acts 7:54-8:1

*falls off chair laughing* Oh, come on, it was probably the kid's only hope of revenge! When you consider what older brothers are like... :)

FWIW

[taiamu.livejournal.com]

I like Nathan, too. I've always liked it. And I do like the longer 'Nathaniel' as well. My second choice out of the three would be Joel, but Nathan's still the front runner. :0)

I don't see it as particularly trendy, either. It's a nice, solid, strong name for a boy, imho.

[tundraeternal.livejournal.com]

Ooo, I pick Paul any day of the week. Such a great name, sort of poetic without being sissy-type, and there's such great people named Paul. McCartney, um, i can't think of any others cause i'm tired, but Paul McCartney's enough for me!

[tundraeternal.livejournal.com]

SIMON! Paul Simon. And ummmmm...... more later.

Jean-Paul Sartre?

Nathaniel

[cepage.livejournal.com]

I have a friend named Nathaniel who goes by Than instead of the usual Nate or Nathan. I've always thought that it sounded much more romantical! Of course, he was also dashingly handsomea and spent much of his time galavanting around the wilds of east Africa, so that could have something to do with the infatuation. Anyway, Than's always a good alternative if you really like Nathan but don't want to be typical!

[malabud.livejournal.com]

I voted for Joel, but my real choice (as you well know) is Norbert. It wouldn't be on the top 20 or even the top 100, I bet! *g*

Seriously, I like Joel more than Nathan or Paul. It's a Biblical name, although the Book of Joel is only three chapters long. If you really want a Biblical name, how about Amos? (I like his book better than Joel's.) I won't even suggest Habakkuk, even though the name is fun to say. So, anyway, I vote for Joel.

[(Anonymous)]

I missed the poll, but you will probably be the least likely to have Paul become popular in the future since it was such a common name in the past. My boys' names are David, John, and James and they almost never run into another one. My girls' names are Elizabeth, Rebecca, and Ruth. Elizabeth is just now becoming very popular, we had to turn Rebecca into a Becky (which we knew at the time) and whenever we tell someone Ruth's name, they give us the funniest looks so I know that one isn't going to become popular anytime soon. But Ruth is truly who she is, so we don't mind.

[sunsethill.livejournal.com]

Aack, that last was me. I forgot to log in.

What's in a name?

[stmarysalice.livejournal.com]

I like the name Paul. I have very fond memories associated with that name. Though you may get the Paul Simon jokes. But that's not as bad as my friend Ann and her brothers and sister. Yup. Peter, Paul, Ann, Mary. I wish I was joking.

Re: What's in a name?

[rj-anderson.livejournal.com]

Peter, Paul, Ann, Mary.

*facepalm*

That's just harsh.

A friend of mine went to school with a girl named "Alison Wonderland".

[biichan.livejournal.com]

Nathan sounds least likely to turn into an evil football player to me. Which is why I picked it. (Generally this is how I pick boys' names. I pick girls' names for sensibility. I have the feeling that I will end up with children named Edgar, Franklin, Lucy and Theda.)

Paul's nice though.

[kissedbythegods.livejournal.com]

I'm late to the party, but I like Joel for it's Billy Joel reference. Besides that, I've never known a Joel.