A. writes:
I need your help! I know you recently addressed “rhyming names” in the Caroline Divine letter, but what about names that have a repeating series of sounds or letters? Not strictly a last-part-of-the-name-kind-of-rhymes stretch, but an all-out repeat between first and last name?
(It made me sad to see something as lovely as Caroline Divine come up as a question because I knew it meant you probably wouldn’t be able to answer my letter, and unfortunately that response doesn’t help with my own dilemma.)
Our last name sounds like Bestest, without the B, and we’re expecting a baby boy around the end of May.
The name my husband and I both love is West.
My husband thinks that West Bestest is just fine, that the rhyme and repeated letters shouldn’t be an issue. Aside from the fact that it sounds like it could be a place in Texas (not where we live), I’m just not convinced. I fear the double -est is just too much. I love the name West, but I don’t know that I can bring myself to pair it with our surname. I also don’t know if I can resist it either, because I love the name so much.
I grew up with a sort-of rhyming name and it didn’t bother me at all, but then, it wasn’t the same series of letters repeated in the same order from my first name to my last. It was a near-rhyme that hardly called any attention to itself, not the showstopper that it seems to me that West Bestest would be.
My husband thinks that because our surname has an extra syllable over West, it’s similar to something like Jack Acker, which doesn’t bother me much at all and sounds just fine. But it just doesn’t seem the same to me.
My husband also thinks that since people usually mispronounce our last name as Besties instead of Bestest, it will lessen any impact of the repeated sounds. He thinks it will be most commonly pronounced as “West Besties” instead of “West Bestest,” even though it’s incorrect.
We kind of like Weston with the nickname West, but far, far less than we love West on its own. Our feeling for Weston is lukewarm, at best. And it’s popularity is a deterrent; we prefer something outside of the top 1000 (though we would be okay with something around the 500s or lower) but Weston is firmly in the top 200 and continuing to gain in popularity.
Our style preference is for something short and masculine that isn’t prone to obvious nicknames or has a common nickname we can accept. We think of our style as “cowboy names.”
Because we love West so much, we haven’t had much luck coming up with other choices:
* Huck – like it, but don’t know if we can deal with the “bad word” rhyme
* Rock, nn Rocky – just okay
* Lucky – too much like a dog’s nameI know most people don’t like rhyming names and a poll would certainly tell me not to use it. But what I really need is a voice of reason. Is West Bestest just too out there? Can you help?
Adding a B- and a -t helps to effectively disguise the surname for privacy purposes, but it also adds strong consonant sounds that make it more difficult to assess the situation. When I was saying this over and over to myself, West Bestest, West Bestest, West Bestest, I was thinking, “Well, I would not do it. But it will not be the end of the world if they use it. Think of all the kids who are named John Johnson or whatever, and that’s completely on purpose.” But then I took the B- and -t off, and I got Wes/West Testes, which is a word I’d prefer not to create if your name is frequently mispronounced to rhyme with besties. If I pronounce the surname correctly, I get Wes Tess Tess.
It isn’t a doubled sound, it’s a tripled sound. If the name were West Jamieston, West Preston, even West Lester, we would not have the situation we have here, which is ES ES-ES. The equivalent is not Jack Acker, but Jax Acksack, or Herb Erber, or Grant Antan, or Mark Arkar. There are two echoes, not one—and the surname is made entirely of echoing sounds, with no other sounds to break up the repeat.
As with the Caroline Divine post, I think the fact that most people would assume the names wouldn’t rhyme will increase the pronunciation problems. People will say to themselves, “Well, it just can’t be Wes Tess Tess. I’ll try West Test Tees to be safe.”
Because you say you already know a poll would be against it, I’m not sure what you’re asking. Are you asking if you can go ahead and do it anyway, knowing most people will think it’s a tongue-tangling showstopper? Yes, you can go ahead and do it anyway. I’m advising against it, and you’re already guessing a poll would be against it (my guess is the same), but you two are the ones who get to decide what’s best for your child’s name.
But if I were you, I would add this name to the list of names every parent has: names we love that we can’t use because of our surname, or because the other parent hates the name, or because it’s also the name of someone famously awful, or because it’s also a curse word in the country half our family comes from, or because it’s the name of someone at the office the other parent has always suspected us of having a crush on, or because it’s the name of our sister’s father-in-law, husband, and son.
From here I’d advise you not to look for a name you like as much as West, since such a name might not exist; instead, look for the name you like best of all the remaining names.
Name update! A. writes:
Boy, were my pregnancy hormones out of control when I wrote you back in January! Rereading my letter now, I wonder what in the world I was thinking! Not only did I have the answer my own question before I ever pressed send, but I had also convinced myself that we were having a boy. I loved the lists of “cowboy names” that everyone came up with, but when we found out we were actually having a girl, we had to rethink everything. Late last week, we welcomed a sweet little girl, whom we named Indie V!olet.
West &stes definitely doesn’t work. Another name is needed. Your son will thank you for choosing something else if you someday tell him that you almost named him West &stes.
And how about looking for a ‘regular’ name instead of cutesy names like Huck, Rock or Lucky? Any of those could be your nickname for him (or as you said, the name for his puppy), but please give him the gift of a given name that he can be proud of no matter what he decides to be when he grows up.
I would also strongly advise against naming your child West with your surname. I personally think it sounds like a tongue twister. I know this isn’t something many people think about but have you thought of the possibility that your son may at some point have a lisp or some type of speech impediment… The poor boy would not be able to pronounce any part of his name. I agree with Swistle, I would put it on the “names I love but won’t use” list. Good luck, I’m sure you will find a perfect name!!
you could use another “W” first name and get the nickname West from his first initial and the “est” sounds in your last name. It could be a family nickname for people who will never pair it with his last name.
That was my thought too. West would be great as a nickname, but I wouldn’t do it as his official name because of the echo from your last name.
This is a great suggestion!
This is what I was going to suggest too!
I remember the days when I only loved one name, and I’m so glad they’re over. Now I put this in the same category as only liking one color, one meal, one destination, one song, one person, one time of day…..You get the picture. I’m not sure what it is about the human mind that gives us a tendency to fixate and limit options, but I don’t find it to be one of our sweeter or more generous characteristics and I often wish it just weren’t so–such a limitation on our nearly endless opportunities and options.
In your situation, my recommendation would be for both of you to explore creativity in arenas other than names for a month or two–you still have a good bit of time before the end of May. Ask yourselves first how creative you feel in general, take a measure, and go from there. Do you always drive the same routes? Try taking others. Always favor the same catalogs or stores? Purposely look into other ones. Ideally do this in ways that aren’t off-putting or enormously challenging. The goal is simply to lasso more flexibility and creativity in general, in the belief that these qualities/skills will then start to have a bearing on how many names you each find appealing. You don’t need to become open to hundreds of others, you just need 2 or 3 you can begin to feel really good about. I agree with Swistle: just aim for feeling really good, not “loving.”
Good luck, I think you’re actually in an exciting position here.
Thank you so much for this comment. This is exactly what I was hoping my letter would do: clean the slate so we can start over.
I agree 100% with Swistle. I’ll also add that if you are avoiding Weston because of it’s popularity, I think you’d be disappointed with West. It seems many people are using Weston & Westley specifically to get to the nickname West-meaning the name isn’t as unusual as you might like it to be.
I wonder if you’d like something like Archer, Rocco, Mack, or Dax?
I agree with Swistle–I think you need to set West aside and explore some other names.
You say your style is “cowboy names” and there’s lots of great ones! In fact, I am bit envious. Cowboy names are out for us–they don’t fit our family, region, or style–but they are really fun names for little boys.
What names make you think “West”? A great place name? Is it the short, brisk sound? The “W”?
Some off the top of my head suggestions:
Walker
Wyatt
Wade
Wilder
Decker
Breck
Forrest
Good luck!
I wouldn’t do West either. Other cowboy “manly man” names I can think of: Bruce, Shane (such a god book), John, Wayne, Duke, Cole, Merle, Ben, Logan, Lane, Chism (after John Chism), Clay, Clayton, Roy & Jesse… this is fun! Good luck. :)
Ummm…I’m sorry, I can really sense how much you love this name from your post, but this one sounds like a no go.
Unfortunately there are always names we love that just don’t sound quite right with our surnames. There are plenty of great names out there and, even though it doesn’t feel like it right now, I’m pretty sure there’s one you’ll love just as much as West.
You said you like ‘cowboy’ type names so I’d like to suggest a few alternatives:
Brock
Brooks
Carson
Cash
Chase
Colt
Dale
Dash
Emmett
Everett
Grady
Grant
Harley
Kent
Landon
Mitchell
Preston
Riley
Wade
Wyatt
Zane
All the best!
Thank you for providing suggestions of alternate “cowboy” names. The “voice of reason” that I seek is something that might be a great name instead of the name that just doesn’t work, though it doesn’t seem as though I’ve communicated that well enough. A list like this could be a jumping-off point for us to start over and find something that we do love. And like you say, I’m sure there is something we’ll “love” as much as we love this, we just haven’t found it yet. I really appreciate your encouragement!
Wesley would get you a similar sound but break up the first and last names. He could be Wes out loud and Wesley Lastname on paper. Of course Wesley is more popular than what you prefer.
I think Swistle’s advice is spot on, especially the point about it being a triple echo. I don’t think your son would thank you for it.
Other suggestions:
Colt
Gage
Ford
Logan
Clay
Walker
Hunter
Chase
I also assume a lot of the Weston and Westley kids will be called West, which changes the popularity.
What is your motivation for wanting something outside of the top 1000 or 500? That is an awful lot of names to disregard because of a numerical ranking.
The popularity thing is a preference, not a dealbreaker. If we found something we loved in the top 50, top 100, top whatever, I’m sure we’d go for it. But we’d have to really, really like it. We don’t think any name we give our child will be “unique,” and that’s not our expectation or motivation. We both have very popular names and we have just developed a preference for something less popular, under the full realization that any time in the future, what isn’t popular today might be popular then and we’re okay with that. It’s not that we’re disregarding popular names. It’s mostly that they just don’t usually “fit” the way we’d like.
I wrote my comment quickly this morning, and I didn’t convey well that I was not at all criticizing your preference for non 1000/500 ranked names. Rather, I was hoping to distill the reason behind your preferences in hopes that clarifying that would help lead to some other choices. I just wanted to add that. I sympathize too, I had a lot of trouble with husband’s last name.
Here are some other suggestions from Baby Name Wizard: Drake, Blane, Tucker, Shaw, Blaze, Bridger, Duke, Edge, Hawk, Ranger, Rock (Rockwell), Stetson, Boone, Trace,
Good luck!
I totally get that. I didn’t take it as criticizing at all, and I appreciated your comment because it gave me the opportunity to think more about the popularity thing and even think a little more about why we might prefer a lower ranked name than a higher one. :) The truth is, if we really, really liked something, popularity isn’t the thing that would keep us from using a name.
I think overall this is a good list given the couple’s preferences. I think Colt (and most names that end in T) would have a similar issue to West. Instead of being pronounced/mispronounced ‘Wes Testes’ it could be ‘Cole Testes.’ If it were me, I would probably try to avoid the possibility of the name creating the sound ‘Testes.’
Swistle hit on most of the things I was thinking while reading.
Bestest without the B…so basically just Estest? Putting a consonant sound in there really changes things… West Estest vs. West Bestest. I’m assuming its the first.
It also doesn’t make sense to me to bank on people pronouncing your last name wrong in order to make it work with the first name? Will you just never correct people to avoid them noticing the rhyme?
Also had the same thought as Swistle that West Estest cannot be accurately compared to something like Jack Acker. It seems to me a more accurate comparison would be if someone was named Jack Ackack.
Suggestions: Whit, Wells, Arwen
I told my husband that it didn’t even make sense to discuss the mispronunciation, and that it made the name sound even worse. It drives me crazy and I always correct people when they mispronounce it, but I think he’s just so used to it that he doesn’t even bother acknowledging it anymore. I guess after 30-something years, it’s not worth the trouble.
If you’re determined to keep the name West, definitely make it a nick name for Weston or Westley. When I say West Bestest quickly (without the B) all I can hear is “asbestos.”
Ditto for me and for my girlfriend on the asbestos thing. Westbestos.
I also know a guy named West (totally cool name), and people always think his name is Wes as in Wesley (somewhat less cool name). So the ability to dodge that problem might be another consolation prize for scrapping the name and going with your second choice.
Although I love the name West, I’ve got to agre that it just doesn’t work with your surname :( love the suggestion of Brooks!
I know, me too! Now that West is gone, time to move it from the secret backburner list to the new list!
Ugh, I hate to, but I also don’t think it’s a good name to stick on a kid. Since you don’t like Weston (and pressumably Westley,) I’ll suggest a few others. Although, I agree 100% with Gail’s comment above in order to gain some perspective. If you just mentally move the name West to your “Not Going to Happen” list, that will free you up to endless possibilities. You won’t be doing yourself any favors by comparing every other name in the world to West.
Holden
Gunner
Rider
Colter
Rook
Hudson
Judson (Judd)
Jedd
Thatcher
Scout
Best of luck!!
I’m so grateful to Swistle for posting my letter, and for the thoughtful response. It’s given me words that I haven’t been able to come up with to explain to myself why I can’t use this name. The triple sound is exactly what I couldn’t put my finger on, and couldn’t explain. My husband already moved on from the name before I’d sent the letter, but I was just desperate to define it so that I could accept it too, and put the name to rest for us. I knew that this name was off the table for us, but I just couldn’t let it go without being able to define it for myself. My feeling all along was, “I could never do this to a child.” I’m sure that we’ll find something else we love, but we (or I, rather) needed to get past this one first. It’s not like we really needed more reasons to cross this one off, because we sure have plenty, so I really appreciate those who have given other name suggestions. Some of these names are on my revisit list, so it’s nice to see them suggested here, too.
I literally have a list of names that don’t work with my married surname (which starts with an S and is an adjective). It’s in Excel. These are names I love and would recommend for anyone else but just can’t use. Keep West there and perhaps you can suggest it to someone else!
Also, I grew up in West Texas (Midland, not the town “West” Texas) so that’s all I hear when I say West &stes.
What about North? I know a guy named North. It is similar but not an issue with your last name.
The best cowboy name is Clyde. It’s got everything going for it. Cowboy, unused, hard K sound. LOVE IT.
Ooh, Clyde is great. Also if A.’s surname is what I’m pretty sure it is, I think Clyde really goes well! Sounds like an old western movie star.
Also kind of digging Clive! I like the way it flows into the surname a little better than Clyde. Both great names.
I love the name West, but agree that it simply doesn’t work with your last name. Since West has been on my own short list I thought I’d mention some others I feel have a similar style.
Rome (or Roam?)
Stone
Ridge
Brooks
Clark
River
Best of luck to you!
I agree with Swistle on this one. It’s a shame, West is a great name.
But, cowboy names! So fun! I love the suggestion of Whit or Wells. How about Tripp? Or Bo? Maybe Cy? Or Samson?
Best of luck to you! Please keep us posted on your little cowboy!
Wells reminds me of a family of famous college lacrosse players, all with pretty unique names.
What about Steele? Definitely has that kind of cowboy flare to me.
Oh man, I so want to tell you to use it! We dealt with a similar dilemma with my second daughter and I wrote to Swistle for advise. We wondered if we could do Harriet Harris (often nicknamed Hattie) Half of the commenters thought we should not do it. We did it anyway and I have zero regret. But most people seem to be telling you no, and maybe because it’s not as personal to me I feel inclined to agree. But I would totally get it if you went ahead with it anyway, like we did, but I also loved so many of the other suggestions. Good luck!!
I think it’s a bit different. Harriet Harris only repeats two sounds; West Bestest repeats 3. I don’t know if you’re planning to use a nickname, but Hattie or Hettie don’t have any issues with Harris. West has no nicknames.
But most crucially, Harriet Harris has no bad connotations, no other words created by stringing the names together. If you pick apart A.’s descriptions of her surname, or read Swistle’s letter, it’s clear that there is no B at the beginning or T at the end of the surname. The resulting name, when said quickly, sounds exactly like Wes Testes.
I don’t think anyone wants to have a name that can easily be misheard for testes.
Sorry if this sounds harsh– I don’t mean for it to come across that way. I hope you aren’t still feeling uncertain or insecure about Harriet Harris because it is a great name. I think it’s really spunky and memorable. If I met someone named Harriet Harris, I would not forget her name, in a good way. I think my main issue with it would actually be that it would be hard to come up with a subsequent sibling name as strong and memorable.
Sorry, I totally see that you are using Hattie! I thought I had edited that out before clicking “Post Comment”. Oh well.
The “testes” rhyme is the incorrect pronunciation, but I agree with Kaela that the possibility for that negative association made the existing issue even worse, even though my husband didn’t mind it. I could see myself going with something like Harriet Harris because the sound is only repeated once. It’s so pretty and the sounds seem to work together rather than against each other. It’s that “triple echo” that I couldn’t really express that just makes West unworkable. I’m so glad to finally have it put into words!
I think Hank fits your style and sounds nice with your last name. Just an idea!
I second Hank. It’s totally cowboy and I think it’s a solid, strong name.
Maybe Tucker? Nickname Tuck?
I have to say, that I recently heard someone call a kid Tucker you little *ucker… And I can’t get that out of my head. Which is too bad because I think the name is cute but I just wouldn’t ever want to do that to a kid with all the bullying that goes on nowadays.
The whole tucker/f*cker thing makes tucker an…unappealing name.
Austin may be too popular for your liking, but I think it would sound great.
I agree. Austin is a classic, and also sounds good with the surname.
Adding to the cowboy name suggestions:
Rex
Clint
OK – It seems like you have reconciled that the name West is not one that you can use. Moving on… you need suggestions for names. You like West, Huck, Rock, and Lucky. You prefer not-commonly used Cowboy names. That’s a fun category – Cowboy Names Not in Top 1000. Here are my suggestions.
– Kurt. Can you believe that this name is NOT in the top 1000?! Just over 600 boys were named Curtis in 2012, but Kurt was not in the Top 100. Kurt (B)Estest doesn’t have pronunciation issues. The meaning of “wise counsel” fits what I think you are going for with Rock (strong) and Lucky.
– Laurel. Laurel (B)Estest. Laurel is outside of the Top 1000 for boys, but is just barely used for girls, too. Because of the Laurel and Hardy reference, I think of the name as a boy’s name. Wreaths of laurel were used to crown heroes in ancient Greece and Rome.
– Arrow. Arrow (B)estest. Arrow fits in to your Rock and Lucky category, but manages to be a bit more Cowboy for me.
Now these names are in the top 1000, but I wanted to mention them anyway.
– Felix. Given it means Lucky, I thought it had to be mentioned. Felix (B)Estest is a lot of X/S sounds, but still usable.
– Alden. There’s something about using Neil Armstrong’s middle name that seems so manly and strong. There are several football players out there with this name, too. Alden (B)estest sounds great to my ear.
Good luck!
I like your list. I actually like Hardy, which isn’t what you suggested but is something interesting I hadn’t thought of and one of the reasons I love when people make suggestions: you never know where you’re going to end up. Even better, I’ve briefly considered Alden, so it might be making it’s way back on the shortlist. Thanks. :)
I just had to chime in that I really like the name Arrow! Cool and goes well with your surname!
Further thought: I love the cowboy sound/feel of Tucker, but I’m realizing that because your last name begins with a vowel, one of your biggest challenges is making sure the last letter/sound of the first name finishes that name as opposed to beginning the surname. Does that make sense? Our last name begins with a vowel as well and I had to work to find the sorts of sounds that allowed a natural break between the two names. Once I found it, I used the same letter sound as the middle or last syllable on 3 of the 4 kids’ names! Maybe play with various sounds (even if you don’t love the sample names) until you hit on something that appeals to you.
You’ve gotten some excellent suggestions, but I think Gail’s advice to set this aside and open up your creativity is spot-on. I’m also pregnant and due in late May, and my hubby and I have not discussed names at all yet. There’s lots of time. You my stumble across something perfect when you’re least expecting it! Another exercise that you might enjoy is looking through old photos of trips you’ve taken with your husband or remebering other great experiences you’ve had together, which might offer inspiration.
We didn’t discuss names at all until we were three quarters of the way through last time, so I’m with you on there being plenty of time. This time around, we’ve discussed one and tossed a couple of others out there at random. I don’t think we’ll get down to the serious discussion for another couple of months – and by “serious discussion” I mean a name gets either a “maybe” or a “no” until we happen to get to a mutual “yes.” But for whatever reason, this one was just eating at me and I couldn’t get beyond it in my head. My husband just shrugged it off and moved on, but I didn’t feel like I could get out from under the weight of it. I feel like this discussion has freed me from that, and now we can just toss them around here and there again until we’re really ready to decide. The possibilities seem endless and fun again, and that had disappeared. I’m really grateful for the response and all of the comments. Best wishes on your May baby!
Since you’ve already decided not to use West (good decision, though it’s a great name), I’ll just throw out some suggestions. I love cowboy type names.
Slate
Brady
Gideon
Walker
Gage
Shane
Thad(deus)
Malachi
Leo
Leo is so sweet. And a family name that might work, too. :)
Oh…Leo would be sweet!
Re: popularity, I have noticed, just in my circle of urban parents, that when people aim for “cool but rare”, they often settle on the same thing a lot of other people are settling on for the same reason. Ie, parents naming their kid Dashiell and calling him Dash. Nobody thinks there will be another little Dash at the park, and yet I think it actually happens MORE than if you name your kid John or Edward, do you know what I mean? I have also noticed that there’s a special snag when parents give the kid a “formal” version of a name they really are only choosing to get a cool nickname – because everyone else is subject to the same cultural forces and doing the same thing. (So many Coltons who are only called Colt, etc.)
I know a young Wallace who goes by Ace – might something like that be an option? Wallace “Ace” &stes? (I actually find that to be a pretty awesome name, now that I’ve said it out loud.)
That’s funny…that rhymes with our first kid’s name, which I think is pretty awesome myself. Ha ha! With all of the variations and nicknames and sound-alikes, his name is somewhat popular and gaining, and we’re okay with that. We like to take popularity into consideration, but we don’t expect that we’re going to be so cool and unique that we’ll be the only ones using a name. We are so not either of those! I like to use popularity as a starting point and work from there.
I have a birth certificate “formal” name, but have gone by my given-at-birth nickname my entire life. Some people grow up enjoying having the options that a formal name can bring, but I’ve always found it to be a hassle and would rather just have had my nickname on my birth certificate. (The one benefit is that I always know when someone doesn’t know me personally!) That being my personal perspective, I just tend to prefer shorter names that may also seem like nicknames to some people. But I gave my kid one of the most popular names of all time as a middle name, so if he ends up hating his first name, maybe he still has an option. I can’t predict how he’s going to feel about his name, just like my mom couldn’t predict how I’d feel about mine. All I can do is name him with love and hope that it works out.
I don’t think I need to go into reasons as to why West doesn’t work, there has been 44 previous replies discussing. So let’s have fun and find some new names that you love!
A few new suggestions:
Whittaker. LOVE this name for you guys. Still gives you the “W” at the beginning. Has a “cowboy”ish feel to it. Isn’t very common at all. Could potentially lend itself to several nicknames. Whittaker Bestest. Love it. If you like Leo as a family name you could use that as a middle name? Whittaker Leo Bestest. SWOONING.
Wells. This is the name we are using if we have another boy. Love it so much. Very distinguished and masculine. Once again, not very common. Still gives you the “W” at the beginning. Wells Bestest.
Samson. Very cowboy. Love this as well.
A couple people suggested Duke. I think that is very fun and spunky and cute. I can see this name on a kid, teen or adult. Would be a good choice.
I was going to suggest Rex but once I said it with your last name, it becomes a tongue-twister as well.
Good luck! I think you have a ton of really great possibilities and a lot of really great suggestions. It is good that you are open to different naming styles rather than being stuck on just one. I know how difficult this situation can be as two of our favourite names we had to throw out because of issues with our last name but it is what it is and now we have two kiddos and I love their names and so happy that we chose them.
I hope this isn’t too forward, but I love you, Kelsey! Ha ha! I am swooning at your suggestions, too!
Hehe Thanks!
Another one I thought of would be Guthrie. Feels kind of rugged and masculine. Super cute nn Gus (doesn’t sound super with your last name, but given it’s a nn and the official name sounds just fine with your last I think it could work).
Guthrie also makes me think of Maguire. Not sure if that is your style (feels kind of…hmm, can’t quite put my finger on it. More distinguished maybe??) anyways, I think Maguire is nice too. You could use the nn Mac or could even swing Gus if you wanted.
Cow boyish names also make me think of Sawyer and Finn. But I feel both are becoming so popular and unisex, I would personally stay away from them, but that’s just me.
Good luck again!
These have all been suggested, but how about Rex, Shane, or Wyatt? Dane could work, too.
Ideas to second: Cash (just don’t do as a nn for Cassius or your right back in the same boat), Hank
Name ideas to add: Winston with nn Win, Zeke
Ripley, nn’d Rip?
I like Jasper, Knox, Harrison, Wyatt, Lawson, and Doyle.
Here are some that your description of your style made me think of :)
Luther
Guthrie
Clyde
Clive
Brody
Abel
Winslow
Whitman or Whitakker
North
Alder
Anderson or Anders
Garrison
Henderson
Fletcher
Landon
Landis
Lander
Wilder
Roscoe
Mack
Walker
Dodge
Jericho
Judd
Good luck!
We have a friend with a boy named Roan; that’s cute and unusual and cowboyish to my ear. I also love Raylan… Raylan Whittaker Bestest. Love!
Do you like Blaze at all? It sounds cowboy to me, one syllable and is super cool.
I love Cole as a cute cowboy name!
I thought of Cole too. I love that name!
I know a young guy named Steele and another named Amos. I think they’re super cool cowboy style names too!
What about Bale, Blaine or Jennings?
@Kelsey D
I love Whittaker Leo! Great suggestion.
I don’t really mind the repeating sounds. But I don’t like your last name with a noun first name. It’s like the most west of all. The westest.
Can’t wait to hear what you pick!
Our surname isn’t really a superlative, it just sounds like one. :)
Would Luke be too common? It is such a solid name!
Some ideas (apologies for repeats):
Thayer
Cody
Jace
Chase
Reid
Wyatt
Tyler
Caleb
Foster
Zane
Gray
Travis
Ward
Wylie
Hollis
Wylie (b)Estest sounds good!
Luke has always been one of my favorite boy names (and I am not at all fazed by it being in the top 40), but alas, it is the name of a nephew.
Reading through the suggestions and pairing them with your last name, I think those sounding in “n” sound particularly good with hard consonants like “t” and “d” also working really well. It really is a tough last name to work with, but there are some great suggestions here and I’m sure you’ll find one that feels wonderfully right.
Not all of these are ideal with your surname, but here are a few others (sorry if I’m repeating any):
Clifton (Clif)
Pierce
Magnus
Reed
Buck
Jake
Holt
Dane
Scott
Winfield
Hatt
Trey
Waite
Kurt
James
Benfield
Gibran
Patrick (Trick)
For some reason, I keep coming back to the perfectly common name of Jason with Bestes.
Loving Whittaker!! And what about Arlo?
Ah I can’t believe I didn’t think of Arlo! Another great suggestion, love this name.
More cowboy names:
Waylan bEstest
Winchester bEstest (est in the middle, call him Winch or Win or Chester? Too much ester?)
Knoxville bEstest
Memphis bEstest (too lispy? ssss)
Dallas bEstest (too much ess?)
Jasper bEstest
Virgil bEstest
Hitch bEstest
Earl bEstest
Whitfield bEstest (Whit might run into testes issue)
I really feel for you! I’m due at the very beginning of May (with a girl) and the name I fell in love with had unfortunate initials – G.A.S. – which we decided we just couldn’t do on purpose. Since the middle name is a set family name, we are back to the drawing board.
Anyway, there are some really great suggestions above, but I’ll add my two cents with a few boy names…maybe one will jump out at you:
– McCoy
– Wynn
– Sullivan
– Reid
– Callum
– Broderick
– Monroe
– Maguire
Best of luck!
I know a boy with those initials and he thinks he has the best name and initials!! Haha
Oh, I am loving this post and all of the great name suggestions!
Hank
Arlo
Clive
Clyde
Buck
Ace
Cash
Rex
Reg
Wyatt
Leo
Sonny
These are all repeats, but they are my favourites and they are straight off my list (I’m due in September) so of course they are fabulous. :) They flow well with your last name, too. I agree with previous posters that you might want to avoid noun names. Are you concerned with matching this baby’s name with his brother’s?
You’re totally right, by the way, when you say that all we can do is name our babies with love. It’s amazing how it all works out, really. I spend hours and hours and hours obsessing over baby names while many of my friends name their children AFTER their born following a quick discussion. That HORRIFIES me! But you know what? Five years later at the playground you can’t tell the difference between little slavishly named Abigail and the off-handedly named Adelaide!! It’s bewildering but true. My brother-in-law changed my niece’s name from Clare to Natasha on his way to fill out the paperwork! That would be grounds for divorce or murder in my book but my sister thought that Natasha was a great name and just went with it!! Mind-boggling.
The other thing that I’ve noticed is that people worry and worry about people ‘suiting’ their names yet I’ve never met any child or adult that I don’t think suits their name! I know children named Gravity, Gamble, several Ravens, Axis, Atom, Rhythm, Phoenix, Otis, and even a blonde-haired Gong-Gong and they are all perfectly named!
I have to stop and remind myself that the vast majority of names are just fine. Taste varies widely. I cringe at the idea of Mason and Logan but I am pretty sure that far more people cringe at the idea of Rupert and Frank, which I find superb! Somehow everything (almost) always works out beautifully in the end.
I love this comment. :) You’re so right that whether you work at it or it just comes out of the ether, everyone ends up with a name just the same, and more often than not, it’s a name that just fits. Naming is a bit magical that way, I think.
I tend to think of names the way I think of art: there’s plenty of room in the world for Rembrandts AND Picassos, and while I may not understand or like every piece, there is most likely someone else who does, and that is the real beauty of it all.
To answer your question, I’m not concerned about matching his brother’s name. I think we have a pretty specific style, so we’ll most likely land upon something that is similar anyway. (Incidentally, he does have a “noun name,” or what I call a “word name,” so I don’t think that will happen this time.)
So many great name suggestions for you here! I don’t have anything to add but I have found this whole discussion most interesting and I do really hope for an update in May or June after the little guy makes his appearance. I would love to know what you finally decide!
I love the way you’ve described how this helped clarify what you felt already. I’m exactly the same kind of person! All the best finding a great name. I love Whittaker Leo! If I had a boy named that, I would say it all day. :)
Well, I don’t what says ‘cowboy’ or ‘wild west’ better than Marshall. But if you’re going for a one syllable wonder, how about Abe? Abe Betest?
Best wishes on naming your little hombre!
I haven’t read through all of the comments but the first name that popped up in my head as an alternative to West is Hutch. My friends named their son Hutch and it sounds like the perfect “cowboy” name for you with no possible nickname. Hutch Bestest sounds fantastic! Consider it?
Oh, and Macoy with nickname Mac or just Macoy.
Oh, also, I know someone who named their boy Hatcher (like Sam Hatcher). Cute!
Walt
Ned
Jesse
Jed
Wyatt
Clint
These all sound cowboy to me but I’m not American so I’m not entirely sure. Cool category.
I like most of the suggestions so far and i don’t really have anything to add but i just wanted to sympathize. We weren’t able to use our favorite boy’s name because it sort of sounds like a derogatory slang when paired with our last name. Now my sister says she wants to use it which should make me happy but I’m just jealous instead. So anyway i feel for you! Best of luck in your search!
The first name that came to mind was Beck. It’s similar to West in that it is also short, uncommon, and a noun. There is also no nickname potential plus it’s easy to spell and pronounce.
I love either Chord or Dominic (nickname Doc) with you last name. Both have that strong western masculine sound to me. Good luck with your naming adventure!
Hi. A girl I work with this morning named her little boy Holt and I immediately thought of you. It gives a very similar feeling to West. Holt Leo Bestest. So Cute! (sorry if someone mentioned this already, didn’t go back up and reread the comments)
Also, not sure if you saw one of my previous posts, hidden as a reply to someone else’s comment, but I also really like Guthrie and Maguire for you. Could get out the nn Gus or Mac.
Good luck and keep us all posted! Hope you guys have found a name that you love!!