Jessica writes:
My husband and I are expecting a baby girl in less than 3 months, and we are having a very difficult time in deciding on an appropriate name for future brother Stanton (who is 3 years old). Stanton is a family name, and we believe it to be an old English name rich in tradition and strength. What girl’s name would be a suitable match for such a strong name?
Our last name is Czajkowski (pronounced Cha-cow-ski) and I wonder if I should just ignore the flow of a name with this long last name. We have gone through so many girl’s names at this point such as…
Alexis
Paige
laine
Lauren
Caroline
Greer
Adelaide
Bronwen
JaneThe following names are on our current list, but we welcome more ideas…
Colette
Alexandra
Catherine
Kendall
Constance
Jacqueline
Brooke
Sloane
VictoriaThe middle name will be London, which is another family name. My husband’s favorite is Catherine London but is this name too popular? I don’t want our child to be one of many in a classroom.
I welcome any advice and direction please. I look forward to reading all comments!
Her husband writes:
My wife emailed you concerning the birth of our child in November. I wanted to email you via her email account so that you would know that we are emailing you concerning the same issue. However this email, this is from the male perspective.
My son’s name is Stanton Czajkowski (pronounced Cha-cow-ski) and we are expecting a sibling of unknown sex this November. We love traditional yet uncommon names yet are having a difficult time with this baby’s name. If it is a boy we have decided on Reid. We love the strength and tradition with this name, yet it almost feels slightly preppy which is fine. Unfortunately coming up with a middle name has been difficult. We have discussed the following names but rejected them as we just couldn’t agree:
Rejected names:
Maxwell
Joseph
Sebastian
Alexander (already taken)
Spencer
William
Matthew
Anderson
Jennings
ChristopherPotential middle names:
Walker
PatrickI would think we would need a 3-4 syllable middle name to work with Stanton Benedict Czajkowski’s name. Am I correct on this.? Should the names flow? What truly flows with Reid Czajkowsk?
As for girls, this decision has been the absolute worst for us. What names would be a suitable match for Stanton yet not very common. We love how unique yet traditional the name Stanton is but we can’t seem to find this with a girl’s name. We have discussed the following names (plus many more , I must admit):
Rejected names:
Charlotte (too common)
Alexandra(too common)
Constance ( hate the nickname Connie)
Jacqueline (difficult to say with our last name)
Victoria (nice but common)
Arden ( only my wife likes this one)
Sloane (two s names might be difficult)
Kendall
Elizabeth (name has been taken)Accepted names:
Catherine
Brooke
Ann LondonIf we didn’t go with Ann London as a first name, the child’s middle name would be London. My wife is hesitant to use Catherine (nickname could be Kit) because she thinks it is too common. Is this true? I realize that it is timeless, but I don’t want our daughter to be one of many in a classroom. What other suggestions might you have that would be a good sibling match for Stanton? No one seems to have heard of the name Stanton ( a family name) so I get blank stares when I ask this question.
Thank you for listening to the male perspective in our situation. I look forward to your response, as we could certainly use your help!
and
My wife just informed me that she wrote in her email that we were having a girl. I should clarify this, as we do not know the sex of the baby. She feels that it will be a girl and continues to focus on the girls name as it continues to be a debate between us. As for the baby being a boy, this is completely possible so we continue to discuss a middle name for Reid.
I apologize for any confusion, but she truly feels this baby will be a girl. I , however, strongly feel we should be prepared either way.
Constance is my favorite. You don’t need to use the nickname Connie: there is a Constance in my family who goes by Consie. The name Constance has enough backbone to stand with Stanton, and it meets your preference for traditional yet unusual. My one hesitation is whether it is too tongue-tangley with the surname. Constance Cha-cow-ski.
The name Catherine is not currently at “many in a classroom” levels of popularity. According to the Social Security Administration, in 2011 there were 7,397 new baby girls named Katherine, Catherine, and Kathryn. That translates to .3852% of baby girls born that year—or about 1 baby girl with that name out of every 260 baby girls. If a classroom has an average of 15 girls, there will be an average of 1 girl named Katharine/Catherine/Kathryn per 17 classrooms. Statistics can’t tell us the whole story (name popularity varies by region, and flukes happen constantly), but they can help us assess the risk. The risk of two Catherines in a classroom is very low. Catherine London Czajkowski seems like a great choice to me, and works well with both Stanton and with a possible future Reid.
Many of the other names on your lists also seem like good choices. Adelaide, Bronwen, Sloane, and Ann London stand out to me. But if your only concern with Catherine is its popularity, that’s my first choice of all the possibilities.
I don’t think you need to match Reid’s entire first/middle to Stanton’s, though I agree it’s nice if it works out that way, and that I too would be aiming for something similar in overall weight and length.
What was it that led you to the middle name Benedict? Was it a family name, or were you looking for a saint name, or was it something else? Here are some possibilities to consider:
Abelard
Aloysius
Archibald
Augustus
Bartholomew
Beauregard
Cornelius
Ferdinand
Frederick
Gulliver
Leonardo
Montgomery
Sterling
Sullivan
Sylvester
Theodore
Xavier
If nothing seems right, I suggest tearing up the family tree looking for a good family name/surname (especially from Jessica’s side, if the children already have their father’s surname), so that each boy has one.
Catherine isn’t common at all now. I’d love to see a little Catherine/Kit among all the Ella/Bella/Bailey/Kayley names. Strong & timeless, you really can’t go wrong. I also like Constance and agree you don’t have to use a nickname for it. I trust Stanton isn’t called Stan? So, why would Constance have to be Connie? I think all the names on your list are pretty good, with Catherine being my favorite. My least favorite is Ann London-it just seems a bit much as a double first name, particularly with your last name. Ann as first with London as middle would be nice though.
Middle names for Reid, Swistle’s suggestion of Augustus was inspired! Reid Augustus and Stanton Benedict, I love this!
Catherine London is lovely, and I never hear Catherine on babies anymore, just the people I grew up with. And Kit is adorable and even less used! My vote is strongly for Catherine London! CC initials are just fun too. For Reid I think Sullivan is my favorite from the list Swistle gave and Walker is my favorite out of your two potentials. Reid Walker and Stanton Benedict seem to work as siblings without developing an obvious trend that you’ll have to continue in future boys. I don’t think you need to be dead set on finding a match, as long as you don’t name your second son Reid Jaxxson or something I think there are many ways for sibling names to feel right together. Good luck!
Constance definitely need not be Connie. But if you wanted to use a nickname, there’s also Tansy (too soundalike with Stanton?) or Coco.
While I like Constance I think it sounds very similar to Stanton and should be avoided.
Catherine’s nice and I would think the nickname Kit would be pretty uncommon.
Catherine is great! I immediately thought of Eliza.
I know someone named Julia with the same last name as you and I think Julia is a beautiful name. I just don’t know if Julia London is too much ‘L’. Stanton and Julia sound good together though.
A few suggestions
Louisa – Stanton and Lou!
Beatrice
Clementine
Elspeth
Poppy – Poppy Czajkowski! What a cool name!
Willa
Florence
I would say Constance is a little too close to Stanton, but I think CC initials would be pretty cool!
For the boy’s middle I like Reid Patrick.
For the girl’s first name I think any of your three final contenders would work, but I lean toward Brooke.
I want to say use London as the first name as it feels like it goes well with Stanton. But I can see two issues with that: it might be too close to Stanton, and people might not know that London is a girl. (Not sure what the stats say on that.) But I like it anyway. I think Catherine would be great. I also love Bronwen and Adelaide. I also think Jacqueline nn Jacqui flows really well with the last name.
Reid Montgomery is perfect!
My windfall, beautiful, apart aunt Constance was Tansy which I think would be super cute for a child.
Oy! Typing too fast. Aunt Tansy was wonderful and smart, despite what my iPad thinks I meant!
Some classic (but not too popular) names for a little lady:
Beatrice
Genevieve
Diana
Rowena
Muriel
Josephine
Cornelia
Meridith
Rosemary
Frederica
Bianca
Iris
And a middle name for Reid:
Mortimer
Irving
Gordon
Norman
Sabastian
Edgar
Malcolm
Carlyle
You’ve got good taste! Best wishes to you all; pleas keep us up to date with what you choose!
I met a Dorothy today and think it would be a great match :)
Is Alexander definitely out? Even if someone has used it as a first name doesn’t mean you can’t use it for a middle. Reid Alexander would be awesome.
Sister names for Stanton and Reid:
Kennedy
Blair
Bronte
Emery
Penelope
From your list I like Brooke. Could you use London as the first name or is it too close to Stanton? I personally wouldn’t choose Catherine London as it reminds me of the Duchess of Cambridge.
Good luck.
I like the name Catherine with the nn Kit. It seems to pair well with Stanton. I also like Colette. It softens the last name and has a good flow.
ConSTANce and STANton seems a bit off to me. I would also avoid Elizabeth, because Elizabeth Cady Stanton is a historical figure.
I would suggest Claudia. Stanton and Claudia. Claudia Chacowski sounds great!
Ooooh, LOVE Stanton Benedict!!
Although Catherine is a perfectly fine name, I don’t like it half as much as Stanton Benedict!
For a girl, how about: Clemence (or Clemency).
Clemence London Cha-cow-ski is gorgeous!
Or maybe Imogen, Carmen or Portia.
And some middle names for Reid:
Thaddeus
Ambrose/Ambrosius
Lucius
Barnabas
Nicholson
Broderick
And just a remark: most of your favorite names have a ‘k’ sound in them! Maybe this is something you like…
I think Catherine and Reid go wonderfully together with Stanton. I get a bit of an upper class vibe from all the names – Stanton IV for instance, and yes, just a tad preppy.
Catherine is classic and I think not used enough these days with -AY- names and creative spellings having had their time in the sun for the past years. Classic old-school names are making a comeback, but it seems people tend to focus on those that were really gone for a while rather than say the Catherine, Mary, and Alice’s of this world.
My verdict- Catherine London is awesome. Reid Walker is great too.
Some ideas (sorry for repeats):
Florence
Cordelia
Leonora
Matilda
Adeline
For boys,
Reid Lionel
Reid Theodore
Reid Seymour
Reid Alistair
Reid Gregory
I have a Katharine and I agree that if she’s called by her full name (as ours is) or by Kit it is not a common name.
Thank you all so much for your comments. I have just learned that Reid is becoming very popular, so I am asking for more feedback about classic yet preppy names. Any Ideas?
We continue to question Catherine or Ann London, as we do love the names but it does not feel right yet. Names with C, K or S seem to work best with our last name. Again, any ideas?
Love Stanton! I also like Reid & Ann London. I love Kit as a stand alone name.
Other ideas:
Audrey
Mercy
Blythe
Nora
Ella
Corinne
Lydia
Sheridan
Veronica
Molly
Wynne
Warren
William
Vaughn
Graham
Harrison
Royce
Wade
Roarke
Clark
I love Sheridan for a girl as well. Or perhaps even Bronte? I like the preppy yet classic names. I am having difficulty coming up with classic yet preppy names that will grow with the girl. Any other ideas?
As for boys, I do love Reid but it seems to becoming popular. What are your thoughts on the following:
Walker
Taft
Holden
Mitchell
Richmond
Redmond
All ideas are welcome!
I’m not sure Reid is going to be so super popular. If you love a name, use it, regardless of what others do.
Some other R names:
Rhys
Riordan
Rafferty
Rayner
Ridley
Risby
Rowden
Ruben
and C names for girls:
Cassidy
Carys
Ceridwen
Clara or Clary
Cosima
Carlotta, Lottie?
Calla
Cadence
You have lots of great ideas here! My favourite from your girl’s list is Greer! I think it sounds super cool with Stanton. I also like the suggestion of Blythe! For a boys name (if you dont go eith Reid), I love the suggestions of Harrison and Graham, and really like your choice of Mitchell. For a middle name for Reid, I like Maxwell a lot, and also Stirling. good luck!
Are you in the United States, or elsewhere? Wondering because of some of your comments about popularity. In the U.S., Reid is definitely not popular–it’s #296 on the Social Security list, which is quite low–and I don’t think it’s likely to get hugely popular since it’s hovered there or below for many decades. Similarly, Catherine, while higher, is not especially high either, and I agree with others that if you’re using the full form or Kit, you’re good to go on the popularity front. I suspect this may be different if you’re in, say, the UK, however (especially right now!)
It also depends on how you’re defining “popular,” too. Are you just concerned about another child in class having the name? In that case, I’d put names like Alexandra back in the running; it’s sliding in popularity and already low enough that you won’t know a million of them (we have a child under a year and know exactly one, whereas we know five Maxes, six Ella or Eleanors, four Sams, etc.–though even those children are from a variety of social circles and few are in the same programs/classes). And our son actually has a very uncommon name (by Social Security standards–in the mid-300s) but we know four of them (though happily only one uses the same nickname, and again, none are in the same programs or regular friend circles). So you can’t always control it!
Or do you want a name that, like your son’s name, most people won’t have encountered at all? In that case, you’ll want to skip much farther down the popularity list and look to some of the really unusual suggestions from other posters.
Thank you so much for your comments. We continue to debate on the names. Perhaps Catherine, although it goes well with our last names, isn’t the best choice. We love our son’s name “Stanton” because it is a strong yet unique name. Catherine is lovely but is not unique at all in this requirement. What name does fulfill this requirement? Perhaps I have just heard too many Kates. Caitlyns etc and have become immune to the name as a result. I do love the name as it is a classic but are there other options for us?
I welcome all comments please!
I suggest the names Vivian or Naomi for a girl. A middle name for Reid i suggest Carter.
I like these for girls:
Avery
Arden
Lainie
Lilian
Boys:
Reid
Howard
Francis