Amie writes:
We are expecting our 3rd (and last) boy the beginning of May. My husband has 3 names he likes and rejects everything else I suggest, his reasons being they remind him of something negative. ( sounds like a person on the FBI most wanted, or a person he once knew ) I am out of ideas and I think I may just name him myself, although I would like my husband to like the name.
My name is Amie and my husband is Rob, our last name is 10 letters and sounds like Guyswhite. Our boys are Landon Martin (mn after my dad) and Nolan Henry. (mn after my father in law and my G-grandfather)
I like names that are not really popular or trendy and don’t want to use a nickname. I am even open to something a little different as long it will go with my boys names.
We have never had a list of girl names. Some of the names we liked with the first two and rejected.
Bennett
Garrett
William
Griffin
Elliot
Brennan (my cousin’s name)
Beckett (My favorite name with Nolan, it was between these two until after he was born )Names I have suggested this time,
Benson (my first choice, husbands has co worker with this name and he dislikes it)
Duncan (I have this at the top of my list, my husband says it reminds him of Dunkin Donuts)
Holden (bottom of my list)
Vaughn (will this sound like part of our surname?)
Declan (husband dislikes)
Corben
Carney (my mom’s maiden name, if I had a girl I would have used my mom’s middle name Marie)
Davis (only name we agree on)
Colman (husband says like the camping lantern)
Dalton (feels western)
Van (this has been my dad’s suggestion for each of the boys, is this too short?)
Marshall (this is the name my boys want to name their brother, not my favorite)Names that are unusable/popular, Owen, Ethan, Colin, Conner, Colton,
My husbands list, (he likes more common names that he has heard before)
Gavin (I don’t like this with our last name)
Carson (it is getting popular here, 2 at school right now)
Davis (only name we agree on)The middle names being considered,
Patrick (both grandmother’s and my middle name)
Carney (mom’s middle name)
James (my dad, already used his mn for Landon)Another middle name we could use is my grandfather’s name, Gerard Stephen (my mom’s dad, only person named for him is my uncle who is a junior) All the other family names from that side are not really my style, Reginald, Francis (maybe, my G-grandmother was Frances) James and Raymond.
I know we seem to be stuck in the “en” names, but are open to anything. We are really hoping to find a name that feels as good as our boys names, strong, likeable and flow well with our last name.
I hope you and your readers can give us some help.
The first thing I noticed is that the name Nolan contains five of the six letters of Landon, and both names contain -lan-. For a third boy, then, I would be torn between wanting to keep some letters in common for his name as well, and wanting to bring in completely different sounds to avoid confusion. When I considered the name Holden, though, which is more along the lines of the former way (the O, the L, the D, the N), I realized I’d be more inclined to the latter plan: Landon, Nolan, and Holden makes me start scrambling up the names and also forgetting who’s who.
Davis seems like an excellent choice to me. It ties in with the other two names (D-sound as in Landon; five letters as in Nolan; two syllables as in both Landon and Nolan) without adding a third matched ending or too many matching sounds—and it sounds like it’s no small thing that it’s a name the two of you agree on. I find it extremely fun to think of his brothers choosing his name, so if you don’t actively dislike the name Marshall, I think Davis Marshall Guyswhite is a wonderful name and a great whole-family effort. If you’d rather stick with a family middle name, I would definitely lean toward Patrick or Carney or Gerard (or Stephen, but I’m less fond of the way Davis Stephen blends together), since one of your dad’s names has already been used.
Davis also reminds me of Harris, but if he ever went by Harry I wonder if it sounds like “Hairy guys” with your surname.
I would also want to reconsider Beckett, since it was so close to being chosen last time. Beckett Patrick feels a little too crackling with all those -ck- and -t- sounds, and Beckett Carney feels a little too unusual, but Beckett James Guyswhite seems perfect—except it does still bother me to honor the same person a second time, so I think my top choice would be Beckett Stephen, or maybe Beckett Gerard.
Would your husband like Benton any better than Benson? Benton Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Benton. This combination does match the endings, but I think that if that’s the ending you tend to be drawn to, there’s something to be said for GOING for it. And the endings feel more like -don, -lan, and -ton than like -on, -an, and -on, anyway. My favorite would be Benton Marshall, but I also like Benton Patrick and Benton Gerard.
Vaughn and Van do always sound like part of the surname to me, but I think that’s because I’ve never known a Vaughn or Van. If I did know one, I suspect that issue would soon vanish. Still, I might be more inclined to use Vince or Vance: I haven’t known anyone with those names, either, and yet they feel more first-name-like.
Van seems a little short to me, not so much because of the number of letters but because of a combination of that issue with two other issues: the way it can sound like part of a surname, and the way it can look/sound like a type of vehicle and/or a short form of the word minivan. Something about all those things combined make it seem like part of a name, or a nickname for another name, or an abbreviation, or a startling noun name (“Car”). Again, I think this could be entirely because I haven’t known anyone named Van: it shouldn’t be much different than Dan or Jan.
Looking at your husband’s list, the name Gavin makes me think of these possibilities to consider (a few of which contain Van, if that increases their appeal):
Brogan Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Brogan (probably too similar)
Calvin Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Calvin
Darwin Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Darwin
Devan Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Devan
Donovan Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Donovan
Keegan Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Keegan
Sullivan Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Sullivan
Vance Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Vance
The name Carson makes me think of these possibilities:
Anderson Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Anderson
Bryson Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Bryson
Carter Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Carter
Cason Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Cason
Coleson Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Coleson (maybe too similar)
Hudson Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Hudson
Jameson Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Jameson (incorporates James)
Lawson Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Lawson (probably too similar)
Weston Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Weston
Wilson Guyswhite; Landon, Nolan, and Wilson
I’d suggest Greyson and Garrison, because I thought of them with both Gavin and Carson, but I suspect they have the same issue as Gavin Guyswhite.
Name update! Amie writes:
Just wanted to update everyone on the birth of our baby boy. We sure appreciated all the wonderful suggestions we received. We had narrowed the list down to 2 names,the one we both agreed on was Davis and the other was Walker. Davis Gerard was born on May 8th. weighing 7 lbs 10oz.
I like the suggestion of Calvin. It keeps your ending sound theme but in a different spelling, so no repeats. Other than that one, I’d go with Davis since you and Hubby both like it.
You are channeling the names from my Western hometown! I know a Landon (nn Lando) and a Nolan. For me the name that stuck out from Swistle’s suggestions is Donovan (nn D or Van) because I know one! And I think he’s friends with Lando. These names all have strong masculine maverick athlete connotations for me. I love Donovan as a sibling name for your boys.
Donovan stood out to me right away too! I think it sounds great with the other two names.
I like the way Donovan sounds with the other names, but Landon Donovan is a well-known US soccer player – just so you’re aware of that connection! :)
I know a Vaughn and I think this would actually be one of my top picks for you. The number of letters seems to flow with the other boys: Landon, Nolan, and Vaughn. It still gives it a separate sound (I agree with swistle, if you use a name like Holden, the names all just flow into one another), plus Vaughn doesn’t automatically default into a nickname situation. I also think Vaughn pairs nicely with almost all of your potential nicknames – Vaughn James or Vaughn Patrick would me my top two, but really does pair well with them all.
Marshall – I actually really like this name, it is cute, and pairs well with the boy names. Plus, kinda neat that the boys picked a name for their youngest brother :) This would probably be my first pick, but obviously both you and your husband need to like it as well.
Jameson is pretty cute, and once again, gives the same feeling as the other two boy names. Love that it ties in James as well. I also like that this still gives you an ‘n’ ending just like your other boys but they all still have their own distinct sounding name.
Other names:
What about Orson? It reminds me of Carson, but is less trendy feeling and to me, is much more masculine.
Have you guys considered using Patrick as a first name? Landon, Nolan, and Patrick.
If you like Beckett, what about Bennet?
Vaughn made me think of Hugh. Landon, Nolan, and Hugh.
Pierce. Landon, Nolan, and Pierce. This is actually pretty cute.
Good luck and keep us posted!
I like Hugh with the sibling names. Hugh Marshall. Nice. :)
I agree with Davis of the names you have suggested.
Love the Donovan suggestion with the nn Van.
If you like -on -an -en endings and your list for your second baby originally contained quite a few options with the letter T (Garrett, Beckett, Elliott, Bennett) maybe you would like Preston for the T and the -on ending or Prescott for the double T
What about Carter? Landon, Nolan and Carter.
Landon Carter is the fn/ln of the main character of A Walk to Remember!
I like Graydon, Evan, and Ryland.
Carney reminds me of the slang term ‘carny’ for carnival worker– it has an unsavory image and not one I’d want to put on a little boy. I think I’d be leery of it even as a middle name.
I really like Beckett with your other sons’ names.
I thought the same thing about Carney when I first read it. I know it’s a family name but it doesn’t sound pleasing to me.
I hate to say it, but this was my first reaction too. A carny isn’t really a positive term for the people working the rides either, it just sort of has a seedy vibe when used that way. Which sucks, because I love family name connections!
I thought of the same thing. I think it would be OK in the middle name spot but I wouldn’t use it as a first name.
Vaughn was on our short list too. The only others I remember are Pierce, Grant, and Graham but I’m guessing if you don’t like Gavin because of the way it sounds with your surname, you probably wouldn’t like the G names.
I quite like Davis. I personally would want a different ending sound. Archer or Jasper?
I just came across a new name in my daughter’s swim class, that I think flows nicely with your sibling names – Cademan. Landon, Nolan, and Cademan.
Vaughn is at the top of my boy’s list, so you know I love it (but I’m not sure how it goes with our last name, either). I also really like the suggestion of Pierce!
I know a Caedmon also. Super cute name on a super cute boy. I also knew a Van growing up and I’m almost positive it’s not a nickname for anything. I do live Donovan also.
How about Camden?
Caleb is what jumped to my mind. Shares the “l” sound and also has the a but with a different sound. Landon, Nolan, Caleb.
How about (sorry for any repeats):
Callum
Brody
Brady
Cooper
Everett
Ashton
Asher
Finn
Deacon
Kian/Cian
Isaac
Rhys
Rowan
Beau
Wyatt
Xavier
Cohen
Wesley
Mitchell
Nate
Cason
Roland would have been my first suggestion… but not with Nolan. Bowman is the next.
Landon, Nolan, and Bowman.
Or Denton. Landon, Nolan, and Denton.
Even Dalton. Landon, Nolan, and Dalton.
If you like Coleman, what about Colfax? Landon, Nolan, and Colfax. It still carries the long ‘oh’ sound but is distinctive on its own. It’s six letters, too! This feels like a connected sibset without everyone rhyming.
Best wishes to you and your growing family!!
You can’t go wrong with Davis!
You both like it, it isn’t overly popular, has an updated classic sound and fits perfectly with Landon & Nolan.
My favorite!
I like Vaughn. It was one of my top contenders for a middle name. I think I’d stay away from another 2-syllable name ending in N, but a 1- or 3-syllable one works well. Donovan is good for this reason too, or Sullivan.
Patrick as a first name is also one of my favorites.
If you like Davis, maybe David?
Or:
Ellison
Edison
Carter
Wesley
Agreed re: the carnival worker association for Carney.
I was having serious déjà vu for a minute – I answered your question on babynamewizard so I won’t bother to repeat here. The coincidence was just mind boggling so I had to share! Good luck!
I have a male cousin in the UK called Monroe, which I love and think could work well here. I also thought of Callum for you. And I also really liked the suggestion of Donovan (nn Van).
Monroe is nice but has an oddly immediate feminine feel to me– maybe the Marilyn connection?
Yeah, I can see that. I probably would have felt the same before I knew someone with the name.
Oh, I also thought Xander might work well with Landon and Nolan.
I’ll second Carter, Caleb, Davis, Brady, Wyatt, and Calvin
Not that it’s a common/strong association, but there is a famous soccer player named Landon Donovan, so I might personally steer clear of that name, although I like it and the nn Van.
For some reason I like the name Brock. Landon, Nolan and Brock.
Before I finished reading the whole post, I was going to suggest Van! But I agree with Swistle and comments that it doesn’t seem to be the right name.
I like Swistle’s suggestion of Benton – only because it’s my maiden name so it’s on my list for a future middle name.
Some more suggestions (for you to ponder – not your husband) :)
Ramsey
Asher
Romer
Cosen
I wish you good luck!!
Hí. Have you thought about Kevin? It goes well with Landon and Nolan, yet is just enough different.
My grandmother’s maiden name was Carney. I always thought it would be a great boy’s name!
I had quite the list earlier and I wasn’t finished and somehow it got deleted. I will try to write what I remember but will likely have additional comments as I remember :)
I do so like Davis- so handsome! Also I think Beckett is great with brothers (as would be Bennett))
Some other ideas:
Evander nn Van
Malcolm
Lincoln
Quinlan
Ivan
Griffin
Waylon
Julian
Isaac
Franklin
Harlan
Preston
Ashton
Truman
Cooper
Spencer
Fletcher
Archer
Topher?
My favorite from your list is Davis Patrick. From other suggestions I second Everett and Callum. Personally I’m going to suggest Evan, he seems more complete, than Van, yet has a very close sound. I really like Landon, Nolan, and Evan as brother names too. My second suggestion is Ian, once again a similar sound to Van, but, even though they have the same number of letters, Ian feels more complete to me. Landon, Nolan, and Ian :) I like both Evan Patrick and Ian Patrick as far as middle names go.
I would suggest Ian. Not trendy, no nickname, goes with the brothers. Ian Patrick.
Next choice would be Davis. Davis Marshall. (love all the ways Swistle mentions this working).
My third choice would be Calvin. Calvin Marshall.
Then I’d revisit Beckett.
(I’m a bit confused, because nearly all your choices, and most of the suggestions, seem super trendy to me–though none of them end in “o”.)
I’m always a fan of using the name you agree on, so Davis seems like a front runner to me. I also think if Beckett came close before you both must like it pretty well. And if your husband keeps suggesting Van for each kid, maybe it’s time to use it. So how about:
Davis Carney
Davis James
Davis Patrick
Beckett Gerard
Van Stephen
I forgot about Marshall. Davis Marshall works, too. Or if you use it as a first– Marshall Stephen has a nice ring to it.
Davis is perfect! I would definitely not go with another -n ending. Once it gets to the third kid, it makes it a pattern, and that always feels very contrived to me. Davis sounds classic but isn’t common, and you both agree on it. I’d be inclined to choose Davis Marshall, because they sound so good together. Good luck!
Gavin made me think of Garrett, maybe your husband would like that?
As usual, Swistle’s list covers just about everything else I could think of. Maybe Fletcher, Harrison, Ian, Eamon, Dustin or Colton?
I like Beckett, Griffin, Wyatt, Graham, and Elliot. There is also the name Corwin, which has a similar vibe.
Davis Marshall!
After reading the post and comments I keep going back to the name Duncan,
Duncan Patrick
Duncan Gerard
I don’t think that the Dunkin Donut association would bother me. Is that a chain all over the US?
I also like Davis, Benton and maybe Marshall. I don’t feel that any of these three are overly popular. Personally I wouldn’t use Donovan because of the soccer player. When I read this I understood that she doesn’t want a nick name, the name Van was suggested by her dad as a stand alone name. I like Vaughn and it does have the “N” ending.
You and I seem to have nearly identical taste in boy names, so here are a few of my favorites for you to mull over:
Declan
Isaac
Calvin
Caleb
Ryan
Connor
Charles
Brendan
Joseph
Cole
Bryce
Evan
Cade
Devin
That all being said (or listed), if you and your husband both like Davis and none of the names on this thread inspire you, I think you have your name. Marshall would be an adorable middle name choice, and I also like Patrick or James.
Good luck!
First thing I noticed was the similar letters in Landon and Nolan, and would be wanting to use that for the third boys name, but focusing on the D in Landon. Some ideas:
Landon, Nolan and Donald
Landon, Nolan and Daniel
Landon, Nolan and Dylan
Landon, Nolan and Damon
I also really like the suggestion of Donovan. Damon would be my favourite but I can imagine your husband dismissing it because of Matt Damon.
Dalton from your list would seem to be a really good fit. If it seems too Western, would Dawson be better?
Good luck, and let us know what you choose
From Swistle’s list i like Donovan Keegan Sullivan Jameson and Anderson and I know you said you don’t like nicknames but there are some great ones up for grabs if your son wishes later in life like, Van, Keegs, Sully, James/Jimmy and Anders/Andy.
I will add
Byron, Brenton, Camden/Cameron and Cormac to the list.
Landon, Nolan and Byron
Landon, Nolan and Brenton
Landon, Nolan and Camden/Cameron
Landon, Nolan and Cormac
I also like the suggestions of Damon, Declan, Griffin, Cohen, Callum, Caleb and Ashton
I like Davis for you. You both like it, and it sounds great with the sibset. Landon, Nolan and Davis. I agree with others that have suggested Ian. I think that sounds great as well. Also, I’m not sure if it’s been suggested yet but I’d also like to suggest Blake. It has the “L” sound that ties the names together, but has its own ending. Landon, Nolan and Blake.
What about Ian? That’s an i not an l.
From your list, I love Davis and Beckett! Both sound great with your surname and with Landon and Nolan. There are lots of great suggestions here already and I also wanted to suggest Rory – Rory Guyswhite sounds so versatile to me and I think would work with his brothers’ names really well. It would sound great with Patrick or James as the middle name, or I think your sons’ suggestion of Marshall is really nice (and, full disclosure, I was miffed as a kid that my parents fully ignored my suggestion for my little brother’s name) – Rory Marshall Guyswhite? You have a lot of lovely choices already, so I’m sure it’ll work out well.
Good luck!
As for -en names, I like
Landon, Nolan & Jenson
Landon, Nolan & Sylvan (almost lan)
I also like some more exotic -ian names.
Landon, Nolan & Caspian
Landon, Nolan & Celian (almost lan)
Non-en names that seem fitting I think are
Landon, Nolan & Arlo
Landon, Nolan & Enzo (starts with -en)
Landon, Nolan & Jonah
Landon, Nolan & Jonas
Landon, Nolan & Zane
Good luck!
I’ll suggest 2 names from my son’s class that might work: Benan (could be spelled Bennen) or Bowen.
Hi.
Reading this made me smile. I just had my third boy in Jan and my first two are Nolan and Landon. We went with Wyatt. We’ve always liked the name ( your Beckett it seems).
Our list was very similar to yours and I thought of all the things you mentioned in coming up with a third boy name. We love the names we already picked so much, choosing a third was tough. Also thinking about if we should go with a “n” ending was something we milled over like you did.
We were between Carson or Wyatt at the very end but I will share our list if you haven’t already had your baby maybe it will help!
Alton
Cameron
Thomas
Benson
James
Jameson
Declan
Weston
Dillon
Isaac
Joseph
Deacon
Evan
Benjamin
Cason
Ethan
Kevin
Grayson
Owen
Braylon
Collin
Brennon
Yay for your third boy
Jo, That is such a coincidence that you also have a Landon and Nolan. Congrats on your third boy as well!
We are still undecided about a name, it is looking like we will go to the hospital with a list. I am due in 6 1/2 weeks. It looks like we like a lot of the same names, I just love Benson. I keep taking names on and off my list, Weston and Dalton keeping going back and forth. Right now I am mulling over these names,
Davis
Walker (new to my list, my husband says it reminds him of Walker Texas Ranger )
Carson ( on my husbands list )
Dalton
Corbin
Griffin ( my husband wants this name back on the list, I am not sure if I am a fan of the G. G. initials. )
I have tried asking family and friends how they would describe a person with one of these names, so far everyone just tells me what name they like the most. I am really looking for an impression, smart, funny, athletic. I loved reading all of the great names everyone suggested, I will post our little guys name when we decide.