(By the way, in case you are looking for something fun to do, Baby Name Mini Posts in the Comments Section is still going strong. I love threaded comments for this: everything is kept so tidy! you can scroll through, seeing each question and its associated comments separately!)
Hello Swistle!
We are expecting our second little girl in early October. My firstborn is named K3nna Tyl3r. Her first name is the nickname I have always called my beloved sister, Br00ke McK3nna. Telling my sister her niece’s name when she was born was one of the sweetest moments of my life. I would do it again a million times! It also honors my husband’s grandfather and great-grandfather, both named Kenneth. I wasn’t 100% sold on the name when we picked it, but it suits her perfectly and it meant the world to all the people who were honored with her name.
(Your posts about how using honor names sometimes means giving up your favorite names to honor someone you love helped me navigate this tension. It’s so true – THANK YOU! I’m attaching a photo of the moment I told my sister my daughter’s name. Feel free to use it as proof of your point if you want!) Tyl3r is my husband’s middle name, which he goes by. Our last name is S@muel.
I am very sentimental, and I love honor names. I have a brother I adore and would like to honor, but it’s difficult to name a little girl after her uncle. His name is L@ndon. The name we have most seriously considered is June (his birth month). This feels like a little bit of a stretch to me, but would also honor my husband’s other grandfather who is called Junior. I like the name ok, but don’t feel sure about it. Is it “close enough” to count as a namesake? Is there a better way to honor him? Additionally, do you feel like June is about to explode in popularity? It feels like it is on the verge of a big jump, and when I saw someone else asking the same question in the mini-post comment section, I felt affirmed in my concern and wanted to hear your thoughts. Is it one of those names people talk about a lot but don’t use? Or does it feel familiar because it is everywhere as middle name? We hope to have 1 more child, and it will have my maiden name, T@bor, boy or girl, though I prefer it for a boy. K3nna and T@bor are both very clear namesakes, and June seems a little random. It’s also not a great match with the other two in popularity. Or style, I guess?
Potential first names:
Callan (No sentimental reason. I like the sound and the meaning. Uncommon for a girl.)
Alice (forever and always my favorite. My great-grandmother’s name. I hate the way it sounds with our last name. Also, husband has a family member with exact first and last name. More popular than I care for.)
Double name Alice-June? (too much with simple K3nna? Called Ali-June? Hyphen, no hyphen? Feels a little too trendy.)
T@bor (I use my favorite boy name on this baby because who knows if we will have another baby, much less a boy?)Potential Middles:
Alise (my middle name, derived from my aunt Allison who was named for the aforementioned Alice)
Adelaide (comes from the nickname my grandfather always used for me, Adelheid),
June (only if I can choose a different first that I love)
Mae (obviously not with June, but I find it charming!)
L@ndon (just to make the tribute clearer, and I obviously don’t have an issue with masculine middle names on girls.)Names I like but have been nixed for whatever reason: Georgia, Margaret, Merritt, Haven, Elle, Evangeline
My mind feels like a tangled web or possibility and I’m begging you (and your tribe of phenomenal commenters) to help me straighten it all out!
When I first saw L@ndon in the letter, I mis-read it as London. I wonder if London would work: the current usage in the U.S. is more common for girls, and I think it’s nice with K3nna and a possible future T@bor. Or Linden would be pretty. But do either of those feel to you as if they honor your brother? And would either of them feel that way to your brother? That’s the most important thing. We can come up with tons of possible variations, but if we think your brother would hear London/Linden and think “But…that’s not my name,” then I think it would be better to go straight to L@ndon.
Perhaps a feminized spelling? Landyn? Landynn? I usually prefer to avoid alternative spellings, but I think that’s what I might do in this particular case; Landyn is my favorite spelling. Or actually, I might just say heck with it and use L@ndon: people might occasionally assume it’s a boy’s name, but that’s easily dealt with. I suggest for the middle name using the name you go by, to mirror your first child’s name. Or maybe Adelheid!
June as the honor name feels like too much of a stretch to me. I ran the Honor Name Test: I imagined someone telling me they named the baby after the month I was born, and then waited to see if I felt any prickling of tears. Result: no. However, if her first name is L@ndon/Landyn, THEN I think if you went with something like Landyn June it could strengthen the association with your brother. Plus it can refer to Grandpa Junior.
The name June is coming into fashion again, but I don’t think that necessarily means there will be a huge spike—though of course these things are very difficult to predict (I would not have predicted Charlotte and Oliver would end up in the Top Ten, and yet here we are). Here’s what it’s been up to lately, according to the Social Security Administration:
(screenshot from ssa.gov)
Notice that the chart skips right from 2008 to 1986: June was not in the Top 1000 in 1987-2007. If I scroll back further (not pictured), I see that the last time the name June was in the Top 50 was 1922-1934—so we’d be expecting to see it coming back into style around now. I think it’s getting a lot of chat because it sounds fresh again: we’ve all been using the heck out of Jane as a middle name, but now June and Jean are catching our interest as well. I’d expect it to continue to rise for awhile as it continues its time in the sun, but the classics that cycle in and out for centuries never sound trendy to me, even when they get popular. I also think you’re right that it might feel more common because of its use as a middle name. Jane and Rose are the same way: they feel like such common names, but I hardly know any kids with those names as FIRST names. One Rose, and no Janes!
The T@bor issue is a difficult one. I think it’s going to come down to putting the two possibilities on the scale and seeing which one weighs more: on one side of the scale, the possibility that you will save the name in case you have a boy, but then you will not end up having more children; on the other side of the scale, the possibility that you will use the name for a girl, and then later have a boy and wish you’d saved the name. Which possibility is more upsetting? I too prefer the name for a boy—but I love it so much when the mom’s surname can be used as a first name, it’s painful to think of losing that chance. I don’t know what I would do if I were you. I’m pretty sure if it were me I would save it and then use it for the third child, because the “having a boy later and wishing I’d saved the name” weighs more for me, but you and your husband will have your own answers.
I am the one who asked about popularity of June in the mini-post comments. I’ve gotten great, really positive feedback there – every poster said go for it! It made me feel really confident in our choice. Swistle’s popularity chart helped too… it’s clearly moving up steadily, but hasn’t really exploded any one year. However, I’ll still be watching these comments with interest.
That being said, it DOES feel a little discordant with the other two names. But at the same time… who cares? I say pick names that you love. June L@ndon S@muel has a great flow.
Callan June. Let Callan be your stand-in to honor your brother.
Callie June. CJ. Brook and Callan. I love it!
I don’t have the issue you do with Alice and your last name…to me it sounds fine. So my vote would be for Alice L@ndon.
You don’t say if everyone calls your sister K3nna, or just you do, which I think might impact whether L@ndon as a first seems like a good idea (I think it’s a great idea for a middle). An uncle and a niece with the exact same name might get confusing.
What about putting L@ndon in the middle position, and name her Alice? Alice L@ndon Samuel.
My feelings differ on whether to go with a name you love or with an honor name based on how many kids you have. If you have 3, and 2 have significant honor names, than I think it’s important that the third does as well. However…what happens if there are three daughters? Does the third daughter end up T@bor regardless? Just something to think about. I have one daughter currently with a name that is an honor name on both sides of the family. I’m hoping to have another child next year, and I currently feel no obligation to use an honor name (although if one works out that would be great). But I am not planning on having anymore children after 2. I wonder if you might have another female relative you would be interested in honoring?
My top choices:
L@ndon June S@muel (called Lane or Laney-June, which feels like a good match with big sister)
Alice Landon—the last name does smoosh just a little, but not so much that it’s a dealbreaker
Also: there would be something super special about naming her Adelheid Landon and calling her Alice. Or you could even call her Ada.
But if you decide to go with a non-honor name, I feel like your style is no-frills feminine and classic. I wonder if you would like:
Sydney
Shelby
Paige
Claire
Lucy
Ruby
Willow
Grace
Lyra
Fiona
My favorites are Sydney and Fiona.
I really love Landon called Lane! Great solution.
I love L@ndon June (called Lane or Laney)
There was a beautiful woman named Landon on the reality show Southern Charm, so it definitely reads as unisex to me. It feels like a natural sister name for Kenna, although I do agree with Swistle that the spelling Landyn would be more easily recognizable as female on paper (alternative spellings aren’t generally my jam, but Landon and Landyn both seem fine to me). One concern I would have is that it might be weird for your kids to have the same names as your sibset. Since you’re using your sister’s middle name as your eldest’s first name, maybe switch it up and use Landon as a middle name? That feels more even. A good friend of mine has girls McKenna and Allison. Maybe Allison after you, your aunt, and your great-grandmother? Allison Landon. You could even call her Alise/Alice as a nickname, but her full name wouldn’t have the issue with the last name.
Your first daugter’s name is so great, and manages to honor so many people that I can really see how it would be hard to feel as though you found that sweet spot again.
So, I seem to have missed what your exact names are. Since your first daughter shares a name with one parent, I think it would be really nice if your second could share a name with you. Either your middle to her first, or your first to her middle or such. It won’t be as awesomely emotionally satisfying to you to get to tell yourself that you are naming a child after yourself, but it will be very meaningful to your child.
I think in your situation, I personally would lean towards using Tab0r. It’s a great name and has a good nickname AND hits again the sweet spot with family names. And there’s no guarantee you’d get to use it on a third, and if your third is a girl I (personally) would have a hang up about feeling like I had been saving this name for a boy and then had to settle for it on a girl.
Although if your brother is L@ndon T@bor I might not use T@bor L@ndon S@muel.
June feels like a stretch as an honor name to me, and I do think it’d be confusing to have an uncle and niece with the same name. And I can’t think of a good alternative to L@ndon that isn’t a stretch. Lainey? London, Lindon, Laindin, etc all sound like a recipe for calling everyone the wrong name. Does your brother have a middle name? I almost think L@ndon is easier to save for a possible third boy than T@bor.
good luck!
How do you feel about Landry?!
I have a friend who named her two girls Lakyn and Landry!
Did I miss somewhere where you mentioned brother’s middle name? Is his middle name something you could make more feminine?
Regarding your liking of Callan- do you like Kellen? Would you like for both girls’ names to begin with a K versus the C for Callan and K for Kenna?
I was also going to suggest Landry!
That picture. Amazing. No wonder you feel like you’re falling short before you even start. My two cents is I think you (based on how you describe yourself) have to try to hit another home run and maybe pick a name that’s ‘too much’ or too trendy, but is packed full. Like:
Alise-June: call her AJ or Junior (I like even better as it’s your middle)
Landon-June: call her LJ or Lady or Junior.
Tabor-June: call her TJ or Taj or Junior.
I like the tweaks suggested for Landon like Landry or Linden. But I’d probably throw two middles in there. Landry Alise June is beautiful.
I’m not usually one who loves boys names being used on girls because it is so hard for them to go back the other way but I like Landon in this situation and it is so close to London and Landry and other girls names that it doesn’t seem like a stretch. I love Landon Alise nn Lanny or Laney. You get to honor your brother, your daughter gets the same level of honor as your older daughter, you save T@bor as a possible first name for the next baby (if there is one. For what it’s worth, I love T@bor June for a girl and T@bor gp Junior’s actual name or Junior although Junior isn’t my favorite for a kid who isn’t a junior). You don’t say but does your husband have any siblings that he is interested in honoring? That is a possibility for this baby and then maybe the next will be T@bor Landon ( which aught to tickle your brother Landon T@bor. )
I would use Tabor, because I would feel sad if I didn’t get to use it. Especially since you seem dedicated to it no matter what and are considering Landon for a girl.
I think you should use Landon as the middle to most directly honor your brother. I see no reason to alter the spelling as it would be a middle and your elder daughter has a similar in style middle. I think June Landon or Adelheid Landon (nn Ada) would be great choices.
Or, as another poster suggested, go with Landon as the first name (Landon June? Landon Adelheid?) and call her Lane.
As much as I would hate it if you missed an opportunity to use T@bor if you don’t have another child, I do love it for a boy so might be best to just wait for #3, either gender.
Best wishes!
I agree June doesn’t feel enough like a namesake. Landon could work for a girl, or perhaps something with a more direct link to the look/feel of Landon? Lana comes to mind (but not Lah-nah, I would have the first syllable sound like the first syllable of Landon). Donna could be a feminized version of the “don” element, but I don’t like it as much as Lana. It feels a bit dated & a little less obvious than using the first syllable. Landry also comes to mind. The plus of Landry is that is keeps the first 4 letters & starting sound the same. A minus (for me) is that it does remind me of the word laundry.
Since Kenna comes from your sister’s middle name, I wonder if perhaps there is also potential in your brother’s middle name? I like the symmetry of that solution.
Which name feels more right for a girl, Landon or T@bor? How would you feel about using T@bor now & keeping Landon as the name in reserve?
Lana June? Kenna and Lana and little sib?
London! Some people, like me, can barely hear the difference between L@ndon and London. I think it’s a fair choice – even if your sister is called K3nna, in her birth certificate it’s McK3nna; so Land0n > London seems appropriate.
Good Luck! ♡
I have a known a female L@nder and a female L@nden. I knew both of them before ever meeting a male L@ndon and the name has a very soft, earthy, feminine feel to me because of that first word in the name, “land.” I would say go straight to the source and use L@ndon. I particularly like L@ndon Alice, but I am biased as I have a wee Alice. :-) For what it’s worth, my Alice is a toddler and we have yet to encounter another one. It’s a great name!
You like the name Callan and want to honor a L@ndon?! This seems easy to me. Spell the honor name in the baby’s name:
calLAN DONna or
hoLAND ONora or
calLAN DONita.
The second option for me would be to put L@ndon in the middle name spot.
Ooh I like this idea. C@ll@n Donnelly maybe? A secret hidden name seems very uncle-ish to me.
Please, oh please, let the middle name be Landon. I love the idea of two little girls with feminine first names and typically masculine middle names that honor someone. In the first case Kenna Tyler (for Dad) and ____ Landon (for uncle). The symmetry is really pretty to me!
For first names, I do like the idea of using Allison or a related name to get another double whammy honor name; however, it would be beautiful with any feminine name you choose. I would definitely do this— try out names with Landon and then with Kenna as sister sets. Good luck!
Just a thought but….my sister named her son after our brother. He is now having a son of his own and his wife would like to name the baby after him, but feels she cannot because of my nephew.
Landy :). I went to school with a girl named Landy, and I think it’s the perfect name for you. Goes great with Kenna, honours Landon, and has its own sweet but spunky flavor.
Another vote for Alice L@ndan! I am with the commenters that it works fine with your last name. :)
I feel like an Allison/Alise derivative with Landon as a middle name would be ideal! Honours you and your brother, just like the first honours your sister and husband, also still allows your brother to give his name as a namesake later if he desires.
Maybe something like
Alia Landon
Alice Landon
Alisa Landon
Here’s the thing: the picture you included is… incredible. Gloriously sweet.
Is there any way on God’s green earth that your brother will have a reaction as powerful as your sister’s? I mean, how could he?!
How honored will he feel at family gatherings to hear, “Landon! No, sorry. GIRL Landon… come here!”?
(I know a man, Rene, who did not feel especially honored to have his grandDAUGHTER named after him. And that granddaughter is now an adult and not thrilled that she has her grandfather’s name… despite having an excellent relationship and loving him emphatically.)
I realize you don’t have a problem with gender-reversing names… but does your brother?
You can’t go wrong putting Landon in the middle. Clearly, it’s worked for your first daughter!
Alise might be perfect for this new little one… her sister got Dad’s middle name. She could have yours!
Alise L@ndon S@muel.
K3nna & Alise
Whichever way you go, best wishes and congrats on your new baby!
A lot of great options for using Landon have been put out there. I could see it both in the first or middle spot. It sounds like you were a little unsure about your first daughter’s name as well. I am sure you will end being just as happy with your choice this time around..
Just another suggestion that came to mind….
Adelheid Landon (or Adelaide Landon) nn Adelan
I love Alice June especially if you plan to call her by both names – it gets rid of the issue of running the s-sound from Alice into your last name. With a double barrelled first, you could add a middle name in there too – Alice June Landon? I like that it honors your family in several ways and draws from your own middle name.
I’m wondering if using Heidi instead of Adelheid (I just can’t warm up to that name…) wouldn’t be better?
Heidi Landon Samuel (I especially like this combo!)
Heidi and Kenna
Or Ally-June instead of Ali-June:
Ally and Kenna, Kenna and AJ