Here is the game we are playing:
We are going to pretend that we are naming a baby and that the name MUST start with a certain letter, and so we will need one name starting with that letter for a boy and one name starting with that letter for a girl, or else one name that would work for either, EVEN IF we don’t like any of the names that start with that letter enough to Actually In Real Life choose them. It is just a game where we place artificial restrictions on reality in order to create the kind of tension that makes games fun—like when you have to choose what foods you’d eat if you could only eat three foods for the rest of your life: the fun is in thinking it over AS IF it were a real forced decision, while KNOWING it is not. There is a baby! It MUST be given a name with a particular letter! That is the game.
After that basic concept, we can decide our own sub-rules, based on what makes the game fun and not stressful. Some examples:
• I’m not planning to play that the name has to fit with the names of my other children or with the surname, though this would be an option for anyone who would LIKE to play it that way; I think I will have more fun if I pretend it is a stand-alone baby and that the surname is not an issue, though I may change my mind as we go. (And if I narrow it down to a few options and can’t decide, I might use siblings/surname as a tie-breaker.)
• It is also fine to narrow it down to a few finalists without getting to The One Name.
• It is fine to wave aside issues such as a friend who already used that name, a famous person with the name, etc., if that makes it more fun and less stressful to choose. This is just pretend, so you can pretend that those things aren’t issues if you want to. (Or you can let the issues stand as they are in real life, if THAT is more fun.)
• We can also all make our own decisions about whether the names have to be ones we think we’d ACTUALLY USE in that hypothetical scenario, or just our FAVORITE names starting with that letter, regardless of whether we think the names are practical; I am not sure which way I will play it, and I likely won’t be consistent.
• If you already have a child with a name starting with the letter we’re working on, you get to pick again from all the names that remain; you don’t have to choose your child’s name as your favorite just because it WAS your favorite: this is a FRESH baby, and you wouldn’t give it the same name as your existing child. (If you would normally prefer not to repeat an initial within a sibling group, you can just pretend that’s NOT a preference for the sake of the game.)
• You can do as much or as little explanation as you like in your comment: you can just list the names you chose, or you can explain your process/preferences/reasoning/runners-up, or whatever is most fun.
Today’s letter is T. I had expected this to be an easy one, and I suppose compared to U it is, but I still struggled—I think because it isn’t the challenge level of letters such as X and Y and Z, where I went into it knowing I just wasn’t going to find something already on my list. There are lots of T names to choose from, which makes it feel as if I SHOULD be able to find a name I’d love, which makes it harder to play this one as a game. It’s like trying to choose a paint color when you don’t really like that color but there are hundreds of shades of it to choose from.
I warn you I am extra chatty today. I am trying to distract myself from the U.S. presidential debate, which I made the grave mistake of watching for twenty minutes, and it left poison in my brain. It will take some time for that poison to work its way out of my system, and in the meantime I am talking frenetically about really ANYTHING ELSE.
As a child I liked Theodora and Thomasina for a girl, in part because I have always liked names that are A Lot of Name; and in part because I grew up during the giant and long-running fad of “short boyish nicknames for long feminine names,” and a Theodora could use Teddy or Theo, and a Thomasina could use Tom/Tommy. These days I am feeling less inclined toward feminized male names, and short boyish nicknames no longer feel as fresh to me as they did in the 1980s/1990s. But I do still very much like Thomasina, and I just learned that Tamsin is a nickname for it, and that is adorable. I also like Thea now, either as a given name or as a nickname for Theodora; but I think Dora the Explorer has taken Theodora off the list for me. Theodosia is nice, but crosses my own preference line for familiarity/usage.
The TV show Bones accustomed me to the name Temperance, but I don’t think I’d want to actually use it, because I also associate it with the Women’s Christian Temperance Union. I like the name Teagan, but it’s outside my usual style. Twila is pretty. You know, I find I rather like the name Tilda, and I like the nickname Tilly. Do we immediate think “~” when we hear Tilda, or no? I also like the name Tess. I think I would choose Tess. Or actually now I’m leaning back toward Thomasina. What about Thomasina with the nickname Tess? Visually it doesn’t click, but the sound of it feels right to me: Thomasina/Tessie/Tess, and the option of Tamsin.
For a boy, I like the names Teague and Thatcher and Thompson and Truman and Turner, but they’re not my usual style. Theodore and Thomas should be my style but for whatever reason aren’t. Tolliver is cute but I don’t think I would want to deal with the Oliver confusion; also, my usual preference is for more-common boy names—like, Top 50, mayyyyyybe Top 100. I am ready to hear the name Timothy again, but I have a bad association that would prevent me using it myself. Terrence appeals to me in large part because of a little boy I knew in early elementary school, who was an absolute peach (held my hand at recess companionably and unselfconsciously despite taunting from older kids; was the only boy who could be relied on not to try to step on girls’ feet during square-dance lessons) and whose name was Terrence, called Terry. Paul and I considered Thijs (a Dutch name pronounced like Tice, rhymes with rice), but decided we weren’t up to the challenge. I would not normally want to use a nickname as a given name, but I like Ted, and it could be an honor name, so I would use Ted. Or actually, wait: Torin. Wait again: Tully. Or maybe Tobin? I can’t decide! Okay, I am going to force myself to choose, and I choose Terry. I know it’s a dad name now, and I don’t usually choose unisex names, but that’s the only one that makes me happy to think of using it.
Now you! If you want to! Only if it’s fun and not stressful! Feel free to adjust the game-play to be fun and not stressful!
Tamsin/Thamsin is one of my top two choices for my baby! Most people never mention it, so I’m surprised to hear it on your blog today. It’s my mother’s middle name and she was named in homage of an influential educator of my grandfather’s who ended up impacting our family’s future. I also like Tamsy as a nn for Tamsin, although get nervous that Tammy (not my favorite) is also a nn option.
My favorite T name is Thalia, like the Greek Muse of comedy. Already vetoed by husband!
Boy: Tassos or Torsten
Girl: Tate or Tennyson
With T I have names that I would actually use, not like with X and U.
For a girl Tessa
For a boy Theo
Boy: Toby
Girl: Tess
I thought this would get easier, but more choices is harder….TL;DR – Todd and Thora.
There are lots of boys names I like with T. Some favorites being Topher, Tyler, Thad, Trey, Trace. We have a two syllable last name ending in -er so I tend to find two syllable boy names ending in -er to not have the sound I like, relegating many to the list of love, but can’t use. I especially like Topher, but with the last name issue and an isolated pop culture reference in Topher Grace, it’d be out in real life. I have an actual T name on a boy name list, though, so final pick – Todd!!
Girls I like many, too. I know a lovely Tristan, adore Thea, Tessa or Tess, Tea, but I have loved Thora from the one and only Thora Birch of my childhood and I loved her.
The boy name is easy, as Thomas is my top boy name of any letter! It’s the name of a lot of my favorite saints (Thomas the apostle, Thomas Aquinas, Thomas More), and I just really like the name, as well as nicknames Tom and Tommy. If I gave birth to a baby boy today, I would name him Thomas.
For a girl, I quite like Tess, though it’s not really my usual style. I also WANT to like Thérèse, as it’s another great saint name, but I just don’t. Teresa is a bit better, but it seems like a Mom Name to me. So I’m officially going with Tess for a girl.
My 2 year old is named Thomas. With a T last name it took many years to get my husband to come around to the alliteration. Theresa nn Tess was a long time favorite of mine but I think I’ve moved on a bit and if I were to choose a T name for a girl I’d use Thea.
I’m not sure why but I’m having trouble coming up w boy names I like beginning with T. For girls I just wanted to say I’m surprised Theodosia hasn’t had a surge in popularity due to the Hamilton song. Also, I found out yesterday that Chrishell Strause’s first name is actually Terrina and I thought that was really nice, though I would prefer Terra.
*** TIERNAN *** !!!
T is a letter I’ve never considered before, believe it or not.
I think I like Theo for a boy, and Tabitha for a girl. I generally like cat nicknames, and I think Tabby is cute.
I had T names on my lists for my actual babies that we didn’t end up using.
Boy: Toby or Tobias, nn Toby. Probably Tobias because I like names with choices.
Girl: In theory I like the idea of Theresa, nn Tessa, but I have too many older relatives named Theresa, so it sounds like a mom/grandma name to me. I’m going with just Tessa instead.
Thomasina is my absolute favorite T girl name, nickname Tommy, in honor of my father, who has been dead for a very long time and who I miss every day. Runner-up girl name would be Tulip (the Preacher comic books definitely helped me consider it an Actual Name).
For a boy, I like Thomas for the same reasons listed above. I would also consider Terrence (don’t love the nickname Terry, though) and the utterly gorgeous Tyrone.
I didn’t really realize that there are not a lot of names that I like that start with a T.
Boy: Truman
Girl: Tatum
I’ve been thinking about what a big letter T is for me. I have 3 exes with T names, and maybe that’s why a T name never made it on my boy list. But I do love the name Tristan, so that’s definitely my boy pick. (Teague a close second.)
I’ve had so many T names on my girls list and seriously considered Tallulah, Tilly, Tabitha, Thora (and in one of those late 3rd trimester panics – I tried to sell my hubby on Thisbe.) Tess would be a slam dunk except for our S surnames. (Even Tessa sounds awkward and so Tess is always the One That Got Away and I swoon a bit when I meet any.) I also love the sound of Tulia but couldn’t do it. So did this imaginary babe, I’m picking Tallulah! So many nickname options but I love saying it in full too. (A close second, and not usually my style at all – but Toby!)
Can we talk about the pronunciation of Thea? I grew up with a Thea THEE-uh, and one of my closest friends from college is Thea TAY-uh.
I’ve never personally encountered a Thea, but every time I read it to myself, I pronounce it THEE-uh. I would never have considered TAY-uh as a possibility…the only association I have for that name is the actress Téa Leoni, who obviously spells it differently. Now that I think about it, Thea pronounced TAY-uh seems reasonable enough! But I would assume that your college friend often had to correct the spelling and/or pronunciation of her name, because THEE-uh seems like the “default” to me.
I know five Theas and they are all Thee-uh. First syllable pronounced like the beginning of the word thesis. Maybe it depends on your location? I’m in the mid-Atlantic United States.
I know two, one older lady and one preschooler both pronounce it thee-uh. Australian for reference.
and I have a dear friend from high school who is named Thea, pronounced THAY ah.
I actually got to use my ultimate favorite girl name and it happens to start with T: Thora! She’s now six and I am still so thrilled with her name and would choose it a million times over. 12 out of 10 stars. Thora!
For a boy… Hm. I once had a coworker name her baby Truett and I liked that. Also had a coworker named Tore (“torrie”) and I’d consider it too. Tennyson is a family name and I like that you could use Ten as a nickname.
Girl is easy: Tess. Tess, Tess, Tess, to infinity and beyond. My daughter would have made such a perfect feisty Tess
Boy, hmmmm. Theodore is nice. Maybe that, or Toby? There’s not a T boys name that gets me hot under my collar.
I love the nickname Ty for either gender. While Tyler seems a bit 80’s/90s, I prefer it to Tyson or Tyrell. So Tyler it would be if a boy For a girl, I considered Tyla and Tylee but ultimately like Tyra the best.
For a girl, Tabitha. I love the name but could not get behind Tabby as a nickname, so I didn’t use it for my daughter. My next dog will be Tabitha even though it’s not my normal naming scheme.
For a boy Tristan, which was on The List for my son. I just ended up liking Sebastian more.
I’m torn between Tabitha and Talullah for afab, and Tadhg or Thames for amab.
Yes to Tamsin! I love it.
And the Irish name Tadgh for a boy (pronounced like tiger without the r).
I do think ~ when I hear Tilda, but I still like it.
Thank you for this enjoyable diversion. ^_^
(I misspelled Tadhg). (Oops).
I love Tadhg, too. Back in the ‘00’s, I taught a 3rd grade class with 2 Tyler’s and a Tadhg (and a Taylor to start with, but she was actually in second.) so we had a Ty, a Tyler, and Tiger because it made things easier.
I suppose this is where I say that Trevor has been a leading contender on my name list since 1999 (I was a senior in high school). I’m now about to turn 40 and there are no babies in sight.
I’ve always liked Theon for a boy, but the Theon in Game of Thrones has a very unfortunate life (even for that series–torture, castration, etc) and I couldn’t do that to a kid. Theodore is a close second though. It hovered on my short list for a while, but didn’t make it in the end. For a girl, Tanith Lee is one of my favorite authors and I like the idea of Tanny instead of Tammy as a nickname. I like Tamsin and Talia also, but Tanith is “cooler” to me.
I was so glad to see this today. Yesterday, I was actually hoping it would appear so we could have something else to think about…
TLDR: Tobias, Theadosia
I actually had a boys name on my list starting with T (a first for this game so far): Tomas, but more and more I am not so sure I love it. I did look down the line at my family tree and it turns out that there was an uncle of my grandmother, Tobias, who was killed in the concentration camps during World War II– I love a good honor name, so that would be my choice instead. Tobias, and maybe I could overcome my dislike of nicknames for a cute little Toby.
For girls, I actually did think about Theadosia because of Hamilton (per Paola above). It sounds pretty, and to have such a wonderful song to sing to the little baby seems lovely. In the world where I would not have to answer the question, did you get that from Hamilton every 12 seconds, I would use Theadosia. In the real world? maybe not but that isn’t the game we are playing.
We don’t repeat first letters for first names and I looked hard at T for out last baby.
My favorites were: Titus, Tad and Thatcher
For a girl I only liked: Trilby
We went with a K name, so I didn’t have to narrow it down. But if I had to it’d be Thatcher and Trilby.
I love the way “Telly” just rolls off the tongue. I don’t know if I’d use it for a theoretical T baby on its own or maybe name him Telemachus or something else to back into Telly as a nickname.
I also love Toby, which is our dog’s name (gleaned from our unused baby names we love list)
For a girl, I could do Tally which I like almost as much as Telly.
Ooh! I forgot about Telly. I love that sound too. Have you seen the ‘95 film ‘Kids’ – it’s sorta raw but the main character is Telly and it’s stuck with me as a cool name.
Tabitha, Toby
Tallulah is my favorite for a girl. nn Lulu. I just love it. I also like Talia so that would be a backup. Oh, and Twyla.
For a boy, I actually have a boy named Tyler so… That is my pick.
Tom and Tessa! (Tom was our “boy name” for our little girl. I already have a Jesse, which eliminated Tessa for me for said girl.)
Oh, I am SO GLAD to see this today! THIS is what I needed to think about, not all that *waves hands around vaguely* Bravo Swistle! Perfect distraction and perfect timing!
I too am feeling extra wordy so, TL:DR; Tucker and Tessa
For a girl Tessa. This was on my very-short list of my daughter, but with a T last name coupled with the the -a ending blending in to make another noun (another word for lawyer) it got thrown out. :( So an very easy simple pick for a game where things like that don’t matter! I also LOVE Tabitha and have since I was a kid, but after loving it for so long, I think it has lost some of it’s luster for me.
For boys – The story is the same. Tucker is near the top of my “regret I didn’t get to use it” list. It is just tooo much with our last name. I love Toby along with Tobin and Tobias. Our next pet will probably be name Toby just so I can use the name. As a kid my favorite boy names were Troy and Tyler. Tyler feels dated to me now, but Troy still feel usable.
This is harder than I thought it would be, maybe because there are so many T options.
For a girl: I think I like Tessa best. Thalia and Thora as runner-ups.
I have a son named Theodore (Teddy) in real life, so that’s obviously my favorite T name. I think I’d go with Tobias for this game, although I don’t love it.
Tess is so popular! I also love it.
If I had rights to use Tova/Tove I would.
For a boy, Teddy! Just so cozy. Not a fan of Theodore tho.
I also like the way Thierry looks. Like the name Alain, it is a French version of an English name I wouldn’t use.
I was surprised by this, but Tess didn’t even make the top 1000 last year! Tessa is #260.
I like Tatiana for a girl. For a boy I would pick Tucker.
Tatiana is pretty!
Teagan was top 3 for my daughter, but I also liked Tamsin. For a boy, I like Torin and Tobin. Lots of good T names!
Wow, what an apt description of the debate…I watched over half of it, so maybe I have even more poison in my system? (Slash, this entire country is full of poison)
Talia for a girl, hands down. Tali as a nickname.
Runners up: Twyla, Tess/Tessa, Thora
Picking a boy name is a little hard. I’ve always liked Theodore/Theo, but it’s getting a little too popular for me. (In the 90s I had a toddler neighbor with that name, and it was super unusual!)
I also really like Toby, as a nickname for either Tobias or Tobin. I had a friend named Toby as a young kid and he had tons of Barbies :)
And then Tristan is also one of my favorites. I remember reading a book about a prince named Tristan as a kid that awakened some kind of proto-queer-transmasculine feelings.
Hmm, ok, I’m picking Talia (Tali) and Theodore (Theo).
This is easier than U.
Girl: Tess or Teagan
Boy: Tristan or Toby or Theo/Theodore (my dad was a Theodore, NN Ted)
Adding Tatiana as an option for a girl. I used to love that name – had more or less forgotten about it.
This was actually harder than anticipated.
Thessaly for a girl, like the Greek city
Tiberius for a boy, assuming my husband wouldn’t veto it (he would)
Girl: Tinuviel
Boy: Tennyson
Runners up: Thora, Topher, Trevelyan, Trinity
I used to love the name Timory. It was a name I came across watching a weird late night talk show on basic cable when I was in middle school. Now I’m not even sure it’s a real name and maybe I dreamed the whole thing.
Timothy and Thérèse (nn Tess)
I know a Tolly and I think it’s a delightful name. It’s short for something long and Greek but I think I’d just go Tolly on its own. Or Toby, Toby is such a solidly sweet name.
For girls I would also be tossing up between the simple and sweet Tess/Tessa or Thea, which I was very keen on if my first had been a girl.
For a boy, either Theodore or Tristan. Theodore would probably win by a hair because I like nicknames and it fits my overall name style better, but Tristan is so romantic…
For a girl, I love Theophania and Tanith, but I probably wouldn’t be daring enough to use either of them as a first name. So it would probably be between Tabitha or Tatiana. I keep flip-flopping between them… Okay, let’s go with Tatiana.
Girl: Thea or Tessa
Boy: Tadhg or Teague.
I already used Thea, so if I had to name another girl baby with a T it would be Therese. Husband would veto though.
Boy… probably Titus.
Hmm. For a girl Tiernan or Twila. For a boy, Tate or Tobin.
Teagan & Tate
I’m surprised Tate hasn’t been mentioned more! I love it for any gender, but lean towards boys. I also would consider Timothy for a boy—something about that name feels so snuggly to me on a baby, and I feel like a Timothy would grow into a kind and studious young man/adult. I also like Theodore, and always have. I think if you asked me tomorrow or the day after I could pick any of these three names, but today it’s Timothy.
For a girl, I like Thea so much, both the American THEE-a and the French TAY-uh pronunciations (and since my leave-America urges are at an all-time high, non-English pronunciations of names are increasingly important considerations for me!). I also like Tate, as said above, as well as Talia and Tallula/h. Again, depending on the day it could be any of these, but today I like Thea. Or maybe Téa to really manifest a future for myself and this very theoretical daughter outside of the US.
Tessa and Timothy!
The letter T initially I thought would be very easy… how wrong I was! So for a boy i think I’ve narrowed it down to Theo. I love that one and suggested it to my husband for our son and his response was a stern no. However I do really like Tommy too. For a girl I found this really hard. There is just no name i can actually picture myself using. There is lots of nice names but none I love. I like Tyla, but not a fan of unisex names. I like Tallulah, but think it might be too much. Tess, I have a bad association with. So I think I’m going to go with Tilly.
Had we ever had a boy, I might have lobbied for Thaddeus (I like the nickname Thad, and with an “A” middle and my husband’s last name, I could also have gotten “Tag” out of it for a cute nickname). I am less keen on girl names starting with “T” because so few match my preferred naming style. Tess might work – feels a little short, but I don’t like any of the longer possibilities to arrive at Tess as a nickname.
In a vacuum, though, I might go with Tamarind because I have memories of reading a book with a character named after the Tamarind tree when I was a kid.
There isn’t a single “t” name on either of my name lists, girl or boy. Well, actually Tarquin was on it briefly until I read that it is considered too pompously posh in Britain, so I took it off. Which means that I would never use a “t” name IRL, I guess, because there is always a name beginning with another letter that I would choose first.
There are a few names that I like well enough, though, including some fantasyish sounding/character names — Trillium, Trillian, Twila, and Triana — and also Tessa and Theodora (nicknamed Thora because why not get two great names for the price of one?). I also like just Thea with either pronunciation and the name Trina, which I definitely couldn’t use IRL because it rhymes with mine. But if I had to name a baby with a “t” name, I would want to choose Tatiana even if it felt like too much.
For a boy, Tate, Tristan, Torin, Thaddeus, Thornton, and Thoreau are pleasant, and Thorfinn and Tyrion would be the fantasy babies (maybe Tiernan sounds similar but is more wearable?), but if I had to name a real baby with a “t” name, I would probably choose Tadhg.
Thea is my girl’s pick, even though it breaks my rule of not repeating names of people I know. I know five Theas and they are all totally and completely delightful. I already liked the name but encountering all these lovely little Theas pushed it to the top for me.
My boy’s pick is Trevin, even though baby names dot com says it is an “invented” name. That breaks another one of my rules (although I don’t know if I believe it is invented). Also, maybe my rules aren’t really that relevant in the face of a gorgeous name.
Tansy and Tamarack are both on my real list, though we’re far enough away from babies I don’t know if we’ll find ourselves that bold in real life.
Talia and Tarek! Love both and can see them on my kids. Not dissimilar to their actual names. :)
Teddy and True!
Though I wish I could love a full name as much as these “nicknames”. Does Edgar work for Teddy or is that a stretch?
Girl: Tessa
Boy: Thaddeus
Like many others, I’m loving Tessa and Theodore.
T was surprisingly hard! I expected there to be more options.
For boys I am torn between Travis and Timothy. I think both would work well in my sib set. I suppose I choose Travis just because the hypothetical baby’s cousins are Tommy and Teddy and adding a Timmy to that mix seems like overkill. Tom, Ted, Tim. It’s too much. Plus I knew a very attractive and friendly Travis in college so it’s a good association.
My favorite girl name in the T section is Tess, but it’s absolutely unusable with my last name (it turns into an unappealing word). I was going to go with Theodosia but then realized that she’d likely be called Thea and Thea also makes a word with my last name, so that’s out. I guess I’d use Tacy. That’s the name of a character in one of my favorite childhood books, so she’d fit in with her siblings’ literary names. It does feel too nickname-y to me with my other girls’ names, but I think it’s the best I can do with T. Nothing else really appeals.
My boy pick the last time was Thomas. Classic, versatile, family associations without an actual honoree. Tadhg for the me that wears long skirts and goes barefoot while eating organic vegetables in the woods.
For girls, Tessa ticks all sorts of boxes: clean, simple, very feminine. But Thalia has my heart. I’d name twins Tessa and Thalia, well some version me would.
Swistle, thank you for this game, enjoying it so much!
I like T names, but they are not high on my list for girls to actually use. I do however have several on my list: I love Tallulah, Theone, Thisbe, Thessaly (I have a love of Greek -ee ending names!) Thora, Tessa and Tabitha. I also know cousins 8yo Trinity and 17yo Tiegan which are both lovely. I have a close friend called Tandy which I love, but it is HER name.
For boys I have a shorter list, but my favourite boy name is on it, Tristan, Theodore, Tobin/Toby. I also Love Theon, but like a previous poster, I don’t think I would use it due to the character in Game of Thrones. I like Topher too, but only as a NN for Christopher, which I would never use and it doesn’t count here anyway.
My choices for naming a boy and a girl with a T name right now would be Tristan and Theone.
As a random aside after reading the name Thea (which I also love!) so many times, I just remembered the sibling neighbours I had as a kid – 3 daughters called Anna, Lara, and Thea. I still swoon about how perfect a sibset that is. We toyed with calling our firstborn Lara, and every time I said it out loud I remembered those sisters.
Thea is on my list for baby #2. I also would consider Tessa and Talia. I like Theodora, Tallulah, and Tamsin.
For a boy, Theodore and Thomas would make my list.
Ultimately Thea and Theodore (Teddy or Theo). Obviously not for siblings or twins though.
Taylor for a girl (it’s a family surname on my wife’s side). Probably Thomas for a boy, though I do like Timothy, as well.
When I think about T names, I find myself attracted mostly to the TH options: Thelma, Thea, Thora, Thornton, Thatcher. I also like Tristan and Truman.
I think I would choose the name Torrance, for a girl, even though it is not my typical naming style. (Also, strong Bring It On vibes.) And Thatcher for a boy.
Hmmm, I think I would go with Thomas and Tatiana. I love the Italian Tiziana but I don’t think it works well in an English- dominant area, sadly
I totally forgot I used to work with 2 sisters whose names were Thioni and Tamae, lovely names. The first Greek pronounced Thee-oh-nee and the second Japanese. She used to pronounce it Ta-May but found out it should be more like Ta-My.
I looove Tess and slightly wish that I had named my firstborn Theresa nn Tess. For a boy, I kind of like Tag…? Is that weird? Thaddeus is great but I couldn’t actually, and I definitely can’t with Thad.
Theodore is one of my all time favourites.
For a girl I am torn between Tessa and Tabitha. I think I want Baby Tabitha but it’s so close!
Téa (pronounced Tay-a)
Titus, nickname Ty
If this were not real life, Tabitha or Theo.
If it was, Tess or Travis.
Ooh fun:
For a girl I think I’d go for Tabitha or maybe Tessa.
For a boy Thomas is the obvious choice (family name, solid nickname in Tom, timeless) but as a back up option I’d go for Tobias (nn Toby).
I have a second cousin Thomasina, she goes by Tommy. I always loved it. Tamsin comes from the same root name (Thomas-Twin) so I can’t see why it wouldn’t be a nickname.
I love Tabitha, Teresa (Tess!), and Timothea but would probably settle on Teresa or Theresa for the Saints & the great nickname. Is it too 90s?
For boys nothing floats my boat so much. I like Tommy and Tom. Maybe Thaddeus?
So fantasy me Timothea and Thaddeus (Thea & Tad)
Real life me Teresa and Thomas (Tess and Tom)
Probably would go with: Tessa, Theo
Possibly would go with: Tova, Talia; Tobias/Toby
Tessa and Thomas
Runners up Talia and Timothy
Swistle, when this is done can we have a round-up post? I would be fascinated to compare which names got the most votes from commenters (who knew Tessa and Vera were that popular!) to the actually-most-popular name for each letter per SSA results.
This would be a lot of work. But perhaps fun, suitably distracting work.
On to T! Theodora called Dove for me, to go with my Lark and Wren. For a boy…Thomas or Timothy, probably, though Thatcher is just handsome.
T: Theodora and Timothy
U: Una and Ulysses
V: Vera and Valerian
W: Willa and Walter
X: Xenia and Xavier
Y: Yvaine and Yves
Z: Zinnia and Zachary
Tabitha and Tristan!
For a boy I would go with Tyberius. I have a wonderful association with the name Tyberius and would love to use it on a little boy. I do love Theodore though. And it would go better with my Henry. Realistically I would go with Theodore, but I think Tyberius makes me feel happier. For a girl I
would go with Tallulah, but I would be tempted by Theodosia.
Taite and Trent
Thomas! I love Thomas and have ever since I watched the original Magnum PI all the way through a few years ago.
I think I also like Tessa. It feels a bit incomplete but I don’t love any of the names it could be a nickname for, so Tessa it is.
Tenzie and Theodore.
Once I met a little girl called Tenzie. This was her nickname coming from Hortensia/Hortenzia. I fell in love with it. And I l just simply love Theodore with the nickname Teddy. Runner up is Tobias.
I just can’t settle on a boy’s name that starts with T. I’m not particularly in love with any of them and j would probably go with Theo (maybe as a nickname for Theodore).
For a girl’s name, I’m OBSESSED with Tabitha. I like Tallulah a lot as well, but I’m not Native.
My favorite for boys is Tariq, though I couldn’t use it; it’s quite inappropriate for a Northern/North-Western European family. Tristan’s1st of names we could actually use.
I don’t have any preference among the girls’ names.
Tess and Theo or Teddy
Tess and Thaddeus. I have a Thomas (Tommy) already, and he was almost Thaddeus.
Runner ups are Tillie, Tully, and Tate.
For boy I would go with Theodore or Toby (my friends have dogs with these names, that would make me sad if I were naming a dog IRL).
For a girl I don’t love any T names. I might pick a noun name like Tuesday. Or after my mother’s best friend Twyla, even though it doesn’t make my heart sing, the connection does.
Wavering between Tarn and Twila for a girl. I think probably Twila.
If I didn’t already have a son with a similar sounding name, it would be Tallis for a boy (as in Thomas Tallis). But for a baby boy joining our existing family it would be Thibault, although it was a very close call with Telmo.
Taylor and Tate
Teresa and Thomas!
Theodosia for a girl and Theodore for a boy
Tobin and Tavia
Ooo. We wanted to name a boy Toby and were debating Tobin nn Toby. My husband was coming around but thought it could be confusing. I’m glad to see that others like name!
Tessa and Toby
Tate for a boy
Tabitha for a girl… although in my many years of making lists of my favorite names, I don’t think I’ve ever picked a T girls name.. just not my favorite for some reason!
Theodore & Thessaly
I’ve been looking forward to T because Tamsin is a crush name of mine. Outside my style but I still love it. Tabitha is pleasing and I also quite like Theresa but it’s unusable thanks to a divorce on my husband’s side. While it wouldn’t work at all with our last name, I’d love to see a Trudy on a class list.
Tamsin for a girl
Thomas for a boy, though I also like Toby.
OMG…Trudy!!! I love that ❤️❤️❤️
I don’t really like very many T names, but, let’s think… I think I feel inclined to choose Tamsin. Thomasina’s okay but a bit clunky, while Tamsin itself feels good. I could nickname her to Tommie (but definitely not Tammy).
For a boy… no idea!… Well I quite like Timothy so maybe… Well yeah, I din’t have other ideas, so I think I’m stuck with Timothy. But I think I’d call him Tim at least sometimes so I’m not sure if Tamsin nn Tommie and Timothy nn Tim don’t sound too matchy. But these are my only ideas so that’s how it’s got to be.
T is a tough one for boy names for me. We lost a twin early in a pregnancy who we were going to call Toby if he was a boy. My guilty pleasure name for a boy is Teodoro nn Teo.
I think I’d choose Tabitha for a girl.
One of my top favorite girl names of any letter is Theresa! It’s a family name, there are several great saints with the name, and while being very well-known, it’s outside the top 1000 for popularity. (How can that be?) I once knew a cool girl named Teresa who went by Tess, and I liked that nickname a lot. It doesn’t seem quite as fresh to me lately, but still very pretty.
I’ve had Theodore on my boy list for a while. I mentioned to my husband that I would jokingly call a baby Theodore “The Odor” during diaper changes, and he didn’t think that was very funny. In fact, I think that’s the reason he doesn’t care for the name any more. Sorry, I thought it was cute! I just like to have fun playing around with a baby’s name. I don’t think Theodores would actually get teased by peers, especially with it being in the Top 50. Theodore sounds gentle and stately to me, very handsome.
T: Theresa and Theodore
U: Ursula and Ulrich
V: Victoria and Victor
W: Winifred and William
X: Xandra and Xavier
Y: Yvette and Yakob
Z: Zelie and Zechariah
We named our gorgeous red-haired baby TESS – she’s thirty years old now, and we all still think it’s tgd perfect name for her,
T is very easy for me…would have Theodore or Theodora, both nicknamed Teddy!
If I was making it harder and had to name a boy AND a girl…I’d take Theodora/Teddy for the girl, for the sake of it being more unusual, and Tristan for a boy