How To Choose A Baby Name

Posted on Sep 3 2020 - 8:09am by Editorial Staff

Baby’s make their own rules. Everything past the point of conception is pretty much down to them. They arrive when they feel like it. They eat when they want to eat. They sleep when they want to sleep. They don’t wait for permission to use the bathroom, and they certainly don’t give any warning that they might be about to ‘go potty’. It’s sort of like being given a small and demanding drunk person to look after. But infinitely cuter! One of the things they can’t control, at least not for now, and something that they rely on you for, is their name.

Now, when a child is born, there could be many immediate concerns that must be addressed. Things like asking whether the child is breathing properly, asking if the weight is a healthy weight, and asking any other specifics that may be relevant to a pregnancy, such as ‘what exactly is the condition known as Hyperbilirubinemia?’ But once those things are all covered, it’s truly time to begin speaking of the baby in terms of their new name, rather than calling the child “the baby”. At this point, you need to have your primary options whittled down to one or two main contenders. But how do you get to that stage? Let’s look at how you could choose a baby name that holds some meaning.

Inspirational people from history

Baby name books are filled with an A to Z of names, literally thousands of names. We flick through these books, hoping that one or two names will leap off the page at us.  But they never do. Why? Because we like names that have meaning. That’s why choosing inspirational people from history can help you to add meaning and choose a name that sticks in your mind as being a great name. For example, John Lennon’s middle name was Winston, and we all instantly get that reference. Fast forward to 90s rock band Oasis, and lead singer Liam Gallagher gave his son the first name Lennon. There are clear nods to history going on, where parents were eager to choose names that meant a lot to them.

Characters from your favourite books or movies Finding names outside of baby name books is difficult. But not every baby can be called Jack or Olivia (maybe it’s where I live in the world, but if you meet someone new under the age of 25 around here, there’s an above-average chance that you can guess their name is Jack or Oliva). That’s why turning to your favourite TV and movie characters can help get you off the beaten track. Like Star Wars? Think Finn, Rey, and Jyn. of course, you’ll have to dig deep to remember your favourite movies and TV shows, but when you find that one name that stands out above all others as being the perfect baby name that’s both unique and yet not too odd-sounding to the ear to cause people to think you’ve gone mad, it’ll be worth your effort.

About the Author

Editorial Staff at I2Mag is a team of subject experts.