One of the great decisions of parents when they find out that a son or daughter is on the way is the choice of name. It should be taken with caution and without haste because the name we give it will be the one that accompanies you throughout your life, or at least the time that passes until you decide to change it.
So that the choice is the most successful and you can find the perfect name, we offer you 15 keys to take into account to choose the baby’s name . We hope they serve you and you can find that name that you are looking for so much.
1) Seek inspiration
There are couples who have always been very clear about it and nothing will make them change their minds (some even before they know they are expecting a baby), but there are others who as soon as they find out that a baby is on the way they begin to seek inspiration from everyone sides to choose a pretty name for your baby .
You can turn to name books, internet sites and even know the official statistics of the INE (National Institute of Statistics) to know the most popular names in recent years. This body also has an online tool to find out how many people in Spain have a certain name. It will help you to know which are the names most chosen by parents, and not to choose them. Or yes, if that’s what you want.
At Babies and More we also offer you an extensive database of baby names from A to Z, as well as cute boy and girl names to inspire you.
2) Make a list
Once you have made a selection of the names that you like the most, make a list with the boy names and another with the chosen girl names . No matter how long it is, then there is time to debug, but do not leave out any that you like or sound good.
If you already know the sex of your baby, you can make only one list, but it is preferable to have an alternative, just in case.
3) Take into account the fashions, or not
There are parents who are looking for the names that are being a trend , while on the other hand, there are those who are looking for the most mega-original name and flee precisely from that, that their son is called the same as five other classmates.
There are those who are inspired by characters from television series, writers or famous actors, and it is totally valid, but keep that in mind when choosing the name, because there are parents who come to regret having given their child the fashionable name . The name that you love today may not like it in a few years.
4) Pronounce them out loud
It seems silly but it is not. Say aloud the chosen names that you have written down on your list. Repeat them several times , both alone and combined with the two surnames, as it is important to listen to their sound. Sound good? Too long? Too short?
5) Follow the family tradition, or not
In some families, it is a tradition to give children the same name that has been used for several generations and it is sometimes expected that it will continue to be used. The choice is solely for the parents, and just as there are parents who feel comfortable and want to continue with this implicit mandate, there are others who do not want it and break the family tradition.
You may feel pressured because the baby on the way is called the same as the mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, but it is important that, above all, it is a name that you both like .
6) Beware of quirky names
Some seem like a joke but they are not. There are very ridiculous names going around the world. There are parents who choose names as geeks as Google, Facebook, Superman, James Bond, Ikea or Pocahontas. Think of your son and what it can take for him to carry such a bizarre , and sometimes even offensive, name throughout his life.
Many give their children names of brands such as Adidas or Nike, or of fictional evil beings, of superheroes or phonetic transcriptions of other languages … There is no limit to the daring of parents who give their children what they do to the majority They seem mean or ridiculous names to us. And then the children who are ashamed of the name they bear pay for it.
7) Take into account the surnames
It is important to write and pronounce the child’s first and last name to see how they sound together . You don’t want to make rhyming mistakes like “María Lauría”, “Enrique Manrique” or “Raúl Seúl”. Also avoid that the name coincides with the surname as Gonzalo González. It sounds very monotonous.
Not to mention names that together with the surname lend themselves to ridicule like “Dolores Fuertes” or “Armando Puertas” or that lend themselves to puns like “Elsa Pito”, which will make them the target of ridicule.
You will also have to take into account if you choose a long name and it will also have a long last name, it can sound very tiresome, or on the contrary, if the first and last names are too short. Although here, once again, it is a matter of taste.
8) Check the initials
As we said before, say the name out loud to see how it combines with the surnames, but also write it to see how the initials combine.
Something that we must take into account when choosing the name of our children is how they will combine their first and last initials. We do not want them to form bad acronyms, shortenings or acronyms , such as HDP, FYI, ONVI, NASA or WTF.
9) Take into account the name of the brothers
When it is not the first baby, something you have to think about is the name of the older siblings . There will be many, many times that you will call your children pronouncing one name after the other.
It is important, on the one hand, that they sound good together, and on the other not to make mistakes such as calling two girls Isabel and Elizabeth, or two boys Juan and Jon (in Basque), which is the same name in different languages.
10) Take into account the opinions of others, or not
Here again there is something for everyone. There are those who ask the opinion of the greengrocer on the corner, even those who reserve their names until the last moment to avoid the comments of others.
If you start asking friends, family and co-workers for opinions, you will receive all kinds of comments that will condition you when choosing . They will tell you how badly a person with the same name falls, or that it is the same name they had in mind for their baby, and it will end up limiting your choices.
11) Avoid names that are impossible to pronounce
There are parents who want maximum exclusivity and choose unpronounceable names for their little offspring. They add or change the order of some letters and then the children spend their whole lives clarifying how it is pronounced and how their name is written.
12) Take into account the legislation
It is also important to take into account the legislation in force in the country you reside with respect to names. Limits to freedom of choice of name are usually set to protect children.
In Spain, names that objectively harm the person, contrary to decorum or too extravagant, as well as diminutives (such as Manolito, for example) are prohibited except those that have achieved their own identity (such as Lola, for example). Nor can the baby be registered with more than one compound name or more than two simple ones.
13) Review the agenda
One of the rules not written by parents is that children cannot be named after any ex, or any pet, or people from the past who dislike you or remind you of an unpleasant moment in your life.
So, remember, review the agenda and discard those names that can be a source of conflict or constant friction.
14) Think of nicknames
Something that many parents take into account are nicknames, since it is usual to look for the perfect name for nine months to end up calling your child “little” or “little”.
There are names that may be beautiful to you, but not the nickname with which they are usually recognized, such as María and Mary or Antonio and Tony , for example. It is one more aspect to think about.
15) don’t rush
There’s time. You have nine months to choose the name of your baby, and there are even those who do not even know the sex of their baby until the moment of delivery and that is when they decide the name. Or those who, even knowing the sex beforehand, prefer to wait to see her face to decide the name she will wear because she has more of Blanca’s face than Martina’s .
You may have chosen a name and halfway through your pregnancy you change your mind, so take it easy.
In Babies and more | Nine common mistakes you don’t want to make when choosing your baby’s name
