(no subject)

[babyjess8.livejournal.com]

One of my main naming pet peeves is when people give their children gender ambiguous names so that you cannot tell if the child is a boy or girl. Spellings sometimes help identify eg Taylor is more masculine than Tayla. It's not that I hate unisex names or even boy names on girls and vice verca, but unisex combos drive me insane! If I was going to give a girl a unisex/masculine name then I'd pair it with an uber-girly name eg Riley Sophia

Here are just a few examples from this weekends papers... Can you tell if these are boys or girls?

Riley Tallen
Mackenzie Jayden
Brooklyn Finn
Tulli Raine
Jaden Taylor

What are some others that you have seen? Anyone have the same issue with naming etiquette as me?

Comments

[adamantplatypus.livejournal.com]

Does it matter if they're a boy or a girl?

I mean, for some things, I can see your point, but in general one's gender shouldn't be their first impression.

[la-jolie-vie.livejournal.com]

I like androgyny in general. I don't believe in the necessity of gender polarity because I think that children should gender-identify themselves. Some of the names that I like are gender specific, but it's definitely not a requirement in a good name :)

[la-jolie-vie.livejournal.com]

Oh, and I would say: boy, girl, boy, girl, boy

[subluxate]

I agree (I say as I consider buzz-cutting my hair again).

[lind-saay.livejournal.com]

Androgyny is something the child should find for themselves; forcing them into it isn't the answer, either. We still live in a society where children are forced into one gender or the other, and I think it's very unfair of parents to make their child's life harder when they may just want to be gender conformative. I think children should be given a base to go on, but know that their parents and society accepts them if they choose something else -- of course, that is the idealist in me speaking, but you know.

[lind-saay.livejournal.com]

And PS: this is coming from someone who identifies as androgynous.

[azelmaroark.livejournal.com]

This. If you want to be androgynous, that's great for you. Forcing an androgynous identity on your child is not a good way of expressing that. You shouldn't assume they're going to grow up with the same views on this issue as you have. Change your own name if you want to be non-conformist.

[kilobites.livejournal.com]

This, very much so.

I think that people should name their kid what they want, but they should be aware of the possible implications. If I were to give my child an androgynous first name, I would probably want to balance that out with a feminine/masculine name (depending on the gender of my child) to allow them to have options of how they want to be viewed.

You are absolutely right.

[awoodnymph.livejournal.com]

I agree with the first two comments.

I also really like androgynous names for the simple reason that a job application (or college application or anything similar) is likely to be taken more seriously if a person has an androgynous or masculine name than a feminine name, especially in male-dominated fields. It really pisses me off that that happens, but it does, and an androgynous name helps in those situations.

That said, most of the names I dream of naming my daughter are super girly. :P

[jordle.livejournal.com]

I don't think having a supergirly middle name to go with a unisex name always helps. I'm Jordan Jane and it's never stopped anyone from calling me 'Mr' even when they've had my full name in front of them.

[girlsteve.livejournal.com]

Same here. I'm Steve Jacqueline, but I don't think I've ever had a letter addressed to miss/ms in my life.

[krosp.livejournal.com]

Riley Tallen -- could go either way but I'd assume boy
Mackenzie Jayden -- girl
Brooklyn Finn -- I would guess girl because of the 'lyn' :-\
Tulli Raine - probably girl
Jaden Taylor - boy

But I could easily be wrong on all of them. I agree with you-- it is good to have an indicator of someone's gender in a lot of situations and names like that are extremely confusing. Whether it's right or wrong that gender polarity exists, it still does, so children with completely ambiguous names will at least be faced with confusion, if not often being called the wrong gender, or experiencing rude comments from people who have no tact. Some kids would thrive in that situation and others would hate it, so I will probably name conservatively myself, although I understand why others don't.

[lustdumpster.livejournal.com]

i really like some androgynous names (and even some straight masculine names like elliott) for girls, but the main reason i will never use one for my daughter is because i work in a call center and i have to ask "am i speaking with mrs/mr" and there are some women who are named taylor or jordan or something else gender neutral who sound like they can absolutely be men, and i hate trying to get around that.

but yeah i definitely get what you're saying. it also must be bothersome to teachers. i plan to be one myself so i've thought about it. in my junior year my history teacher set out name cards on all of the desks so we knew where to sit, and some guy sat down in a "courtney" seat and the teacher was like "you're obviously not a courtney" and it turns out that it WAS his name. i know it's a perfectly legit male name, but the teacher had evidently never heard it and i wouldn't want my kid to be embarrassed for something like that. it wasn't the kids fault but he was very obviously flustered.

[wolff.livejournal.com]

i love andro. names. my SO whole family has names that could work for both genders. his mother's name is Patty, his father's name is Kelly, his name is Cary, and his brother is Stacy.

i am seriously considering carrying on the tradition.

[lind-saay.livejournal.com]

I think it's fine with a first name, but they should be given a middle name that is gender specific to (a) make it easier for people to figure it out and (b) give them the option to go by something else if they dislike their androgynous name.

[lind-saay.livejournal.com]

I HATE THIS. I also hate when people add a y to a name and think that Jaymes is then feminine. IT'S STILL A BOY'S NAME. Just a horribly butchered one.

[daydream11.livejournal.com]

Riley and Jaden are boys, because Tallen is supposed to be Talon (I think) and Jaden is the most masculine spelling I've seen of the name.

One would be hard-pressed to find a boy Mackenzie and Brooklyn these days, so I assume the babes are girls. Tulli Raine is quite girly, if only because of the spelling.

But yeah, that's a pet peeve of mine, too. I hate unisex names to begin with (except Blythe), but if you're naming your newborn Morgan, make sure the middle name is Jane or Alexander, you know?

[aquilinum.livejournal.com]

Just a note: in North America, Taylor and Tayla are pronounced differently.

[laminy.livejournal.com]

I would say that Riley Tallen is a boy. Jaden Taylor's probably a boy. The other three are probably girls. Taylor and Tayla wouldn't be the same names where I live anyway.

I only really like two unisex names anyway (okay, actually, one of them is unisex, the other one is a boy's name that I only like on girls), and they don't go together. I don't really know if I have an issue with unisex combos. I don't see them that often.

[nothingtolose19.livejournal.com]

I definitely agree with having at least one name gender specific. It just makes things easier, ya know?

Like, I'm Julianne, but (I have no idea why) most of my teachers and profs called me Julian at first. My English prof in university put me in a group with all boys, because he thought that I was a boy, too, based on my name. (Which has an ANNE on the end of it, people! Come ON!)

Sorry about the rant, but yeah.

[babyjess8.livejournal.com]

Thanks for such insightful comments - I love hearing everyone's opinions. I can totally agree with the society influence in gender identity, and it is comletely up to the parents what they name their child, I was just pointing out issues I had with certain names.

As a side note, I am a teacher... I find it harder to learn names when there are boys and girls with similar names (not to mention a huge range of spellings!). Often I find kids can get embarrassed if their names are misspelled or androgynous (eg a young boy called Madison, albeit a traditional masculine name, was upset when a collegue unknowingly grouped him with the girls in a school dance. I felt terribly for him)

For the record these are the answers...
Riley Tallen - girl
Mackenzie Jayden - boy
Brooklyn Finn - boy
Tulli Raine - girl (the 'i' did kinda give it away)
Jaden Taylor - girl

[falls2climb.livejournal.com]

I have the same problem, as a teacher. We got new semester classes last Thursday, and I have four Taylors and four Morgans in my three classes. Two of each are male and the other two are female. It's hard enough trying to learn 90 new kids' names at the same time - even worse when the guys and girls all have the same name!

[brittuhknee.livejournal.com]

I spelled my daughter's name Rylee in hopes that it'd be seen as more feminine. Also, her middle name is Ann.