Baby Name Poll Results

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WHATS WRONG vs. W/ UNISEX vs. NAMES?

I see unisex names on here that get mean comments all the time. Then I see crazy/odd/"made up" names that get great comments?? I just don’t get it. Is there a reason I just can’t see?

The Top Baby Name is...

WHATS WRONG

0%

W/ UNISEX

0%

NAMES?

0%

Poll created: Jul 08, 2010
Total Votes: 0

Comments

yea i dont understand either...
posted by ChristinaD :: 13 years ago | report
I don’t think ALL unisex names are bad but some are just ridiculous. But I think I’d rather see a unisex name on a kid than a made up name or a horrible spelling of a common name.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
Are you meaning, boy names on girls? There is a HUGE difference...
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
I agree! I prefer a unisex name to some made up or myspelled name anyday.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
I guess some names considered as unisex by some are seen as being male or female only by others, and they couldn’t imagine someone of the other sex with that name. Imagine Robert on a girl, for example: for some, Robert is just as male as, say, Dylan or Ryan.

As for the crazy/made-up names... I’m at a loss too. My guess is it just depends on who’s on, where they’re from, etc.

PS: A question all in caps comes off as pretty aggressive... No need to shout! ;)
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
"Are you meaning, boy names on girls? There is a HUGE difference..."

There’s actually not. Throughout history most unisex names started out as male names. Its a cycle. It has been happening for quite some time.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
Nothing wrong with names that are actually unisex (Alex, Rowan...), I love them, but "boy names on girls" is another story! IMO, they are called boy names for a reason.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
I don’t mind the unisex names so much, but the made up names annoy me. Why would you do that to your child?
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
Sorry about all caps, I just thought it looked better with the vs. being in lower case.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
"There’s actually not. Throughout history most unisex names started out as male names. Its a cycle. It has been happening for quite some time."

...So all boy names will be unisex eventually?
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
Who is to say they are boy names? If I say Sarah is a boy name does that make it true? Poster #6 BRAVO on your comment! Amen sister
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
I object to them because they tend to go one way but not the other. Meaning, somehow it’s ok to give girls a boy name, but the second a name goes to the girls, it is no longer available for the boys. Historically, lots of great names went that way: Leslie, Whitney, Lauren... I also think there is a fine line there - to my mind, Michael and Ryan are NOT unisex, and yet are often claimed to be. Also, I don’t like "son" names on girls - their etymology actually means "son of" so why the heck use it on a girl?
So conceptually, there is nothing wrong with any sort off name, but I’m always wondering about the parents’ intentions: are they just trying to be cool and trendy or do they truly love the sound? I think more than hating unisex names I hate deliberate misspellings, as if Dylan will be more feminine as Dylann (and if you want femininity, why the heck go with a name like Dylan in the first place?)
posted by DKW :: 13 years ago | report
I don’t understand why some women feel they need to protect their boy names. If there is a girl named Ryan in his class that doesn’t make his name less masculine. I feel it just makes the girl a little spunky and unique ;)
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
"There’s actually not. Throughout history most unisex names started out as male names. Its a cycle. It has been happening for quite some time."

...So all boy names will be unisex eventually?

She never said that. Think before you comment please.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
I don’t understand why someone would want to give their daughter a boy name, I just don’t get it! Is there a reason I just can’t see?
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
I think a lot of unisex names, at best, look tacky and, at worst (especially with "creative" spellings), look uneducated. And then there are the people who just keep pushing the bounds of "unisex" by naming their girls things that are obviously boy names. I think a lot of people just find that incredibly frustrating, because there are already so many names to choose from for girls, but it is difficult to find a nice, somewhat unique name for a boy anymore--they’ve all become "unisex."
posted by mm :: 13 years ago | report
I’ve known guys named Carey, Kelly and Shelby. They’ve all been very popular and had no problems with their names. Kelly Slater... I love it!!
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
I genuinely like unisex names and prefer most for girls. I don’t want to be trendy or cool, I just like the names. There was a poster on here awhile back who said her husband always said Greyson sounded girly to him. I TOTALLY understand that! Its a matter of personal preference. Just like we all like different music, clothes, etc.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
Listen, if someone on this forum will be willing to name their boy Sarah, I will be absolutely delighted! But it’s not the naming itself that is the problem, but the gender stereotyping that bothers.... So a girl name Ryan is cute and spunky, but a boy named Sarah is what???? It’s not the name, it’s the social expectations that bother me.
posted by DKW :: 13 years ago | report
Unisex names to me are WORDS, PLACES...things that don’t have a gender. However, to me, those aren’t names. They’re words.

Boy names on girls is just a tacky and sexist trend.

I’d like to know what the crazy or odd names are that you’re pointing out.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
"I don’t understand why someone would want to give their daughter a boy name, I just don’t get it! Is there a reason I just can’t see?"

We are talking about UNISEX names not boy names.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
I’d rather be Avery than Honor!
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
I am not a rude person so I will not point out the names that I was referring to as crazy/odd.
posted by poll poster :: 13 years ago | report
Pp, you say having a girl named Ryan in class makes the boy Ryan’s name no less masculine? Except that all the kids in the class grow up thinking that its a girls name and make fun of the boy.

And how exactlydoes having a boys name make the girl spunky? A name doesn’t make the child.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
I don’t get why someone would want their kid to be neither gender. The same people who name their little girls Ryan, probably wouldn’t be as accepting if that child actually turned out to be asexual.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
or actually transgender.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
I’d rather be Ryan than Mykynzie with this spelling
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
I would rather have a unisex name than a boring/common "girl" name OR a crazy made up name like Zulily or Pilot Inspektor. Just sayin...
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
Most "unisex" names, on this site anyway, are boy names.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
Pp- you can’t say what is or isn’t unisex. If boys and girls use the name it is unisex. Period.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
There are several reasons people get varying responses...

The answers depend on who is online at the time the question is posed, and what their personal tastes are.

The answers depend on how the pollsters phrase their question. There’s a big difference between "What do you think about..." and "We’ve decided on ... and need a middle name." If someone asks what I think, I’ll give my opinion on the name; if someone says they’ve decided on something, I’ll offer middle name suggestions and keep my mouth shut about the name even if I don’t like it.

It depends on how you define unisex, and how you define crazy/made up. In both camps I see people that I think are unfairly hammered for names that aren’t bad, and others that are mysteriously praised for names I can’t stand.

I think it also depends on how open the people online are to names that don’t match their tastes. I try to keep that in mind... that even though a name isn’t my fave, or even one I like, it may be the perfect fit for the baby being born to those parents, in their family, in their community.

Many, many factors go into the answers, and quite frankly, you could ask the same poll, exactly the same way multiple times and wind up with different results based on who’s online at those times. This site is meant to be a sounding board for parents who want the input... but we certainly do not make the rules on which names are great, which are okay, and which should be permanently shelved... though I think each of us individually would love to do that, as a site we’d NEVER collectively agree on that! :)

Best wishes!
posted by Reason :: 13 years ago | report
My daughter’s name is Presley which is considered unisex. It actually never crossed my mind that Presley wasn’t all girl. People just think differently I guess.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
I think it just depends on people’s tastes. I know a lot of people out there say they hate unisex names, but I think it’s kind of... I don’t know what to say without offending anyone, so I will just say that you shouldn’t do that. Do you hate the name simply because it is considered unisex or do you hate that it can be used for both boys and girls? Or do you just happen to hate all the names that are considered unisex? For me, I don’t hate a name because it’s unisex nor do I hate a name because it’s Italian (or whatever). I either like the way a name sounds/looks/means no matter what the origin or category it falls under. I happen to hate the names Jordan and Jaden. Not because they are unisex, but because I simply do not like them. I love the name Peyton...for a girl. It’s just my prefrence. I typically don’t like "made up" names, but occasionally one will come along that I love. So, I won’t say "I hate made up names" because its stupid to lump them all together. You never know if you will come across a name that you love. And if it happens to be unisex, or Russian, or made up, who cares?
posted by alyssa897 :: 13 years ago | report
I love Reason’s answer. :)
posted by alyssa897 :: 13 years ago | report
I want to point out, that in my opinion, boys names that are "stolen" for girls are usually feminine sounding, or spelled with a y, making it look feminine. I think lots of names, Avery, Bailey, Peyton, Kelly, Rylie- these actually sound better on girls. They do not sound manly. I don’t care if girls steal them, because they sound too girly for my taste. Names like Sawyer, Dylan, Tyler, Blake, Ryan, and Elliot are pushing the envelope a little, but I can see the appeal. And, Sigh, yes there will be plenty of boys names left- some names will never, or just rarely used- Samuel, Jackson, Gavin.... But for goodness sakes- get a life- realize it will happen, and if there is a girl Kamryn who marries a boy Cameron- so what- and of course, there is the spelling issue- I think Kamryn-girl, Cameron - boy, just like Gene/Jean, Joe/Jo
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
Part of what is getting people defensive, me being one of those that dilikes boys names on girls, it the rate at which it is happeneing. Names that were once all boy no questions ask are in less than a decade going unisex and all girl. So those poor parent that didn’t get the message that Peyton, for example, was going unisex now, by the time their son is in school. At age six, he has a unisex name, and by the time he is in jr high, he is stuck with a girls name for the rest of his life..

Just seems this trend is out of control
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
I agree PP. I see a lot of so called boy names that are quite feminine. There are still TONS of masculine boy names left. Even after we "steal" all the girly boy names. LOL
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
Its not a trend because its been happening FOR-E-VER!! Leslie, McKenzie, Madison, Lindsay, Aubrey, Addison etc all started as boys names and are now viewed (mostly) as girl names.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
I wouldn’t get to upset poll maker, Honestly, I think most of the polls with boy names for a girl are fake because they know they will get alot of comments.

I love the name Cameron, for either gender, but I hate when people change the spelling to make it looks more feminine or masculine. Kamryn for example, it ruins the name.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
too upset, not to. typo!
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
What I don’t get is why UNISEX names, are only okay for a GIRL, doesn’t make any sense!
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
^^ that’s where the sexism comes into play. Its our deep seeded issues. We don’t want our sons to be perceived as feminine in any way. We want them to ooze testosterone and be jocks. Just like girls who have sex are slu*s and guys who have sex are studs.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
Or why its ok for girls to be tom-boys and boys can’t be.... Well there’s not even a name for it.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
Or why girls can wear pants, shorts, skirts and dresses and boys can only wear shorts and pants.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
Peyton Manning is no less masculine now that his name is used more for girls. Our kids are going to be so used to this trend it won’t make a difference. Anything goes now & times have definitely changed.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
My niece is named Peyton and hates her name because kids call her "Peyton the girl/the girl Peyton" while the boy just gets called Peyton. I hope she grows to like her name.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
I can’t believe there’s going to be a million little blonde girls named Isabella.. Gag!!
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
Some of the made up names are terrible, in my opinion. And the way I see it with unisex names, just because someone takes a boy’s name and spells it with a y in it does not mean it suddenly has jumped ranks and become either unisex or a girl’s name. That’s part of my annoyance with so-called unisex names.
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report
I used to teach at a small college and had 2 students who had been high school sweethearts and were still dating. Their names? Aaron and Erin. They got married after graduation and now have the same last name! My hubby is from NJ and he pronounces these 2 names differently. lol
posted by guest :: 13 years ago | report

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