Baby Name Poll Results

It's part of a person's identity plus its a component that helps make a "full name".

My kiddos have family names for their middle names. My family means a lot to me and it's the least I could do was to honor them in my kiddos' names. I still wanted them to have some individuality though, so the middle name was the perfect spot.

I wouldn't force a middle name if you don't love something or have family/friends you want to honor. I'm sure the child will be fine without one.

1. It makes people more distinguishable, when other people might have the same first and middle names. John edward would be harder to find than a John William Edward.
2. When filling out forms if you dont put in middle initials people tend to think its a mistake and needlessly send them back for correction.
3. If the child prefered to go by their middle name or a nickname it can help reduce scamming. Someone saying they know Elizabeth and want to speak with her, they were close friends in grade school but Elizabeth always went by her middle name Rose.
4. It gives children options when using their names.
5. I read an article once that said something about how people with middle names tend to have better job opportunities and prospects because just by having a middle name it makes you look more distinguished. Basically... Having a Middle names is considered more fancy, than not having one at all.
I hope this hels.

Definitely use a middle name but I also think if you're not married then give your baby your last name!

Middle name for identity clifiers...
used honor names in every case

I would use a middle name. Sometimes kids identify more with their middle name. This gives the child a choice later. You should feel free to use a new name you like for a middle name.

Just adding what everyone else already did, it makes their name more unique and also gives them options as they get older. My husband for example decided to go by his middle name growing up bc it felt more like 'him'

I considered that when making my daughter, and she has a more uncommon first name and a very classic middle name (Elisabeth) so she has options.

A lot of people choose to use family names in the middle spot but you can put any name you want.

***Correction to above: When naming* not making haha

I think if you live in the US (not sure how it works elsewhere) it would be best to have a middle name. Middle initial is asked for on forms, and it's just standard practice in the culture. But there's no official rule that says you must, so it's up to you. I also think it's nice because I love so many names, this way I get to use more. (There's no way I'm going to have enough kids to use all the names I'd like to.)

How I chose middle names for my kids.
1. Family tradition on BOTH sides was to give the first son his dad's name as the middle name. DH and I both wanted to continue that tradition, so that was easy.
2. Though there was no tradition of doing so, we thought it might be nice to honor our moms in middle name selection for a daughter. We figured we'd use whichever sounded best with whatever first name we chose.
3. DH had a few names he'd always loved and really wanted to use, but that I vetoed for first name use for various reasons. I thought it would be nice for him to get to pick one of them to use for a middle name since I had no problem with using them in that spot.
4. We had a concerning ultrasound with one child. We prayed and waited. When the follow-up check 9 weeks later showed no issues, we were overjoyed and thankful. So we chose the middle name Eliana which means my God has answered.
So we had a variety of reasons why we chose certain middle names. Sometimes the choices were easy; sometimes they weren't.

I've always loved names and naming. My husband used to tease me that we would need to have at least a dozen kids for me to get to use all the names I love. For me, the middle name gives you a chance to try your hand at "all the things" about names: sound, rhythm, meaning, honoring (if you choose to), juxtaposing distinct styles. We tried out every one of our children's names, saying first, middle, and last name slowly like they do at a high school graduation. We'd ask: Is it a name the child can be proud of? We also tried just first and last name together with a title (Senator, Doctor, Judge...) in front to see if sounded professional or dignified.

Here's how we came to each child's middle name:
1. _______ Thomas- It sounds good with the first name. Thomas was my husband's middle name, too & every generation in his family (except one) for as far back as they could trace had a Thomas.
2. _______ Patrick. This son has an uncommon first name and Patrick just worked so well with it. Also, it balanced the style factor: unusual first name + traditional middle name. Patrick also happened to be my older brother's middle name and he and his wife couldn't have kids, so I loved the idea of part of his name being passed down through my son.
3. _________ Renee- Our only daughter got the middle name Renee. My parents had chosen that as my middle name but my 2 older sisters begged them not to use it because of a little girl at school they didn't like. So my parents chose another middle name but I always wished that they had used it---I thought it was so pretty and I liked the stress on the final syllable because it goes well with many names. Later I learned what it meant & I liked it even more & vowed that if I ever had a daughter, I would give her the middle name Renee. It also sounds great with her first name!
4. ________ Joseph - From the time we chose the first name (which my son told to me in a dream just before I got pregnant), I knew I wanted the middle name Joseph. At first my husband didn't want it because he thought the first and middle name together sounded way too religious.Then, soon after we learned the sex of our babies, one of my husband's doctoral students died. He was greatly admired and loved by many. His last name was an Italian version of the first name we had chosen and his first name was Joseph. I told my husband, "When I hear his name it makes me think of our ________." My husband was very emotional and immediately asked if we could use the name Joseph as the middle name!I got what I wanted from the beginning and let him think it was his idea.
5. ______ Paul- This was another name I heard as a kid and loved. Through the years, every Paul I knew was good-looking. I liked the simplicity of the name and yet didn't want my kid to have a one-syllable first name, so we used it as our youngest triplet's middle name.

Middle name or not? Don't do it simply because everyone else does it. :)

I enjoyed reading some of these stories!