A reader named Abbie has four children: Leo Sebastian, Henry Edward, Jasper Alaric, and Eliza Vivienne. She recently learned that she is expecting twins (congrats!) and would like some help coming up with baby names–especially boy names. She writes:
Lucy Matilda and Nora Penelope will be the twins’ names if they are both girls.
We like shorter (two to three syllables) names that are classy and old-fashioned but have a hint of eccentricity and quirkiness to them; we want them to be familiar and accepted but still be unusual enough that they’ll be the only one in their classes.
If it helps, our last name starts with Gold and is two syllables.
The very first name to pop into my head? Amory, which I know from This Side of Paradise. This made me think that other names from Fitzgerald books and stories (written during the 1920s and ’30s) might be names Abbie would like. So I flipped through the Fitzgerald books that I own, then flipped through others that I don’t own (thanks to the magnificent Project Gutenberg), and found:
| Abe (Abraham) Albert Charlie Chester Dexter Duncan Nelson Percy Roscoe Warren | Daisy Edith Honoria Lorraine Lucille Marion Marjorie Rosemary Stella Violet |
I included girl names, but I don’t think Abbie needs any. (I’m guessing that if only one twin is a girl, she’ll be named either Lucy Matilda or Nora Penelope.)
So let’s concentrate on boy names now. Here are some others that seem both old-fashioned and a bit quirky to me:
| Alfred Arthur Avery Bernard Bertram | Cedric Dexter Ernest Felix Frederick | Lewis Milo Nolan Owen Philip | Roland Rupert Simon Stuart Walter |
Out of these, I think my favorites (for the sib set Leo, Henry, Jasper and Eliza) would be Owen, Philip, Simon and Stuart.
Which of the names above do you like best? What other names (firsts, middles, or combinations) would you suggest?
Update – The babies have arrived! To see what their genders/names are, either scroll down through the comments or just click here.