Friday, April 10, 2009

Boys names for girls


I love the idea of a boy's name for my little girl. I think it conveys a spunky, zesty attitude, a joie de vivre, that one doesn't always get with a more formal feminine name. Not that there is anything wrong with formal feminine names, they are just not for me.

I'm pretty sure at this point that I'm going to name the little one "Charlie Izabelle (Ethiopian name withheld for privacy)" and then our last name. "Izabelle" is in honor of my mother, who's name is "Izabella".

I think "Charlie" is a fun tom boyish name, it reminds me of that commercial for perfume in the 70's.

My parents, or at least my mom, is not crazy about the name. My dad sent me some articles on the trend of naming girls with boyish names. Apparently this is a trend now. All I know is I have always liked it, ever since the Bionic Woman was named "Jamie Summers"! She was my hero when I was a pre-teen.

One of the articles my dad quoted has the following comment:

"Why do people name their girls with boy's names?
Because people are ignorant.

Personally, I think masculine names should stay on boys, and feminine names should stay on girls. After all masculine means male, and feminine means female. Ticks me off to see wonderful, masculine names being used on girls.

I totally agree with Liz. Parents give their daughters masculine names because they wanted a boy, or think boys are better than girls. There's nothing wrong with being a female, and instead of confusing them by giving them a masculine name, baby girls should be give feminine names so they can be proud that they are a woman.

Most of these so called "unisex" names aren't truely unisex, since the definition of unisex is having no distinctive gender. When a name is masculine, that's a gender, and therefore that name cannot be unisex, let alone feminine or girly.

Names like Madison, Addison, Emerson, Taylor, Aubrey, etc will never ever be unisex, feminine, or girly no matter how many little girls have to suffer with this horrid names. They are masculine."

Well! First of all, this person seems to view the world in very rigid terms, all black or white. My household will be black AND white. So we need to think out of the box a bit. I haven't read such a rigid answer to a question since Bush was asked what mistakes (if any) he had made in office!Plus, he doesn't know how to spell "truly". Ha-rumph.

Also, anytime someone uses words like "always, never, should" etc., and then calls someone who doesn't do those things "ignorant".... ummm... I have a problem with that.

I don't believe naming someone "Charlie" is going to impact her pride in being female. I plan on raising her in the strong feminist philosophy I myself believe in: that her intelligence, content of her character, and her ability to negotiate this world all will mean much more than "mom wanted a boy". I mean, really. She can be proud she is a woman. She can be proud she is an upstanding PERSON. She doens't need to be named a feminine name to be proud of her gender. I don't see that as having anything to do with it!

And finally, if I wanted a boy, I would have asked for one. This response is so way out in the ether zone I can hardly respond.

I attached Izabelle so if she later wants a more feminine name, it's available. I also went through a period where I didn't like my own name, I just wanted to fit in and my name is quite unique. But as an adult, I really appreciate being the only one of me. Don't we all go through a phase of not liking our names, even for just a short while? I think it's part of coming into our identities.

What do you all think?

Do you like Charlie for a vivacious little girl?


(10 points to who ever names another female TV lead character who was a single mom and had a typically male name.... hint, the repulicans didn't like her and her "family values"....)

26 comments:

Calmil2 said...

I'm not wild about Charlie, but I do like boys' names for girls (but my husband doesn't). I just heard a great one the other day...Evan and they call her Evie...so cute. Can't wait to hear what you decide :)
Harmony

Anonymous said...

One of my friends named their little girl Ryann, and I have a girl friend named Charleigh. I like both of them because they are boy names for girls, but they are spelled more feminine. I named my daughter Graysen, which is a boy name but is usually spelled Greyson, so again, I made it a big more feminine. Good luck on your decision!

Calmil2 said...

Okay, wait, I just went back and read more...did you already decide on Charlie? Now I feel bad because I said I wasn't wild about it, ugh, sorry :( I mean, I LOVE it...(open mouth, insert foot)! Harmony

Single PAP said...

that is one of my name choices !! (though it's charlotte and charli as a nickname) i put a name vote on my blog and the first one to comment was my mother who said she didn't like boys names for girls blah, blah, blah. that was NOT AT ALL what the voting thing was for so i promply removed it! i didn't want commentary, just a vote. so, i digress, but i love boys names or androgynous names for girls..emerson, quinn, kendall, drew.. cute!

Robbin Hopkins said...

I like Charlie. I know a Charlie. I like Charlie Izabella and then she can use Bella as a nickname. All and all I like unisex or even masculine names for feminine girls lol. But in the end YOU get to pick your name, and no matter what someone will have a problem with it no matter what.

Rachel said...

A unisex name is at the top of our list, so I say rock on!

Long Journey Big Dreams said...

I love the name Charlie for a boy. I had a friend (female) with that name and she is a strong, independent and fun loving woman! What a great name!

missy said...

i thought the article was bunk. i think charlie is a very fun name and i would LOVE to see the charlie ads (especially the second one you posted) up on the wall of her room. how cute would that be? i personally like the idea of naming her charlotte and calling her charlie. that gives her a choice in the future.

missy said...

one more thing: izzy is also a super cute name if you decided to use izabelle as her first name. but the boy name for a girl is a trend that will be here to stay and charlie is a darling name! others will meet her and want to follow in your footsteps!

Tami said...

I like unisex names. All the girls in my family have unisex names except for me...Tami! I want one! LOL I love Charile or Charli. They will learn to love it. I think it is sexy, exotic and mysterious for a girl/woman

J-momma said...

what a ridiculous article. i think the person who wrote it is ignorant. i think Charlie is cute. and i love izabelle for a middle name. i've always liked the nickname izzy. i also like Jordan for a girl and probably would have used it if not for a friend who named her daughter that first. stick to your guns on this cause i think you've got some good ideas.

Michelle J said...

I wish we could name our children after we see who they are. Charlie may very well be a great name for a certain kind of girl, but will it be just as perfect for a very girly girl? Wouldn't it be nice to see what characteristics our children have THEN name them?

Cathy said...

Murphy as in Murphy Brown :) I love the name Charlie and think you should go for it.

Queen Diva said...

I like the name Charlie!

Or how about Toni, Chris, or Taylor. I know plenty of women/girls with boy names and I love them. I like Charlie because it reminds me of the perfume back in the 70's. I say ROCK ON girl and do your thang! After all, it's your baby and NOBODY can't tell you what to name YOUR child.

Andrea

Queen Diva said...

I love the name Charlie!

Or how about Toni, Chris or Taylor. I know plenty of women/girls with boy names. I say ROCK ON girl and do your thang! Nobody can't tell you what to name YOUR child.

Andrea

Shauna said...

Yeah... I actually do really like Charlie. It's spunky.

Anonymous said...

I agree with your comments about the author of the article. His/her comments are opinions, not facts. Besides, saying that Madison, Emerson etc. are 'horrid' names and are only masculine is silly. I would consider the names to be beautiful and unisex. It's also probably cultural. Some names used in Europe for males would be unusual in the US (i.e. Ashley for a boy..)

When my son was born there were no Evan's, now you not only find Evan as a popular name, but there are girls named Evan too.

I think your names are fine, and nothing weird about them at all. Tell mom and dad that you could be naming the new baby Moon, or Forest or whatever weird names that celebrities foist upon their children.

And you're right, when/if your daughter were to decide on a more feminine aspect to her name, she can choose her middle name. Many kids end up being called by their middle names...

So hang in there, Charlie will grow up to be an amazing woman!

Anonymous said...

I think the name Charlie for a girl is great! There are no boundries these days as to what you can name your children. No such thing as boy names for boys and girl names for girls!

My daughter is named Alex (Alexandria, actually) but we knew we wanted to call her Alex. And my son is named Devon. Apparently that is a girl name?? When we told people that his name was going to be "Devon" almost everyone said, "Isn't that a girl name?" (I think the 'girl' way is spelled Devyn or Devan or something).

Anyway, I think you should name your child what you want! With our son, we just didn't really tell many people what the name was going to be until he was born because we wanted to steer away from the comments! LoL! Good luck!

LitaPumpkin said...

I used to know a female Charlie.
And she wasn't unwanted. Also, I've never known a male Taylor, and I know a couple girls with the name. I think whoever wrote that article has some personal issues to get over.

CaddoRose said...

My DH's name is Joel McKenzie. He has been called Ken since he was a baby, from the McKenzie, but never Joel as that was his Dad's name. We are adopting a 20 month old and changing her name to McKenzie. We thought about naming her Joel and pronouncing it like the boy's name. We have known several girls named McKenzie, but for us it is a family last name from DH's mother's side of the family. We even have a family crest. Somewhere along in time, people began using it as a female name. Our DD even has red hair to go with it.

I think the name Charlie is great particularly with the middle name Izabella. I don't think she will find many more people with that name.

Kittymom said...

For me, it's on a case by case basis. Personally, I think Charlie is an adorable, spunky name for a girl. My very spunky grandmother's name was Charley Mae. I think with the feminine middle name you've chosen, Charlie works great! I've always considered naming a daughter Charlotte and calling her Charlie for short.

Single PAP said...

murphy brown.

Anonymous said...

I have a "boys'" name and I am all for the crossover names. The only thing I didn't like about a boy's name is that when you look up what it means, it says, "Danielle, the feminine of Daniel," and then you have to look up what Daniel means. But I love my nickname, Dani, and I though I sometimes got teased when little, it was just as often by a little boy who wanted to flirt with me as by someone mean. And it made me stronger. And I always liked the androgyny of it: made me feel as if I were in touch with both my feminine and masculine sides: a whole person. Go Charlie! --Dani

daylakeli said...

My niece's name is Charlie and she has more personality than any girl I know! She actually was always a little tom-boyish until I came along to the family. Now, she is a perfect mixture of tom-boy and girly-girl! She is one of my favorite people in the world and I couldn't imagine her with any other name! PS, she is gorgeous! (jet black hair and light skin with beautiful freckles) :0)

daylakeli said...

My niece's name is Charlie and she has more personality than any other girl I know! She is the perfect blend of tom-boy and girly-girl, with a little touch of bitchy! LOL! She has jet black hair and very fair skin with freckles - a classic look. I couldn't imagine her with any other name. PS, my name is Jaime (named after the Bionic Woman..lol) So, in conclusion, I do not have any objections to using boy names for girls..as long as it's original. PLEASE DON'T USE GRACE!

Anonymous said...

It is also regional. I grew up in the mid-Atlantic/South and so many girls have boys names. In fact, I was so jealous of my boring girls name growing up! Some example: Dani, Bryan, Lee, Wesley, Taylor....etc. My friend's mom's name is Charlene, and she goes by Charlie. I think its pretty cool. I am a teacher, and nowadays kids are used to diverse names. The concept of traditional and acceptable names is very old school, and can be even a bit ethnocentric. Kids are named everything under the sun, and they don't really notice each others unique names. In fact, the other day the kids were talking about how it was COOL that they had such "funny" names. So don't worry about it! I am probably going to give our kid a wildly unique name, and the above is what I tell my DH for him to get over it. :evilgrin:

-TravelingHoya