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The Great Baby #2 Naming Challenge

My wife and I have got another baby on the way (19 weeks on Thursday). Now last time, we both agreed within a reasonable period that Henry was a good name, and that it worked well with the last name, and also with taking my wife's surname as his middle name. Thus, our first born is Henry Fitzgerald McCracken. We're both pretty happy with that name, and everyone agrees he's a pretty good little bloke. Here he is looking slightly worried about the prospect of a challenger on the horizon.


Here is the anxious little bloke

So, my issue is that we've got to find a name the equal to Henry. I think that the bar is high, so the pressure is on. As with last time, we've gone our separate ways and compiled our own lists, with the intention of pruning them down and then merging them for the final master list. We can then 'test' the names to see how they go. I myself have already started testing names on dear little Henry (male and female), which - to be frank - is beginning to confuse him. So I've turned to the blog. Given what we have to work with, which of my names might be the best fit? I am open to persuasion, and even new ideas, but as I stated above, the intention is to prune down the list with time to spare before the baby arrives.

So, for this reason I have attached my (long) shortlist. Here they are, in alphabetical order.



Albert

Adelaide

Alfred

Alice

Andreas

Anja

Andrei

Anke

Armand

Astrid

Arno

Audrey

Arnold

Ava

Arthur

Berta

Arturo

Celeste

Bruno

Clara

Claus

Clementine

Conrad

Else

Cyrus

Esther

Dieter

Grace

Ezra

Gretchen

Ferdinand

Heidi

Floyd

Henrietta

Frederick

Ingrid

Friedrich

Iris

Garfield

Ivy

Ike

Leila

Isaak

Lotte

Jurgen

Madeline

Karl

Magdalene

Klaus

Margarete

Lars

Niamh

Ludwig

Olga

Luigi

Olive

Norman

Roisin

Otto

Rosa

Richmond

Rose

Roscoe

Sabine

Stanley

Saskia

Sylvester

Sinead

Ulysses

Siobhan

Walter

Stella

Winston

Ursula
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Comments

jen said…
To be brutally honest I would veto most of your boys names (with the exception of Ezra, Ike, Isaak and Otto. Stanley, Albert and Roscoe might just sneak in).

Girls name fare better with a few that are on my list too. I could come at Adelaide, Anja, Astrid, Audrey, Ava, Celeste, Clara, Clementine, Iris, Ivy, Leila, Lotte, Niamh, Olive, Rosa, Saskia, Sinead, Stella and at a pinch Ursula.

I wonder if Clementine McCracken has too many 'c's and 'm's?
9 March 2008 at 21:37
Daniel Chérouvrier said…
Hard job to choose a name that will be - in any case - contested by the owner several years after.
Hard job too for your smart Henri to cope with a younger child.
9 March 2008 at 23:17
edwin s said…
henry is quite the adorable little boy.

Browsing down your list, and keep your last name in mind, I'm feeling Conrad McCracken for a boy and Siobhan McCracken. I'll leave the middle name to the both of you. Have you asked Henry what he thinks?

Thank you so much for your comment on KLDP. I do hope Malaysia finds a balance that suits everyone.
10 March 2008 at 01:31
Anonymous said…
Almost any of those names would work for me. Just don't name him if it is a him, after any famous person, as it is a life time burden to bear. You have to have lived it to know what I mean.

My middle name is Wesley and that was after my grandfather.

Thanks for your visit to my blog today.
10 March 2008 at 01:56
Keropokman said…
What about Philip? :-)
hehe....

It would be tough choosing a name. Maybe the older brother can help!
10 March 2008 at 02:27
Jim Klenke said…
Its not on your list, but I think James Alexander is a great first and middle name.
10 March 2008 at 07:22
Belgrade Daily Photo said…
It's very hard to narrow down the list, though in my opinion, I'd keep the first name to two syllables since the last name has three, it just makes it flow better I think.
10 March 2008 at 14:40
Sue said…
Great names...t'is a hard job naming a young'un! Be careful about giving Henry too much veto...I did it with Cody...hence Zac is....Zac!
I like most of the girl names...I think girls have better names all round. Clementine was my fave but looks overly long when you see it with the surname...but then again my first name is long too and it hasn't hurt me!
I like the boy ones that Jen likes...maybe Roscoe is one that stands out. Floyd too...but that may be coz I love Pink Floyd!??? Cody mentioned he likes the name Wolfgang...nice if you like Mozart...or Van Halen.
Good luck...
10 March 2008 at 20:42
Juneau Alaska Photos said…
Naming our little ones can be such a challenge. There's so many choices. Here are two ideas.

Girl:
Anja Grace McCracken
Boy:
Ezra Lars McCracken

I'm sure you and your wife will think of the perfect name. You did a fine job with Henry. He has such handsome, blue eyes.

Gwyn
11 March 2008 at 15:56
Political Umpire said…
Think how tricky it was for Mrs Ump and myself, being of two different cultures we had to try and hit down the middle. Chose a one syllable name for the first one and made up our own for the second.
11 March 2008 at 22:51
Kris McCracken said…
Ump, it must be really hard balancing that conundrum!
12 March 2008 at 06:03
Anonymous said…
FLOYD?????!
Stella is great but guessing Stella Fitgerald is not really a good idea...
20 March 2008 at 20:31
Kris McCracken said…
Why yes Anonymous (if that is your real name), Floyd is on the list. It is a fine name.
21 March 2008 at 07:50
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