Baby Name Debate

Tips to Pick The Right Name for Your Newborn

By
Relationship Advice Expert April Masini

Q: Dear April Masini,

My husband and I are having our first child, due next month. We are of course thrilled to bring our daughter into the world and raise her in our family, but we cannot decide on a name for the life of us. It's getting to the point where we are fighting about a name when we should be celebrating this new life. Any tips for finding a special but not bizarre name?

Sincerely,

No Name 

A:

Dear No Name,  

The trick to naming a baby is overcoming any disagreement. When both parties agree, there's never a problem. It's when they can't agree that what should be a joyful endeavor becomes fraught with stress. 

Ways to name a baby:

* Name the baby after a relative. Choose the exact name or use the first initial of a deceased relative to pick a name for baby. Combine the name of one deceased relative from each side of the family for a first and middle name for the baby. 

* Decide if you want classic/traditional names or contemporary names. If you can't agree, give the baby a classic/traditional first or middle name, and give the baby a contemporary first or middle name so he or she has one of each. 

* Don't split the baby down the middle. Let one parent name the first baby (I always suggest ladies first), and let the other parent name the second baby. 

Names tell a lot about where a person comes from. Historically, names signified ownership -- slavery, marriage, children, etc. Names also were clues as to where a person lived. Over time, evolution has changed names. The options seem greater than ever, and still tell a great deal about a person. 

People who choose traditional names like Jane and Michael, or Biblical names like David and Mary, have a tendency to live more traditional lives -- although this is not always true of their offspring, the babies they've named!

People who choose contemporary or trendy names like Montana, Dakota, Sienna -- colors, places tend to be whimsical and think outside the box.  

People who choose to give their children the mother's maiden name, or a hyphenate last name that includes the mother's and father's last names if the mother kept her maiden name, show more old-fashioned sensibility by using a name to show lineage. These people are rooted in tradition, but live in a contemporary world.

April Masini -- nicknamed "the new millennium's Dear Abby" by the media, is author of the best-selling books Date Out Of Your League and Think & Date Like A Man, the two (just released) step-by-step dating and relationship manuals, Ideas for a Fun Date and Romantic Date Ideas, and the critically acclaimed dating and relationship online magazine www.AskApril.com.

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