mad about Addison!

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-29-2003
mad about Addison!
14
Mon, 02-12-2007 - 1:26pm
Ok, ladies...I'm mad about Addison becoming a popular girls' name. All of a sudden, there are tons of people who want to name their little girls Madison, Addison, Emerson, etc. The others aren't my style, but Addison hits a chord with me because it was my great grandfather's first name and I had thought I might use it as a son's mn (we have a tradition of using family names as mn's). Now, I feel like because all these people watch Grey's Anatomy (I do too) and to be "a little different" from the MILLIONS of moms who chose/are choosing Madison for their daugher (don't get me started!), they are turning to Addision instead. It feels like I can't use it anymore and I feel like that's both a little crazy and a little true. I, after all, want my son's name to have family significance and sound like he comes from a long line of proud southerners and now if I use it, it will just sound like I am jumping on the bandwagon (and using a "girl's name" no less). Gack.

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iVillage Member
Registered: 12-10-2003
Wed, 02-14-2007 - 9:51am
That is really a shame, I agree with you. Addison is a very cool name, but I thought it was a girls name now. And that last thing I would do is go with a gender neutral name for a boy. For a girl it can be cute, for a boy, they will be embarassed. Maybe Im wrong on perception of it being a girls name.
iVillage Member
Registered: 09-11-2004
Wed, 02-14-2007 - 7:21pm

i think you shouldnt be swayed away from using a family name for a mn. i think maybe as

*Anya, mama to 5 darling kiddos*

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iVillage Member
Registered: 10-08-2005
Wed, 02-14-2007 - 8:41pm

I have a DSS whose name is Lucas Cady (pronounced Katie). Cady is a family surname that goes back forever on his mother's side of the family. Now at 14 years old, Lucas hates his middle name. He continually walks around saying "you wanted a girl that's why my middle name is Cady" or "why did you give me a girls name". With that said my DS is 2 and his name is Wyatt Emerson. At the time, we never heard the name Emerson used (nonetheless for a girl)... it has a very strong family significance for us. Listening to my DSS has me concerned that when Wyatt grows up he too will hate his middle name because it's a girls name.

While I agree that you should pick names you like (for whatever reason) for your kids I think there is something to be said for giving a child a name that he/she could be given grief for. You know as well as I do, kids can be terribly mean.

Had I known that Emerson was growing in popularity for girls, I would have never given the name to my son. I still like it but I think there are other names I could have given my son that I would have liked just as much that wouldn't be associated with "girls".

Just my two cents.

Jen



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iVillage Member
Registered: 01-22-2006
Thu, 02-15-2007 - 3:22pm

As a mom who has already selected Addison for our girl's name, I see absolutely no reason you shouldn't use it for your son. Even if Addison becomes a unisex name like Alex or Pat, I doubt it will ever become a full-time girls name. If you look at the trend on babynames.com you'll see it's actually in the top 20 on the BOYS side, not the girls. Besides, I think most people who are selecting the boy-turned-girl (Peyton, Avery, etc) names are intentionally looking for a strong girls name that's not too flowery. The reason we picked it is because while we love the name Abigail nn Abby, it was waaaaaay overused. Addie sounded close to Abby and was a strong name. I actually had no idea so many people liked it until logging onto this board. You are totally in the right to name your son Addison. No one thinks "girl" when they see Peyton Manning? Go for it!

Besides, if our kids are in the same class I don't want you to secretly hate me! :)

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