A Question about Unisex Names...

[ashthedreamer]

I've seen the argument made on here that once you give a daughter a unisex name (like Riley or Emerson or whatever), that you should keep with that pattern so the first daughter (or second, whatever) doesn't feel left out. I support the idea fully, actually--I have a unisex name and my sisters do not, and I've always wished I had a name like Rachel, Eleanor, Annabel, Lily, Grace, etc. that was 100% girly.

I was thinking about that today, and how I love unisex names for boys... Should this rule also apply to boys, then? I've never really considered this as most of my unisex favorites are originally boys' names, so I thought having siblings like Caleb and Avery would be fine. They're both boys' names, imo, and Avery still ranks high for boys despite its popularity for girls. Besides, it's a family name for me so it's high on my list regardless.

But if I have an Avery, do you think I should continue that, with choices like Emerson, Bailey, Riley, Morgan, Addison, Harper, etc.? Do you think he'd feel left out if his brothers were Caleb, Everett, Jack, Asher, Grayson, etc., which are 100% masculine, imo?

The problem isn't that I don't have the guts to use a unisex name, because I totally would if I loved the name enough, but since I had a unisex name and hated that I felt left out, I've always vowed I wouldn't do that to my daughters. It just now hit me that my sons could potentially feel the same way if I gave one a unisex name but not the others. Anyway, it was just an idea that hit me this morning and I was curious what others thought.

Thanks, ladies!

[consultantmeghan]

Hmmm... I never thought about this before. To me, names are names. Unisex names are either boy or girl to me, minus a few exceptions such as Avery. I personally don't think it matters if you use unisex and non unisex names in a sibset. I guess, since you felt left out because of your name, having similar style names may be more important to you. Either way, I think most people don't necessarily pay too much attention to the types of names in a sibset.

[lucialucentum]

I definitely don't think you need to use another unisex (which I see as 'boy-name-on-girl' when on a girl, and just 'boy name' when on a boy) if you name your son something like Avery.
Avery & Caleb go well together. Avery and Morgan go fantastically. Avery & Harper... too trendy for me, to be honest. I'm not sure if a guy named Avery would feel left out if he had brothers named Paul & John or something. To me, Avery is especially handsome in that instance.
I know a guy named Garnet and his twin brother is named Trevor... I think it'd fine. Mismatched in style, but it's not just a gender thing. I don't think guys really notice or care about this kind of thing as much as girls do.

[gblondie]

No I don't think it carries over to the boys...unfair, but that's the way it is!

[sabrinafair]

No I wouldl ove to see other unisex names on boys more than are being used on girls. But your Avery would be fine I think if his brothers names didn't match. I have Avery on my list for a boy as well [among other unisex ones]. Please use Avery for a boy!

[sadlola]

I don't think you have to use all unisex names for boys. However, I do think it'd be odd if you used a very traditional/old, heavy male name with Avery - like Charles or George (though this is more of a time period name thing to me, as in I see Avery as more of a modern name, so I guess, personally it'd sound weird with old colonial names and such - like I think Edith and Ashlynn would be a weird combination).
I think that Avery and Caleb go well together and Avery and Everett go well together.

[laurenb]

if you had an avery and a caleb, i would assume you had a boy and a girl.


Emerson, Bailey, Riley, Morgan, Addison, Harper = girls names to me.

[ashthedreamer]

if you had an avery and a caleb, i would assume you had a boy and a girl.


Emerson, Bailey, Riley, Morgan, Addison, Harper = girls names to me.

Well, if I had an Isabelle, a Violet, a Caleb, and an Avery, would you still assume Avery was a girl? There are absolutely no unisex names on my girls' list, and since Avery started out on the boys, and it's my great-great-great grandfather's name, so it seems pretty masculine to me.

[catloverd]

Well, if I had an Isabelle, a Violet, a Caleb, and an Avery, would you still assume Avery was a girl? There are absolutely no unisex names on my girls' list, and since Avery started out on the boys, and it's my great-great-great grandfather's name, so it seems pretty masculine to me.

haha, I was just thinking no matter what, I will always think Avery is a girl, so it wouldn't matter if you used unisex or a more masculine name...... to me Avery is a girl, so if you had an Avery and Caleb, Avery will be girl, if you had a Violet, Avery, Caleb, Avery would still be girl to me until I met him or was corrected. I grew up around only girl Averys though so that's why I automatically will assume Avery is a girl until I am told otherwise......

I think if you use a unisex name on a boy, then you should with the next one, I think it works the same as a girls. He or she will feel left out if the others have more masculine/feminine names....

Overall I dislike "unisex" names because I never seen a name truly be "unisex" I guess where I grew up Averys were always girls, Elliots were always boys, Aubreys were always girls, there was never a boy and a girl that had the same name, never.

[essjay]

I think it depends. I mean, I'd quite easily name three sons Ashley, Jordan and Elliot (they didn't cross over much to the girl side in the UK as they did in the States), but then again I'd be just as inclined to go for Daniel, Joshua and Elliot. I don't think it's so much of a case of being 'left out', so to speak, than the overall feel of the names.

With Avery, I wouldn't pair it with anything too classic, and I'd be cautious of what I used for girl names, as I wouldn't want boy Avery to be constantly confused on paper with girl Morgan, say, but boy Avery and boy Morgan would make a nice sibset. Even three boys Avery, Morgan and Caleb would work fine, as Caleb has quite a 'soft' feel to it. Avery, Hunter and Fox, on the other hand, feels a bit mismatched as both Hunter and Fox have a 'harder' feel to the name. I can't quite explain it, but as most of the 'unisex' names have a 'softer' feel, I think even if you don't use all unisex names for boys, you should keep the same 'soft' feel on the boys names so they match better.

And Diana, I agree - where I grew up - Jordan, Ashley, Taylor were 90% boys, and Elliot, Cameron, Rory were 100% boys. To me, they're not unisex at all, but boys names used on girls. Never met an Avery or Aubrey so I can't comment on those, guess they're not popular over here.