Officially Team Blue!! But gosh, a girl would have been easier to name :)

[twilighter]

I prefer Luke to the variations of Lucas and Luc... though those are nice, there's a reason Luke is more common: it's such a strong, awesome guy name, and very timeless. It's in the top 50 in the US barely, but if you love a name, I don't get worried about names being too common until they're in the top 10 or so.

[twilighter]

Nathaniel - Nice name. Inevitably will be called Nathan.
Patrick - Nice name, but yes, connected to Ireland.
Cedric - It's okay. Yes, a little nerdy perhaps, and also seems more popular with African-Americans.
Luke - Love it. Great guy name. Yes, a little common, but not too much so in my opinion.
Timothy - Another nice one, but I agree, don't like the nickname Tim.
Gabriel - A good name. I like it. Nickname isn't bad either.
Heath - Nice name.
Ian - Nice name, a little common too though.
Jacob - Great name but it's become WAY too common unfortunately.
Wes - Great name, but also becoming quite popular. I like Wesley as the full name and Wes as the nickname.
Logan - It's a nice name, but seems a little trendy, like it may be dated later.

Of your list, I like Luke first, Gabriel next, then Wes.

Edit: I just looked up Gabriel. It's become more popular than Luke in the US! Check the recent surge in the popularity graph. Who would have thought. Still really like it though.

[phillipswife]

Thank you everyone so much! Definitely food for thought. A few responses (I've been having a hard time posting for some reason - posts are not appearing):

1. I agree that Luke is a strong name, and it is my preferred version. Good point regarding that it's only barely in the Top 50 and that Gabriel has surpassed it. I DO know a little Luke locally (say that three times fast!), so it makes me pause, but he isn't family or anything so the association probably shouldn't play too much into our decision.

2. I appreciate the feedback on Nathaniel's possible nn's, but I don't think Nathaniel will automatically default to Nathan for two reasons: 1. We'll likely call him "Nate" (so folks will already have that option) or insist on the full name. I have a nephew named Jeremiah. At age 7, he has never been called "Jerry" or "Jeremy" - ever! So folks seem to be respecting full names more these days. I also think this nn has not occurred b/c the syllables are emphasized differently in Jeremiah/Jeremy, Nathan/Nathaniel, so it takes a little effort to make the switch.

3. I agree that Wes is really a nn. Thus far, we've been unable to find a full name we agree on, so it may get nixed for this reason. I do love the nn though!

4. I think I am officially going to nix Logan. I agree with the assessment that it's a bit too trendy and will sound dated. If I had to choose, Luke is a superior "L" name. I am just not "in love" with it anyway like I used to be!

5. Jacob will likely get nixed because yes, it really is so popular. Sigh.

6. Patrick is by far Dh's favorite. We haven't decided yet, but there is a sweet family association with this name even though Dh's family is not even slightly Irish lol. So maybe it could still work.

7. It's awesome to see so much support for Cedric! I didn't expect that.

[phillipswife]

p.s. I love a lot of your additional suggestions too!! Thank you! Dh and I have such a hard time finding a name we BOTH like, sigh, but the suggestions help a lot (at the very least, it reminds me to run by every possible name I like to hear him officially say "nay" so I can know for sure it's off the table lol).

[phillipswife]

I'm going to throw a weird one into the mix: Inigo. It's one of my favourites but I don't know if I'd be brave enough to use it.

Wow, you learn something every day! I had never heard of this name, and Ignatius is actually a family name on our Polish side (you single-handedly combined my Polish side and his Spanish side lol). I will run it by him!

[hopefuldream13]

Vote for Patrick James. Love it, not too Irish at all!

[hlplatt23]

LOVE Cedric!

[eskay]

Wow, you learn something every day! I had never heard of this name, and Ignatius is actually a family name on our Polish side (you single-handedly combined my Polish side and his Spanish side lol). I will run it by him!

Yay! We have a mysterious Ignatius in our family history. We know where his grave is, and my grandmother remembers him being mentioned by her aunts a few times, but we just can't work out who he was and how he was related! No records! Inigo seems so much more wearable to me than Ignatius, and I like that it has a history of use in England (which is where I am from).

[athoma3594]

How about Theodore? Nn Theo? Or Ted? I adore Nathaniel and Cedric as well.

[principessa927]

What about Zachary or Bradley? Bradley isn't biblical, but its old English. It might sound nice with your last name.