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Thanks again to everyone who sent in baby names a few weeks ago for our son. He was born Monday, early in the morning, and is happy and healthy! But guess what? We still haven’t figured out his name. We thought we had it, but then when we met him, we were forced to rethink. So it’s not back to the drawing board, but it is back to the rethink-tank.
Max is a frontrunner right now. Max Israel - sorta “then and now” at the same time. If he turns out to be a quantum mechanics expert, Maxwell works. If he winds up being the CEO of the next big technology company or even concertmaster for the New York Phil, Maximilian works. If he winds up being the bat-boy for the Phillies, well there again, Max works, no?
For now, we call him Baby Israel and he just loves mental_floss and thanks you all for helping with the names. He told me to tell you. Honestly. [Middle names being considered: Nathan, Jack, Henry, Charlie, Milo.]
Any Maxes out there who feel like they’ve been saddled with the most unfortunate name this side of Fielding Mellish? Any Maxes love their names? Anyone have a variation on the Max theme they want to offer?
Comments (35)
Comment
Congratulations! He is beautiful! I think Max is a fine name.
posted by Miss Cellania on 8-8-2007 at 5:47 am
he IS beautiful!
i’ve always hated the name max, though :( max and sebastian and cornelius. ughh… they make my skin crawl. sorry :(
posted by katie on 8-8-2007 at 6:25 am
CONGRATS!!!
posted by Mangesh on 8-8-2007 at 6:38 am
Congrats on the new rugrat — he looks good!
I like the name Max, but it is starting to get a little trendy/overused… ala Jacob, Joshua, Emily (all good names, but WAY too popular right now) But kudos on staying away from those horrid Aiden/Brayden/Caiden variants. Whose idea were those?
If you do go with Max, please check the spelling of the variant you choose — “Maximilian” is how it is spelled, not “Maximilion”!
My final advice is to go to the US gov’t site www.ssa.gov/OACT/babynames/ and pick a *real* name, but not one that has been in the top 10 for at least 10 years. Nothing is sillier than the kid being in school with 7 other Jacobs in his class.
Congrats again!
posted by Sid Morrison on 8-8-2007 at 6:51 am
Max is a great name (the butler from Hart to Hart nonwithstanding). And if he one day chooses to lead a revolt he could be Maximus. :)
posted by Wes on 8-8-2007 at 6:53 am
I am a Max (have been ever since 1987, when I legally changed my name to match a nickname I hade been called for years).
Although the current wave of popularity sort of dispels this feeling, I have thought for years that it’s a good modern AND retro name. My grandparents had friends named Max, and Max Rockatansky WAS Mad Max.
That said, here’s a variation for you to consider: Magnus. It’s the Nordic equivalent of Max; it’s not as common, but still lends itself easily to the nickname Max should the need arise; and it’s the name of the greatest World’s Strongest Man competitor of all time: Magnus ver Magnusson!
By the way, my choice for his name would be Pleasant Agamemnon. I appear to be the only one who likes that name, however, so I don’t expect to read in the future that Pleasant Agamemnon Israel ever broke the all time MLB home run record.
posted by MAX on 8-8-2007 at 7:12 am
Congratulations on a beautiful, healthy baby! AS the Mother of 3 I can tell you - it almost doesn’t matter what you name him as long as it feels right.
posted by JaneM on 8-8-2007 at 8:14 am
some great ideas/feedback here. and, yes, of course, maximilian. i’ll keep you posted!
posted by David on 8-8-2007 at 8:44 am
Can I be the only one who saw “feel smart again” on his shirt after reading the comments and thought of Maxwell Smart?
I wouldn’t even tell my extended family the names we considered for my kids ahead of time (you can never please everyone). Pick whatever feels right to you.
Mostly - CONGRATULATIONS - he’s gorgeous!
posted by Betsy on 8-8-2007 at 8:49 am
I’ve always been partial to Max. If he became a famous painter you could call him Maxfield.
posted by Sally on 8-8-2007 at 8:58 am
Max is a fine name. However, it’s also in the top 10 names for dogs. I had a nickname growing up that was also a popular “dog” name… I don’t use that name anymore.
“Here Max! Who’s a Good Boy?!”
posted by CMH on 8-8-2007 at 9:57 am
Congrats!
I like Max Israel. Kinda sounds like a secret agent name to me…
Or Maximus! But that sounds like the evil villian the secret agent would be fighting. However, it would sound funny if you had to scold him, “Maximus! Stop pestering the dog!”
I don’t like Maximilian… it makes me think of the evil robot from The Black Hole… and Maxwell makes me think of coffee…
Once again, congratulations!
posted by Jason! on 8-8-2007 at 10:05 am
When I was pregnant, I had the feeling (as most women do) that my son was enormous! (And, I’m only 4′10″). So I had jokingly started referring to him as Magnus Morpheus and envisioned him speaking only in the third person. I’m only posting this because you’re asking for opinions, but my vote on ‘Magnus’ is no. Overall, however, I think Max is a good name and I really like the previous poster’s suggestion of ‘Maxfield’.
posted by caitlen on 8-8-2007 at 10:10 am
Most importantly - congratulations! He truly is adorable!
posted by caitlen on 8-8-2007 at 10:11 am
He’s soooooo cute!
I’d like to log my vote for Maxfield. Unique but not odd…
posted by natlynn on 8-8-2007 at 10:18 am
I’m guessing “Spartacus” is right out, eh?
Could you imaging his first day in Kindergarten stating “I am Spartacus!” and the kid next to him says “No! I am Spartacus!”
Well, it was funny in my head anyways…
Perhaps Maximilian Spartacus?
=)
posted by Ed Hands on 8-8-2007 at 10:22 am
How about Jackson. You can call him Jax (similar to Max) or Jack, Jackie, Jackson.
I wanted Max too, but then my sister the animal trainer told me it was a dog name.
I went with Lincoln instead. :)
posted by Karen on 8-8-2007 at 10:39 am
I used to have a regular customer who’s full name was “Max Slaughter”. He was a contractor, but had seemingly missed his real calling as a comic book villian.
posted by Melissa on 8-8-2007 at 10:42 am
Mazel tov on the cute little boy.
How ’bout Eric (unless I can con you into Eretz?)
(I’m Jewish but my wife of 2 decades is LDS. Our 1-and-only daughter is Elizabeth but has been “Beth” except in formal occasions. Everyone gets what they want :-D Beth is 22 now)
posted by Howie Modell on 8-8-2007 at 11:02 am
I can’t believe I missed the post last month. I’m a bit of an onomastician (or, “name nerd”), so I could have gladly given some advice.
Max is nice, but as someone upthread indicated, it’s a popular name for dogs. I’m not sure where the impression that it’s currently popular came from. The highest ranking for any “Max” name on the current SSA list is 149 or so. Not exactly a top ten name. My son (one of the 4200 or so Victors born last year) has a name (at #104) that’s unusual enough that people often comment they never hear it any more.
The biggest problem with “Max” is that it’s pretty nickname-y. He’ll spend a lot more time being an adult than a little kid, and he may want a full name. The same goes for Charlie. Especially Charlie. Jack can stand alone. Max almost can. Charlie? Is a little boy or a bookie. Or a tuna.
I’m not sure what a “Maxfield” is. It sounds like a place name or like something misunderstood what you were trying to say.
My vote would be Maxim. Legitimate, nice sounding, and fitting for the child of a pro-Flosser.
posted by Amanda on 8-8-2007 at 12:05 pm
Oh, and by the way, congratulations on your beautiful boy!
posted by Amanda on 8-8-2007 at 12:06 pm
Hey, congratulations! I have no pertinent Max-Facts(tm) but, dude, baby++!
posted by Higgins on 8-8-2007 at 12:13 pm
My brother was almost named Maxfield after the painter Maxfield Parrish.
Also, adorable baby! He’s sooo cute.
posted by Sally on 8-8-2007 at 1:21 pm
We have a two-year-old named Max. It feels great to say in many different circumstances and accomodates many different tones of voice (loving, impatient, anxious, etc.). Just one note: if you want to give him a longer name (Maxwell, Maxfield, etc.) it will be slightly more complicated when he starts school and begins writing his own name. He’s going to go by Max anyway, why muddy the waters?
posted by Red on 8-8-2007 at 1:59 pm
cute little guy! i just stumbled my way into this site… and can’t resist suggesting ‘Macs’ :D
posted by rhetorissa on 8-8-2007 at 2:24 pm
I work with a guy named Maximo. And no, Max is not a name just for pets- my grandmother was named Maxine.
BTW, our cats are Bill and Jake!
posted by schala00neg on 8-8-2007 at 7:36 pm
I once knew a marvelous Israeli named Maxim. No one dreamed of calling him Max–he was Maxim.
posted by Barbara on 8-8-2007 at 7:53 pm
Congratulations on the nerdspawn, he’s gorgeous!
And I think that Max Israel sounds great.
posted by heather on 8-8-2007 at 11:41 pm
Congrats!!!
posted by Tdave on 8-9-2007 at 12:38 am
Congrats! Handsome man-cub you got thar!
Ain’t it grand to have a newborn around? (say goodbye to a full night’s sleep for a while though. ;o) My youngest is now 8 (and my eldest will be 20 this year - wow did that go fast!) and full of whatever it is that 8 year olds are full of, and I miss the baby days sometimes.
Max Israel sounds fine, but I still think David would be more fitting.
And don’t feel badly about taking your time with giving him a name; when my daughter was born it took us four days to figure out what to name her. A good friend of ours got frustrated with us & named her “Winnie” (after the Pooh); she didn’t end up with that name, but it did stick as a nickname. It still gets pulled out on occasion (mostly when Auntie Jan visits.)
posted by Dave on 8-9-2007 at 9:32 am
That’s a cute picture of a sweet baby :)
I just asked my kids if the boy at school named Max has any negative nick-names and they both said no. So that is good to know. I guess the teacher calls him by his given name Maxwell in class. Maybe you can name him Max and let _him_ choose to add a more mature name when he is an adult? Maybe the Field or Well as his middle name? Trust me I’ve heard of stranger things. I had one friend who insisted we call her newborn babies Warren and Mitchell, it just sounded funny? Our family Dr.’s son is named Max(Maximilian)my son was born a few days later at the same hospital. When I told him our son was Kent he said that was a strong name too.
Sometimes you just need to spend some time with the baby to make sure the name “fits”
posted by CropTillDawn on 8-9-2007 at 10:11 am
Mazel tov! And I’ll pretend I’m not hurt that this is how I found out. :P
posted by Hilary on 8-9-2007 at 11:54 am
Congratulations! He definitely is a beautiful baby.
I failed to participate in the name discussion before, but seen as it’s kind of still going now, here my thoughts:
I like Maximilian. So my vote is on that one. I do think it needs a good strong middle name though (I don’t have a middle name, and I kind of always wanted one, because it’s that special name that you don’t immediately tell people, and it can be something to be proud of, something with a meaning.)
So I’d suggest to think about people who are important to you, who have influenced you in any significantly good way, who you admire for who they are, what they’ve done… It could be a relative, a friend, or some famous/historically important person, or whatever, but I think it should have some kind of meaning..
Maybe I’m just too romantic…
Pick whatever feels good.
In my experience you automatically love the name if the person is great and lovable. So with this awesomely cute boy, any name will be perfect :)
posted by Anne on 8-9-2007 at 2:58 pm
Yey! Nathan was my suggestion, glad you are considering it for a middle name! Also, YEY BABIES!
posted by soops on 8-10-2007 at 1:45 am
Henry would make a fine middle name as it is my first and I’ve had nothing but good luck with it. It is uncommon as well. I’ve always had a thing for wanting to give my first born son the middle name Tiberius however.
posted by Henry Reed on 8-12-2007 at 11:08 pm