Name Help is a series at Appellation Mountain. Every week, one reader’s name questions will be discussed. We’re relying on thoughtful comments from the community to help expectant parents narrow down their name decisions. Thank you in advance for sharing your insight! To have your question considered, email appmtn (at) gmail. Looking for your own private #namehelp post? Order one here.
WE KNOW WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR …
Carrie writes:
We named our daughter Evangeline Mae. Everything about her name is perfect. It’s long, traditional, but not something you hear all the time. We mostly call her Evie, but I like that she has choices in the future. We just watched The Princess and the Frog for the first time, and she loved that there’s a song about her name in it.
Our second baby will be here in April. It’s a boy, and we’re so excited, but it feels like no name is as right as Evie’s name.
Names we have considered but probably won’t be using:
- Theodore/Theo – Would’ve been Evie name if she was a boy, but my sister-in-law named her son Theo, so it’s out.
- Sebastian – We don’t really like Seb/Sebby as a nickname, and I don’t like the idea of Ian, either.
- Maxwell/Max – I like this a lot, but our last name sounds like Minor, and my husband dislikes M names for that reason. (Max Minor sounds like a cartoon villain.)
- Oliver/Ollie – Maybe, but I don’t really like the -R sounds at the end of Oliver/our last name. Ollie doesn’t sound like a grown-up name.
- Charles/Charlie – Maybe, but my in-laws had a dog named Charlie and I think it would be weird. I like Charlie much, much more than Charles, so I don’t think using another nickname for Charles makes sense, either.
- Anthony – But we don’t like Tony.
- Ezekiel/Zeke – We’re not religious, so this just seems like it’s not right for us, and I don’t know about another E name. (I do love the way Evie and Zeke sound together!)
It’s so different than naming Evie, I’m not sure where we’re going wrong!
The one thing we agree on is that we’ll probably use the middle name James, which is my husband’s middle name and his dad’s name, and also my dad’s name.
Please read on for my response and leave your thoughtful suggestions in the comments.
LET’S START WITH WHAT WE KNOW
Abby replies:
Congratulations on your new son!
Nearly everything in parenting gets easier with experience. Naming is the exception.
Because our firstborn’s name sets some expectations and often establishes a pattern or set of criteria we want to repeat. It’s not a blank slate any more, which means we have a different set of choices – and that can be frustrating!
I think it helps to define what you’re looking for, but also to recognize that you’re free to deviate from this list. It’s a broad description, not a set of requirements.
- A longer formal name, probably three syllables or more
- An easy, obvious nickname that works for a child or an adult
- No M names
- Nothing too similar to Evangeline/Evie
- Nothing too religious
- Probably nothing too popular, or at least nothing shared by a family member (including the four-legged ones)
- Ideally, it will work with the middle name James
We can work with this!
But first, I want to go back to your original list, and talk about Ezekiel/Zeke.
Or maybe religious names in general.
A great many names have filtered into use because they’re associated with saints or taken from the Bible. That’s partially about belief, of course. But it also reflects the ways we had to know about names before the internet. Or, y’know, books.
In general, popular Old Testament names are not likely to be perceived as religious, unless they are rare.
I don’t expect Jacob, Noah, or Isaiah to come from a particularly religious family. Obadiah, on the other hand? That might cross my mind.
Because Ezekiel ranks in the current US Top 100, I think it’s very much a mainstream, not-religious choice. And Zeke? It’s this generation’s Zach … also a Biblical name, but never perceived as one.
And I agree that Evie and Zeke are perfect together. Evangeline Mae and Ezekiel James.
I think it’s the name to beat.
But let’s look at some more options.
A BROTHER FOR EVIE
ALEXANDER/ALEX
I’m wondering if you consider Alexander too popular? It’s absolutely been around, ranking as high as the US Top Ten a dozen years ago. But if it just so happens that you don’t know an Alex or three already, I feel like this an obvious name to go with Evie.
CAMERON/CAM
I love the way Cameron feels traditional, but not really old school. Cam is friendly and upbeat, and a nice balance with Evie.
GABRIEL/GABE
Another one of these yes-it’s-from-the-Bible, but-no-I-don’t-hear-it-as-religious names. Friendly and high-energy.
LEONEL/LEO
I feel like Leo is a logical add to your list, if it’s not too weird to have Leo and Theo in the family? That’s your call. The issue I see if finding a longer name for Leo. Leonardo is an obvious choice, but it doesn’t quite feel like the names on your list. And Leonard might be too antique? I’ll suggests Leonel. It’s the Spanish form of Lionel, but I think this spelling is rising for parents who want an obvious nickname built-in. I also like Lionel called Leo. (If it works for soccer star Leo Messi, why not for our sons, too?)
NATHANIEL/NATE
Like Alexander, this name had a good run a few years ago – but it never was quite as popular. Nate doesn’t have a Disney song, but does have the long-running Nate the Great book series, about a boy detective.
RAPHAEL/RAFE
A traditional name rising in use in recent years, I like Raphael/Rafe as an alternative to favorites like Sebastian/Seb and Gabriel/Gabe.
WESLEY/WES
While Wesley is a little shorter, it works nicely with your surname and your list of criteria.
ZACHARY/ZACH
If you love Zeke, but can’t come around to Ezekiel … would Zachary called Zach (or Zack or Zac) appeal? While I’m definitely meeting dads named Zach now, it’s a rock solid choice that would wear well for a boy born in 2025, too.
Overall, I’m still pulling for Ezekiel. But if it just doesn’t feel like The Name, I’m going to put Alexander next on the list. It’s a little longer, so I think it works well with your surname. (Unlike Oliver.) And Alex is an easy, obvious nickname that grows up nicely. And if you just happen to already know an Alex or two? Nathaniel called Nate gets my vote.
Evangeline & Frederick “Fred” or “Freddie”
Evangeline & Harrison “Harry”
Evangeline & Augustus “Gus”
Evangeline & Dashiell “Dash”
Evangeline & Winston “Win”
Evangeline & Bennett ” Ben”
If you love Sebastian, you could use Baz or Bash as nicknames too โค๏ธ
Evangeline Mae is lovely.
I like Abbyโs suggestion of Nathaniel/Nathanial/Nathanael.
Evangeline and Nathaniel
Evie and Nate
I also like the previously suggested Ignatius
Evangeline and Ignatius
Evie and Iggy or Evie and Gus
I know you plan on using James as a middle name, what about Jameson as a first name instead? Can be James or Jamie or Jim or Jimmy or Sonny or Jem
I will include my little nephewโs name here too. It is a little shorter, but I love it and maybe it will work for you.
What about Casper James?
Casper & Evangeline.
Just a suggestion!
Zachary or Zachariah “Zach” was my first thought! Zachary James sounds great with Evangeline Mae.
I agree with Abby that, on its own, Ezekiel doesn’t automatically read religious to me. However, since Evangeline has a religious meaning (i.e. “gospel”), I probably would assume that a family with kids named Evangeline and Ezekiel would be regular church-goers.
Other possibilities:
Aurelian “Ari”
Benjamin “Ben” or “Benji”
Dominic “Dom” or “Nic”
Gregory “Greg” or “Rory”
Ignatius “Iggy”
Isaac “Ike”
Isaiah
Julian “Jules”
Matteo “Matt”
Nicholas “Nick” or “Nico”
Timothy “Tim”, “Timmy”, or “Timo”
Augustus!
I love Abby’s suggestion of Nathaniel. It is perfect!!
I love the suggestions of Caspian and Edmund.
Some other possibilities I haven’t seen yet:
Evangeline and Leander
Evangeline and Lysander
Evangeline and Alistair
Evangeline and Ambrose
If nicknames are super important, Leander could be Leo or Andy or Anders, and Alistair could be Al or AJ (assuming you go with James for the middle.)
My favorite is probably Alistair James.
What about Jameson nn Mason?
Benedict
Dominic
Xavier
Geoffrey
Oh love the idea of Jameson called Mason!