Welcome Ezekiel MatthewUPDATE: We went with Ezekiel “Zeke” Matthew. I was almost sold on Conrad, but my husband really, really wanted Zeke and talked me into it. I’m really glad, and it helped hearing how much others liked it, too. Thanks to everyone!

Macy writes:

We have two boys, Theodore James and Oliver Michael. We call Theodore just Theo 99% of the time. Oliver is Ollie and Oliver equal amounts in our house, but Oliver everywhere else (so far). James and Michael were just names we thought flowed with their first names.

Our third and final baby will be here soon. If it was a girl, I had a list of names to use: Marigold, Elinor, Caroline, Hadley, Cecilia. A little all over the place, maybe, but a long list.

But it’s a boy!  Oliver was the only thing we could agree on for our second son. I really wanted Everett. I don’t think we can have Oliver and Everett, so that leaves us with four names.

  • Ezekiel “Zeke” – my husband’s favorite, but our last name sounds like Lawrence and I don’t really like the way the L sounds run together. We have it with Oliver’s middle name already, but it’s only his middle, so it’s not so bad. I do like Zeke a lot, and agree it needs a “real” name.
  • Matthew – I want to love this name, but I feel like it’s kind of boring. (Sorry to all the Matts out there!! But we just know so many.) Still, we definitely agree on it, and it’s always been kind of near the bottom of our list.
  • Conrad – a new name on the list, and yes, it’s from The Summer I Turned Pretty. I think we can overlook that, but … will everyone else know?!
  • Frederick – I don’t think I’m brave enough to use this name, even though I love it. And Freddie!! I’m all heart eyes for Freddie! But then Fred is … just not my style at all.

Which one of our names would you choose? Can you suggest anything that we haven’t thought about that goes with Theo and Oliver?

Please read on for my response and leave your thoughtful suggestions in the comments.

Abby replies:

Congratulations on your third son!

I think the tough thing about your third kiddo – especially your third of the same gender – is that you’ve probably used your favorite names already. And, of course, you can’t come too close to your older kids’ names and you just know so many more children. It makes the search even more complicated, right?

Let’s start by talking through your four finalists. It doesn’t feel like you’re in love with any of them, but I think there are two stand-outs.

I’m going to rank them, in this order:

4. MATTHEW

Classic, enduring Matthew is a great choice for a son. But maybe not for your son. Because yes – I feel like Matt is the Bob of a younger generation. Friendly, accessible – and kind of everywhere, too.

3. FREDERICK

What is it about Fred? Even after the engaging Weasley twin wore the name, Fred still feels very Flinstone to me. Or Mr. Rogers. Not a child’s name! But what if Fred could be Freddie forever? That seems plausible, doesn’t it? I mean, I’ve known men who never stopped being Charlie, Danny, Matty, even Joey. Still, it’s a strike against this choice.

2. EZEKIEL “ZEKE”

So I don’t hear the conflict between Ezekiel and sounds-like-Lawrence. Since I don’t know your exact surname, maybe I’m missing it. But it sounds like your son would be Zeke 99% of the time, just like Theodore is pretty much always Theo. And Zeke sounds-like-Lawrence is smashing. Still, I’m ranking this one second instead of first because if you hear a conflict, then no amount of me saying I don’t will really matter, right?

1. CONRAD

I’ve had my eye on Conrad forever as an underused classic. It’s just been waiting for a little nudge. The Summer I Turned Pretty might be exactly what Conrad needed to feel rediscovered once more. Make no mistake – it’s a successful book/series, but it’s not exactly Game of Thrones. Have I seen #TeamConrad and #TeamJeremiah tee shirts? Yes. But I also have a daughter in the YA demographic, so this is far more on my radar than most people. I’m guessing that almost no one will ask if you found the name there … and by the time your Conrad heads to kindergarten? It will be a memory.

Which is a very long way of saying that I’m putting Conrad at #1. It has the same style as Theo and Oliver, and seems like it’s on the precipice of rediscovery – perfection.

Let me add just a few more names, because you did mention fresh ideas:

GRAHAM

Technically, Graham is rising in use – it’s been in the Top 200 since 2014, and is generally moving upward. But it’s slow, steady gains. I think that makes Graham an underused classic, and a strong choice for a son.

JONAH

Joseph is too much like Matthew, right? But Jonah shares some of the style of chart-topping Noah while still feeling a little bit different.

JULIAN

A Top 100 staple, Julian shares the same gentlemanly vibe as Oliver and Theodore.

NATHANIEL “NATE”

Maybe this is too similar to Ezekiel called Zeke? But Nathaniel is maybe a little more mainstream than Ezekiel – a perfect brother name for Oliver and Theodore. And Theo, Oliver, and Nate sound exactly right to my ear.

Overall, I’d keep Conrad and Ezekiel called “Zeke” from your original list, but I’d add Jonah into the mix, and possibly Nathaniel called “Nate” or Graham, too. I just think they sound so good together as brother names, but also hit the sweet spot – still your style, but not nearly as common.

Readers, over to you! What would you name a brother for Theodore “Theo” James and Oliver Michael? What do you think of Matthew, Conrad, Ezekiel “Zeke,” and Frederick?

About Abby Sandel

Whether you're naming a baby, or just all about names, you've come to the right place! Appellation Mountain is a haven for lovers of obscure gems and enduring classics alike.

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18 Comments

  1. From your list, my favorite is Zeke. I also like Everett and Zachary with the sibling names. Other ideas:

    Calvin
    Jude
    Jonathan
    Emmett
    Edmund nn Ned
    Abram nn Bram

  2. My first thought, seeing Elinor and Everett on your lists, is Elliott! I love it with the brother names. And with the surname!

    But I’m not exactly clear on why you can’t use Everett? There are some shared letters with Oliver but the sounds / emphasis are different so I wouldn’t veto it. I say Everett EV-rett and Oliver ALL-uh-ver. No shared sounds to my ear.

    From your list of four, I’d choose Frederick! Freddy is such a British choice with the brother names. And Fritz is adorable.

    I know a lot of Benjamins here and 3/4 have brothers named Oliver (no joke.) Does that appeal?

  3. I don’t have an issue with the ending L in Ezekiel and the beginning L in “Lawrence” especially if you plan to call him Zeke most of the time.

    What about Zechariah (or Zachariah)? Both spellings can lend themselves to Zeke as a nickname. Some people might assume your son’s nickname is Zach, but that’s easily corrected.

    Have you ruled out Ezra? It’s not as close to Zeke as Ezekiel or Zechariah, but maybe you like Ezra on its own.

    Freddie is a great name. I know of a kindergartener named Freddie (short for Frederick). As CA suggested, Fritz could be a nickname for Frederick.

    You might like Wilfred as a formal name that leads to Freddie. Wilfred also shortens to Wil/Will, but Freddie is a great possibility.

    Conrad reminds me of Bye Bye Birdie, but I’m old; most people wouldn’t make that connection.

    I like Simon, but Theodore/Theo with Simon is too close to the Chipmunks characters, imo.

    Best wishes to you!

  4. I also automatically think of Henry when I hear Oliver and Theodore. Others you might like: Albert, Arthur, Edward, Franklin, George, Grant, Gregory, Howard, Hugh or Hugo, Ian, Philip, Victor, Vincent, Warren, Wilson, Winston.

  5. Why can’t you use Everett? I don’t hear any similarity between the two other names and Everett or any sound conflict with the last name or know of any associations. If it’s still a name you like, use that one.

    Conrad would work nicely too, as would Frederick. The nickname is ultimately up to other kids but you could also use Fritz or Rick or some other form of the name, I’ve never heard of “The Summer I Turned Pretty” but I’m not in the right demographic. I have heard of Freddie Krueger and “Nightmare on Elm Street” but I’m guessing that isn’t as big an association anymore. Fred reminds me of the Harry Potter character. I also like Matthew, though I’ve always preferred Matthias, pronounced rge European way as Muh-TEE-us.

  6. We have very similar taste in names! I have a Theodore, and Oliver, Frederick, Eleanor, and Cecilia were all on my list.
    My favorite from your list is Ezekiel, I don’t see a problem with the last name at all. I love that you both love it, and it has a great list. Second is Frederick, I love Freddie, but agree that Fred isn’t my favorite. I think that Freddie will be a very expected nickname, I doubt you’ll have a lot of people defaulting to Fred.
    Go for Ezekiel or Frederick! Either of those are fantastic.
    Next is Conrad, I just don’t love the name, but I don’t know anything about the book. It also feels very different to me than Theo and Oliver. My least favorite is Matthew, it’s a nice name, but yes, a bit boring.
    Other suggestions:
    Samuel
    Sebastian
    Charles
    Henry
    Bernard
    Wesley
    Elliott

  7. Three brothers – how wonderful!!

    I really love Nathaniel! I think Benjamin or Jonathan would be great with Theo and Oliver as well.