Naming a baby is something that, for most parents, involves a lot of deliberation. If you’ve always known what you wanted to name your kids and your partner agrees, amazing! But for the vast majority of families, you’ll go back and forth countless times debating which names are in, out, kind-of-in-but-we-hate-the-nickname… you get it. As parenting editors, we cover a ton of baby name trends. Here are the baby names we loved but didn’t use (and why). Who knows? Maybe your baby’s perfect moniker is somewhere in this list.
When my husband and I were expecting our first child, I brought him the list of baby names I kept in my notes app, slowly adding to it over the years (we all do this, right?). I said each one aloud, and he let me know whether he liked it while I jokingly broke down the list into categories: yes, maybe, no, and even one hell no (sorry Julian). With the backlog handled, we dove into some research together and, after a few months of chatting it through, we landed on Cooper. We loved the sound of it. It was unique enough that we’d never met a kid with that name, but familiar enough that no one would have a hard time pronouncing or spelling it. It was just… the one. And for every perfect “one,” there are a lot of really good names that came very close to being the one. So, here are the baby names we loved but just never got to use, ripe for the picking.
01Alfred
I was desperate to name a son Alfred (after a great-uncle who died at age 11) and call him Alfie, but my husband was very much like, “You’re not giving birth to a 95-year-old British man, no.” It’s still my favorite boy name. — Samantha Darby, Senior Editor, Lifestyle
02Aurelia
I love ancient Roman names, and this one means “golden one” in Latin, which sets you up for the fun nickname Goldie. I love that it’s as pretty as names like Amelia and Ava, but less common. — Sarah Aswell, Deputy Editor, News & Social
03Austin
If we had a little girl, we planned to name her Austin. It’s my husband’s middle name, and we thought it’d feel cool on a little girl (who I fully intended to nickname Ozzie). We just so happened to have a boy instead, so alas, no baby Ozzie for me. Sometimes I still wonder what it would be like if we had named our son Austin, nearly four years later. — Katie McPherson, Associate Editor, Lifestyle
04Beryl
I love this old-fashioned British name — especially because one of my heroes, adventurer Beryl Markham, shares the moniker. This was so close to being my younger daughter’s name, but we finally just couldn’t get past how it sounds like barrel, the object. So, it’s her middle name. — Sarah Aswell, Deputy Editor, News & Social
05Elliott
I would have named my son Elliott, no questions asked, if my husband had liked it too. We just didn’t agree on this one, but thats OK. The name we went with is a much better fit for our boy. — Katie McPherson, Associate Editor, Lifestyle
06Eloise
I love Eloise so much. It has such a great literary quality and also sounds so sweet and spunky for a little girl. My husband just wasn’t a fan (even though he loved Louisa), but all three of my daughters are obsessed with the Eloise books so we at least get to hear it a lot. — Samantha Darby, Senior Editor, Lifestyle
07Lawrence
I love the sound of this name. Yes, the nickname Larry is awful, but this baby boy would have gone by Laurie (I see you Little Women lovers nodding!). Alas, we had two girls. — Sarah Aswell, Deputy Editor, News & Social
08Lake
I love this name for any gender, but especially a boy. It has the classic feel of Blake, but it’s way less common and a little nature-y and crunchy. Sadly, my husband said, “What the hell are you thinking?” — Sarah Aswell, Deputy Editor, News & Social
09Louisa
Louisa was a top contender for us with our third daughter, but in the end, we already had a Lucy and thought they sounded too similar to each other. It’s so traditional and lovely, but feels unique and fun. — Samantha Darby, Senior Editor, Lifestyle
10Lucinda
This was a runner-up for my kid’s name, but when she arrived, we decided the other option fit better. I always liked it, though, and it shortens nicely to Lucy. Plus, it’s a good “you’re in big trouble now, Buster” type of name shouted across a yard. — Kelly Faircloth, Executive Editor
11Nora
If we had had a little girl, I wanted to name her Nora. My mom’s dear friend was named Nora, and she never got to meet my kids. Plus, I love how old fashioned yet modern it is. — Kate Auletta, Editor-in-Chief
12Perry
Another cool girl name, because apparently they’re my weakness. If we’d had a daughter, we definitely would have gone with Austin for her name, but Perry was in the running for a while, too. — Katie McPherson, Associate Editor, Lifestyle
13Remi
I’ve always loved the name Remi for a girl. It feels feminine, a little spunky, kind of unisex — it just has it all. We had a son and a different name won out in the boy column, but I think we need a major resurgence of Remis in the world. — Katie McPherson, Associate Editor, Lifestyle
14Ripley
Why wouldn’t I name my child after the kickass protagonist from the Alien franchise? Ripley’s one of my all-time favorite characters, and I love the name, too. Unfortunately, I had already named a cat Ripley, and my husband did not want us naming our child after a dead cat. Go figure. — Sarah Aswell, Deputy Editor, News & Social
15Sassafras
This was only ever going to be a middle name, but I fully believe middle names can and should be absolutely absurd. Sassafras is a name with a ton of personality and also happens to be the name of my childhood cat. My husband vetoed. — Jamie Kenney, Associate Editor, News & Entertainment
16Sawyer
Between this being a family name and the utter chokehold The Adventures of Tom Sawyer had on me when I was growing up, it felt like a no-brainer. In fact, going into our first ultrasound, we’d agreed upon Sawyer for a girl. But when we actually found out we were having a girl, my husband said it just didn’t feel like it fit. — Julie Sprankles, Deputy Editor, Lifestyle
17Sutphin
This was my Dutch grandmother’s maiden name, and I thought it sounded super cool and androgynous and interesting. My husband did not. In fact, I think my entire family had feelings about it, but I still think it would have been a solid name with the cute built-in nickname of Phin or Finn. — Julie Sprankles, Deputy Editor, Lifestyle
18Sway
Maybe it was because MTV veejay Sway Calloway was a fixture during my formative years, but I formed a serious attachment to this name. Realistically, it probably would have been a serious contender for a third child if we’d had one. — Julie Sprankles, Deputy Editor, Lifestyle
19Theon
Is this the name of one of Game of Thrones‘ most obnoxious villains? Yes. But it’s also 1. a real name (with roots in Greek and Old French), and 2. so, so cool. Again, my husband vetoed. — Jamie Kenney, Associate Editor, News & Entertainment
20Wilder
If we had a third child, this gender-neutral name was locked and loaded. We ultimately decided to stop at two, and I low-key wish I would have used it for one of my kids because I still love it that much. — Julie Sprankles, Deputy Editor, Lifestyle
When it comes to naming a baby, you’ll probably have a list of names you considered that you look back on wistfully from time to time. But no doubt the name you pick will be perfect for your little one.
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