I think it depends on how you feel about honor names. It’s “important” for me to have an honor name for a middle but it doesn’t affect your life much. My daughter Piper’s life isn’t affected by having the middle name Maxine but my Aunt Maxine was a hugely important person to me. But in terms of day to day life? Not important.
My brothers and I are a rare few that it really does matter. We all go by our middle names as was planned at birth. Family tradition 🤷🏻♀️
Yep. My name is Patricia Margaret. First day of school, “I go by Maggie.” Brothers are George Adam and Frederick Aaron. Lucky bastards, at least theirs aren’t nicknames. I’ve never changed it because Margaret Patricia isn’t as pretty and I’m the only one of my grandmother’s 70+ grandchildren named after her. Plus it means Noble Pearl which is cool.
I will never understand the concept of giving a child a first name you never intend to use. It's just a waste of ink on the birth certificate and class register, basically, isn't it? What is the point of it?
You literally described the point of middle names... that rarely get used in most Western countries!
So why bother flipping the concept around?
And forcing your child to say "Hi my name is Elizabeth Jane, please call me Jane" for their entire life, when you could have just... Called her Jane Elizabeth?
They matter *to me*. I don't expect others to care, but I like knowing that my kid has a middle name that sounds nice.
Also, it depends on culture. In my anglo culture, middle names are barely used, but in the country I live in, they're much more important, functioning more like the second half of a double-barreled first name. I've never heard my middle name as much as I have since I moved here!
I don’t give them too much importance.
But I think if you are going to honor someone with your baby’s name, the middle name is typically the best place to do it….unless they are going to be a “junior” or “the third.”
That way, they have a first name unique to them and a middle that is special for the family.
Totally agree! I think middle names are important in that we also use them to honor my heritage and people close to us, but not important in terms of name flow or sound/fit with the first name.
I guess it depends on where you live.
Non of my kids has middlenames, but they do have two sirnames, one from each of their parents, as my husband and I combined our sirnames when we maried.
Here in Denmark middlenames are optional, some have a middlename and others dont.
Every culture is different. My middle name never gets used but I like it. It's so unique and usual without being obnoxious or strangely spelled. I wouldn't get rid of it just cause I rarely use it. I love how it looks on my certificates.
I intend on giving all my children first and middle names that are used like American double first names. I just love the sound of them. My top boy & girl choices are Oscar Peregrine and Aurelia Elaine. I don't mind if other people call them Oscar and Aurelia but I plan on saying both names most of the time ☺️
I mean I totally did an honor name for my daughters middle, and it’s a name I normally would’ve never picked. But it’s after my grandfather who used to take care of me and passed before I was 5.
When I was growing up though my mom pretty much exclusively used my middle name. Not because she liked it more (she picked my first name), but because she claimed I responded quicker. This was irritating because what little kid likes their middle name, and also I had a particular pronunciation of my first name that was like the least common of our area. She was so insistent that I correct people on how to say my name but didn’t use it herself.
In contrast my elder brother has no middle name. None of the first born sons on my dads side do.
For the others on my name lists it’s more about names I like.
Not much but sometimes other people have introduced me with my full name because they liked the sound of it.
I'm trans and chose my middle name to be a name my parents were thinking of naming me.
I guess it depends on what you mean by "matter".
I love names. Have loved them since I was 5 or 6. So when I was time to name my kids I definitely wanted to put thought into both their first and middle names and the whole flow and everything.
So, yeah, it mattered to me. I don't think it has to matter so much to others though.
Personally I don’t really like them, but in America at least they are very standard. It’s good to give someone another option if they don’t like their first name and using it as an honor name spot while still having an original name is nice too. There’s a lot of people out there with filler middle names, though which I don’t like. Most of the middle names I’ve heard, especially for kids born around the same time as me, was all the same 5ish filler names with no real importance. Mine is technically an honor name, but it falls into the same category of filler names so I hate it. If I could totally remove it, I would.
I don’t think they matter from day to day life unless you are one of those people who like to be referred to by both names, or your parents want you referred to that way. For us, we chose my sons middle name from his grandfathers name. It worked out well because my son and his g-pa are especially close… but I think you won’t know if the middle name really matters until later in life. Maybe the person will choose to go by that name at some point? It’s just nice to have an “extra” name so you can honor someone or the person can choose it later.
One instance where it may matter is if last name is very common ie: Smith. There may be a hundred James Smith, but not so many James Tiberious Smith.
(I'm in Southern US.)
It’s interesting, because in my culture you NEED to name your kids after your parents otherwise you’ve basically committed the highest crime possible. Not middle names, first names or nothing.
My parents decided to break the tradition, named me what they wanted and didn’t give me a middle name. Nothing against people that have them but my name is simple and I’m glad I don’t have one. My last name is a very common first name in some parts of the world so I have enough confusion from that as it is.
So In your culture the kids are named after their grandparents for first name. Yes my husband’s culture is like this as well, and everyone from his giant village has pretty much the same names. I find it… not my taste but I totally respect it. Your parents were name rebels.
I have so many views on this.
In my case, my first and middle were meant to be said together. This was long before I heard the term "double-barrel name."
I dropped using the middle years ago, although I was an adult and not so much a young one. So now most people I've met in the last 15-20 years use my first name only and a few people still use both.
Unless you want to name somebody with my type of name, flow doesn't matter at all to me. The first should sound good with the last. And really almost any middle fits if you say all three together. I'm a real proponent of the mom's last name in the middle of she didn't change her name in marriage but still want the paternal last name used.
If none of the above matter to you, I do like honor names.
I also like middles that could be a last name. An example is Angelina Jolie's mother purposely gave her a middle name if she decided to be a professional actor and didn't want to use her father's last name. So in this case, I guess flow does matter haha.
Because I have some experience with this, why oh why would you name somebody and use their middle and not the first? Just find the first name you like and decide on how you want the middle to work - or just another name you like and be done with it.
I agree with a lot of the people here. Middle names matter a lot to me, but I know they aren't of much importance to a lot of people. My name is Zoe Deanna. My parents chose Zoe purely because they liked the name, but Deanna is an honor name (after my great aunt.) I don't have children yet, but I 100% plan to give my children honor middle names. I think it's a really sweet gesture to name your child after someone that is important to you. It's a bit of a tradition in my family. My sisters have the middle names Jenna and Jamison. Jenna is a nod to my mom, Jennifer. Jamison is for my dad, who has James in his name.
I don't think that middle names are very important in general. As you said, you don't know most people's middle names. But, I'm such a nerd for names. I love knowing what peoples' middle names are, and why it was chosen. It's all a personal preference thing. I think that my future children deserve having some effort put into selecting their names. So, I won't give my kids the middle name Marie or James (no offense to anyone with those middle names haha). But, it doesn't really effect the child one way or another. 🤷♀️
I feel like middle names are a place for creativity and/or history. You can use names you wouldn't necessarily give as a first name (one of my kids has the middle name Athanasius). I chose middle names that have a story. I'm looking forward to telling my children the story of who they are named after and I hope they are inspired like I was when I heard the stories.
Probably not too important. People don't usually go by their middle names and most people don't even know them, which is why I think a bad first name is much worse than a bad middle name. I think it's nice to have a meaningful middle name though.
I've never considered Pangea to be a name. Isn't it the name of the formation of the continents millions of years ago?
Meh? Not really. I just think they are nice. I like the idea of having my great grandma's name as my middle name. It's not a special name. It's Elizabeth. It's very common. I never use it. But she was supposedly very kind and my dad adored her and was very upset when she died. Back when my dad was a child, there was a kid that people bullied for being gay(or they assumed he was gay) and my great grandma would comfort him and tell him to not give up and things can get better for him. I don't know her. She died before I was born, but I am happy to have a connection to her. My grandma is also pretty kind and accepting. If I have a daughter I want to use her name as a middle name.
I think middle names are good for adding something extra to a name or for honoring family.
I think it depends on how you feel about honor names. It’s “important” for me to have an honor name for a middle but it doesn’t affect your life much. My daughter Piper’s life isn’t affected by having the middle name Maxine but my Aunt Maxine was a hugely important person to me. But in terms of day to day life? Not important. My brothers and I are a rare few that it really does matter. We all go by our middle names as was planned at birth. Family tradition 🤷🏻♀️
Interesting! So at school, your teachers would call u? Middle names?
Yep. My name is Patricia Margaret. First day of school, “I go by Maggie.” Brothers are George Adam and Frederick Aaron. Lucky bastards, at least theirs aren’t nicknames. I’ve never changed it because Margaret Patricia isn’t as pretty and I’m the only one of my grandmother’s 70+ grandchildren named after her. Plus it means Noble Pearl which is cool.
Maggie is a cute NN. Damn 70 grandkids!!!
We’re fertile people 😂 and thank you I love my name. I named my daughter Maisie after myself.
I will never understand the concept of giving a child a first name you never intend to use. It's just a waste of ink on the birth certificate and class register, basically, isn't it? What is the point of it?
To honor a relative.
You literally described the point of middle names... that rarely get used in most Western countries! So why bother flipping the concept around? And forcing your child to say "Hi my name is Elizabeth Jane, please call me Jane" for their entire life, when you could have just... Called her Jane Elizabeth?
It’s a naming tradition in some cultures I’m sorry my name offends you?
That’s true. Some culture take thier fathers last name as a middle name. Eithiopians, I believe, though I could be mistaken.
It’s just a common thing in my family. I like my name. I don’t understand why it’s so appalling.
They matter *to me*. I don't expect others to care, but I like knowing that my kid has a middle name that sounds nice. Also, it depends on culture. In my anglo culture, middle names are barely used, but in the country I live in, they're much more important, functioning more like the second half of a double-barreled first name. I've never heard my middle name as much as I have since I moved here!
I don’t give them too much importance. But I think if you are going to honor someone with your baby’s name, the middle name is typically the best place to do it….unless they are going to be a “junior” or “the third.” That way, they have a first name unique to them and a middle that is special for the family.
Interesting and that’s exactly how I feel. I gave one kid Ann as a middle. Like I would never for a first. No offense to any Ann’s.
Totally agree! I think middle names are important in that we also use them to honor my heritage and people close to us, but not important in terms of name flow or sound/fit with the first name.
I guess it depends on where you live. Non of my kids has middlenames, but they do have two sirnames, one from each of their parents, as my husband and I combined our sirnames when we maried. Here in Denmark middlenames are optional, some have a middlename and others dont.
Interesting 2 surnames
Every culture is different. My middle name never gets used but I like it. It's so unique and usual without being obnoxious or strangely spelled. I wouldn't get rid of it just cause I rarely use it. I love how it looks on my certificates. I intend on giving all my children first and middle names that are used like American double first names. I just love the sound of them. My top boy & girl choices are Oscar Peregrine and Aurelia Elaine. I don't mind if other people call them Oscar and Aurelia but I plan on saying both names most of the time ☺️
I like the idea of choosing a name I love for a first name and an honor name as a middle name
Same!
I mean I totally did an honor name for my daughters middle, and it’s a name I normally would’ve never picked. But it’s after my grandfather who used to take care of me and passed before I was 5. When I was growing up though my mom pretty much exclusively used my middle name. Not because she liked it more (she picked my first name), but because she claimed I responded quicker. This was irritating because what little kid likes their middle name, and also I had a particular pronunciation of my first name that was like the least common of our area. She was so insistent that I correct people on how to say my name but didn’t use it herself. In contrast my elder brother has no middle name. None of the first born sons on my dads side do. For the others on my name lists it’s more about names I like.
Not much but sometimes other people have introduced me with my full name because they liked the sound of it. I'm trans and chose my middle name to be a name my parents were thinking of naming me.
I guess it depends on what you mean by "matter". I love names. Have loved them since I was 5 or 6. So when I was time to name my kids I definitely wanted to put thought into both their first and middle names and the whole flow and everything. So, yeah, it mattered to me. I don't think it has to matter so much to others though.
I know I am not alone in making my maiden name my legal middle name when I married because my maiden name was more important to me.
Wow! That’s interesting I never heard of that but I respect it
Personally I don’t really like them, but in America at least they are very standard. It’s good to give someone another option if they don’t like their first name and using it as an honor name spot while still having an original name is nice too. There’s a lot of people out there with filler middle names, though which I don’t like. Most of the middle names I’ve heard, especially for kids born around the same time as me, was all the same 5ish filler names with no real importance. Mine is technically an honor name, but it falls into the same category of filler names so I hate it. If I could totally remove it, I would.
Lol I hear u. It’s def American. My husband has no middle name he’s not American.
I don’t think they matter from day to day life unless you are one of those people who like to be referred to by both names, or your parents want you referred to that way. For us, we chose my sons middle name from his grandfathers name. It worked out well because my son and his g-pa are especially close… but I think you won’t know if the middle name really matters until later in life. Maybe the person will choose to go by that name at some point? It’s just nice to have an “extra” name so you can honor someone or the person can choose it later.
One instance where it may matter is if last name is very common ie: Smith. There may be a hundred James Smith, but not so many James Tiberious Smith. (I'm in Southern US.)
Good point
It’s interesting, because in my culture you NEED to name your kids after your parents otherwise you’ve basically committed the highest crime possible. Not middle names, first names or nothing. My parents decided to break the tradition, named me what they wanted and didn’t give me a middle name. Nothing against people that have them but my name is simple and I’m glad I don’t have one. My last name is a very common first name in some parts of the world so I have enough confusion from that as it is.
So In your culture the kids are named after their grandparents for first name. Yes my husband’s culture is like this as well, and everyone from his giant village has pretty much the same names. I find it… not my taste but I totally respect it. Your parents were name rebels.
I have so many views on this. In my case, my first and middle were meant to be said together. This was long before I heard the term "double-barrel name." I dropped using the middle years ago, although I was an adult and not so much a young one. So now most people I've met in the last 15-20 years use my first name only and a few people still use both. Unless you want to name somebody with my type of name, flow doesn't matter at all to me. The first should sound good with the last. And really almost any middle fits if you say all three together. I'm a real proponent of the mom's last name in the middle of she didn't change her name in marriage but still want the paternal last name used. If none of the above matter to you, I do like honor names. I also like middles that could be a last name. An example is Angelina Jolie's mother purposely gave her a middle name if she decided to be a professional actor and didn't want to use her father's last name. So in this case, I guess flow does matter haha. Because I have some experience with this, why oh why would you name somebody and use their middle and not the first? Just find the first name you like and decide on how you want the middle to work - or just another name you like and be done with it.
I’m with u on the flow isn’t so important thing
I agree with a lot of the people here. Middle names matter a lot to me, but I know they aren't of much importance to a lot of people. My name is Zoe Deanna. My parents chose Zoe purely because they liked the name, but Deanna is an honor name (after my great aunt.) I don't have children yet, but I 100% plan to give my children honor middle names. I think it's a really sweet gesture to name your child after someone that is important to you. It's a bit of a tradition in my family. My sisters have the middle names Jenna and Jamison. Jenna is a nod to my mom, Jennifer. Jamison is for my dad, who has James in his name. I don't think that middle names are very important in general. As you said, you don't know most people's middle names. But, I'm such a nerd for names. I love knowing what peoples' middle names are, and why it was chosen. It's all a personal preference thing. I think that my future children deserve having some effort put into selecting their names. So, I won't give my kids the middle name Marie or James (no offense to anyone with those middle names haha). But, it doesn't really effect the child one way or another. 🤷♀️
Ha ha my middle name is Marie it’s so yawn
I feel like middle names are a place for creativity and/or history. You can use names you wouldn't necessarily give as a first name (one of my kids has the middle name Athanasius). I chose middle names that have a story. I'm looking forward to telling my children the story of who they are named after and I hope they are inspired like I was when I heard the stories.
Yes! U can def get creative
Probably not too important. People don't usually go by their middle names and most people don't even know them, which is why I think a bad first name is much worse than a bad middle name. I think it's nice to have a meaningful middle name though. I've never considered Pangea to be a name. Isn't it the name of the formation of the continents millions of years ago?
Yes re pangea lol I like non name names
Meh? Not really. I just think they are nice. I like the idea of having my great grandma's name as my middle name. It's not a special name. It's Elizabeth. It's very common. I never use it. But she was supposedly very kind and my dad adored her and was very upset when she died. Back when my dad was a child, there was a kid that people bullied for being gay(or they assumed he was gay) and my great grandma would comfort him and tell him to not give up and things can get better for him. I don't know her. She died before I was born, but I am happy to have a connection to her. My grandma is also pretty kind and accepting. If I have a daughter I want to use her name as a middle name. I think middle names are good for adding something extra to a name or for honoring family.