Ideas for Middle Names

Sound

• Before you pick out a middle name, you are generally already toying with first names and know for certain what the last name will be. Say potential names aloud so you can hear the sounds of the letters together. Certain consonants like "C" or "K" can be repeated in a name and still sound nice, while most vowels sound better if they are broken up. If you have a hard time saying the name, it twists your tongue or comes out awkward, consider other options. Some names, like Katherine Christine, sound good together while others, like Ethan Nathan, do not. It is largely a personal preference and a matter of how formal or offbeat you might want your child's name to be.

Syllables

• It is important that a name not only sounds nice, but that it flows together. Names that alter in number of syllables flow better off the tongue. If you are planning on a long first name for your child, like Josephine, Hawthorne or Stephanie shorter middle names, like Rae or Ann, may complement it and vice versa. If the last name were also short, maybe a longer first and middle name would provide balance. Play around with syllable variation to find the perfect combination for your auditory preferences. For example, Abigail Faye, Jake Alexander, Mona Mae might be ideas that work well for you.

Acronyms

• Choosing to give your child a middle name means that the first letter of each of their three names together forms an acronym, or abbreviations of longer words with the initial letters of the words. Depending upon culture, acronyms can be good, bad or neutral. Common three letter acronyms are CIA, FBI, EPA, POW, KKK, ATM. Examples include Frederick Benjamin Indall and Peyton Oliver Washington. Consider how these possible acronyms could affect your child in the near future, at school or in the long-term future as an adult.