This is by no means a permanent decision, since I'm pretty much pretransition. But I've been wondering about names, especially since my friends are always asking "so what do I call you now?" I've been going by Chris as it's the closest to my birth name, but I don't really like it, to be frank. :P
Here's the names I've been thinking about:
Casey
Corey
Caspian
Aaron
I'm pretty indecisive so I thought I'd ask for advice. Which one do you like?
Thanks.
Well first and foremost when choosing a name. they're kind of 3 ways to go with it.
1. What your parents would have named you had you been a boy
Some people have easy access to this information though I understand a lot do not.
2. Family names.
Sometimes taking a family name as your first or middle name can be good for the terms of coming out to your family and/or make you feel closer to them.
3. Whatever YOU want
This is how I did my name choosing. I asked my mom what she would have called me had I been born physically male, and her smart ass response was, "I would have named you the same thing." And I guess she could be telling the truth cause she already named me a male name... but regardless I didnt want my old name, it felt stale to me after the years of feminine life. SO i made a big list and narrowed it down over time.
Some names I didnt use were
Gavin (This was my choice until my aunt and uncle had a baby and named him gavin before I could come out to the fam.... so instead of giving my grandma two gavins to worry about I choose something else)
Seth
Jake
Tyler (I named my dog Tyler instead :D)
Aiden (I used Aiden for my middle name, though now I'm thinking about changing that part.)
Evan
Daniel
But if i had to pick from your list, I'd say Corey. You look like a corey to me!
Caspian is an interesting name. Lovely. Sort of conjures up a misty, sea-like atmosphere.
I like Aaron as its sort of main stream name.
Wouldn't throw off any miss conceptions!
Jay
You do remind me of my friend Aaron quite a bit. ;D
But Caspian is pretty awesome too. Like Prince Caspian? Haha... Sorry, I grew up with the Narnia books.
Are you picking both first and middle names?
I really like Casey. I like Chris too but I'm biased. ;D
Aaron- I know a Corey who is nothing like you so I am biased. Plus it's your username.
I dig Aaron. Not just because it's your username, because I haven't been online enough lately to have really let that sink in, but because, looking at your pic, you look like an Aaron. I like the name Caspian, but... a little too unusual to work. It'd out you, more than likely. But Aaron is a good solid name.
SD
I think Aaron or Casey suit you. Aaron more so, though.
I agree with Aaron as well. You do look like an Aaron.
Aaron or Corey are fine. I would stay away from Casey as it can be a female name too...and I like Caspian, but as someone else said, a little too obscure to pass.
Caspian is a good name. Unique
Name picking is a very hard thing to do (I'm still doing it). Pick whichever one is best for "you", not for others. It's good to listen to advice, but I'm just saying don't let people dictate it (someone I talked to on Yahoo practically told me every name I picked was bad so...yeah)
Pick a name that had you been born XY (in the days where the term "bioman" didn't cause hysterics among some forumers, I would have said bio-male), it is likely that you would have been named - in other words, not Caspian. Also keep in mind that nowadays, Corey and Casey are becoming more gender-neutral and less obviously male. (I've known multiple girls with those names. I've also known a girl birth-named Ryan.)
Aaron is an awesome name. I vote for Aaron.
Aaron or Caspian. Then again, I'm biased against Corey because I know someone named Corey who is a jerk.
Quote from: petzjazz on October 10, 2009, 10:20:08 AM
Pick a name that had you been born XY (in the days where the term "bioman" didn't cause hysterics among some forumers, I would have said bio-male), it is likely that you would have been named - in other words, not Caspian. Also keep in mind that nowadays, Corey and Casey are becoming more gender-neutral and less obviously male. (I've known multiple girls with those names. I've also known a girl birth-named Ryan.)
Aaron is an awesome name. I vote for Aaron.
That's a good point. At your age Aaron, you may see the day soon when Casey and Corey are used exclusively for girls such as Leslie and Ashley and others. And there are more recent names turning almost exclusively female as well, like Bailey, Hunter, Taylor, etc.
Once a name becomes popular for baby girls, its days of manhood are pretty much over. This is why most parents try to stick to traditional male names for boys, such as John, Nick, etc.
If you'd like someone to be able to read your name and not think 'girl', this may be a consideration.
Course I chose a pretty unique name, so grain of salt and all that. :laugh:
Quote from: petzjazz on October 10, 2009, 10:20:08 AM
Pick a name that had you been born XY .... it is likely that you would have been named - in other words, not Caspian.
Picking a name which wasn't too uncommon was important to me.
The Social Security Administration (its a US government agency, for those of you outside the US) keeps track of the most popular names given to babies in every year. It has a searchable database which allows someone to enter their birth year, and see which names were most popular (up to the top 1000 names) for either sex.
http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/babynames/ (http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/babynames/)
I think its a handy way to select a name which isn't too uncommon for someone your age. In my case, I just made sure I was in the top 100.
You can also track how the popularity of a name has changed over the years, if anyone is concerned about picking a name which is fading in popularity.
It seems like almost all full (non-nick-name) names that end in an "ee" sound are going the way of the XX - some rather sooner than later, others rather later than sooner. Mine dropped from being in the 50s for males on the Social Security site 18 years ago (my birth year) down to between 100 and 110 for males (although I am pleased to note that it's only been in the top 1000 names for girls once during the last 20 years, and that was about 19 years ago). The only common non-nick-name exception to the "ee" pattern I can think of is Anthony.
I don't know any girls named Corey, so that one might take a while to get up there. Unfortunately, I know lots of girls named Adrian :(
Quote from: Mr. Fox on October 11, 2009, 11:43:44 AM
I don't know any girls named Corey, so that one might take a while to get up there. Unfortunately, I know lots of girls named Adrian :(
I grew up with a lot of girls named Corey, and I'm 20, so it's been like that for a while.
I checked the Social Security site for my birth year. Christopher is the highest (number 2) but like I said I don't really like it that much, plus Chris is too gender neutral for my liking. Aaron is second highest, unsurprising since that's one of the names my parents were considering for me had I been XY.
That's also the least gender neutral one on the list. I think that's probably going to be it. :)
Caspian is cool, what about Casper? There are some very cool guys called Casper, its like a modern twist on Caspian.
I have a *female* friend named Casper, so Idk. :P
I think Caspain is pretty sweet. I like names that every doesnt have. And honestly I dont think the name would "out" you. I dont know many people who think, "that's a weird name, he must be trans." But that is just my opinion. I know a guy named castain and and thats pretty similar, and he is super masculine. Good luck with your decision.
Yeah, I don't think ftms have the same issue with outrageous names as mtfs do. I mean, the general public wouldn't think about drag king names like they might for drag queens.
Quote from: Kvall on October 12, 2009, 09:08:11 PM
Maybe not outrageous names, but names that sound like children born in the last 3 years rather than however old the person is.
Not to mention names like Aiden, Jayden, Kaden, etc. :P No offense to anyone with those names. Just so many trans guys pick them.
To be honest, I don't see why it matters that much. I mean my birth name was definitely not popular when I was born, but now it's increased considerably in popularity now. If it means that much to someone to have a name in the same year as they were born then go for it. However, I do think you should pick a name that you think suits you.
You're most likely going to have this name for the rest of your life, pick one that speaks to you.
Quote from: Kvall on October 12, 2009, 09:36:06 PM
I agree, a name that feels right for you is the most important part, even if it is unusual or something frequently picked by other trans guys. I just find it funny how we tend to go for the more recently popular names. I guess it makes sense, otherwise popular names would be the same every single year. I wonder why that comes about -- exposure to media? How do names become popular and entrenched in our psyche so that they become desirable to use? How did the "-den" thing with FTMs happen? :P
Edit: I see that the -den names are among the most popular baby names recently. Guess that's why!
Probably because we look at baby name sites and books. I don't think it's intentional most of the time.
I also knew a lot of Aidens, Jaydens and Kadens growing up. It also depends on your area too, even if it's the same country.
There does seem to be a sizable number of guys around here with rather modern -den names. I've noticed it seems to be (mainly) younger guys though.
I think the same fashion or cultural factors exist for trans people picking new names, and new parents picking baby names.
Drag king names are funny, but instead of screaming "trans" they just scream "little short insecure guy trying to overcompensate for something".
That being said, I did breifly entertain "Futronic Star Raider Planet Destroyer", if only for a second ;).
Quote
Here's the names I've been thinking about:
Casey
Corey
Caspian
Aaron
Aaron was my first choice. Personally I think it's a pretty masculine name, but people might mishear/misinterpret "Aaron" as "Erin." So Corey is my second choice. :)
Aaron is pretty cool. My bf once told me a story about a guy he knew whose name was DJ and he had it legally changed to TJ. I guess some places let you have two letter names... strange unrelated story.
Quote from: chrissyboy on October 09, 2009, 04:25:55 PM
Aaron or Corey are fine. I would stay away from Casey as it can be a female name too...and I like Caspian, but as someone else said, a little too obscure to pass.
I have a female relative named Corie, and I've run into a few other women named Cory or Corey...these day's it's definitely a unisex name. If that's what you're aiming for, do what makes you happy.
Personally, I like Aaron. For me, the trouble with Caspian is its association with the Narnia books. And remember that the movie version of
Prince Caspian is out there all over the place, and
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader must be coming out soon...having the name Caspian could be more trouble than it's worth. People can laugh, tease...especially if you are young and especially if they know that you chose that name and weren't born with it. But again, if you like Caspian and want that association, then go for it. Or save it for a middle name?
Oh, and GDTripp has a good point about Aaron/Erin.
Quote from: Arch on October 17, 2009, 03:20:48 PM
Personally, I like Aaron. For me, the trouble with Caspian is its association with the Narnia books. And remember that the movie version of Prince Caspian is out there all over the place, and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader must be coming out soon...having the name Caspian could be more trouble than it's worth. People can laugh, tease...especially if you are young and especially if they know that you chose that name and weren't born with it. But again, if you like Caspian and want that association, then go for it. Or save it for a middle name?
Good point. I cannot tell you how many times people have said to me, "Oh, Sebastien! Like the crab in
The Little Mermaid!"
For the love of god, that movie came out over a decade ago, and it's STILL crap. Regardless, I kinda doubt you'd want to be stigmatized like that. Of course, Caspian from Narnia is a far better connotation than a crab from some Disney movie... but still. Those names are always chill for middle names. Just make sure you come up with a good explanation for its origins, in case anyone asks you about how you came to have such an unusual name. When people ask me about mine, though (which has only happened twice in 3 years), I usually just shrug and say my folks liked it. I guess it depends on how much you have to deal with inquisitive folks.
Anyway... my vote is still for Aaron. Corey and Casey are quite unisex, and also a bit trendy, which I personally always attempt to steer clear of. Apparently all the names you're considering are unisex (a girl named Caspian? weird), but I think Aaron is the best choice.
SD
the best advice I have ever received was to say a name a hundred times aloud - loudly aloud. If you still like it after that, then run with it.