I'm not sure if this the right place for this discussion. If not, feel free to move it to the appropriate place.

Even though I know I'm transgender, I never really associated a name to my female self. I chose Emily on a whim, after a character in a story I wrote. But, does anyone have any suggestions? My birth name is Shawn, and I saw most transgender seem to go with a name similar to their birth name.

That would probably make mine Shana, or Shannon. Shauna is too close for me to be comfortable. I suppose Emily is just temporary for me, until I actually decide. I suppose the issue of my female name will come up in therapy at some point, so if you have any suggestions, please make them here.

Thanks a lot!

Hi Emily, This is one of the great parts of being transgender we get to choose our own names. Some go with what they would have been named had they been born their right gender. Others choose something that fits them or brings back a good memory from a song, or character in a movie. My name came from my favorite song. But yes my birth name and my chosen name start with the same letter but are no where near similar.

I do kind of like Shannon. I don't know any Shannon's personally. My supervisor at work is Emily, though that's not where Emily came from. Anyone else think of something close to Shawn? I feel it'll be easier for me (since I never gave myself a name before) and for everyone I have to come out to.

this website might help

http://www.world-english.org/girls_names.htm

Most people I know chose a name quite different from their birth name - I sure did..

Don't get wrapped up in apparent 'rules'..

Pick a name that resonates with you..

OK, I picked a first name. Chelsea. Anyone have a suggestion for a middle name?

I feel like a middle name is a great place for a name that means something important to you. My male middle name is my dads first name, David. I think it's a great place to choose a name that has some meaning. I had a sister in law that passed away at a young age and hers is a name I would consider.

No one can really pluck a name out of thin air that would resonate with you, (without a lot of luck anyway) but maybe suggestions for a method, like that, would work?

I personally chose mine because it was as far away from my birth name as humanly possible and I liked the way it rolled off my tongue. I also like it because it's distinctly feminine, so there's no chance of a misgender just based on my name.

@Emily

Lol. Guess you never watched Clifford the Big Red Dog then?

I guess it's just difficult for me because I want something that sounds good. Some names don't sound like they go together.

I finally decided to go with Chelsea and I'll just decide on the middle name later on. It'll probably be Chelsea Ann.

Chelsea Ann flows nicely

Quote from: ChelseaAnn on June 20, 2013, 12:52:34 PM
Lol. Guess you never watched Clifford the Big Red Dog then?

I did, but I must have missed something! I'll have to check it out again. It's not going to change my name though. I already did the name on a whim thing and spent a couple months picking this one out. I'm used to it now and it took me a long time to get that way.