This fine specimen of a man is called George
However, just recently I've noticed an alarming trend in m/m romance. Yes, the unusual names are creeping into m/m too. Here are a few I've read recently - apologies to any authors who may recognise these names, I'm not picking on you, honest.
Carrick, Avery, Sterling, Javier, Cal, Tracy and Angel
Now I know that it does get a little dull to read the same names over and over again - I've reviewed at least three books recently where one of the heroes was called Dylan - and I've lost count of the number of books I've read with heroes called Tyler, Scott, Caleb or Jake. Still, for me those names are infinitely more preferable to something too unusual because an odd name pulls me out of the story every time I see it. With a name I'm comfortable or familiar with, it just becomes another aspect of their personality rather than something which defines them.
In some ways I can see why an author will give their character an unusual name. It perhaps then makes that character stand out in the mind of the reader. After all, I've lost track of the number of times I've come to write a review and had to go and look up the name of one of the heroes - I can remember what the book is about and the good/bad things about it, but the names sometimes all merge into one. Sometimes the unusual name is drawn attention to by the character being slightly embarrassed about it, sometimes not. In which case, why bother, why not just call your hero Bob? Actually there are very few Bobs in m/m romance heroes - that's a name reserved for best friends or homophobic step-fathers.
I'm a great fan of good old fashioned names. What about you other readers? Have you noticed a trend recently of unusual names in m/m romance or have they always been around and I'm just slow on the uptake? What about you authors, what made you choose the names for your characters?
Hmm, now that you mention it, I have noticed more of the fancier names lately. It's interesting, because IRL, how many people do you know who have names like that? I think the wildest names the guys around here have are Kelly, Shane, Andrew, and Hugh.
ReplyDeleteI'm with you on this one! Unless the guy gave himself the name then some weird-ass name just makes me think "Were your parents weirdos?" followed by "I bet you got beaten up a lot at school."
ReplyDeleteWhen choosing a name I like to imagine the character's mum saying it, followed by "go and tidy your room". If that sounds convincing I'll use it.
Chris: That's interesting because I would consider Kelly an unusual name for a man. In Britain, Kelly is a girl's name and any man with that name will not have survived high school.
ReplyDeleteHI JFM
ReplyDeleteSometimes the parents were weirdos. I read a story with a character called Sky but he had hippy dippy parents who named all their children 'nature' names and so it became a part of who he was and his upbringing. I didn't mind that. But to just give a character an unusual name for no apparent reason seems odd.
I like your way of choosing a name. Perhaps more parents should think about doing that before they name their kids :).
I do like JFM's name test!
ReplyDeleteI work with two male Kelly people, actually! :)
Here, Hugh is a pretty darn odd name. He's in his late 50s, so I've always assumed it was an age thing.
Well, first off, I don't think it's fair to include Javier or Angel in this list, since those are names from other cultures. Maybe I'm assuming that the characters in question are of Spanish or Hispanic descent, but they are pretty common names in some parts of the world.
ReplyDeleteI've also known Traceys, Angels, Averys, Cals and Kellys in real life, so they don't strike me as particularly unusual. I would agree, though, that on the whole, most people's names are more common. Currently, I associate with 6 Johns, 6 Michaels, and 4 Sarahs on a daily basis! I'm always much happier to meet a person whose name isn't the same as everyone else's, simply because it is easier to tell them apart.
For me, when reading m/m, I've noticed that the people who have more exotic names tend to be figured exotic in other ways, either because the book is a fantasy or urban fantasy novel, or because they get involved in a more fantastic scenario. The Jakes of m/m fiction seem to be firefighters, cops, teachers or other everyday hero types, the approachability of their name matching the approachability of their personality.
I think as time passes and we get older (waaaah) the names will appear more "weird". Although popular names like David and Michael remain the same since the 60's, more unusual names are now acceptable and are more common. I did read a book though where the two characters were Mitchell and Marshall. Hello, I couldn't keep them straight. I don't mind odd names as long as they aren't really "out there".
ReplyDeleteI work in a pretty multi-cultural group so I work with: Marcel (French), Alexis (French), Guillaume (French), Michael, Brian, Alex, Danny, Nadin (South Asian), Upkar (South Asian), Jean (French), Jocelyn (French), Karim (Arabic). Those guys range from mid-20's to 65.
Some of the names of boys in my daughter's classes are David, Nelson, Paul, John, Yumar, Kennedy, Jay, Mitoul, Isaac, Youness, Omar and Andrew. A bit different. I know when I was growing up if a guy was called Kennedy he'd probably have had a tough life, now where we live that's one of the "normal" ones. LOL
Chris: Hugh is quite a common name in Britain but mostly with the older generation (50+) so like you, I associate it with an older man.
ReplyDeleteHi PinkPixie
ReplyDeleteI agree that names that are common to a foreign country or to a particular culture are not really classed as unusual names. In the case of Javier and Angel in the books I read recently, neither of them fit into that category as they were just white American males with no hispanic background. Actually, I automatically expect characters who are either black or hispanic to have names that reflects their background, such as Enrique in Personal Demons by James Buchanan that I read not too long ago. His name fit his character as a hispanic man.
Like Kelly, Tracy (or Tracey) is a girl's name in Britain which is why it seemed unusual when I saw that it was given to a male character. Perhaps it is just a cultural thing and names that I see as unusual just aren't in the US - and names that are common here are not so much over the pond.
You've made a good point about fantasy, paranormal and sci-fi books being more likely to have an unusual name for their character - in fact I think I expect that to be the case. My feelings in this post were mostly to do with m/m contemporaries.
Such a good point, Jen!
ReplyDeleteHere are some more I'm a little tired of seeing in m/m fiction:
Aidan, Ashley, Blair, Brad, Brandon, Brooke, Bryan, Caden, Cadence, Cameron, Casey, Chad, Chance, Chase, Cody, Dale, Dalton, Damien, Dane, Dante, Derek, Devon, Drake, Drew, Dylan, Ethan, Evan, Gabriel, Graham, Harlan, Heath, Hunter, Jarrod, Jason, Jasper, Jory, Justin, Kale, Kent, Kyle, Leigh, Lucian, ...
The androgynous ones make me laugh because they sound a little contrived. But on the other hand, it seems as if the trend is going that way for baby names, at least in the U.S.
In the 1990s, the traditional Biblical type name like Hannah, Sarah, John, Matthew, and Joshua was very popular for newborns, but recently it seems to be drifting towards the androgynous name that sounds like a surname.
Recently, out of the people I actually know, one couple named their newborn boy named Quinn, and the other named their newborn girl Baxter (poor thing!).
Hi Tam
ReplyDeleteThere are lots of odd names floating round in my kids' classes too, although there's a trend in Britain to move back towards the traditional names so Jack is very popular as is Henry, Harvey, Max, George and all the Biblical names.
As I said, if there is a reason for the unusual name - such as ethnic background - then I'm happy about that. It's characters who have unusual names for no apparent reason which makes me scratch my head.
I hear you Jenre...
ReplyDeleteHowever I am just the opposite - because a different name is not really different in this day and age.
However when an author uses a creative name I expect something special about this character that the author is introducing me to...
More often than not I am a little disappointment in how my mind wanted that character to be as opposed to how the author build him - but when it works, it's fantastic....
I am also agreeing with Tam, I encounter so many different name in my days and it seems to be the accepted thing to be different...
And in some way I am like you as well - I stereotype name for certain characters and it's always the tried and true names that doesn't fair so well...
so a Bill, Edgar and a Clive wouldn't do so well with me...
E.H>
Hi Val
ReplyDeleteOut of the list you have given there are quite a number that I would consider an unusual name - again perhaps because they are just not common names over here.
Quinn is a name that has cropped up a few times in m/m books and again I've never heard of anyone called that before.
Most English names are not normal anyway so I don't really mind. But I do like the name to fit the personality.
ReplyDeleteAnd Bob sounds indeed like the neighbour or the taxman not a hero.
Hi Jenre,
ReplyDeleteI think it has become more common here in the states, or at least in some states, to give your non-ethnic child ethnic names. I think it's part of the larger trend that other posters have touched on where more and more parents are giving their children unique names. I, myself, have a niece named Elfie, and while I thought that was an unusual name, apparently my brother and his wife have friends who also named their daughter Elfie prior to the couples ever meeting. Bizarre, no?
Hi EH
ReplyDeleteI get what you mean about wanting to have something special about a character with an unusual name. In some ways I suppose an author plays it safe with a common name as those expectations just aren't there.
Hi Ingrid
ReplyDeletePoor Bob. It's a perfectly respectable name but in this country it's not used much. Roberts in the UK usually shorten their name to Rob, although my son does have a friend called Bobby.
Hi PinkPixie
ReplyDeleteI think it has become more common here in the states, or at least in some states, to give your non-ethnic child ethnic names.
This is happening over here as well. My youngest son has a white British girl in his class called Sabina which is a name I associate more with the Middle East.
It is bizarre about both families calling their daughter Elfie. I've never heard of that. Perhaps in a few years it will be the name to call your daughter :). It's funny how naming trends evolve. About 15 years ago when I first started teaching I had a girl called Evie in one of my classes. At the time that was a really unusual name but now I know lots of children called Evie.
Elfie Schleigal was a gymnast for Canada at the Olympics when I was a teen. Perfectly suitable or an elfin gymnast but she was the only person I ever heard with that name. I knew a kid (girl) named Quincy years ago. McKenzie was a popular girl's name here for awhile
ReplyDeleteI don't really have a problem with less than 'normal' names as long as I can say them. Sometimes I'll have problems with a name just because my brain wants it to be something else.
ReplyDeleteRecently I read a story where the protag was named Sirus and I kept seeing Sirius.
These comments make for such interesting reading because they really illustrate the trends in naming kids. Here, US television has really influenced names and there was a period which I call the 90210 era. Nuff said.
ReplyDeleteAbout 5-10 years ago there was a backlash against this and many parents went back to giving their kids the more traditional English names like Sam, Ben, Emily, etc. This has again turned to more ethnic names.
It's fascinating stuff and I imagine someone somewhere will have written a thesis on it. :)
Does it bother me in books?? Sometimes, but more often than not I'm amused as hell. Plus being a big fantasy reader has kind of given me immunity to strange names. My main beef is that I need to be able to pronounce them. LOL.
Tam: McKensie is a boy's name here. I think I'll always associate Quincy with the TV show :).
ReplyDeleteLily: I know what you mean about not being able to pronounce names. It can put you off a bit especially if an author goes overboard with the apostophe.
ReplyDeleteAges ago, before Harry Potter, I read a book for study at university where a female character was called Hermione. When I read the book in preparation for the class, I pronounced it Her-mee-own in my head and it wasn't until the lecturer started talking about the character that I realised that I had being saying it completely wrong!
Kris: 90210 didn't have such a great impact here as it obviously did in Oz. What I find really interesting is that the names that were really popular when I was growing up - Sarah, Claire, Richard - are not used at all any more.
ReplyDeleteI did one of those quizes on Facebook not too long ago which told me that Jennifer was the most popular name for a girl baby in the western world when I was born in 1972. Yet I was the only Jennifer even at high school. I blame those US people as it's certainly not as popular here as it is in the US.
For what it's worth, here are my criteria for picking names.
ReplyDelete1. Have I used the name before? (If so, I reconsider.)
2. Is it age appropriate? (Hugh, Myron, and Harvey, for example, strike me as older men's names.)
3. Does it sound dorky (e.g. Clarence, Barney, Sheldon)?
4. Is it androgynous? (I truly, deeply despise men's names that could just as easily fit women: Tracy, Kelly, etc. A personal prejudice, granted, but...yech.)
5. Is it hyper-masculine? (I hate those names nearly as much.) Rocky, Bart, Lance, etc. sound ludicrous to me.
I also try to avoid using the names of boyfriends. I used to avoid relatives' names as well, but I finally gave up on that one.
So, you see, after writing a couple dozen books or more, the name reservoir starts getting verrry low. (Sorry, Val, but I've got a Cameron coming up!) :-)
First, thanks for George.
ReplyDeleteSecond, the names: I agree with others who've said that in fantasy the names are usually on the more unusual side. But I do like to be able to pronounce them.
I don't like when the name makes me think of a different name and I catch myself saying it wrong in my head (Cameron Dane's Sirus=Sirius has been discussed elsewhere).
I have used Riley and Jazz for the names of a couple of guys who visit my blog, and when my son dared a look at the thing he called them "male stripper" names. I don't know what he'd think of Red and Wolfie...
I kind of like it when characters have unusual names. I've taught over 2,000 teenagers, and lots of common names bring to mind certain student--some good memories, some not so good, and some really, really bad. I don't want the faces I imagine for the men in the romance I read to be the faces of former students. That just creeps me out!
ReplyDeleteTam, My niece is actually named after Elfie Schleigal, who my brother had a crush on after she began commentating on gymnastics tournaments-- he actually wanted his daughter's middle name to be Schleigal, but my sister in law put her foot down!
ReplyDeleteWhenever I hear about people with names like McKenzie or Quincy, or the like, I wonder if they're named after their mother's maiden name? I think that's a growing practice too, for women who give up their maiden name but don't want to lose association with it.
And, I just have to say too, that I don't think I could keep a straight face with a protag named Bob or Bill. Rob, Robby, Will, Bobby or Billy, yes, but Bob and Bill just seem like generic, squirmy business-man types that are interchangeable with each other!
I've actually used Javier before, but the character was of Hispanic descent, and you don't find out his name until the last chapter. Until then he's just called Jay.
ReplyDeleteI don't really mind whatever named is used, as long as it's in keeping with the story. When deciding on a name, I like to consult the internet for the most popular names the year my character was born, then peruse them until one fits. But there are odd names out there, and the younger the character the more likely they are to have had a creative mother who named them Nascamente. Yes, a former co-worker actually named her son that.
I have trouble with those too, PinkPixie. Bob, Bill, Al, Dick, Don, Roy, Rex, and Ray all make me think of old duffers playing in a polka band. Yet the full or alternate versions of the names don't bother me.
ReplyDeleteI recently wrote a character I called Daniel. It seemed natural for other people (his eventual love-interest included) to call him Dan, but that made me so uncomfortable, I had to change the name!
Ed. Ed wouldn't work either. (Damn, why'd you get me going on this, Jen?)
ReplyDeletePoor KZ. In her next book, everyone's going to either be a letter or a number...
ReplyDeletePinkPixie: High Five to your SIL. Accepting even the first name of his quasi-celeb crush was going way above and beyond. Sure has hell she'll be 6 feet tall and 220 lbs just because she's called Elfie. They've jinxed her.
ReplyDeleteJen: I think of Quincy the TV show too.
To me Tracy is a girl's name and Kelly is unisex but confusing. I have trouble keeping people straight in yaoi because the Japanese names don't click with me. It's just a foreign word and my brain doesn't equate it with a name. So half the time I have no idea which guy is which based on the names. LOL
There is also the lovely trend of inserting y's everywhere now. Not McKenzie but McKynzy. Not Cindy but Syndy. Krystyn and other odd variations because people want their kids to be "unique" (and never have their names spelled correctly or the rest of their lives.
"Poor KZ. In her next book, everyone's going to either be a letter or a number..."
ReplyDeleteOr called Elfie Schleigal.
I'm glad somebody sympathizes.
OMG! K.Z. if you could find a way to name one of your characters Elfie, that would be too funny!
ReplyDeleteKZ: Interesting criteria.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, hub was reading over my shoulder as I was checking the comments and he said "Myron? That's not a name!". Hmmm, must be one of those US names that we just don't get over here.
As I said earlier, a lot of the 'old men' names are becoming increasingly popular at the moment but there are still quite a few like Albert, Arthur, Bertrum and Donald that I associate with older men.
I like Cameron :).
Hi Wren
ReplyDeleteRiley is a name that crops up on a fairly regular basis in m/m books. It doesn't sound like a male stripper until you pair it with Jazz - are they a double act? :) Jazz is definitely a stage name. I can imagine them doing a whole D/s strip-dance routine with Riley as the Dom and Jazz as the sub.
*goes off to cool down*
Hi Eyre
ReplyDeleteIt's the opposite for me. I've taught so many kids with common names that they all blur into one after a while (unless there was a particularly difficult kid). However, the kids with uncommon names really stand out in my mind. I once taught a kid called Jarrod, which is an unusual name for a British kid. Every time I read a hero with that name it reminds me of him.
PinkPixie: You are right that Bob and Bill are generic middle America, white collar names and don't really inspire a great deal of excitement.
ReplyDeleteKZ: I have a friend called Daniel who doesn't really like being called Dan. When I first met him as a older teen everyone called him Danny, now that he's in his mid 30s he gets called Dan all the time instead, presumably because people think that Danny is too much a child/younger man's name.
ReplyDeleteKZ & Chris: KZ, you need to write a futuristic, dystopian novel next and everyone can have a number instead of a name :).
ReplyDeleteHi Dee
ReplyDeleteThat's a good way of choosing names. You must get a real spread of ideas to work from in a list of baby names for the year. Except, of course that some names remain at the top for years.
I have no clue how you say Nascamente! Imagine the trouble that child will have for the rest of his life having to spell out his name every time someone has to write it down.
Tam: There's a girl in my daughter's class called Faythe. When I first saw it I thought 'what was her mother thinking?' That girl is going to have her name spelled wrong for her entire life, why not just spell it Faith and same her the hassle? It all sounds the same.
ReplyDeleteThis discussion reminds me of a grat snark-website for baby names, "Baby's named a bad, bad thing" (http://www.notwithoutmyhandbag.com/babynames/). If you have time, please go and see it. I snorted a lot reading it, and it's a great example of how nowadays many parents or soon-to-be parents are obsessed with the idea of giving their kids a "unique" name, loosing sight of what's acceptable and what's is, frankly, just ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteOn a side note, I met a German boy once named Sebastian - he was one of the cutest boy I've ever seen, with sandy-brown spiked hair, unobtrusive glasses that gave him that touch of nerdiness I love, and a swimmer lithe body that was positively sinful. Since then I've never thought of that name in the same way ever again ;).
Actually Elfie is a perfectly normal German name, though it's not in fashion at the moment.
ReplyDeleteHow about Jizz instead of Jazz? :-)
ReplyDeleteAn old friend once told me a story (he swore it was true) about a none-too-bright woman who gave birth, saw the word female on the birth certificate, and decided she liked that "name" -- which she pronounced fem-ah-lee.
For me, the problem is choosing names that don't belong to my close friends or family members. My dad's name is Bob, and my brother is Scott. Those are off limits for sure!! Also, can't use that jerky exboyfriend's name. See what I mean? It narrows the field.
ReplyDeleteHi Sara
ReplyDeleteThat website is really funny. I mean who would call their child D'Artagnan?
Sebastian sounds yummy. I'm not surprised it altered your view of that name :).
Hi Liade: That's interesting. Is it a shortened form of another name? I don't suppose the name has the same meaning as in the English which I assume is making the point that their daughter is 'elf-like'.
ReplyDeleteKZ: No way! That surely must be an urban myth!
ReplyDeletePeople really can't be that stupid, can they?
Hi Jill
ReplyDeleteI can see why you wouldn't want to name one of your heroes after a family member. Mind you they would probably be flattered that you named your hunky hero who gets the gorgeous woman after them. I don't suppose it works for you though as you are trying to write about them :).
Re. Elfie: short for Elfriede, I think.
ReplyDeleteWhen I'm trying to find a name, I often go to sports rosters. I'll decide how old the character should be, and where he's from, then go look at sports rosters from that area. When I wrote "The Wild Side", I looked at college soccer and lacrosse rosters in the mid-Atlantic states and found that Nick and Ryan are the two most popular names. Ta da! I had my two characters.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure how I'd feel if I started a book about Edgar and Harvey falling in love... but I bet a good writer could sell me on it!
I always try to use reasonably 'normal' names, but having just finished drafting the steampunk I've had a lot of fun using more unusual names to fit the genre and period!
ReplyDeleteLiade: That makes sense then. Thanks for the info :).
ReplyDeleteJaney: Choosing from sports rosters is never something I would have though to do. Interesting.
Sean: Where you live in the world depends on what you would call a 'normal' name. For example (and sorry for picking on you here *g*), Declan is an unusual name in the UK but obviously not in Australia.
ReplyDeleteI'll be interested to see which names you have chosen for your steampunk :).
That's a good Irish name, you bloody Pom!
ReplyDeleteSean: True. Having thought about it, maybe it's just not common in Yorkshire cos Dec from 'Ant and Dec' is a Declan and they are Geordies from Newcastle. Maybe it's more popular there.
ReplyDeleteOh well, at least you have good pudding ;)
ReplyDeleteSean: Yes we do. I had some Yorkshire Pudding today. It's tradition to eat it with your Sunday lunch and hub makes the best Yorkies.
ReplyDeleteMy mum has to make me a special vegetarian one if she does a roast ;)
ReplyDeleteHub's are always vegetarian. He uses sunflower oil instead of lard or dripping. Works just as well and you get a lighter pudding.
ReplyDeleteMy mother usually cooks it with the meat, but if I'm there I have vegies being done in veg oil anyway so mine will get very beautifully dumped in there ;)
ReplyDeleteAnd I really want a Yorkshire pudding, vegies and gravy now. Shame it's not the weather for it!
ReplyDeleteIt's always the weather for Yorkshire puds, even in the height of summer when it's blazing hot outside ;).
ReplyDelete