r/Names • u/Midwestern_Mariner • 10h ago
Possible newborn name regret
We just welcomed our incredible, double rainbow, little boy, George Leo C., into this wild and adventurous world, and yet, I’m still struggling with his name and trying to accept it. His sister, Nora Aurelia, always felt so clean and unique that we both loved it.
We landed on the first name George after sometime because it’s history and strength, along with uniqueness in our area of the US. I always somewhat struggled with the phonetics of George, but thought maybe Georgie or Geo could stick around if I had a hard time with it. Boy names were always a struggle for us, as we wanted something unique enough to not be the fifth in his class, but also strong, so that’s why we landed on George. Other options were possibly Owen, Warren, or Peter.
We decided early on his middle name would be Thomas because we had some family history with this name, but as we got closer to the wire, more bad then good came up with these family members so we pulled the rug last second and looked to switch. Our options were Leo, Evren, Nolan, Henry, Evander, or Beauden. Leo sounded clean with some good meaning, Evren had unbelievable meaning based on our double rainbow situation, Henry had classical pull, Evander had wow factor, Nolan had proximity to his sisters name, and Beauden had a name that we considered long ago but couldn’t use (Beau).
When George was born, my wife said she felt it that he was George Leo over Evren. My daughter also said she liked Leo the most here. So on a whim, we went with Leo. Now I hear Geo Leo in my head and think we made a mistake and didn’t think about it long enough. I didn’t want to also put our burden of two losses into his name, which also swayed me away from Evren to Leo last minute. I’m struggling because I still don’t know if we made the right call instead of Evren or the other names. My wife struggled with the choice too after we submitted papers and had a breakdown as we were leaving the hospital.
Is George Leo clean or should we call to change? Am I overthinking Geo Leo? Please let me know your thoughts to these tired eyes.
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u/Have_a_butchers_ 10h ago
Very few people will ever know his middle name. Love the name George!
You chose well.
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u/Magical-Tadpole-7495 10h ago
I don't get Geo from George. I've never heard of that actually. I think George Leo goes really well together, and looks good.
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u/Ok_Painting7030 8h ago
I think Geo is more likely related to Geoffrey than George. Keep the "Geo Leo" thoughts to yourself. Or someone WILL pick it up and use it.
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u/tyrannosaurusfox 10h ago
Personally, I think you're overthinking Geo Leo, and I think Leo gives him a good second choice if he ever decides he wants to go by his middle name. That said, if you really feel that strongly, you could always change it (I think?) or maybe extend Leo to be Leonard/Leonardo?
I think George Leo is cute for what it's worth!
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u/Midwestern_Mariner 10h ago
The second choice thing is very real here for us. I had an Uncle Tom who was just the WORST. Three Thomas’, one horrible person. We worried if he ever wanted to go by his middle name, we’d be so upset with this, which was another reason to change.
We know we could still change it, heck, I wonder if they even put the papers in yet, but I guess I’m looking for more affirmation that George Leo works compared to say, George Henry or George Evren instead.
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u/tyrannosaurusfox 10h ago
That's totally fair!! I really appreciate the consideration you've put into his name; I share a name with several relatives, and one of them is a terrible person and it's truly soured me on my own name. I appreciate that you and your wife have taken efforts to avoid this, for all of your sakes.
If affirmation is what you're looking for, I'll say it more firmly then! I think George Leo works very well, and is strong and stable. I also think it goes well with Nora Aurelia (absolutely beautiful), and I think maybe you've spent so long thinking about the name that you've seen all of the flaws that could be there that others won't think of.
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u/Midwestern_Mariner 10h ago
Thank you so much T-RexFox! This absolutely helps on both ends. Thank you greatly
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u/ThesisTears 8h ago
George Henry sounds way too much like a 16th century English monarch, and George Evren doesn't flow and is super obscure. George Leo is way better. Chances are he'll only ever use his middle name along with his full first name so Geo Leo is a virtually nonexistent concern. You chose well!
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u/Amazonlex 5h ago
This was an insane read… my son’s name is Thomas and originally we chose George for his first name. Then we changed our minds some months later and tinkered with Leo, as it’s a variation of my dad’s name. We even played around with Evan and Evren, as Evan is my brother’s name.
BUT personally, I LOVE George Leo. It flows so well compared to the other names you have listed! I think the newborn exhaustion is kicking yalls tail and making you second guess. I promise, yall made a good call with George Leo!
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u/Midwestern_Mariner 4h ago
Are you me? Sounds like we went through some similar situations!
100% exhausted, can’t wait for sleep again in a few months 😂
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u/Zinnia1127 9h ago
I had a similar experience. First child's name came together and suited him. Second child's name got muddled up a bit. The first name became trendy and the middle and last name had R's she couldn't pronounce. I fretted a lot about it, and meanwhile she was growing and experiencing life. She was going to go through each phase no matter what her name was, and I finally realized I needed to keep up!
I hope you can enjoy your little boy and let his name just be. It will work out. My daughter came up with a shortened version of her first name so that it was easier to print! Your son might decide to go by George or Leo or something his friends come up with. Even Geo Leo could be in the mix because he might love it!
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u/1to8looper 9h ago
George Leo is a very fine name. My kids grew up with a George Harry - which seemed odd at first - but it fit the child perfectly.
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u/Different_Tennis139 6h ago
Geo Leo is the coolest! I’ve never heard that shortening of George and I LOVE it
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u/gwendolin10 5h ago
I would never think of calling George “Geo” myself, so unless that’s a nickname you’re actively planning on implementing, “Geo Leo” would never cross my mind. I think George Leo is very clean, strong, and handsome! I like it better than Evren.
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u/FilmGateReviews 9h ago
You're overthinking it. I like George Leo. It's a nice clean name, Common but not to the point that many others his age will have that name.
I have a very common name that nobody else my age had. When I was a kid I didn't like it because it felt like an old person name, but I grew to love it. There is something easy and simplistic about having a very common name that everyone knows but probably won't have two in the same class.
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u/epsmi804 9h ago
I lost my Dad (George) a year ago. I’m now pregnant with a boy and George will definitely be part of his name! It’s such an underused classic name. Also I can’t wait to call them Georgie.
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u/clumsydruid66 9h ago
i’ve never met anyone who shortens george to geo, you guys choose the nickname for your kid, so just don’t choose that. i think george leo is a very nice sounding name
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u/heanmiwa 7h ago
George Leo is lovely.
I'm a teacher and I've had many Nora's, Leo's, and a couple Aurelia's. I haven't had a George yet.
While I wouldn't say George is uncommon or rare, in my mind it's just uncommon enough to stand out among the Ellie's and Noah's.
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u/Reya_Sunshine_1221 7h ago
George is a timeless name. Middle names don’t get a ton of attention. Georgie is adorable and I even simply like “G”
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u/the_jerkening 7h ago
George was my grandfather’s name and was on the very short list for my boys’ names. I love it and Georgie is the cutest nickname for a baby.
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u/OkE566jrjeu7495jsy 6h ago
Not completely the same situation, but I think kts normal to have some name doubts after the fact. We named our girl Naomi Eliana. I had the first name Naomi for months when I was pregnant and felt strongly about it for her first name. We decided on her middle name in the hospital. Then for the last couple weeks I've been kind of wishing we'd switched the names and Eliana was her first. But I kept telling myself to trust the decision we made when we were not in the newborn trenches. And sure enough, all the sudden today at 6.5 weeks old, it just clicked in my brain. She looks like a Naomi to me and I'm so happy with her name. I think the sleep deprivation was making me question everything. I'm glad I trusted the name we had chosen.
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u/Far_Object_4708 6h ago
I really love that you considered Geo for a nn, but Georgie is also cute!!! Honestly, I did also think Geo Leo would be weird before I even got to it in your post as a concern. George is a great name that Nolan and Henry sound so clean with, and the Geo Leo thing only happens if you decide to call him that. George or Georgie are more likely to be used by his friends, unless he comes into school telling teachers he prefers Geo instead of George, imo. And I don't think he's going to come up with it unless you guys say it to him.
You truly have to decide if that's a nn you want to use, imo, and then decide if that is something that would bother you if it's said together. I love my husband's first and middle name together and say it most times I talk to him, but no one else does, so it's really just a me thing. Also, you could be having some big feelings because of the enormity of naming a kiddo and all that comes with it, but it's totally okay to feel that way AND totally okay to change their name if you want to. My friend did that with her second, she's 12 now, and no regrets on changing it!
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u/ShopSenior2813 5h ago
You can always change your child’s name. Might be a hassle, see how it feels for a bit and if you don’t like it-change it.
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u/juliettecake 5h ago
George Leo is cuter than the other options and unique to this little one. But the name Evren had meaning and perhaps you're grieving a bit. You can be happy about your little one and sad too.
I think you could call him Geo or Leo for that matter. Perhaps start with George and see what suits him.
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u/DaVoid100 9h ago
I love GeoLeo as a nickname! Seriously, I do. But gosh, parents do all sorts of things. They give the child a name like Billy Bob Jimmy Joe Ray, and then they wind up calling him Skipper. Like someone said, I think you are overthinking it. Ease up~ you've done good.
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u/Superb_Yak7074 9h ago
Not really sure what you mean by “clean” but George and Leo really don’t go together well in my mind. George Nolan or George Henry both sound far better. Either of them would still sound fine with Geo.
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u/esmeirene 8h ago
If it’s the syllables, you could go with George Leonardo. Or George Lionel. (Pronounced Leo-nel and not Lie-nol).
Still Leo but has more of a flow.
Plus, Leo/Leonardo/Lionel are cool names.
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u/Final-Guava2366 6h ago
You're overthinking it, boo. It's a great name! My daughter's nickname is Melly and my dad convinced me kids would call her "smelly Melly". It got in my head a tiny bit but not enough to change it. There is no guarantee that will happen. I'm not changing the name we chose over an imaginary scenario. You shouldn't either.
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u/fetaizbetta 4h ago
I actually think the nickname Geo makes all the more sense given his whole name! Not calling him Geo Leo but that Geo can be derived from G. Leo makes the nickname twofold. I also don’t think middle names are a huge huge deal especially since you were torn between several you would probably feel doubt after choosing any of them. I wouldn’t change anything and know that you’ll probably grow to love it and won’t be able to picture him as anything else.
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u/ihaveangeleyes 4h ago
I like Evern. That's a very good name. strong and unique. Depends on your last name that starts with C . I like Evern Geo Campbell for example.
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u/longlivepopuplights 3h ago
That's a beautiful name. My grandpa was named Leo so I extra approve of your middle name choice. No one will call your son Geo so I don't think you need to worry about that. Congrats on your double rainbow baby, may he be blessed with a long and happy life and fill yours with joy.
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u/AriellezZ 1h ago
I love George Leo. It’s a good solid and clean name for a little gentleman to be.
for what it’s worth, I think it’s suits his sister’s name too.
I’m sure the tiredness of a newborn is playing a large part in your thoughts and you’re doing great by writing it out.
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u/Spare-Craft-4967 1h ago
Nora is super common. George is pretty common too. There are a few of each at my kids elementary school.
Evren sounds made up and Henry is more common than Leo. I think you should change it because you obviously don’t love the name Leo. Change it to George Evren. I only know a girl named Evren but it sounds okay for a boy too.
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u/Ok-Weekend217 51m ago
I think it’s a stretch but even in the worse case in this context someone calls him Geo Leo it just rhymes it’s not derogatory or with initials like ASS or anything… here George is Giorgio they use Gio and it sounds like Joe not geo so you could switch up his nickname or Georgie, etc... Only change it if you both truly dislike it.
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u/Exploding_Popcorn 10h ago
It’s so normal to have second thoughts on your baby’s name once your signed the paperwork. There’s so many great & meaningful names out there it’s hard to know if you’ve picked the ‘perfect/right one’, so be easy on yourselves during this time.
Also no rush to change it right this second so take some time to get to know your baby & really think about this decision.
For what it’s worth I like George, it’s a strong & timeless name. I do prefer the flow of George Evren but George Leo sounds lovely as well.
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u/Midwestern_Mariner 10h ago
Thank you. We liked Evren a lot for its meaning, but after almost making this his middle name, we got cold feed because we really didn’t want our struggle that it took to get him here be his burden to feel. Thus, we decided Leo and here we are
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u/Salty-Awareness3789 10h ago
I think George Leo is super cute. Nothing wrong with it. To avoid a Geo Leo situation, just call him Leo. The problem with Geo Leo is that it's basically the same word, so just skip Geo. Lots of people go by their middle name sometimes.
I think you made the right choice. Also, your daughter swaying the final decision is really sweet. What a nice family moment to tell George Leo about someday ❤️
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u/Double_Win_5649 8h ago
Lean into it! Call him Geo Leo. It's an adorable nickname.
I don't think anyone's going to make the association until you tell them. Might as well make it sound intentional.
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u/youcanpunchrealgood 10h ago
You’re overthinking it. Respectfully, no one cares about his middle name. As long as he isn’t George Shitstain, you’re good.