Jack or Jacob? Siew Yee or Siew Lee? Not sure what’s the best name for your new arrival? Picking your baby’s name certainly takes a lot of thought but there are ways to make it easier.

#01 Say Baby’s Name

Try out your favourite names and say it several times a day. For instance, throw the name into your daily conversations: “Would baby Devi like a yellow crib?” “Do you think little Gordon would be a top scorer in school?” Try it with your family and friends and see what their reactions are. Also have others say the name and check in to see how you feel about it.

#02 Make it a Middle Name

If there are two names that you absolutely love and can’t choose, use one as your child’s middle name. Make sure they combine nicely though.

#03 The Alphabet Rule

If you seem to be wanting every single name on the popular names list, then go with the alphabet rule. Zaki and Zachary will always be at the end of the line at recess or gym class when it’s time to line up alphabetically. But Annie and Audrey will get to be first every time – and they may just love you for it.

#04 Inspired by Tradition

Your child’s heritage is an essential part of who she is, and you may want her name to reflect that. Your religious preference may steer you toward a certain category of names. Or perhaps your family has a tradition of naming first-born sons after their fathers.

#05 Not Too Cute

Bear in mind that your baby will become an adult one day. Names that are cute for a tiny baby can sound ridiculous for a grown-up. For example, if your daughter ends up becoming a judge or CEO of a multinational company, Barbie or Honey probably wouldn’t fit so well.

#06 Spell It Out

Avoid endless confusion by eliminating names that are too difficult to spell or pronounce. You and your child will soon grow tired of correcting people when they misspell her name, or can’t pronounce it. Test out your name choice on friends and family, and see how they spell it. If people don’t spell the name the way you prefer, you may want to rethink it.

#07 Common Confusion

Some parents prefer not to choose names that are too common. If you call out the name Ahmad at the school gates, you’ll probably get three or four children responding to you!

#08 Twin Names

If you have twins, there are many ways to go about choosing their names. You can stick to a theme or tradition such as Faith and Hope or Mei Leng and Mei Yee. Other parents, however, skip the themes and go with two names that are as individual as their child, such as Rajesh and Anand. Another option is to pick two names that start with the same letter, such as Zara and Zeta.

#09 Decide Later

You don’t really need to make the final decision before your baby’s is here. Once she has arrived, and you’re looking at a real baby, you may find you have a newfound sense of clarity. Is she really an Irina or Adina? Staring into her eyes will likely give you the answer.

#10 Go with what Feels Good

Close your eyes and think about the name you like. Which name do you really, really love the most? Go with the one that makes you smile every time you say it. If you truly love the name now;once the baby gets here and becomes that name, you’ll love it
even more.

REMINDER…

Make sure your baby’s initials don’t spell out an unfortunate word, for example “Steven Hing In Teong”. This would make for a lot of teasing and embarrassment.