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First off, I really like Artemis for a boy. It sounds cool, has a great meaning and association. In my opinion, names are just names! If you like a name, use it! The goddess Artemis was pretty cool lady, so it makes sense to name little girls after her, but why not give little boys a cool namesake like that too!

I have always thought Artemis sounded more masculine than feminine. However, I think it's too weird to actual use. Artemas would just make things worse. I am very partial to traditionally feminine and traditionally masculine names. There are a few unisex names I like.

To me Artemis is the goddess, and therefore firmly traditionally feminine, not unisex at all. I never read the Artemis Fowl books so don't have that alternative association.
I'm fine with some names being unisex - surnames, nature names, occupation names (basically any word name is "neutral" and up for grabs by either in my opinion). However, using a traditionally masculine name on a girl (e.g. James) perplexes me, unless it is a family surname. And vice versa for traditionally feminine names on boys. Why do it? There are literally thousands of names to choose from, why confuse the issue further?

It doesn't really matter to me because I haven't met any people named Artemis. If I met a guy Artemis I wouldn't think much about it.
But I do think of Artemis as the name of the goddess, and I think if I were a guy, I'd rather be given a specifically masculine version of the name. It just feels incomplete to me, or like it says "I don't care about the kid as much as I care about the deity," when a gendered person is named directly after a deity of the other gender.

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I'm generally okay with names for girls that are technically guy names, but which haven't been heavily used as guy names in my experience.
Kinda the same with genders reversed, like Artemis.

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It only bothers me when I'm strongly conditioned to assume a name indicates a particular gender - because I feel interfered-with. Like someone's trying to play a cheap trick, exploiting conventions to draw attention and seem special/different. I'm talking like, gal named Aidan, or guy named Raven - names I'm really accustomed to being specifically gendered, that have come to feel to me as if they're actually masculine or feminine (even though I know that's not objectively true). Of course it's all just my personal conditioned reaction - but I can't help thinking that if it were me, I'd like my name to be chosen to not have that effect on anyone, according to my gender. I think there will always be gender, and it's human nature to learn conventions of which things are which, automatically, just like we learn language - so I think it will never be a total non-consideration, no matter how much people intend to disregard gender.

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Generally the names that are cross-gender usages, are surname names, or names I haven't heard that much, or names I've always heard on both - so I get used to them easily and it's no big deal.

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I like some unisex names, and a few names as cross-gender usages (they're generally names I haven't ever seen on any real person).

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This message was edited 2/4/2021, 1:47 PM

I think the Artemis spelling for boys is actually used more than Artemas or Artemus.
It's basically just shortened from Artemisio / Artemisios, as masculine.

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I notice I do like goddess derived/honoring masculine names - Dmitri, Junius, Artemas (Artemidoros), Gaius, etc
...and god derived feminine names can be cool, like Zenobia.

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I prefer the Artemas spelling mainly because the *mas reminds me of holidays. :)

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I often feel like ancient deity names are too on the nose (or symbolically heavy), when used for the same gender. I feel that way about Artemis and Gaia, for girls. I guess I also like when boys are named after their mothers/aunts/grandmothers instead just getting a copy of their dad's name.

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I'm fine with unisex names. To me, surnames-as-FNs seem inherently unisex, lots of word names seem unisex, and some shortened versions of names seem unisex.

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I'm fine with gendered names being used for opposite gender, especially if they're honoring (I have a unisex honoring MN - I'm female and the spelling is the traditionally masculine one, and I've always liked it; another example would be the tradition of giving Maria as a masculine MN). I think if people do that, it should be for an actual reason, though - like, it enhances the personal meaning/identity/connection.

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Sometimes names bestowed in an opposite-gender way do come across as thoughtless/flaky/trendy to me. Like, someone suggested Odin for a girl (just because it sounded cool?), and that seemed comic book like or kitschy/subversive to me.

This message was edited 2/4/2021, 2:48 PM

There is a male name Artem (Artyom), which is extremely popular in Slavic countries.

I'm not as strongly polarised on name gendering as I once was, because gender in general is just complicated. I do find being able to imagine a boy or girl helps me decide whether I like names or can imagine using them, but of course that's not necessarily realistic. I've been trying to be less judemental about how other people see names, because it's none of my business.

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However, Artemis on a boy is a bit of a pet peeve, and that's coming from someone who loves the sound of the name on a boy or girl. I grew up reading the Artemis Fowl books, and I was into Greek mythology, so I get it. I currently intend to use Artemis for a 2nd girl one day (and Artemus is in my top 10 boys). Plus with the prevelence of 'boys names on girls' I wouldn't mind more of the opposite happening. But the history and origins of Artemis lie with the Greek goddess. It's even acknowledged in the books. She's a big reason I love the name, and I enjoy the strength, femininity, and beauty of it.

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If there were no other options for boys I'd be more understanding, but Artemas and Artemus (my preference) do exist. They even have near identical pronunciations. If it was purely a spelling preference I'd say fair enough. But at the end of the day Artemis isn't just a spelling a variant, it's background is intrinsically linked to a feminine figure. And the fact that a common opinion with Artemis is that it sounds too masculine for a girl and thus works far better on a boy, makes me even more determined to 'keep it for the girls'.

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Obviously it comes down to personal opinion, and I wouldn't argue if someone named a boy Artemis. However, I would question whether they thought about the origin/history of the name.

Artemus / Artemas

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Since Artemis is a well known mythological goddess, I typically think of it as feminine. However, the spellings Artemus and Artemas are known variations of the name to use for a boy, so, if I wanted to honor the goddess with my son's name, then I would go with the male option.

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Since Demetrius / Dimitri is a boys name in honor of the goddess Demeter and Apollonia honors the male Apollo, it makes sense that there would be a male variant of the name Artemis as well.

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Surnames used as first names and certain plant names sound unisex to me. Most names that have been around for a while have a tradition of use that is more specific to a certain gender/sex, so they aren't really unisex. I wouldn't give a daughter a traditional male name because I wouldn't want her to feel like I was somehow trying to hide the fact that she is a girl or that I didn't give her a girl name because they are somehow lesser.

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The same thing with boy names; why would I try and make a statement with a son by deliberately giving him a feminine name? There isn't anything wrong with being a man and there are traditional boy names that I like, so I would just use one. No need to confuse people on forms or have people question his identity.

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If a son or a daughter wanted to change their names later because it didn't fit them, then that is fine.

This message was edited 2/4/2021, 11:51 AM

I'd say use Artemas. If I met a boy named Artemis I'd assume his parents made a mistake or only read the name in Artemis Fowl and didn't look it up.

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I don't think anyone has a broad opinion on gendered names in general. Every name has its own sound and aesthetic impression for every person. In theory it would be best if all names were accepted as unisex (mostly because it's a big hassle to have a name and pronouns that don't "match"), but there are many names that I only like for one gender, or names that I think only work as unisex when used as nicknames.

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ETA:
Artemiy
Artemy
Artemios
Artemio
Artem
Artyom
Artemius

This message was edited 2/4/2021, 11:54 AM

I don't like it at all

It doesn't make sense to me as a male name, but you can do whatever you want LOL

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I love it for a girl.

I prefer it for a girl, is a fave of mine for a girl, but I can easily see how someone can also see it for a boy simply for its look, spelling, and how it sounds with its pronunciation.

This message was edited 2/4/2021, 10:28 AM

I can see Artemis on a boy, because the boy cat in Sailor Moon was called Artemis :) At least I think it was Artemis....it could have been Artemas I suppose. Anyway, I have that association, so it works for me as a male name no problem.

If Aramis is perfectly acceptable as a male name, then so is Artemis

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Aramis is where my mind immediately went after reading your post, hence my bringing it up. :)

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There is only a few letters' difference between Aramis and Artemis, so why not?

This really is a name which should be considered to be differently gendered depending on the spelling, like Frances and Francis.

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Artemis is the name of a goddess and should be for a girl.

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Artemas and Artemus are male. The character in the TV show and more recent film "The Wild Wild West" was Artemus Gordon. Artemas of Lystra is a man mentioned in the book of Titus in the New Testament. He is considered a saint by both the Catholic and Orthodox churches.

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Artemas was a male name in Greece which meant "gift of the goddess Artemis." The pronunciations were probably more different in Greek 2000 years ago than they are in modern English.

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https://biblehub.com/topical/a/artemas.htm

I like the sound, but I'd probably spell it Artemas. Which is a traditionally male name.

I only associate Artemis with the Greek goddess, so I can't imagine it as a male name at all. If I had to find a male version, it would be Apollo.

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I don't get emotional about gendered names on the "wrong" gender, but nor would I ever use them like that myself. There are so many to choose from that it doesn't seem necessary. I had a girl name lined up for our first child, who turned out to be a boy. But I gave him a boy name, three in fact, and did not give a moment's thought to naming him Lucy.

The first time I ever heard this name was on a male character in a TV western, years ago when I was a kid. I'm not certain of the spelling. I was actually surprised to later learn it is generally considered to be feminine. I think I still have a mental block to this day about that. It will always feel mostly masculine to me. That said, I don't mind it on either gender. I sort of like it for both. But it certainly does not sound particularly girly to me. I think a lot of people would guess it was strictly masculine if they didn't know better. It works for me on a boy.

This message was edited 2/4/2021, 7:55 AM

The two examples of male Artemuses are Atemus Fowl, a fictional character (and he has an obviously made-up-for-comic-effect last name) and Artemus Pyle, and that's a stage name.
SO no, Artemus is not a good option for a boy; even the people who use it famously know that it is ridiculous and deliberately chose it for that very reason.

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Artemis on a boy makes as much sense as Diana on a boy, or Adonis on a girl.
In other words, none.

It works. I can't picture Artemis on a girl baby anyway. I think most names are unisex.

The name doesn't work for me in general. I think it's ugly sounding. The look of it reminds me of words like "penis".

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Sound-wise it works on a boy. Artemis is such an odd name anyway, I never had a problem with it on a boy.

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However, historically, it is the name of a goddess and I'm not sure if a boy would appreciate that so much.

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But I personally wouldn't care. I think it is unattractive on any sex.