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Help[Opinions] Hayes instead of Hazel
So I was trying to decide if I should use Hayes for a girl. I like Hazel, but it is too popular right now, and it also reminds me of old ladies. I like Hayes more because it's short & sweet & because I like how it's gender neutral (I know the link to Hayes on this site says it is masculine- that needs to be updated because most other sites say Hayes is gender-neutral, and I have met a girl named Hayes too). I really dislike Hayes for a boy's name, it is too feminine and soft.
What do you name experts think?
also, I am trying to decide on Hayes Marie or Hayes Elena.
What do you name experts think?
also, I am trying to decide on Hayes Marie or Hayes Elena.
Replies
I think Haze can be a girl (short for Hazel) but to me Hayes is all boy. I know random surnames are popular as unisex names though, so maybe there are more people out there who would like Hayes on a girl.
Personally, using a surname like Hayes on a girl seems like a waste of a perfectly good opportunity to use an actual first name-- but maybe that's just because I don't like it. I like a lot of word names and some people would probably say that naming your baby after a word is a waste of an opportunity to use an actual name.
Personally, using a surname like Hayes on a girl seems like a waste of a perfectly good opportunity to use an actual first name-- but maybe that's just because I don't like it. I like a lot of word names and some people would probably say that naming your baby after a word is a waste of an opportunity to use an actual name.
If I heard a little girl called Hayes, I would assume it was short for Hazel. If I saw it written down, I would take it as a boy. The sound of it is nice, but she would have to clarify her name often- "It's not short for Hazel", "I spell it Hayes, not Haze", "over here, It's me a girl" I don't know how aggravating it is to clarify your name personally. I like Hayes Marie better than Hayes Elena.
Hayley "Hayes" makes sense! Hazel I think would have to shorten to Haze and not Hayes but Hayley definitely could.
I just can’t see Hayes as a girl’s name.
I wouldn't call Hayes gender-neutral. About the same number of girls were named Hayes in 2023 as James, and James would not be considered gender-neutral by most people either. Hayes has only even had a spike in usage for girls in the past few years, and if you've looked at the chart for any popular name, most temporarily spike for both genders at the same time. Hayes would need to become more popular and stick around a lot longer as a popular girl name before I would call it "gender-neutral."
I personally enjoy soft names on boys, though Hayes isn't my favorite name regardless because it's a surname.
I personally enjoy soft names on boys, though Hayes isn't my favorite name regardless because it's a surname.
I dislike both and can't imagine Hayes on a female. Hayes worse because it reminds me instantly of the words haze and hates. The way it looks too: Ha yes. It's better as a surname or at the very least as a nn to Hazel "Haze" as what Anneza pointed out. Or better yet, scrap both and go with Marie Elena/Elena Marie. Much nicer.
This message was edited 6/23/2024, 8:18 AM
I don't enjoy surnames as first names, but then I don't like Hazel either. What about Hazel, nn Haze?
Hayes IS masculine, most surnames are, that's why this site is the most accurate, pandering is kept to a minimum, while history and meaning are taken into account. Find nothing sweet or feminine or pretty about the name, its just another surname and they are getting SO boring when used - usually inappropriately - as girl names.
The name Hazel, when it was first used, was a male name. Also, an example of a female Hayes used in media that I found was Hayes Morrison in the 2016 ABC show "Conviction". In 2020, 98 girls were named Hayes. Also Madison, Avery, Ashley, Harper, Addison, Kennedy, etc...are all surnames that are used as girl given names. I don't see why Hayes would be any different, especially with its close phonetic relations to Hazel making it sound like a softer version with a cool spelling. Hayes is less boring than old lady Hazel. Maybe not traditionally, but today Hayes is a gender-neutral given name (& surname)!!
Are you seriously citing network TV as a source? No. Just no. So people use masculine/surnames names on girls - and yes the ones you cited are masculine, usage does not change history and meaning, just saying it doesn't make it so. People also use titles and random nouns as names - I know kids called Tequila and Camper. There's no accounting for taste. Just because you can do something it doesn't necessarily follow you should.
Hazel was never exclusively a masculine name. When it first came into use as a name during the late 19th and early 20th centuries it was used as a gender neutral name. There are plenty of surnames that are used as first names and some lend themselves more to use as a first name than others. If all surnames are gender neutral now then let’s call our daughters Fraser and our sons Hannah. While as a last name Hayes is as a technically gender neutral in my mind it lends itself more to a masculine name than a feminine name. Hazel Elena is pretty and you can always use Haze as a nickname.
Have you got a source for Hazel as a male name?
I've come across a few examples, all black and from tnt early part of thr 1900s.
It also charted in the US as a male name.
It also charted in the US as a male name.
This message was edited 6/22/2024, 2:14 PM
I LOVE it!! Hayes is going on my baby girl names list now ❤️❤️
thanks!! I love it too!
You realize we could see the IP address, right?
Stop talking to yourself.
Personally, I think it's beautiful.
me too!! thanks for your support!