Sebastian
Replies
Wow, I am very surprised by the majority of reactions to this name. Full disclosure: I am married to a Sebastian, so I suppose I am hopelessly biased on the name, but I can say from my own experience that I've never come across the pretentious or snobby label before. On the other hand, I guess people are just being polite! People usually, if they say anything, make some joke about the Little Mermaid movie, which for me is a hilarious association.
And yes, I have to agree...compared to a lot of the names being thrown around on this forum, Sebastian appears quite straightforward. My husband loathed it throughout childhood because it seemed "too long" to him, but now secretly rather likes it because its relatively uncommon.
And yes, I have to agree...compared to a lot of the names being thrown around on this forum, Sebastian appears quite straightforward. My husband loathed it throughout childhood because it seemed "too long" to him, but now secretly rather likes it because its relatively uncommon.
I think Sebastian is a really nice name. I like that it's a bit over the top and isn't popular.
I think Sebastian Adair is kind of over the top. It sounds more than a bit like a cheesy fictional love interest.
I'm warming up to Sebastian on its own, though. I'm friends with one and having a real life positive assocation usually helps me get used to a name. He gets called Seb half of the time, which helps to make it seem a little more human and less, I don't know, like a British birth announcement joining big sister Imogen.
I might say that I like it conditionally--from the right person, on the right person, with the right middle name.
I'm warming up to Sebastian on its own, though. I'm friends with one and having a real life positive assocation usually helps me get used to a name. He gets called Seb half of the time, which helps to make it seem a little more human and less, I don't know, like a British birth announcement joining big sister Imogen.
I might say that I like it conditionally--from the right person, on the right person, with the right middle name.
You know, I've always hated the name Sebastian. I think it's because the "BAST" sound in the middle reminds me of the word "bastard". Also I think it's pretentious.
I do know of, but have never met, a little boy named Sebastian. A friend of mine lives with the father of her son, with whom she ended their sexual relationship years ago, his wife and their (the baby daddy and his present wife's) son Sebastian. Kind of crazy, isn't it? I hear about little Sebastian frequently, since my friend says she looks after him more than his mother does.
I do know of, but have never met, a little boy named Sebastian. A friend of mine lives with the father of her son, with whom she ended their sexual relationship years ago, his wife and their (the baby daddy and his present wife's) son Sebastian. Kind of crazy, isn't it? I hear about little Sebastian frequently, since my friend says she looks after him more than his mother does.
On a European person I wouldn't judge it this way, but on a child who is my daughter's peer, it sounds to me like one of those prime time soap opera pretty-boy names, or the hero of a 1970s bodice-ripper novel... I mean, it sounds inspired by a particular kind of popular image that I find shallow. Besides, more practically, it doesn't shorten to anything comfortable that can be used familiarly, so it has a formal air that seems pretentious to me.
This message was edited 5/2/2008, 2:45 PM
I have always loved Sebastian. My long-standing third favorite boy's combo is Sebastian Gabriel.
I love Sebastian and I loved it for years! For me it's in the same category as Alexander, Nicholas, Jonathan, Maximilian and Theodore (classic and long names). Sebastian is one of the names I could actually use on a child even if I know a bunch of Sebastian's (I've got two of them in my class for example)
Yes, maybe a bit caricatured (good term). For a die-hard J. S. Bach fan though, you really can't go wrong. The middle name might be pushing it a bit.
I've never thought about the Bach connection but that certainly has increased my appreciation of the name slightly. Good connotation. I can't believe that I've never caught that one before...!
Bach is the reason I often shortlist Sebastian.
RE Sebastian in general: Sebastian is fine, it is very solid and stocky phonetically IMO, and I am tired of the pretentious image BTNers have of it. It is not a bad name. Sebastian Adair is fine flow-wise, because Adair is an iamb and goes well with almost everything, but Sebastian is so German (and I guess Spanish and stuff too, but mostly German to me) and Adair so Scottish that to me there is a big clash. Plus it seems a bit snooty, as if you'd find him at one of Gatsby's parties.
RE Sebastian in general: Sebastian is fine, it is very solid and stocky phonetically IMO, and I am tired of the pretentious image BTNers have of it. It is not a bad name. Sebastian Adair is fine flow-wise, because Adair is an iamb and goes well with almost everything, but Sebastian is so German (and I guess Spanish and stuff too, but mostly German to me) and Adair so Scottish that to me there is a big clash. Plus it seems a bit snooty, as if you'd find him at one of Gatsby's parties.
Nice name. I love Adair in the MN spot.
I like it very much, but a lot of people seem to find it pretentious. I'm not crazy about Adair, though.
It's not really my kind of name, but it's alright. And it's unique (at least where I am) which is good