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As someone married to a man named James, I think it's perfectly ridiculous. There's nothing remotely feminine about it. I could see going for something along the lines of Jamesina or even Jemma.

Seriously? I mean, seriously? OK, it is a feminine-ish sounding name, but it's just so BOY. Yah. I hate it with the burning of a thousand white-hot suns (very accurate description you have there).

I think it's actually really interesting. Not the sort of boys' name that's usually used on girls, anyway. And Jamie is so unisex so it could work.

Hate it with the burning of a thousand white-hot suns.

The boys' names on girls thing hasn't happened in the UK (yet). I suspect this is partly because of the huge amounts of relatives who would crack up laughing in disbelief, as that's almost certainly what I'd do if someone told me that's what they wanted to name their daughter. I can't think of any positive reasons for doing it at all, and I would pretty much instantly dislike the parents for landing their kid with it.

HATE it

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You know what I REALLY hate? How in this day and age, just about every not-so-masculine sounding boys name gets used for a girl. Elliot, Dylan, Arlo, Tristan, Aidan and, yes, even James. I also hate how this trend is almost completely one-sided. I mean, it's not like most people would willingly name their sons Emily or Isabella (although I have heard of male Jennifers before, and in Britain (and probably other places too) most Ashleys are male). There's NOTHING wrong with having a feminine name for a girl and certainly nothing wrong with a slightly softer name for a boy.
Hey, I could write an entire essay on why I hate boys names on girls, but I'll just leave it at that. So, yes, I hate it with the burning of a thousand suns.

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EDIT: Considering my own middle name is fairly masculine, I can't actually say that I oppose to gender-bending middle names (including girls names for boys middle names). Also I really like it for a boy, although I guess I'm biased as it's my cool uncle's name.

This message was edited 8/6/2012, 3:59 AM

I don't hate it, but I sure know a lot of people that would. Personally I think a lot of 'male' names work on girls, and James is one of them - but to try to over come all of the critisism you could go with Jamie instead (spelt a varity of ways: Jaime, Jamey, Jami etc) Or James could be a middle name.

It's a big fat NO, from me!! There's already too many male names being used on girls, let's leave some for the boys. How about Jamesina? I think it's very pretty.

James is such a handsome, if a bit popular, name for a boy so why do people have to go using it for a girl when there's so many other gorgeous names for girls? I pretty much hate it for a girl, now for a boy it's very nice.

I don't see the appeal of giving your daughter a traditionally masculine name, especially one that is so damn popular for boys. People scoff at me when I mention I like the names Sacha, Robin, Jules, etc. for boys. They also scoff at Remy, something that baffles me because Remy is a traditional masculine name in French. They tell me they'll "get teased for having a girl's name." Yet, these people name their daughters things like Ryan, Madison, Mackenzie, Morgan, Rene, Elliott, Aubrey, Ayden, Taylor, Rory, Blake, etc. Ultimately, I don't really care, and it doesn't really matter. I just wish they'd realize that if they give their daughter a masculine name to "give her more opportunities in life" and "grant her more respect in the workplace", they are sending a message: femininity is a bad thing. Femininity is less than masculinity.

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James, however, is preferable to names like Kaylynn and Kayla, which are altogether meaningless.

Forgot a thousand... more like a billion suns!

I think it's quite ridiculous. I would hate being a girl named James.

I don't really mind it as a middle name with purpose. I know some people have the last name James and I feel if you really wanted to honor someone with the name, first or last, I don't see gender as an issue. I don't like it as a first name for a girl at all, the sound and just everything about it. It's like calling a girl Charles, I almost want to picture her with a beard. Also my issue with it is that 99% of people will assume she's a boy on name basis. It's not like Jamie or Charlie where people know these are unisex names/nicknames, no one will look at this name and think "oh I wonder if this is a girl or a boy." Even if a good majority don't see a name as unisex like Ariel, there is still SOME people that do and that's better than pretty much everyone. I don't know, I just wouldn't want to subject my kid to that.

NO. Just no.

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no

I think James on a girl is just another Hollywood trend that, if we're all halfway lucky, will flame up and die out quickly.

As a mn, I like it. I've used it in girl combos--and other masculine names like Drew, Ryan, Bryce, Billie, and Douglas, too--and it can be cute. I especially like them paired with musty, dusty feminine names, like Agnes, Millicent, and Cordelia. As a first name, though, I would never use James. Hypocritical, maybe, but as fun as I think James can be as mn for a girl, I think it would be a drag as a fn.

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For me, the problem with James as a girl's first name is not that it's masculine, and it's not me being opposed to boys' names on girls (because I flat-out Do Not Care). It's more that James is so very, very popular for boys. I'd hate to have a first name that is given to only 20-odd girls per year nationwide but is in the Top 20 for boys. I think it would get old for little Miss James, I really do.

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That said, it would be easier to be a female James than it would a female Matthew or Benjamin. The unisex Jamie and the girly Amy are both be nickname options for a girl if she becomes frustrated with James.

I hate Jamie for a girl with the burning of a thousand white-hot suns. I hate James for a girl with the burning of a thousand and one white-hot suns.

It's been done enough by celebrities that it wouldn't be weird to see on a non-celebrity child at this point. Some of them spell it Jaymes (Kristen Stewart comes to mind, it's her middle name).

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I don't care for it though.

How weird!!!!

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I was hanging out with this guy named James two days ago and asked him if he would be ok with me naming a daughter James. He didn't care. A few of my friends agreed that it would be kind of cool.

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So I like it. I bet people would be cool with Jameson for a girl and it has "son" at the end. Anyway, I would use it but pair it with a super girly middle name.

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Good taste!

I've heard of girls named James here and there, but I definitely prefer it as a masculine name. I automatically think of it as a male name. It isn't as masculine sounding as some other classic male names like Thomas and Jonathan, but I still don't care for it for girls. I would use Jamie or Jamesina for a girl instead.

To be honest it wouldn't bother me at all. I mean I love it on a boy but I think the whole 'she has stolen a boys name' stuff is bullsh#t. I would definitely only use it on a boy and think it's much more handsome on a boy, but if people want to name their daughters James I really don't care.

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I know people always complain about this but to me there's usually a reason why certain names become popular for girls too. James is often used as a nickname for Jamie which is really popular for girls, or was popular 30 years ago. I know several Jamies who get called Jaymz or James just as I know several Hayleys and Amys who go by Hayles and Aymz. Other boys names that are common for girls such as Kyle, Ryan and Reese also sound very soft to me so I can see why they're attractive for girls. Doesn't bother me.

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On the other hand I wouldn't mind people naming their sons Bevin or Bronwen at all which sound quite masculine to me. I know some people are going to start the 'you wouldn't name your son Jennifer' discussion, but to me that is just plain silly. The name has to work sound-wise. Jennifer doesn't work on a boy to me but Bronwen and Bevin do. Brutus doesn't work on a girl for me but Ryan and James do.

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But yeah, I like it much much much better on a boy.