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I think Bernard is WAY nicer than Barnaby. Barnaby says clumsy fop to me, and Barney even more so. Obviously a lot of folks have a more positive image of it, so I'm trying to see it differently, but so far I can't seem to shake the impression of a hapless and weak person. It would, though, sound a little less bad in an Aussie accent than it does in an American one, because of the softer R.

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Bernard is pronounced differently here, I think - we say Bur-NARD. I think BEHR-nu(r)d is easier than bur-NARD and it sounds nicer. But I appreciate the feeling that it's a tad awkward to say. It's a nice smooth-feeling classic name, anyway, not really any more difficult than Theodore or Alfred which IMO are also a little awkward to say. And, Bernard (in Australia) could be called Bear, which I think is a cool nickname. In the US he'd become a Bernie (pronounced like burnie).

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Baxter brings a Beagle to mind really strongly ... I think I must have actually met at least one Beagle named Baxter in my travels. Also it makes me think of a bunch of similar (to me) surname names like Brock and Braxton, that seem to try hard. No grandpa factor for me at all.

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I don't think Baxter fits with the others quite as well as Barnaby does, honestly, but I think it doesn't matter because Baxter's a slightly better name IMHO. I think Bernard is the best name, and also fits best with the rest.

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- mirfak