The Name....Its a Big Deal!

[KellyJameson]

I kept my first name "Kelly" because it is my mothers maiden name and why they gave it to me but I changed my middle name to Katherine.

At my new place of employment everyone uses Katherine to address me.

I do feel more like a Katherine than a Kelly if that makes any sense but I'm comfortable with either.

All the changes with transitioning are simply overwhelming and hanging onto the name Kelly was my way of anchoring myself to myself while changing myself but I don't have this need now to the same degree.

My parents and immediate family will always call me Kelly and I think it makes things easier for them but yet also harder because of the history attached to the name.

Names are very powerful.

[Dianne S]

I want to keep my inidials. Originally, I was "Dawn" but that just never felt right. "Dianne" fits much better. I will probably choose "Faye" as a middle name, partly to keep my middle initial and partly because my mother told me that's what I'd have been named had I been a girl.

[PretzelGirl]

Now if I had found my father in this same situation, I wouldn't have bothered asking him. His name was Shirley.

[whowhatwhen]

I bet he just loved Airplane!

[AmandaM]

There was a TS who had a website. Her name was Amanda. She was at a bar with girlfriends (she passes very well). Some guy tried to pick her up and she said, "I'm a man, duh". He said, "Hi, Amanda!".

[Rachel292]

I'm Rachel because that was what I was going to be called, according to my mum.
It also helps because if I don't change my last name then my long established signature stays the same.
I've thought about various other last names, because I have lots of W's in my family tree, my Father, Paternal and Maternal Grandmothers all have W names. I have never had a middle name, but I if I do it will probably be my Maternal Grandmother's Names 'Harriett Victoria' so it will probably be Rachel Harriett Victoria W

[Emma Beth]

I don't have any ideas that can help, but here's how I have come up with my top two contenders.

Last year, before I had my epiphany, I was working on a writing exercise and had to ask my Dad this question, "What would my name have been if I had been born a girl?" He told me that if I had been born a girl that he most likely would have named me after his Mother. Her name was Elizabeth. To me that name feels like that cozy blanket that you just won't get rid of. It fits like a glove to a point.

The other name I have been rolling over my tongue shows part of my sense of humor. Only another Trans person can truly appreciate this one simply because we all jump down a similar rabbit hole just to see how deep it is. Yes it's Alice.

I can say that I will use both of them, but I'm having a hard time deciding which one should be my first name and which one my middle name.

Elizabeth Alice

Alice Elizabeth

I like both equally and I have to admit that I have plenty of time to make my final decision. Maybe I should do a poll somewhere on here to find out which way to go when the time comes. Oh well. That's my 2 Cents.

Liz

[Aly Cat]

Personally, I like Elizabeth Alice. It just rolls off the tongue easier. It flows better. You're the one who has to live with it though.
Personally, I am really leaning towards Alya Catalina. I think it sounds beautiful and the meaning is perfect. "Ascend to purity." Since I am moving towards my goal of being pure woman, it just fits well. Alya is Hebrew and Catalina is Greek. I'd go by Aly and if someone wants to give me a pet name, they can call my Aly Cat. Which is totally awesome!

[Aprilrain]

I needed a screen name when I singed up here and April Rain just popped into my head, I had no idea it would become my real name!

[noeleena]

Hi,

I did not wont or need to change my birth name as its both male and female so from noel - no-el to noeleena. and 2nd name Edwina,

My name is about myself and those who know me for who I am starting from my birth and there was a big fight in our home concerning my names,

My so called father of about 5 years wonted to call me mannfried , Von Rechthos, Mom said no and put her foot down and no way so I was called , noel , edward. mannfried , Von Rechthos , Loch-head,

So my two German names would not have gone down well as I was born in 1947. just after the 2nd WW.

...noeleena...

[vikki2020]

"vikki" just kind of evolved with me, and I've used it for a while now. But, now, especially at work---I've been using my "real" name---with a tweek. After years of being "Bob", everyone calls me "Bobbi" now--and uses that in e-mails. So, I've been running with that--and trying to change everything==credit cards, etc. to Bobbi.

[Nigella]

I just feminised my male name. To me it was much simpler as I have transitioned in situ, I think those that knew "him" found it easier to add a little bit to the male name rather than learn a new one.

I honestly did not consider any other female name

[Frances]

I had specific criteria for my name. It could not be too exotic, as it does not work in my culture. It had to be bilingual (easy French and English pronunciations) and not too serious. It also had to be completely different from my original name so that people would not make mistakes and use the old one. I don't use it here. It's not a secret, but I don't want it to show up in Internet searches. It's a little tribute to Tula Cossey.

[marsha leanne]

When i first started thinking about a name, Melina came to mind, that was the name chosen had my son been born female. i used that for a while.

It turned out it made me depressed as i always wondered what having a daughter would have been like, so i let it pass. I just left the door open and Marsha stepped in. for what ever reason, it just seemed to fit. (and no, it has nothing to do with 'brady bunch'!).

the middle name is still in flux, teetering between leanne and lynn. Both feel right on the tounge. Last name is not yet decided, but i am inclined to keep my last name so as to keep the initials intact.

[Leah Lynn]

My male nickname is Lee; I only use my proper name for legal purposes. I hadn't thought about a female name, but at a Halloween party a few years ago, a lady asked my wife, "Where's Lee?" As I said, "I'm here", a gent said, "No, that's Leah!" That stuck, but when I do the legal name change, it will be Leah Marie.

BTW, my wife and I were engaged before she found out what my real name is.

Leah

[LeaP]

...It could not be too exotic, as it does not work in my culture. ...

What are the implications for using an exotic name?

[Aly Cat]

I think I have settled on the name Kenneth Alyson Catriona. I'm keeping the Kenneth in my name out of respect for my grandfather who I was named after and who passed away on my 13th birthday. I think I owe him that and want to honor him by keeping the name. I won't be using the name obviously, but I think it should stay. I'll be going by Aly. Alyson means honest and Catriona means pure. Both are Irish so I'd be following my roots. I think they are fitting names and I like how they flow.
Aly just feels right too. I haven't really come across any other names that feel "right" to me. I'm definitely happy with it.

[Frances]

What are the implications for using an exotic name?

I am French-Canadian. We are like the Irish, very homogenous and Catholic by tradition. Anyone who does not use contractions linguistically is deemed suspect (kind of like in Alabama). A Japenese name who not fly. We are descendants of peasants who could not go back to France when the British took over. Even our last names are similar. Also, we don't have middle names.

[Kimberly Kael]

I think I have settled on the name Kenneth Alyson Catriona.

I think it's very sweet that you want to preserve the family connection, but have you considered keeping Kenneth as your middle name? There are a lot of circumstances in which you'll produce ID and that first name outs you immediately when you might prefer otherwise. I kept my original given name as a middle name partly out of respect for my parents, and partly to ease the legal transition by making the connection for anyone who still had my prior name on file.

Admittedly that name was also somewhat gender neutral, though more typically associated with men than women, which helps.

[Kathryn Martin]

My spouse chose my first name and I loved it, it's very fitting. I kept my birth name as my middle name and also my last name.

[shayleetv]

My name came from old Irish folklore. I had a friend who was rather an expert in Irish myths and such. He told me about fairies in folklore and why they stole male babies and why boys were often in dresses until age 12(this was still happening up to WWl). Fairies were always presented as female because they were sexless nether male nor female. A synonym for fairy was a Shaylee. At the time I chose the name that was pretty much how I felt about my self. As for now I just like the name because I think it is pretty, different and somewhat unique.