Should you monogram baby's middle name or intial?

Years ago people didn't give children a middle name. When populations boomed in the 19th century people needed more names to distinguish themselves so the middle name became popular. Studies show that less than 5% of Americans born before 1776 had more than two names; but by 1900 nearly every American had one. So with the advent of three names , people started using a middle initial. Franklin D. Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy are two popular examples. Mad Magazine popularized the middle initial in the magazines' mascot- Alfred E. Neuman.

Now that we are in the internet age, many people feel the middle initial conveys an air of formality and they want to be cool and casual. So do parents still want baby to have a middle name and therefore, a middle initial? At Namely Newborns we are fascinated by names because our business is personalizing baby gifts. We receive a lot of request for three names to be embroidered on gifts and three letter monograms for monogrammed baby gifts, but we wanted to check with some experts to see what was trending.

In a journal published this spring by social scientists Wijnand A.P.Van Tilburg and Eric R. Igou( who obviously have middle names); they found that middle initials add a degree of authenticity in fields that place importance on intellectual  achievement like academia, law and medicine. Athletes and entertainers  tend to avoid middle initials so that they appear friendlier. Women who aspire to leadership roles tend to like middle initials and some female writers would rather publish under a their initials followed by their last name.

Frank Nuessel, a professor at the U. of Louisville and the editor of Names said middle initials are losing favor with each generation. Millennials want to be more casual so they are dropping their middle names if they have them . What he didn't say is are they bestoying a third name on their kids.

All of this said; there is a new need for the middle initial. People with common names have trouble using their real names for their twitter handles, emails and urls.So when you are naming your new baby; you have another dilemma to consider.Are you influences your baby's career opportunity by your name choice? We would love to hear about your preferences; so email us at info@namelynewborn.com