View Message

[Opinions] Calvin or Caleb?
If you really wanted to use the nickname Cal, which I love, which name would be better to use as a full name, Calvin or Caleb?
Archived Thread - replies disabled
vote up1

Replies

I'm not crazy about either, but I prefer Caleb overall. Calvin reminds me way too much of the comic strip character or of reformer John Calvin.
vote up1
Caleb!!
vote up1
I suppose I'd have to say Calvin even though I don't really care for it much. It's just that Caleb turns me off more. Cal is a great nn, though. I agree with you there. WDYT of Calum?BTW, my father and his father were both Calvins.
vote up1
CalebB
vote up1
Thanks, everyone, for your opinions. I didn't mean to start a flame war when I made this post, obviously, and I'm sorry if the disagreement below has bothered anyone. I appreciate all of your responses.
vote up1
Caleb, hands downI really like this name. It's so classy and handsome imo.Calvin, on the other hand, does not appeal to me at all.
vote up1
Between the two, CalvinAnd I'm not even saying that to be difficult in reference to all the haranguing in the posts below mine. :-P Calvin appeals to me much more than Caleb; I have neutral feelings for the former but I greatly dislike the latter. I don't like Jacob, either, so I suspect I'm not big on Caleb ending with the 'b' sound. I can appreciate the dilemma of looking for a first name for a nickname you love. I think Noll is just great but havn't really come across the name that I'd want to be its full name (I don't care for the related Oliver in the least). I think Array made a very good point that Cal could handle being a name on its own, though. It has a good sound that is more "complete" than some other nicknames.
vote up1
They're both ok, guess I'd go with Calvin, because I know a ton of little Caleb's.
vote up1
I wouldn't choose Calvin (too overtly religious) or Caleb (I don't like the -leb sound). My choice would be Callum. Not my usual style, but my brother had a friend in kindergarten who was the cutest little boy you ever saw - round face, blonde curls* - and that's coloured the name for me.So . . . Callum "Cal".* the fact that he had a young, single, cute father who was working part-time to be a home parent, and the fact that I was only ~10 years younger than this father at the time, may also have had something to do with it!

This message was edited 4/14/2008, 8:59 PM

vote up1
Can I choose just Cal?I love the (nick)name Cal, and I love Calvin, but I much prefer Calvin without a nickname (thank my formative years, which were spent reading Calvin and Hobbes like a madwoman). So definitely not Calvin. On the other hand, Caleb has never appealed to me, so I can't recommend that, either. Charles and Callum would be other possibilities, but neither does it for me, either.In all honesty, I think it can stand alone without trouble. It's like Neil or Jay or Nick or Ray to me. Might seem a little nicknamey on the face of it, but Cal's got some spine to him. If I met, say, a Dr. Cal Underdahl, I'd take him seriously.Yeah. Just plain Cal gets my vote. I dig it.Array

This message was edited 4/14/2008, 8:21 PM

vote up1
Ditto.
vote up1
Calvin, hands down! But I'm biased. ;) It's a handsome name, uncommon, unpopular, and it will probably stay that way for years to come.I do like Caleb, but Calvin has a special place in my heart.
vote up1
CalvinI love, love, love the name. It's just got such an awesome aura to it, while Caleb is one of those new trendy biblical names.
vote up1
Calvin. More handsome and of a man.
vote up1
I am a man and I am very glad I am not named Calvin
vote up1
x

This message was edited 4/15/2008, 9:37 AM

vote up1
But can you speak for all men?I'm a woman and very glad I'm not named Jessica, but my sister quite likes her name.
vote up1
I speak against women who have no grasp of how to create a masculine, strong nameFew names would provoke more bullying to me than Calvin. That is my opinion.

This message was edited 4/14/2008, 8:42 PM

vote up1
*rolls around laughing*
vote up1
Really?I've known several Calvins. I went to school with them. None of them were teased.Huh.
vote up1
My brother's name is Calvin. He's not teased.
vote up1
Keep in mind...this is the guy who refused to acknowledge what was so awful about Isaac Cox. :-P I wouldn't bother trying to reason in this case.
vote up1
And who said there was no reason not to use Casper, because who cares about 20th c. popular culture references? I really don't see how Calvin is so much more tease-worthy and nerdy than Casper.
vote up1
I remember thatBut I only stated my observation. I've known plenty of Calvins and they were never teased.
vote up1
Unabashedly nerdilicious. Thumbs Way Down.
vote up1
I respectfully disagree....I don't think the name Calvin is the least bit nerdy or would in any way provoke teasing. And it's very masculine. If the name Kevin, which is so similar to Calvin, and very popular, isn't nerdy, then I don't see why Calvin would be.
I'm a woman. I named my son William. It's a strong masculine name. Nuff said.
vote up1
Oh, you're right. I just changed my mind. Calvin is great!@@The nerdiest of the nerdy. Women have no consideration for these things. Sigh.

This message was edited 4/14/2008, 9:04 PM

vote up1
What I've always wanted to say:Stop being an -=A=-hole. Seriously.

This message was edited 4/15/2008, 2:04 PM

vote up1
excuse me!? [M]If you like to think that Calvin is nerdy by all means go ahead it's your opinion, but DO NOT say that women have no consideration on what makes a name masculine that's just outright sexist, and rude. It doesn't make you all knowledgable about what makes a name masculine just because your a man. It's all in the matter of taste and opinion to different people not someone's sex.

This message was edited 4/15/2008, 9:38 AM

vote up1
Well put.Very well put.
vote up1
thank you :

This message was edited 4/15/2008, 1:18 PM

vote up1
Snoop Dogg is nerdy?Image Hosted by ImageShack.us This Calvin looks pretty tough to me...
vote up1
Yeah, he surely would have achieved much more success if he kept his birth name instead of changing it.
vote up1
this is absolutely ridiculousfor some reason casper is way less nerdy than calvin. @@men have no consideration for logic.
vote up1
Recipe Time!Here's a recipe for a light, frilly Orange Charlotte, to go along with my flimsy, feminine opinions. Because I'm a woman, and we can provide nothing of substance.http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Orange-Charlotte/Detail.aspx
vote up1
Sexist.
vote up1
ditto
vote up1
You're entitled to your opinion, and I asked for opinions on the names, and I don't think it's right to ask for an opinion and then argue about it. I broke my own rule when I defended Calvin's masculinity in response to your belief that it's nerdy.
But...you are really annoying me in your insistence that women don't know how to give boys masculine, non-nerdy names. Look around you. The vast majority of males do not have feminine, nerdy names. Very few mothers have no input into what their sons are named. There's proof right there that women do appreciate the fact that a boy should have a masculine name. Please understand that if you insist on making sexist statements on a board that is predominately female, you're going to provoke trouble.
vote up1
Yes. Thanks be to the fathers.
vote up1
You are a complete moron....who ignores any common sense and what is blatantly obvious in order to stick to a ridiculous, offensive opinion.
vote up1
Oh, and you're totally graceful and reserved, Lady.I am not ignoring anything, but I am heeding with great importance my own observations. When a woman doesn't have a man's opinion on a son's name, it seems to, more frequently, result in an undesirably ostentatious, frilly, weak or inappropriately romantic choice of a baby name. I, of course, invite ANY contradition to these observations. You can bitch and rant all you want--it won't sway me on this. I do not care what level of brazenness you take with me--it will not affect my position, so save your foul breath for someone less observant.

This message was edited 4/14/2008, 9:44 PM

vote up1
Your belief that a woman should remain "graceful and reserved" when she hears her gender insulted is sexist in and of itself. Women are just as capable of, and have every right to be outraged and to defend themselves as men do.
Why don't you list all the examples of your personal observations of single mothers giving their sons frilly, weak names and I'll counter with my observations that they don't. And in the end, nothing will be proved, because personal observations are not scientific data, as Chrisell pointed out. And while you're at it, why don't you get into a time machine and transport yourself back to the nineteenth century, where your sexist views will be much more common, and the women will be too "graceful and reserved" to argue with you?
vote up1
I'd prefer men be graceful and reserved too as opposed to making such a spectacle from which you cannot refrain.Asking me to ignore my own observations is like asking me to ignore my life, and is asinine beyond reason, though as a women I guess you *would* have a sense of the art of hiding inaccountability--this however, doesn't invalidate what I have concretely observed.
vote up1
Attention, all females on this board. A has decided that if he insults our gender, and if we defend ourselves, that we are then making spectacles of ourselves and offending his sensibilities. Let's do all we can to avoid that horrible situation, shall we?
It is not asinine to ask you to ignore your personal observations, in the interest of arriving at the correct answer to the question (which you brought up) "Can a woman on her own name a male child appropriately?" If you were truly interested in arriving at the correct answer to this question, you'd be more than willing to do so, in the interest of accuracy. But you don't want to arrive at the correct answer. You want to continue being arrogant and offensive.
And now you've stated that a women "hide accountability"--whatever that means---I'm guessing you mean "avoid accountability"--thereby adding fuel to the fire. Keep going. You'll find that you've run into one woman who doesn't back down in the face of pig-headed arrogance.
vote up1
What i said was "hide inaccountability."
vote up1
Yes, I know that's what you said, but it doesn't make any sense. One can avoid accountability, but not hide it.
vote up1
sighBy "hide inaccountability" I am refering to the art, especially the women on this board use to rationalize their impulsive and unfounded emotions: always inconsistant from person to person, never with a concrete reason--always with an overzealous list of rare unsupportive exceptions to their opposition, and always with a flare for the darkest hateful language imaginable. How can you expect to cultivate an agreeable response from me? I assure you, you never will like that.

This message was edited 4/14/2008, 10:38 PM

vote up1
That phrase does not accurately describe the condition you're referring to.
Look, you. You are obviously a sexist pig. Now you're saying women have impulsive, unfounded, inconsistant emotions not founded in reason. Have I paraphrased you correctly? Amazing. And you, being of the male gender, have no emotions,and are therefore so superior to us, yes? Oh and on the Lounge, you made reference to "menstrual ravings" or something similar. So because we have periods, that disables us mentally, correct? We'd better let the world know that women are so impulsive, inconsistent, and unreasonable, so everyone can know what a mistake they made in giving Indira Ghandi, Elizabeth I, and Margaret Thatcher such power. How did we survive that?
Realize, please, that this is a predominately female board and you are insulting each and everyone of the girls and women who post here.
I'm not backing down from you, but I think it's time to end this disagreement on what is supposed to be a board for opinions on names. Feel free to PM me if you want to continue this discussion. I'm ignoring any more of your posts on this board, and unless you PM me, I will consider myself to have had the last word.
vote up1
I hope I do offend you and your like. I am not running for office. I do not need to contour to your emotions or whims, nor will I ever. I don't want to be your friend. I get much more satisfaction out of speaking my mind. This one of the MANY reasons why I'd FAR prefer a MALE partner.
vote up1
"I'd FAR prefer a MALE partner"? Are you saying that you're gay or that you want to be gay? I thought you mentioned having a girlfriend in the past.
BTW, you sound like someone who's just undergone a bad breakup. Did your girlfriend leave you or something?
vote up1
I think I only mentioned Lyric, but his real name was Aaron. I referred to him in a subject in which the name Lyric came up.That breakup was about six years ago. I am currently a few weeks into a new relationship, since you were wondering.

This message was edited 4/15/2008, 10:06 PM

vote up1
unneccessaryand rude. Bisexuality exists.
vote up1
Contour? I think you mean 'contort', genius.
vote up1
Not at all.Contour is the exact word I wanted.
vote up1
Actually, the phrase is "cater to whims," not contour.
vote up1
Not wanting to have anything whatsoever to do with this silly argument, which has already ended anyway, I still must say that -=A=-s use of "contour" was perfectly appropriate in context. There are a number of words that would have fit, but the one he chose is every inch as grammatically acceptable as "contort" or "cater," without being as cliché as they are in that phrase, which, if you're paying attention, speaks volumes.
vote up1
Contour did slightly work in context; however, it altered the acceptable idiomatic expression, which doesn’t do much to bolster his argument. Idioms are not clichés, rather they are colloquial speech that is recognizable to speakers in the culture. Altering an idiom generally reduces the effect of an argument, rather than enhances it. I was merely pointing out the conventional figure of speech.
vote up1
Contour in the context in which -=A=- used it is interchangeable with the word conform; go back and look. While I do not pretend to speak for him (or agree with what he said), I highly doubt he intended to use the "acceptable idiomatic expression," which, to be very precise, would be "cater to your every whim." That phrase is nothing like what he said; catering implies servicing, while conforming (and certainly contouring) implies yielding. I doubt he meant he wouldn't be of service; what sense would that make? I believe he intended to say exactly what he did say, by which he clearly meant he would not yield to others' points of view.I strongly disagree that "altering an idiom generally reduces the effect of an argument, rather than enhances it." Who says? Quite to the contrary, the use of cliché idioms reduces the effect, or strength, of any argument. Any single argument is more forceful when it does not rely on such pap.And for the record, I pursue this only because I felt the word contour was being maligned, not -=A=-. The English language is a very subtle thing, capable of limitless variety; I'm quite in love with it, and I felt it was being unjustly restrained. This interest is quite separate from the content of who said what.
vote up1
Catering implies servicing, or a subserving one's own opinion to the whims of others. Which means yielding your own personal desires to the desires of others - which also means conform. I'm quite aware that the way he was using contour was synonymous with conform. However, the message he was trying to convey was better served with cater and the recognizable idiom.If one alters an idiom, it generally makes the speaker look like they don't have a grasp on what they are saying - in speech, altered idoms work far better than in text because there are cues in the tone. Again, idioms are not cliches - just as regional differences in the name of things are not cliches. It's about the figurative meaning that's known because of it's usage - looking at the literal meaning does not always convey the full meaning in idiomatic expression. Something like "spend time" or "act of God," can't be altered without changing the meaning attempting to be expressed. This isn't a restraint on language, it's simply the way idomatic expressions work. I believe that the English language can be subtle, and it does have the potential for variety. However, I don't think we're going to agree on this, as I can see you disagreeing with my points on the ability for others to understand altered idiom. I'd hate to drag the name ops board off topic with a long debate on the usage of expression and word choice in language. Agree to disagree?
vote up1
agree :-)
vote up1
Yah, I know . . .After reading that I did go and look up contour and saw that it can be used as a verb. However by that time it was too late so I just left it as it was and walked away from the thread altogether.
vote up1
Oh my god. You really are a caveman.
vote up1
Then stop making a spectacle of yourself.
vote up1
1. You're incapable of disagreeing with someone without insulting them. This is a clear sign of a weak mind and a poor intellect.2. You're placing great importance on your own observations. Again, a sign of arrogance and a display of scientific incompetence. Personal observation is not a valid statistical tool as it is clearly subject to bias.3. Mysogyny on a board dominated by women is an unsound tactic.4. Most men I know think Arthur is a pathetically weak name, yet it is one of your favourites. Go figure.
vote up1
Agreed . . .I know quite a few single mothers (being a teacher and all), including some who have managed on their own since the day they told the guy they were pregnant and he disappeared. And I don't think any of their boys have feminine names.It's funny how people with narrow, single-minded opinions are unable to accept that other people may actually be broad-minded and capable . . . lol.There is also the fact that =A= is apparently extremely capable of developing pretty, feminine combos. By his logic, this should be impossible. Ergo, the reverse must be true. If he can come up with Eleanor Susannah or Julia Alice, a woman must be able to come up with masculine combos.
vote up1
Why is it, that she 'respectfully disagreed', and you still have to act like an asshole? I find it tremendously hard to believe you're 26.
vote up1
Always remember, I am talking about names, not the character of a specific person. I don't dance to your feeble tune, Missy.

This message was edited 4/14/2008, 9:35 PM

vote up1
"I find it tremendously hard to believe you're 26."I actually don't have trouble believing that.Remember what I was like for a while? A self-righteous little bitch, sure I had everything figured out and was intellectually superior to everyone around me? I was a bit younger than him then (24 and 25 rather than 26) but not that far off.In my case, it was an act - an attempt to create a perfect online persona that would make up for my (what I saw as) my complete incompetence and uselessness in real life. An arrogant shell covering an interior completely devoid of self-esteem.I'm beginning to suspect that it's a stage some people go through in their mid-20s. I went through it right before I finally understood that there's no such thing as a finished adult, and that everyone keeps on growing and changing throughout their entire life. I'd been trying to show that I'd attained a complete, final level of understanding, and I've seen =A= make much the same claim about himself.I think it's just another bump in the road to self-awareness.*hands over 2 cents and steps away from the soapbox*
vote up1
I hope not!Suddenly I'm scared of turning mid-20. I don't want to be nasty and have everyone not like me! :-/
vote up1
One thing you may look forward to is not taking seriously the immature insults and emotions of teenagers. In fact, when your my age, you'd be wise not to associate with them at all unless they're family for a number of reasons, this correspondence being but one exemplified confirmation.
vote up1
None of the other people in this thread are teenagers, genius. In fact the majority are older than you.
vote up1
Oh, only some people go through it :-)
vote up1
I agree, too.I've no idea how a Calvin would be teased unmercifully over a kid named Caspar or Ludwig.
vote up1
Agree.
vote up1
Except a boy named Sue.
vote up1
If you ever get the chance...Google the father's response to that song.
vote up1
neitherI would use Callum! It is much more handsome, and has a much better meaning.
vote up1
CalvinCaleb is drabbed and has always sounded baby-ish to me. Calvin, however, has sass. It reminds me of some dash man-about-town from the 1920s.
vote up1
CalvinBoo.
vote up1
Caleb
vote up1
CalvinI prefer Caleb to Calvin, but with the nickname Cal, I think Calvin works better. Cal just doesn't seem to jive with the feel of Caleb to me.
vote up1
Calvind
vote up1
Caleb without a doubt.:)
vote up1
Caleb.I like the sound of it better, plus its Biblical quality.I always think of Calvin and Hobbes with Calvin.

This message was edited 4/14/2008, 7:16 PM

vote up1