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Weldon, Hilton, Chester
I've been crazy about Chester for a while, so I started looking for names with the same feel--clunky, old-fashioned surnames with a nerdy but civilized touch. Hilton has been growing on me--Paris and the hotels not withstanding. And Hilly would be such a cute nickname! Then I nymblered those two and came up with Weldon. I think this may be the nerdiest of the lot! But I like that it sounds like weldin', because that's what a child does to his family. I am a little worried it sounds like well-done, because that is not how I like my steak cooked. Lol.Any thoughts on Weldon, Hilton, and Chester? Suggestions? Thank you!

This message was edited 9/22/2011, 12:31 AM

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My Grandad used to have a friend name ChesterApparently Chester's surname was Field... It never really occurred to the family as unnusual until one day when we were over at my great aunt's place looking at pictures and my mum (whose fam hadn't grown up knowing these people) said "Was his name REALLY Chester Field?"... Fortunately, since men usually keep their surnames when they get married, you don't have to worry about him meeting and marrying someone w/ the surname Field because her name might change and his prob'ly won't.
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I love Chester!
Hilton, I can't get over Paris and the hotels. I don't like it.
Weldon, I liked it until I saw your comment about Well-done. Now that is all I see.Other suggestions:
Linus
Albert
Norbert
Norman
Humphrey
Hubert
Lionel
Leonard
Harvey
Warren
Wendell
Wilson
Walter
Wallace
Dexter
Algernon "Algie"
Earnest
Franklin
George
Simon
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Nice suggestions! I love Linus, Albert, Norman, Lionel, Leonard, Harvey, Warren, Walter, Franklin, George, and Simon.
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I don't get the same feel from Chester as I do from Weldon and Hilton. With Weldon and Hilton your description of clunky, old-fashioned and nerdy fits just right. But Chester feels more awkward and misfit-like to me. Like the difference between intelligent-nerdy and awkward-geeky. Anyhow, I think Hilton is neat. Weldon is alright too. I like it more after your weldin' association. :) And I don't think it sounds too much like well-done at all.Hayward and Maynard came up when I nymblered (I like that you verbified it!) Weldon and Hilton. Now there's clunky and nerdy for you!
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Ooh, Maynard! I think I'll save it for a bloodhound, lol.
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Some other suggestionsI like Hayward and Maynard. I just thought of some other good ones, Mayward, Mayhew / Mayhue, Maybury, Mayne, Maybourne, Maguire, Madden and Maxwell. Also Donoghue / Donaghue and Claiborn / Clayborn / Claiborne / Clayborne / Claibourn / Claybourn / Claibourne / Claybourne. Linus, Dane, Dean and Quinn are some other good surnames.
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This message was edited 9/22/2011, 4:28 PM

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I thought of some others Darwin, Thatcher, Dayton, Horton, Deacon, Woodrow and Evander / Evanger.
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This message was edited 9/22/2011, 4:29 PM

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I love DarwinHorton (Hears a Who)Deacon (never thought of it like this, but it fits
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I love Chester too. I don't think of it so much as a surname as a place name. It's so tweedy and fusty -- too things I love.I'm not big on Hilton or Weldon. Of the two I prefer Weldon. I hadn't thought about "well done" until you mentioned it and now I can't get that out of my head. Suggestions:Sutton, Wystan, Hollis, Kendall, Alden, Bryson, Lowell, Leland, Hobart, Smith (nn Smitty?), Digby, Wexford, Neville, Clarence (nn Cary?), Wilkie / Wilmot, Dashiell, Jarvis, Lambert, Mycroft (Sherlock Holmes' elder brother), Trahaearn, Eustace, Makepeace, Llewellyn (nn Louie?). ETA: Are there any good surnames in the family's tree that would work? I think that would be more meaningful to the littl'un, especially if he's welded / blended into it. :-)

This message was edited 9/22/2011, 1:34 PM

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Wystan goes very well with Chester...Chester Kallman was W.H. Auden's boyfriend/platonic BFF. I've always been struck by how well those names go together. And you're right, Chester is more of a place name than a surname.Hollis, Wexford, Clarence, Wilkie, Jarvis, Eustace, Makepeace, and Llewellyn are all so good.Lowell is cool, and I love the nn Lowey (or however you would spell that). But Lowell, Massachusetts is kind of a sad place!Mycroft is outrageous! I love it. And of course his brother's name is Sherlock!Wilmot is neat. I'd never thought of it before. Now I'm off to go look up the Wilmot Proviso and see if that's something worth sharing a name with.As for family LNs, I don't have an awful lot of Irish/English names in my family tree, and those seem to make the best transition to the FN spot. There's Mountain (which I'd love to use for a MN...as a FN it's just "too much.") And Greenlee (which is getting trendy now! But I think it's obnoxious as a FN.) I also have Crowley and Gilsenan (ghill-SENN-an), which are both awesome, but they still feel like acquired tastes to me. I've kind of mused of using Aguirre (uh-GHEE-ray) as a FN, perhaps with the NN Gui (ghee). But people have enough trouble pronouncing that as a LN, so I probably wouldn't inflict it on a kid.
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Thanks for the feedback -- it's always much appreciated. :-)Aguirre is too cool. Wasn't there a foreign movie by that name? Something like, "Aguirre, Wrath of God." That's what would come to mind if I ever met an Aguirre in real life -- his parents were movie buffs.Now you've got me into the Wilmot Proviso thingy.
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Yeah, Aguirre, Wrath of God was a movie based on a book based on a true story. I haven't seen it but my dad has told me about it--joking that we're the descendants of this bloodthirsty conquistador who drove his troops to death. I think in the place he died they sprinkled the field over with salt so nothing would ever grow there. Which is one reason I think it would make a badass FN. Lol.
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I didn't know it was based on a true story. Neat. I love movies based on real history. Sowing salt over the fields where he died reminds me of Hannibal. The ancient Romans did that to his home Carthaginian (sp?) fields (although I don't think that's where he died.) I've always liked the name Hannibal as well. Darn that stupid movie for ruining it for a generation.Sorry if I'm getting off topic here.

This message was edited 9/22/2011, 5:22 PM

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I like Sutton, Alden, Leland, Hobart, Digby, Neville, Clarence, Wilmot, Mycroft and Llewellyn. Alden is my favorite of these. Leland, Hobart, Neville and Clarence are all in my top five out of these.I almost suggested Lowell but it didn't have the feel that I thought she wanted. Lowell never has felt scholarly or upper class to me when I hear it. Jarvis I like the sound of but I can never get the image of a butler out of my head. I've met Sutton's, Leland's and Hobart's before. I've met more dogs named Hobart than humans but that doesn't mean that you shouldn't use it.Also I love the idea of taking surnames from your own family tree.
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This message was edited 9/22/2011, 3:09 PM

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Shucks. I never connected Lowell with a sad place in Massachusetts before. It's Jarvis' butleriness that I love about it. I put it in the same category as Jasper and Jeeves. :-D
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I don't care for any of them personally. Chester reminds me of Chester Cheese on the Cheetos package. Weldon and Hilton just remind me of hotels. How about Winston or Arthur?
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Winston is a great suggestion. I've always liked the nn "Win." Arthur is nice too.

This message was edited 9/22/2011, 1:32 PM

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To be honest I don't like any of them. Hilton it too tied to the hotel chains and I can't imagine it used as a name. Weldon sounds too much like a surname.
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I adore Chester. Really, really adore it. I love old, clunky, nerdy names, too, and Chester fits right in. I can't say I'm too fond of Weldon and Hilton, though. I don't know why; they just don't resonate with me.As for further suggestions, how about Walter, Homer, Lloyd, and Wilbur?
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Walter, Homer, and Lloyd are swell! Wilbur is still a pig to me!
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I know a guy named Weldon and as far as I know, no one has ever given him a hard time, mispronounced it, etc...it seemed pretty normal to me.Chester makes me think of a horse or Nimitz...there is also a Hustler magazine cartoon called "chester the molester", I have no clue why I know that but it would make me think twice.
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Ah... So THAT's where the term being a chester came from? Only ever heard it from 1 source and it was an American...
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Lol, I've definitely heard "Chester the molester" before, but Lester has always seemed much more like a molester name to me!

This message was edited 9/22/2011, 10:41 AM

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I've never heard Chester the molester before. I have heard Lester the molester before. The name Lester has always felt icky to me. Chester actually reminds me of a friendly country boy or a friendly dog. I've met at least two dogs named Chester. I still think that it would be a good name for a boy even though I've met more dogs named Chester than humans.
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Agreed. Lester feels ickier. Chester feels quaint and almost naive.
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Chester is nms, but ok, but the other surnames sound kinda dorky as fns... esp. Hilton. (I have nothing against it as a surname though).
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sorry put my reply in the wrong place!

This message was edited 9/22/2011, 5:23 AM

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Not a fan of Hilton, I just can't take the association away fron the hotel chain. And of course then I think of Paris Hilton whose family owns the Hilton Hotel chain.
I love Chester and Weldon. They are both great. Have you ever thought of Hamilton or Milton? Or Sedgewick or Merriweather? Or Patterson or Carmichael? Or Byron or Tennyson? Or Godwin or Walden? Or Braxton or Baxter? Or Fletcher or Quincy? Or Carter or Lewis? Or Elwood or Hawthorne? Or Redford or Hudson? Or Feldon or Douglas? Or Carlton or Caldwell? Or Wellesley or Wesley? Or Webster or Sloane? They have a similar feel to what to you are wanting.
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This message was edited 9/22/2011, 5:52 AM

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Wow, I'm loving Sedgwick, Patterson (so William Carlos Williams!), Godwin, Baxter, Quincy (love this for a girl too), Elwood, Hawthorne, Douglas, Caldwell, and Webster. Thanks so much!
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I had a neighbor growing up named Elwood. He was a great guy. He was an elderly man when I knew him. He use to work for the parks department when he was younger and helped to make hiking trails and make certain that they stayed clear and accessible. We are still good friends with his family who inhertited his home. They are our favorite neighbors. I technically don't live there anymore but I visit my family every other weekend and I often talk to his grandchildren who are about 3 - 7 years older than me.
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I used to hate Chester - I pictured a drop out, guitar playing lad who hates the world, doesn't have a job and spends all his money drinking and smoking weed. However, I've come to quite like it of recent, I now feel it's old fashioned charm. It has definately grown on me. I don't really like Hilton, I do think of the Hotel chain (they are nice hotel's but I wouldn't name a child after them). Hilly would be cute, but I just really dislike Hilton. Weldon isn't my style either. I don't see the Well-done issue though
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