Dear Jennifer,
My husband is first generation American and his last name is Guerrero. We are expecting (unsure of the sex) and we simply can’t agree on a name. Every name he suggests is Hispanic and quite frankly, hard for me to say or spell. I would like the first name to be American but he says that won’t flow well with his last name.
Am I be inconsiderate of his heritage? Is there any compromise here? ☹
~ Shayna
Dear Shayna,
I, myself, have a half-Hispanic child. I also wanted to honor my husband’s heritage and had the same concerns as you (his mother’s name is Guillermina!) When he told me his mother’s maiden name was Miranda, I said “That’s it!” Miranda was one of those names that works in both Spanish and English.
There are many other names like Miranda–take Christina Aguilera, for example. Maybe you, too, could look into your husband’s family tree to see if you can find such names. The fact that you use a name from his side will show that you do want to honor your child’s ethnic heritage.
If you still can’t find what you like, do the Advanced Search on our site and see if any of these names strike your fancy. I’m sure you’ll find something acceptable to the both of you.
Sincerely,
Jennifer
Jennifer Moss (she/her) is the founder of BabyNames.com, author of The Baby Names Workbook, and Producer of The Baby Names Podcast. Jennifer is widely regarded as the leading expert on popular baby name trends and the naming process, serving as the authoritative source on the subject for national and international media.
Jennifer entered the tech arena in the 80s as a software developer and database architect, and became a pioneer in the Internet industry. In addition to operating BabyNames.com, Jennifer owns a web development agency in central California.
