An Introduction to French Baby Names

A name is the identity of a person throughout his lifecycle because people are associated strongly with it. The impression that your name creates can give you a distinct benefit in life, or otherwise, a lost opportunity. Therefore, if you are parent or a relative or a friend who has been entrusted with the task of naming a new born baby, remember it's a challenging task. The one that you choose will affect the baby's life in some way or the other.

French names for babies are widely used across many countries. There are approximately more than 50,000 originated from the French culture and tradition for boys and girls. Every single one has a distinctive meaning that leaves a lasting impact. These are known to have origins in mythology, historical events, scriptures, and nature. However, some people like to create their own name for their child to give him a unique identity. Some of these often look like English ones whereas the others are purely French names. You can choose a name whose meaning you feel will closely relate to the personality of the baby when he'll grow up.

Like in other communities, there are different names for boys and girls. But there are many names that are used for both the gender. The gender difference is created with a change in the tone, pronunciation, and spelling of the first name.

Hyphens are also used to determine the right gender between confusing names. The gender of the baby is determined by the part of the name before the hyphenation. For instance, Mary-Henri is a French baby name that has a girl name (Mary) and a boy name (Henri). As the first part is a female name, so it's the name of a female. Alternatively, it would have been a boy's name. Similarly, many boy names are converted into girl names simply by adding a suffix such as -e, -ine, or -ette.

A surname also forms a part of a baby naming significance. Traditionally, surnames were used to differentiate people with similar first names. The French surname is not necessarily the family name. It can be chosen in many ways. The surname that is the first name of the father is the most common choice. It can also be based on the occupation of the family such as 'Fournier' that means 'baker.' Finally, a surname can be based on the description of a person. 'Petit,' for instance, is a surname used for a person of small stature.