Would anyone name their son Jeffrey in 2026?

Tech Insider : Business, Style
Close-up of a man's business suit with a
Would anyone name their son Jeffrey in 2026? Maybe not.

Getty Images; Alyssa Powell/BI

Times have been tough lately — and when I say "lately," I mean roughly the past 35 years — for me and my fellow Jeffreys of the world.

My fiancé and I feel no connection to our last names. We're debating whether to create a new one when we marry.

Tech Insider : Business
S. Nicole Lane leaning on her finace in a restaurant
The author and her fiancé are considering creating a new last name when they get married.

Samuel Gernand/The Gernands Photography

I've been married for three years and still haven't changed my last name. The longer I wait, the less I want to.

Tech Insider : Business
an unhappy couple on the couch
The author, not pictured, doesn't want to take her husband's last name.

Hispanolistic/Getty Images

My best friend and I gave our daughters the same name. We hoped it would strengthen their bond.

Tech Insider
Dana DuBois and her best friend with their daughters
The author and her best friend gave their daughters the same name.

Courtesy of Dana DuBois

My daughter hates her name because it's traditionally used for boys. I hope one day she learns to love how different it is.

Tech Insider
View from behind of girl looking out window at dusk.
The author (not pictured) named her daughter Kyle and hopes she grows to love her name someday.

Getty Images

After my divorce, I took back my old last name. I feel like I took back my identity.

Tech Insider
a woman looking out the window, happily
The author, not pictured, changed her last name after her divorce.

NIKOLA MILJKOVIC/Getty Images

I didn't take my husband's last name, and people are surprisingly judgmental. They ask what he thinks about it.

Tech Insider
Patricia Garrison and her husband smiling at the camera. He is wearing a button-up shirt and she is wearing a cream denim jacket.
Patricia Garrison didn't take her husband's last name when she got married.

Courtesy of Patricia Garrison

My husband and I waited for a sign before choosing names for our kids. Each time, we ended up with the perfect name.

Tech Insider
Composite image of the author with her husband and three kids standing behind a cake on the left, and the author with her three kids standing in front of a tree on the right.
The author and her husband waited for a sign before naming their three kids.

Courtesy of Melissa Noble

A naming expert says picturing your kid as a CEO before naming them can backfire. She recommends these 33 names for success.

Tech Insider
A baby lays on the floor, dressed in a full-sized pin-stripe suit.
A baby in a pin-stripe suit

DFKPhotography.co.uk/Getty Images

My foster mother hated her first name. I found another way to honor her after she died.

Tech Insider
Nicole Johnson with her foster mother, Esther, when she was younger. They are standing outside a car.
Nicole Johnson's foster mother, Esther, made her promise not to name her kids after her.

Courtesy Nicole Johnson

Subscribe to names