Newbies looking for a name for our boat!

[topmast]

How about 'Bantam' Just to remind you how easy it is to get plucked while boating

[Wendi]

It is a long and painful process. I had a hard time, but then my son suggested 'As You Wish'. If you are a princess bride fan you know what that secretly means. And the dinghy was Buttercup.
Without being to settle on a name for a while, the default name was to be 'Blow Me'. That motivated me to come up with something a little different.

[Vasco]

Just remember that if the boat is ever going to need a bridge opened in the US don't give it a French name. Ask me how I know.

[doublewide]

Congratulations on your new boat! Naming the kids was easier for us than naming the boat. There is a lot of good advice here already. Pick something you like. The radio thing is huge. You will be giving your boat name on the VHF all the time, so pick something decent and dignified. Do you want to have to spell it every time? If not, pick something where the spelling is more or less self-evident, and something that other people can remember. Sailors seem to like puns in their boat name. You can come down on either side of that argument. It is to be hoped that you will get a little moment of euphoria every time you say your boat's name (and your kids names, too.)
My all time favorite is a boat from Memphis. The owners named her "Love Me" so they could name their dinghy--wait for it-- "Love Me Tender."

[jhulmer]

I agree that picking a name for your boat is very trying! Much easier to name your kids ... who knew?

An Old Salt once told me that the real test of a name is to record your voice saying the name three times and play it back to see how it will sound on the radio to others. Or have someone say it to you three times.

I have used that in naming my boat and it works; discarded many names because they sounded wrong or goofy or unintelligible.

Funny thing is that the name that I chose was the name that I first thought of and it spoke to me and I think it fits the boat. But I went through a lot of names first. I would write down any word I thought would make a good name and then research the name for meaning. I had two full pages of these. I passed them by friends and family with mixed responses and new names suggested and added to the list. I did this for 8 months! obsessing!

As I look back this was a stressful decision cause you don't want to get it wrong, but as the OP said EXCITING because it's a new boat!

Good luck!
Jim

[GetawayMirage24]

Another caveat to keep in mind is names with an alcohol or drinking reference can invite more frequent visits and checks from the authorities

[iyamwhatiyam]

Originally Posted by jhulmer

Funny thing is that the name that I chose was the name that I first thought of and it spoke to me and I think it fits the boat.
Jim

SO, what did you name your boat???

[goat]

"Pan" would be a bad choice.
I thought of using phonetics in the naming would be good, and if my name was Charlie I'd have used W4C. Charlie Sheen, of course, would use K4C.

Make sure you check to see if the name is already in use in case you want to document your boat.

goat <--- not my boat's name, just my disposition.

[a64pilot]

I bet there are 100 boats named "Island Time" registered, must not be a limit on how many can share a name?

[mcneilms]

Just call it "Bob".
Sometimes it just "Bobs" around..

[jwing]

Jeez, it's just a boat. Don't take it so seriously. If you can't make up your own name, just go with the herd:

https://www.boatus.com/boatgraphics/...boat-names.asp

[Redpcx]

A few suggestions. The best names...
3 or 4 syllables.
Don't try for clever, it won't seem clever.
Don't worry about unique, it won't be unique.
Think twice about anything nautical. It won't be clever or unique.
Check for names the boat formerly had. Boats always like to get their old names back.
If it has a name, try to keep it. Boats don't like to change names, unless it is already bad.

[hamburking]

Keep in mind that the boat name becomes YOUR name too...so for a while I was JENNIE, and I was MELISSA, since those were some of my boat names.

I think the name should mean something to YOU. And it must be easy to say on the radio, and write on registration forms, etc.

Anagrams are good...try an online anagram generator with your name or your wifes name. For example, I was feeling AIMLESS so I named my boat MELISSA...do you see the anagram?

When I was going through a tough time, with several deaths in the family, I called my boat MISERY. It was always a good icebreaker when inviting friends sailing, since MISERY loves company. The running gag was that I wanted to call the boat MISERLY, but was too cheap to pay for the extra letter.

I once let my young kids name the boat. Of course it was rough at the dock the day I brought them to see the boat, and they chose the name WAVY. I made it WAVEY, as a reference to a character in The Shipping News.

Whatever you call your boat, its your boat and your name, so it will reflect on you every time you say it. So give it some thought, and have some fun. Please let us all know what you come up with.

[Redpcx]

I named a boat "As you wish". Easy to understand, easy to pronounce. And fun when you meet another Princess Bride fan.

[mannix2]

Tough process. Before finalizing on your boat name, try entering it into the Coast Guard’s “Vessel By Name” website for documented boat names to see if there others with the same name. You can still use the name, it is just that you might want yours to be unique or one of a few.

Office of Science and Technology