Darcy - boy or girl?

We are considering naming our next baby Darcy Thomas if it is a boy.

We both like the name but are concerned about whether it is masculine enough and when it is said without the middle name, will people assume the child is a boy or will they think it's a girl.
Also not sure if it suits a teenager / young guy.

Opinions please!

I think boy first off. I dont know how masculine it is, because it is a unisex name but it is definitely not 'girly'.

I would definatly say boy. I went to school with a Darcy (male) and never considered it to be too girly.

my new little nephew is named Darcy, i think of a boy when i hear the name, prob cause i went to school with a darcy (male)

I know of a boy and a girl both called Darcy and i sooooo like it more for a male. I find its much more masculine than feminine. I think Darcy Thomas is really nice. Good luck with your decision.

I thought boy, but I think only because it reminded me of the amiable "Mr Darcy" in Pride and Prejudice. I guess it could be used as a girls name too??

I think Darcy Thomas sounds nice together. Thomas Darcy also sounds nice?

Thanks for all of your opinions!

I still have 9 weeks before I have to make a final decision.

I really like the name. I know DH likes it too but I'm not sure if he likes it enough to actually use it for our baby.

i love the name "Darcy" for a boy, i think it is a name that will suit from a baby to an older man.

Wish we could decide on names for our bundle...we've only got 16 days!! lol

HELP!!

Girl to me.

I know it's unisex name but I have only met 2 Darcy's and both were boys. I don't think it's really feminine enough for a girl!

Darcy is okay on a boy but it sounds a bit girly to me, I think it’s better on a girl.

I would be careful of using unisex names on boys simply for the reason that most unisex names inevitably become girls names.

Generally a unisex name starts off as a last name that is only used on boys which is thought of as a boys name but then people start using it on girls. It starts off slowly at first, but after about 10/15 years there are as many girls being born with the name as boys and the name becomes unisex, but around that time people begin to stop using the name on boys because they are afraid it’s no longer masculine enough, usage of the name on boys plummets while it continues to increases on girls, and a few years later the name is generally regarded as a girls name.

Also since the sixties all the last names used as first names ending with the letter –y are gradually going from boys names to girls names, (eg Lindsay, Hillary, Haley, Kelsey, Courtney, Shelby, Tracy, Ashley, Stacy, Kimberly, Mallory, Cassidy etc) and I think Darcy, Bailey and Riley are some of the only ones that are still used on boys. All three are already used much more on girls than boys in America, and people are starting to use them on girls too over here so I think it’s inevitable that in the future people will think of Darcy as a girl’s name and will assume girl when they see it on paper unfortunately.

I do think it suits a young guy though, even if it isn't very masculine. smile

Thanks for all of your replies.

I was aware of Darcy being more popular for girls in the US and that the trend may continue in Australia.

Our 1st son has a unisex name, but it isn't a surname and in 2005 it wasn't used for girls.

I am finding it so hard to decide on that "perfect" name for this baby, when it seemed so easy the first time around!