If we have a son and name him after my husband, can our son be named "the 2nd" or does he have to be junior?

Answer 1

The second is commonly used if you are skipping a generation. If you were to name the child after the grandfather, then they are the second. If they are named after the father, they are a junior.

Answer 2

He can be the 2nd - but technically he has to have the same exact name as your husband - middle name and all.

Answer 3

Adding the name "the 2nd" and the name Jr.

both mean exactly the same.

Answer 4

Devon is correct- Jr is used for a son named after the father.
The second is denotes a child named after a grandfather - Jr would be changed to II if his own son was also given the same name- then his son would be III

"The designation of Sr. or Jr. to distinguish between father and son with all the exact same names (first, middle, & last), can be replaced by the Roman numerals, I and II, respectively, when the grandson has the exact same names. The grandson will then have a III after his name. The grandfather and father can continue to use Sr. and Jr., respectively, or the numerals.

However, using the "II" (not Jr.) often means a man does not have his father's name, but another relative such as his grandfather or uncle.

Of course, royalty or other ceremonial title, would always have the I or II, rather than Sr. or Jr. to designate the line"


"Social name suffixes are almost exclusively applied to men.

The most common name suffixes are senior and junior, limited chiefly to American usage, which may be written with a capital first letter (Sr.) or in lower case (jr.) following the person’s name (with or without an interceding comma). The term ‘junior’ is only correctly used if a son is given exactly the same name as his father.[citation needed] (See, for example, Emily Post's Etiquette by Elizabeth L. Post 1985(?) When the suffixes are spelled out in full, they are always written with the first letter in lower case. In French, the designations are père (‘father’) and fils (‘son’).

Sons with a different middle name or initial are not called junior. An example is Ronald P. Reagan, the son of the late U.S. president, who is not titled junior because his middle name, Prescott, differs from his late father’s middle name, which was Wilson. This notwithstanding, a son may sometimes be called junior even if he is not titled as such, because "Junior" is a popular familial nickname in the United States. One instance of this is George W. Bush, who is nicknamed Junior by his family. Interestingly, the son of actor Lon Chaney, was billed by Hollywood as Lon Chaney, Jr., to capitalize on his father’s success, even though he had an entirely different birth name. A similar situation exists with singer Hank Williams. His son, Randall Hank Williams, is professionally known as Hank Williams, Jr. Randall's son Shelton Hank Williams, is known professionally as Hank Williams III.

Although there are instances in print of daughters who are named after their mothers also being titled "jr.", this is usually for effect; it is not common practice. The title "Jr." is sometimes used in legal documents, particularly those pertaining to wills and estates, to distinguish among female family members of the same name.

Primarily in the United States (and never in the United Kingdom), boys who should be styled "junior" are sometimes incorrectly labeled with the suffix "II", particularly if there is a third or fourth with the same name. Even if a legal title, this is socially incorrect; strictly speaking, "II", pronounced "the second", refers to a boy who is named after his grandfather, uncle, or cousin. The suffixes "II", "III", etc., may also be written "2nd", "3rd", etc.

A wife traditionally uses the same suffix as her husband in formal society, speech, and writing, or if it is her preference. Wives are also correctly addressed in less formal situations using their own first names; such references would not take any suffix. Hence: Mrs. Lon Chaney Jr, but Mrs. Shannon Chaney. Widows are entitled to retain their late husband's full names and suffixes but divorcees may not continue to style themselves with a former husband's full name and suffix, even if they retain the surname.

There is no hard-and-fast rule over what happens to suffixes when the most senior of the name dies. Do the men retain their titles, or do they all "move up" one? Neither tradition nor etiquette provides a definitive answer (columnist Judith Martin, for example, believes they should all move up, but most agree that this is up to the individual families). Upon the death of John Smith Sr., his son, John Smith Jr. may decide to style himself John Smith Sr. (causing confusion if his widowed mother and his wife both use the formal style Mrs. John Smith Sr., and necessitating that his son and grandson change their titles as well) or he may remain John Smith Jr. for the rest of his lifetime. One advantage of moving up one is that it eliminates the extension of Roman numerals over the generations: i.e., a John Smith III, IV, and V. A disadvantage is that it may cause confusion with respect to birth certificates, credit cards, and the like. In practice it is quite uncommon for families to go beyond "III" in naming children. Often the names only exist for a single generation."

Answer 5

Either way's the same. Whatever you think sounds better. I'm a third and my father is Jr.

Answer 6

either a II or a Jr. would be fine