Nonbinary name dilemma

:change:Name Change

Hey,

I'm genderqueer (afab) and struggling to find/pick a clearly genderneutral or soft masculine name that fits me.

As I'm german (with an old germanic surname) and going into an academic field jobwise, the majority of typical "nonbinary" names are out of the question for me. I'm also picky and not much of a fan of the few standard ones used here, e.g. Alex or Luca, hence my dilemma.

So far I've liked "Elio" the most, but it's clearly an italian name and I don't want it to be considered odd, as I have no italian heritage whatsoever. When I asked others, they dismissed the name immediately. However, my birth name is swedish and uncommon/rare in Germany too.

There is also "Elia", which is more or less an anagramm of my birthname and it sounds nice.

Supposedly it's used for both sexes, but german speakers will most likely tend to categorize it as female because it ends in an "a". This could lead to discomfort for me.

What do you think? And do you have any further ideas?

I'd be very grateful for any help.

Posted Jul 8, 2026, 9:29 AM UTC · locked

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