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Hmm, I've never thought about it, but I like it! I have never really liked Branwen (although I love Bronwen) because there was something off about it. It was just a bit too woodsy for a feminine name. Durrr because it sounds too masculine. So Branwyn is wonderful!

I've never heard of it either, and it doesn't show up in any UK birth records. But Brangwyn does - it's very unusual, but I suspect this is the male version. It's mainly found as a surname. I expect if you used Branwyn on a boy in the US, a lot of people would probably think that was a surname, too.

This message was edited 6/30/2011, 3:34 AM

I think it could work for a boy as both parts of the name, Bran and Wyn, are male names in Wales. I don't know how popular Welsh names are in the USA but I think you could get away with it.

As long as he never discovers the etymology, he'll be fine. And even if he does, the example of the boy named Sue should cheer him up a bit.

If boy names can be come girl names, why can't girl names gender bend and become boy names? Branwyn is sufficiently unisex for this to work in the US, I think. I don't strongly associate the name or the sounds with either gender. So, yes, I think it could work.

I think a lot of people would think it was feminine.. although you could shorten it to Bran.. which is more masculine sounding, but could cause teasing (bran muffin, etc.) My baby cousin is Bronwyn and they used the masculine spelling for her name, and I don't think anyone in the US or Canada would hear that name and think she was a boy. I think here, people hear the 'wyn/wen' and think girl. But maybe not!

Hm. I can't decide. I love the name Branwen, and when I first saw Branwyn I figured it was just an alternate spelling. But I suppose adding the masculine "wyn" would work. The thing is, the people in the US who don't know much about Branwen (and wouldn't think it was like naming a boy Suzi) are the same people who don't knoe that "wyn" is masculine. They'll peobably think "wyn" is more feminine-looking than "wen" (the same people who name their daughters Bronwyn, etc). I guess what I'm trying to say is that I like it (I like pretty much anything with Bran in it :P), but I still think people will assume it's feminine wvwn though it's not common in the US.

I've never heard of Branwyn used as a male name; I'm more familiar with it as an incorrect alternative to Branwen. I'm not sure what I think of it. The main drawback for me is that Branwen is a very feminine name. Branwyn sounds similar to Branwen, so upon hearing it I would immediately consider it's bearer to be female.

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However, that's speaking from the perspective of one who researches etymologies in her free time. I wonder if someone who doesn't know about the -wyn/-wen grammatical rules would think differently.