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I love the name Brooke. Sweet, simple, girly and a nature name. There is a Brooke in my son's kindergarten class this year. I don't know of any others.

It couldn't happen in South Africa, or I hope it couldn't, because the Afrikaans word for trousers is broek, pronounced like Brooke. As for Brookie (broekie), that means underpants, panties, knickers ...

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I don't go for geographical names in general, unless there's a really sound reason for them; better than "conceived in Brooklyn". And Brooke as an independent name is like River and Lake and such - not my style at all.

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But clearly all this doesn't apply where you live. I far prefer Grace to Brooke, but if you don't like popular, it might not be a good idea.

I like Brooks for a boy

I like Brooke or Brook and not Brooklyn. I think it still sounds fresh. I don't hear it used a lot these days but I still think young and beautiful. I have met one guy named Brook and one boy named Brooks.

I love the name. I would def spell it Brooke. Never for a guy unless you add an S to make it Brooks.
Yes I have a friend named Brooke. Live in Texas. Not common enough its a great name. lol
Yes I like it. We call my friend Brooke, Brookie Cookie. lol
Almost every Brooklyn will get called Brooke for short.
Yes I think it still sounds fresh. I dont think it will lose too much popularity, like I said its a great name. Not so many babies anymore, mainly with girls my age and younger.
I like Grace but mainly for middle names. We are expecting and if we have a daughter we want to name her Paisley Elizabeth Grace. But the two names Grace and Brooke do sound great for sisters tho.

This message was edited 11/5/2009, 7:28 PM

My middle child is Victoria "Brooke." While I still like it, the love I once had for the name just isn't there anymore. I wish we had called her Victoria or Toria, Tora, etc. (something along those lines). Brooke, otoh, much prefers Brooke to Victoria. She says it's way too old-fashioned. We have called Brooke Brookie -- especially when she was small. My kids have always been called different forms of their names so Brooke is fairly often called Victoria or Victoire. It annoys her. ;-)

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On the positive, Brooke has only encountered two other Brookes in school (we live in VA). One was a grade higher, the other a grade below. I think most of the time Brooke is used as a mn. Also, I don't believe the name has risen higher than the 40s according the SSA so its popularity remains pretty static. In other words, I can't see it racing up the charts even if Brooklyns are called Brooke. There just aren't that many of them. That's one of the reasons I don't find Brooke dated. I have noticed more celebrities named Brooke who are in their early 20s. Still, there aren't that many ...

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Grace and Brooke are fine together. BTW, I strongly prefer the 'e' on the end. I think it looks nicer and most people are going to spell it that way regardless of how you do. ;-)

I am not overly fond of Brooke for a girl, though I do like Brook for a boy.

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I have known one female Brooke and one male Brook. I live in South Carolina.

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I don't know that it's too common, it's never struck me that way. I don't like Brookie at all.

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It doesn't seem dated to me, because I haven't known that many, and it seems fresh enough. I've never known a baby named Brooke or Brook. The Brooke and Brook I knew were both young adults when I met them.

I honestly don't like Brooke. It sounds so harsh and is very unattractive. I know one, Brooke.

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On the other hand, Grace is beautiful! I would love the sibsets Grace and Bridget or Grace and Bronwen, instead.

I think its really trendy and dated. I know one Brooke at the moment who is so bossy and hits all the time and is just all around mean. Brookie is kind of cheesy to me and Grace is so pretty that Brooke doesn't do her justice. I live in Texas by the way.