I want to like it, but the name reminds me of two things:
The guy in Thelma and Louise who tried to rape Thelma was named Harlan. Either that, or it was Thelma’s nasty husband’s name, but I’m pretty sure it was the rapist.
My mom has a cousin named Harlan. He is short, very round, and has a big beard. He looks like Santa. Since he’s from southern Indiana, he does not sound like Santa. He sounds like his name should be Billy Joe Bob.
I can’t think of the name Harlan without thinking “hick” or “redneck.” :(
My husband and I had an awful time agreeing on baby names for boys. We bought a baby name book, but still couldn’t find a name we both agreed on. For our first son, we “stole” his name from a birth announcement we saw at the OBGYN’s office. Shortly before our son was born, I had second thoughts about the name but it was the only thing we remotely agreed on. Now I can’t imagine him as anything else; the name has suited him perfectly since the day he was born.
For our second son, we had the same problem but finally agreed completely on a name. We chose a surname from my husband’s family. It’s unique, meaningful, not too strange, and fits our son very well. I wanted to name the boys things like Tanner or Samuel. My husband wanted a name that could shorten to something like Jim or Joe or Bob. It’s amazing we were able to finally agree.