help with girls names please - really struggling!

[NarcolepsyQueen]

Hi! We are expecting DC 3 in December. We have a boys name selected (but not a middle name). We are finding girls names more tricky. Honest opinions and/or suggestions please:

Eleanor (too popular?)
Iris
Evelyn

Over to you lovely people!

[TittyWhistles]

Eleanor is beautiful, always loved it.
Iris is too, but a bit fashiony. Evelyn is quite nice but will get shortened to the ubiquitous Evie.

Might I suggest
Lillian
Alice
Margot
Cecily
Beatrice
Nina

[MolotovBomb]

Oh, Eleanor is so beautiful! A classic, classy name. That's the one I'd go for if I were to select from your choices :)

[NarcolepsyQueen]

Thank you! I already have a DD named after a famous French film about a quirky girl, and a DS named the same as a tweenie (or venus de ....) If that helps? I like Hugo for a boy.

[bradbourne]

Eleanor is a lovely name, I agree ... but there are an awful lot of Ellies around at the moment (don't know whether that bothers you).

I think Evelyn goes best with the other two names.

[NarcolepsyQueen]

Being too popular does bother me. I used to work in education, and often had 3 or 4 teenagers in a class with the same name as each other. I would prefer something more unusual to be honest. The 3 names above are not a short list. I don't HAVE a short list - that is the problem! I have made a note of names as I have heard them, so have a list of 'ideas'. That list is:

Leila (rose)
Lyla (grace)
Rosa (belle)
Matilda (Tilly) Rose
Tabitha
Middle name - rae
Lara
Thalia rose
Violet Clementine
Flora
Arya
Rain for middle
Thea
Caiteline
Evelyn Rose
Aluna
Zélie
Liliana
Theodora
Cora
Iris

[imustbepatient]

All lovely but I would go for Evelyn, although I am biased!

[LeMousquetaireAnonyme]

Eleanor is cool, makes me think of her

[BeattieBow]

I recently didn't name my dd Eleanor, because I was put off by her being called Ellie - which would be hard to avoid I think. Also, I like the nn Nell for it, but there are several Nells in my school.

Out of your new list, I really like Theodora and Thea and also Clementine. I do like Matilda too, but not particularly Tilly.

Out of your original list, I do really like Iris.

Evelyn (Evie, Eve etc) is just really really popular at the moment.

[NarcolepsyQueen]

Was thinking of Louisa as a middle name after my grandmother.

[shoppingtrolley]

Swap Rae for its full incarnation 'Rachel' - that is unexpected and classy.
Then I think Iris Rachel would be great, or Eleanor Rachel!

[NarcolepsyQueen]

Darned Robbie Williams has put a holt on Theodora though I think! Pesky man!

[shoppingtrolley]

Doris is a lovely name, and do you like Daphne?

[MoonHare]

Eleanor is such a great name, sounds beautiful, looks beautiful, feminine, strong. Think Eleanor of Aquitane - what a woman! I agree with LeMousequetaire.

And yes, I do have an Eleanor. She's 4 and fantastic, fun, clever, spikey, energetic, thoughtful, kind and very, very loving.

We have never shortened it to Ellie, we don't intend to, no-one else ever has either. She might decide to as she gets older, that's up to her. Name shortening and nn's can happen with any name, our view is it's the child's name and up to them.

Though incidentally I have a a 'classic' name that has several obvious nn's and never in my life have I ever been called any of them - because I don't like them and have never encouraged it.

That said I think you have great tase in names generally and love Iris and Evelyn too. We can't use Iris, it doesn't go with our surname and I'm disappointed because it's also a family name. Evelyn is DD2s middle name.

From your longer list of ideas I love; Tabitha, Thea, Thalia, Matilda and Violet -all of which have been on our shortlists and one of which is DD2s first name.

Not wishing to confuse you further but as we seem to share very similar taste, the girls names on our shortlist for DC3 due imminently are; Eliza, Esme, Ivy, Harriet. Love but can't use; Meredith, Verity, Ursula, Rosalind.

[BlueChampagne]

Love but never got to use

Meredith
Rhiannon
Corinna
Tamsin
Vashti
Meryl

[SarryB]

I LOVE Iris. It's soooo pretty.

[MoonHare]

Oh and should have said we have never met another Eleanor. It's outside the top 50 names and unlikely she'll have classmates with the same name.

[telsa]

Iris much too fashionable. Evelyn is nice. I prefer Eveline. Or Emmeline. Of your other names I like Matilda (Tilly) Rose and Tabitha Middle name - rae. Violet Clementine is so charming.

[nappyaddict]

My suggestions are:

Sylvie, Jeannie, Ana, Patricia, June, Cynthia, Rosemary, Rita, Lillian, Wendy, Tulip, Gillian, Darrell, Sally, Gwendoline, Mavis, Mabel, Minnie, Maggie, Judith/Jude, Janey, Clara, Anastasia, Rosa, Audrey, Miriam (Mimi), Hazel, Dorothy, Jenna, Stefya, Peggy, Alison (Ally), Margot, Frances, Betty, Angelina, Angelica, Maree, Teresa (Tessa/Tessie), Natalia, Belinda, Mildred, Millicent, Tatiana, Loretta, Enid, Bessie, Bethan, Lispeth, Elspeth, Esther, Elsa, Elise, Elodie, Eloisa, Louisa, Luisa, Lara, Annabella, Cora, Pansy, Flora, Rowan, Rowena, Delilah, Deliah, Carlotta, Nancy, Claudia, Henrietta, Harrietta, Etta, Daphne, Doris, Diana, Penelope, Nell, Beatrice, Beatrix, Vera, Susannah, Edith, Olive, Seraphina, Sefarina, Julietta, Josephina, Ethel, Petula, Dixie, Phoenix, Elvira, Miranda, Hilda, Barbara, Pearl, Hillary, Tabitha, Opal, Emmelina, Isadora, Theadora, Kitty, Genevieve, Helena, Lillith, Rosalind, Cordelia, Lisbet, Arabella, Claribel, Clementine, Norah, Evelina, Lucinda, Persephone, Jessamy, Fearne, Greta, Honor, Iona, April, Cassia, Acacia, Rosalie, Aurora, Ines, Cecily, Romilly, Meryl, Alma, Carina, Ursula.