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Baby names

Find baby name inspiration and advice on the Mumsnet Baby Names forum.

non 'girly' girls names

63 replies

rezzle · 28/10/2012 21:47

Sorry for the vague title, I'm just really struggling to describe the type of name that we're after!

Ideally, we want a name that is subtly pretty, but not in your face girly so a future DD would have choices to suit her personality.

So if anyone has managed to decode what I mean through my sleep deprived, pregnancy brain jumble, please could you suggest some names that might suit? Currently considering Elliot, Eden and Asha.

OP posts:
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qumquat · 01/11/2012 23:53

The common names among 30 somethings now are much less girly than their modern equivalents:
Sarah
Katherine ( in full or nn Kate)
Rebecca
Rachel
Laura
Elizabeth
Claire
Jennifer (nn Jen)

TittyBojangles · 01/11/2012 20:37

Sidney

BananaPhone · 01/11/2012 20:31

Sorrel

rezzle · 31/10/2012 19:27

Thank you for all of these fab suggestions [hsmile]

I'm sure I will be back in due course with a fully compiled list!

OP posts:
Rebecaa · 31/10/2012 16:41

Rebecca (slightly biased ;)) I love how Rebecca can be girly but not frilly but is still a 'serious' name career wise. Can also be shortened many ways but I prefer it in full

AnnaKissed · 31/10/2012 12:47

Elliot is a boys name. What about Ellis?

MoelFammau · 31/10/2012 11:41

I have a Robin. She gets Bob (and recently Bobzilla because she's discovered how to be a stroppy toddler).

Nature names are generally non-frilly.

Fern
Wren
Bracken
Raven

baskingseals · 30/10/2012 21:03

love Hero and Juno.

what about

Ines

Kim

Jonquil

Blaise

Margot

Sally

Jay

Sky

VintageRainBoots · 30/10/2012 08:03

Willa or Wilhelmina (Mina as a nickname)?

There's a girl in my daughter's class named Willa. She's a very sweet and very bright girl, and she has a cute name to boot!

overtheseatocalais · 30/10/2012 07:53

Ellen, Jill, Petra, Ann, Viva ???

iheartmycat · 29/10/2012 20:50

Keira/Kira/Ciara - I think this is feminine without being frilly
Keren
Harper
Logan
Evan

Viviennemary · 29/10/2012 13:38

Of the names suggested I like Elizabeth and Hael. I like Sylvia too. Or even Vivienne. Grin

manicinsomniac · 29/10/2012 12:51

My instant though on 'non girly' was to go to the popular American type names (which I love btw, I'm not sneering at them). But there are also lots of more English sounding ones. I agree with whoever said avoid a and y endings for the most part, though there are some shorter names with a endings which still don't sound girly to me.

British/Irish tradition (sorry for any repeats):
Amber, Autumn, April, Aisling, Bethan, Bridget, Bronwen, Carys, Cerys, Constance, Cara, Cora, Claire, Dana, Diane, Emma, Erin, Edith, Eve, Ellen, Evelyn, Esther, Ffion, Faith, Frankie, Frances, Gemma, Georgia, Hannah, Hero, Hope, Iris, Judith, Joanne, Karen, Kiran, Kate, Katelyn, Kathryn, Lauren, Lois, Leah, Megan, Meredith, Morvern, Merryn, Miriam, Nicole, Nadine, Olive, Pearl, Quinn, Ruth, Rachel, Rhian, Robyn, Rowan, Seren, Stella, Shannon, Sian, Siobhan, Sinead, Tara, Tess, Tamsin, Yasmin

American/Modern style:
Ashlynn, Addison, Adelyn, Avery, Brooke, Brooklynn, Brogan, Brynn, Briley, Bailey, Cassidy, Cadence, Camryn, Carmen, Delaney, Dylan, Emerson, Eden, Emery, Ellis, Farron, Genesis, Hadley, Hayden, Harper, Jordan, Jayden, Kinsley, Kendall, London, Morgan, Macey, Marley, Madison, Paige, Peyton, Payson, Piper, Riley, Reese, Reagan, River, Sutton, Spencer, Sydney, Taylor

RichManPoorManBeggarmanThief · 29/10/2012 12:34

Stella or Astrid

Tippa (as a shortening of Philippa)
Flick (as a shortening of Felicity)

GnocchiGnocchiWhosThere · 29/10/2012 12:33

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

rezzle · 29/10/2012 12:19

Wow, there are some great suggestions here! I'm going to trawl through them with DH when he's home :)

OP posts:
MamaGeekChic · 29/10/2012 10:52

Lois
Kiran
Sadie
Honor
Nina
Alba

Alisvolatpropiis · 29/10/2012 10:47

badtime that's really interesting! :)

badtime · 29/10/2012 10:07

** ... excepth the one at the end of 'Eleonore'. [hblush]

badtime · 29/10/2012 10:05

Alisvolatpropiis, in the middle ages, there was no 'correct spelling' of names (or anything else, really), so someone called Alys may have had their name recorded as Aliss or Elys* etc. Ellis was also used in this way. As most people were illiterate, this didn't really cause problems.

'Ellis' as a boys' name is a variant of the biblical name 'Elias'. It was common in England as well for hundreds of years.

Sorry, OP, I just wanted to clarify this. The relevant part for this thread is, Ellis is a nice non-girly name for a girl. Also, now that I think of it, Elinor.

  • Alys was a very common spelling, but the name is a variant of the French 'Adelais' or 'Adeliz' (from the German 'Adalheid'), so I think the 'y' spelling may have been a later version. But as I said above, spelling was pretty much irrelevant. ** If this seems unlikely, bear in mind that Eleanor of Aquitaine's name was commonly recorded as either Eleonore or Alienor (all the 'e's with acute accents).
mathanxiety · 29/10/2012 05:01

Ruth
Blythe
Romy
Alice
Lyra
Maeve
Nora
Una
Ursula
Greta
Frida
Dagmar
Anne/Anna/Annie
Lilith
Judith
Stella
Zytka
Zosia
Zita
Zara
Keziah
Esther
Marit
Charis
Harriet
Agatha
Miriam
Juno
Eva
Monica
Aphra
Bridget
Kirsty
Kirsten
Dinah
Beulah
Elke
Honor
Renata
Regine
Sidney

Alisvolatpropiis · 29/10/2012 01:26

Argh iPhone!
Trying to think of non obviously girly girl names!

Alisvolatpropiis · 29/10/2012 01:25

Maybe Tamsin?

I've been thinking a lot about this thread because I'm inclined towards names my OH categorically doesn like. So am trying v hard to think of n

Alisvolatpropiis · 29/10/2012 01:23

Also Rowan. I think you said on your "Elliot for a girl" thread that your DH wasn't keen but it's really quite an unusual name. The only Rowan I've met in real life is a teenage girl.

5madthings · 29/10/2012 01:21

Eden is one of my dd's middle names and her name has actually bern suggested on this thread.

Its not a girly name and spelt differently is occasionally used for boys. We get lots if comments about how lovely it is :)

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