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Baby names

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

Original poster

UNUSUAL SOPHISTICATED GIRL NAMES PLEASE!!!

159 replies

heyyyyyyyy · 12/06/2020 20:04

Hello

I want RARE girl name (doesn't have to be trendy) that sounds or looks

  • sophisticated
  • educated
  • relatively strong
  • a bit literary maybe
  • beautiful (I mean the spelling)
  • it's OK if it's a bit hard to pronounce (and spell)

please give me some name suggestions!

Here are some of my favorites

  1. Joyzelle (JOY-zelle)
  2. Aoife (EE-fa)
  3. Leontyne/Leontine (lay-ON-teen)
  • I'll call her Leo as a nickname
4) Faustina (FAU-s-TINA)
  • nickname - Tina
5) Louella/Luella (loo-WELL-la) 6) Rosalind (ROSE-a-lind) 7) Rosamond/Rosamund (ROSE-a-mond) 8) Amaryllis (am-muh-REEL-lis) 9) Cassiopeia (kass-ee-OH-pi-ah)
  • nickname Cassie
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CatandtheFiddle · 12/06/2020 22:42

Joyzelle (JOY-zelle)

Sophisticated? literary? you have to be kidding. Is this aspirational OP - do you write books, or read several each week? Are you sophisticated & educated? Otherwise you are laying a heavy burden on your child's name.

If you want to sound sophisticated, educated, strong literary etc etc (these seem to be aspirational class ambitions really), then why not go for classic English names
Katherine
Elizabeth
Margaret
Caroline

That sort of thing. Otherwise the mismatch between your child's name and your lifestyle might be a bit telling.

CeibaTree · 12/06/2020 22:42

Sylvia
Cordelia
Tabitha
Iris

JustanotherTuesday · 12/06/2020 22:39

Sorrel
Ottillie
Violetta
Antonia

Mayhemmumma · 12/06/2020 22:39

Aida

Crimeismymiddlename · 12/06/2020 22:38

Araminta-you could call her Minty.

MurrayTheMonk · 12/06/2020 22:36

Ophelia.

Herewegoagain84 · 12/06/2020 22:35

Jacquetta

OverTheHandlebars · 12/06/2020 22:34

Fabienne

Tootletum · 12/06/2020 22:33

Ingrid

ZoyaTheDestroyer · 12/06/2020 22:33

@DamnYankee

I'd avoid Electra, Phaedra, Persephone, Desdemona, Ophelia, and Catering. Smile Perdita makes me think of the mother Dalmatian in 101 Dalmatians... And never heard "Loveday" before...Is that a typo?
Loveday is a very old Cornish name.
stardust40 · 12/06/2020 22:31

Francesca
Verity
Felicity

merryhouse · 12/06/2020 22:29

I have a sneaking softness for Shiraz

merryhouse · 12/06/2020 22:29

Augusta
Octavia
Eustacia
Ariadne
Phyllis
Yseult (a variation on Isolde)
Gisela
Sacharissa

Agree with all pp on Ros not Rose for those two. Also the y in Amaryllis is a short i sound (rhymes with Phyllis). Joyzelle is not one I've heard before but the spelling indicates emphasis on the second syllable rather than the first.

Bluemoooon · 12/06/2020 22:27

Xanthe means yellow, blonde in Greek

Horehound · 12/06/2020 22:26

Penelope

goose1964 · 12/06/2020 22:24

I like Angharad (sounds like it's written) and Eirlys (ire lis) which is Welsh for snowdrop.

strawberry2017 · 12/06/2020 22:24

If you want sophisticated you need to scrap your list and start again.
With the exception of names 2,6 and 7 the rest sound awful.

NKffffffffc77aeba8X127fb35eb13 · 12/06/2020 22:24

Pandemia

CostaCosta · 12/06/2020 22:23

Penelope
Cecilia
Ceccily
Aurelia

DamnYankee · 12/06/2020 22:20

Antigone is a tough one, too...
OP, I think you want literary...but not tragic.

TypicalMeBreakMyTypicalRules · 12/06/2020 22:20

Georgette

Sk1nnyB1tch · 12/06/2020 22:20

I really like Blythe!
Literary name suggestions
Maeve (Binchy)
Margaret (Atwood)
Emma (Donoghue)
Dorothy (L Sayers/Parker)
Eavan (Boland)
Emily (Dickenson)
Louisa (May Alcott)
Jane (Austen)
Marita (Conlon McKenna)
Lucy (Maud Montgomery)

TypicalMeBreakMyTypicalRules · 12/06/2020 22:19

Christabel

TheWitchCirce · 12/06/2020 22:18

If you have to put in brackets how to pronounce it - you are setting her up fo a lifetime of pain.
Desdemona
Juno
Arden
Jocasta
Miranda
Ariadne

IsolaPribby · 12/06/2020 22:17

Rohais is beautiful! How is it pronounced?

What about Aurelia?