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Baby names

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

Original poster

Baby name wobble

36 replies

Lava283 · 26/12/2022 20:31

DD name has been picked out since before we knew the gender, Francesca but to be known as Frankie everyday. DD is due in 3 weeks time and I seem to be having a block on the name.
I know I should never have shared the name beforehand and regret it undoubtedly however so many comments about ‘boy name for a girl’ ‘so many prettier girl names’
I feel so deflated

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Mum2girlsx3 · 29/12/2022 00:09

Bit harsh my little girl is Frankie!!

Mum2girlsx3 · 29/12/2022 00:08

My little girl is Francesca known as Frankie so I obviously love it!!! I’ve never had any comments about it being a boys name. My Frankie is cute, cool and perfect in every way! Go with what you want xx

TheHappiestChristmasTree · 28/12/2022 23:49

I love the name Francesca, it would be near the top of my list if I had another DD. Go with your gut and ignore anyone else's opinion, except you partner's maybe 😆

DeadDonkey · 28/12/2022 23:34

I really like Francesca and Frankie, but please don’t use Chesca as a nickname - it’s awful.

HoldingTheDoor · 28/12/2022 17:33

Francesca is quite nice but Frankie is hideous.

Bluevelvetsofa · 28/12/2022 17:32

Or Chesca as a nickname

RandomCatGenerator · 27/12/2022 10:12

MolesOnPoles · 26/12/2022 21:02

Francesca is wonderful!

Personally I don’t love Frankie but that’s irrelevant because a) it’s not my baby and b) one of the brilliant things about Francesca is that it has tonnes of potential shortenings. So if you continue to wonder (for yourself, sod what anyone else thinks), she can be a Fran/ Chessie/ Checkie/ Ceaca.

Agree with all of this.

no matter what the name is, people will have views and not everyone will love the name. If you still like it, stick with it.

Francesca nn Frankie is definitely not a super off the wall or objectively bad choice so it’s literally just their opinion.

Whatwhatwhatnow · 27/12/2022 08:58

Francesca is lovely and Frankie is hardly an unusual nickname for it. In fact, the only Frankie I know is a woman who is really Francesca.

You will never find a names that everyone loves. Which is fine - otherwise we'd all be called the same thing.

RambamThankyouMam · 27/12/2022 08:50

Francesca is a beautiful name, but Frankie is quite unpleasant. Puts me in mind of noncey old Scouse men.

Original poster
Lava283 · 27/12/2022 08:32

Thank you. I love Franca as a nn but unsure how obvious a nn it is for Francesca

OP posts:
ChildrenOfTheQuorn · 27/12/2022 03:12

I like Francesca. Not keen on Frankie at all, but like a pp pointed out there are plenty of other nn options: Fran, Chesca etc

SunriseOnSlaughterBeach · 26/12/2022 22:39

I’m a Francesca and never in my 29 years have I heard that it’s a “boy as a girls name” so please don’t worry about that! I love my name and am variously known as Francesca /Fran/Chesca/Frankie and the variation is actually really nice!

TashaBasha · 26/12/2022 22:38

Are you Italian?

SugarNspices · 26/12/2022 22:37

Why not just see how the nn goes as she grows. Francesca is a really nice name

clpsmum · 26/12/2022 22:32

It is my absolute favourite name in the world it is beautiful. Please don't be put off by the opinions of others xx

BadgeronaMoped · 26/12/2022 22:23

The coolest girl at my high school was a Frankie  also, I'm a Georgina and I LOVE that it shortens to George. Francesca is a fab and versatile name.

Jellybean2023 · 26/12/2022 22:20

I love both Francesca and Frankie. I think Frankie is cool. I'd still go mainly eith Francesca but don't wobble based on others!
I always thought Stevie was cool for a girl as well

Girlsgirlsgirls08 · 26/12/2022 22:12

It's a great name! Love Frankie. Stick with it

NewToWoo · 26/12/2022 22:08

Francesca is a beautiful name and personally I love the nn Frankie. I think it is cool and unusual in good ways.

PritiPatelsMaker · 26/12/2022 22:04

If you lobe the name, don't let other people put you off. My BF told her family the name she's thought of using for her DS and they were so awful that she didn't use the name. 18 years later she still regrets being talked out of the name. Like the name you have chosen, it was a perfectly lovely name too, nothing out of the ordinary.

FlutterbButterfly · 26/12/2022 22:02

Teacher of many years here. Frankie is a very common nickname to francesca, either name is lovely and the relevance of boy/girl not important. Go for it!

Twizbe · 26/12/2022 21:59

My mum is known as Frankie. To me it's a girls name.

Snoopystick · 26/12/2022 21:57

My gran was known as Fran. Is a much classier nickname than Frankie imo.

mynewname25 · 26/12/2022 21:57

I like it and personally think of Frankie as a girls name more than a boys.

stick with it

OhTinyBear · 26/12/2022 21:55

Francesca is beautiful and classic. It has gravitas as well as being pretty. And Frankie is a fun and strong diminutive for it. I know two most excellent female Frankies! I also know a Cesca and a Chessie. I’m sure there are more versions available.

Once your little Francesca gets a bit older she’ll be able to choose which she likes best, if she doesn’t want to be Frankie. But perhaps she’ll love being Frankie. I didn’t get a choice over which shortening of my name got used (I started secondary a week late due to illness and other girls with my name there had all the other shortenings spoken for!) but I grew to like it anyway, and I grew into the name. Actually, my short name is not dissimilar to Frankie in its tone/feel, compared to my proper name, it’s very like how Frankie goes with Francesca.

Trust yourself on this one, you chose Francesca, it’s a gorgeous name, and if other people don’t like it so bloody what? Don’t listen to the critics, you chose it for a reason, and you liked it enough to have chosen it out of all the hundreds of thousands of girls’ names there are! If you go second-guessing yourself about this, you’ll end up second-guessing yourself about other things too.

Good luck for a smooth delivery, and hope you enjoy all the newborn snuggles! 😊