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Baby names

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

Slightly 1970s, slightly upper crust suggestions

169 replies

rosiechristmas · 13/06/2024 11:03

Hello

I am due in October, we don't know what we're having. We have a 4 year old Penelope and what I like about Penelope is the sort of 1970s Penelope Keith, Penelope Pitstop, Thelwell's Penelope, Penelope Mortimer vibe. (not the Kardashian connection which I was completely oblivious to until the midwife let me know at delivery!!)

I'm looking for a fairly classic name that has just a hint of upper crust, but not a Fenella or Araminta that would sound incongruous in most settings.

I like grown up names with cute nicknames.

Below are my current lists - a couple of these I can't get past DH so they are on the list more to show the style we are after.

We are planning not to name the babe until they are here and see what fits so looking for some more suggestions to add to the field from you clever ladies please!!!

On my list for girls is:

Susanna nn Suzie, Annie
Caroline nn Carrie
Jemima nn Mima
Josephine nn Josie

Boys:

Robin nn Bobby
Frances nn Fran
Jesse nn Jess (a bit of a wildcard this one I guess)

Thanks so much!

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
Violet17 · 14/06/2024 00:27

Susanna from your girl list.

Or

Jacqueline
Helen
Sarah

Nicholas
Andrew
Marcus

heyyellowyellow · 14/06/2024 00:12

How about Nanette? Or Trudy?

Pieceofpurplesky · 13/06/2024 23:40

The boys were Edward (Eddie), Charles, Richard, Julian (Jules), Marcus

Pieceofpurplesky · 13/06/2024 23:38

My 70s friends were Elise, Anne, Sara, Camilla (Mills), Caroline (Caro) and lots of Jills.

Twoshoesnewshoes · 13/06/2024 20:14

Ooh love Valerie! Annabel and Margot both lovely too

Gonnagetgoingreturnsagain · 13/06/2024 19:49

toadsandtrumpets · 13/06/2024 19:21

1970s you say...
Susannah (the H is important)
Daphne (Daphy)
Xanthe (Xanth)
Margaux (Marg, Mags)
Victoria (Vix)
Tamsin (Min)
Georgina (Georgie or George)
Louise (Lou)
Vanessa (Ness or Nessa)
Miranda
Diana (Di or Anna)
Zoë (Zo!)
Alexandra (Zandra or Alex)

Rupert (Roo)
Richard (Rich)
Sasha
Hugh or Hugo
Quentin (Q)
Alistair (Al)
Andrew (Drew)
Angus (Gus)
Jeremy (Jez)
Jasper (Jaz)
Anselm (Elms)
Howard (Howie)
Dominic (Dom)
Edward (Ed or Eddie)
Timothy (Tim)
Lindsay
Jonathan (Jonny)
Barnaby (Barney, Barn)

My cousin (born in mid 80s) is called Rupert. Don’t inflict that name on a child.

Oliver, Olly is another sort of posh boy’s name.

Almahart · 13/06/2024 19:30

Marina is a terrific posh name.

toadsandtrumpets · 13/06/2024 19:21

1970s you say...
Susannah (the H is important)
Daphne (Daphy)
Xanthe (Xanth)
Margaux (Marg, Mags)
Victoria (Vix)
Tamsin (Min)
Georgina (Georgie or George)
Louise (Lou)
Vanessa (Ness or Nessa)
Miranda
Diana (Di or Anna)
Zoë (Zo!)
Alexandra (Zandra or Alex)

Rupert (Roo)
Richard (Rich)
Sasha
Hugh or Hugo
Quentin (Q)
Alistair (Al)
Andrew (Drew)
Angus (Gus)
Jeremy (Jez)
Jasper (Jaz)
Anselm (Elms)
Howard (Howie)
Dominic (Dom)
Edward (Ed or Eddie)
Timothy (Tim)
Lindsay
Jonathan (Jonny)
Barnaby (Barney, Barn)

Gonnagetgoingreturnsagain · 13/06/2024 18:51

ilvautmieux · 13/06/2024 12:31

Pamela, Barbara, Margaret

Jasper

70s friends of my DM had a Burmese cat called Jasper.

UnimaginableWindBird · 13/06/2024 18:51

Marina
Diana
Barbara
Delia
Celia/Cecelia
Margot
Joan
Rosamund
Annabel
Dorothea

Gonnagetgoingreturnsagain · 13/06/2024 18:46

rosiechristmas · 13/06/2024 11:17

Ohh thank you - some really wonderful suggestions here!

I realised on posting that I am looking for adult 70s names - not really the names of babies born in the 1970s - I know those tend towards Karen, Michelle, Kimberley etc!

So now you want adult 70s names?! How old?

My aunts who were teens then are called Louise and Marianne and had a cousin called Ruth. Other adults I know in that era were Joanna, Jodie, Josephine, Janet, Elizabeth. Men were Christopher, Jamie. Can’t think of any more.

A name I’ve never heard of in real life but is in one of Suzannah Dunn’s books is Ornella, nickname Nella.

Gonnagetgoingreturnsagain · 13/06/2024 18:42

rosiechristmas · 13/06/2024 11:31

Roberta is a fab suggestion, thank you. Reminds me of the Railway Children. Love the nickname Bobby too.

My friend Roberta was only ever nicknamed Robbie, not Bobby. Her friend Margarita we all called her Maggie/Mags.

Blingismything · 13/06/2024 17:33

Arabella
Pollyanna
Stella
Esther
Kathryn
Imogen
Zara
Josephine
Victoria

Tarquin
Benedict
Sacha/Sasha
Sebastian
Gregory
Julius
Julian
Crispin
Rufus
Rupert

namesnamez · 13/06/2024 15:49

Cassia. Kendra.

BlackLambAndGreyFalcon · 13/06/2024 15:48

Cressida?

TangoTarantella · 13/06/2024 15:44

Anthea
Flora
Francesca
Vanessa
Florence
Verity

Almahart · 13/06/2024 15:44

Harriet
Philippa
Doro (short for Dorothy)

Nicholas
Bill - this is my new love, DS has a Bill in his class and I really like it

namesnamez · 13/06/2024 15:40

Eh, I probably did a bad job but here goes!

Portia. Pamela. Deborah. Barbara. Donna. Delia. Cynthia. Viola. Jocasta. Diane. Sandrine. Corinne. Christine. Kristina. Caroline. Francesca. Antonia. Melanie. Jacqueline. Valerie. Veronica. Patricia. Vanessa. Claudia. Cassandra. Angelica. Rebecca. Rosemary. Rosalind. Rosalie. Rosanna. Justina. Sarah. Bonnie. Gloria. Renée. Belinda. Constance. Virginia. Geraldine. Bernadine. Cornelia. Cordelia. Sabine. Helena. Georgiana. Coralie. Marjorie. Juliette. Eleonore. Alison. Angeline. Martha. Daphne. Yvette. Arielle. Ghislaine. Suzette. Dalia. Aline. Marielle. Delphine. Regina.

EducatingArti · 13/06/2024 15:25

I like Joanna and thin that Joey would be a cute nickname. Also Cassandra because I like Cassie as a nickname.

Boys might be John, Hugh, David, James or with a slightly more Roman Catholic vibe, Benedict, Dominic, Augustine.

Gulbekian · 13/06/2024 15:14

Vivian
Bridget

ghislaine · 13/06/2024 14:49

Finally someone suggested Jeremy!

Laurence
Bernard
Gerald
Lionel

captainsudoku · 13/06/2024 14:49

honeylulu · 13/06/2024 14:35

I'm a 70s baby and went to a posh girls' school. These are some of the names from my year:

Camilla
Vanessa
Kimberley
Stephanie
Juliet
Deborah
Victoria
Cassandra
Diana

Though I note you said more 70s adults. My mum's friends had names like:
Barbara
Gillian
Rosemary
Susan (lots of these, so Susanna would be nice!)
Patricia
June
Marina

Not so much variety with boys names, they tended to be traditional though I did know a couple of Barnabys and a few Sebastians, a Lucian, a Sheridan and a Florian! Miles is nice I think. I also love Jasper and Silas, both mentioned on this thread.

Penelope and Marina would go well together perhaps.

JawJaw · 13/06/2024 14:41

greenstem9 · 13/06/2024 14:22

Judy
Jacqueline
Deborah
Jennifer
Kimberly
Angela
Stephanie
Patricia
Kathleen
Tonya
Melissa

Apologies as I keep posting on here to say some of the suggestions aren’t upper crust. In my defence I was born in the early 1960s in England with what some people would say is an upper crust background.

So many of these names suggestions would have been considered really ‘common’ at the time. Certainly all of those in the list above. Especially Tonya. A made up American name surely? Patricia was an absolutely bog standard ordinary name especially in its diminutive Pat (Pat Butcher) and Tricia.

I am puzzled as to how some people arrived at the names they suggest. Maybe they are not British?

honeylulu · 13/06/2024 14:35

I'm a 70s baby and went to a posh girls' school. These are some of the names from my year:

Camilla
Vanessa
Kimberley
Stephanie
Juliet
Deborah
Victoria
Cassandra
Diana

Though I note you said more 70s adults. My mum's friends had names like:
Barbara
Gillian
Rosemary
Susan (lots of these, so Susanna would be nice!)
Patricia
June
Marina

Not so much variety with boys names, they tended to be traditional though I did know a couple of Barnabys and a few Sebastians, a Lucian, a Sheridan and a Florian! Miles is nice I think. I also love Jasper and Silas, both mentioned on this thread.

JawJaw · 13/06/2024 14:29

Luminousalumnus · 13/06/2024 12:09

Vanessa
Jocelyn
Annette
Jacqueline
Natasha
Yvonne
Janice
Sarah
Sara

Sorry but I don’t understand this list of names. None of them have ever been posh in the U.K. Perhaps in the US?

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