Help protect children from gaming harms.

Take our survey

Please or to access all these features

Baby names

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

Sophisticated old money names

109 replies

Aglassaday · 28/07/2024 20:45

Hi everyone

I am looking for sophisticated or old money style names both boys and girls, I think that’s the right word for my style but correct me if I’m wrong

these are ones I like so far so you know my style:

girls:
Ramona
Estella
Meredith
Clementine
Lotta
Adina
Elena
Adelaide
Seraphina
Pippa
Cecelia
Ada
Daphne
Allegra
Rosa
Cara
Alice
Emilia

boys:
Hugo
Ralph
Jasper
Beau
Sterling
Julian
Hector
Cassius
Felix
Otis
Wilfred

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
New posts on this thread. Refresh page
GoldenLegend · 02/08/2024 06:14

The posh people I’ve known were called Charlotte, Janet, Bridget, Rachel, Philippa, Fiona, Crispin, Timothy, Alastair, Jonathan, John.

Maireanto1 · 02/08/2024 00:21

Molly for the horsey types.

Stanislas · 01/08/2024 09:53

Oh dear God . I immediately thought florin,tanner,fiver,quid,thrupence. I need more coffee.

DuchessOfSausage · 01/08/2024 09:50

Margaux is in the same league as Chardonnay.

Many of the names suggested don't strike me as being 'sophisticated' or 'old money'.

CurlewKate · 01/08/2024 09:30

Definitely not Margaux. It's Margot. Or sometimes Margo.

MostlyGhostly · 31/07/2024 23:16

Bryony/ Briony
Edgar

Mimififi · 31/07/2024 23:16

What would old money, east coast USA type names be?

PruneInTheNest · 31/07/2024 23:12

i just think of names from Downton that seem to tick your boxes 😂

Mary
Edith
Sybil
Marigold
Lavinia
Rosamund

Not from Downton but also fits the bill (you may have already listed some of these but it’s just of the top of my head)

Primrose
Araminta
Wilhelmina
Josephine
Meredith
Tabitha
Cressida
Miranda
Anna
Penelope
Victoria
Elizabeth
Fleur
Camilla

thicklysettled · 31/07/2024 23:07

I agree. Very new money.

For old money, look at the royal family tree.

Mimififi · 31/07/2024 23:05

After reading the full thread I've updated my list -

Margaux
Nancy
Matilda
Caroline
Marina
Stella

Crispynoodle · 31/07/2024 23:02

I heard someone talking about their friend Persephone on the radio yesterday and decided that was a lovely name nn Percy

Mimififi · 31/07/2024 22:49

Saschka · 29/07/2024 11:00

I wondered if OP was in the US? I agree you wouldn’t find anyone from the British upper class called Beau, Ramona or Sterling.

Honestly I’ve never met anyone with those names, they strike me as very blue-collar American (and nothing wrong with that, except for Beau which is awful they are perfectly nice names).

Beau definitely has Dukes of Hazard vibes 😂

Mimififi · 31/07/2024 22:44

Aglassaday · 28/07/2024 20:45

Hi everyone

I am looking for sophisticated or old money style names both boys and girls, I think that’s the right word for my style but correct me if I’m wrong

these are ones I like so far so you know my style:

girls:
Ramona
Estella
Meredith
Clementine
Lotta
Adina
Elena
Adelaide
Seraphina
Pippa
Cecelia
Ada
Daphne
Allegra
Rosa
Cara
Alice
Emilia

boys:
Hugo
Ralph
Jasper
Beau
Sterling
Julian
Hector
Cassius
Felix
Otis
Wilfred

Blaire
Margaux
Nancy
Matilda
Caroline

Andwhatfreshhellisthis · 31/07/2024 20:46

miniaturepixieonacid · 29/07/2024 11:03

I think a lot of your shortlisted names are actually quite contemporary/trendy at present. I think there are two categories of 'posh' names - not sure which, if either, would be 'old money'.

  1. Very conventional, probably royalty inspired Ideas: Alice, Anne, Alexandra, Beatrice, Charlotte, Caroline, Diana, Elizabeth, Florence, Harriet, Henrietta, Isabel, Joanna, Jane, Katherine, Louisa, Matilda, Mary, Margaret, Rose, Rosemary, Sophia, Victoria

Albert, Arthur, Andrew, Alexander, Charles, Christopher, Edward, Frederick, George, Henry, Hal, James, John, Louis, Michael, Nicholas, Philip, Peter, Richard, Stephen, Sebastian, Victor, William

  1. fancy/frilly/horsey/a bit different Ideas: Angelica, Araminta, Arabella, Allegra, Antigone, Cassandra, Clarissa, Cordelia, Cressida, Evangeline, Felicity, Fenella, Francesca, Georgina, Gabriella, Genevieve, Hermione, Isadora, Juliette, Jocasta, Jacinta, Larissa, Lavinia, Miranda, Millicent, Madeleine, Natalia, Ophelia, Octavia, Persephone, Philippa, Penelope, Rosalie, Rosanna, Saskia, Tassita, Tabitha, Tallulah, Tamara, Thalia, Vanessa

Atticus, Barnaby, Cyrus, Crispin, Claude, Fabian, Hugh, Hugo, Leonardo, Maximilian, Montgomery, Rafferty, Ralph, Rollo, Rupert, Orson, Ptolemy, Phineas, Solomon, Theodore, Vincent, Xavier

These and also maybe Emma, Caroline, Zara, Camilla, George, Rufus, Montgomery

CruCru · 31/07/2024 20:40

I like miniaturepixieonacid’s list. Honestly, I think that, when someone says they want something “a bit different” that is the opposite of choosing a “posh” name. The more old money they are, the more conventional the names (usually).

Bluestonecat · 31/07/2024 19:44

If you want the names of the landed gentry the original list is rather off.
Try
Jane
Georgina
Helen
Alexandra
Julia
Catherine
Mary
Elizabeth
Maud
Jemima
Philippa
Felicity
Anne
Charlotte

James
William
Oliver
Alexander
Henry
Edward
George

Just go through tatler or a few society pages for ideas. All the above names would be found easily in such places.
None are exciting or rare really.

3CustardCreams · 30/07/2024 23:47

Clement

Daisybuttercup12345 · 30/07/2024 21:14

Persephone Rose
Montgomery Charles

Aglassaday · 30/07/2024 15:48

i don’t think old money is the right word I was looking for, as mentioned in my first post but rather classy, strong names but also slightly girly for girls without being too prissy

OP posts:
Notreat · 30/07/2024 14:42

Agree with PP many of the names on your list are not what I would consider "old money or sophisticated"
It's important to know whether you want the name for a character in a book and whether you are in the UK or USA.
If in UK I would say names like

Georgiana
Louisa
Elizabeth
Honoria
Charlotte
Anne
Anna
Susannah
Catherine

Edward
James
Charles
Henry
William

BlackStrayCat · 30/07/2024 14:30

VenusClapTrap · 30/07/2024 14:20

The poshest woman I ever met was called Calliope. She was discussing tiaras when I was introduced.

Lovely, proper posh name.

Theoldwoman · 30/07/2024 14:25

I like some of your list, but not others.

Wyndham
Ernest
Cedric
Cecil
Edward
Clinton
Warwick
Peter

Gretchen
Alfreda
Lillian
Millicent
Edwina
Florence
Muriel
Josephine

VenusClapTrap · 30/07/2024 14:20

The poshest woman I ever met was called Calliope. She was discussing tiaras when I was introduced.

YellowAsteroid · 30/07/2024 13:18

I think if you need to ask whether your names sound "old money" or posh, then you're not, and shouldn't try so hard ...

BikesIHaveLost · 30/07/2024 12:33

Timebox · 29/07/2024 10:46

Not sure I'd consider many of your suggestions old money names.... Ramona?? Lotta??Adelaide?? Beau?? Sterling??? (well I suppose it's money) Otis ?? Otis Ferry definitely new money.

Agreed. Several of your original list (Beau, Sterling, Meredith, Otis, to mention some ) are absolutely the reverse of ‘old money’ names, though I suppose sophistication is subjective.

Swipe left for the next trending thread