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Baby names

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

Original poster

Our name choices don’t seem very liked

462 replies

Fritesky · 18/10/2025 18:45

DH and I have just had our twin baby girls, they are 3 weeks old and we have named them Gigi and Lola. We love their names and put a lot of time into picking them. We are a Anglo-Franco-Italian family so tried really hard to pick names that everyone would be a fan of.
Since then we’ve told family, friends etc. our babies names and got lots of “oh are the nicknames” and “oh that’s interesting”, which I guess just makes me feel really crappy. We haven’t registered the girls yet so we could change the names, but I’m not sure if I want to. Their full names are Gigi Apolline and Lola Gabrielle.

What are your thoughts?

OP posts:
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ShowOfHands · 18/10/2025 21:22

I agree with many others. On their own, they're probably fine and it's a matter of taste but together, they sound like they're themed. And the theme is fictional Moulin Rouge dancers lazily named by a mediocre writer to give immediate showgirl/courtesan vibes.

Your middle name choices are utterly lovely.

SirChenjins · 18/10/2025 21:22

I think they have a certain sound to them which isn't necessarily favourable so I can understand the reaction you're getting, but that's my opinion and as they're not my children it's a meaningless one.

JillyGiraffe · 18/10/2025 21:21

Doidontimmm · 18/10/2025 18:55

I thought exactly the same as @BreadstickBurglar im afraid. They sound like characters from Moulin Rouge together.

Me too. I’m sorry I can’t bring myself to say something along the lines of ‘if you love them that’s all that matters’. Maybe you could use Gigi and Lola as nicknames? Maybe Georgina and Louisa?

MummytoBoth · 18/10/2025 21:17

Love these names ❤️

my niece is Lola and she has suited it right through from a baby to a teen.

ItsNotMeEither · 18/10/2025 21:17

BreadstickBurglar · 18/10/2025 18:52

Ok being brutally honest I wonder if Gigi and Lola have a bit of a… well an air about them. My immediate connotations are Gigi the film about a child (future) prostitute, and Lolita the book about an abused teenager. The combination of the two kind of strengthens the association. It’s a real shame because I love the names and individually I wouldn’t be thinking of those characters.

This!

I think it’s possibly the combination together. Then there’s the song lyrics, her name was Lola, she was a showgirl.

That said, I feel like most kids grown into their names, they develop personalities of their own and any previous connotations people may have had with those names tend to fall away.

SouthernNights59 · 18/10/2025 21:16

Please do not change their names because of other people's views!!!! You and your DH have chosen them for a reason, stick to your guns and everyone else will get used to them. Also, MN is very conservative when it comes to names so please ignore any negative views on here. The names are lovely btw.

mumto3kids01 · 18/10/2025 21:06

Lovely names. My eldest is called Lola 🙂

trainkeepsgoing · 18/10/2025 21:06

I like them. People often have an aversion to baby names (especially when they are unusual) and then everyone gets used to them. Congratulations on your twins!

Brickiscool · 18/10/2025 21:04

I'd switch the first and second names around. Each name individually would be ok, but as a pair they sound like hookers

Embankments · 18/10/2025 21:03

I immediately had the same thoughts as some of the other posters. Prostitutes and Lolita the book.

Ladies of the night vibes

WaltzingWaters · 18/10/2025 21:02

I love the names and think they go really well together.

legalseagull · 18/10/2025 20:58

To me they sound like stripper names

Mischance · 18/10/2025 20:57

Tune, not tube ...

Bigearringsbigsmile · 18/10/2025 20:57

Stripper names
Burlesque strippers
Feathers in their hair and nd a top cut down to there

Mischance · 18/10/2025 20:57

They are lovely names ...
Mind you I know a very rude version no of the song Gigi whose real words are:
Gigi, am I a fool without a mind
Or have I merely been too blind to realize?

The words I know are:
Gigi, are you a girl without a c**t, or have I got you back to front, or upside down?

If you know the tube it is more effective. Sorry to lower the tone!

Both you choices of names are lovely!

Viviennemary · 18/10/2025 20:55

Not keen on these names at all. But its your choice. Gigi is awful. You need to rethink that one.

plinkero · 18/10/2025 20:55

Congratulations! Your babies , your names ❤️

thecatfromneptune · 18/10/2025 20:54

Also I think they wouldn’t give off quite so much showgirl vibes separately — they are cute names on their own — it’s just together that they really multiply the Moulin Rouge vibes. Sorry OP, can you give them longer names and just use the short names as nicknames?

Christwosheds · 18/10/2025 20:53

MrsKateColumbo · 18/10/2025 18:58

I like them!
Gigi is usually short for something and I never know whether it should be zhe zhe or jee jee pronunciation wise but I like both

Lola is a nice name and feels very 2020s.

I know several Lolas, all in their 20s, it has been popular for a while. Lola is the nickname for Dolores, and Gigi for Giselle. I prefer the longer forms by a mile. Lola I think of the Kinks song, and the Barry Manilow song, so not great associations ! They do sound like Moulin Rouge characters as a pp said.
I do have a general dislike of nicknames being used as the whole name , so that also colours my view.

RunSlowTalkFast · 18/10/2025 20:51

Agree with the Moulin Rouge vibes.

frockandcrocs · 18/10/2025 20:49

Those names are not what I expected at all, from the title. They’re LOVELY!
Congratulations 🥰

BunnyLake · 18/10/2025 20:48

LumpySpaceCow · 18/10/2025 18:58

As long as you like them then who cares? That's why I always waited until our babies were born before sharing names - no risk of them telling you how much they hate them when you've already chosen them!
Lola is really cute. Never heard Gigi before - is it hard or soft G? If soft, it is a nickname for a horse round here (up North!!).

They’re 3 weeks old, family and friends are saying they’re not keen on them as full first names.

I say Gigi with a soft g, I don’t like geegee as in horses. More zhi zhi.

828Pax · 18/10/2025 20:47

My family didn't like one of my daughters names but whilst it was abit upsetting to hear that, I don't really care because I love her name!

user2848502016 · 18/10/2025 20:47

I like Lola but if being honest Gigi does sound like a nickname, could you not name her Gabrielle but Gigi for short, and think of a different middle name for Lola? Or Gianna is lovely too

TheaBrandt1 · 18/10/2025 20:46

I agree with Breadstick sorry. Together they are too sexualised. Were you really unaware of the cultural references of both names? And together it’s too much.