Our name choices don’t seem very liked

Why on earth would you assume that?

I would assume Lola is short for Apolline and Gigi for Gabrielle....

I know, but she still uses pixie in a clinical setting so it may as well be her actual first name.

Randomly I know 3 (london/French families) it's quite "old lady" i think in france so getting a revival

Me too! I heard it for the first time on the Victoria Beckham documentary, one of the models was called Apolline. I really like it.

Fun fact - that’s because doctors originally were those who held a doctorate (it was an academic title first and foremost). The title was given to medical doctors as a courtesy but surgeons didn’t use “doctor” up until quite recently - it’s why dentists (ie dental surgeons) were never called doctor until recently.

@Toerags , Name given at birth Bernadette Anne McKenna.

It did confuse me that surgeons aren't referred to as Dr.
They are Mr/Mrs/Ms/Miss Surname.

Exactly, and has nobody heard of Dr Pixie Mckenna?

I have to say I don't know the first names of the surgeons who operated on my daughter (3 different surgeries).
Nor do I care.

@marshallzumarubble , The name is growing in popularity but so far has peaked at 69.

It takes 10-16 years to be a surgeon, so a surgeon would be at least 28. Only about 31 Gigis have been registered in the past 10 years.

Yes, I have the same question, @Fritesky ?

Sounds Roman to me,

Apolline , I've never heard this name but I love it.

Sense and data, excellent.

You are wrong. Hugely so. Firstly, it wasn't given to a handful of babies. The upsurge is big, as per my picture attached here. Secondly, a lot of the surgeons and solicitors we will have in 30 years haven't been born yet! Names come into fashion and grow, sometimes they explode and then fade.

And, as I said, I know so many children (born to educated, professional parents just to reassure you following your other, incredibly classist and snobby response) with names like Hallie, Dorie, Lulu, Ria, Jojo and Vivi. Why on earth would Gigi stand out?

To all those dissing these names - a post popped up on my LinkedIn from a woman called Lola that I worked on a project with - a professional, well-regarded woman in her field.

And never once did I think (as so many on this ludicrous and frankly stupid thread seem to think), “God, I bet she’s not much cop with her stripper name.”

Because I’m not a moron.

Beautiful names.

Don’t be so ridiculous or classist!

I know multiple Gigi’s under 5 it’s growing in popularity, I live in south west London. One of them goes to pre-school with my son, I can’t say what her parents do but it’s a generally expensive area to live.
One a relative is the nanny for the family, the parents work at a magic circle law firm and a think tank. Would you say they aren’t educated or aspirational?
The other I went to university with, she did her undergraduate at Sorbonne in Paris and postgrad at UCL. Again I’d argue very intelligent and likely to encourage her child to be successful!

The Gigi I know has one parent as an architect the other a gallery curator, west London had their children in their late 30s? Their daughters are now in very respectable jobs, named Gigi and Tiggi.

Why do you think educated people with aspirations for their children wouldn’t name them Gigi?

@Releese , they are linked to many things - age of mother, where you live etc.
Also what do you even mean the type of people to have children go on to be solicitors?
Someone who has excelled academically or who is intelligent and ambitious for their child.

I don’t think you understand the group of people using the name Gigi right now. The Gigi I know works for a private bank, another poster mentioned knowing a lawyer called Gigi.
Also what do you even mean the type of people to have children go on to be solicitors? Names aren’t associated to success or intelligence!

Having a solicitor called Gigi Anderson or a surgeon called Gigi Thompson isn't going to be unusual in 30 years.
It will be because only a few babies have been named Gigi in the past few years.
The name probably doesn't appeal to the sort of parent who would have a baby who would become a surgeon or solicitor.

Thanks for posting @marshallzumarubble . Interesting but not surprising.

The OP has taken a thorough battering over this. I don't think her chosen names are outlandish or unsuitable at all. They're nice. Lila is good too.

Dear oh Lordie the OP is getting a bit of a battering!

Both names are lovely, and perfectly normal. I am a name etymologist, and Gigi, Lola and Lila are fairly standard names that aren't going to stand out in anyway in the future. In fact, I would say Lola has peaked and may end up being fairly dated. Lila (and its various spellings) is everywhere right now and, looking at the upward trend it is experiencing in the UK and the fact it is hitting the top 100 names in several European countries, Gigi is about to be big.

Naming trends have changed hugely in the last 30 years or so. There is more variation now, literally hundreds more names being given. The number one girls name in 1996 was Sophie with 7087 girls being named that (10.54% of all baby girls named that year). In 2024 the number one girls name was Olivia with 2761 babies named that, 0.95% of all baby girls. The equivalent in 1996 was Jade with 2750 entries, at number 19. In 1996 the top 5 names made up 10.54% of all baby girls born, in 2024 it was 3.94%.

Having a solicitor called Gigi Anderson or a surgeon called Gigi Thompson isn't going to be unusual in 30 years. In my daughter's school there are girls called Purdie, Piper, Bluebell, Flossie, Star, Winnie, Miley, Sullivan and Kiki - all of them their full, registered names. And this is an oversubscribed primary in a leafy middleclass village not far from York.

@Fritesky - if you love them then use them for your beautiful daughters and know that you are just a few years ahead of the curve with Gigi! Will they love their names? No idea! But, as you said, Olivia, Isla, Ava and Freya may not like their names either!