French female names

[Rororowmeboat]

I like Madeleine and Cecile but not 100% happy with them - does anyone have any suggestions for similar?

I have a name not popular in my country of origin and popular, but old lady name in a neighbouring country. So whenever I meet someone from that country, there will be the inevitable "Oh my granny/great-aunt is called that!".

Doesn't bother me the slightest.

How about Amélie?
Or Audrey?

We have a list of names for DD's sister (should we ever conceive one)
They are:
Aureya/Aurelia
Eloise
Adele
Amandine
Adeline

Yes we like 'A' names but prefer those that end in 'a' (sounds somehow more sophisticated to me? No idea why)

There is a weird trend in France at the mo (from what I've seen from DH's friends) to give your DCs names that were popular in the UK in the 70s/80s like Kim, Steve [puke] and now Lily is HUGELY popular. Lilou is also popular - i know two. One is in their 90s, the other is 4.

I like Camille though, pronounced like "cah-mi"

Cherie
(pronounced she-ree) from the French name Cher meaning beloved.

Garance Dore (sorry can't do the accent on this keyboard) = popular but mildly irritating French beauty and fashion blogger. It's a lovely name, actually, but I think Gary would sadly be used as a nn in the UK.

I LOVE Ines and Sidonie. Whilst there are some names on this thread that sound fine in an English accent, though, there am definitely some that need a French accent to sound "right", so you may want to consider whether you're going to be moving to France or whether your daughter will have a lot of French friends!

Laurianne and Emmanuel

You can't name a child Cherie - Cherie Blair has pretty much ruined that name for eternity

I like Capucine. (Pronounced ca-poo-sin ) I also like Mireille and Lise

Emmanuel is a boy's name, the feminine is Emmanuelle which sadly is tarnished for a generation by a series of soft porn films

I would have pronounced Capucine as Capoosheen, but also it makes me think of the Capuchin monks in Rome who decorated their crypts with the bones of their dead....sorry!

The Capucine I knew was a French Canadian if that makes any difference to the pronounciation.

How about Marguerite?

Janique
Michelle
Nicole
Sylvie
Lucie

DD1, sorry!

Emmeline, Elise, Beatrice, Lucie, Aurelia

Amelie
Elise
Anaia

Aline
Gabrielle

Clarice
Agnes (Onyez)
Jean
Claire

Aurelie
Clemence
Albertine
Garance
Mireille
Laure

LOVE Aurelie and Albertine - was nearly brave enough to give one if these to DD. If only she was French! (Sorry, my accents not working on phone ATM)

Valerie - fab song by The Zutons before being spoilt by Amy Winehouse
Anicee
Vivienne

OneLittletoddleTerror - Peter?!

Some people really aren't bothered about whether a name is dated - some even go for such names.

I was given a dated name in the 70s and now you can't move for babies being named it. I now have an on-trend ( :-/ for want of a better phrase) name in my 30s.

DS has a dated name.

Dated names can be a very refreshing change.

I'm not bothered, as one of my children has a name that is dated. Although I think it works today.

One woman I know told her Nanny Fanny to introduce herself as Annie as Fanny is just not workable here. Good advice imo. Now if a name was that unusuable in a close or neighbouring country I'd probably rule it out. But the fact that it's dated, in another country.... so what really (just my opinion)