Oliver or Theo to match sibling set

[Dielle1]

Hi there,

I am hoping to settle on a name for our nameless baby boy who has a twin sister called Rosalie. Older siblings are Annabelle and Dominic.

Annabelle, Dominic, Oliver and Rosalie
Annabelle, Dominic, Theo and Rosalie

Twins: Oliver & Rosalie or Theo & Rosalie

Hesitations are Oliver being too popular and commonplace, not liking the nickname Ollie/Theo being only two syllables whereas others are all 3/ name possibly being too unusual or not serious enough for when he is a grown man.

Thank you so much for your input!

Theo

The "o" in Oliver and Rosalie sounds a bit samey.

I think Oliver goes better to be honest but he is going to end up an Olly.

I like Theo but doesn't seem as good a fit but it definitely doesn't sound weird or mismatched. As for being a suitable grown up serious name, I guess it depends what they end up doing, but there will be lots of grown ups with names that we think of as childrens names by the time your son is grown up - I am sure the board room will be full of people called Poppy, Alfie, Pippa and Josh :)

Oh, and I know you haven't asked for alternatives but I am going to give a couple anyway....

Benjamin or Sebastian would be a good fit.

I like Oliver better. I don't think it's as popular as people think.

I'd say Oliver. If Theo, would he just be Theo, not Theodore?

I prefer Theo.

Theo, as Rosalie and Oliver have the "lee" sound in common which fails the 'yell out the back door in a hurry' test.

I like both, but Oliver just edges it for me.

I prefer Oliver although not the best idea if you don't like Olly.

Can you not put Theodore on the BC but call him Theo?

Theo is a great name, Oliver is nice but still very popular.

Theo/dore. Much more interesting than Oliver/Ollie/Olly big yawn.

Definitely Oliver. It's a better fit with the other names, Theo is a bit too short I think.

Theo and rosalie are fabtastic. I always liked theo and d-h always vetoed. Rosalie is lovely too.

Well, I would go for Theodore and Rosalie.

I think both names "go" with your other names.

Both lovely names but if you are concerned about popularity I would rule out Oliver as it is extremely popular compared with your other children's names. I prefer Theo as a nickname for Theodore which would be three syllables if that is what you are looking for and would give him more options in the future.

Theo unless Rosalie will usually be shortened to Rose / Rosie in which case it sounds fine with Oliver. Theo definitely works as a man's name - it's a family name for me so I know several very successful grown up Theo's. Your taste in names is lovely btw- my dd's name is Annabelle too! Congratulations! X

Just chose the name you like the best. I don't subscribe to the MN view that siblings names have to "go with" each other.

To me, Theo/ Theodore and Rosalie sound much more similar, both having the 'ee' sound!

The 'i' sounds in Rosalie and Oliver are completely different!

Oliver definitely v popular, but an equal number of Theos at our school

In 2012, Oliver was no 2 out of top 100 names for boys in England and Wales, with 6669 babies having that name.

Theo was no 44, with 1629 babies

Theodore was no 97, with 655 babies

Article on name trends here: www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2013/aug/12/top-100-baby-names-2012-girls-boys-list

Data for 2013 due soon; the Office for National Statistics usually publishes name lists in August.

Theodore
Then you can choose Theo or Teddy

I like both Theo and Oliver! But maybe you are right and Oliver a bit too popular. So i vote for Theo (it can be also a Theodore)

I love Oliver and think it goes better with your other children's names. I have an irrational dislike for the name Theo - reminds me of a boring history or religion lesson or a librarian. Also it'll get really irritating when people pronounce it as "Feo". Edward nn. Teddy is much nicer IMO.

Obviously Oliver is a v popular name but seeing the stats really puts it in perspective.....only around 1% of babies born in 2012 were given that name.

So it's not quite as drastic as people imagine!