Annabel? or Anna?

[gnlight]

Have been mulling over this for a while... What associations do you have for each name? Any preference?

Can't decide whether Anna might be too plain and Annabel perhaps too frilly?

Help!

annabel reminds me of annoying girls. No idea why, I must have met an annoying annabel at some point.

I prefer Anna

I love Annabel. She can then decide herself. She might even be a bella.

Anna. Annabel is too fussy.

As explained on a previous thread,Anna is one of my least favourite names and always sounds really smug and boring to my ears.

I want to emphasise that this is totally irrational! Plenty of other people like the name and I know some nice Annas.

Annabel is ok. I really don't like Annabelle, but Annabel (again for some irrational reason!) seems a lot better than Anna and Annabelle.

I prefer Annabel. I find Anna a bit dull.

Personally I like Anna but find Annabel a little twee.

Of course, an Annabel could easily go by Anna if you/she later preferred it or found Annabel a bit too girly.

Anna is one of my all time favourite names.

Annabel is too twee, fussy and try to hard for my taste.

"...too hard..." of course, before anyone points it out for me!

Annabel with nn Anna.

Best of both worlds.

Annabel.

I find Anna a bit dull.

Anna is classic, sweet and simple.
Annabel is ok but a bit fussy and there are just so many Belles/Bellas out there, yawn.

Anna!

I think Anna is strong, classic and quite international.

Annabelle is a bit posh/horsey and there seems to me a million Isabelles, Annabelles, Bellas etc around at the moment. I know a little Annabelle, Isabella, Isobel and Bella in fact but no Annas.

Annabel too posh! Anna is a good solid but still feminine name - and I have never known an Anna I didn't like which helps! Also the advantage of few options to misspell Anna. Definitely prefer Anna.

Anna is dull dull DULL.

Thanks all. All of your comments resonate with me about each name, which is I guess why I'm on the fence.

Not sure about using 'Annbel with nn Anna' as they feel like two quite different names to me and for my own sanity I think I need to make decision iykwim. : )

Appreciate your thoughts, thanks.

I had a friend at school who was Anna. She had a fantastic unusual middle name and from her teen age years onward she started to use the names together, for example Anna-Mahalia.

Definitely Anna, Annabel is a bit posh and horsey as others have said.

I like both but think I'd be leaning more towards Anna with all the popularity of belle/bella names at the moment.

Annabel is a bit twee and a bit horsey. Anna is dull.

Soz!

Annabel makes a nice change from Isabel. It's simpler than Isabel but I prefer it. Anna is lovely but not quite enough on its own. So I say Annabel.

Anna is just lovely. It doesn't need the 'belle/bel' bit!!

Have you considered Annie as a nn for either? Our first choice currently is Andrianna, nn Annie. My sense is that most Annabels/Annabelles probably shorten to Bella these days (like Isabelles) - I definitely hear of more Bella's than Ana/Anna/Annies. I actually like both your options though - possibly Anna is a little plain to my ears for a little girl, but it's a lovely adult name and Annie when little is very sweet; Annabel is similarly very flexible in terms of nn and she can choose which version she wants to use at different ages, which I think is a nice thing.

Both lovely names, But why not have Annabel on her birth certificate then she could use either name, or might like to be Anna. Annie, Bella Bell.