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Baby names

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

Original poster

Unique girls names

59 replies

Jellytotsandfruitpops · 30/04/2015 13:40

Hi all,
Ive narrowed soon to be dd's name down to:
Kailia pronounced kai-lee-ah
Taleah pronounced ta-lee-ah, commonly spelt talia
Brooke
Kendall
I wanted something different that not everyones heard of, but OH thinks these names are borderline chavy (i was aiming for pretty but unique lol).

So would you consider these names chavy? And which one you pick?

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Allthatnonsense · 30/04/2015 17:46

Unique names always sound a bit cheap and made up to me.

Try to aim for something unusual, but something that people will have heard of.

How about Thalia or Thandi?

reuset · 30/04/2015 17:59

I take issue with the word unique, here. To achieve uniqueness you'd have to get out the scrabble pieces Grin

Brooke is probably the most palatable to me of those names.

sweetpeame · 30/04/2015 21:43

I don't like Brooke or Kendall at all, they sound very dated already and aren't unique. Of your other two names Talia (spelt that way) is the best.

burgatroyd · 01/05/2015 06:18

Hey guys! What's with all the snobbery against different, made up spellings?

OK, so Alleckssandrah will look odd but how about phonetic spellings, eg Anglicised versions of foreign names? Keeva, for instance. Yes, can completely understand peoples preference for the Gaelic Caoimhe but others may prefer ease of pronunciation. Or Elaina for Elena or even.

I grew up with some beautiful made up names. A lot of you might think they are yuk but as I saw these kids daily their names are as normal to me as Sarah and Claire.

Some names in my school - Danaya, Josephette, Joannie, Taliska.

Jackieharris · 01/05/2015 07:04

Brooke is in the top 100 I think.

What about

Peyton
Kyla
Kayleigh
Natalia nn talia
Kyra
Kelis
Carys
Codie
Casey
Clarisea
Lorelei
Lelaina
Lana
Lara
Tara
Nerissa
Skyler

reuset · 02/05/2015 00:35

Brruk (yes, that spelling) might be nearer 'unique' than Brooke, and, throwing caution to the wind and taking a wild guess, won't be top 100.

I've just searched it and apparently it's too rare to be ranked. 0 people, in the US at least, have this name, according to one site. Sorry I'm not mischief making assuch Grin

AprilShowers15 · 02/05/2015 03:05

What about Kalani?
Simliar to Kailia

SugarPlumTree · 02/05/2015 03:38

I would go with Sophia. Friendships can change over time and there is no saying you will be in touch witn her in the future . If you both like it, use it. I'm glad we used the name we wanted for DS despite it being the name of friend's DS. His name is a family name on both sides, we have moved and no longer see friend.

heylilbunny · 02/05/2015 03:44

Many Brits can't handle it if you go off the beaten path with names as it brings up all the latent class anxiety. If your chosen names have roots in you and your DH's cultures then by all means use them.

One of my dds has a best friend called Kaia here in Germany, her mum is German and her dad American and I think it is very pretty.

We also know an Arietta and an Angelorie.

HeadingHome · 02/05/2015 04:07

Luka?

madwomanbackintheattic · 02/05/2015 05:12

I know Brooke's and Talia's - two of each in my kid's friendship group. Not unique here. I prefer Talia.
Don't like Kendall.
Ambivalent about Kailia.
Absolutely right about latent class anxiety, but I do understand the desire for the unique. Sadly, the 'unique' name that we picked that no one had ever heard of, that fitted exactly with our heritage, got picked up by a minor sleb when dd1 was 3mos, and there are now kajillions of them.
It might be unique now, but give it three months and it might be ridiculed as ten a penny common as grass on every man baby names thread forever more.

DressedUpJustLikeEdie · 02/05/2015 05:27

Kailia pronounced kai-lee-ah

I think people will always struggle with knowing how to spell and pronounce this - it's just to fussy. Kalia is easier - Kailia looks confusing with the ili letters all jumbled together, you have to really look at it carefully to get your head around it.

I like the idea of a Hawaiian name though, can you find a different one that is both unusual and pretty and is not complicated to spell?

Taleah pronounced ta-lee-ah, commonly spelt talia

This is a beautiful, classic name that should be spelt Thalia not Talia or Tahlia of any other variant and certainly not Taleah! And the emphasis should always be on the first syllable, so TAR-leah. Not Teh-LEE-ah.

Brooke
Kendall

Both to American and a bit chavvy for my tastes.

BigFatPanda · 02/05/2015 05:45

Tallulah
Tula

Or just use Sophia like pp said friendship don't always last and if it does, the girls might like having similar names. Your friend doesn't own the name!

LadylikeCough · 02/05/2015 09:32

DressedUpJustLikeEdie: Thalia is a beautiful, classic Greek name. Talia is a beautiful, classic Hebrew name. It's not a variant -- they're from different languages and have distinct meanings.

SkodaLabia · 02/05/2015 14:35

Can you give us some examples of Hawaiian names that you like OP?

SkodaLabia · 02/05/2015 14:37

I think the problem with Kailia is that to us it does sound made up, because of the Kayleigh/Kayla/Kayley type names.

Is Taleah pronounced TAH-leeya or Ta-LEEYA?

WavyGlass · 02/05/2015 15:02

Isn't Thalia pronounced 'THAY-lee-uh? In Antonia Forest's novels, a character called Thalia is resigned to having to repeat her name because people keep mishearing it as 'Failure'...

I share the irritation at the misuse of 'unique' with regard to names, when what people mean is 'unusual'. Or, in some cases, 'classic name whose spelling I will mess around with in order to stamp it with my yooneekness.'

Naming is so fraught with class identification and anxiety in this country, I agree. In fact, I was just thinking it while my son was watching the birthday card shout-outs on CBeebies - the babies' and toddlers photos were largely identical, but in this country, Lexi-Mae is already classed in relation to Piers. Even though they're both 1.

LadylikeCough · 02/05/2015 17:02

Wavyglass, I think Thalia is more often pronounced with a hard T, like Thomas, but it's not quite so clearcut. Apparently there's some confusion about mistranslation/pronunciation of the original Greek character, so it could be interpreted as THaylia, too...? I don't know; not a Classicist! But DN is a Talia, so have heard much about it from DSis.

Tia2005 · 02/05/2015 22:43

My daughter is called Tiarna I also like the name Maeve

madreloco · 02/05/2015 22:51

Unique means there is only one. You mean unusual. Not the same thing.

People go on on here about people being weird or snobby about unusual names and how silly it is that people make judgements. Well, in the real world, people make judgements because they make sense....if you call your child Tiianni-Rae or whatever people know something about you. Same as if you call your child George. You can complain about it all you like, you can call is snobby or unfair or silly but its reality. And its true. We can take a guess at who Georges parents are and who Tiianni-Raes parents are and well likely be right.

HumourlessHarpy · 03/05/2015 07:07

Tia, 'Tiarna' as in Irish for 'lord'?

HeadingHome · 03/05/2015 12:49

Luka is Hawaiian

Original poster
Jellytotsandfruitpops · 03/05/2015 21:14

Thanks all for your input, maybe unique was the wrong word to use Blush

On a more important note we welcomed dd into the world early this morning Grin.We decided on kala which means princess (amongst other things) in Hawaiian which we thought was quite fitting after yesterdays royal arival lol. So she's kala mai surname

OP posts:
RedToothBrush · 03/05/2015 21:17

Aawwwww awesome! Congratulations!

timelyreminder · 03/05/2015 21:53

Congratulations!