How can it be this hard to choose a girls name?

[mrsdougs]

We are expecting our second girl and are really struggling for names! Our first daughter has a reasonably unusual name so we don't want to give our second a popular name but we are finding it difficult to decide between a very 'out there' name (Ellida) and more normal names (Harriet, Olive). Olive is a family name and Harriet because it's a lovely name and I always wanted an Ettie!
Ellida is a Scandinavian name (I'm half Scandinavian) from an Ibsen play.
Any opinions or other options would be great. Thanks!

I really like Mina, which i think is a scandi name. What about Essi?

Btw, Ellida is lovely. I'd totally go with that if you like it enough.

The Lady from The Sea? Lovely

How about raiding the Dolls House for inspiration?

Ellida is gorgeous.

Is it pronounced like it's spelled?

Ellida is great. I'd go for it!

Ettie is lovely too.

Ellida is lovely!

I think strictly speaking it's pronounced Elleeda but we would go with El-lid-ah which is how the English equivelant (spelt elida) is pronounced. Difficult though as don't want the poor girl to be explaining her name/spelling/pronunciation for the rest of her life!!

Ellida is beautiful and I'd have automatically pronounced it as eh-lid-da as you described. As the owner of a complicated but lovely name (doffs cap to parents) I'd say go for it!

Another vote for Ellida. I would have instinctively pronounced it your way and I think that is a prettier pronunciation.

Thank you all!! Nice to hear positive opinions about it!

Quite like Ellida but have you considered it may well end up abbreviated to Ellie? Which is very popular.
Harriet nn Ettie is nice. I prefer Juliet or Violet nn Ettie personally.

DD has an unusual name - she could spell it phonetically at 2 out of necessity ...

I would have automatically pronounced it elleeda, which sounds nicer than el-lid-ah IMO.

I would automatically say elleeda which sounds much better than elidda!

But of the options I prefer Harriet

Ellida is lovely and I read it as Eleeda before I saw your explanation.

Not El-ee-da! it sounds like Elida shampoo.

Ellida is beautiful - unconventional but I wouldn't say it's out there.
Similar would be...
Elika
Alaina
Leanda

For Ettie (I agree - lovely) you could substitute Harriet with...
Colette
Henrietta
Estelle/a
Celeste
Lisette
Lisbet/Lisbeth
Elspeth

But really I think you're onto a winner with Ellida, and should think no more about it.