Another 'help me with girls names' thread!

[clevername]

I'm due in two weeks with my second and still haven't made a decision on names. Frankly, its making me jittery and I thought I'd turn to you guys for help...

If the baby is a boy we are pretty set on Wilfred. We totally love this name for so many reasons (not least the vast array of lovely shortenings) but we haven't found a girls name that we can use that we love as much. Feel like I've looked at EVERY SINGLE GIRLS NAME THAT HAS EVER EXISTED TOO...

Can't use (but do love):
Mabel
Polly
Flora/Florrie

Names that DP has vetoed:

Cecily
Pearl
Maud
Aphra (might be able to get this in as a middle if it works with chosen first name)

Names that we do really like and are on list:

Tabitha
Olive
Prunella (love that this can be shortened to Pru or Nell)
Constance (Connie - sounds really nice with surname)
Winifred (Winnie)
Dorothy (Dot)
Imelda (not sure on this one - don't really like 'Immie' or 'Mel')
Arabella (think we've more or less discounted this one though)
Edith (too popular?)
Agnes

DP suggested Vespa this morning which I think is awesome but a bit too out there... also can't shake images of scooters, bond girls and wasps!

DD1 is Violet. I seem to like vintage names that aren't too popular (had no idea Violet was so on the rise when we chose it for DD1. Ho hum) and that have lots of options for shortening. Surname is 2 syllable and begins with 'Cl' (which rules out a few I like, e.g. Cleo).

So, do any of you have any thoughts on current ideas or any suggestions? Please be relatively gentle... I'm hormonal and a bit sensitive at the moment!

Thanks!

I love most of your name choices! My favourites from your list are:

Olive
Constance
Winifred (Winnie) - Freda?
Dorothy (Dot)
Imelda
Agnes

What about
Esther
Ada
Enid
Audrey
Wilma
Ivy
Vera
Ursula
Iris
Beatrice
Thea
Martha

Or Dora?

Please don't call her Winifred or Prunella.

Tabitha and Thea are both nice names.

Greta?
Sylvia?

Elsie
Betsy
Nuala
Primrose
Constance (Connie)

Thank you - some lovely ideas!
Ada was on our list but I took it off because I thought it was too similar to Ava (which is lovely, but the enormous popularity puts me off).

Both Ivy and Iris are quite popular around here and I'm not sure about having a flower theme.

Esther makes me think of Rantzen and Wilma the Flintstones.

I do love Martha but I've taught quite a few of them. Also really like Beatrice (it's been on my list since first pregnancy - love Bea!) but I can't shake the feeling that it sounds too 'formal' somehow!

I suggested Enid the other day, funnily enough, but DP wasn't keen.

I do like Dora - actually, Isadora was on the list at some point. Not sure where that went!

Susannah
Louisa
Eliza
Matilda
Annabel
Phoebe
Anna
Beatrice / Beatrix
Dorothea
Evangeline
Martha
Esther
Florence
Genevieve
Harriet
Lilian
Jemima
Alice
Juliet
Lydia
Marianne
Norah
Caroline
Margot
Penelope
Ramona
Sylvie
Theodora
Vera
Adelaide
Miranda
Vivienne
Willa
Nancy
Lavinia
Alma
Cecilia
Honor
Stella
Ada
Clemency
Audrey
Miriam
Annie
Pearl
Jennifer
Marina
Hester
Daphne
Gwen
Julia
Catherine
Mary
Opal
Philippa
Rowenna
Sadie
Tess
Verity

I've had loads of positivity for Winifred IRL... everyone seems to think Winnie is brill!

Is Prunella really awful, then?

Greta is nice. Gretel was a contender for a while - really like it but can't shake the child-eating witch associations.

I have an 8 year old Violet, also named before realising how popular it would become. Other names on my list were:
Dorothy,
Muriel, (love the shortening Muir.)
June,
Severine,
Agatha,
Frieda,
Josephine,
Ines,
Nancy,
Beatrix,
Albertine,
Sylvia.

If you went for Theodora or Dorothea you could have Dora or Thea as a nickname. Coco is a cool NN for Constance but might not work with your surname.

Miriam
Frances or Francesca
Antonia
Fiona

Winifred is a great name. So many nn options! Winnie, Freddie, Freda, Win.

Prudence instead of Prunella? Prue is sweet.

Maybe I’m in the minority with Winifred in that case, it’s just very much not to my taste. Nell is a lovely name but I think there are far nicer names it can be short for, Helen, Helena etc. Prunella is so………pruney.

Prunella is awesome!

Other names I like, which you might like too are: -

Esmé - means "esteemed, beloved"
Theodora - God's gift
Amanda - "Worthy of love"
Beatrice / Beatrix - "She who brings happiness"
Rona - "My joy"
Marjorie
Felicity - "Happy / lucky"
Mabel
Sara
Edith / Edie
Abigail - "Father's joy"
Phoebe
Ramona
Leona
Penelope
Alma - Soul, nourishing, kind
Amy - "Loved"

Happy choosing!

Thanks guys - more food for thought.

I LOVE Coco (and so does DP) - we were trying to think about names that could be shortened to it and it didn't occur to me that Constance would work. Hmmmmmm....

It's the 'Nell' shortening as an option (as well as Pru) that I like if we were to go with Prunella. Prudence doesn't allow that (also have a friend with a -very fat- cat with this name).

I really like Constance, Edith, Agnes and Greta.

I like Nell as nickname for Eleanor, rather than Prunella (which reminds me of prunes).

Cassandra (Cassie)
Felicity
Georgiana
Belinda
Esme
Rachel
Wilhelmina
Kathleen
Victoria
Hannah
Cora
Vanessa

Ha ha!!! Pruney!

Constance (Coco) and Prudence (Pru) are lovely. Prunella really is awful (sorry op!), it sounds too much like Prunes! Greta is also a lovely vintagey choice and not too popular.

Penelope with nn Nell could be possible?

Noelle (Nell).
Ida
Blanche
❤️ Connie
Miriam
Vivienne (Vivi)
Valerie
Adeline

Dulcie
Elizabeth variations Betty/Betsy/Beth/Lizzie
Berengaria
Bettina

I first thought of Constance to go with Violet and see that's on your list. Connie is very sweet.

Love the nn Nell but not Prudence. What about Helen to go with Nell? Could that be called vintage yet or is it a bit 80s?

Love Olive, Constance, Tabitha and Agnes.

Sorry OP, but I too think Prunella is dreadful! How about Fenella instead?

Or:

Felicity
Verity
Isolde/Iseult
Ingrid
Jessamy
Agatha
Bridget
Lilith
Alma
Amabel
Dinah
Blythe
Millicent
Louisa
Adelaide/Adeline
Celeste

Arabella is gorgeous. I would just go with that if it were me.

What about Vesper (rather than Vespa)? Or Hester.

Love Prunella.

Also maybe Helena, Evangeline, Eleanor?

LOVE Wilfred!

I know a baby called Constance nn Coco so that definitely could work. I love Edith nn Edie.

What about Felicia? I like that with Violet. Or Josephine?

Or Evangeline or Christiana?