what girls' names do the French middle classes turn their noses up at?

[NatureAbhorsAHoover]

What would the haute bourgeoisie think of as a tacky/trashy name for a baby girl? I speak french but have no idea what sounds déclassé to a French ear.

Not looking to vilify; am interested in the tonal sounds, themes and signifiers that surely exist just as much in France as here?

Yes name shortening isn't really a thing, though I suppose dh's tontons dédé and gégé would beg to differ...

Françoise is way out of fashion. Definitely in her fifties if not sixties.

Olenna the only one of those that would sound odd today is Hélène. I know one who'd be aroind fifteen today but she has very intello gaucho 'rents and a sister called the equally trendy-retro Suzanne.

When I was a teenager on french exchange my best friend was a Poppy. Absolutely everyone seemed to find this hilarious and even the parents and teachers said her name with a smirk. I never did find out what it meant/ sounded like it meant in French. This was 20 odd years ago tough when the name was slightly more unusual. We went back the next year and she went by her middle name.

This thread is so interesting.
I live in France and have two daughters. One of their names and both of their middle names have been mentioned as being classé.
Our main criteria were names that weren't overly used but not unusual and worked in English too.

I loved lots of what I thought were beautiful french names and my husband said I'd listed the names of his friends parents!

A classmate at my rather posh prep, years and years ago, was a Fleur

Was the school in Dorset, MissSue?

I walked past a Berenice yesterday - there’s a branch on South Moulton St and thought then it was a funny name and like a shop being called Maureen.

I always thought if I had a child and wanted to go French I would call my daughter Mireille. Where does that rank? You can be honest as I am far too decrepit to have any more children so this is in my fantasy world where I know bobo people but secretly sneer at them from my higher social rank so need to get this right.

Saddy - I wonder if they heard "papi", which is "grandad"?

Or poupée which is doll/puppet/dummy

The thread is absolutely fascinating!

I have a Zephyr, and an Arthur, in my extended family and their friends are called-
Anatole
Jade
Pierre
Marice

Are they de or classe

Gauche is Suzanne trendy-retro now? That surprises me. I've not come across a single Suzanne young or old.

Backing I love Mireille too!

I know quite a few English Fleurs..

Mireille is at least 70. There are Marie/Sophie/Charlotte etc about of all ages, Hélène is funny because there are teenage ones (and Suzanne!) because it is retro-chic and then ones in their late 50s upwards. I know quite a lot of teenage boys called Emile, Camille, Félix, Armand, Louis, Jean, etc all quite 19th Century. Many many many girls called Léa.

One of my good friends is a Pascale...I like that. How is that regarded now?

I know 2 Suzannes, they are19 and 2, quite a few Agathes, Juliette and Justine are popular too.
There aren't yet any or many little Nathalie Catherine Isabelle Véronique Sylvie Valérie etc who are all now in their 50s. Definitely no Jacqueline, France, Yvonne etc who are all in their 70s or older.
Possibly it is time for a revival of Berthe, Huguette etc but I hope not.

Madam Its funny what you say about Isabelle being dated when the English equivalent has been so popular for such a long time now..!

Agnes? How is that regarded?

I ask because I know many French people in London and French friends of my parents/grandparents but I've never lived there.

Pascale is in her late 50s and still pissed off because her parents wanted a boy. She has a sister called Stéphane and another called Dominique who are in the same boat...

Agnès is one of those names like Maud that is quite uncommon and all ages have it, now many parents like a variant and use Inès for example.

Pascale - late forties, middle class.

Suzanne is quite trendy among the artsy set. It's the name of some actress's daughter, elsa zylberstein (?sp) or sandrine kiberlain I think, and catheine frot's as well.

Mireille Mathieu and the worst haircut in the world

Anatone and Pierre posh, Jade naff. Not come across Marice, is it spelled right?

What about Mathilde?

Delphine? always loved it as it reninda me of dolphins.

I find it confusing that Laurence in France is a girl ( is that always the case?). All the French Laurences I've met have been female and the men are Laurent. Nearly got me into a pickle at work though thinking I was communicating by email with a man and it turned out to be a woman!

Such an interesting thread. I wonder how Elodie is perceived in France? I know quite a few little Elodies. Also Luc. I know a few of them too.

My French friends are all called things like Pierre and Anne-Jeanne and Marie-Helene and Celine and Olivier. None are posh! Oh, also one Mederic which I think is a brilliant name. How is that perceived in France?

Interesting to read people saying the French don't shorten names - t must be many different french worlds out there, because that's a mile away from my experience - of my 13 (french) cousins, well over half shorten their names, as do most of my aunts!

I wanted to call DD Mireille as I have French roots, but DH vetoed it as our surname is VERY English and he thought it would sound ridiculous. I also love the name Marie-Agnes which was the name of my pen pal growing up.

What a fascinating thread. How is "Hugo" pronounced in French? Is it as my 20-years-since-I-did-French-A-level thinks it would be?
Even longer ago, my French exchange friend had a cousin called Emmanuel shorted to "Manu". I loved it and always had it in the back of my mind for DC. DH just looked at me as though I'd lost the plot when I suggested it (we have no connection with France other than going there on holiday every few years). I don't think he even bothered vetoing it out loud.