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Early baby name help

25 replies

MancUnicorn · 09/12/2017 03:47

Hey all, so I’m nearly 19 weeks pregnant with my first baby, and already we’ve been looking at some names here and there. There are a lot to narrow down and I expect more names to pop into my head after I find the gender of the baby. I just wanted some opinions on these few names. Myself and my mother both have uncommon, but easily recognisable, names and part of me would like to carry that on. However, I have found myself drawn to these names and would like opinions on them in general and also thoughts about them being common. I’m from the Lancashire/Manchester but I live in Scotland.

Aurora
Reinette
Pearl
Jennifer
Tamsin
Olwen
Elisabeth/Elizabeth
Violet
Dawn
Anastasia

Ruaraidh
Rory
Malachi
Atlas
Elias
Bennett
Sam
Charlie

Any other name suggestions welcome. Will probably ask for more help after finding gender but just want general opinions for now thanks!

OP posts:
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rowtheboats · 09/12/2017 04:26

Congratulations! Here’s my thoughts on your names :)

Aurora- okay
Reinette- sounds a bit made up/tacky
Pearl- v tacky
Jennifer- bit old (80s?)
Tamsin- tacky/Essex
Olwen- never heard of before
Elisabeth/Elizabeth- boring
Violet- popular but reminds me of ‘Violet’
Dawn- very plain Jane, don’t like it
Anastasia- would it be Ana for short?

Ruaraidh- how do you pronounce?

Rory- nice
Malachi- loved this name for years but probably with a y
Atlas- bit odd
Elias- another good one
Bennett- a surname?! Or just ‘gordon bennett’
Sam- nice but much more common than your other options?
Charlie- again common but nice!

rowtheboats · 09/12/2017 04:27

Violet reminds me of Violent...not Violet haha

BikeRunSki · 09/12/2017 04:31

Sam, Charlie and Violet are not at all unusual! Of your lists, I like Tamsin and Olwen, and Ruaraidh and Bennet.

NotAgainYoda · 09/12/2017 04:53

Congratulations!

Aurora - one of those that sounds like a good idea but is a bit Disney Princess
Reinette - hmm
Pearl - really like this
Jennifer - quite nice
Tamsin - For some reason I don't like this. A bt 'posh"
Olwen - not a very attractive name
Elizabeth - not boring! Great range of nicknames too - Elle, Beth, Eliza, Betty, etc
Violet - like this
Dawn - it has nice connotations but it also has middle-aged lady connotations - hasn't quite been reborn yet
Anastasia - similar to Aurora

I'd go for Rory rather that Ruaraidh, since you pronounce them both the same (!). It's also a bugger to spell.
Malachi - love this
Atlas - see Aurora and Anastasia
Elias - good name
Bennett - it's a surname (sorry I don't like these)
Sam - Nice. Classic
Charlie - nice. Has been pretty popular for years

You have very eclectic tastes!

Suggestions

Christina
Julia
Iris

Andrew - Drew
Asa
Patrick

NotAgainYoda · 09/12/2017 04:56

More unusual/less classic

Levi
Ezra
Raphael

Anita
Nathalia
Genevieve - nicer than Jennifer IMO

turtletum · 09/12/2017 05:08

Aurora - lovely
Reinette - sounds clunky
Pearl - granny chic
Jennifer - nice but very 1980s
Tamsin - nice but also a bit 1980s?
Olwen - love this, sounds Celtic?
Elisabeth/Elizabeth - classic name
Violet - Pretty
Dawn - ok
Anastasia - love this name

Ruaraidh - tricky to spell
Rory - nice, not popular but not super rare eithrr
Malachi - lovely
Atlas - nice but a very strong name that might not suit
Elias - like this
Bennett - meh, will end up being Ben
Sam - very common
Charlie - also common

NotAgainYoda · 09/12/2017 05:18

SORRY

I may have assumed Ruairidh is pronounced the same as Rory - just checked and it seems they are a bit different. I still would not choose as it's tricky to spell.

earlgreyandgherkins · 09/12/2017 05:57

Really LOVE olwen & pearl & bennet :)

17caterpillars1mouse · 09/12/2017 09:00

Aurora - I know a few but I'm not particularly that keen. I do like that it can be shortened to Rory though

Reinette - dislike. It looks made up

Pearl - gorgeous name but i imagine it's a name where you'd definitely have to meet your baby first to see if it fits

Jennifer - recently met an 8 month old Jennifer and thought how nice it was to hear

Tamsin - lovely name. I like as a nn for Thomasina

Olwen - pretty but DH says no

Elisabeth/Elizabeth - prefer Elisabeth but she would have to constantly say Elizabeth with an S. That might get annoying

Violet - It seems to really be growing in popularity as we've come across quite a few baby Violet's. I prefer the similar Iris

Dawn - seems dated to me

Anastasia - overly thrill for my tastes

Ruaraidh - nobody will know how to spell of day it if not in Ireland

Rory - nice. We only know one little Rory

Malachi - not a fan

Atlas - it's ok. I imagine georgraphy lessons wouldn't be that fun at school

Elias - lovely name. On our list too. Love nn Eli

Bennett - I like Benjamin and Benedict but not Bennett

Sam - like as a nn for Samson or Samuel

Charlie - they seem to be everywhere here

AnyaMoondial · 09/12/2017 10:49

I love Rory. I like all your girl names apart from Reinette (but probably only because I've never heard it before) Smile

daisypond · 09/12/2017 11:12

I love Olwen - I know a very cool and beautiful 20-year-old Olwen.
And Rory for the boys - or the Gaelic spelling - either

MancUnicorn · 09/12/2017 12:47

rowtheboats Ruaraidh is pronounced Roo-ree, there's a few where I live in Scotland but I understand barely anyone will know how to pronounce it elsewhere. And I hadn't even thought of Gordon Bennett! Made me giggle
NotAgainYoda - I've spent years looking through name forums I guess this is why I'm struggling now it's my turn, my tastes change per day haha I really like Genevieve, Asa and Ezra from your lists

Thanks all! I'm glad I put this up here because my doubts on each name have been echoed. I will relay this to my partner-in-crime later!

OP posts:
Glumglowworm · 09/12/2017 13:09

I love Aurora and Ruaraidh (although not together) But if you move back home people will struggle to pronounce Ruaraidh.

WaitroseCoffeeCostaCup · 09/12/2017 13:34

Atlas ❤️

manicinsomniac · 09/12/2017 13:41

Aurora - Quite like it but maybe a bit 'fancy' for every day, idk

Reinette - never heard this. Don't think I like it.

Pearl - really not keen on this. It's still 'old lady' to me, even though I know it's become reasonably well used for babies again.

Jennifer - like it but don't like Jenny and suspect it would be inevitable

Tamsin - quite like it

Olwen - not keen at all. Don't think it has a pleasant sound.

Elisabeth/Elizabeth - it's ok. Very classic. Lots of nn choices.

Violet - quite like it. Not really my taste

Dawn - don't like this at all. Seems very dated.

Anastasia - like it. Knew one who went by 'Stasi (star-zee) which I think is very pretty. Also quite fancy but I like it.

Ruaraidh - quite like it.

Rory - this is the same name, isn't it? also quite like it.

Malachi - really like this.

Atlas - very 'out there' but I think I quite like it.

Elias - like it but prefer both Ellis and Elliot

Bennett - very surname (not sure I've ever seen it as a first name)

Sam - it's ok - so overused that it's put me off it though

Charlie - same as Sam really.

You seem to have a very varied taste so it's quite hard to think of other suggestions. But, how about:

Similar to Aurora, Reinette and Anastasia:

Aurelia, Arianne, Ariadne, Antoinette, Bernadette, Cassandra, Coralie, Clarissa, Camille, Celine, Clarice, Dominique, Etienne, Elianne, Eleanora, Evangeline, Fabienne, Francesca, Georgette, Georgiana, Gabriella, Giovanna, Genevieve, Hermione, Henrietta, Isabella, Isadora, Juliette, Juliana, Jacqueline, Josephine, Katerina, Lucille, Lorelai, Larissa, Miranda, Mathilde, Marianne, Nathalie, Nadine, Ophelia, Octavia, Paloma, Persephone, Renee, Rhianne, Sophia, Sylvia, Therese, Tabitha, Vivienne, Veronique, Victoria, Xanthe, Yvette

Similar to Pearl, Olwen and Violet:
Anne, Annie, Agatha, Agnes, Blythe, Bonnie, Bessie, Betty, Betsy, Beryl, Connie, Dilys, Dora, Elsie, Esme, Edith, Ida, Ines, Joy, Joyce, Kay, Lily, May, Maggie, Martha, Maisie, Marie, Maria, Nancy, Nellie, Olive, Peggy, Polly, Queenie, Ruby, Rose, Sally, Una, Vera

Similar to Jennifer and Dawn:
Annette, Belinda, Barbara, Claire, Christine, Caroline, Deborah, Denise, Donna, Emma, Fiona, Gayle, Gemma, Helen, Hannah, Jessica, Joanna, Judith, Justine, Kate, Kimberley, Linda, Louise, Laura, Melissa, Melanie, Michelle, Nicole, Nicola, Natasha, Pamela, Paula, Rebecca, Rachel, Ruth, Sarah, Samantha, Stephanie, Tiffany, Tara, Valerie, Wendy, Zoe

Similar to Elizabeth:
Abigail, Alice, Annabel, Charlotte, Delilah, Eleanor, Eve, Florence, Frances, Grace, Harriet, Imogen, Isabel, Julia, Katherine, Lydia, Madeleine, Olivia, Phoebe, Rosanna, Rebecca, Sophie, Victoria, Zara

Similar to Ruaridh/Rory and Malachi:
Angus, Callum, Conor, Declan, Dominic, Fergus, Hamish, Hector, Kyle, Lachlan, Patrick, Sean, Seamus

Similar to Sam and Charlie:
Alfie, Archie, Ben, Ethan, Isaac, Jack, James, Josh, Liam, Nathan, Oliver, Oscar, Tom, Zach

Similar to Atlas:
Phoenix, River, Storm, Blue, Talon, Falcon, Echo, Forest, Raven, Victory, Rebel

Similar to Bennett:
Addison, Archer, Bailey, Blake, Brogan, Carter, Cole, Fitch, Gray, Hunter, Harris, Harrison, Jackson, Jefferson, Logan, Mason, Morgan, Owen, Parker, Porter, Preston, Spencer, Taylor

Similar to Elias:
Arlo, Asher, Brynn, Garner, Micah, Elijah, Noah, Flynn, Jolyon, Jesse, Reuben, Jeremiah, Ellis, Elliot, Milo, Nico, Rafi

manicinsomniac · 09/12/2017 13:43

Sorry, missed the explanation re Ruaridh/Rory

Sugarpiehoneyeye · 09/12/2017 15:17

Jennifer and Rory.

NotAgainYoda · 09/12/2017 16:42

manic

Stasi? Like the really awful East Germany Secret Police? That's a bit unfortunate Grin

C0untDucku1a · 09/12/2017 16:45

I like Jennifer and Malachi.

manicinsomniac · 09/12/2017 19:02

Yoda - it is spelt that same, yes! But it was said like 'star-zee' rather than 'stass-ee' I hadn't made the connection, I have to say!

starkid · 09/12/2017 20:15

Congrats! I like:
Aurora
Jennifer
Tamsin
Elizabeth
Anastasia

Rory
Elias
Sam

CakeRattleandRoll · 10/12/2017 14:29

Favourite girls:
Aurora
Jennifer
Tamsin
Olwen
Anastasia

Favourite boys:
Rory
Elias
Bennett

userabcname · 10/12/2017 18:59

My favourites are Anastasia and Atlas from your lists. Congratulations!

boredofmyoldname · 10/12/2017 19:14

I'm in Scotland too and I'd say Charles, Ruaraidh and Elizabeth are the most common here but none overly so.

My favourites are Jennifer and Ruaraidh, that was going to be DC2's name if she was a he although we spelt it Ruairi as it was a bit easier for dyslexic DH to remember :o

I like Aurora, Olwen, Violet, Dawn, Malachi (although it doesn't sound great with my Glasgow accent as I struggle to seperate the second A, sounds more like Malky than Ma-la-key/eye) Sam and Rory.

mum2be2boys · 12/12/2017 11:16

Some lovely names! My favourites are

Jennifer
Elizabeth
Anastasia

Rory
Sam
Charlie

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