Is Molly too similar to Mary?

[mrsmamaleone]

The long and skinny of it, I'm expecting my second daughter and I'm in love, like serious love, with the name Molly. However, my first girl is called Mary Margaret. I wasn't expecting (no pun intended) to ever have a second child because of some health issues but here we are, and we're delighted. Two was what wished, one was what we were pleased with. I had always wanted to name my daughters Mary and Margaret but when it took four years of trying to even conceive our first we went ahead and used both names. So now I've found myself at a loss as for what to call this little lady. We almost never call Mary by her full name, normally only when she's being naughty or we're being silly with her.

So, is Molly too similar to Mary?

I believe Molly is a diminutive of Mary, so yes they're the same name

Molly is the common shortening of Mary. It can also be a shortening of Margaret.

So I would say you can't really use it because it's literally the same name as your first daughter - which is probably why you like it.

Your second daughter may feel confused as to why she wasn't given an identity of her own but rather a nickname version of her sister.

Could you not start using Molly as a nn for your first daughter?

Sorry OP but I really think you'll have to go back to the drawing board!

Congrats though!

As PP has said Molly is a diminutive of Mary. But if that doesn’t bother you then go for it.

Maybe Margot? That’s a diminutive if Margaret and you say you don’t use your DD’s full name often. Or Daisy or Pearl?

@diddlediddle you're right, so we won't. However, I was also always in love with Mary so she's going to stay Mary. We'll figure something out. We've got kind of a family theme going on; my husband is Richard, I'm Eleanor, we have Mary, so we're looking for a lovely medieval sounding name to go with, like Jane or Katherine or Isabel. We have a list, I'm sure we'll have luck.

Lovely taste in names! I'm sure you'll pick something just perfect for your miracle arrival

We've decided to go with our second favorite combination, Jane Alice. She'll be joining her sister in about two to three weeks.

Jane Alice is lovely. Molly and Mary would be like having Henry and Harry or John and Jack.

Jane Alice is lovely, although I actually think Molly and Mary is fine, simply because Molly has not been used as a diminutive of Mary for a really long time. I don't think it's at all the same as, say, Kate and Katherine or Rebecca and Becky.

Do you like Elizabeth? It's my favourite! And lots of diminutives to choose from.

If you're into the medieval names you might also consider Matilda given that you also seem to He an affinity with 'M' names?

And, for what it's worth, I also think you could use Molly with Mary for the same reasons as PP

I have two friends who are sisters and their names are Julie and Shirley which makes for very confusing name calling when they are together i.e. Shulie and Jirley and other variations so yeah definitely keep away from similar names

I think Molly and Mary sound quite different. I didn't know Molly was short for Mary so it wouldn't seem odd at all to me. Looks like I'm in the minority though.

It's quite refreshing that your DD's names are so ..... simple. Nice though.

Mary and Jane.

Love Jane Alice and all your ideas actually

Mary and Jane is beautiful, classy, timeless

What about Maisie instead OP?

Mary Jane makes me think of shoes or marijuana. (Sorry)

I love Jane Alice!

They are basically the same name but I think you could use it.

Molly is a beautiful name as is Mary. Would you consider picking an name like Maire, Mairead, Maeve, Marageret and using Molly as a nickname

A friend of mine was always known as Molly, her real name was Maureen. We have several Marys in our family and none have ever been known as Molly. It's a standalone name now, if you love it, go for it.

I dont think they're too similar!

However I also think that you can still call your daughter Margaret if you want to, my DP's first name is the same as his oldest brother's middle name (hes the youngest of 5 siblings)

Or Martha?

My mum has two grandsons with similar names, were always calling them by each other's names, even after 20 years. I'd pick something different.

Congratulations by the way.

Mary and Jane- I really love the names! I think Molly is nowhere near as elegant as Mary, and much prefer Jane.