Rank my (current) Girl’s List

[Edenember]

Eve
Esme
Eliza
Tilda
Rowena
Cordelia
Orpah
Iona
Eila / Isla
Imogen
Saoirse

If you can be bothered, feel free to give reasons, be as brutal as you like 😊

All beautiful names except Orpah and Saoirse
The first sounds harsh and I've no idea how to pronounce the second!!

Eliza
Esme
Rowena
Iona
Eve

Not so keen on the rest

Eve
Esme
Eliza
Imogen
Iona

• Like all the above pretty equally

Tilda - I’d use Matilda if I wanted this as a nn

Rowena
Cordelia

• just don’t like them.

Orpah - never heard of it, sounds like a spelling mistake.

Eila / Isla - not a fan and haven’t seen it spelled with an E before
Saoirse - only if you’re Irish

Eliza
Eve
Isla
Iona
Esme
Saoirse

Not keen on the rest.

I like Eve , Esme, Elizabeth, Iona, Isla. All lovely.
Love Imogen.
When I hear Tilda, I think of rice. But I do love Matilda.
Not keen on Rowen, Cordelia, Oprah.
Saoirse ( is it pronounced Sor-cha?)
I quite like it.

@Justkeeprollingalong most people would say Ser-sha but I’d say it more like Sair-sha. There’s some regional variation with that first vowel sound, Seer-sha, Sayer-sha.

Eliza, I like.

Eve - nice but too popular
Esme - ok but not keen
Eliza - nice but El names too popular
Tilda - boiled rice
Rowena - nice
Cordelia - nice
Orpah - too similar to Oprah
Iona - nice but 'I own a'
Eila / Isla - Isla overused. Eila too similar
Imogen - fine, not keen on Immy
Saoirse - too 'Little Women'

I remember reading that Oprah Winfrey was supposed to be called Orpah (OT name) but it was misspelt on her birth cert.

Eve - nice
Esme - nice
Eliza - nice
Tilda -nice
Rowena - okay
Cordelia - like it
Orpah - dislike
Iona - dislike
Eila / Isla - waaaay too many Islas about. I think it's this generation's 'Sandra' (no offence to all the lovely Sandras out there)
Imogen - nice
Saoirse - only if you're Irish

@ShoppingPrecinctPrincess yeah. I’m not read up on the biblical figure but I don’t think it’s a good association. I just love the sound and look of the name, but I think Oprah has turned things around and people would think it’s a misspelling of that rather than the other way round.

Tilda, Cordelia, Eliza
Love these

Esme sounds like a sneeze to me.

Imogen sounds like medication.

Orpah, I know it's a name but I bet you'd get Oprah a lot. Plus it's not a very nice sound.

@ILoveShula yes the ‘I own a’ thing puts me off a bit too, it’s fine with current surname but there is still room for jokes. I love that -ona suffix but none of the other names with it come close.

Yes Orpah is a perfectly innocuous OT character, but no-one has ever heard of her and everyone has heard of Oprah, so she will get called and written Oprah all the time.

The rest are pretty. I love Esme, especially as I am a fan of sewing bee and Esme is a great role model.

Isla feels very overused though, and I wouldn't use Saoirse, unless you live in Ireland, the constant pronouncing and spelling questions will drive her nuts

@Carouselfish thanks. Re Orpah, obviously I love the sound but concur re the Oprah thing.

@steppemum I hear you. I nearly didn’t put Isla on for that reason tbh, but I just can’t shake liking it regardless of popularity, I think of it as similar popularity to Esme and Eve but according to ONS it’s number 3, thats too popular isn’t it.

Like Eliza, Cordelia, Esme. Iona and Isla are really popular here (Scotland). Like Saiorse and think it's becoming more common and recognisable outside Ireland so that bodes well for spelling /pronunciation. Orpah - the Oprah thing would definitely get in the way - she'd be continually told her name was misspelled. Others - no opinion either way.

Eve - fine but so so popular especially when you add in all the names shortened to Evie
Esme- pronunciation minefield Esmee or Esmay
Eliza - pleasant enough
Tilda - prefer Matilda
Rowena - pronunciation again Rowenna (prefer this spelling) or Roweena
Cordelia - fine
Orpah- constantly will be mixed up with Oprah p
Iona - nice
Eila / Isla - prefer Isla but popular
Imogen - personally don’t like but it’s ok
Saoirse - if you have Irish heritage then yes

@Hoowhoowho the popularity of Eve variants is definitely something to consider as they all get lumped together. It’s been my longest-standing loved name. I would pronounce Esme the Scottish way, Esmie, but I don’t mind the other pronunciation so wouldn’t bother me when people inevitably used that. Rowena would be Roweena, but again I like Rowenna so people pronouncing it like that wouldn’t annoy me.

Eve - classic but now overused
Esme - pretty
Eliza - nice
Tilda - reminds me of rice. Sounds a bit incomplete
Rowena - not keen but I can’t put my finger in the reason why
Cordelia - love
Orpah - awful sorry
Iona - pretty
Eila / Isla - quite like Isla
Imogen - like this
Saoirse - I wouldn’t, will be such a pain for spelling and pronunciation

Thanks all! Spousal veto has left me with a fairly safe and inoffensive list. My taste is generally more clunky, fusty, strong sounding heritage names, he’s defs whittled down to the prettiest ones. I love Isolde but that’s gone, may be able to shoehorn in as a middle.

‘Too Little Women’ - 🤣🤣🤣🤣 What an odd comment.

I love Eliza and Esme.

Saoirse wouldn’t be my favourite Irish name but I don’t dislike it.

@Anoisagusaris, short for 'suddenly popular because of the Hollywood actor Soirse Ronan, who was recently in Little Women'.
Glad to have amused you.

@Edenember, I love Isolde. Also Ishmal I think I heard the other day.

@Anoisagusaris thanks. I love Eliza, I think it’s pretty but strong, but it would spoil it for me if it ever got shortened to Ellie, so that’s something to consider. No offence to any Ellie’s or mums of Ellie’s.