Girls name shortlist

[Weredone]

We have a boys name we both really love but we’re really struggling to find a girls name that we like as much as DD1’s name. It doesn’t help that I’m a teacher and so I have lots of associations with most names!

Surname is two syllables and very English sounding.

Lily
Maisie
Lara
Elise
Emily
Imogen
Penny (Penelope)
Amelia
Charlotte (Lottie)
Emilia
Lucia
Isra

Lily - Very popular. Loads of them in my kids' school / nursery.

Maisie - Also quite popular

Lara - Lovely

Elise - Nice but I know one who is fed up of correcting people who mis-read her name as Elsie (which is also nice but a pain to keep correcting).

Emily - OK. Classic

Imogen - Lovely

Penny (Penelope) - OK

Amelia - Another very popular one

Charlotte (Lottie) - Quite popular recently (?royal influence)

Emilia - prefer Emily

Lucia - prefer Lucy

Isra - Not keen

Lily - I like, but very popular.

Maisie - Pretty.

Lara - Not over struck on this, but love Clara, Cara and Zara.

Elise - I have to look really carefully to see which way round the i and s are. At a glance I read it as Elsie. I do like Elise though.

Emily - Timeless classic. I don't know many little ones.

Imogen - It's OK.

Penny (Penelope) - I like Penelope, but prefer Nellie.

Amelia - This was always on my shortlist. Love nn Millie too.

Charlotte (Lottie) - As with Emily. I really like Lottie.

Emilia - Pretty. Seems less popular than Amelia.

Lucia - I have heard it pronounced 4 different ways. Two I like. The other two not to my taste.

Isra - Not sure if this was a typo for Isla?

Lily - ok
Maisie - a mouse
Lara - ok, prefer Laura, Lauren, Clara
Elise - meh
Emily - like
Imogen - like
Penny (Penelope) - nope
Amelia - like
Charlotte (Lottie) - nope
Emilia - nope
Lucia - just looks like a boys name
Isra - looks like a boys name: shortened Israel.

Lily - yes
Maisie - yes
Lara - no
Elise - no
Emily - yes
Imogen - yes
Penny (Penelope) - no
Amelia - yes
Charlotte (Lottie) - yes
Emilia - yes
Lucia - no
Isra - no

Isra is my favourite of those. Although I prefer Asra.

Lily and Emily are my favourites

They are all nice, but all super popular other than Imogen, Elise and Penelope, which are just quite popular, and Lucia which is more unusual.

If you are going for the traditional UK pronunciation of Lucia (LOO-CHEE-uh) as apposed to the US LOO-SHA, I’d go for that, otherwise Imogen. Penelope I like but always think Penny is wet, Elise I think sounds much better in French. If you don’t want the pronunciation question with Lucia there is always Lucinda.

I'd go for Penelope or Lucia.

Really like Lara. Not common but not unheard of.

I'd choose Imogen from your list. Some of the others are very popular and others I'm not keen on.

You've got several very similar names in your list, Elise Emily Amelia Emilia... Why not narrow them down to just one favourite.

Also have a look again at Maisey & Isra which don't seem to have the same vibe as your other names.
That might make your choice less difficult.

I like all of your picks apart from Isra (typo for Isla?, which is very trendy anyway), Maisie (too cutesy nickname for me) and Penny/Penelope (personal taste - I'm not keen on nn's as given names and dislike the "pee" sound in Penelope). All the others are nice, if mostly popular choices - although lovely names tend to be popular for a reason! Charlotte, Emily, Lily etc are classics.

My favourite would definitely be Lara - beautiful sound and despite the current popularity of the other short "L" names (Lyra, Lila, Layla etc), Lara transcends this for me thanks to it's romantic/poetic image (or kick ass computer game heroine vibe, take your pick). I also like that it mainly hovers just under the top 100 - so is popular/well known but not too overused.

Second choice would be lovely Shakespearean Imogen - while it is fairly well used, it has such an elegant, quintessentially "British" vibe, as well as some cute nn's if she wants.

My favourites are Lara, Lucia and Isra. Runners up are Elise, Imogen and Penelope.

I find the other names a bit too popular and would personally go with something slightly more unusual.

I like Imogen, Lily and Emily best

Ps. Great list!

Nice list not all my own cup of tea but like Penelope best. Can’t go wrong with any really though apart from Isra as might have pronounciation issues/ get confused with Isla. Same with Lucia actually.

Lily - ok but overused
Maisie - ok but a bit twee
Lara - ok
Elise - not keen
Emily - ok
Imogen - ok, not keen on Immy
Penny (Penelope) - ok but a bit dull
Amelia - don't like
Charlotte (Lottie) - ol
Emilia too similar to Amelia
Lucia - Loosha, Lucy-a ot Lootch-ee-a?
Isra - not familiar with it

There's a lot of v popular names there, as you'll know as a teacher.

I really wanted Imogen for one of ours but was surprised it was originally Innogen in Shakespeare!

LOVE Lara, Lottie and Lucia! Such a lovely list OP I used to love Emilia too but it seems to me that it's getting a bit overdone now

Thank you so much- this has really helped!

I vote Penelope or Imogen.