Don't love any names- helppp!

[glowingtwig]

Hello!

Baby 2 is due in a few months. We don't know the sex so have been trying to think of boy and girl names. DH is not helpful and says 'we went through the baby name book two years ago with our DD and my thoughts haven't changed'.

So far we have:

Rufus

Tess
Cora

For a boy I like but he doesn't:

Barnaby/Barney
Joss
Laurie

For a girl he likes but I don't:

Rosamund
Audra

Big sister is Anna.
Would love your thoughts and suggestions of names with a similar vibe to these!

Thank you

I'm anti Rufus - Rufus goes rruff like a dog so in my head is a fantastic dogs name sorry.

I prefer Cora to Tess,

Barney OK
Joss - sorry what, loss, Jess, sorry Op its another no.
Laurie that's OK.

Rosamund is a bit of a mouthful to go with Anna.
Audra - I think is too close to Anna.

Other suggestions,
Girls names
Audrey - not heard it used for a baby in years.
Cora
Denise
Rose / Daisy
Sarah

Boys names
Aubrey
David
James
Ruben

Anna is so classic and well used internationally that I'd personally be looking for something similar - I'm assuming you've googled all the "classic" baby name lists on name websites?

Something like James, Edward, William, Henry, Charles, Thomas, Jacob, Benjamin, John, David, Robert, Alexander, Samuel, Michael, Matthew, Daniel, Joseph, Adam, Luke etc for boys.

Or Isabel, Elizabeth, Eleanor, Alice, Maria, Sarah/Sara, Emily, Alexandra, C/Katherine, Charlotte, Caroline, Laura, Julia, Eve, Rose, Lydia, Victoria, Rachel, Rebecca etc for girls.

I do actually really like Rufus, Tess and Cora as well as Barnaby, Laurie (if a nn for Laurence) and Rosamund but I wouldn't automatically associate their style with with Anna iykwim - although I suppose the first 3 have a similar short/simple feel to Anna. In which case maybe Owen, Evan, Hugh, Lucas, Lara, Nina, Rosa?

Love Rufus, Tess and Barnaby.

Boys:
Josiah
Wilbur
Rudy
Leo

Girls:
Rosa
Joy
Nina
Alma

I have a friend whose name is Theresa but has gone by Tessa for donkey's years - I imagine the same for Tess

I like Cora

I also have a friend whose name is Rosamund - she goes by Rosie - it suits her

I am not keen on Rufus ( well except of the Sewell variety ) but that may be a specific one I kew & have a friend with a son called Barnaby - it sounds a bit like a pet teddy bear name to me . & Joss is a nickname isn't it for Jocelyn . Maybe Jolyon . I like Laurie.

I would go with John and he can be Johnny - which I love - but not my baby - that said Anna and John would be classic names

Good luck OP I am sure you will find something lovely & these are just my musings , given you asked - I don't think you can go far wrong with any of the names on your list with the only exception two sisters called Anna and Audra sound a bit too similar.

I think Cora (or maybe Cara or Clara) and Tess are lovely names with Anna

So his preference is for short, unfussy, quite classic (Rufus, Cora, Tess, Anna) except when it comes to girls names which he’s a bit more flexible on (Rosamund, Audra)?

How about

Felix
Alexander (Alex)
Isaac
Jacob
Nathan
Noah
Ezra

Alice
Nina
Cara
Clara
Lois
Lily
Iris

Marcus

Martha

Girls
Nora
Grace
Bella
Freya

Boys
Julian
Kit
Theo
Hugo
Arlo
Edward
James

Anna is lovely. Perhaps go with another classic name like this? The rest seem a bit "trendy" and will likely go out of favour in a few years.

Edwin
Oscar
Silas
Jude
Hugo
Hubert
Sebastian
Angus
Fergus
Lazlo

Zoe
Leonora
Josephine
Clara
Rosabelle
Derryn
Kathryn
Rebecca
Emily

Rupert
Ross
Raphael
Teddy/Theodore
Laurence
Jake
Jude
Solomon
Samuel

Coralie
Melody
Elizabeth
Aurora
Elise
Natalie
Sophie
Nerissa
Alice
Alicia

Rufus, Tess, Cora, Joss, Laurie all great.

Rosa
Nell
Greta
Cleo
Flora

Louis
Henry
Felix
Ivo
Miles

I'd steer away from nicknames and (as a PP said) dogs' names. With a formal name the DC has more choice; I personally have three nicknames for my name, and I like that. How about:

Raphael
Rafferty
Joseph
Laurence
Bellamy

Barnaby is OK as long as you're not in Australia, where we have an obnoxious pollie by that name.

Rosalind
Georgina
Martha
Virginia
Glencora
Teresa nn Tess.

If I had an Anna I would go for names like Emily or James. Timeless names.

I like Cora, Tess and Rufus and think go fine with Anna. Other suggestions I can imagine with Anna or might interest you:

Ralph
Rupert
Rafe
Rudy
Linus
Thomas
Caius
Francis
Charles
Laurence
Silas
Miles
Magnus
Felix
Wilfred
Jesse
Otis
Percy

Nell
Iris
Nora
Clara
Rose
Rosa
Pearl
Thea
Eliza
Margot
Sadie
Lily
Olive
Polly

You only need one name for each possible sex and Rufus and Cora are lovely and both go with Anna. Unless you are not sure about these names you are sorted.

Rufus is gorgeous.
I like Barnaby too but I prefer Rufus.
Tess and Cora are lovely too.
All go beautifully with Anna.
I would just stick with one of them. I know it's more exciting to come up with whole new lists rather than give baby number 2 the first baby's "cast off" names but if they still work then I would just use them.
My dc2 has the name dc1 would have had if they'd been a boy.
My dc2 would have had my favourite name that dh wasn't sure about enough for dc1 (so dc1 has a compromise name) but then decided he loved in time for dc2.
But other names that feel similar to your names:
Alastair
Gus
Hector
Benedict
Felix
Jasper
Hugo
Clara
Constance
Meriel
Louisa
Rowena

Thanks so much for your replies and suggestions! There are some lovely ones. Fergus was our original boy name for DD.

Also like Jasper. Prefer Rosaline/d to Rosamund. Really like Kit but our last name starts with T so might be a big stuttery?

Good points made about Anna being so classic- I do want them to fit.

Lucy
Peter

Paul

Emma
Kate/Katie
Leah
Jennifer
Hayley

Patrick
Franklin
Fraser
Blake
Hugh

Miriam
Edith

Conrad
Robert

Actually Fergus would go lovely for a wee brother for Anna.

An other good one would be Flora for a girl.

I really would stick with a short classic name to go with Anna. It's classic solid and not pompous.

Rory, Francis, Leo, David, Patrick

Rosa, Sara, Laura, Mary, Clara

Anna and

Maria
Kitty
Maisie
Molly
Polly
Paige

Luke
Flynn
Curtis
William
Owen
Peter