Martha or Esther...

[Thehundredthnamechange]

As a sibling for Tabitha?

What goes best?

Esther. (Lovely name.)

Martha would be too matchy-matchy.

Esther. Tess is a nice nn. I always find Martha a little on the frumpy side.

How about Lois?

@NellietheNumpty

How about Lois?

It's nice, but we want another biblical name

I like them both. Depending on whether or not you want both daughters to have a th sound in their names, I suppose, but I think Tabitha and Esther sounds better than Tabitha and Martha

I can imagine a novel about three puritan sisters called Martha, Esther and Tabitha.

Tabitha would be the wild one who'd be cast out of the settlement by the elders, Martha would be the pious one, and Esther would appear pious but plot twist: end up being part of a secret sapphic thruple with Dorcas and Abigail.

I like the Tess suggestion by pp. So I vote Esther.

Esther

I like both, but Esther slightly has the edge for me. I think Tabitha and Martha both ending in the "tha" sound makes them a little sing-songy together. Martha is still lovely, though.

Lois is a biblical name, by the way.

Esther. Martha is too much "tha".

Martha.
I'm not a fan of Esther (somehow sounds a bit soppy to me) though I love Hester.

I can’t comment on Martha, but I have an Esther. The name is generally liked on MN. In real life people seem to dislike it. Nobody has ever been rude about the name to my face, but when I mention the name there’s a split second pause, and then comments including words like ‘unusual’

I still love the name, and more importantly, DD (now 21) likes it as well. We

I think Esther by a hairline

I like both and both are lovely with Tabitha

I slightly prefer Esther as I love the NN option Essie

Martha feels clumpy. I have known 2 Esthers, both lovely, so biased for Esther.

Esther definitely

Esther by a mile.

Martha is beautiful, classy and wholesome

Esther, not so much (I really don’t like the name!)

Martha. I think Esther is a bit harsh

Esther. Martha is a bit matchy and I had a relative named Esther who was strong, wise and kind.

Lois is a biblical name. Both names are clumpy.

There are so many biblical names...

Esther

I like Susannah too.

I love Esther. If you like Lois though it's also Biblical - 2 Timothy 1:5. She was a woman of faith although not as well-known as Esther and Martha

Esther.

Martha is a bit frumpy.

Considering I read the Bible daily, I'm embarrassed not to know that Lois is a biblical name! Its nice, but I prefer Martha and Esther

I have an 8yr old Esther so I'd vote Esther although I also like Martha. Essie or Bess is a good nickname although she goes by her full name at school. The only annoying thing she has come across is people spelling it Ester or Esta. It is quite popular in church circles (I know 4 under 13) but she is the only one in her large primary school. Another name we considered was Kezia/ Keziah.