Claudia vs Margaret?

[tickingclock2022]

Hello - first post! Our daughter is due any day now and we are finding names difficult, but feel it's between Margaret and Claudia, with the set middle name of Rose. All have family connections are we are not concerned about meanings. We think that both go with our son's name, are good with Claude as a nn as she gets older, and flitting around the various Margaret nn's. Any thoughts? Thank-you!

You're thinking "clodhopper".

Looking at the DarkGreener trend map Claudia appears to be slowly and steadily declining in popularity. However, it doesn't included the 2021 data, released earlier today, and there was a slight uplift - rank 521 and 78 babies in 2021 vs rank 609 and 63 babies in 2020. That doesn't seem like an extreme increase to me, just about 2019 which was 73.

That being said Claudia almost always gets a very positive reception here, and I feel like I see it pretty regularly, much more so than actual name usage. It could be that the MN demographic is a high user if the name, or it could be one of those names that is frequently in peoples top 5 but rarely is the name to be picked in the end.

Margaret for sure! Loads of nickname options. It's a strong name with peps. Love it.

Moody Margaret in Horrid Henry

Margaret would be absolutely at the bottom of my list, along with Bertha and Ermintrude. Claudia is lovely, and no-one is going to be asking what it means.

It might be partly that, it could partly be the way Glasgow folk say it with an emphasis on the CLAUD-ia

Claudia far nicer than Margaret.

The nicknames are nicer too - bearing in mind kids at school tend to shorten everything-

Claude vs Marge

Have you said Margaret out loud a couple of times an hour for a few days in a row?

I used to like it because it looks pretty on paper. But then I met one and had to say it several times per day and I found it so harsh. So my vote goes to Claudia.

Margaret Rose was the name of Queen Elizabeth's sister so whether that is good or bad depends on you but I think quite a few people will make the connection.

I also personally don't really like the nicknames for Margaret except for Daisy but with that being so common on its own it would feel weird to call a Margaret Daisy nowadays.

I love the nn Maggie but not a fan of the full name. I love Claudia, I know a really lovely one too.

I was given Margaret as a middle name because it had family who I didn’t even know connections, Absolutely hated it my entire life to a point I would refuse to ever use it and changed it by deedpole when I was 25. It’s an awful old lady’s name imo

Claudia is nice. Not keen on Margaret but like Maggie.

Love Claudia. Not keen at all on Margaret.

I love both but think Claudia is slightly lovelier.

We were never able to use it, but had the name Claudia Seraphina Mary planned for a second DD. Sadly I knew a very unpleasant Margaret so wouldn’t choose it myself - love Peggy and Daisy as diminutives though!

I have a Claudia. She’s 7 and I’ve never yet come across another her age or near her age. People are always commenting on what a lovely name it is. All her friends call her Claude. Maggie is nice, but I don’t like Margaret (Thatcher memories).

Claudia is lovely. Margaret is a classic but it feels very plain as names go.

There will be a revival of Margaret one day, but I don't think we're ready for that now. Objectively it's a classic name with lots of nicknames, similar to Elizabeth (as with the Queen and her sister). Has a nice sound. But somehow I think of Margaret as an older woman's name and Elizabeth seems more timeless. Not logical I know.

Plus Princess Margaret and Margaret Thatcher were both unpleasant women IMO.

Claudia Rose would be lovely.

So difficult OP! You’ve chosen 2 lovely names in their own right. My mum is in her 70s and her middle name is Margaret and she’s always disliked it BUT to echo PP it’s coming back into its own - think Margo(t)etc. Most classic older names have been v popular of late and now there is time for the more niche names to come to the fore!
I loved Mabel when DD now 14 was born (because of a family member too) but it was too out there then. Now no one would bat an eyelid!
Love Claudia too - timeless!
Sorry no help 😀

Prefer Claudia

Claudia

Much as I like the austerity of Margaret I’d rather be called Claudia, it’s very elegant.

I know Rose has history as a name for you, but it’s very overused (endless endless Isabella Roses and Sophia Roses) so to reduce that a bit I’d go for Claudia Margaret Rose

Totally agree!! We had a couple lined up, I had a major preference for one. Then they were born and I just couldn’t see it! Went with the less preferred one, but it really suited them completely. Can’t imagine they could be called anything else now.

I like Margaret a lot. Claudia is nice, but more open to different pronunciations, and it depends which one you’d prefer, or if you think she won’t mind how her name is pronounced.

I have a Claudia and the name has consistently been ranked really low. We've never met another. I'm convinced it's because people can't get over the meaning and so don't use it. Otherwise I can't see why it wouldn't be on par with other -ia ending names in terms of popularity.

What about Claudia Margaret Rose (use them all!) Claudia is nicer as a first name 😀

I know one Claudine and one Claudia. Claudine pronounces her name as 'Claw' to rhyme with Claw.... and Claudia pronounces her name as 'Cloud ee a'. I'm not a fan of 'Cloud ee a' tbh. It looks pretty on paper but harsh when said aloud.