Can you throw any more options into the mix?

[abbaroony]

My DH and I are struggling to come up with a shortlist of 2/3 names for each sex... I prefer less common names and like if there are nickname options and DH likes classic names and popularity doesn't bother him.

Annie and James will be the middle names respectively.

So far the lists are:

Ottilie
Nora (DH doesn't like)
Imogen (too popular for me)
Goldie (DH doesn't like)
Lia / Leia
Martha nn Marty
Aida
Winnifred nn Winnie / Freddie

Albert nn Bertie / Bert
Cassius (DH doesn't like)
James (DH's absolute favourite, I find it SO boring)
George (too popular for me)
Ernie (DH doesn't like)

Also, if anyone has any suggestions for girl names that could be shortened to Marty it would be great to have an alternative to Martha to throw into the mix.

Boy:

Hugo
Cassian
Felix
Louis
Herbert nn Herbie
Frank nn Frankie
Austin
Joseph nn Joey
Levi

Girl:

Addison nn Addi
Peggy
Poppy
Nuala
Margot
Maggie
Madison

Love Winnie and Martha but please oh please don't nn to Marty! Martine or Martina would be other names you could shorten to Marty.

All I can think of is Marty McFly, I can’t imagine why you would want this as a nickname for your girl.

Martina
Margot
Margaret
Mackenzie
Millicent

Harriet
Henrietta
Adelaide
Maisie
Marnie
Josie
Tara
Tamara
Cassandra nn Sandy, Cassie

Emmett
Seth
Jude
Casper
Elliot
Ellis
Willoughby
Josiah
Ernest nn Erni
Neo
Jason

Every second newborn girl is called Ottilie currently.

Helena
Camilla
Callista
Celeste
Romilly
Ophelia
Delphine

Thanks everyone! Of the names suggested so far I like:

Poppy (but too popular)
Marnie (I really like but DH doesn't)

Felix (will people say that it's a cats name though!?)
Herbie

Marty McFly is exactly the reason we want Marty as a nickname 😂 sorry if you don't like it, but we do!

Dahlia
Lyra
Frances (Frankie)

Max
Finn
Joseph

If you like Marnie how about Marina?

@Porridgeislife it's funny isn't it, I know that it can feel like that with some names, but as it's not even in the top 50 I don't think that can really be the case.

From your list I like Ophelia and I like Delphi rather than Delphine. Do you have any nice nicknames for Ophelia?

Matilda could be Marty at a push I guess.

Other names
Abigail
Esther
Eva/Ava

Boys
Arthur
Isaiah
Elijah

Edith (nn Edie)
Violet
Juliet
Rosa
Mabel

Rupert
Billy
Edward/Edmund/Edwin/Eddie/Woody
Stanley

I know four newborn Ottilies and I’m not even in London, so popularity is definitely creeping up.

I have absolutely no idea what you’d shorten Ophelia to, we didn’t consider nicknames unless they were obvious ones we hated (love Victoria, loathe Vicky).

Myrtle
Ginny
Aurelia

Monty
Jasper
Rupert

Ophelia could be Fifi? It's a bit cutesey but I imagine it's what I'd end up calling a daughter of that name.

Agree I know a lot of Ottilies! Home Counties.

Boys
Timothy
Isaac
Zachary
Elliott
William
Joel
Joseph
Stanley
Nicholas

girls
Mabel
Bella
Felicity
Penelope
Caroline
Nicole
Juliet

Ottilie is very trendy and while it may not be in the top 50 now, it will be soon I’m sure. If you’re concerned about popularity I’d scratch that off. Also Aida and Lia as they’ll blend in with all the other short girls names ending in ‘a’ Isla, Ava, Luna, Mia etc and so sound overdone to me.

Bonnie?

How about

eva
eloise
margot (?marty)
olive
heidi
zelda
Meredith
cassandra
iris
helena
daphne
dorothy
stella

jasper
henry
felix
sebastian
spencer
wilfred
vincent
leopold
frederick
sidney
otto

This. Sorry. (Great films, though).

None of your suggestions, except James and George which I see you don't like and Martha but not! Marty, appeal much to me. Ottilie would be a mistake unless you were planning to pronounce it the proper way, as Ottiliuh with the stress on the middle 'i'. A lot of your ideas sound a bit like names that lots of people think are original and uncommon (again, sorry) - like Cassius, Albert, and Ottilie's in that category too.

Suggestions:

Gloria
Ada (Aida is a diva or a cruise ship)
Barbara (still ahead of the hipster curve, and shortenings galore)
Lucy
Rosa
Damaris
Sarah, with Sally as a diminutive?
Nora has a Scandi vibe for me so something like Linnea or Astrid?
(I might do Anne rather than Annie as a middle name, would flow better with most names. But you may have to think again if you go for Sally... or Barbara, for that matter)

Victor (massively underrated IMO)
Francis
Edmund (Ed, obviously)
David (overdue a revival)
Florian
Callum

Caroline from a PP's list is a great call. Nice retro feel. Could be shortened to Lina or Caro.

Ottilie was popular names in Telegraph birth announcements
https://www.britishbabynames.com/blog/2022/12/most-popular-names-in-the-telegraph-2022.html

Names in Telegraph quickly become mainstream. Like Archie was top in Telegraph in 2000s.

That said, other suggestions
Martina
Romilly
Marina
Luciana
Cecily
Frederica
Callista
Octavia
Lenora
Georgette
Desdemona
Desideria
Maryelle
Dorothea
Amoret
Bridget
Titania
Tatyana - nn Tanya
Kerensa
Laetitia
Marguerite
Melody

if you want nn Marty what about some M and T names like Marina Tatyana nn Marty or Maryelle Laetitia nn Marty?

Just my first thoughts

Nora= Nora Batty from Last of the Summer Wine
Goldie =Blue Peter dog from 1980s
Leia= Star Wars
Marty = Back to the Future
Albert = Prince Albert piercing
Ernie= Song by Benny Hill/Premium Bond computer.

Marguerite works well with Marty as a shortening. I think all the other names suggested, except Martina, are a bit of a reach tbh.

Lia could be a nickname for Ophelia? Love Martha but not keen on the nickname!

Toby/Tobias
Alfred (Alfie, Fred/Freddie)
Alexander
Emil

Theodora