Name ideas

[YourBlueDuck]

Hi, I'm early in my pregnancy with our first baby and we're trying to come up with baby name ideas. I'm a teacher so it's extra hard, as lots of names remind me of kids I've taught!

Some girls names we like are Evelyn (but it's so popular at the moment!), Isla, Ophelia, Margot, Fleur, Imogen

Boys names we like Freddie, Raphael, Benedict, Arthur

I was thinking of getting a baby name book but lots seem to have lots of more modern names which aren't really our thing! Does anyone have any suggestions either of names or baby name books? My DH is English and I am English / part French so names of either culture are options.

Thank you!

They are all very "on trend" names which is totally fine if you love them and don't mind them being one of three Margots in their class. Maybe get a second hand baby name book from the 90s and see what you find?

That's a great idea thank you! The Margots haven't made it to secondary yet, I didn't realise that was on trend! Don't mind a few in the year of the same name but don't really want to use a super popular name, which is hard as the vintage style names I love are so popular right now 😂

@YourBlueDuck ahhh I've got a just turned 4yo and a just turned 2yo (as well as being a previous secondary teacher) so can confirm that there are a fair few moving through the system 😅

Check out the bible. There’s loads of gorgeous names in there.

I know loads of little Isla’s, Freddie’s and Arthur’s - they seem to be the most popular for little ones round us. Gorgeous names though! Imogen is stunning and not overused round here.

How about

Iris
Mabel
Clara
Elsie
Alice
Rosa
Eliza
Ada
Nell
Maisie

Or outside the top 100 UK names
Leonie
Miriam
Marcia
Tamsin
Marianna
Frida
Lorelei
Leonora
Jocelyn
Lorena

Boys

Max
Toby
Stanley
Frank
Harry
Felix
Hugo
Julian
Leon
Darius
Laurence
Samson
Callum
Evander
Dominic
Sebastian

Outside top 100 UK names

Silas
Jonas
Cyrus
Sean
Alistair
Fabian
Rufus
Magnus
Ivan
Rhys
Josiah
Julian
Douglas / Dougie
Tristan
Seth
Nicholas
Lewis
Aaron
Matthew
Jonah
Luke
Miles

clement
ambrose
rafe
nathaniel
gabriel
max
leopold
vincent

sofia
calliope
daphne
cordelia
estelle
giselle
matilda
ottilie
dorothea
eloise
coralie

Girls:
Francesca
Louise
Harriet
Beatrice
Genevieve
Madeline
Maddison
Jasmine
Anya

Boys:
Sebastian
Lawrence
Leon
Lucas
Dylan
Rowan
Oscar
Dorian

There is a good baby names book called Bring Back Beatrice. Lots of great names in there.

Do you like ..

Gabriella
Eloise
Charlotte
Madeleine
Louise
Amber
Stephanie

Louis
Mark
Victor
Raphael
Claude
Charles
Benjamin

I like all your girls names. Margot and Ophelia seem quite up and coming where I am, I know 3 or 4 babies with both of these names.
Fleur I would say is the least common.

Other ideas - Vivienne, Adeline, Emmeline, Beatrix, Odette

Freddie and Arthur are lovely but again popular, Raphael is cute - I like the nn Rafa or Rafi for it too. Not fussed on Benedict.

Other suggestions - Alban, Gabriel, Xavier, Roman

Look at your grandparents' sibling names.

My grandmother's siblings' names are currently popular. Families were bigger then, but of her 5 siblings' names;
1 is in the top 30 but it's a nn one and the full version is top 20.
1 is in the top 10
1 is in the top 70
1 gets quite a lot of mentions on here.
1 is a classic that is not unusual but never wildly popular.

DGM got a name that was popular for a short while only but it is on darkgreener.

Apart from Evelyn and Freddie, which are overused, I like your name ideas.

How about

Quentin
Felix

Clara
Eloise

I really like Imogen and Raphael from your list.

Other ideas - some popular, some less so but all with what I would call a vintage-y vibe and some quite French sounding:

Adeline, Anne, Alice, Aimee, Aurora, Avril, Agnes, Audrey, Bronte, Blythe, Belle, Beatrix, Coraline, Clara, Cassandra, Clarice, Cecilia, Cora, Claire, Daphne, Delilah, Diana, Eloise, Edith, Elora, Effie, Elspeth, Florence, Fearne, Giselle, Greta, Henrietta, Hazel, Hester, Inez, Ivy, Iris, Joanna, Judith, Josie, Kathleen, Lillian, Lucia, Lydia, Lottie, Marnie, Mabel, Maeve, Mary, Margaret, Martha, Maisie, Marianne, Natalia, Nicole, Nancy, Olive, Pearl, Patience, Phyllis, Patricia, Prunella, Rose, Ruby, Rita, Ruth, Sylvia, Susannah, Sadie, Stella, Tessa, Thalia, Victoria, Vanessa, Violet, Verity, Vivianne, Winnie, Yvette, Yvonne, Yolanda.

Albert, Arnold, Barney, Douglas, Elliot, Edmund, Edwin, Ellis, Florian, Franklin, Herbie, Hugh, Ivan, Jeremy, John, Jonathan, Jude, Kenneth, Leonard, Michael, Martin, Merl, Norman, Owen, Peter, Paul, Philip, Percy, Perry, Quentin, Rupert, Richard, Robert, Rafe, Ralph, Sidney, Solomon, Stanley, Seth, Timothy, Titus, Vincent, Victor, Wilfred, Walter

Aria
Daphne
Opal
Ivy
Rosa
Evangeline
Etta
Tabitha
Harriet
Vivienne
Nora
Lottie
Sophia
Emilia
Lara
Aurelia
Mila
Cecilia
Lola

Ralph
Otto
Otis
Nate
Kit
Flynn
Wilfred
Ellis
Sebastian
Louis
Zachary
Casper
Vincent

We have a Fleur - I still love it and we only know one other so not like everyone in the class.

I also love Evelyn - it is a family name but if I was going to use it I might consider a nickname that wasn’t Evie.

I’m name obsessed so have quite a lot of name books but my favourite one is “The Baby Name Wizard” by Laura Wattenberg. It’s very American - by which I mean that cultural differences will mean that you won’t agree with every name choice listed in lots of name style categories like Antique Charm,Classic, New Classic, Timeless, Short and sweet, Nickname-proof, French, Slavic, Nordic, Long Gone, 60’s Surfer, Porch Sitter, Macho Swagger etc etc 🤣 (there’s dozens and dozens) but there is a surprising cultural crossover.

Plus it’s very helpful in that like the “Nameberry” baby name website (also American) it also lists names that are similar in feel/style to your favourites - either as potential sibling names or for more choice.

I’ve struggled more to find a good British baby name book - but the “British Baby Names” website (sorry can’t do links on phone) sadly no longer updated, is really good. It doesn’t go in depth into every name, but for the ones it does it’s an absolute marvel and it also has lots of great name category lists too and fascinating historical data.

Looking at your current name choices: for example for Evelyn, the Wattenberg book suggests it’s under “Antique Charm” and “The -ens” name lists and suggests Vivian, Charlotte,Madeleine, Lillian, Claire and Violet and Oliver, Emmett, Henry, Jack, Owen and Samuel for other names of interest/sibling names. HTH!

I vote Benedict, I loved that by my husband didn't. I also loved Wilbur but that got vetoed as well haha

If popularity bothers you i would avoid:
Evelyn, Isla, Ophelia, Margot
Freddie, Arthur

There are soooo many around at preschool/primary ages

These are a bit less popular:
Fleur, Imogen
Raphael, Benedict

Darkgreener website can help with a name's popularity and if it's rising or falling.

Link for Darkgreener

Less popular alternatives..

Jocelyn
Ffion
Iona
Ida
Esther
Flora
Octavia
Marianne
Genevieve
Clio
Ianthe
Verity
Cecile (tho Cecilia is quite popular)

Fleur isn’t popular, but in English it does sound a bit like someone clearing their throat..

Lucian
Fabian
Josiah
Julius / Julian
Justin
Ernest
Victor
Bobby (short for Robert)
Nicholas (Nico)
Alistair
Laurence
Cassian (although Caspar and even Cassius are quite popular)