Sheila, Lorraine or Glinda?

[plinkyplonk123]

I know these names are unconventional but I was thinking they might be nice. I was originally going to go for Sheila or Lorraine (Lorrie for short) but after watching Wicked I’m thinking maybe Glinda would be fun!

I’m gonna vote Sheila.

10 years ago all the cool parents were calling their kids Arthur and Winston and Albert and we thought they were mad. Now all the hippest kids in town have these names.

I reckon we’ll see a resurgence in unloved grandma-type names soon. Maybe lots of little Enids and Getrudes (Trudy?) coming soon.

But made-up names like Glinda or Rapunzel or even Arya (sorry to all the Aryas out there - George RR Martin 100% made up your name which factually did not exist before Game of Thrones) - hard no.

With every kindness OP I think your hormones are running amok

Of course not, I’m assume you have been drinking to much Xmas Sherry.

I'm only asking if it's a wind up, not because I'm ridiculing the names, but the vibe I'm getting from OP's posts on the thread. I do think people are generally very unkind about names on MN.

I quite like Arya

But surely it is better you hear what people are thinking now, and choose a different name for your dd, than you actually give her one of these names and she has to live with it for potentially the next 90 years ?

Isn't that the point of asking strangers, anonymously on the internet - that you get to know what people really are thinking, rather than people trying to politely think of something nice to say ?

I don't think people are quite ready for Alison, Lorraine and Sheila to come back into fashion yet. They are very much names of women aged 55-75 so they're not quite grandma chic yet.

I have worked with several women with these names, all at least 10-15 years older than me, and my mum has a close friend with one of the names... I have mostly positive associations but certainly don't think of the names as being fresh or new or suitable for a baby.

I actually quite like Greta but maybe that's just because of Greta Thunberg. I've never come across a Greta in real life I don't think.

If you like those what about Bridie or Alma?

I really don't think Glinda is useable. It's only associated with Wicked/Wizard of Oz.

I don't think of Lorraine as a granny name because my best friend at primary school was a Lorraine and that was in the mid 90s. But maybe she was the end of the Lorraines, idk. I don't think it's a bad name. And Lori and Lainey are cute.

I don't like Sheila. I think of that stupid game 'Say g'day to Bruce, Sheila' in terrible Australian accents.

Lol.

Adding 'gh' to a name doesnt render it 'Gaelic'.

Both are lovely!

Fiona, Claire, Shirley, Susan, Joanna, Denise, Diane, Janet, Helena

Is this for real?? Have a bloody heart. Bad then, worse now.

I like Greta.

Vivienne is okay.

The Sheila I know is not a nice person but I guess that is irrelevant. That name is also crass Aussie speak for a woman...not great

Lorraine is very much a 1970s name.

Glinda - nope. It doesn't actually sound like a real name. I don't like Glenda either.

All names are such a personal choice - I like Erin and Morgan but loads of people wouldn't like them. Ultimately it is your family @plinkyplonk123 and the decision of you and your partner, and stuff everyone else

Shelia is a bogan term for female/woman in Australia. It hurts my ears just reading it.

I think Lorelle is a bit nicer than Lorraine and could still have Lorrie as a nickname. I know a Lorelle and a Lorelai.

I knew a Greta in the late 90s - she was early 20s back then.

The only two Sheilas I know are actually Cecilia. I don't if it's a common diminutive or they both just fancied Sheila and went with it! But Cecilia is lovely, and you could still.use Sheila as a nn.

I like Alison and Greta too.

For a similar sound but prettier without the dated vibe how about Belinda?
Vivienne is great too and both have lots of good diminutive options

I sometimes tease my DDs by saying those are their granny names 😁 (like Bluey has Mavis and Rita).

My gran actually was called Maud, or, even weirder, Maud was her second name, but she went by it rather than Sarah, her actual first name 🤯. Born around 1914 I think.

One of my best friends is an Ali(son). She’s only 41. I knew at least one other at school. Agree that a baby Alison maybe jars a little, but Ali would be quite cute when they’re younger, then could use the full name when a bit older.

My cohort was full of Beckys and Sarahs. Quite a few Katies around too. Boys were Chris, Ben, Steve, and, when I got to uni was surrounded by Jameses!

I love you from the bottom of my pencil case?

None. All awful.

I went to school with both boys and girls who were called by their second names. The first name was a family name usually grandfather or grandmother, so they used their second name to differentiate between them. It was a bit of a shock to a friend to find that her fiancé wasn't actually John, his first name was Herbert and when they married she had to say his full legal name. I do hope Herbert is not making a comeback!

All ops names are awful. Sorry.

You are 100% wrong about the name Arya. It's existed for hundreds and hundreds of years! My great Aunt was called Arya and she passed away in the late 80s (Indian heritage).

Obviously it was made more popular and Westernised by Game of Thrones, but he definitely didn't make it up though 👍

Sheila is older than Lorraine. Sheila is my mum's era and she's 89; Lorraine is mine and I'm 65.

Mum's friends are/were: Barbara, Silvia, Patricia, Marian, Anita, Joan

Mine, and classmates: Susan, Jane, Helen, Alison, Deborah, Karen, Amanda, Fiona, Carol, Caroline

DD (27): Alice, Imogen, Rosie, Tilly, Molly, Cicely/Cecilia, Isabel

Obvs, there's always a bit of crossover and I have known a couple of Sheila's of my age, but both have been Shelagh.

Names have always gone in cycles: the ones that mostly transcend time imo are: Helen/a, Catherine, Elizabeth, Hannah, Caroline, Anna/bel, etc.