Help! I’m looking for a girl’s name that works in English and Spanish. Our last name is Castillo, if that helps. She would have been [name_f]Alexandra[/name_f], but our closest friends just “took” that name for their son! ([name_f]Do[/name_f] you think that matters?) Also want something outside the top 50 or so, as we made that mistake with DD1 and it’s slightly annoying. So far our choices are -
[name_f]Siena[/name_f] (love it, it’s where we went on our honeymoon, but DH keeps thinking “Toyota” - help me convince him!)
[name_f]Victoria[/name_f] (is it possible to avoid nicknames?)
[name_f]Siena[/name_f] is gorgeous. But if your husband isn’t convinced, maybe he would like [name_u]Sierra[/name_u], or [name_f]Elena[/name_f]?
[name_f]Victoria[/name_f] is also beautiful. I know two, and neither has a nickname.
If [name_f]Alexandra[/name_f] is off the table, maybe [name_f]Alessandra[/name_f] could be an option?
A few other ideas…
[name_f]Julia[/name_f]
[name_f]Lucia[/name_f]
[name_f]Adrianna[/name_f]
[name_f]Lola[/name_f]
[name_f]Celia[/name_f]
[name_f]Natalie[/name_f]/[name_f]Natalia[/name_f]
[name_f]Gabrielle[/name_f]/[name_f]Gabriela[/name_f]
[name_f]Siena[/name_f] and [name_f]Victoria[/name_f] are both really pretty. I [name_f]DO[/name_f] think people will end up nicknaming her once she hits school even if you don’t while shes at home, just be aware of that. As for suggestions:
I actually think [name_f]Alexandra[/name_f] is still useable, even if your friend’s son is named [name_m]Alexander[/name_m]. Plus, they could always go by different nicknames when around one another. I also happen to [name_u]LOVE[/name_u] the name [name_f]Siena[/name_f], though. Both are stunning!
Other options:
[name_f]Luna[/name_f]
[name_f]Allegra[/name_f]
[name_f]Angelica[/name_f]
[name_f]Isabella[/name_f]
[name_f]Alicia[/name_f]
[name_f]Vanessa[/name_f]
[name_u]Dominique[/name_u]
[name_f]Annelise[/name_f]
[name_f]Rosalie[/name_f]
I love [name_f]Victoria[/name_f], but I’ve never met one that didn’t go by a nickname.
[name_f]Carina[/name_f]
[name_f]Emiliana[/name_f]
[name_f]Estela[/name_f]/[name_f]Estrella[/name_f]
[name_f]Genoveva[/name_f]
[name_f]Lidia[/name_f]
[name_f]Magdalena[/name_f]
[name_f]Marcela[/name_f]
[name_f]Marisol[/name_f]
[name_f]Noemi[/name_f]
[name_f]Paloma[/name_f]
[name_f]Rafaela[/name_f]
[name_f]Rosalia[/name_f]/[name_f]Rosalina[/name_f] ([name_f]Rosalie[/name_f] is the french form of [name_f]Rosalia[/name_f])
[name_f]Sabina[/name_f]
[name_f]Valentina[/name_f]
[name_f]Veronica[/name_f]
[name_f]Viviana[/name_f]
You mentioned your friends just had a son, so I’m assuming [name_m]Alexander[/name_m]? If so, I think you can still have an [name_f]Alexandra[/name_f]. Since they’re close friends, it might be worth talking to them about it to see how they feel at least before ruling it out. For me, [name_m]Alexander[/name_m] and [name_f]Alexandra[/name_f] are still different names.
You could also go with [name_f]Alejandra[/name_f], which is more different.
As far as [name_f]Siena[/name_f] and [name_f]Victoria[/name_f]. Have you pointed out to your husband that the Toyota is spelled “[name_f]Sienna[/name_f]”? Maybe that would help?
[name_u]Sierra[/name_u] is a similar alternative, but it means “Mountains” in Spanish. So that might be a problem in terms of it being bilingual–any native Spanish-speakers want to weigh in on that?
I like [name_f]Victoria[/name_f]. It’s true that nicknames do seem somewhat inevitable with this name, but you could certainly use the full name and encourage others to as well. I also think [name_f]Valentina[/name_f] and [name_f]Valeria[/name_f] (both mentioned by pp’s) would be other good bilingual options that are maybe a little less prone to nicknaming.
If it matters, we are leaning towards [name_f]Raphaelle[/name_f] for a mn (like the meaning of healer as we have an older kid with a lot of medical issues and special needs.)
THANK YOU for all the input! You’re amazing!
I feel that would be heavy burden to put a new a child, but that’s just my opinion. I think i’s a nice connection, I just hope you don’t expect her to be able to heal your other child…
I agree with others [name_f]Alexandra[/name_f] is still usable depending on what nicknames your friend uses. You could always ask them. It might be weird if they both decided to be [name_u]Alex[/name_u], but she could be [name_u]Ali[/name_u], [name_f]Alexa[/name_f], Alexie, [name_u]Lexie[/name_u], etc instead.
I think [name_f]Alexandra[/name_f] is still usable for you—or maybe [name_f]Alexandria[/name_f], to distance it a little more from [name_m]Alexander[/name_m]? Or [name_f]Alessia[/name_f]/[name_f]Alexia[/name_f]?
And if you like [name_f]Victoria[/name_f] and [name_f]Siena[/name_f], maybe you’d like [name_f]Vienna[/name_f]?
I agree that if your friends have an [name_m]Alexander[/name_m], you could still use [name_f]Alexandra[/name_f] as long as they’re okay with it. Maybe you would like something similar like [name_f]Alessia[/name_f], [name_f]Alyssa[/name_f] or [name_u]Alexis[/name_u]? [name_f]Siena[/name_f] and [name_f]Victoria[/name_f] are both lovely names. [name_f]Siena[/name_f] doesn’t make me think of the car at all, and my family used to have that car (though that was probably 10+ years ago). I think it’s possible to avoid nicknames with [name_f]Victoria[/name_f]- I know two and neither is ever called by a nickname, and I think it’s more common to go by the full [name_f]Victoria[/name_f] than any nickname. That being said, she may prefer to go by a nickname herself when older, so if this is something you’d like to avoid, a different name may be a good idea.