Alternative to Popular Sophia?

My husband and I just love the name [name]Sophia[/name]. We are both Italian with a last name ending in “i”. When we found out we were having a girl, we thought we had our name and that was that! BUT, then I checked out the name’s popularity and was shocked to find out its super-popular in almost every state. I’m opposed to naming our child any name in the top 10. Yet, it is still on our list because we like it so much.

Does anyone have alternatives to this name? It need not begin with “s” or even sound like [name]Sophia[/name]… just something that is elegant, feminine, and yet uncommon. Italian names are preferable.

Thank you so much! These posts have helped me tremendously.

Is this your first? It’s always surprising to find out how popular your favorite names are when you aren’t around children much. But as a preschool teacher, trust me when I say that little [name]Sophia[/name]/Sophies are EVERYWHERE! Here’s some alternatives…
[name]Silvia[/name]
[name]Celia[/name]
[name]Cecilia[/name]
[name]Bianca[/name]
[name]Claudia[/name]
[name]Gemma[/name]
[name]Julia[/name]
[name]Marina[/name]

[name]Hi[/name]!

You could try…

[name]Alessia[/name]
[name]Aria[/name]
[name]Emilia[/name]
[name]Giulia[/name]
[name]Lucia[/name]
[name]Silvia[/name]
[name]Valeria[/name]
[name]Vivia[/name]

[name]Lemon[/name] :slight_smile:

[name]Ophelia[/name], [name]Seraphina[/name], [name]Josephina[/name], [name]Josephine[/name], and [name]Sylvia[/name] are some that I’ve thought have the same feel or sounds as [name]Sophia[/name].

I’ve had the same problems with loving the name [name]Sophia[/name]. It’s a beautiful name but has become so popular.

Haha! Yes, this is our first! So we are not around school-age children at all. We had no idea.

I have to ask- you want an Italian name, but you’re using the ph spelling- any particular reason?

Anyway, I totally understand the love of [name]Sophia[/name]. It’s hands down my favorite name of all time. I’d use it in a heartbeat. I love it, and I couldn’t care less about the popularity, because there isn’t a name that even comes close in my book. I think if you truly love [name]Sophia[/name], the popularity shouldn’t bother you. If it’s just a name you really like, it might. I would recommend that you and your husband try to consider how much you like the name and exactly how important popularity is to you, and maybe look up how popular it is in your state.

If you’re sure you don’t want to use it, here are some (mostly Italian) alternatives:
[name]Cosima[/name]
[name]Giada[/name]
[name]Giovanna[/name] (jyo-vah-na, not gee-oh-vah-na)
[name]Chiara[/name]
[name]Elena[/name]
[name]Elisa[/name]
[name]Noemi[/name]
[name]Rosalia[/name]
[name]Francesca[/name]
[name]Anna[/name]

Since you’re Italian would you consider the name [name]Sanchia[/name]/[name]Sancia[/name]? It’s one of my favourite all time names! So beautiful and reminds me very much of [name]Sophia[/name].

There’s also [name]Sapphira[/name], [name]Silvia[/name], [name]Sylvie[/name], [name]Susannah[/name]. Names like [name]Phoebe[/name] and [name]Fiona[/name] have the “ph” sound.

Best of luck!

We are having a similar problem with the name [name]Sophia[/name]. We loved it through the majority of our pregnancy, but because of it’s popularity, it doesn’t seem as special as it used to. We are considering it more for a middle name now… although there still is a possibility that we will go against our anti-popularity feelings and name her [name]Sophia[/name] anyway.

A lot of the names I was going to suggest were already suggested, but I will reiterate them just because they are so beautiful!

[name]Natalia[/name] - [name]LOVE[/name] this!
[name]Alessia[/name]
[name]Alessandra[/name]
[name]Gabriella[/name]
[name]Francesca[/name]
[name]Giana[/name]
[name]Giada[/name] (Italian version of [name]Jada[/name])
[name]Giovanna[/name]
Giavi (although with your last name ending with an “i” I’m not sure if this would work)
[name]Giulia[/name] (Italian version of [name]Julia[/name])
[name]Guiliana[/name] (Italian version of [name]Juliana[/name])
[name]Amadea[/name]
[name]Angelina[/name]
[name]Aria[/name] (I think it is stunning and unique)
[name]Bianca[/name]
[name]Chiara[/name] (Italian version of [name]Claire[/name])
[name]Chiarina[/name] (Another version of [name]Claire[/name])
[name]Caterina[/name] (Italian version of [name]Catherine[/name])
[name]Cinzia[/name] ([name]Cynthia[/name])
[name]Daniella[/name]
[name]Fabiana[/name]
[name]Franca[/name]
[name]Giordana[/name] ([name]Jordan[/name])
[name]Ilaria[/name] ([name]Hilary[/name])
[name]Grazia[/name] ([name]Grace[/name])
[name]Italia[/name] - so cute!
[name]Lia[/name]
[name]Lucia[/name]
[name]Massima[/name]
[name]Mattea[/name]

[name]Sonia[/name] (alternative to [name]Sophia[/name] and means the same thing: wisdom)
[name]Alessandra[/name]
[name]Beatrice[/name]
[name]Bianca[/name]
[name]Carlotta[/name]
[name]Cecelia[/name]
[name]Chiara[/name]
[name]Constanza[/name]
[name]Donata[/name]
[name]Elisabetta[/name]
[name]Fiammetta[/name]
[name]Flavia[/name]
[name]Francesca[/name]
[name]Gaetana[/name]
[name]Gelsomina[/name]
[name]Ginevra[/name]
[name]Giulia[/name]
[name]Grazia[/name]
[name]Isabella[/name]
[name]Laura[/name]
[name]Letizia[/name]
[name]Lucia[/name]
[name]Luisa[/name]
[name]Margherita[/name]
[name]Massima[/name]
[name]Melania[/name]
[name]Oriana[/name]
[name]Paola[/name]
[name]Patrizia[/name]
[name]Pia[/name]
[name]Renata[/name]
[name]Roma[/name]
[name]Rosalia[/name]
[name]Sabrina[/name]
[name]Sancia[/name]
[name]Serafina[/name]
[name]Serena[/name]
[name]Simona[/name]
Speranza
[name]Susana[/name]
[name]Teodora[/name]
[name]Teresa[/name]
[name]Valentina[/name]
[name]Violetta[/name]
[name]Vittoria[/name]

It seems like we have similar tastes/ requirements on names. The names we chose for our daughters are [name]Cecilia[/name] and [name]Elena[/name]. If we have another girl a couple I’m tossing around are [name]Nora[/name], [name]Adella[/name] and possibly [name]Sylvia[/name].

[name]How[/name] about [name]Gia[/name] or [name]Gemma[/name]?