I’m thinking about possible girl names to go with my existing children:
Existing daughter: Marissa
Can I name her baby sister Marian?
How about Maria? Mira? Miriam? Miranda?
Or are the names too close in spelling and/or sound?
How do you feel about using names that start with the same letter for 2 siblings, when the rest of the siblings each have their own unique beginning letter? (We have a large family. Does it matter less in a family with many children, than it would if there were only 2 or 3 siblings?)
Also, how do you feel about the style/image of these names with my daughter’s name?
I should add that there would be about a 12-year difference in these girls’ ages.
I think that those names may be too close for siblings. Especially considering the age gap, it would be best if the girls had related but distinct names.
What about a name that also has a water meaning like [name_f]Cordelia[/name_f]/ [name_f]Delia[/name_f] (“daughter of the sea”), [name_f]Isla[/name_f] (pronounced “eye-la”, the name of a Scottish river), or [name_f]Zarya[/name_f] (a water priestess in Slavic mythology).
Or for other M names that are distinct from [name_f]Marissa[/name_f]: [name_f]Madeline[/name_f], [name_f]Maxine[/name_f], [name_f]Michelle[/name_f], [name_f]Monica[/name_f], [name_f]Maeve[/name_f]
I have absolutely no problem with two siblings having the same initial, it’s when they all have the same one that I start getting skeeved out. That said, I think all the names you have listed are too similar. It’s not the starting initial that’s the problem, it’s the very similar sounds and combinations of letters. [name_f]Marissa[/name_f] and [name_f]Michelle[/name_f] would not be too similar, [name_f]Marissa[/name_f] and [name_u]Marian[/name_u], in my opinion, would be. Which is sad, because I like all your suggested names.
All of these names are too similar for my comfort level but that’s just me. I prefer children to have their own initial. If you like the letter “M”, make sure that the names sounds completely different to offset the shared initial (eg. [name_f]Marissa[/name_f] and [name_f]Megan[/name_f], [name_f]Marissa[/name_f] and [name_f]Melanie[/name_f], [name_f]Marissa[/name_f] and [name_u]Meredith[/name_u]).
Maybe usable but why bother?
[name_f]Marissa[/name_f] and [name_f]Miriam[/name_f] - these two are probably the least matchy in sound but I still find them similar
[name_f]Marissa[/name_f] and [name_f]Miranda[/name_f] - doable but I still would pick something else
Eliminate…
[name_f]Marissa[/name_f] and [name_f]Mira[/name_f] - too similar. [name_f]Marissa[/name_f] contains all of the letters of [name_f]Mira[/name_f] in it.
[name_u]Marian[/name_u] - too matchy for siblings
I think they’re too close, but it’s a taste thing… [name_f]My[/name_f] nieces are [name_f]Nora[/name_f] and [name_f]Nina[/name_f], so it’s cute, but I wouldn’t personally have done it. I’m assuming my [name_m]SIL[/name_m] isn’t going to be having anymore kids though so naming them to fit the pattern wouldn’t matter.
Thank you so much for these wonderful ideas! I especially love your suggestions with similar meanings! [name_u]LOVE[/name_u] [name_f]Cordelia[/name_f], [name_f]Delia[/name_f], [name_f]Isla[/name_f], and [name_f]Maeve[/name_f]!
Yes, I would like to relate the girls’ names to each other somehow, and yet at the same time, have their own distinct names.
Thank you so very much for sharing your opinions with me!
I know that these names share letters and letter combinations, but that is partly why I am considering them - becauseof their similarity to each other, I thought they could serve as a connection for the girls to share with each other.
Also, I tried to look at names that sound different when spoken, even though they share letters. For example, in the case of [name_f]Marissa[/name_f] and [name_u]Marian[/name_u], the pronunciations are very different (mah-RI-suh verses MA-ree-in).
So even though they appear similar in print, in verbal usage I do not think they will be mixed up with each other.
Yes, it is probably a little different if there are just two children and their names are [name_f]Nora[/name_f] and [name_f]Nina[/name_f]. (Which is cute, by the way!)
As opposed to my situation, where I have six children!
And this hypothetical baby girl would be my seventh child. It gets harder and harder to pick names that seem to fit together as a sibset, yet all begin with different letters, AND that my husband agrees to as well!
Yes, the names I listed are close in letter combinations, because I wanted to try to pick a name that would connect my older daughter with her baby sister. So she could feel that the baby was “named after her” in a way, and yet still be different names.
When you look at the names in print, they [name_f]DO[/name_f] look very close. Perhaps TOO close to each other.
Yet, when I pronounce the names, they SOUND very different from each other.
Some more than others. (For example, to my ears, [name_u]Marian[/name_u] and [name_f]Marissa[/name_f] sound very different when verbalized. [name_f]Marissa[/name_f] and [name_f]Mira[/name_f] sound much closer, but still distinct from each other.)
Thanks very much for your input, [name_u]Mischa[/name_u]!
Normally, I, too, prefer children to have their own initial.
However, this time I was considering using another “M” name as a way to connect the older daughter with the baby, so she could feel the baby was named after her, in a way.
[name_f]Do[/name_f] you have any other suggestions for how to do that, without matching their names too much?
