Baby #11 (Yes, REALLY...)

General Name Discussion
1

My lovely and talented friend Sachiko brought Nameberry to my attention, and in an effort to distract myself during these last few weeks of pregnancy, as well as to fix the naming “funk” I’m in, I thought I’d post here! :slight_smile:

I am 38 1/2 weeks pregnant with baby #11. (No, that is NOT a typo, I really am about to have my eleventh child. But that’s not what this discussion is about, k, so no judging, please?)

My husband and I stick to a Celtic origin theme for our babies’ FIRST names. (We started naming babies in 1993. Middle names can be ANYTHING-- usually a family name.) Whether we’re accurate or not, “close” has been our goal. grin

Within that criteria, we include Celtic, Irish, Gaelic, Manx, Scottish and Welsh. [name]Remember[/name], we haven’t taken tradition or recent trends into consideration. Only origin.

Here are the names of our ten children:

[name]Morganne[/name] [name]Natalia[/name] (girl)

[name]Brennan[/name] [name]Geoffrey[/name] (boy)

[name]Lliam[/name] [name]Donal[/name] (boy)

[name]Bonny[/name] [name]Dianne[/name] (girl)

[name]Gavin[/name] [name]Xavier[/name] (boy)

[name]Dierdre[/name] [name]Marie[/name] (girl)

[name]Ronan[/name] [name]Wainwright[/name] (boy)

[name]MacKenna[/name] [name]Elyse[/name] (girl)

Grayse [name]Dawn[/name] (girl)- We cheated on this one-- it’s a Manx spelling of “[name]Grace[/name]” we found on a census record.

[name]Avalon[/name] [name]Noelle[/name] (girl)

*We don’t know if this new baby will be a boy or a girl, but I have a pretty long list of boy names I like. I’m mostly stuck on girl names, at this point. I have some I [name]LOVE[/name] that my husband really hates. So, no go there. (It’s his turn to pick, this time-- though I have full veto power… grin)

I’d just love to get some new ideas, and see what kinds of names other people think might fit in with the names we’ve already got.

(As a side note, if the name is both Celtic and was used by [name]Shakespeare[/name], it gets a double YAY from me! I adore the [name]Bard[/name], and teach [name]Shakespeare[/name] classes to homeschooled teens.)

Thanks in advance! :slight_smile:

2

Ok, don’t know how you feel about difficult spellings so I’ll post the originals and the pronunciations…

[name]Ailbhe[/name] (al-va)
[name]Aoibhe[/name]/[name]Aoife[/name] (eve/ee-fa)
[name]Fiona[/name]
[name]Maeve[/name]
[name]Mirin[/name]
[name]Roisin[/name] (roe-sheen)
[name]Bridget[/name]
[name]Caoimhe[/name] (kee-va)
[name]Ceara[/name]/[name]Keira[/name]
[name]Keela[/name]
[name]Mona[/name]
[name]Orla[/name]
Saoirshe (sare-sha)
[name]Tierney[/name]
[name]Adair[/name]
[name]Greer[/name]
[name]Isla[/name]

Anything catch your eye?

3

Thanks, [name]Alexa[/name]! :slight_smile:

Ooo! You’ve got some great ones listed here. I have to tell you, [name]Saoirse[/name] is my [name]FAVORITE[/name], but it’s one of those my husband doesn’t like. :frowning:

The ones that stuck out to me the most are:

[name]Aoibhe[/name]/[name]Aoife[/name] (eve/ee-fa)
[name]Fiona[/name]
[name]Roisin[/name] (roe-sheen)
Saoirshe (sare-sha)
[name]Adair[/name]
[name]Greer[/name]
[name]Isla[/name]

Thank you, again-- you’ve given me some more possibilities to suggest to my husband! :slight_smile:

4

Congrats! Your children have lovely names. I especially love [name]Avalon[/name], it’s a favorite of mine and has great history. A Shakespearean name that comes to mind is [name]Angus[/name] (found in Macbeth), which I believe is a Scottish name. That could work. I think it fits nicely with your other children’s name and is a bit edgy, like [name]Avalon[/name]. Here are some other Shakespearean names that could work:

[name]Duncan[/name] (Scottish, meaning dark warrior, Macbeth)
[name]Lennox[/name] (Scottish, means elm grove, Macbeth)
[name]Ross[/name] (Scottish, means upland, Macbeth)
[name]Rosaleen[/name] (this is the Irish form of [name]Rosalind[/name], found in As You Like It, and [name]Rosaline[/name], found in [name]Love[/name]'s Labour’s Lost)
[name]Malcolm[/name] (Scottish, found in Macbeth)

That’s all I’ve got from [name]Shakespeare[/name] at the moment. I think [name]Rosaleen[/name] would be really nice in your set, and [name]Malcolm[/name] is a nice, modern Scottish name that is very sweet. Also, not sure if you’re interested in other literary names, but [name]Arthur[/name] (Knights of the Round Table, etc) is a great Celtic name that is classic and handsome. Other knightly names:

[name]Gareth[/name] (Welsh)
[name]Tristan[/name] (Celtic)/ [name]Tristram[/name] (Welsh variant)
[name]Lucan[/name] (Irish)

And then here are also some girl names that I think would fit nicely with your other children’s names and are Celtic/Welsh/Irish/etc.

[name]Aine[/name] (AHN-ya)
[name]Ciara[/name]/[name]Kiera[/name] (KEE-ra)
[name]Maeve[/name]
[name]Roisin[/name] (ro-[name]SHEEN[/name])
[name]Maura[/name] / [name]Maureen[/name]
[name]Delyth[/name]
[name]Gwyneth[/name]
[name]Bridget[/name]
[name]Dilys[/name] (DILL-iss)
[name]Fallon[/name]
[name]Darby[/name]
[name]Riona[/name]
[name]Fiona[/name]
[name]Finlay[/name]
[name]Winifred[/name]/[name]Wynne[/name]
[name]Glenda[/name]
[name]Bevin[/name]
[name]Eilish[/name]

[name]Hope[/name] that helps!

5

For a son

[name]Lachlan[/name] [name]Findlay[/name]

for a daughter

[name]Gwyneth[/name] [name]Maire[/name]
[name]Seren[/name] [name]Adelina[/name]
[name]Siobhan[/name] [name]Rose[/name] ([name]Ros[/name]) [name]Love[/name] this name
[name]Catriona[/name] [name]Blythe[/name]

6

Firstly, I love [name]Bonny[/name]! I’m really pleased to see someone using it.

I know you say you have a lot of boys’ names, but I just have to chime in that [name]Shakespeare[/name] used the Scottish [name]Angus[/name], [name]Ross[/name], [name]Lennox[/name], [name]Malcolm[/name] and [name]Duncan[/name] in Macbeth (and Donalbain, but perhaps that’s a bit ‘out-there’ for you).

Onto the girls! I’ve tried to stick to names whose pronunciation is obvious to non-Celtic people, but if you’re open to more unusual spellings, let me know, as there is a whole other treasure trove of non-phonetic options. If the name has been anglicised, I’ve put the original spelling in brackets.

Scottish :
[name]Ailsa[/name]
[name]Edna[/name] ([name]Eithne[/name])
[name]Effie[/name] (Oighrig)
[name]Elspeth[/name]
[name]Fenella[/name]/[name]Finola[/name] ([name]Fionnuala[/name])
[name]Glenna[/name]
[name]Greer[/name]
[name]Helen[/name] (not strictly Scottish, but has been very popular there for a long time. Many people here ([name]England[/name]) think of it as quintessentially Scottish. She was used in [name]Shakespeare[/name]'s [name]Cymbeline[/name], too.)
[name]Iona[/name]
[name]Isla[/name]
[name]Jessie[/name]
Keavy/[name]Keeva[/name] ([name]Caoimhe[/name])
[name]Kirstin[/name]
[name]Lorna[/name]
[name]Maisie[/name] (originated in [name]Scotland[/name])
[name]Maura[/name]/[name]Moira[/name] ([name]Maire[/name])
[name]Morag[/name]
[name]Morven[/name]
[name]Rhona[/name]
[name]Saundra[/name].

Welsh :
[name]Anwen[/name]
[name]Branwen[/name]
[name]Bronwen[/name]
[name]Carys[/name]
[name]Efa[/name]
[name]Glenda[/name]
[name]Gwen[/name]
[name]Gwendolen[/name]
[name]Nerys[/name]
[name]Rhian[/name]/[name]Rhiannon[/name]
[name]Seren[/name].

Cornish :
Eseld
[name]Merryn[/name]
Steren

Irish :
[name]Aislin[/name] ([name]ASH[/name]-lin)
[name]Bidelia[/name]
[name]Bridget[/name] ([name]Brighid[/name])
[name]Caitlin[/name] (popular at the moment, though)
[name]Ciara[/name]
[name]Eileen[/name]
[name]Elva[/name] ([name]Ailbhe[/name])
[name]Erin[/name] (Eireann)
[name]Fiona[/name]
[name]Honora[/name]
[name]Maeve[/name]
[name]Neve[/name] ([name]Niamh[/name])
[name]Oona[/name]/[name]Una[/name]
[name]Orla[/name] ([name]Orfhlaith[/name])
[name]Talullah[/name].

Good luck! [name]Auburn[/name]

7

Oh, you guys are GOOD! :wink:

I have added a bunch to my list, and sent the link to this discussion to my husband. (Yeah, I’m so helpful to him like that… ;-D) The Macbeth names are great. Now to decide between them all!

Some of the other girl names that really stuck out to me:

[name]Carys[/name]
[name]Darby[/name]
[name]Elspeth[/name]
[name]Lorna[/name]
[name]Rosaleen[/name]
[name]Merryn[/name]

This is so fun! :slight_smile: Thanks to you all!!!

I’ll keep you posted…

8

Some girls’ names! (Sorry for any repeats…)
Isobal
[name]Greer[/name]
[name]Bronwen[/name]
[name]Imogen[/name]
[name]Fenella[/name]/[name]Finola[/name]/Fionualla/[name]Fiona[/name]
[name]Bedelia[/name]
[name]Colleen[/name]
[name]Flannery[/name]
[name]Grainne[/name]/[name]Grania[/name]
[name]Moira[/name]
[name]Mona[/name]
[name]Orla[/name]
[name]Saoirse[/name]
[name]Talullah[/name]
[name]Elspeth[/name]
[name]Flora[/name]
[name]Lileas[/name]
[name]Campbell[/name]
[name]Maeve[/name]

9

[name]Carys[/name] and [name]Seren[/name] are lovely. Have you come to a decision? (sorry, not sure how long ago your post was).

10

I’m due in 2 weeks, and I think we want to see “who” this little one is, before we decide on the name for sure. But my list of choices is growing, and I so appreciate all the suggestions! :slight_smile:

Thanks again! :smiley:

11

Here’s the list right now. I’d love to get your opinions on any of the names, boy or girl. :slight_smile: (Funny how my girls’ name list is now longer than the boys’!)

BOYS:
[name]Angus[/name]
[name]Eamon[/name] (AE-mun)
[name]Emrys[/name] ([name]EM[/name]-ris)
[name]Ewan[/name]
[name]Kieran/name
[name]Lennox[/name]
[name]Malcolm[/name]
[name]Padraig[/name]
[name]Taran[/name]
[name]Thayne[/name]* (my personal favorite)

GIRLS:
”ine (AWN-ya)
[name]Aoife[/name] (EEV-ah)
[name]Carys[/name]
[name]Catriona[/name]
[name]Darby[/name]
[name]Elspeth[/name]
[name]Fiona[/name]
[name]Hermione[/name] (too [name]Harry[/name] [name]Potter[/name]?)
[name]Lorna[/name]
[name]Merryn[/name]
[name]Rosaleen[/name]
[name]Saoirse[/name] (SEER-sha) [Maybe husband will warm up to it? LOL!]
[name]Sonnet[/name] (Trying to find a way for it to be “Celtic”)
[name]Una[/name]

12

Boys :
A couple of your boys’ names I’m unfairly biased against, as I live in the UK. These are [name]Eamon[/name] (TV presenter and, [name]Ewan[/name] and [name]Kieran[/name] (I’ve met too many).

I’m not sure about [name]Emrys[/name], although I like it, due to the current massive popularity of [name]Em[/name]- names for girls ([name]Emma[/name], [name]Emily[/name], [name]Emilia[/name], [name]Emery[/name]).

[name]Lennox[/name] is fine, I like [name]Malcolm[/name] and [name]Taran[/name], but I think [name]Angus[/name], Pagraig and [name]Thayne[/name] are definitely your best options - unbeatably handsome!

Girls :
”ine (AWN-ya) - I love it, but worry about pronunciation issues in the US. Would it bother you having to correct people?
[name]Aoife[/name] (EEV-ah) - the V sound is sort of between a V and an F. It’s a little similar to [name]Avalon[/name]'s name, and also to the very popular [name]Ava[/name]/[name]Eva[/name], but I like it a lot.
[name]Carys[/name] - lovely.
[name]Catriona[/name] - not my favourite on your list - I just think some of your other options are more stunning.
[name]Darby[/name] - I’m not sold, to be honest, as I think ‘horse derby’.
[name]Elspeth[/name] - I adore this one! Vintage and quirky, plus the sweet nn [name]Elsie[/name] is an option.
[name]Fiona[/name] - a lot of others seem to like this, but I just can’t see the appeal myself. It’s not a bad name, though.
[name]Hermione[/name] - a great choice, but very connected with [name]Harry[/name] [name]Potter[/name].
[name]Lorna[/name] - I love this one! Simple but not popular, and very pretty.
[name]Merryn[/name] - fine, but not my favourite.
[name]Rosaleen[/name] - I like this one.
[name]Saoirse[/name] (SEER-sha) - I hope your husband does, as this is one of my favourites. I think it is stunning!
[name]Sonnet[/name] - well, [name]Baird[/name] would have a poetry and Celtic connection, but it’s not nearly as lovely (or suitable for a girl) as [name]Sonnet[/name]. [name]How[/name] about putting this in the middle?
[name]Una[/name] - another of my favourites; simple, pretty, and fun to say.

My vote is for [name]Elspeth[/name], [name]Lorna[/name], [name]Saoirse[/name] or perhaps [name]Una[/name], with [name]Sonnet[/name] in the middle.

Good luck! [name]Auburn[/name]

13

Oooh, this is going to be fun!I’m just gonna do a search…

Girls
[name]Imogen[/name]-IM-OH-[name]JEN[/name]
[name]Catriona[/name]-KAH-TREE-NAH
[name]Mirin[/name]-I [name]DON[/name]'T KNOW [name]HOW[/name] THIS IS PRONOUCED,BUT IT LOOKS PRETTY
[name]Sinead[/name]-SHIN-NAHD
[name]Aili[/name]-IT’S A VARITION OF [name]AILEEN[/name],SO MY GUESS IS EYE-[name]LEE[/name]
[name]Blair[/name]
[name]Fiona[/name]
Espeth
[name]Fifer[/name]
[name]Finley[/name]
[name]Iona[/name]-EYE-OWN-[name]NUH[/name]
[name]Isobel[/name]
[name]Lileas[/name]
[name]Mairi[/name]-MAH-[name]REE[/name]
[name]Rowan[/name]:wink:
[name]Yvaine[/name]
[name]Aveline[/name]-A-VAH-LEEN
[name]Bridget[/name]
[name]Caitlin[/name]
[name]Cassidy[/name]
[name]Darcy[/name]
[name]Duffy[/name]
[name]Fallon[/name]
[name]Enya[/name]
[name]Fia[/name]
[name]Fianna[/name]
[name]Finola[/name]
[name]Mab[/name]:wink:
[name]Maeve[/name]
[name]Moira[/name]-MOY-RAH
[name]Mona[/name]
[name]Oona[/name]-OO-NAH
[name]Paili[/name]-PAHL-EE
[name]Sloane[/name]-DOES ANYONE KNOW [name]HOW[/name] TO PRN THIS?
[name]Sullivan[/name]
[name]Tallulah[/name]
[name]Zaira[/name]-ZARE-[name]AH[/name]
[name]Arwen[/name]
[name]Cerys[/name]-CARE-ISS
[name]Eleri[/name]-[name]EL[/name]-EH-[name]REE[/name]
[name]Gwendolen[/name]
[name]Morwenna[/name]
[name]Reese[/name]
[name]Rhiannon[/name]
[name]Seren[/name]:slight_smile:

That’s all I’ve got for right now!

[name]Isabel[/name]

14

my favorites from your list:

BOYS:
[name]Angus[/name]
[name]Eamon[/name]
[name]Emrys[/name]
[name]Ewan[/name]
[name]Thayne[/name]

GIRLS:
”ine
[name]Aoife[/name]
[name]Elspeth[/name]
[name]Fiona[/name]
[name]Una[/name]…prefer [name]Oona[/name] though

good luck and let us know what you decide (:

15

[name]Sloane[/name] is pronouned like Loan with a s sound at the beginning.

16

[/quote]

[name]Sloane[/name] is pronouned like Loan with a s sound at the beginning. or like SLONE

17

[name]Angus[/name] - cute
[name]Eamon[/name] (AE-mun) - love this name
[name]Emrys[/name] ([name]EM[/name]-ris) - I like this name a lot but sounds a little feminine to me.
[name]Ewan[/name] - I really like this name
[name]Lennox[/name] - I kind of like this
[name]Taran[/name] - nice name but I’ve known some girls named this so out for a boy for me
[name]Thayne[/name] - is this said “thain” like train?

[name]Aoife[/name] (EEV-ah) - very cute but will be pronounced wrong in the states
[name]Carys[/name] - considering this myself 333
[name]Darby[/name] - cute but a little boyish [name]IMO[/name]
[name]Elspeth[/name] - very sweet, like this a lot
[name]Fiona[/name] - love this name
[name]Hermione[/name] (too [name]Harry[/name] [name]Potter[/name]?) - very cute name but VERY [name]Harry[/name] [name]Potter[/name]
[name]Merryn[/name] - pretty but I prefer [name]Maren[/name] or [name]Marin[/name]
[name]Sonnet[/name] - lovely as MN
[name]Una[/name] - I love this name but I can see teasing with it.

18

Thank you,[name]Michaela[/name]!
That’s always how I guessed it prn.,but I just wasn’t sure!

[name]Isabel[/name]

19

[name]Hi[/name]! :slight_smile:

My favorites for the boys are:
[name]Angus[/name]
[name]Eamon[/name]- I know a boy with this name and it fits him perfectly!
[name]Ewan[/name]- nice but I prefer [name]Evan[/name] so much more
[name]Malcolm[/name]

[name]Padraig[/name] and [name]Taran[/name] are okay. I’m not a big fan of [name]Emrys[/name], [name]Kieran[/name] and [name]Lennox[/name] (they sound feminine to me) and [name]Thayne[/name] doesn’t really sound like a name. :frowning:

[name]Aine[/name] (sorry, I can’t do accents with this computer!) has a delightful sound but you may encounter many mispronunciations so it might not be worth while. [name]Aoife[/name] is the same. My favorites for the girls are:
[name]Carys[/name]
[name]Elspeth[/name]*
[name]Fiona[/name]*
[name]Hermione[/name]*
[name]Rosaleen[/name]
[name]Saoirse[/name] (same problems as [name]Aine[/name] and [name]Aoife[/name] but it has such a beautiful sound!)

The ones with a * are my absolute favorites. [name]Lorna[/name] doesn’t feel very melodic or feminine to me. [name]Catriona[/name] is okay but it doesn’t stand out. [name]Darby[/name] reminds me of the Kentucky [name]Derby[/name] :slight_smile: [name]Merryn[/name] and [name]Una[/name] I’m not a big fan of and I think [name]Sonnet[/name] is better placed in the middle.

Good luck! :slight_smile:

20

I love love love [name]Eamonn[/name] for a boy.

[name]Madigan[/name] is great for a girl, and my own name [name]Erin[/name] is ok if you want a more plain option. I think [name]Mab[/name] sounds really nice and has a neat meaning behind it. [name]Nuala[/name] (NOO-la) is really sweet sounding, as well.

I think it’s past time for the original poster to pop… I wonder what they went with!