And about [name_f]Petra[/name_f] [name_f]Apolline[/name_f] [name_f]Joy[/name_f], I think it’s a lovely combo, full of good energy. I really like [name_f]Petra[/name_f]. I met one on my [name_m]Erasmus[/name_m]. She was sassy and outgoing, and she was one of those person you know you won’t forget.
To be honest, I have never thought about [name_f]Apolline[/name_f], but it sounds elegant without being outlandish. [name_f]Apolline[/name_f] sounds like one of those name I’d ask the person why their parents chose it. Finally, I think [name_f]Joy[/name_f] makes the combo sweet and bubble.
Plus H. A. & [name_f]Petra[/name_f] really sound good!
Cassiopeia [name_u]Jule[/name_u] and [name_f]Twila[/name_f] [name_f]Antigone[/name_f] [name_f]Minerva[/name_f] are my favorites! I have the combo [name_f]Thisbe[/name_f] [name_f]Minerva[/name_f] on my list. I feel like that really suits your style
I can definitely see this as an advantage, or at least something that sets it legitimately apart from the rest.
I was honestly wondering about you and a couple others but wasn’t gonna bug you in case you were among those I told to never click it again, lol.
Haha, I love these aptitudes.
I love this, too. Being unforgettable is more important than people give credit to.
So, with all the love she has received, coupled with my baby fever as I am actively TTC again, [name_f]Petra[/name_f] [name_f]Apolline[/name_f] [name_f]Joy[/name_f] has risen to the top. I believe she is my favorite from the bunch so far. Imagining a little [name_f]Petra[/name_f] [name_f]Apolline[/name_f] [name_f]Joy[/name_f] all week and meditating on this combo has been indeed a joyful experience. I can’t help myself but repeat it again and again. What fun!!
[Grr, I still haven’t uploaded the soundbite I meant to. Tomorrow when I introduce a new combo. Now to just figure out which that will be.]
This is tough to answer because I really think both would work well for you, given what I know about your family and your sons’ names. Both of them fit in well, so I don’t know if I can really say I prefer one over the other in that context.
I love both [name_f]Petra[/name_f] combos for different reasons. I think I’m liking [name_f]Petra[/name_f] [name_f]Apolline[/name_f] [name_f]Joy[/name_f] slightly more. It fits very well with your boys’ names. It looks and sounds beautiful.
I still love the sound of [name_f]Antigone[/name_f] but [name_f]Apolline[/name_f] is sweeter.
[details=“[name_u]Tempest[/name_u]”]
So, many of you know that HF’s name was settled from the very earliest of days of our relationship. That’s mostly because on our way TO our first date (riding the red line of the [name_m]Boston[/name_m] T subway/underground to our dinner reservation), I started talking to him about the family history research I was working on and my many findings about my 2nd great grandpa H0rat10 Hawk1n$. He said, “Wow, what an awesome name!” and I said, “Yeah. I want to name my firstborn son [HF].” And he said, “That’s a really awesome name.” So that pretty much settled things. But we didn’t talk girls’ names on our first date or even for a pretty long time thereafter. We have always struggled finding girls’ names he is just as happy with as he was with HF. [name_u]Tempest[/name_u] (and [name_f]Minerva[/name_f]) were the first two names that when I mentioned them, he was like, “That’s a really awesome name!” again. So it has been on my list for a very, very long time.
I love [name_m]Shakespeare[/name_m]'s The [name_u]Tempest[/name_u]. [name_f]Tempestt[/name_f] Bledsoe is a decent association. The “temptress” “pest” and “temper tantrum” things don’t dissuade me much. We will deal. The imagery of power and nature and wind and rain is beautiful to me. She is hail and gale and giant mighty ocean swells that are both beautiful and terrifying. She weilds power and commands the space she occupies but also has a sweet, easily underestimable (that’s a word now) quality to her. You never really know which side you’ll get.
Issues are that she doesn’t really share a style with her brothers’ firsts as much. That said, I don’t think she is hopelessly mismatched either. [name_m]Just[/name_m] different and standout. I don’t know what her nicknames would be, but I guess she doesn’t need one (I mean, we don’t actually use them for our sons either, but people ALWAYS ask what nicknames they have so I supply them and then when I model how I use their full names people catch on and use their names, too…). Tippy would be cute. [name_f]Tess[/name_f]. [name_f]Emi[/name_f] would work well for the Japanese component.
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[details=“[name_f]Alcione[/name_f]”]
[name_f]Alcione[/name_f] is one of the -io names that caches the match with her brothers’ firsts really well. It certainly feels less familiar than many of my names, in good and bad ways. I know the pronunciation can hang people up and there are many correct ways to say it but I’m pretty decided on how I like it.
I went by [name_f]Elsie[/name_f] growing up (for my initials LC) and I like the echo in [name_f]Alcione[/name_f]. I also like the similarity to the name [name_f]Alcie[/name_f]/Alcine for her “strong-willed” nature and the poetic enchantress vibes of [name_m]Orlando[/name_m] Furioso and also the opera, an ounce of which bleeds into [name_f]Alcione[/name_f] by virtue of her not being simply [name_u]Halcyon[/name_u].
That said, I love the [name_u]Halcyon[/name_u] mythology and the imagery of the kingfisher bird and her plumage. Also, in the kids’ room, we have a Chinese brush painting that hangs above the crib that my husband’s grandmother painted when she was young and having her kids. I’m not sure whether it is meant to be a kingfisher or not, but it does look like one and I’ve got such a soft spot for that painting.
[name_f]Alcione[/name_f] is balmy sea breeze and placid waters. [name_f]Alcione[/name_f] is nesting during the quiet, cozy days of winter.
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[details=“[name_f]Maeve[/name_f]”]
I think [name_f]Maeve[/name_f] is the number one name my partner would choose as a middle. He loves the fairy and [name_m]Shakespeare[/name_m] associations. [name_f]Queen[/name_f] [name_f]Mab[/name_f] is enchanting. While he doesn’t think his mom would want to be honored by her first name, M@bel, this would always be a nod in her direction.
I love what a bad@$$ warrior queen [name_f]Maeve[/name_f] is. I like the “intoxicating” “[name_u]Mead[/name_u] Woman” meaning on the level of head-spinning enchantment and honey-sweet confusion that gets you every time. Then again, we are teetotalers, so I don’t know if that’s weird. I also love that she is Irish. I’m a good chunk Irish (that’s the [name_u]Roche[/name_u] maternal line) and I love so many Irish names but my husband has never been on board (he likes Líadan however). This would be my one opportunity to actually give nod to that heritage. I love that she also has the V. I loVe the letter V and although she isn’t a y to complete the XYZ set with the sibling middles, she is close in that end-of-alphabet spiky way.
[name_f]Maeve[/name_f] is clove and cardamom in a honeyed apple cider. She is swirly, gilded triskelion mandala, a labyrinth of Celtic knots with no end and no up or down in which to lose yourself forever.
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[details=“[name_u]Tempest[/name_u] [name_f]Alcione[/name_f] [name_f]Maeve[/name_f]”]
We come back to T.A.M., initials honoring my MIL’s surname and thereby my husband’s maternal line.
In [name_f]Alcione[/name_f] she gains the necessary [name_u]French[/name_u] name needed, as I wouldn’t be calling our daughter [name_f]Tempeste[/name_f] or Tempête in [name_u]French[/name_u] as it just feels strange. [name_f]Maeve[/name_f] has become widely popular in [name_f]France[/name_f] in recent years, but I’d prefer [name_f]Alcione[/name_f] based on the melodious pronunciation and intrigue.
[name_f]Alcione[/name_f] is also the reprieve between the battering strength of the storm and the swirling dizziness of intoxication. The quiet in the eye of the storm or just before or after.
I wonder if this name is too definitive. It leaves less room to grow than some of my others. She had best be fierce. She has best be a force to reckon with.
But halcyon being the idyllic period of calm and quiet contentment and peace, contrasted by the obvious tempestuousness of [name_u]Tempest[/name_u]… that in a nutshell has been this period of early parenthood. Where H0rat1O was born into pure happiness and his pregnancy and birth a ridiculously happy time befitting his name, An@$ta$io came in to resurrect hope in our home after some darkness and aimless roaming throughout our adoption process, and this baby will be born into such a mixture of the joys and chaos of a home with two rowdy toddler brothers. I like the idea of her having a lot of contradictory feistiness and peacemaking, rage and calm, etc. about her and that being reflected in her name feels fitting.
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I like it. I didn’t look up the name alcione on purpose. It sounds french the way you say it and I like both ways in which it is said. The way you say it has a bit of french flair ( I now know it’s Greek) and the way your husband would say it is also great and perhaps more phonetic way of saying it. I think both work.
Tempest [name_f]Alcione[/name_f] [name_f]Maeve[/name_f] is beautiful. I love the imagery and the bright yet stormy feel. There’s something dream like and mystical about it
I think [name_u]Tempest[/name_u] is one of your most beautiful choices. It’s so powerful yet it doesn’t feel overpowering to me. It does feel very fierce but I don’t think it’s necessarily an uncontrolled fierceness. It’s like a hurricane building power over time.
Oh, and [name_u]Tempest[/name_u] also reminds me of tempus the Latin word for time. It’s a very strong feminine name to me with lots of “goddess” energy. And Tippy and Tess are both adorable!
[name_f]Alcione[/name_f] could not be more perfect with [name_u]Tempest[/name_u]. I love the meaning. I love the connection to calmness and the kingfisher bird. I love the sound. They just seem like they were meant for each other!
[name_f]Maeve[/name_f]. I’m really liking the magic of [name_f]Maeve[/name_f]. It sounds great in this combo too. The literal meaning doesn’t match quite as well to me but I think it still works. The meaningfulness of your husband’s love for the name and the fact it honors your Irish heritage makes up for it.
I still slightly prefer [name_f]Minerva[/name_f] in this combo but I do think [name_f]Maeve[/name_f] has more pizzazz.
Overall, this is one of my favorites but I wonder if it bothers you that there’s not a direct honor name such as [name_u]Jule[/name_u]? That would be my only hesitation with this one. If TAM initials are what feels right, and you and your husband love all these names, then I think this one shows a lot of promise.
I really like [name_u]Tempest[/name_u] [name_f]Alcione[/name_f] [name_f]Maeve[/name_f], it flows beautifully and I do like the meaning for you. I still think my favorite is [name_f]Petra[/name_f] [name_f]Apolline[/name_f] [name_f]Joy[/name_f], though. [name_f]My[/name_f] one qualm with [name_u]Tempest[/name_u] is that I think it’s a lot of name: not because it’s too obscure or hard to pronounce or anything, because it isn’t really, but because it has some very heavy imagery so it does feel very loaded. Again, not necessarily bad imagery, but strong imagery. You’ve already talked about that in your posts, of course, but I would say it’s the only thing that’s holding me back from fully and enthusiastically endorsing this combo.
I’m so fond of your [name_f]Petra[/name_f] [name_f]Apolline[/name_f] [name_f]Joy[/name_f]. I thought I’d seen [name_f]Petra[/name_f] [name_f]Apolline[/name_f] in your usercard some months ago and I just loved it. I’d been hoping to see her again. I’m drawn to compact, high energy names so I was happy with just the two, but now that I see her with [name_f]Joy[/name_f], it seems she is whole. She’s in complete balance. No name competes or diminishes another in space or meaning. I adore the way [name_f]Apolline[/name_f] holds the centre. She criss-crosses the ‘e’ and ascending ‘t’ from [name_f]Petra[/name_f] with the ‘o’ and descending ‘y’ from [name_f]Joy[/name_f]. It’s exquisite.
I can also see [name_u]Jule[/name_u] in place of [name_f]Joy[/name_f]. I like that very much, though it would make for a rather honour-heavy name with the three honours. I see this in two lights. [name_f]My[/name_f] mind first goes straight to the imbalance with H and A’s names, H in particular. The number of names given and the relative significance. But then I think, if you feel strongly about giving a girl two middle names and are going to do it either way, then both names being honours feels like the strongest reason to do so. It avoids the extra name from appearing ornamental. It’s possibly the last time you will name a baby of yours, so you pass on family names while you can. It doesn’t matter that one child received more than the others. They all have their own special naming stories and the family names and memories continue to live on in this next generation.
As an aside: Does the [name_u]Roche[/name_u] surname mean ‘little rock’ in your family’s context? The shared meaning with [name_f]Petra[/name_f] looks like a concrete link to that side of your family. It may not be apparent on paper alone, but it feels deeply rooted and the way to get there seems straightforward to me.
Also, I’ve been wondering if any of those criteria ratings led to a change or strengthening of your name direction?
I really like [name_f]Alcione[/name_f] with the kingfisher imagery, and I like [name_f]Maeve[/name_f]. I’m not sold on [name_u]Tempest[/name_u] as a name though. I think just because I’ve never heard it on a person, so it feels too much like a word. I can see it working on a girl, but only a grownup with a certain personality. [name_f]My[/name_f] favorites are still the two [name_f]Petra[/name_f] combos, although I do think the TAM initial honor is cute.
Yes. [name_m]Rock[/name_m]. I used to think the connection was a stretch but now I definitely see [name_f]Petra[/name_f] as an honor and I’ve sort of flipped that position and see it as rather straightforward like you do.
Interesting question. I have thought a lot about it this week in particular. I’m really trying to suss out the next best step. The highest ranking by far was the statement, “It is important that my husband love every individual name and the overall combination just as much as I do.” That is a tall order, of course, as it is for many couples (hence why Nameberry remains relevant continually with all these new posts everyday ). I do feel like I got some sort of order of importance from it overall. Particularly being able to say that having a good [name_u]French[/name_u] and Japanese nickname in mind is more important than a workable full first name (so [name_f]Minerva[/name_f] stays). I’m still thinking and feeling things through.
[name_u]Tempest[/name_u] [name_f]Alcione[/name_f] [name_f]Maeve[/name_f] is hitting middle of the pack, I believe. I’m doubting myself at every turn but hoping maybe I’m pregnant so maybe it’s just my hormones and fatigue getting in the way. Or maybe not. I still don’t know which name I’ll post about this week…
[details=“[name_f]Perpetua[/name_f]”]
I first heard the name [name_f]Perpetua[/name_f] in [name_f]Bridget[/name_f] [name_m]Jones[/name_m]’ Diary as a child. I didn’t like the name for a long time but it has grown to be a favorite. I love the “perpetual” meaning. Enduring or everlasting definitely give me the “metal ox” imagery as she has a feeling of steadfastness and constancy. I like the association with the botanical “perpetual” flowers that are continuous bloomers, and with the concept of perpetual motion (like a perpetual motion machine, and also reminds me of the basic violin song “Perpetual Motion” that is a part of the Suzuki Method repertoire I learned as a kid). The meaning would definitely count as a “time/event” alongside her brothers. I like the idea of the last child being the one with the “enduring” name as our family hopefully continues on in perpetuity.
I’m not at all religious, nor do I consider myself a [name_u]Christian[/name_u], but I am not put off by the [name_m]Saint[/name_m] association. She seems like a good one and an interesting historical figure. I recognize that the name does ring Catholic in many ears, but I think it’s fine. I think that just comes with the territory of most rare Latinate names.
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[details=“[name_u]Jule[/name_u]”]
[name_m]Just[/name_m] the quote today. You probably already know all this by now…
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[details=“[name_f]Perpetua[/name_f] [name_u]Jule[/name_u]”]
I think that if I’m going to use [name_u]Jule[/name_u] as a single middle, it has to be in a dynamic pairing like this. The name up front has to be much more distinctive (I can’t see [name_f]Petra[/name_f] [name_u]Jule[/name_u] or [name_f]Thisbe[/name_f] [name_u]Jule[/name_u] or even [name_f]Octavia[/name_f] [name_u]Jule[/name_u] working as well on their own), but I do absolutely love the idea she could be [name_f]Petra[/name_f] for short.
[name_f]Perpetua[/name_f] [name_u]Jule[/name_u]'s meaning reminds me of the [name_m]Bob[/name_m] [name_u]Dylan[/name_u] song “[name_u]Forever[/name_u] [name_m]Young[/name_m].” I have very few happy memories with my biological father, but he loved to sing me folk songs (both old [name_f]English[/name_f] and Scottish folk songs as well as American ones) and [name_m]Bob[/name_m] [name_u]Dylan[/name_u]'s music was something we bonded over when I was a toddler. The song also makes me think of the nostalgia of family life as presented in the NBC show Parenthood, and also of the picture book narrative version of the song lyrics that I used to read with one of the little girls I used to nanny (H@rper).
I’m also always looking for a name that reminds me of “glimmering, glinting, gem-studded things” (a quotation from one of my favorite authors on the power of a rich vocabulary developed from reading aloud throughout a child’s childhood), which is just such a beautiful description. The [name_u]Jule[/name_u] (jewel) here paired with the light of a single taper candle gives off that reflective, glinting quality, too.
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I wound up being a couple days late this week. I’ll probably wait until next [name_f]Tuesday[/name_f] to post as well and then may get back on track the following weekend.
Perpetua [name_u]Jule[/name_u] is lovely, and I adore the nn [name_f]Petra[/name_f]! I love [name_f]Perpetua[/name_f] for you, regardless of the [name_m]Saint[/name_m] association, as it still has that lovely personal meaning for you! It doesn’t actually feel distinctly Catholic to me, as [name_m]Saint[/name_m] [name_f]Perpetua[/name_f] isn’t one I’ve heard about too much. I agree though, [name_u]Jule[/name_u] needs to be paired with a distinctive first name, and [name_f]Petra[/name_f] feels just a bit too mainstream for [name_u]Jule[/name_u].
If I had to rank your combos so far, I would put [name_f]Perpetua[/name_f] [name_u]Jule[/name_u] first, closely followed by [name_f]Petra[/name_f] [name_f]Apolline[/name_f] [name_f]Joy[/name_f]. This one is relatively simple and meaningful but still exceptionally distinctive. I also love how the rhythm mimics her brothers’ names more than the 3-name combos.
everytime.
). I do feel like I got some sort of order of importance from it overall. Particularly being able to say that having a good [name_u]French[/name_u] and Japanese nickname in mind is more important than a workable full first name (so [name_f]Minerva[/name_f] stays). I’m still thinking and feeling things through.
I love [name_f]Perpetua[/name_f] for you, regardless of the [name_m]Saint[/name_m] association, as it still has that lovely personal meaning for you! It doesn’t actually feel distinctly Catholic to me, as [name_m]Saint[/name_m] [name_f]Perpetua[/name_f] isn’t one I’ve heard about too much. I agree though, [name_u]Jule[/name_u] needs to be paired with a distinctive first name, and [name_f]Petra[/name_f] feels just a bit too mainstream for [name_u]Jule[/name_u].