Help! I need some serious help with a baby girl name. My husband and I have three children, all of whom have “M” names. We are supposed to have our fourth child in a few weeks. We had decided on the name “[name]Mabel[/name]” for our daughter several months ago, but kept our name a secret to avoid criticism from friends and family. My sister, who is also pregnant, and also kept her name a secret, just announced that her new baby boy’s name was “[name]Abel[/name]”. We are at a loss as to what to do. We feel like we have to stick with “M” names, and, at this point, since this will be our third daughter, we are out of options. We have been calling our daughter “[name]Mabel[/name]” for months in our home. This is one of the drawbacks of keeping your name a secret. We truly can’t think of any other “M” names that we like, or any other names for that matter. [name]Do[/name] you think it is rude to name our daughter “[name]Mabel[/name]”, when she will have a cousin named “[name]Abel[/name]” who is only a few weeks older? We could have never forseen this predicament. Now we don’t know what to do. Advice, please!
I think the best thing to do would be to talk to your sister and tell her what has happened. I’m sure she’ll understand and may still be ok with your daughter being called [name]Mabel[/name]. After all, you had both chosen your names months ago and no one is purposely stealing from the other.
Maybe a nickname would be easier. [name]Abel[/name] could be [name]Abe[/name] or [name]Mabel[/name] could go by either [name]May[/name] or [name]Belle[/name], which might alleviate some confusion.
So sorry about your predicament. There probably are a few variables – how close are you to your sister, both relationship-wise and proximity? I have sisters too and we’re very close (in both regards), so I was thinking if this happened to me, I definitely would want to find a new name. Not sure if that’s the advice you’re looking for, but assuming you’re here looking for new name ideas, maybe you could tell us what your other kids’ names are so we get a sense of your style. Here are a few M names I can think of off the top of my head:
[name]Marie[/name]*
[name]Monica[/name]
[name]Marielle[/name]*
[name]Maelle[/name]
[name]Mavis[/name]
[name]Maura[/name]*
[name]Maris[/name]
[name]Monique[/name]
[name]Melody[/name]
[name]Mona[/name]*
[name]Margaret[/name]
[name]Mallory[/name]*
[name]Mildred[/name]
[name]Matilda[/name]
I starred my faves. Good luck to you. Fortunately “M” is a letter with a lot of lovely names. I’m sure you’ll be able to find something you love.
Thank you for your advice. I was up until three last night worrying about this thing. It feels as if my unborn daughter’s name is [name]Mabel[/name] and that she is suddenly having an identity crisis. It seems a silly thing to be upset about, in the whole scheme of things. I guess I’m just having a hard time. My other daughters are named [name]Mary[/name] [name]Alice[/name] and [name]Milla[/name] (pronounced Mill-uh) [name]Josephine[/name]. My taste is vintage classic. Most of my name suggestions have been described by my hubby as “too old lady”. We didn’t intentionally name our daughters with “M” names. It just happened. We actually tried to think of names that didn’t start with an “M”, but after hearing overwhelming advice that we would scar the child if we failed to give her an “M” name, we decided it was best to stick with an “M”. We feel pinned into a corner. We’ve been sure about [name]Mabel[/name], but were debating between the middle names [name]Violet[/name] and [name]Evangeline[/name]. Again, I so appreciate advice. I can’t talk to anyone about this. My sister and I will live several hours apart, probably never in the same area, but are very close as sisters. She knows that I would never intentionally try to “copy” her name. I just don’t want to upset her or damage our relationship. One more thing… We have a VERY common last name, so we always try to go with something that is a different, but not too different. Thanks again for your help.
One last thing I forgot to mention… [name]Mabel[/name] is a family name, the name of a favored great aunt who passed away last year, so there is a little bit of sentimentality behind it too. 
Hey there, I’m really sorry about your situation! It’s almost like you have to mourn the loss of your daughters name now 
I personally wouldn’t use [name]Mabel[/name] now (as much as I love the name) becuase it does seem a little too close for comfort, especially since [name]Mabel[/name] and [name]Abel[/name] would be the same age.
I know a [name]Mabel[/name] and her sister’s name is [name]Martha[/name] - maybe you like that? There’s also the variation [name]Amabel[/name] but then you wouldn’t have the “m” initial. Or you could just call her [name]May[/name]/[name]Mae[/name]?
Other ideas that I think pair well with [name]Mary[/name] (love love love!) and [name]Milla[/name] (never heard before but also love :)) are:
[name]Mona[/name]*
[name]Moira[/name]*
[name]Melina[/name]
Meleri
[name]Mara[/name]
[name]Margot[/name]
[name]Marni[/name]
[name]Matilda[/name]
[name]Marta[/name]
[name]Manon[/name]*
[name]Malia[/name]
[name]Marlena[/name]
[name]Mattea[/name]
[name]Maren[/name]
[name]Marlen[/name]
[name]Molly[/name]*
[name]Maura[/name]*
[name]Mira[/name]
[name]Mireille[/name]
[name]Megan[/name]*
[name]Mia[/name]
[name]Maisie[/name]*
[name]Morgana[/name]*
[name]Melanie[/name]
[name]Macy[/name]
[name]Maggie[/name]*
[name]Margaret[/name]
[name]Melody[/name]*
[name]Miriam[/name]
[name]Marissa[/name]
[name]Meredith[/name]*
[name]Miranda[/name]
[name]Mali[/name]
[name]Mina[/name]
[name]Monica[/name]
[name]Maya[/name]
[name]Meadow[/name]*
[name]Marina[/name]
[name]Magdalena[/name]*
[name]Maeve[/name]* (similar to [name]Mabel[/name])
[name]Martina[/name]
[name]Mamie[/name]*
[name]Marcia[/name]
[name]Mercy[/name]
Menna
[name]Milana[/name]
Best of luck!
I’m so sorry to hear about this. My mother went through something similar, except she hadn’t even kept the name she liked a surprise. She was planning on [name]Gabriella[/name] if she had a girl (sex was a surprise) and an Aunt went and named her son [name]Gabriel[/name], only 3 weeks before my mom was due.
I just wanted to tell you that you should never feel pressured into doing something. I know multiple sibsets that are X, X, Y initials and they haven’t even noticed. I’m in one of them as an [name]Alexandra[/name], [name]Antonio[/name] and [name]Vincenzo[/name]. I also know a [name]Jessica[/name], [name]Joseph[/name] and [name]Charles[/name]; [name]Atticus[/name], [name]Abbott[/name] and [name]Beckett[/name]; [name]Elizabeth[/name], [name]Eamon[/name] and [name]Zachary[/name]; [name]Miles[/name], [name]Madison[/name] and [name]Jack[/name]… Notice how they’re all changed at the end! I think it’s because it wasn’t intentionally done, no one noticed and they went with what they loved. [name]Don[/name]'t limit your options. You won’t be scarring your child because you picked a name you adored and put a lot of thought into it.
[name]May[/name] or [name]Mae[/name] (I’m biased, I know) would be lovely but know that it is a nickname for [name]Mary[/name]. For me, that would be a deal breaker but for most it wouldn’t matter.
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Alice[/name], [name]Milla[/name] [name]Josephine[/name] and [name]Maeve[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Alice[/name], [name]Milla[/name] [name]Josephine[/name] and [name]Maxine[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Alice[/name], [name]Milla[/name] [name]Josephine[/name] and [name]Mirabel[/name] (similar, still has [name]Abel[/name] but pronounced differently)
[name]Just[/name] wanted to let you know that I know a family with four kids (they are all adults now, so the names are a bit “older”) named [name]Scott[/name], [name]Sheryl[/name], [name]Shelly[/name], and [name]Kris[/name]. There was nothing different about [name]Kris[/name] (ie. half-siblings, so a different parents, or a decade younger, etc.) that made them go with a different letter - her parents just loved [name]Kris[/name] and that was it. She has seriously never cared. So, if you do happen to find a non-M name you love, I would go with it. I am in a family with 7 kids starting with the same letter, and it bugs the heck out of all of us. Now might be a good time to ditch the theme if you can.
- [name]Sydnee[/name]
Perhaps, since it is a family name, you could use a version of it to honour your relative. Something like [name]Mabella[/name].
I just love the suggestion of [name]Maeve[/name]!
If you want to honor someone in your family with the name [name]Mabel[/name] but you’re sister now has a boy called [name]Abel[/name], you can always use some other alternative for [name]Mabel[/name] like [name]Mabilia[/name]. My favourite names beginning with the letter “M” that would go well with [name]Mary[/name] and [name]Milla[/name] are the following:
[name]Matilda[/name]
[name]Madeleine[/name]
[name]Marguerite[/name]
[name]Magali[/name]
[name]Maeve[/name]
[name]Mahalia[/name]
[name]Maida[/name]
[name]Maisie[/name]
Malise
[name]Malvina[/name]
[name]Marcella[/name]
[name]Maxine[/name]
[name]Melania[/name]
[name]Mercy[/name]
[name]Meredith[/name]
[name]Meta[/name]
[name]Mia[/name]
[name]Michaela[/name]
[name]Mirabel[/name]
[name]Miranda[/name]
[name]Morna[/name]
[name]Morrigan[/name]
[name]Morwenna[/name]
[name]Moselle[/name]
Muirne
[name]Muriel[/name]
If I were you I would have a talk with your sister and explain the situation. She may not mind at all. I wouldn’t! [name]Mabel[/name] and [name]Abel[/name] may grow to be quite close with the added bond of a similar name. It’s not the same name and one is female, the other male. This may not be a problem at all. I would have the conversation with your sister and go from there.
Thank you all so much for your help and baby name suggestions! I will see my sister and baby [name]Abel[/name] in a few days and am working up the nerve to explain the situation to her. I am praying that her heart will be softened on the subject. I don’t see [name]Abel[/name] and [name]Mabel[/name] as the same type of names at all, with the exception of the letters that make up the name. Also, the fact that they are a boy and a girl makes a big difference, I think. I need prayers for the right words to say and peace about the situation. Hopefully all will go well. I am so set on my precious little [name]Mabel[/name], having already sung to her and talked to her as our “[name]Mabel[/name]” for four months. [name]Mabel[/name] means “lovable” and just seems so perfect for our fourth and final child. It is just a really difficult situation. Thank you all so much for your help! It is much appreciated.
Let us know how it turns out. I wish you all the best!
Oh I love [name]Mabel[/name] so much, such a sweet name and [name]Mabel[/name] [name]Evangeline[/name] is so pretty. I’m sure she’ll understand and won’t have a problem with it. Good luck.
I just posted an update to this post under AGONIZING name dilemma…This should be a Seinfeld episode. I hate hate hate this situation! [name]Just[/name] thought you might want an update. Thanks so much for your help!