Bothered by loving a very popular name

Girl Names
1

My SO and I are having an extremely tough time deciding on a name for our little girl due this month (her twin brother has been named for months). All of the names that we both love seem to be in the top 5 baby names, which doesn’t bother him, but it bothers me a little.

We love the name [name]Olivia[/name]. I have put it as the middle name after basically every single name that I have come up with as a possibility. Almost all of the first names have come and gone, but [name]Olivia[/name] has stuck around. There are names that we have both liked better, but we have to compromise. I’ve been hoping for a Shakespearean name, and it’s pretty much the perfect one (twin #2 is [name]Cassius[/name], and I like the idea of them both being [name]Shakespeare[/name] characters).

But a top 4 baby name in the US, #2 in our state, #1 in britain…that’s REALLY high up there! I am also trying to remind myself of the fact that “popular” names now aren’t nearly as popular as “popular” names were when I was born. There always seemed to be at least 4 Jessicas, Ashleys, and Jennifers in all of my classes, and then my sorority, growing up. However, “unique” names have gotten really popular and people have really started branching out. So the number of children having the top #1 name in [name]Washington[/name] this year (sophia) is almost exactly half of the number of children born with the top #1 baby name in 1987 (jessica). Which would bring me to believe that there are tons of Sophias out there, but instead of there being 4 in a class, there would only be two. Which isn’t horrible.

Does everyone know a lot of little Olivias? I haven’t met one yet, but they’re clearly out there. When I go anywhere all I hear is “[name]Bella[/name]/[name]Isabella[/name]” or “[name]Ellie[/name]” for girls, and I swear every little boy is named [name]Liam[/name]!

I can’t decide if it’s such a popular name that we can’t use it, or if it’s a nice enough name that we should use it anyways.

2

Maybe [name]Lavinia[/name] would work for you? I love [name]Olivia[/name] but it is popular. If that bothers you [name]Lavinia[/name] seems to fit & have a similar sound, sounds great with [name]Cassius[/name] & thr [name]Shakespeare[/name] connection.

3

I understand what you’re going through…I tend to like a lot of popular names too. Let’s face it, lots of them are really pretty! But I tend to steer away from them b/c of their popularity. That said, you made a great point…popular names now aren’t as bad as they once were. Personally, if you both [name]LOVE[/name] the name…I’d use it! I actually have never met any [name]Olivia[/name]'s yet even though it’s popular? And it’s a gorgeous name…popular for a reason!

4

Popularity has never bothered me, especially if you have a nice nickname planned for her. [name]Even[/name] if there’s another [name]Olivia[/name] in her class, if she goes by [name]Liv[/name], it won’t be a problem.

On the other hand, if you want a Shakespearan name that isn’t as popular, there are loads of others:

[name]Emilia[/name]
[name]Adriana[/name]
[name]Miranda[/name]
[name]Iris[/name]
[name]Rosalind[/name]
[name]Regan[/name]
[name]Viola[/name]
[name]Bianca[/name]

5

I think [name]Rosalind[/name] and [name]Miranda[/name] both go really well with [name]Cassius[/name]. [name]Olivia[/name] is really popular, and it’s a name that I’ve never understood the appeal of, but it is still a nice name. If you love it then go for it.

6

In [name]Colorado[/name] I know at least 4 little girls names [name]Olivia[/name] in our neighborhood. It is a pretty name, but be prepared to have others in her social circle throughout life. If that doesn’t bother you then I think it is fine.

7

I would really prefer that there was no nickname with [name]Olivia[/name], but that would really be up to her. I like it because it’s such a pretty name on its own. For my SO, her name would ideally be [name]Olivia[/name] [name]Rayne[/name] B----, which has a nice ring to it but not a whole lot of nickname possibilities, outside of [name]Rainy[/name], [name]Liv[/name], [name]Livy[/name], [name]Vi[/name]…or as we joked about, Orb/Orby (her initials lol). I would love it if one of my many other name ideas was the middle name ([name]Jovienne[/name], [name]Hero[/name], [name]Simone[/name]), but he really has a thing for [name]Rayne[/name].

Unfortunately, he has turned down [name]Regan[/name], [name]Viola[/name], and [name]Bianca[/name] already. The other ones I’m not a huge fan of. Our roommate and I are both [name]Shakespeare[/name] nuts so we’re obsessed with the name [name]Hero[/name], and the roomie already calls her that. It is an odd name for those not into [name]Shakespeare[/name] though, and SO says we might as well name her Sandwich. But he didn’t even know that [name]Shakespeare[/name] wrote comedies as well as tragedies shakes head in disgust. Mama always told me I needed to find a boy with a good education, and I went out and found a Biker dude. I guess this is my punishment lol.

8

I love [name]Olivia[/name]! It’s on my own short list, as well. I look at it this way. If you do the math, there are 39 counties in [name]Washington[/name] (I checked), and there were 426 Olivias born last year. That leaves 10 Olivias in each county, essentially. In most places I’ve looked, there’s about 20 or so public school districts in each state (not including private secular schools, private religious schools, charter schools, home schools, etc.!), so that leaves what, one [name]Olivia[/name] for every other public first grade class. Or Kindergarten class. Which, honestly, isn’t that bad at all. :slight_smile: Besides, let’s face it, Twelfth [name]Night[/name] is amazing. haha. I adore that play. I think [name]Viola[/name]'s a more appealing character, but at the end, [name]Olivia[/name]'s a pretty great character and it’s a lovely name, it has wonderful connections to peace and the olive branch, it has a ton of awesome nicknames ([name]Olive[/name], [name]Ollie[/name], [name]Liv[/name], [name]Livy[/name], [name]Via[/name], [name]Lia[/name], or you could even stretch it to use [name]Lily[/name], [name]Libby[/name], or [name]Ivy[/name]), it’s versatile, it’s feminine, it’s timeless. It has all those things going for it, yeah, it’s popular, but is that really the end of the world? I loved being an [name]Ashley[/name] because it helped me feel like I fit in when I was younger. I was a painfully shy little kid, and it meant the world to me that even if I stuck out like a sore thumb in every other category, at least my name made me feel like I wasn’t an outcast. :slight_smile: Not saying your daughter will feel like that, if she is shy, it’s a bonus, if she’s not, she’ll still wear [name]Olivia[/name] well. Besides, how many people can say their name was invented by such a cool author as [name]William[/name] [name]Shakespeare[/name] himself? Olivias can! hahaha. I obviously love it, but it sounds like you do, too, you’re just trying to convince yourself of it. [name]Olivia[/name] and [name]Cassius[/name] work really well together, too.

Someone once told me that even though there are thousands of Isabelles (my top choice for a girl atm) in the world, if I use [name]Isabelle[/name], she’ll be my [name]Isabelle[/name] and that’s all that’s important. And I agree. Who cares about all the other Olivias? I’m sure they’re lovely, but they’re not your [name]Olivia[/name]. And your [name]Olivia[/name] will be special, because she is who she is. :slight_smile: She’s the [name]Olivia[/name] who will make you laugh and cry and dream, she’s the [name]Olivia[/name] you would go through death and fire for. She’s the [name]Olivia[/name] whose masterpieces will hang on your refrigerator, she’s the [name]Olivia[/name] whose soccer games you’ll attend faithfully, she’s the [name]Olivia[/name] you’ll be rooting for on graduation day. That’s really all that matters, imo. :slight_smile:

Good luck!

ETA: For what it’s worth, I came across one little [name]Olivia[/name] at work (I work in a restaurant that gets a lot of transient business), and a little [name]Olivia[/name] visited my church once, but that’s all I’ve come across. I don’t know one [name]Olivia[/name] personally, not little or big.

9

I wouldn’t be too bothered because [name]Olivia[/name] is going to stick around for a long time as a classic. It’s not just a fad that will die away like some other popular names of today. [name]Olivia[/name] is a great choice and if you love it, that’s what’s most important.

10

I say go for it, there are tons of lovely nicknames you can use for [name]Olivia[/name] as well, [name]Liv[/name], [name]Livia[/name], [name]Olly[/name], [name]Lili[/name], [name]Via[/name], [name]Vi[/name].
But then again I also love the name [name]Olivia[/name]. :stuck_out_tongue:

Perhaps [name]Livia[/name] would be a nice substitute?

11

Oh, I wanted to add, if you wanted something a bit more obscure, I think [name]Olive[/name] is a nice substitute. [name]Olive[/name] and [name]Cassius[/name] are great, too, and [name]Olive[/name] has a lot of the same imagery of [name]Olivia[/name] for me. In the end, I just couldn’t give up the Shakespearean connection, personally, but [name]Olive[/name] may appeal to you. :slight_smile:

12

Go for the name you love! Like others have said, it is popular but it is also classic.

13

It’s a popular name, but it’s also a true classic. If you love it, then I’d say go ahead and use it.

14

I really like [name]Olivia[/name]. I know it is really popular. I too was worried about popularity. I found in my province (live in [name]Canada[/name]), they publish the exact number of babies born in each year with every name. I feel like this really helps out into perspective. Maybe the same information is available and might help you see if the popularity really is an issue. With that being said, if you really love the name, you should go for it.

15

Go with the name you love best. [name]Olivia[/name] is very pretty! I’ve never met an [name]Olivia[/name], but would be very pleased if I ended up with a future daughter-in-law or grandchild with the name.

16

[name]Olivia[/name] is very pretty, but I do know a few little Olivias. If you love it, though, you should use it! I’d also like to throw out [name]Cordelia[/name] as another Shakespearian suggestion. [name]Cassius[/name] and [name]Cordelia[/name] sound great together.

17

Everyone is making me feel much better about the name, thank you :slight_smile: Hopefully if we choose it, she’ll love it as much as we do!

I swear, I’ve never made a tougher decision in my life. The name someone goes by (or hates and chooses not to go by) for their ENTIRE life. It’s such a huge deal. It’s so hard to find one that is trendy enough that it would be modern, but classic enough that it would last forever, pretty and strong at the same time, not too slutty but not too “little girl”, won’t be made fun of or thought of as “odd”, won’t be mispronounced by everyone ever… So hard. And having to compromise doesn’t help!

18

I’ve only met one or two Olivia’s, but just the name itself sounds very common. Although, I do love it and think it’s an excellent choice.

Another way to go could be Ophelia(from [name]Hamlet[/name]). It has the same soft sound as [name]Olivia[/name] and the popularity factor is not a problem.