[name]One[/name] of the reasons I love the name [name]Amelia[/name], is because I [name]LOVE[/name] the nickname [name]Millie[/name]. In fact, I think I might like [name]Millie[/name] MORE than [name]Amelia[/name]. Plus I don’t like the idea of naming a child something with an intention of calling them something completely different. Does that make sense? But anyway, I [name]LOVE[/name] [name]Millie[/name]. So can it stand alone? And what vibe does it give off? My other daughters are [name]Claire[/name] and [name]Ella[/name] so I don’t know if it’s as elegant as those two names are. Thoughts?
I used to think of [name]Millie[/name] as more of a nickname, something I personally wouldn’t put alone, like [name]Katie[/name], [name]Missy[/name], [name]Maggie[/name], [name]Julie[/name]… But now I categorize it in the Nicknames-That-Have-Crossed-Over-Into-“Real”-Names pile with [name]Hattie[/name], [name]Sadie[/name], etc. I think [name]Claire[/name] and [name]Ella[/name] are elegant, but in a low-key/relaxed/casual/approachable way. I would put [name]Millie[/name] in the same category. They sound nice together, though I’m not sure if I find the omnipresent “L” sound they share sweetly uniting or too matchy. Overall, though, I actually think I find [name]Ella[/name] and [name]Amelia[/name] too similar sounding; [name]Ella[/name] and [name]Millie[/name] sound more distinctive to me…
I have a similiar thing. I actually love the nn [name]Mia[/name] more than [name]Amelia[/name]. However, I think it is better to give children the formal names instead of just the nn. [name]Millie[/name] is very cute but to me, it has a childish vibe. I think it is better that she goes by [name]Millie[/name] as child (and older if she chooses), and then have the more formal [name]Amelia[/name] when she is graduating and applying to jobs and such.
I would love to see [name]Millie[/name] used alone more often. I disagree that it sounds childish; in fact, I think it sounds like an elderly woman who knits and tells stories of how she used to walk down a country dirt lane to her one-room schoolhouse. Nickname names are coming back in style, and [name]Millie[/name]'s name would grow with her through life’s stages, especially since some of her peers will have similar names.
the child would always get “whats it short for?” & “really? just [name]Millie[/name]?” leading to a lifetime of “yeah…its just [name]Millie[/name]”
the best part of a nickname is the full name surprise behind it! especially when the nn is [name]Millie[/name] and it could be a number of different names!
Thanks for your input, everyone! You ladies here are all so great and knowledgeable. I can see the benefits of a nick name. But honestly, I know it would just bug me. Which name do you teach them to write when they’re in pre-school? Which name do they get called by their elementary school teachers? I don’t know why, but it just bothers me, lol! I guess I just like things to be simple. I want to pick a name and call my child by that name. Frustrating!
I think it can. It isn’t any more or less childish than [name]Lily[/name].
Beg to differ. I wouldn’t even use it as a nickname. It sounds like mealie.
Mealie? You must have a different dialect than I do! 
Not literally–it just makes me think of meal worms whenever I hear [name]Millie[/name] because the words are so close.
I prefer [name]Millie[/name] as a nickname (for [name]Mila[/name] or [name]Milena[/name], if you dislike [name]Amelia[/name]), but I think it’s okay as a stand alone name.
i think its always safer and more fun to have a full name. that way your kid has options. they may hate or grow out of a nickname. it could even become the source of taunts, teasing, etc that they could leave behind more easily if they had a full name
full name i’d use Millerna
she was a secondary character, a princess, in the anime Escaflowne