I was chatting to a colleague the other day who’s expecting a little girl in mid-[name_u]December[/name_u]. Her husband thinks it would be cute to use a [name_u]Christmas[/name_u] themed name - [name_f]Holly[/name_f], [name_f]Eve[/name_f], [name_f]Ivy[/name_f], [name_f]Belle[/name_f] were all ones she said he’d suggested to her. She’s not too keen as she thinks it’s a bit tacky, especially as a first name. Pretty sure this one’s going to go back and forth between them, but they’ve got a couple more months to argue it.
I’m just curious to see what other people would do in this situation - go with one of your partner’s suggestions, stand your ground or compromise on a middle?
If you would choose the name for its own sake no matter what month your baby was born in, then it’s a good choice for a name. They should ask themselves, if their little girl was born premature and came in [name_u]November[/name_u], would they still want to name her one of these names, or is the allure based solely off of her birth being near [name_u]Christmas[/name_u]? If the holiday allure is the sole basis for appeal, that does feel a little gimmicky, especially for a first name.
However, it also depends on the name. I don’t think of any of the names you listed as being inherently seasonal except perhaps for [name_f]Holly[/name_f]. Here is a Nameberry list with a bunch of [name_u]Christmas[/name_u]-themed names, many of which are farther afield/less obvious than [name_f]Holly[/name_f]. Some I really like are [name_f]Clara[/name_f], [name_f]Lucy[/name_f], and [name_f]Hope[/name_f]. So depending on the name they might get the holiday connection as a bonus with a name they love.
Well, if I had a [name_u]Christmas[/name_u] baby, I would name her [name_u]Hollis[/name_u], [name_f]Arianwen[/name_f], [name_f]Frostine[/name_f] or [name_f]Gwen[/name_f] in a heartbeat because I love these names and they are winter-themed. I would see problems if I didn’t like any [name_u]Christmas[/name_u]-themed names but picked on just because my daughter was born in [name_u]December[/name_u].
So if a parents love a name and the theme is just a bonus, I don’t find it tacky at all.
I actually like a lot of [name_u]Christmas[/name_u] names and I don’t think the names are tacky. Maybe she just thinks the idea is tacky? I think its kind of sweet. [name_f]Noelle[/name_f] and [name_f]Holly[/name_f] are favorites of mine.
But if she doesn’t love the name then maybe a compromise where it goes in the middle, or if it’s really going to bother her then she should just stand her ground. I would hate to hear for the next fifty years a name on my child I never liked!
I don’t think the names you listed are linked closely enough to [name_u]Christmas[/name_u] for it to be super obvious, with [name_f]Holly[/name_f] as the only possible exception. I like [name_f]Noelle[/name_f] as a possibility but I think that’s associated more with [name_u]Christmas[/name_u] than the ones you listed.
If your friend doesn’t like the idea of linking the name to [name_u]Christmas[/name_u] at all, well, they probably shouldn’t then! But if she is just looking for a name that is linked but very subtly, maybe she should look into names with [name_u]Christmas[/name_u]-y meanings, or names even more loosely associated with [name_u]Christmas[/name_u]. Examples I can think of: [name_f]Natalie[/name_f] / [name_f]Natalia[/name_f] (meaning “birthday of the [name_m]Lord[/name_m]”), [name_f]Claire[/name_f] / [name_f]Clara[/name_f] (meaning “bright, clear”), [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] (meaning “light”), [name_f]Angelina[/name_f] / [name_u]Angel[/name_u] / [name_f]Angelica[/name_f] (with the link to “angel”)…then there are names more closely related but won’t necessarily make people think of [name_u]Christmas[/name_u] immediately, like: [name_f]Carol[/name_f], [name_f]Hope[/name_f], [name_f]Faith[/name_f], [name_f]Joy[/name_f], etc.
Since an [name_f]Holly[/name_f], [name_f]Eve[/name_f], [name_f]Ivy[/name_f] or a [name_f]Belle[/name_f] can be born in any month, I don’t think it’s tacky. It’s not like they’re calling the girl [name_u]Christmas[/name_u], is it? As long as they [name_m]BOTH[/name_m] love the name, I don’t see it as a big deal. Your friend can always choose one of them for a middle name if she has misgivings.
[name_u]Christmas[/name_u] is my favorite holiday but knowing two people whose birthdays are actually on [name_u]Christmas[/name_u] I know that they always felt cheated out of a birthday - ½ birthday parties just aren’t the same. I probably wouldn’t want to compound that for my child by choosing a [name_u]Christmas[/name_u] themed fn…
I am however considering [name_f]Noelle[/name_f] in the future as a mn but because [name_u]Christmas[/name_u] is so important to me and not because I”m hoping for a [name_u]December[/name_u] baby.