My youngest sister is named [name_f]Eliana[/name_f]. She is called [name_f]Ellie[/name_f] almost exclusively at home but goes by [name_f]Eliana[/name_f] pretty much everywhere else. I have recently noticed that I like many girl names beginning with [name_f]El[/name_f]-.
Are any (or all) of these too close to [name_f]Ellie[/name_f]/[name_f]Eliana[/name_f] to use on potential future daughters? Would the nickname [name_f]Ellie[/name_f] be inevitable for any of them? With the exception of [name_f]Elodie[/name_f] and [name_f]Elowen[/name_f], I would probably call the rest [name_f]Elsie[/name_f] as a pet name. Any thoughts would be much appreciated. Thanks!
I think it would be confusing and a little silly to have an [name_f]Ellie[/name_f] and an [name_f]Elsie[/name_f]…but you could use any of your other names and have different or no nicknames. For instance, [name_f]Eliza[/name_f] nn [name_f]Liza[/name_f], [name_f]Elodie[/name_f] nn [name_f]Dee[/name_f], [name_f]Elowen[/name_f] nn [name_u]Wynne[/name_u] or [name_f]Winnie[/name_f], [name_f]Eloise[/name_f] nn Lo. Otherwise, I’d just call them by their full names. No nicknames needed because none of them are super long.
I don’t think it would be that confusing. In my family we have a lot of people with the same name and it’s not really an issue. I love the nickname [name_f]Elsie[/name_f].
I think [name_f]Eliza[/name_f] would be much easier than the others, because while it does start with “[name_m]Eli[/name_m]-”, it’s the “LYE” syllable that’s stressed rather than the “[name_f]ELL[/name_f]” syllable. [name_f]Eliana[/name_f] and [name_f]Eliza[/name_f] don’t sound nearly as similar as [name_f]Eliana[/name_f] and all of the others on your list. As to the rest, I think it would depend on how often your theoretical future daughter was going to see your sister - if it was once every six months or something, it wouldn’t be a big problem functionally anyway and might seem like a sweet tribute to your sister; if it was daily, it might be a big source of confusion.
None of them is very similar to [name_f]Eliana[/name_f].
Whoever, the most probable nicknames for [name_f]Eliza[/name_f] and [name_f]Elsa[/name_f] are [name_f]Els[/name_f] or [name_f]Ellie[/name_f].
[name_f]Elodie[/name_f], [name_f]Eloise[/name_f] and [name_f]Elowen[/name_f] would all go as Elo(h) in my house.
I would call [name_f]Elsie[/name_f] just [name_f]Elsie[/name_f] 'cause it already seems a nickname (for [name_f]Elsa[/name_f], maybe). Though, I would give this name to a golden retriever if I could. o_o
To me, [name_f]Eliza[/name_f] and [name_f]Elsa[/name_f] are least likely to get called [name_f]Ellie[/name_f]. The ‘e’ in [name_f]Eliza[/name_f] is almost dropped, at least when I say it, so the natural shortening would be [name_f]Liza[/name_f] or Li-Li or something like that. [name_f]Elsa[/name_f] would become [name_f]Elsie[/name_f], I think. [name_f]Elodie[/name_f], [name_f]Eloise[/name_f], and [name_f]Elowen[/name_f] would naturally shorten to [name_f]Ellie[/name_f], to me, and I think [name_f]Elsie[/name_f] is just too close to start with unless it’s an actual homage to your sister.
My sister’s name is [name_f]Ellie[/name_f], and I have that same problem sometimes, worry that its too close for comfort.
I dont think its a problem if it doesnt bother you. If the [name_f]El[/name_f]- sound makes you think immediately of your sister now, that could very well change once there is a baby in the picture. Its up to you and if it bother you or not
I think if you like your sister well enough, it’ll be no big deal that the names are similar. Other wise you’ll have to explore other nickname options on your picks.