Girls
[name]Andromeda[/name]
[name]Artemis[/name] (nn [name]Ari[/name])
[name]Jemima[/name] - When I hear it, I think of [name]Jemima[/name] Puddleduck. Others think of syrup.
[name]Octavia[/name] (nn [name]Tavia[/name])
[name]Persephone[/name] (nn Sephy)
[name]Reverie[/name]
Boys
[name]Amadeus[/name]
[name]Apollo[/name] - [name]One[/name] of my absolute favorites since I was like 12. [name]Apolo[/name] Ohno has made it seem more doable to me.
[name]Hezekiah[/name] - Is this wearable?
[name]Huxley[/name] (nn [name]Huck[/name]) - This is normally the type of name I dislike, but I I love the nn [name]Huck[/name]…
[name]Ianto[/name]
[name]Ptolemy[/name]
[name]Rigel[/name]
[name]Solomon[/name] (nn Solo or [name]Sully[/name]) - Not really a GP, but it’s been on and off my list. Right now, I have it as a middle. Is is a doable first?
Gosh, I’m fond of obscure, out of the box names, but these are, for the most part, probably too heavy…[name]Andromeda[/name], maybe if softened with an everyday nn like [name]Andie[/name]. Perhaps the same for [name]Persephone[/name]. [name]Jemima[/name] IS a lovely name I wish we could get into in [name]America[/name]. I love the sound of it [name]Apollo[/name] or [name]Huxley[/name] is the most doable of your boy names. Thanks for sharing. I like fun names!
[name]Octavia[/name]
[name]Apollo[/name]
[name]Huxley[/name] (a friend named her son this just recently)
[name]Solomon[/name] (a personal favorite of mine! love nn [name]Sully[/name]!)
Girls
[name]Andromeda[/name]-NO, “The [name]Andromeda[/name] Strain” by [name]Micheal[/name] [name]Crichton[/name] (sp?), both a movie and a book
[name]Artemis[/name] (nn [name]Ari[/name])-very usable, I love it
[name]Jemima[/name] -“When I hear it, I think of [name]Jemima[/name] Puddleduck. Others think of syrup.” Syrup but I still love it, who’s [name]Jemima[/name] Puddleduck?
[name]Octavia[/name] (nn [name]Tavia[/name])-definitely still usable
[name]Persephone[/name] (nn Sephy)-definitely still usable
[name]Reverie[/name]-I like it
Boys
[name]Amadeus[/name]-I had a kingsnake named this
[name]Apollo[/name] -I would say not so much for this one, seems like it'd be a hard name for a kid to live up to
[name]Hezekiah[/name] - Is this wearable? very much so, I really like it
[name]Huxley[/name] (nn [name]Huck[/name]) - usable though I would just use the name [name]Huck[/name] by itself
[name]Ianto[/name]-no idea how to pronounce it
[name]Ptolemy[/name]-usable but I wouldn't
[name]Rigel[/name]-don't know this name
[name]Solomon[/name] (nn Solo or [name]Sully[/name])-definitely usable, preferably without a nn
[name]Andromeda[/name] – this does make me think of a spaceship, or similar. The sci-fi connotation might be a tad too strong to work [name]IRL[/name].
[name]Artemis[/name] (nn [name]Ari[/name]) – I like it, very usable.
[name]Jemima[/name] – I also think of [name]Jemima[/name] Puddleduck
[name]Octavia[/name] (nn [name]Tavia[/name]) – Usable
[name]Persephone[/name] (nn Sephy) – Usable
[name]Reverie[/name] – I like it, it will always remind me of Girl’s Gone Child blogger, [name]Rebecca[/name] [name]Woolf[/name]'s daughter though.
Boys
[name]Amadeus[/name] – Too [name]Mozart[/name].
[name]Apollo[/name] - Usable.
[name]Hezekiah[/name] – Really not a fan of this name, a bit too biblical.
[name]Huxley[/name] (nn [name]Huck[/name]) – [name]LOVE[/name].
[name]Ianto[/name] – Never heard of this name before. It’s fine.
[name]Ptolemy[/name] – …don’t think this one is usable.
[name]Rigel[/name] – Never seen this name before…is it pronounced like [name]Nigel[/name], but with an “r”?
[name]Solomon[/name] (nn Solo or [name]Sully[/name]) – Yes! Usable. Really like this name
I think that [name]Artemis[/name] and [name]Octavia[/name] are the most usable of the girls’ names. [name]Andromeda[/name] could maybe work. Maybe [name]Annie[/name] or [name]Andra[/name] for a nickname? I don’t care for [name]Reverie[/name] at all.
For the boys, I’d say [name]Apollo[/name], [name]Hezekiah[/name] and [name]Solomon[/name] are all definitely doable. I cannot imagine [name]Ianto[/name] ever being pronounced properly.
[name]Jemima[/name] is so sweet. A friend of mine is currently trying to convince her hubby to go with it but he won’t go past [name]Jemma[/name].
[name]Reverie[/name] makes me feel so carefree.
[name]Solomon[/name] is my favorite of your boys. [name]Ptolemy[/name] I love the sound of but not into the meaning. [name]Apollo[/name] I’ve come round to as its the name of a second cousin of mine.
[name]Andromeda[/name] is really cool. [name]How[/name] about nn [name]Romy[/name]? Or [name]Edi[/name]?
[name]Artemis[/name]? This can be done. It’s cute and I think it’s more feminine than masculine too.
[name]Jemima[/name]… I think about the syrup. I actually know of a [name]Jemima[/name] who is pregnant right now, haha!
[name]Octavia[/name]? Whew! I wouldn’t use it because I would be reminded of octo-mom. Eeep. I’d use nn “Vie” like “life”.
[name]Persephone[/name] is a lovely name.
[name]Reverie[/name]? Cool word but I’d rather it stay that way. I don’t know if I want to honor my daughter with a name that means to be “lost in one’s thoughts or a daydream”.
[name]Amadeus[/name]… I would name my dog this if I loved [name]Mozart[/name] enough.
[name]Apollo[/name] is an awesome unsual name. I’m all for it. You have the Greek mythology and space missions behind it. [name]Apollo[/name] or even Apolla for a girl would be cool names to hear.
[name]Hezekiah[/name]? Not wearable. It’s a lot for a kid to bear, I think.
[name]Huxley[/name]! [name]How[/name] cute. I can imagine a little “Hux” or “[name]Huck[/name]”.
[name]Ianto[/name]? Almost as unwearable to me as [name]Iago[/name]. I like [name]Iain[/name], the alternative spelling of the name [name]Ian[/name].
[name]Rigel[/name]. [name]How[/name] do you pronounce that? I don’t think I’ve ever heard of that name before. I’m curious of it’s origin.
[name]Solomon[/name] is a doable first. I like [name]Sully[/name] as a nn for [name]Solomon[/name].
I think [name]Jemima[/name] & [name]Octavia[/name] are usable. I like them both a lot, actually! I’m not keen on the other girl options, though.
For boys, I think [name]Amadeus[/name] & [name]Apollo[/name] are nice ([name]Amadeo[/name] might be a little easier to live with, though). [name]Ianto[/name] is pretty cool, too. [name]Solomon[/name] is totally usable, though I don’t personally care for it.
I actually think a lot of these could work, especially depending on where you live. [name]Jemima[/name] and [name]Octavia[/name] for sure, [name]Persephone[/name] and [name]Reverie[/name] most likely. For boys, I love [name]Apollo[/name] as well, I actually know 2 little [name]Huxley[/name]'s and one [name]Rigel[/name] and I know an adult [name]Solomon[/name], so all those seem more than possible to me.
Thanks everyone! I’m really falling in love with some of these names.
@scribe [name]Rigel[/name] is the brightest star in the [name]Orion[/name] constellation. I’ve always heard it pronounced like [name]Nigel[/name] but with an R.
[name]Jemima[/name] Puddleduck is a [name]Beatrix[/name] [name]Potter[/name] character.
These are my favorites on your list. I’m very fond of Mythological names and obscure biblical sounding names. I also like the feminine of [name]Apollo[/name]->Apolla. And that set is adorable for twins. . And I think hezekiah is very doable.
I adore [name]Octavia[/name]! It’s my favourite girl’s name.
I also adore [name]Andromeda[/name] and [name]Persephone[/name] though not sure on the usability as a first name.
[name]Jemima[/name] is lovely though reminds me of a doll that is on a popular children’s program here in Australia.
[name]Ptolemy[/name] is also on my list and I adore it and think it’s usable.
I also adore [name]Huxley[/name] (ourely for the nickname [name]Huck[/name]) and [name]Solomon[/name].
I’m really fond of [name]Artemisia[/name]. It’s on my middle name list. [name]Artemisia[/name] I was the only woman to captain a boat at the Battle of Salamis (for [name]Persia[/name]), as well as the Renaissance painter Gentileschi.
And I knew a [name]Paulo[/name] in high school. He had a certain grace and athleticism that always made me think of his name as being like [name]Apollo[/name], and I’ve always liked [name]Paulo[/name] and [name]Apollo[/name] ever since, despite not liking him all that much personally (though when I try to remember why, it’s mostly because his sister was mean).
Girls
[name]Andromeda[/name] - I think this is doable, read it in a book and she had the nn [name]Anna[/name], I thought it was beautiful.
[name]Artemis[/name] (nn [name]Ari[/name]) - love this too.
[name]Jemima[/name] - I like it, I think it’s pretty, but since it’s not my style I can’t say much else but that it is usable.
[name]Octavia[/name] (nn [name]Tavia[/name]) - YES! Completely usable and love the nn and full name.
[name]Persephone[/name] (nn Sephy) - not my style, but yes I think it’s usable so is the nn.
[name]Reverie[/name] - I like this, with the nn, Verie. Very usable.
Boys
[name]Amadeus[/name] - YES, very usable. I know someone who named her son this, goes by nn Adeus. [name]Love[/name] it, cute and it is fun & easy to say.
[name]Apollo[/name] - usable and I don’t think it’s weird to say, seems easy to me.
[name]Hezekiah[/name] - yes, usable and can use the nn [name]Zeke[/name]. Very cute, love it.
[name]Huxley[/name] (nn [name]Huck[/name]) - I do love this, I think it’s very usable, but if you like [name]Huck[/name], just name him [name]Huck[/name]. (my mom did this with [name]Brad[/name], loved [name]Brad[/name], hated [name]Bradley[/name], so my mother just named him [name]Brad[/name].)
[name]Ianto[/name] - might be usable, just worried about all the butchering he’d have to deal with (how to pronounce and spell)
[name]Ptolemy[/name] - same as above.
[name]Rigel[/name] - usable, I like it.
[name]Solomon[/name] (nn Solo or [name]Sully[/name]) - I know an adult named this, so I think it’s very usable. And he just goes by [name]Solomon[/name], no nn.
This is just my two cents, it’s really up to you and what name you don’t mind saying (and maybe correcting) over and over for the rest of your life.
[name]IMO[/name], some of these names, while interesting and unique, should remain guilty-pleasures, or perhaps, intriguing middle names. I like [name]Artemis[/name] for a girl in theory, but I think it wouldn’t work in the real world…a little too “out there” However, a few of your names might…
[name]Octavia[/name] is workable…it has such a similar vibe to [name]Olivia[/name], and [name]Tavia[/name]/[name]Tavy[/name]/Tavvy are all cute nicknames.
[name]Persephone[/name]…again, feels familiar because of [name]Stephanie[/name]. Sephy/[name]Effie[/name] are both cute nns.
Jemina…I think this one could work…[name]Jem[/name] or [name]Jemma[/name] are both very sweet.
[name]Apollo[/name]…has that trendy “o” ending…and if he grew up and found it too unusual, he could technically go by [name]Paul[/name]!
[name]Huxley[/name] nn [name]Huck[/name]/Hux is pretty cool, and I think right on trend. Has that appealing “ley” ending.
[name]Soloman[/name]…it’s a lot of name, but I think it could be used in real life. Maybe with a more common, 1-syllable middle.
The rest, I can’t imagine on people…sorry! But very interesting list nonetheless.
[name]Apollo[/name] or [name]Huxley[/name] is the most doable of your boy names. Thanks for sharing. I like fun names!