My son’s name is [name]Elliott[/name] [name]James[/name] and I’m looking for a girls name that would go with his. The only rule is that it can’t end with an -er sound as our last name does.
Here is my current girls list:
[name]Clara[/name] [name]Jane[/name] (I am bothered by the clair-uh/clar-uh thing though)
[name]Iris[/name] [name]Penelope[/name] (My husband can’t get past [name]Iris[/name] being a body part)
[name]Gwendolen[/name] [name]Meadow[/name] (I love [name]Gwen[/name] names, but feel that this may be too princessey)
[name]Genevieve[/name] [name]Kate[/name] (I love this name, but my husband isn’t sold, he thinks it will default into people calling her [name]Jenna[/name])
[name]Opal[/name] [name]Genevieve[/name] (I love the sound and feel, but I’m not quite sure about a gem name)
[name]Gwen[/name] [name]Elisabeth[/name] (While lovely, I’m just not sure about a one syllable first name)
My list hasn’t changed very much in the past year, but I’m not sure any of these names are the name. [name]Feel[/name] free to suggest something new. I’m not quite sure how I would define my style, but the only names on our boys list are [name]Ian[/name] [name]Charles[/name] and [name]Rory[/name] [name]Charles[/name], if that helps. Our last name is a 3 syllable boys name starting with O, flow is very important to me.
I really like the idea of [name]Gwen[/name] [name]Elisabeth[/name]. It is very pretty. She could always go bye [name]Elisabeth[/name] if she feels [name]Gwen[/name] is too short, later in life. I’ve always like the name [name]Gwendolyn[/name] but think it is just a bit much, for me to ever use in real life. But I’d be pleased to meet a little [name]Gwendolen[/name]!
I prefer [name]Claire[/name] over [name]Clara[/name]. (Which pronunciation do you use for [name]Clara[/name]? I never even realized people used Clar-uh vs. [name]Clair[/name]-uh) But [name]Clara[/name] [name]Jane[/name] is a lovely choice. [name]Elliot[/name] [name]James[/name] and [name]Clare[/name] [name]Jane[/name] are nice though [name]James[/name] and [name]Jane[/name] are a bit close. But they are just middles so I think it would be fine.
I have to admit, I’m not a fan of [name]Iris[/name], [name]Opal[/name] or [name]Genevieve[/name]. Although the combo of [name]Genevieve[/name] [name]Kate[/name] is very lovely and I think if your husband gets on board with it, it would be a lovely choice to go with [name]Elliott[/name].
I vote [name]Clara[/name] [name]Jane[/name] or [name]Genevieve[/name] [name]Kate[/name]! [name]Clara[/name] would be my first choice but both go beautifully with your son’s name.
I can’t really warm to [name]Iris[/name] or [name]Opal[/name] and I don’t think either fit with [name]Elliot[/name].
[name]Just[/name] another thought: what about [name]Elisabeth[/name] [name]Genevieve[/name]? [name]Love[/name] that combo! I know your son has an E name but the two could be very cute together.
I also love [name]Gwen[/name] [name]Elisabeth[/name], though if you are really concerned with a one syllable first name, you could reverse it to [name]Elisabeth[/name] [name]Gwen[/name]. I prefer [name]Iris[/name] to [name]Opal[/name]. I also think [name]Clara[/name] is better than [name]Claire[/name] with a one syllable middle name like [name]Jane[/name]. I would automatically pronounce it Clar-uh if that helps. You seem to really love [name]Gwen[/name] and [name]Genevieve[/name], so if I were you I’d keep playing with combinations involving one of these. You could start out by nicknaming your little girl [name]Evie[/name] from [name]Genevieve[/name], so that people don’t call her [name]Jenna[/name]. I do think [name]Evie[/name] and [name]Elliot[/name] sound lovely together!
With [name]Elliott[/name] (love, btw!), I really like the idea of either [name]Genevieve[/name] or [name]Gwendolen[/name]/[name]Gwendolyn[/name]. I really adore [name]Iris[/name] [name]Penelope[/name], but I don’t love it so much with [name]Elliott[/name], if that makes sense… I think [name]Gwendolen[/name] would get my vote, but [name]Genevieve[/name]'s so close behind!
Good luck!
ETA: [name]Just[/name] saw someone commenting on [name]Clara[/name], and I just realized how much I really love that with [name]Elliott[/name]–don’t know how I missed it earlier! I think that would get my top vote, followed by [name]Gwendolen[/name].
[name]Clara[/name] [name]Jane[/name] - lovely! [name]Clara[/name] [name]June[/name] gives you more distance from [name]James[/name] if you want it (not necessary). If the two differing pronunciations bother you, what about [name]Cora[/name] [name]Jane[/name] or [name]Cora[/name] [name]June[/name]?
[name]Iris[/name] [name]Penelope[/name] - I agree with [name]Ash[/name], [name]Iris[/name] is a great name but a little clunky with [name]Elliott[/name]. IPO initials makes me think initial public offering. I’d use [name]Iris[/name] or [name]Penelope[/name] as middle options elsewhere if I were you. [name]Clara[/name] [name]Iris[/name] is a combo I have long loved.
[name]Gwendolen[/name] [name]Meadow[/name] -[name]Gwendolen[/name] is nice, I don’t think it’s too princessy. [name]Meadow[/name] though is awkward with it - too many overlapping sounds. [name]Gwendolen[/name] [name]Iris[/name]? [name]Gwendolen[/name] [name]Kate[/name]?
[name]Genevieve[/name] [name]Kate[/name] - beautiful name but [name]Jen[/name]/[name]Jenny[/name]/[name]Jenna[/name] etc is a real possibility
[name]Opal[/name] [name]Genevieve[/name] - [name]Opal[/name] has been really growing on me. I’m not sure about initials OO. I also think kind of like [name]Iris[/name] this is maybe a little too vintage next to [name]Elliott[/name].
[name]Gwen[/name] [name]Elisabeth[/name] - I too find [name]Gwen[/name] to come up a little short, although it’s attractive.
Besides [name]Cora[/name], my suggestions are [name]Gwyneth[/name], [name]Vivienne[/name], [name]Eva[/name], and [name]Isla[/name].
[name]Clara[/name] [name]Jane[/name]- I like it but I like [name]Claire[/name] better. There’s something I just don’t like about [name]Clara[/name].
[name]Iris[/name] [name]Penelope[/name]- I love [name]Iris[/name] but I see it as more of a middle name. What about [name]Penelope[/name] [name]Iris[/name]? You could call her [name]Penny[/name].
[name]Gwendolen[/name] [name]Meadow[/name]- I like [name]Gwen[/name] but I don’t like [name]Meadow[/name].
[name]Genevieve[/name] [name]Kate[/name]- Deffinitely my favorite. [name]Genevieve[/name] could also be shortened to [name]Eve[/name]/[name]Evie[/name].
[name]Opal[/name] [name]Genevieve[/name]- [name]Don[/name]'t like [name]Opal[/name]
[name]Gwen[/name] [name]Elisabeth[/name]- [name]Don[/name]'t really think this flows
I really love [name]Clara[/name] [name]Jane[/name] and [name]Iris[/name] [name]Penelope[/name]. I think they are both wonderful names. I always think “[name]Clair[/name]-uh” when I see the name [name]Clara[/name], but I suppose if you think it may be mispronounced, you could always spell it “[name]Claira[/name]”. [name]Just[/name] a thought. To me, the names [name]Gwendolen[/name] and [name]Genevieve[/name] just sound too old fashioned, and not something that would suit a cute little girl. [name]Hope[/name] I may have helped out a little bit.
I love [name]Gwen[/name]. I know there are people who think [name]Gwen[/name] is a mom name, but I think it’s got such a beautiful completeness for a one-syllable name. Graceful and strong. [name]Gwen[/name] [name]Elisabeth[/name] has really nice flow, and the [name]El[/name] in [name]Elisabeth[/name] picks up on [name]Elliot[/name]. If you want a longer [name]Gwen[/name] name and like the [name]Gwen[/name]-[name]El[/name] sound, what about Gwenaëlle? It’s French, and you’ve gotta love the umlaut. I know a Gwenaëlle and she’s a lovely, gentle person. I think Gwenaëlle [name]Meadow[/name] would be beautiful. After that and [name]Gwen[/name] [name]Elisabeth[/name], I also like [name]Genevieve[/name] [name]Kate[/name].
I’m going to pretend your surname is [name]Oliver[/name].
The name that best captures the feeling of your boy names is [name]Clara[/name] [name]Jane[/name]. Not coincidentally, that’s the name on your list with the best flow: 2-1-3, [name]Clara[/name] [name]Jane[/name] [name]Oliver[/name].
My favorite name, and the one I feel pairs best with brother [name]Elliott[/name], is [name]Iris[/name]. [honestly, the only people who really think of the iris as a body part are optometrists, rheumatologists (iriitis) and ophthalmologists. No one else thinks eye at all-- everyone thinks flower]. It has the same sweet, vintage, courtly feel as does [name]Elliott[/name], but has some strength to it. It’s a goddess, it has strong vowels, and it’s certainly uncommon enough to strike the listener as fresh without being odd.
I would borrow [name]Jane[/name] from [name]Clara[/name] to again capture that flow. [name]Iris[/name] [name]Jane[/name] [name]Oliver[/name]. [name]Just[/name] like [name]Ian[/name] [name]Charles[/name] [name]Oliver[/name]-- perfect flow, striking first with a classic middle, short and sweet but with strength.
With [name]Elliott[/name], my favorites from your list are [name]Clara[/name] [name]Jane[/name] (I say [name]Clair[/name]-uh) and [name]Genevieve[/name] [name]Kate[/name] (you could always call her [name]Evie[/name]/[name]Eve[/name] to steer away from [name]Jenna[/name]). I like [name]Gwendolen[/name] nn [name]Gwen[/name] with [name]Elliott[/name] too, but with [name]Meadow[/name] it has a little too much W for me. What about [name]Gwendolen[/name] [name]Elisabeth[/name] or [name]Gwendolen[/name] [name]Eve[/name] or [name]Gwendolen[/name] [name]Eliza[/name] instead? Or do you like [name]Gwenyth[/name]/[name]Gwyneth[/name] nn [name]Gwen[/name]? [name]Elliot[/name] and [name]Gwenyth[/name]/[name]Gwyneth[/name] work well too.
Thanks for all of the replies, they really are helpful!
It’s funny [name]Cora[/name] [name]June[/name] was mentioned as it is one of the names my husband really likes. I like it too.
I do like [name]Gwyneth[/name], but I feel like it might be too attached to [name]Gwyneth[/name] Paltrow. Also, I’m a bit confused on if that’s the actual spelling or not? Wouldn’t the Y make it a male name? I’ve tried to research that, without much luck.
[name]Clara[/name] has my vote. [name]Unique[/name] And gorgeous. I love [name]Iris[/name] as well, but [name]Clara[/name] goes best with your last name.
