How out there are my out there names?

Girl Names
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Title says it all. I’ve been scouring for new names, specifically those that I can connect as an “honor” name. [name_f]My[/name_f] desire for originality has caused me to become so overexposed to these names and all names in general so I really can’t tell if they’re refreshing or cringey. (Some names have commentary to explain the name or my hesitation). Additionally, I should probably stop collecting names but I would be remiss if I didn’t say that I would always welcome new suggestions. [name_m]Feel[/name_m] free to share your thoughts on one of them or all of them. Thank you so much!

[name_f]Permelia[/name_f] the meaning of honey is an honor for my mom and the potential nn of [name_f]Millie[/name_f] is an honor for my grandmother, but [name_f]Permelia[/name_f], in general, could be a lot

[name_f]Antigone[/name_f] [name_f]My[/name_f] love for [name_f]Antigone[/name_f] surpasses the potential for mispronunciations, but I can’t quite imagine anything with it? It feels a bit like once you go to [name_f]Antigone[/name_f] everything else is unoriginal… (i.e. I couldn’t imagine an [name_f]Antigone[/name_f] with a sister named [name_u]Marie[/name_u])

[name_f]Raphaela[/name_f]
[name_f]Lucienne[/name_f] [name_m]Major[/name_m] family name, on one side of my family we have in-depth genealogy and there were so many Luciennes. [name_f]My[/name_f] hesitation includes the popularity of [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] and the pronunciation. (I generally pronounce it “between” lu-seen and lu-see-en because I don’t want it to sound like [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] N.)

[name_f]Hermione[/name_f] [name_f]My[/name_f] great-great-uncle was Heronimus! And I have a later ancestor named [name_f]Erminie[/name_f] (which is why [name_f]Ermina[/name_f] is later on this list) I’ve played around with [name_u]Hero[/name_u] as a middle, but I like the idea of [name_f]Hermione[/name_f] as a first. I just don’t know if I could handle all the [name_u]Harry[/name_u] [name_m]Potter[/name_m] references.

[name_f]Ursula[/name_f]
[name_f]Coppelia[/name_f] 𝘊𝐨pℯ is a family surname and my mom was in a local production of the ballet

[name_f]Ermina[/name_f]
[name_f]Prudence[/name_f]
[name_u]Tempest[/name_u] / [name_f]Temperance[/name_f]
[name_f]Tziporah[/name_f] I am Jewish but I’m not sure I’m Jewish enough for this name. The usability of this (and [name_f]Hadassah[/name_f] and [name_f]Shoshana[/name_f]) may be dependent on the Jewiosity of my future spouse haha.

[name_f]Fiorella[/name_f]
[name_f]Aliza[/name_f] uh-leez-uh, meaningful in Hebrew but could cause confusion with [name_f]Eliza[/name_f]

[name_f]Wilhelmina[/name_f]
[name_f]Belphoebe[/name_f]
[name_f]Dorothea[/name_f] I’ve gotten to the point where one of my favorite names ([name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]) which is also the name of a grandmother is starting to feel… plebeian… [name_f]Dorothea[/name_f] already feels a bit extravagant and I only like the door-uh-tay-uh pronunciation which makes the whole name complicated even though I do really like it

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Permelia- I love the meaning here and I’m a sucker for names with meaning. Not sure exactly how it’s pronounced. [name_f]My[/name_f] first thought Is a Perm (hair) but my mom is a cosmetologist so I don’t think everyone will have that.

Antigone- I personally don’t know how to pronounce it so I can’t say if it’d be difficult to correct! I agree if you care about matching in sibsets you’d wanna keep on trend but I think a lot of you list would go well with this name!

Raphaela- I think this works! No additional comment

Lucienne- again I think this works! It’s definitely unheard of like most of your list but especially with the family connection. Also, you don’t alway have to shorten a name! So I wouldn’t worry about [name_f]Lucy[/name_f] an its popularity.

Hermione- I do think of [name_u]Harry[/name_u] [name_m]Potter[/name_m] but I was at the perfect age when they were released to be obsessed and having had the books read to me. I still think it’s a usable name but people would likely ask about the association

Ursula - I want to like it but all I think of is the little mermaid

Coppelia- again usable in my opinion! Definitely more unique but not too out there

Ermina - same as above :blush:

Prudence- with the popularity of the new revival of [name_f]Sabrina[/name_f] the teenage witch this is getting more exposure so it’s usable if it’s you’re style!

Tempest / [name_f]Temperance[/name_f]- I prefer [name_u]Tempest[/name_u] but it also makes me think a bit of a temptress

Tziporah- I’m not Jewish at all so I can’t comment on this one very well

Fiorella- seems like a mashup of [name_f]Fiona[/name_f] and an [name_f]Ella[/name_f] name but I don’t think it’s too out there. Again kind of in line with your others

Aliza- could be confused with [name_f]Eliza[/name_f] as you mention but if that’s not a big deal and the meaning is good enough it’s not out there at all

Wilhelmina- not a fan but I know many berries are so I wouldn’t say it’s out there

Belphoebe- no idea how to pronounce it. [name_u]Bell[/name_u]-[name_f]Phoebe[/name_f]? [name_u]Bell[/name_u]-Fo-be?

Dorothea- pretty normal compared to the others but I think would fit!

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I have no idea how helpful of an opinion this is but I would use any of these names. None is too out there for my taste or what I see as usable.

My favorites among them are [name_f]Permelia[/name_f], [name_f]Coppelia[/name_f], [name_f]Hermione[/name_f], [name_f]Antigone[/name_f], [name_f]Ursula[/name_f], [name_f]Tziporah[/name_f], and [name_f]Wilhelmina[/name_f]. All gorgeous!

As closer honors my preferences would be [name_f]Ermina[/name_f] and [name_f]Lucienne[/name_f].

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I don’t actually think any of these out-there names are unusable! But I’ll put them into some general categories.

Safe
[name_f]Raphaela[/name_f] - most will probably know the name and it’s under the radar enough to be unique but not odd

Lucienne - familiar sound

Hermione - the character will definitely be the first association, but she also makes the name well-known enough to be usable

Aliza - honestly any name will need to be spelled out because there are so many sound-alike names. I have a popular name, and I spell it by far the most popular way, but I still have to clarify spelling all the time!

Dorothea - classic and lovely

In between
[name_f]Antigone[/name_f] - brave, but the popularity of mythological names makes this a solidly useable choice

Prudence - I debated whether or not to classify this as “very brave” but I think a little [name_f]Prudence[/name_f] would fit in just fine

Tziporah - a gorgeous and meaningful option that I don’t think would be all that confusing or out-there

Fiorella - most “ella” names will be just fine and this is no exception

Wilhelmina - a bold choice for sure, but not overly so

Very brave
[name_f]Permelia[/name_f] - my first thought is perm, to be honest, but the “melia” ending sounds enough like [name_f]Amelia[/name_f] to keep this one under consideration

Ursula - sea witch, but there’s also so much history and it’s a familiar sound

Coppelia - copper, but not unuseable

Ermina - same thoughts as [name_f]Wilhelmina[/name_f] but a bit stronger, this is among the most out-there on your list in terms of naming style

Tempest/Temperance - a lot of name, but virtue names are generally useable and I always knew a few kids with out-there virtue names before they began surging in popularity and none of them seemed to struggle with their names, most people thought they were cool

Belphoebe - very out-there but it has familiar sounds and with mythological names becoming so popular I see no reason that this literary name can’t work

Despite these categories, though, I want to emphasize that I genuinely see all of these as perfectly useable!

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I know teenagers named both [name_f]Lucienne[/name_f] and [name_f]Dorothea[/name_f], so they seem completely usable to me and not “out there” at all. I also know a preteen [name_f]Wilhelmina[/name_f] (though she spells it Willamena) so it feels perfectly usable as well.

Raphaela, [name_f]Hermione[/name_f], [name_f]Ermina[/name_f], and [name_f]Aliza[/name_f] also feel usable.

The rest are braver but certainly not too “out there” to use.

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I love all of these. Some of these I wouldn’t use for reasons that you mention do not matter to you (like [name_f]Antigone[/name_f]’s pronunciation).

I love [name_f]Coppelia[/name_f] and the connection to your family. [name_f]My[/name_f] favorite [name_f]Coppelia[/name_f]-related name is [name_f]Swanhilda[/name_f] :grin:

In the US I think [name_f]Temperance[/name_f] is very tied to Prohibition and the temperance movement, if that bothers you.

I know a [name_u]Christian[/name_u] [name_f]Zipporah[/name_f] so I don’t think of [name_f]Tziporah[/name_f] as too tied to Judaism, but enough so that I wouldn’t use it for myself because I am not Jewish. Regardless I love the [name_f]Tzipora[/name_f] spelling best.

Dorotea is pronounced the way you want. Since [name_m]Mateo[/name_m] is so popular I think most people would get the pronunciation right!

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[name_f]Permelia[/name_f] - I think it’s usable! Weird, but not too out there. Expect pronunciation issues though. If you hadn’t mentioned the nickname [name_f]Millie[/name_f] I would have thought it was per-MEH-lee-ah
[name_f]Antigone[/name_f] - To be honest, I don’t think this one works as a first name. I’m Greek, but I’m sure the first thing [name_f]English[/name_f] speakers will see is anti-gone, both negative words.
[name_f]Raphaela[/name_f] - Perfectly usable!
[name_f]Lucienne[/name_f] - So pretty and definitely usable! I think most people would pronounce it LU-see-en or lu-SIEN. I say the latter.
[name_f]Hermione[/name_f] - I know an [name_f]Ermina[/name_f], and even though it’s not exactly the same she didn’t get any HP references! Anyway, people will assume you’re a big [name_u]Harry[/name_u] [name_m]Potter[/name_m] fan, but if that doesn’t bother you I think it’s perfectly usable. [name_f]Hermione[/name_f] is a great character and as a name it has many cute nicknames
[name_f]Ursula[/name_f] - I personally don’t think this one’s ready for a comeback. [name_f]Ursula[/name_f] from the [name_m]Little[/name_m] Mermaid is still too well-known in pop culture, and I think there’s a live action remake coming out soon as well. What about [name_f]Ursa[/name_f]?
[name_f]Coppelia[/name_f] - Definitely usable! Really pretty too
[name_f]Ermina[/name_f] - Like I said I knew an [name_f]Ermina[/name_f]! I think it’s sweet, it makes me think of ermines like the animal
[name_f]Prudence[/name_f] - [name_f]Lovely[/name_f] name, and very usable with the nicknames [name_f]Prue[/name_f] and [name_f]Prudie[/name_f].
[name_u]Tempest[/name_u] - This one is more usable IMO. It doesn’t have any obvious nicknames so I’d stick to the shorter [name_u]Tempest[/name_u] than the longe [name_f]Temperance[/name_f]
[name_f]Tziporah[/name_f], [name_f]Hadassah[/name_f], [name_f]Shoshana[/name_f] - I can’t really judge here as I’m not Jewish and even then it sounds like a more of a situation where it has to do with what you are okay with, not other people. Sound-wise, ignoring religion, I’d say [name_f]Shoshana[/name_f] is the most usable and [name_f]Tziporah[/name_f] the least usable
[name_f]Fiorella[/name_f] - Usable!
[name_f]Aliza[/name_f] - This is so pretty. Might get mispronounced as ah-lie-zah but easy to correct
Wihelmina - I think it’s beautiful, and even though it’s a lot the many adorable nicknames make it usable
[name_f]Belphoebe[/name_f] - Usable! [name_f]Bella[/name_f]/Belle and [name_f]Phoebe[/name_f] are both well-known, so combining them isn’t weird
[name_f]Dorothea[/name_f] - I think your pronunciation makes this too hard to use, sorry

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I think [name_f]Raphaela[/name_f], [name_f]Lucienne[/name_f], [name_f]Wilhelmina[/name_f] and [name_f]Dorothea[/name_f] aren’t really out there. [name_f]Permelia[/name_f], [name_f]Ermina[/name_f], [name_f]Aliza[/name_f], [name_f]Hermione[/name_f], [name_f]Fiorella[/name_f] and [name_f]Belphoebe[/name_f] are in between. [name_f]Antigone[/name_f], [name_f]Ursula[/name_f], [name_f]Prudence[/name_f], [name_u]Tempest[/name_u], [name_f]Tziporah[/name_f] and [name_f]Temperance[/name_f] seem quite out there to me, but not too out there.

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The following feel very usable:

Hermione
[name_f]Wilhelmina[/name_f]
[name_f]Aliza[/name_f]
[name_f]Belphoebe[/name_f]
[name_f]Dorothea[/name_f]
[name_f]Lucienne[/name_f]
[name_f]Raphaela[/name_f]

The following feel brave

Coppelia
[name_f]Prudence[/name_f]
[name_f]Fiorella[/name_f]
[name_f]Tziporah[/name_f]
[name_u]Tempest[/name_u]

These feel a bit much

Antigone
[name_f]Temperance[/name_f]
[name_f]Ermina[/name_f]
[name_f]Ursula[/name_f]
[name_f]Permelia[/name_f]

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Permelia— nms but I think with the nickname [name_f]Millie[/name_f] it could work very well and I love the meaning!

Antigone— I love this name and can think of plenty of other names I feel it could work with! Not too out there at all for me.

Raphaela— not so out there, might be unusual depending on where you live.

Lucienne— I love this name and don’t think it’s too out there at all, may have the occasional spelling or mispronunciation trouble but I wouldn’t anticipate it being too bad especially with a nn.

Hermione— I love this name, my literal only hesitation is the strong [name_u]Harry[/name_u] [name_m]Potter[/name_m] connection. Otherwise, not overly out there.

Ursula— I don’t know that this is usable to me because of the Disney villain, sorry! But it’s a nice name and I don’t think it sounds absurd or anything.

Coppelia— maybe a little out there, but still lovely, and usable especially with the meaning. Not too different from [name_f]Cordelia[/name_f] which seems to be gaining some attention lately.

Ermina— nms but it’s not so out there that it’s totally not usable. String vintage vibes.

Prudence— not my favorite of the “Puritan” names, but it’s not unusable.

Tempest/Temperance— I like both a lot, and although I like the sound of [name_u]Tempest[/name_u] better, I think [name_f]Temperance[/name_f] has gotten some recognition as a name through the show “Bones” so may be seen as less out there than it would have before. Both are totally usable to me.

Tziporah— I agree this is a VERY Jewish name, and the wearability depends on that. I myself am not Jewish (though once upon a time I planned on having kids with a very Jewish woman and therefore at that time seriously considered many Jewish names) so I definitely don’t feel comfortable saying how Jewish is “Jewish enough” for this name. It’s lovely though. I prefer the spelling [name_f]Zipporah[/name_f].

Fiorella— lovely alternative to [name_f]Fiona[/name_f], very musical, a bit unusual but not crazy out there!

Aliza— I agree with your point about [name_f]Eliza[/name_f], sadly.

Wilhelmina— I’ve always found this name to be a bit weighty and bordering on the side of dated, but I certainly don’t think it’s too out there to be used, and the nicknames are great.

Belphoebe— I’ll be honest, this one’s the only one on this list that is a bit too “out there” for me personally. I prefer [name_f]Phoebe[/name_f].

Dorothea— I prefer your pronunciation too, but I think if you’re in a primarily [name_f]English[/name_f]-speaking country, you’re likely to get [name_f]Dorothea[/name_f] a lot. Not an out there name at all, but spelling and pronunciation troubles may be likely.

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