I love [name]Sophia[/name] [name]Kate[/name] because it’s so sophisticated and pretty. I’m concerned that it’s too safe and may be boring/expected. I find [name]Sophia[/name] both incredibly beautiful and annoyingly popular at the same time. I know it’s a classic, but there is something different about running into a little [name]Elizabeth[/name] or [name]Jane[/name], than meeting ANOTHER [name]Sophia[/name]. Right? Or am I wrong?
I’m torn because I have always loved this name - it’s gorgeous. I fear I will regret using it, and regret not using it.
Other options:
[name]Estella[/name] [name]Sophia[/name]
[name]Arabella[/name] [name]Sophia[/name]
I think if you truly love a name, its spot on the popularity chart shouldn’t stop you from using it. I don’t care if [name]Charlotte[/name] hits #1 in the next few years, I still plan on using it if I have a little girl!
That is quite the predicament, and not uncommon! You really need to consider how much you love the name, how long you’ve liked it, and whether you feel annoyed or happy when meeting other Sophias. I think if you like meeting Sophias and never get tired of it, [name]Sophia[/name] may be the name for you. But if you feel like every [name]Sophia[/name] you meet makes the name seem a bit less special, you’ll probably regret using it. If you really, really love a name, hearing it a lot shouldn’t change that.
You should also consider why popularity bothers you: is it actually that important to you that your daughter’s name be uniquely her own, or do you fear what other people will think about you choosing a popular name? [name]Do[/name] you think you’ll grow tired of hearing “[name]Sophia[/name]?” It would also be a good idea to consider other names, especially if there are others you love just as much.
You have a few compromise options:
Use [name]Sophia[/name] with a very unexpected, rare middle
Use [name]Sophia[/name] with an unexpected nickname, like [name]Sosie[/name], Phia, Soey, or [name]Fee[/name]
Use a different first and call her [name]Sophia[/name] at home (I’ve heard of people doing this, but it seems like it’d get confusing, so I wouldn’t recommend it)
What I wouldn’t do is turn down [name]Sophia[/name] for a name you don’t love just as much. [name]Every[/name] name has some unappealing qualities, and [name]Sophia[/name]'s is the popularity. But of course, ANY name can burst into popularity unexpectedly, so it’s simply a bad idea to pick a name you don’t love because it’s unpopular.
No, that makes perfect sense to me! [name]Sophia[/name] is a historical name, but doesn’t transcend generations like [name]Elizabeth[/name] does. With [name]Elizabeth[/name] and [name]Catherine[/name], the nicknames come and go with the generations but the names themselves abide. That’s why I don’t find [name]Kate[/name] (as a standalone name) to be a classic. [name]Kate[/name] could easily go out of style just like [name]Cathy[/name]/[name]Kathy[/name] has. A (C/)[name]Katherine[/name] can always go by [name]Kate[/name] or [name]Kathy[/name], but a [name]Kate[/name] or [name]Kathy[/name] can’t go by [name]Katherine[/name] (well, she could, but it seems a bit upside-down).
Hmm, [name]Sophie[/name] would be less expected than [name]Sophia[/name] right now. And I think [name]Arabella[/name] [name]Sophie[/name] and [name]Estella[/name] [name]Sophie[/name] sound better than either of these names with [name]Sophia[/name].
I think you got really good advice to consider how you feel when you meet a [name]Sophia[/name]. If youre going to always be fuming about the number of Sophias running around, probably best to relegate it to the middle spot. However, if [name]Sophia[/name] is a perennial love of yours–by all means, use it! She’ll be the only [name]Sophia[/name] in your household and if it feels like HER NAME, youll probably regret not using it.
[name]Katherine[/name] [name]Sophia[/name] would be gorgeous if you decided to flip it.
I’m not a big fan of [name]Estella[/name] even though I like both [name]Estelle[/name] and [name]Stella[/name]. I love nn [name]Essie[/name].
[name]Arabella[/name] is too frilly for my taste (plus it has that uber-trendy [name]Bella[/name] that I’m more sick of than [name]Sophia[/name] any day!!)
To be completely blunt with you, I would be one of the ones thinking “ANOTHER [name]Sophia[/name].” And so would a lot of other people. I completely agree with you that it is an extremely beautiful name, but for myself, the overwhelming popularity is extremely off-putting.
Now you must understand, my name is [name]Ashley[/name] - so I have a chip on my shoulder about popular names! I actually really like your choice of [name]Sophia[/name] [name]Kate[/name] in that it flows together nicely and utilizes two lovely, classic choices. But I could just never go for the popularity.
Now like I tell everyone else on here, you have to go with your heart. [name]Even[/name] though popularity is a deal-breaker for me, you need to decide what your own feelings are on that. [name]Sophia[/name] [name]Kate[/name] is a lovely name. Decide if you can handle meeting dozens of other Sophias her age, (which you undoubtedly will.) Also, keep in mind that if you already think you will regret NOT using it… you probably will.
I COMPLETELY understand and sympathize with your dilemma! I hope my comments are helpful and not too harsh. I just want to give people honest-to-goodness opinions of what I, and likely lots of other people, think of their choices.
Also remember that members here on Nameberry tend to be pretty open-minded about name choices and tend to lean more toward the unconventional. You may find that others outside the Nameberry world might find [name]Sophia[/name] [name]Kate[/name] a wonderful choice despite the popularity. They may not even know it is popular!
lol, another [name]Ashley[/name] here, but I couldn’t feel more opposite! I’ve always adored the popularity of my name… I loved meeting other Ashleys. I always wanted to have a friend named [name]Ashley[/name], and by the time I got to my junior year in high school (the first time an [name]Ashley[/name] attended the same school as me!), one of my best friends was an [name]Ashley[/name], it was so much fun having the inside jokes where we bonded through our names. Popularity isn’t all bad!
And if I came across [name]Sophia[/name]/[name]Sofia[/name], I wouldn’t roll my eyes or think “Oh, another one!” (although I have to admit–[name]Sophia[/name] was one of the names where its popularity put me off. I’m all for popular names, but if popularity puts you off of it, I listen to it. If I don’t love a name despite its popularity, I don’t think I love it enough. I would easily use [name]Isabelle[/name] or [name]Olivia[/name], but I just don’t love [name]Sofia[/name] enough (as a FN at least!) to use it despite its popularity). There’s someone who recently joined (at least, I think it’s recently!) who has a daughter named [name]Sofia[/name], and I was just so happy to hear that. I have never met a [name]Sofia[/name]/[name]Sophia[/name] in real life, and it’s a gorgeous, beautiful name. If you want to avoid its popularity, maybe use a less common nn than [name]Sophie[/name]–like Phia/[name]Fia[/name], Fi, [name]Fifi[/name], [name]Sosie[/name], [name]Posey[/name], etc.!
It seems to me that (as a pp suggested) using [name]Sophia[/name] as a middle name is a workable solution. The beloved name is right there, close at hand, a bonafide part of your daughter’s name – without the drawback of potential regret over the popularity. You could find a second favorite name (that flows well with [name]Sophia[/name]) and consider how you would feel about that option. I’d fear that if you did forego [name]Sophia[/name] entirely, you may always feel a pang of reget every time you hear the name.
I know exactly what you mean, mylittleeviebear! I have loved the name [name]Amelia[/name] for quite some time, but since it is already popular and will likely be used even more over the next few years, I find myself in a similar predicament. Use it and regret that my daughter is just another [name]Amelia[/name], or not use it and wish I had an [name]Amelia[/name] of my own?
[name]One[/name] solution to your dilemma: call your girl [name]Sophia[/name] [name]Kate[/name] instead of just [name]Sophia[/name]. It’s a gorgeous combination, and using both names would set your daughter apart from girls going by [name]Sophia[/name] alone. I also like some of the other suggestions, such as using [name]Sophia[/name] as a middle name or pairing [name]Sophia[/name] with an uncommon first name or middle name.
If [name]Sophia[/name] is THE name you can’t get over, and not just A name you can’t get over, use it. If there are other names you really love, consider setting aside [name]Sophia[/name] or using it as a middle name.
[name]One[/name] thing I’ve tried to do is to consider ALL aspects of the name when deciding if I really like it. You can do it, too! Start by listing all your favorite names. Look up the meaning of each name, as well as the country of origin. Record popularity data for each name, such as where the name ranks and whether it’s trending upward or downward. Note any positive or negative associations you have for each name (family name, name of a friend–or enemy, etc.). Then look at the data to get a more complete picture of each name. This practice has helped me reconsider a few names that had been lower on my list, and it helped me realize that a few of my favorites might not be ideal for me to use.
As mom to a [name]Sophia[/name], I always love to reply to threads like this. I too was very worried about regretting my choice, one way or the other, when I was pregnant and weighing our naming options. I decided ultimately that I’d more deeply regret not naming her [name]Sophia[/name]–I feared that each time I’d hear the name [name]Sophia[/name] (and I anticipated hearing it with some frequency given her popularity), I’d wonder resentfully why they got to have the name and not me. . . I do sometimes regret the bolder or at least less common names we passed up, but I think this has more to do with my own image as a namer than it does with what names serve my little girl well.
Everyone’s experience of her name is unique, based on so many factors beyond the name itself, but I’ll say that my [name]Sophia[/name] (she’s six and a half) has always loved her name and basically thinks that everyone should be named [name]Sophia[/name] (if she were awake she’d probably advise me to tell you to go for it). We haven’t actually met that many Sophias, though I do see lots of Sophias listed at the childcare place at the gym. She has one friend named [name]Sophia[/name], who goes by [name]Sophie[/name]; my girl is sometimes Phia. There are a lot of cool Slavic variants if you’re interested in unusual pet names. (I love the Polish [name]Zosia[/name] and we sometimes call her the Russian Sonechka–I’m totally botching the spelling here, sorry to any Russian speakers out there, I never write the name, I’m just trying to spell it phonetically).
Anyway, that’s my experience in a nutshell. I think [name]Daisy[/name] and others posed some great questions for you to ask yourself to help clarify your feelings about the name. I’d just reiterate the importance of not choosing a name you love less just because it’s less popular.
The combination [name]Sophia[/name] [name]Kate[/name] is incredibly beautiful, by the way.
I love [name]Sophia[/name] too, but we have decided against it because of its popularity What about [name]Stella[/name]? Like [name]Estelle[/name], but with a similar flow to [name]Sophia[/name]? [name]Stella[/name] [name]Kate[/name] is also lovely!
I had a similar experience as @ashthedreamer. I’m [name]Sara[/name], and have known lots of other [name]Sara/names, [name]Tara[/name]'s, [name]Karas[/name], etc., and it has never bothered me. I love my name and feel its a true classic. And I’m an 80s baby, when there were (from what I understand) a lot more girls named [name]Sara[/name] than now are named the top 10 names (if that makes sense)! So my advice is to pick the name you love after weighing your options, and don’t worry about the popularity if it’s what you feel is right for you and your child. [name]Sophia[/name] [name]Kate[/name] is beautiful and I love the suggestion to call her by both names!! So cute! @hilary, what you say about your “image as a namer” really resonates with me! I struggled at first with choosing a pretty popular name for my DD, tho it was the right name in the end for her.
I think that using it as a middle name is the happy medium. Then you can still use the name, but your daughter will have a given name that’s more unique than [name]Sophia[/name] is.
Here’s the real question: [name]How[/name] many other [name]Sophia[/name] Kates’ will be living in your home? [name]How[/name] many other [name]Sophia[/name] Kates’ will you love with your entire soul and being? [name]How[/name] many other [name]Sophia[/name] Kates’ will you be signing her name up for dance lessons, parent teacher conferences, etc. The only time another [name]Sophia[/name] will affect your life are the [name]Sophia[/name]'s in your daughters class, etc.
i agree that if you love it, use it. my daughter is a sofia and i was a little concerned about popularity but had always loved it so used it. i do hear it around a lot but so far in preschool she has had two madelines and another class had two riley’s but not another sophia yet. i am sure it all happen but you never know. but honestly it doesn’t bother me if it is popular bc i still love it. my only concern is if someday she will be annoyed that it is so popular. my name is not overly popular so i never had that experience. like others said it is up to you how much popularity matters to you - will you cringe every time you tell the name bc you think the person hearing it will be saying “oh another” or will you be proud of it bc you love it?
We named our first dd [name]Olivia[/name]. We fell in love with the name before we realized how popular it was but we have no regrets. We still love the name and very happy we went with it.
[name]Cris[/name]
What about [name]Stella[/name]? Like [name]Estelle[/name], but with a similar flow to [name]Sophia[/name]? [name]Stella[/name] [name]Kate[/name] is also lovely!