You have all been very helpful to DH and I, in getting a girl’s name list together. We have several that we have been discussing - ([name]Clementine[/name], [name]Scarlett[/name], [name]Emmeline[/name], [name]Pearl[/name] and [name]Piper[/name]) - then today he blind sides me and suggests we could use [name]Ethel[/name]. It is a family name and has great meaning to both of us, however, I have shied away from using it, even in the middle, because of how clunky it sounds and possible teasing it could invoke.
So my challenge to all of you nameberry wizards is - Is there any way to modernise the name [name]Ethel[/name]? I thought of [name]Ethelyn[/name], but it sounds a bit like ethanol when said aloud. WDYT?
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for taking the time to read my post.
The first thing I thought of was [name]Ethen[/name]/[name]Ethan[/name]. I know it’s a boy name, but with the e spelling it’s got all the letters of [name]Ethel[/name] apart from the last being different.
Other names:
[name]Etta[/name]
[name]Ettie[/name]
[name]Helen[/name]/a (etHEL)
[name]Thea[/name] (eTHEl)
I think [name]Ethel[/name] is actually quite cute. Perhaps, as the poster above has mentioned, you could use [name]Etta[/name] as a nickname, she could always just go by [name]Etta[/name], instead of [name]Ethel[/name].
Here, some “modernising” of [name]Ethel[/name]:
Ethela,
[name]Ethelin[/name],
[name]Etheline[/name],
Ethelina,
Ethely
Also, [name]Esme[/name] and [name]Elspeth[/name].
[name]How[/name] do you pronounce [name]Ethel[/name]? I think there’s two ways of pronouncing it, though, it mightn’t be just as proper…It could give thought for some new ideas.
I personally think [name]Ethel[/name] is gentle and beautiful. I slightly prefer [name]Edith[/name], which is similar… If you’re honoring family, why not use it as a middle name? [name]Scarlett[/name] [name]Ethel[/name] and [name]Piper[/name] [name]Ethel[/name] would be incongruous, [name]IMO[/name], but [name]Emmeline[/name] [name]Ethel[/name] or [name]Pearl[/name] [name]Ethel[/name] would be very ladylike and sweet. [name]Clementine[/name] [name]Ethel[/name] is kinda my favorite of your choices - [name]Clementine[/name] is old-fashioned but bright and spunky, and [name]Ethel[/name] brings it down to earth with a little old-ladyish clunk, which makes it hip.
Maybe [name]Etta[/name]? I really can’t stand [name]Ethel[/name], but [name]Etta[/name] sounds nice. I think maybe [name]Rosetta[/name], [name]Marietta[/name] or really any other name with -etta could bring it to you as a nn, but it’s also usable as a fn.
If you don’t hate invented names, Elleth could be very pretty as a first or middle name. Apparently it even means female elf in Sindarin (J.R.R. Tolkien’s invented language).
Or I also like the [name]Etta[/name] idea. Or the idea of using [name]Ethel[/name] as a middle name as is. It really does have a very pretty sound.
You would be blazing quite the trail if you went with [name]Ethel[/name]! I think you’re smart, though, to go with a more modern version; I wouldn’t be thrilled if my parents had named me [name]Ethel[/name], no matter how significant the name was to them. I know [name]Edith[/name] is becoming stylish in [name]London[/name], and it has the [name]Edie[/name]/[name]Edy[/name] nickname, which is a nice bonus. You could retain the “eth” sound with [name]Meredith[/name]. (I love [name]Meredith[/name]!) Or [name]Effie[/name]?
[name]Ethel[/name] was one half of a whole slew of Old English names- Ethelthryth (Æðelþryð) was contracted into [name]Audrey[/name] by the middle ages. Ethelfled (Æðelflæd) was revived by the Victorian Anglo-Saxonists as Elfleda, but that seems about as chic as [name]Ethel[/name] (and likely to be confused with [name]Elfreda[/name]/[name]Alfreda[/name])
[name]Edith[/name], [name]Enid[/name], [name]Eithne[/name]/[name]Ethne[/name]/Ethna, and [name]Elspeth[/name] all seem like good options that are a bit more…in keeping with current trends? Not sure exactly what it is about [name]Ethel[/name]! I do hear ‘ethyl’ though, so the name sounds both a bit musty (not generally a problem for me- I love [name]Agnes[/name]/[name]Dorothy[/name]/[name]Winifred[/name]/et al) and a bit chemical- together, not such a great combination of associations.
On the other hand, doesn’t [name]Lily[/name] [name]Allen[/name] have a baby [name]Ethel[/name]? [name]Etta[/name] and [name]Effy[/name] seem like great nicknames, too.
Or [name]Elspeth[/name]? That has all of the right letters in it? Haha I’m sorry I’m not much help. I do think [name]Etta[/name] is pretty though, but I would stay away from just [name]Ethel[/name] unless she went by nothing but a nn.
Hm. I don’t know if there is a way to modernise it that I personally like, but then I love [name]Ethel[/name]! I actually like all the names you mentioned ([name]Clementine[/name], [name]Scarlett[/name], [name]Emmeline[/name], [name]Pearl[/name] and [name]Piper[/name]). From that list, I think [name]Piper[/name] is slightly out of place, it doens’t have that classic feel that the others do, but that said I still like it. As a combination, I think that [name]Ethel[/name] [name]Clementine[/name] is nice but, as a fan of alliteration, I [name]LOVE[/name] [name]Ethel[/name] [name]Emmeline[/name].
Despite its great-grandma image, [name]Ethel[/name] has a very sweet and gentle sound to it. The meaning balances that nicely. I’m all in favor of [name]Ethel[/name] as a middle name.
