I’m not averse to rare names (most of this child’s siblings’ names rank no higher than 70th) but I’m feeling hesitant as I can’t find any other human being ever being named this! “Ithilien” is an extremely Tolkien/Lord of the Rings specific name - a region of Gondor previously known for its beautiful gardens and herbs, that was overtaken by Mordor but restored by Aragorn to become the domain of Faramir and Eowyn. The child will have another sibling with a LotR place name, another sibling named after a garden, and generally a lot of plant names among the other siblings too. Wondering if Ithilien is too nerdy? Any problems to consider? Is Lorien (also a nature-centric LotR place name) a better alternative?
i like ithilien a lot. it’s so cute and has such a fun meaning behind it. lorien is also very cute. i feel like ithilien is maybe more feminine whereas lorien leans more gender neutral.
i can’t foresee any problems with these names, personally. overall i think these make good choices!
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Personally it feels descriptive to me (like reptilian, civilian, mammalian etc) sorry!
But I do think [name_u]Lorien[/name_u] would make a great name!
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Thank you! We’re considering both in case it’s a boy too! This naming thing is a lot of effort!
Yeah, there’s also “alien” to consider! 
We have a fairly restrictive collection of naming rules (eg every member of the family needs a unique initial - this gets harder with every successive child haha) so Ithilien was not top of my list but it seems to be one of the few that fit the rules and that we somewhat agree on. My husband decided he wants a name beginning with I this time around (to add to all the other rules!) so Lorien didn’t make the cut at first, but maybe it will just take persuading…
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Ithilien is distinctive and interesting and I do like it. It has the vibes of other names I enjoy (Elowen, [name_f]Illyria[/name_f], [name_f]Ilaria[/name_f], [name_f]Liadan[/name_f], [name_f]Elswyth[/name_f], Mithian) and I think it could grow on me
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It does scream fantasy name to me (and I’m a huge LotR fan too!) and comes across as quite nerdy, but at the same time, those aren’t necessarily bad things and it comes down to whether you feel comfortable with using a name that will probably give people those impressions. I personally prefer the way [name_u]Lorien[/name_u] sounds (but I’m not generally a fan of prominent th-sounds, like I don’t much to care for names like [name_f]Iolanthe[/name_f] or [name_f]Thessaly[/name_f] either) but I’d only go with [name_u]Lorien[/name_u] if you also love it - choosing it purely as a safer option to Ithilien might end up feeling like it’s a bit of a consolation price? I do love [name_u]Lorien[/name_u] though, for either girl or a boy. 
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Ithilien is on my list!! We are big [name_m]Tolkien[/name_m] fans and had the Faramir/Eowyn passage from the houses of healing as a reading at our wedding 
Personally I have only considered it for middles, but it could work as a first. Would you have a nickname? Maybe Hilly or [name_f]Lily[/name_f]?
[name_u]Lorien[/name_u] sounds more ‘namey’ as it reminds me of Loren/Lauren. Might be easier to live with and spell.
Honestly though, I don’t think there’s such a thing as ‘too nerdy’, it depends what is meaningful to you. Some people straight up name their kids [name_m]Anakin[/name_m] or [name_f]Khaleesi[/name_f], and in my book a more cryptic reference like Ithilien is much nicer and more interesting. It sounds like it would gel really well with your other kids’ names, as well.
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I seriously lovelovelove both Ithilien and [name_u]Lorien[/name_u]! [name_u]Love[/name_u] them a lot. I myself am thinking about [name_m]Eldarion[/name_m] and Alatariel. 
1 person named Ithilien according to that database:
https://forebears.io/search?q=Ithilien&meaning=genealogy-names-surnames