Livia

Hello Everyone:

My husband and I are considering using the name [name]Livia[/name], but I am concerned about its similarity to [name]Olivia[/name]. [name]Do[/name] you think that we will constantly be correcting people who hear [name]Livia[/name] as [name]Olivia[/name]?
Also, if anyone has any ideas for other [name]Roman[/name] names for girls in the spirit of [name]Livia[/name], I would be very grateful for any suggestions!
Thanks for your help.

Unfortunately, yes, I think you will be correcting people and she will for the rest of her life. That’s not uncommon for a lot of names. [name]Even[/name] if you pick a unique name, people will be curious how you came up with it or is it made up (because not everyone knows names they never heard before), besides how to spell it or how to pronounce it.

I don’t think [name]Livia[/name] is made up, but for example [name]Elspeth[/name] or [name]Lisbeth[/name], genuine international variations of [name]Elizabeth[/name], the owner of which would often be correcting people that it’s actually not [name]Elizabeth[/name]. I’m not sure how much of a dealbreaker that is for you, but even easy names can have people who will want to alter it mentally and call you something different, maybe a lot less often, but still. She might also get “[name]Lydia[/name]” in addition to [name]Olivia[/name].

Sorry no suggestions from me. Several people handle that more adequately and thoroughly, and they should be along soon.

[name]Hi[/name] [name]Karen[/name],
Thanks so much for that helpful reply. I hadn’t even thought about the [name]Lydia[/name] factor! I’m not sure either about how much the confusion factor is a dealbreaker for us - perhaps if [name]Olivia[/name] were not currently so popular it wouldn’t be that big of an issue. But you’re also right that plenty of names will inspire confusion if they’re a less common version of a more popular one, or just a bit off the beaten path.

I think [name]Livia[/name] is really pretty. It’s amazing how people get confused with names. Some people even get confused with my name - just about the easiest name ever. They think it’s [name]Suzanne[/name], they call me [name]Susie[/name], they want to know how to spell [name]Susan[/name]. If you name your daughter [name]Livia[/name], she may have to correct people once or twice, but then most people will get it.

I think [name]Livia[/name] is pretty, but I agree with [name]Karen[/name] (I’m sure she makes great lists!) and [name]Susan[/name] about the potential confusion. I think [name]Karen[/name] made a really good point about [name]Lydia[/name], too. :slight_smile:

[name]Roman[/name]/Latin names that sound closest to [name]Livia[/name] (to me):

[name]Lavinia[/name]/[name]Livinia[/name] (that extra syllable clears up the confusion, I think)
[name]Louisa[/name]
[name]Octavia[/name]
[name]Silvia[/name] (Latin spelling, although I’d personally go with the more familiar [name]Sylvia[/name]/[name]Sylvie[/name])
[name]Vera[/name] (which could actually be a nickname for [name]Veronica[/name], as [name]Susan[/name] has suggested before)
[name]Verity[/name]
[name]Viola[/name]
[name]Viviana[/name]
[name]Vivian[/name]

Other [name]Roman[/name]/Latin names you may like:

[name]Adriana[/name]
[name]Arabella[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name]
[name]Beatrix[/name]
[name]Cecilia[/name]
[name]Claudia[/name]
[name]Cordelia[/name] (nn [name]Cora[/name])
[name]Evelina[/name]
[name]Felicity[/name]
[name]Honor[/name]/[name]Honora[/name]
[name]Isadora[/name]
[name]Juliana[/name]
[name]Mirabel[/name]
[name]Priscilla[/name]

Good luck! :slight_smile:

Well, I have a [name]Lydia[/name] - she’s not even two yet - and it’s not uncommon for people to call her “[name]Olivia[/name].” To be fair, that’s mostly kids who have friends named [name]Olivia[/name]. Adults usually get it right.

[name]Livia[/name] is somewhat less common, so I would definitely expect a lot of "[name]Olivia[/name]"s. But you know, it’s such a beautiful name, and has so much history. I think it would almost be worth it!

Anecdotally speaking, my name has been mistaken for [name]Lisa[/name] and [name]Stephanie[/name]. Not even one [name]Carol[/name] or [name]Caroline[/name] or [name]Kathy[/name].

Also, I do like [name]Livia[/name]. I also like [name]Olivia[/name] and [name]Lydia[/name]! I think if you have a sweet name like [name]Livia[/name] in mind, you shouldn’t stop to worry about anyone mixing it up - once you straighten the regular people in your lives on the fact, like family and teachers/school administrators, it won’t even be a constant issue.

Thanks [name]Jill[/name] for the shout-out! I do tend to be more of a random name suggester, though. If someone wants Latin-based names particularly, I’m not as confident in the sources and origins and really keeping a lot of names sorted in my brain like that, and not likely to look them up to make sure.

From the lists so far - I like [name]Sylvia[/name] as an option, [name]Vera[/name], and [name]Viviana[/name].

Also like [name]Claudia[/name], [name]Adriana[/name], [name]Felicity[/name], and [name]Juliana[/name].

My ultimate suggestion would be to consider [name]Livia[/name] until something blows it completely away. It is relatively simple and not complicated at all - some people will be confused for 2-3 seconds. I could imagine any name anyone ever suggested will get the same treatment, and then for the fact I think a lot of people these days expect more names they hadn’t heard before than they might have a long time ago, and try to catch it the first time. The most popular name for girls, [name]Emma[/name], probably has to correct a bunch of people who think her name is [name]Emily[/name], and vice versa, [name]Isabelle[/name], [name]Annabelle[/name], or is it -bella? Same thing. I think [name]Livia[/name]'s not going to have what you think is a “unique” problem.

I like this, [name]Livia[/name]!

Wow, thanks for all this help, everyone! Your responses are encouraging me to think that this isn’t really so much of an issue. I mean, if [name]Susan[/name] confuses people, then maybe we should just let the [name]Olivia[/name] factor go! Phaedrap, your experience with your [name]Lydia[/name] is encouraging. [name]Jill[/name], from your list I am very attracted to [name]Octavia[/name], [name]Louisa[/name], [name]Beatrix[/name], [name]Cecilia[/name], and [name]Claudia[/name]! I think we’ll follow [name]Karen[/name]'s advice and keep it as a strong potential name unless/until something new blows us away. Many thanks again.