Looking for middle name suggestions

So, my husband and I are trying to conceive, and I do believe I’m channeling all my “oh-my-goodness-when-am-I-gonna-get-pregnant” energy into obsessing over names, lol.

Anyway…I lost my sister fairly recently and if I were to have a girl I would want to honor her somehow, name-wise. But I can’t see naming the baby after her outright. That would be too painful for me and possibly for my parents.

So…I’d like to just use her initials: A.M.

I’m kind of in love with the name Aderyn (pn A-DARE-in), which is Welsh for bird, but I know it’s not exactly the most popular name on this forum and I’m still trying to get my husband to like it. I like that it’s uncommon but not too “out there,” and while I love the full name it also has great nickname possibilities: [name]Ada[/name] (which I [name]LOVE[/name]), [name]Addie[/name] (just in case she doesn’t look like an [name]Ada[/name]) and possibly Dare as a “family only” nickname (if by chance she comes out with a personality similar to that of my sister).

But I’m having trouble thinking of middle names that start with an “M” and make a good combo with Aderyn. So far, this is all I’ve got:

Aderyn [name]Morgana[/name] (I like this, but it kind of screams pagan and we’re not really)
Aderyn [name]Melody[/name]
Aderyn [name]Marigold[/name]
Aderyn Miriel

Any other suggestions?

Also, there’s a distinct possibility that I won’t be able to talk my husband into using Aderyn. His response when I first suggested was “What the hell’s a derin?” I suppose I could get behind just plain “[name]Ada[/name],” though it sounds like it should be a nickname for something longer. So, anyone have any opinions on the following:

[name]Ada[/name] [name]Marigold[/name] (Too cute, or too cute by half?)
[name]Ada[/name] [name]Rose[/name] (here “[name]Ada[/name]” would be for my sister and “[name]Rose[/name]” would be for my best friend, since that’s her middle name. Except she already has a daughter with the middle name “[name]Rose[/name]” (it’s also a family name) so would that be weird? We married into the same family, so our kids would be cousins).

Other suggestions for middle names for [name]Ada[/name] that start with “M?” Or other ways of “getting to” [name]Ada[/name]? I’m not a big fan of [name]Adalyn[/name] or [name]Adeline[/name].

My husband’s only suggestion so far (not that there’s anything wrong with that, remember I’m the one going name crazy and I’m not even pregnant yet!) has been “[name]Aura[/name].” I do like [name]Aura[/name], I just like [name]Ada[/name] better. And I’m having trouble thinking of “M” middle names that would work with it. Again, I’d love some suggestions!

Good luck as you try to conceive, and I am sorry for your recent loss.

I like Aderyn! I do think you potentially set a very heavily Welsh tone for future siblings, or at least for highly uncommon names, if you care about sibsets. [name]Just[/name] something to think about.

[name]Adair[/name] is a surname-y name with some of the same vibe that might be a bit more intuitive in spelling and pronunciation. Still has [name]Ada[/name] and [name]Addie[/name] nn’s, and I think sounds better with a lot of the middles you were considering. Aderyn is 3 syllables and so it’ll probably sound better with middles of 1, 2, or 4 syllables. Adareyn [name]Mae[/name]/[name]May[/name], Aderyn [name]Maeve[/name], Aderyn [name]Mona[/name], Aderyn [name]Moira[/name], Aderyn [name]Mary[/name], Aderyn [name]Margo/name, all come to mind. With [name]Adair[/name], [name]Adair[/name] [name]Morgana[/name] is pretty awesome!

[name]Adara[/name] may or may not be a name, but I think it’s also a little more intuitive to pronounce and spell. [name]Adora[/name] is similar, and is a real name - the meaning is precious, maybe too precious to some - I recently met an [name]Adora[/name] for the first time and I really liked it on her!

[name]Aura[/name] is pretty new agey! I like the sound, but yeah, I’d go for [name]Aurora[/name] or something. [name]Aura[/name] also kind of evokes oral, potential teasing stuff there.

[name]Annora[/name] is coming to mind here - it’s a variant of [name]Honora[/name], so you’re getting to the idea of Honoring, still unusual and pretty, with familiar n’s [name]Annie[/name] and [name]Nora[/name] available.

I like [name]Ada[/name]! [name]Ada[/name] [name]Marigold[/name] is fantastic! What about [name]Ada[/name] [name]Rosemary[/name] to keep [name]Rose[/name] but make it unique, and allude to the M in your sister’s name? [name]Rosemary[/name] is historically associated with remembering, I think I have read.

There is also the Biblical [name]Adah[/name], which I like, although I think it is pronounced sort of like a British “odder”, which might be troublesome.

If you like [name]Ada[/name], besides Aderyn there’s [name]Adeline[/name] and [name]Adelaide[/name], which might be more tame/safe for your husband’s taste.

So to recap:
Aderyn [name]Mae[/name]/[name]May[/name]
Aderyn [name]Maeve[/name]
Aderyn [name]Mona[/name]
Aderyn [name]Moira[/name]
Aderyn [name]Mary[/name]
Aderyn [name]Margo/name

[name]Adair[/name]
[name]Adara[/name]
[name]Adora[/name]
[name]Aurora[/name]
[name]Annora[/name]
[name]Adah[/name]
[name]Adeline[/name]
[name]Adelaide[/name]

[name]Ada[/name] [name]Rosemary[/name]

If you’re set on using your sister’s initials, that’s a great way to honor her, but there may be other ways too - M. A. - her initials reversed, names with a similar meaning to hers, names that allude to things that were meaningful to her, etc.

Best wishes!

I like Aderyn, but I can’t seem to stop pronouncing it wrong (AY-der-in, kinda like [name]Adrienne[/name]). [name]Do[/name] you live somewhere where at least half the people will get the right pronunciation (maybe in the UK?), or somewhere where you and she’d be constantly explaining how to say her name? I can’t say I’d procede with Aderyn if no one would get it right. I do really like Aderyn [name]Melody[/name] and the suggestions of Aderyn [name]Maeve[/name] and Aderyn [name]Margot[/name].

I confess I love both [name]Ada[/name] and [name]Adah[/name], so I’d be a little more keen on using either spelling of that. [name]Ada[/name] [name]Rosemary[/name] would be pretty, but I also like [name]Ada[/name] [name]Maren[/name], [name]Ada[/name] [name]Marielle[/name], [name]Ada[/name] [name]Maureen[/name], [name]Ada[/name] [name]Marguerite[/name], and [name]Ada[/name] [name]Margot[/name]. [name]Ada[/name] [name]Marigold[/name] is a little cutesy, but I think it works.

[name]Auria[/name] might be a way to make [name]Aura[/name] a little less New Agey. [name]Aurelia[/name] and [name]Auden[/name] have similar sounds. You might also like [name]Alma[/name], [name]Alva[/name], or [name]Alba[/name]; [name]Arabella[/name]; [name]Arden[/name] or [name]Arbor[/name]; [name]Acacia[/name] or [name]Accalia[/name]; [name]Aria[/name] or [name]Ariel[/name]/[name]Arielle[/name]; [name]Amoret[/name] or [name]Amabel[/name] (both have “loved” in their meanings); or [name]Aviva[/name], which might be a little different but I love how “life” is part of its meaning.

I’m not a fan of Aderyn. It’s not my style, which means you probably won’t like the A names I like, but just in case it helps, here are my favorite A names:

Adrielle (you could get [name]Ada[/name] out of that)
[name]Aria[/name]
[name]Alexandria[/name] (nn [name]Alex[/name], [name]Lexi[/name], [name]Lexa[/name], Xandria)
[name]Abigail[/name]
[name]Ainsley[/name]
[name]Aislinn[/name] (pronounced [name]ASH[/name]-lyn or [name]ASH[/name]-ling)

For M names, my faves are:

[name]Michaela[/name]
[name]Melana[/name]
[name]Maisy[/name]
[name]Mallory[/name]
[name]Marta[/name] (pronounced with a soft “t”, not with a “d” sound)
[name]Marley[/name]
[name]Macy[/name]
[name]Morgan[/name] ([name]Morgana[/name] is okay)
[name]Melissa[/name]

I think many people will have pronunciation and spelling issues with Aderyn. Personally, I like [name]Ada[/name] better.

[name]Adele[/name] may get you to [name]Ada[/name]. I like [name]Adelaide[/name] with nn [name]Ada[/name] as well.

As for middle names, I think [name]Ada[/name] [name]Rose[/name] is lovely.
I like:
[name]Ada[/name] [name]Michelle[/name]
[name]Ada[/name] [name]Moira[/name]
[name]Ada[/name] [name]Marcie[/name]
[name]Ada[/name] [name]Martha[/name]
[name]Ada[/name] [name]Maxine[/name]
[name]Ada[/name] [name]Mabel[/name]
[name]Ada[/name] [name]Maisie[/name]
[name]Ada[/name] [name]Magnolia[/name]
[name]Ada[/name] [name]Marlene[/name]

[name]One[/name] more M name you may not have considered for a middle name, but what about [name]Miranda[/name]? It’s classic and can stand alone or as a middle name.

I [name]LOVE[/name] Aderyn [name]Melody[/name] and [name]Ada[/name] [name]Marigold[/name].

Thanks, everyone! I’m still stuck on Aderyn, but I appreciate the suggestions for middle names for [name]Ada[/name] (and other ways to get there). I live in the Southern US, so spelling/pronunciation may be an issue…but it’s not like it’s hard to spell, or to say once you know where accent goes. Our last name is what scrambles everybody’s brains, and there’s not much I can do about that. The bottom line is I just don’t see Aderyn causing any more problems than other Nameberry favorites like “[name]Imogen[/name]” or “[name]Annora[/name].”

[name]Adeline[/name], [name]Adelaide[/name] and [name]Adair[/name] are not my style, personally. “[name]Adah[/name]” is also not quite my style, and I think it might have as many pronunciation issues as Aderyn, even though it’s only two syllables.

I’m not really concerned about being “tied in” to Welsh-sounding names. I don’t see us having more than one more kid anyway and I’m sure we can find one more name that goes with Aderyn (if we end up using it) that I like.

What do y’all think of “Aderyn [name]Maisie[/name]”?

I do like [name]Annora[/name]…though I don’t love it yet. And I kind of love [name]Aurora[/name], and it would be on my list if we were waiting longer to have kids, but as it is I’m afraid everyone will be thinking “gun massacre” when they hear it. :frowning:

Hmmm… “[name]Arya[/name]” would provide a couple of different awesome fantasy novel role models. Husband might approve.

Thanks again to everyone who commented!

For the middle name, you could do [name]Marina[/name], [name]Martine[/name], [name]Maureen[/name]

Aderyn is beautiful and I also like [name]Melody[/name] and [name]Maeve[/name] the best for middle names.

Another suggestion to get to [name]Ada[/name] is [name]Adella[/name].

If you can’t get the hubby to agree on Aderyn, you could pair [name]Ada[/name] with [name]Marin[/name] (pronounced Mah-[name]RIN[/name]) which has a very similar sound to Aderyn.

Good [name]Luck[/name]!

I like Aderyn, I thnk it’s a great name. Not at all difficult to pronounce or spell. Like you said, once someone knows where the accent is it shouldn’t be all that difficult. I loved the suggestion of Aderyn Maise! I think it is both sweet and pretty.