WDYT I know it’s kind of out there. Disney states it means “mischievous”. WDYT Is it at all usable as first or middle name?
What names do YOU like that look, and sound awesome but dont have the greatest associations/meanings? Would you still use them?
I love Bandit, but I don’t think I could use it.
[name_f]Melena[/name_f]. Actually, I wouldn’t use [name_f]Milena[/name_f] because it is too close/reminiscent of melena.
Maleficent… eh, probably not the best idea. It looks pretty, but I’d definitively be more inclined to use [name_f]Millicent[/name_f] or [name_f]Melusine[/name_f]. Plus it starts with the word ‘male’.
I think [name_f]Narcissa[/name_f] is beautiful but I wouldn’t ever do that to a child.
Also - [name_f]Lolita[/name_f]. Highly inappropriate (due to the more recent connotations - the character was a victim and not a horrible reference herself) but I think it’s gorgeous. [name_f]Lola[/name_f] doesn’t quite have the same qualities for me.
“Mischevious” is putting it rather mildly.
Yeah, Maleficent really isn’t usable. To me, it just sounds villainous anyway.
I could never use [name_f]Melena[/name_f], [name_f]Milena[/name_f], maybe even [name_f]Melanie[/name_f] because melena is a medical term for blood in the stool.
Also, not that I like the name, but [name_f]Phyllis[/name_f] has always reminded me of syphilis.
I kind of like [name_f]Persephone[/name_f], but the mythological story behind the name isn’t very pleasant. Still might use it, though.
I just see male and deficient when I see Maleficent, definitely in the middle if at all. I like pp’s suggestion of [name_f]Millicent[/name_f] or [name_f]Melusine[/name_f], maybe [name_f]Melisande[/name_f] or just [name_f]Melissa[/name_f]? I like [name_f]Bellatrix[/name_f] and [name_u]Dorian[/name_u]; they have bad associations, but I’d use them if I loved them enough.
[name_f]Pandora[/name_f] is my fave girls’ name, and I’d use it in a heartbeat, but loads of people find the associations too much for a child. Especially as it is a bit of a brand name atm.
[name_m]Ptolemy[/name_m] is another one of my fave names, and it means aggressive or warlike, but I’d still consider using it.
Edited for privacy.
Maleficent, I agree, is not usable. “Mischievous” isn’t a bad meaning, but I tend to think that it means more “Malicious” and comes across quite villainous – the perfect name for Sleeping Beauty’s villain. Too overt. Especially considering there’s a new movie coming out I think…?
Also, as another pointed out: It starts with “Male”.
[name_f]Ophelia[/name_f] – beautiful name, not the best [name_m]Shakespeare[/name_m] character.
[name_f]Io[/name_f] – this is actually more usable for me because I can associate it with other things BUT in the myth [name_f]Io[/name_f] is a nymph seduced by [name_m]Zeus[/name_m] and then turned into a heifer. I wish she’d been turned into a swan. 
[name_f]Mayella[/name_f] – character associated with [name_f]Mayella[/name_f] in “To Kill a Mockingbird”, not the best.
[name_f]Sula[/name_f] – Directly tied to [name_f]Toni[/name_f] [name_m]Morrison[/name_m]'s novel, which are often quite disturbing.
Also, I associate [name_f]Nellie[/name_f] with the brat in “[name_m]Little[/name_m] House on the [name_u]Prairie[/name_u]”…or the rapper [name_u]Nelly[/name_u]. So I personally wouldn’t use that one, but it’s not quite on the level of complete unusableness as Maleficent or [name_f]Narcissa[/name_f] or [name_f]Melena[/name_f].
Also, what’s the negative meaning of [name_m]Cormac[/name_m]?
Edit #3, sorry…Nero. A very nasty historic character; I was shocked when it was in the blog about names Pam predicted to be popular in the future. I think she was going for the historic chic thing, but ya gotta at least pick a decent emperor. Definitely NOT a tyrant known for persecuting Christians…I can’t see that flying in many parts of the States. Try Hadrian instead.
Edited for privacy.
Maleficent is not a good idea for a little girl, considering that it is the name of the villain in Sleeping Beauty - a very, very popular Disney [name_f]Princess[/name_f] film, and it is the title/subject of an upcoming Disney film.
A tidbit about the character:
She is the Mistress of All Evil who, after not being invited to a royal christening, curses the infant Princess Aurora to “prick her finger on the spindle of a spinning wheel and die” before the sun sets on her sixteenth birthday. The character is Disney’s adaptation of the wicked fairy godmother from the original French fairy tale.
Maleficent has been called “one of the most sinister Disney Villains.”
According to Wikipedia, Maleficent is an adjective, meaning ‘doing evil or harm’.
So, no, imo it’s a horrid idea for a name, and definitely should be avoided at all costs. Much the same as, say, [name_m]Lucifer[/name_m] or Morticia.
The only name like that for me is [name_f]Titania[/name_f].
Maleficent is a name created for the Disney character and I can’t imagine it being usable…or how someone would even want to use it. It starts with “[name_u]Mal[/name_u]” (Latin for ‘bad’) which just adds to that evil aura (yet oddly, I love [name_m]Malcolm[/name_m]).