[FONT=Palatino Linotype]We just lost my grandmother, [name_f]Pauline[/name_f], a couple of days before Thanksgiving. After the funeral, I found out I was pregnant! I would love to carry on her name if I find out I would have a girl. Any ideas of a modern day name for [name_f]Pauline[/name_f]? I’m still not the fondest of [name_f]Paulina[/name_f] or [name_f]Paulette[/name_f]. Any others?? Her middle name was [name_f]Marie[/name_f] (as is mine) so that would be a definite middle name!
I actually quite like [name_f]Paulina[/name_f]. I think [name_f]Polly[/name_f], [name_f]Lolly[/name_f], [name_f]Lina[/name_f]/[name_f]Lena[/name_f], or even [name_f]Poppy[/name_f] could be cute nicknames for it (although [name_f]Lolly[/name_f] and [name_f]Poppy[/name_f] are a bit of a stretch). I guess there’s also [name_f]Polina[/name_f], which is the Russian (I think?) alternative? You could also switch them and do [name_f]Marie[/name_f] [name_f]Paulina[/name_f], or [name_f]Mary[/name_f] [name_f]Paulina[/name_f], or maybe even something like [name_f]Mariana[/name_f] [name_f]Pauline[/name_f] (love [name_f]Mariana[/name_f]!).
I can’t really think of anything else, unless it’s [name_f]Paula[/name_f] or the more Portuguese (?) [name_f]Paola[/name_f]. I love [name_f]Mary[/name_f] [name_f]Paulina[/name_f], or [name_f]Mariana[/name_f] [name_f]Pauline[/name_f], or [name_f]Paulina[/name_f] [name_f]Mary[/name_f] “[name_f]Poppy[/name_f]”, though. 
I think those are really fun. I think it’d be lovely to pick one name you love and a [name_f]Marie[/name_f]/[name_f]Pauline[/name_f] variant as a middle, too.
Good luck!
I’m sorry for the loss of your grandmother, and congratulations on your pregnancy. Personally, I think [name_f]Pauline[/name_f] itself is a pretty charming name, but here are some ideas for variations:
[name_f]Opaline[/name_f]
This name immediately popped into my head when I thought of modern variations of [name_f]Pauline[/name_f]. But I must admit, [name_f]Opaline[/name_f] is a bit of a guilty pleasure name for me, because opaline is a kind of art glass Opaline glass - Wikipedia and I’m not sure if that makes it strange as a name. But I do absolutely [name_u]LOVE[/name_u] the sound of the name, and 1) I’m not sure people would think of the glass, 2) I’m not sure that’s such a bad association to have in the first place.
[name_f]Apolline[/name_f] is a name that’s rapidly rising in popularity in [name_f]France[/name_f]. I’ve yet to hear it in the US, but if your tastes are towards the unusual you might consider it (pronunciation: Apolline pronunciation: How to pronounce Apolline in French, Spanish).
[name_f]Opal[/name_f] (less obvious, but still has some of the same sounds)
[name_f]Polly[/name_f]
or
[name_f]Lina[/name_f] (or [name_f]Lena[/name_f])–could work either as full names, or as nicknames for a little [name_f]Pauline[/name_f]/[name_f]Paulina[/name_f]
You could also pick another long form like [name_f]Pauletta[/name_f], with the intention to use a nickname from it, like [name_f]Etta[/name_f], [name_f]Letta[/name_f], or [name_f]Lettie[/name_f].
There are lots of other variations on feminine “[name_m]Paul[/name_m]” names, too from [name_f]Paula[/name_f] to international variations like [name_f]Paola[/name_f] or [name_f]Polina[/name_f]
Are you thinking of using [name_m]Paul[/name_m] if you have a son? I think it’s a very handsome name.
What about [name_f]Paulina[/name_f] [name_f]Marie[/name_f] and you call her [name_f]Lina[/name_f]?
[name_f]Polina[/name_f] [name_f]Marie[/name_f] came to mind, but I also like [name_f]Polly[/name_f] [name_f]Marie[/name_f], [name_f]Lina[/name_f]/[name_f]Lena[/name_f] [name_f]Marie[/name_f] and [name_f]Marina[/name_f] ([name_f]Marie[/name_f]/[name_f]Pauline/name_f mix).
@halloween_jacqueline I [name_u]LOVE[/name_u] THE NAME [name_f]OPALINE[/name_f] (Oh-pa-lean) Would you spell it Opalene so people wouldn’t butcher the name or I am actually not saying it properly?
These are all wonderful! My name is [name_f]Angela[/name_f] and my grandmother also called me [name_f]Angelina[/name_f], therefor, a nickname of [name_f]Lena[/name_f] is actually quite perfect. [name_f]Paulina[/name_f] would be the obvious because it is a mix of her name and the nickname she gave me, however, it’s just not growing on me at this time.
@halloween_jacqueline I [name_u]LOVE[/name_u] THE NAME [name_f]OPALINE[/name_f]! What is the proper way to pronounce that name? Oh-pa-lean, Oh-pa-line, Oh-pa-[name_u]Lynn[/name_u] ?? My worries would be that others would not pronounce this properly.
[name_f]Apolline[/name_f] – might work a little better than [name_f]Opaline[/name_f]? I pronounce both with the “een” ending.
[name_f]Paloma[/name_f]
[name_f]Amapola[/name_f] – just saw this on another thread, and [name_f]Pola[/name_f] seems very close to [name_f]Paula[/name_f] in regard to [name_f]Pauline[/name_f].
[name_f]Palmira[/name_f]
I’m so glad you like it! To me [name_f]Opaline[/name_f] has a lovely sound and a very dreamy feel. I also pronounce it Oh-pa-lean, and I have only heard it said this this way–but that could be because I currently live in [name_f]France[/name_f] where “ine” always sounds like “een” so there isn’t any ambiguity here. It’s true that in English people may end up saying “Oh-pa-line” (like the English word “line”). Personally, I’d keep the [name_f]Opaline[/name_f] spelling and just explain it in relation to “[name_f]Christine[/name_f], [name_f]Pauline[/name_f], [name_f]Josephine[/name_f]” and lots of more familiar [name_m]French[/name_m] names that have this sound/spelling at the end. Opalene could definitely work as an alternative spelling, but it appeals to me less because then the name looses its direct meaning as a synonym of “opalescent” and it looks a little bit less like [name_f]Pauline[/name_f], as well. If you start considering the name seriously, maybe you can try out the two spellings here or with friends and see how people end up pronouncing them.
I also think the [name_f]Lena[/name_f] connection to your own nickname is very sweet. [name_f]Lena[/name_f] [name_f]Marie[/name_f] could bring together the shared aspects of your name and your grandmother’s name 
Ok, just did a quick search online for pronunciations of [name_f]Opaline[/name_f], and while Oh-pa-leen is the only correct pronunciation in [name_m]French[/name_m], it looks like in English it can be pronounced Oh-pa-lynn, Oh-pa-line, OR Oh-pa-leen.
[name_f]Paula[/name_f] [name_f]Marie[/name_f], [name_f]Paola[/name_f] [name_f]Marie[/name_f], [name_f]Paulina[/name_f] [name_f]Marie[/name_f]. [name_f]Pauline[/name_f] [name_f]Marie[/name_f] is beautiful, too.
[name_f]Paola[/name_f] is my favourite variation of [name_f]Pauline[/name_f]. What about something with a similar -line ending?
[name_f]Apolline[/name_f]
[name_f]Emmeline[/name_f]
[name_f]Marceline[/name_f]
[name_f]Madeline[/name_f]
[name_f]Evangeline[/name_f]
[name_f]Adeline[/name_f]
[name_f]Caroline[/name_f]
My immediate thought was [name_f]Paola[/name_f] (POW LA) which is a gorgeous variant off [name_f]Pauline[/name_f].
I would look at international variants of [name_f]Pauline[/name_f] (aside from [name_f]Paulina[/name_f])…
[name_f]Polina[/name_f]
[name_f]Pavlina[/name_f]
[name_f]Paolina[/name_f]
[name_f]Pavlina[/name_f]
[name_f]Polina[/name_f]
Pavica
[name_f]Pavla[/name_f]
[name_f]Paulette[/name_f]
[name_f]Paula[/name_f]
Pála
Or you could use [name_f]Pauline[/name_f] as a middle name, teamed with something spunky would be cute…
[name_f]Violet[/name_f] [name_f]Pauline[/name_f]
[name_f]Ava[/name_f] [name_f]Pauline[/name_f]
[name_f]Elena[/name_f] [name_f]Pauline[/name_f]
[name_f]Rachel[/name_f] [name_f]Pauline[/name_f]
[name_f]Nina[/name_f] [name_f]Pauline[/name_f]
[name_f]Belle[/name_f] [name_f]Pauline[/name_f]
[name_f]Elsie[/name_f] [name_f]Pauline[/name_f]
[name_u]Bellamy[/name_u] [name_f]Pauline[/name_f]
[name_f]Effie[/name_f] [name_f]Pauline[/name_f]
: )
I think [name_f]Opaline[/name_f] is very, very pretty. I am an American and the most natural pronunciation and what I automatically thought was “Oh-pa-leen.” I think that the -ine ending is much prettier than an -een one. There might be a rare mispronunciation, but that seems to be a risk with about 90% of names. If you love it, don’t let that stop you!
I like [name_f]Apolline[/name_f] better than [name_f]Opaline[/name_f]. [name_f]Apolline[/name_f] is lovely and chic.
[name_f]Polly[/name_f] or [name_f]Lena[/name_f]/[name_f]Lina[/name_f] would be wonderful.
[name_u]LOVE[/name_u] [name_f]Opaline[/name_f]! I am from the U.S. and say it as Oh-pa-leen. Much prefer it over [name_f]Apolline[/name_f]. You’d still get the Nn [name_f]Lena[/name_f]/[name_f]Lina[/name_f] or the fun nn [name_f]Opal[/name_f] if you like it. With any name someone is bound to mispronounce it. My daughter name is [name_f]Anna[/name_f] and I can’t tell you how many times people have said awn-nah. I thought it was fool proof, but oh well. [name_m]Just[/name_m] a quick “no its ___” does the trick.
I immediately thought of its European variant: [name_f]Paolina[/name_f]
I like [name_f]Paulina[/name_f], too. It’s pretty.
I keep coming back to [name_f]Opaline[/name_f] [name_f]Marie[/name_f]. I think this is beautiful ladies. I this [name_f]Opal[/name_f] as a nickname is just the cutest too! I made have just found my winner. You ladies are amazing. Thank you all for your input!
[name_f]Opaline[/name_f] [name_f]Marie[/name_f] is darling! I hope you end up going with it