See the results of this poll: Which of these 3 French-inspired names?
Respondents: 14 (This poll is closed)
- Ciel : 4 (29%)
- Maelle : 5 (36%)
- Floralie: 5 (36%)
Floralie is just perfect. [name_f]Maelle[/name_f] would be my second choice.
They are all absolutely lovely. Personally, I prefer [name_f]Maelle[/name_f] - and wouldn’t even think of a ‘male’ pronunciation - but I love that [name_f]Ciel[/name_f] is such a long-term love of yours.
As far as pronunciation goes, people you meet who haven’t seen it written down ought to follow your pronunciation, particularly if it’s a name they’re unfamiliar with. For this reason, I can’t imagine you’d get a ‘male’ pronunciation from [name_f]Maelle[/name_f] very often, especially with the rising (?) popularity of [name_f]Mae[/name_f]. The pronunciation for [name_f]Ciel[/name_f] might be more of a concern, but it sounds like this wouldn’t outweigh your love for the name.
I think you could use [name_f]Maelle[/name_f] and Floralie or [name_f]Ciel[/name_f] and Floralie in a sibset, but [name_f]Maelle[/name_f] and [name_f]Ciel[/name_f] seem too similar to me, so I’d concentrate on eliminating one of these (at least for a first name).
I am actually quite taken by Floralie, in fact, I like it a lot more than [name_f]Coralie[/name_f] or just-[name_f]Flora[/name_f] (or [name_f]Florence[/name_f] which I don’t like that much). [name_f]Ciel[/name_f] is lovely, but Floralie is lovely x 1.000.000.