See the results of this poll: Which are workable alternatives to nickname Xanthe:
Respondents: 55 (This poll is closed)
- Kiku : 22 (22%)
- Kiki : 9 (9%)
- Rhys : 17 (17%)
- Cricket : 19 (19%)
- Ysi : 3 (3%)
- Kit : 21 (21%)
- Daisy : 3 (3%)
- Aster: 5 (5%)
1 Like
After reading that Kiku is Japanese for [name_f]Chrysanthemum[/name_f], I’d definitely go for that one! It’s precious, and really cute.
I voted for Kiku and [name_u]Kit[/name_u].
I love the idea of Kiku as an alternative to [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f] given its meaning and your and your husband’s shared knowledge of Japanese. It is so precious.
I also think [name_u]Kit[/name_u] is a nice “normal” nickname and is fairly intuitively derived from [name_f]Chrysanthemum[/name_f]. I feel like this would be a great choice if you’re trying to avoid the even more natural [name_u]Chris[/name_u] or [name_f]Chrissy[/name_f] and if she decides she wants to blend in a bit more. The unisex versatility could also be nice for her if she doesn’t want to go by her full (beautiful) feminine name.
A lot of the other names you have listed are also very cute. Some of them could also just be used as sweet terms of endearment around the house. I’d keep this list around and see which fit her best once you know her a bit - that’s the great thing about nicknames!!
I voted for [name_u]Rhys[/name_u] but [name_u]Chris[/name_u]/[name_f]Chrissy[/name_f] would be my preferred. I also like [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f] :).
I am a big proponent of [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f], but if not that, I could get behind [name_u]Rhys[/name_u] (although I like [name_u]Reese[/name_u] much more for a girl, but [name_u]Rhys[/name_u] makes a lot of sense with [name_f]Chrysanthemum[/name_f]'s spelling!), [name_f]Christabel[/name_f] (in a silly way. It’s rather froufrou on its own!), [name_f]Santa[/name_f] (omgoodness, SO cute!), [name_f]Annie[/name_f] (by far my favorite “realistic” nn. Some of these are quite a stretch. ;)), [name_f]Coco[/name_f], [name_f]Emme[/name_f]/[name_f]Emma[/name_f]/[name_f]Emmy[/name_f], and [name_f]Thea[/name_f]. I [name_u]LOVE[/name_u] [name_f]Daisy[/name_f], [name_f]Aster[/name_f], [name_f]Tessa[/name_f], [name_f]Mina[/name_f], and [name_f]Macy[/name_f], but I don’t get them at all? [name_f]Mina[/name_f] and [name_f]Tessa[/name_f] sort of, but I’m totally confused by [name_f]Daisy[/name_f] and [name_f]Aster[/name_f]. Anthem is super cool in a GP way, but I don’t think I’d use it?
Good luck!
I love Kiku, [name_u]Kit[/name_u] and [name_f]Cricket[/name_f] the best!
I votes Kiku, [name_f]Kiki[/name_f] and [name_u]Rhys[/name_u]. [name_f]Daisy[/name_f] and [name_f]Aster[/name_f] are out for me because, well, they’re different flowers entirely. [name_f]Chrissy[/name_f], [name_u]Risa[/name_u], [name_f]Santa[/name_f] and Theme work too.
I think [name_u]Kit[/name_u] works well and makes sense. I like it. [name_f]Cricket[/name_f] is cute too. 
I voted only for [name_u]Kit[/name_u] before reading the description - now I understand Kiku and think it’s an amazing and special option!
[name_m]How[/name_m] do you even get most of those nicknames from the name? :eek:
I like Riss/[name_f]Rissa[/name_f].
I think [name_u]Chris[/name_u] or [name_f]Chrissy[/name_f] is going to be the “go to” nickname here. Honestly, most of the options you listed are completely separate names and/or make little to no sense as nicknames for [name_f]Chrysanthemum[/name_f]. For example, [name_f]Chrysanthemum[/name_f] nn [name_f]Daisy[/name_f] or [name_f]Aster[/name_f] makes no sense. It just sounds like you and your husband couldn’t decide which flower name you liked best and compromised by deciding to call her by both names.
My feelings exactly. I love the flexibility of nicknaming. I fully admit that a lot of these don’t make necessarily immediate intuitive sense, but there is a line of logic behind each of them, [name_f]Daisy[/name_f] and [name_f]Aster[/name_f] included [part of our attachment to [name_f]Chrysanthemum[/name_f] comes from the idea that Chrysanthemums are part of the [name_f]Daisy[/name_f] flower family, Asteraceae, which is a sweet tie to my 2nd great grandmother [name_f]Hildred[/name_f] “[name_f]Daisy[/name_f]”. I fully respect if y’all don’t think [name_f]Daisy[/name_f] or [name_f]Aster[/name_f] could fit, but that’s the rationale behind them making the list, whether or not it makes sense].
I think for people invested in naming like we all are, it can be tough to take a step back sometimes and recognize that not everything has to fit just right. I’m just brainstorming here about trying to figure out some alternatives to [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f] on the (I believe) off-chance that she really doesn’t like [name_f]Chrysanthemum[/name_f] or [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f] (or [name_f]Helen[/name_f] or [name_f]Pearl[/name_f]). I think that almost all of these nicknames are C or R or S or M heavy, and/or play off the various pronunciations of [name_f]Chrysanthemum[/name_f] that I know will be at play in my family (we will be speaking English, [name_m]French[/name_m], and Japanese in our household).
[name_f]Chrysanthemum[/name_f] in [name_m]French[/name_m] is the name Chrysanthème, which I love in [name_m]French[/name_m] but not at all in English. It’s like CREE-zon-TEM, so that’s more where ones like [name_u]Rhys[/name_u] (with the long E) and Theme (with the hard T) come from… or even [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f] for that matter since some have critiqued that [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f] doesn’t make sense to them because the S in [name_f]Chrysanthemum[/name_f] is soft. I believe [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f] makes a lot of sense, even moreso given the “golden” meaning and etymological root that ties them together.
I think that “[name_m]Ike[/name_m]” didn’t make sense for [name_m]Dwight[/name_m] [name_m]David[/name_m] Eisenhower (“[name_m]Ike[/name_m]” was supposed to be for Eisenhower…), but I love that. [name_f]Buffy[/name_f] doesn’t “make sense” for [name_f]Elizabeth[/name_f] since the ONLY sound they share in common is the lone b, but I still love that nickname.
[name_f]Polly[/name_f] for [name_f]Mary[/name_f]. [name_m]Pepe[/name_m] for [name_m]Jose[/name_m]. [name_f]Charo[/name_f] for [name_u]Rosario[/name_u]. [name_m]Jack[/name_m] for [name_m]John[/name_m]. [name_m]Diego[/name_m] for [name_m]Jacob[/name_m]. [name_f]Sally[/name_f] for [name_f]Sarah[/name_f]. [name_f]Peggy[/name_f] for [name_f]Margaret[/name_f]. The list goes on. There are plenty of nicknames that don’t “make sense” at face value. Yet they’re great nicknames that have become established in connection to certain names. [name_m]Even[/name_m] my 2nd great-grandmothers [name_f]Hildred[/name_f] “[name_f]Daisy[/name_f]” and [name_f]Genevieve[/name_f] “[name_u]Jule[/name_u]” had nicknames far removed from their full names.
I admit that with a name like [name_f]Chrysanthemum[/name_f] that already reads “out-there” to most people, it makes sense to play it on the safER side and not pick a nickname that leaves people completely scratching their heads. But I’m just trying to look for the inherent flexibility that a long name like [name_f]Chrysanthemum[/name_f] innately has to offer in the territory of nicknaming. And I’m looking on behalf of my daughter, who may or may not want to further differentiate herself from the crowd or may or may not want to blend in more.
I respect that some just don’t see how a lot of these could possibly be nicknames for [name_f]Chrysanthemum[/name_f], and that’s fine and a great response to my original post, since I’m asking which on the list are workable (not intuitive) nicknames as alternatives to the one we have already chosen together, [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f].
Thanks for the feedback everyone.
Kiku since it actually has ties to the original name, the others are just too far off and random
I’ve come across [name_f]Senta[/name_f], which I like quite a bit. And thinking [name_m]Kermit[/name_m] could be clunky cute for a toddler.