We’re expecting a little girl this spring and are having trouble deciding on a name.
My husband and I both like the name [name_f]Celeste[/name_f], but could use help finding a middle name that pairs well. I like [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] [name_f]Elizabeth[/name_f], but I also have a strong preference for incorporating a family name, which [name_f]Elizabeth[/name_f] isn’t.
Family names that could serve as a middle for [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] include:
[name_f]Marilyn[/name_f]
[name_f]Dorothy[/name_f]
[name_f]May[/name_f] or [name_f]Mae[/name_f] (the family spelling is [name_f]May[/name_f] but I’m open to using [name_f]Mae[/name_f] instead)
[name_f]Clara[/name_f]
[name_u]Ellis[/name_u]
[name_u]Lee[/name_u] (after a male relative — we could spell it [name_u]Leigh[/name_u], but I’m also not opposed to [name_u]Lee[/name_u] for a girl)
Surname is one syllable starting with T, ending with S.
If we don’t go with [name_f]Celeste[/name_f], our other top contender is [name_f]Ophelia[/name_f] [name_f]Mae[/name_f] (or [name_f]May[/name_f]), followed by [name_f]Susannah[/name_f] [name_f]Marilyn[/name_f].
I also like [name_f]Anna[/name_f] [name_f]Marilyn[/name_f], but I think [name_f]Anna[/name_f] is a bit too pedestrian for my husband.
Any feedback welcome, including suggestions for other first names that would work well with our preferred middle name options. Thanks!
I adore [name_f]Celeste[/name_f], and [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] [name_f]Elizabeth[/name_f] is classic and lovely. I also like [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] [name_f]Eliza[/name_f]. From your list, I actually like the names the echo the “L” sound, like [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] [name_u]Ellis[/name_u] and [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] [name_u]Lee[/name_u]. I can’t decide if [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] [name_f]Marilyn[/name_f] is gorgeous in a vintage way, or way too much like my grandparents’ bridge club.
My favourite is [name_f]Susannah[/name_f], followed by [name_f]Celeste[/name_f], followed by [name_f]Ophelia[/name_f].
[name_f]Celeste[/name_f] [name_f]Elizabeth[/name_f]/[name_f]Eliza[/name_f] is lovely, but I actually think [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] [name_f]Marilyn[/name_f] works well. Or, how about something like [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] [name_u]Marion[/name_u], [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] [name_f]Linnea[/name_f], [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] [name_f]Elysia[/name_f] or [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] [name_f]Dorothea[/name_f] for a personalised twist on your honour name options?
Can’t we count [name_f]Elisabeth[/name_f] to honour [name_u]Ellis[/name_u]? No? [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] [name_f]Elisabeth[/name_f] sounds lovely to me.
If you both like Celeste Elizabeth then why don’t you use both and add a second middle. A lot of people are using middles these days
Celeste Elizabeth Mae
Celeste Elizabeth Lea
Celeste Elizabeth Marilyn
Celeste Eliza Mae
Celeste Eliza Lea
I adore Susannah! Susannah Elizabeth is classic. Lea is a nice alt of Lee. I always want to pronounce Leigh as sleigh. Have you considered Celia? It has the same heavenly meaning as Celeste. And there’s tons on alternate Elizabeth names.
Celia Elizabeth
Celia Etta
Celia Elsie
Celia Ellis Mae
Celia Ellis Lea
@marisarath I did consider [name_f]Celia[/name_f], actually had it on my list for a while, but my husband was not too keen.
It’s interesting that no one really seems to like [name_f]Ophelia[/name_f]. I’ve always liked that name, but it seems like it really doesn’t resonate with very many people.
[name_u]Love[/name_u] [name_f]Celeste[/name_f]! The sounds in it are so graceful, and the meaning is lovely. [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] [name_f]Elizabeth[/name_f] is beautiful, but [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] [name_f]May[/name_f] (I prefer this spelling) is nice, too. And [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] [name_u]Ellis[/name_u]. I think you shouldn’t overthink the middle name - 99% of the time she’ll be known by her first and last name only, and very few people are going to give any thought to “flow.” Meaning and history is much more important, so use one of your family names! Really any of them are perfectly good with [name_f]Celeste[/name_f].
[name_f]Ophelia[/name_f] just strikes me as a bit over the top as a name. Its very frilly and dramatic, and she’s also such a tragic figure in [name_m]Hamlet[/name_m].
Thanks for your input. [name_f]Ophelia[/name_f] is my husband’s clear favorite at this point, although he likes [name_f]Susannah[/name_f] and [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] too. I’m torn. Naming our son was so easy, but I’m feeling much more indecisive this time around.
My only concern about [name_f]Celeste[/name_f] is that I wonder if a first name ending with a “T” sound will sound funny with a last name that starts with T.
As for [name_f]Susannah[/name_f], my only hesitation there is that we already have a [name_f]Susan[/name_f] on one side of the family and a [name_f]Suzanne[/name_f] on the other, so I wonder if [name_f]Susannah[/name_f] would be a little much. Although I do love the name and think that, unlike so many other names, it works well with [name_f]Marilyn[/name_f].
I do agree @kristin of kerrytown that we probably shouldn’t over think the middle name. But I have always loved my own middle name and I love my son’s, while my husband hates his own middle name so much that he never wants it used, even in more formal situations (like on our wedding invites, vows, etc.). So I guess I’m a little sensitive to that. Ultimately, it’s important to me to honor family so, in the end, we’ll probably end up going with one of those choices for a middle name.