I’ve finally gotten together a list of names that me and my other half both really like, and since you guys have been so helpful already, I’d love your opinions on them and whether you think some of them are usuable or not in the UK - I want a name that’s unusual rather than just plain awkward, after all. I’ve had loads of great suggestions already, but I’m still open to more if you have any.
I think [name]Azalea[/name], [name]Cosima[/name], Eirlys, [name]Magnolia[/name], [name]Ottilie[/name], [name]Phaedra[/name], Rosalita, [name]Coralina[/name] and [name]Serena[/name] are useable. I’ve never been to the UK, so I’m judging by [name]North[/name] American standards, but I don’t imagine they’re all that different.
[name]Cosima[/name], Eirlys, [name]Ottilie[/name] and [name]Phaedra[/name] are my favorites from your list. I think they’re they perfect blend of unusual but not awkward; [name]Ottilie[/name] isn’t unusual, but it’s certainly not common. I think [name]Cosima[/name] is just gorgeous. It’s rich and mysterious and tastes like dark chocolate in my mouth. [name]Ottilie[/name] is a family name I always wanted to use, but my boyfriend doesn’t care for it. I think of my four favorite, [name]Ottilie[/name] and [name]Phaedra[/name] are the two that don’t feel quite as unusual, maybe because I know people with those names. Eirlys sounds dreamy and sweet.
I don’t care for the way [name]Magnolia[/name] sounds, but that’s with an American accent. The gno sounds unpleasant to me. [name]Azalea[/name], Rosalita and [name]Serena[/name] are pretty enough, but they don’t seem unusual to me at all. I much prefer [name]Coraline[/name] to [name]Coralina[/name]. [name]Coraline[/name] feels polished with a hint of mystery, whereas [name]Coralina[/name] feels made up and overly frilly.
I find Belphoebe, [name]Bluma[/name], [name]Decima[/name] and [name]Mimosa[/name] unusual and awkward. [name]Phoebe[/name] is okay, but the [name]Bel[/name] in front of it makes me think elephant. The elph I suppose. Haha! It doesn’t have to make sense, that’s just what I see when I see the name. I think [name]Bluma[/name] and [name]Decima[/name] sound odd. And [name]Mimosa[/name] sounds pretty, but I’m too big a fan of the cocktail to take it seriously as a name. I love nature inspired names, but the cocktail is more familiar to people than an herb. At least, I think that’d be the case over here. If it’s not the case in the UK, then I’d bump [name]Mimosa[/name] into the unusual but not awkward group.
[name]Azalea[/name]: [name]Unique[/name] but usable
Belphoebe: [name]Phoebe[/name] would be better - people would get confused & perhaps think it was double-barrelled ([name]Belle[/name]-[name]Phoebe[/name])
[name]Bluma[/name]: Too much like ‘bloomers’, women’s oldfashioned undergarments
[name]Coralina[/name]: I think [name]Coraline[/name] would be better as most people here are familiar with the name/spelling because of the film
[name]Cosima[/name]: [name]Unique[/name] but usable
[name]Decima[/name]: [name]Unique[/name] but usable
Eirlys: I can see this one getting a lot of spelling/pronunciation mistakes
[name]Magnolia[/name]: Definitely usable
[name]Mimosa[/name]: [name]Unique[/name] but usable
[name]Ottilie[/name]: [name]May[/name] have some spelling mistakes
[name]Phaedra[/name]: Usable
Rosalita: Usable
[name]Serena[/name]: Definitely usable
[name]Azalea[/name] - Pretty, usable, fresh. I like florals/botanicals though.
Belphoebe - Ooh, a bit of a guilty pleasure for me too, but I’d only use it as a middle name. [name]Phoebe[/name] would be easier to use as a first.
[name]Bluma[/name] - Blum, Bloom, and variants all read as surnames to me.
[name]Coralina[/name] - I’d prefer choosing between [name]Carolina[/name] and [name]Coraline[/name]. Or neither, and go with [name]Coralie[/name].
[name]Cosima[/name] - [name]Love[/name] it.
[name]Decima[/name] - Like it, but not as much as I love [name]Demetria[/name]. It’s usable though.
Eirlys - I like it.
[name]Magnolia[/name] - [name]Love[/name] it. It’s got a lot of the same spunk as [name]Azalea[/name] but has the added flexibility of [name]Maggie[/name]. I say it with 3 syllables (mag-noll-ya) but the common British 4 wouldn’t ruin it for me.
[name]Mimosa[/name] - I like [name]Acacia[/name] more, for the tree. [name]Mimosa[/name] is champagne and orange juice to me.
[name]Ottilie[/name] - Dislike. Prefer [name]Ottavia[/name]/[name]Octavia[/name]
[name]Phaedra[/name] - [name]Pleasant[/name] but not my thing.
Rosalita - I am surprised how much I like it, actually, as I’d never thought about it.
[name]Serena[/name] - Much prefer [name]Selina[/name]/[name]Selena[/name], or [name]Sabrina[/name], or even [name]Sarita[/name].
[name]Azalea[/name]- Such a pretty name. I feel as though everyone has [name]Azalea[/name] on their list, but much to my dislike, parents never actually use this name.
Belphoebe- To me this is just a combination of two names that don’t match well.
[name]Bluma[/name]- hmm, never heard of it. Not my style.
[name]Coralina[/name]- Better than [name]Carolina[/name], but still not a fan.
[name]Cosima[/name]- I like it.
[name]Decima[/name]- I prefer this over [name]Cosima[/name].
Eirlys- Very pretty. The spelling of this name seems enchanted.
[name]Magnolia[/name]- Such a beautiful name. I have used it in a story as the main character once.
[name]Mimosa[/name]- Reminds me of a last name.
[name]Ottilie[/name]- Not a fan. Reminds me of a cat.
[name]Phaedra[/name]- Not a fan of the Ph sound.
Rosalita- Thought I’ve heard all the [name]Rose[/name] names, but this is new! [name]Favorite[/name] from your list.
[name]Serena[/name] - Very pretty
Thank you, you’ve definitely opened my eyes to a lot of things here! Only thing that doesn’t bother me is the [name]Mimosa[/name]/cocktail connection as I have never heard of a [name]Mimosa[/name] cocktail before and when I ran it by my other half, she hadn’t either, so I think we’re safe there.
[name]Azalea[/name] - Uncommon flower name, I like it! The ‘z’ also gives it a little spunky kick.
Belphoebe - I find this a bit awkward than unusual. I would go with [name]Belle[/name] or [name]Phoebe[/name].
[name]Bluma[/name] - Interesting, I’ve never heard it before. It’s a bit strange
[name]Coralina[/name] - I like this one, it’s sophisticated and elegant.
[name]Cosima[/name] - I like this too. It’s different but recognizable.
[name]Decima[/name] - Hmm, a bit too much. I don’t know if I like this one
Eirlys - Is this pronounced [name]Air[/name]-liss? It’s interesting, I would use it as a middle name
[name]Magnolia[/name] - I feel like it’s a bit dated
[name]Mimosa[/name] - Reminds me of alchohol
[name]Ottilie[/name] - I like it, it feels delicate and I like the meaning
[name]Phaedra[/name] - Interesting, I like it
Rosalita - This is kind of cool, it sounds spanish
[name]Serena[/name] - I like it, it’s pretty and familiar but not over used
I like [name]Azalea[/name], [name]Coralina[/name], [name]Cosima[/name], [name]Ottilie[/name], [name]Serena[/name]
What a beautiful list! A couple of these name are very high up on my husband & I’s list too!
[name]Azalea[/name] - I personally really like this. [name]Love[/name] the flower connotations. And the spelling is really funky in my opinion. Totally usable as it’s already in peoples vocabularies. Would be on my list but a friends son is named Zalen(said Zaylen) & they call him Zales for short. Too similar.
Belphoebe - very pretty & puts together 2 familiar sounds.
[name]Bluma[/name] - never thought of this one. Sounds [name]German[/name] to me
[name]Coralina[/name] - pretty
[name]Cosima[/name] - I have not the best associations of this from someone on Australian Idol a few years ago. But in the UK I’m guessing its as uncommon as it is here. Which s a good thing - very usable.
[name]Decima[/name] - sounds okay I guess. I do think of decimal point but so what
Eirlys - not sure how to say this one
[name]Magnolia[/name] - [name]Love[/name] this! The flowers & trees are beautiful. And has the casual & charming nickname [name]Maggie[/name].
[name]Mimosa[/name] - Also love this! Pretty, exotic sound (mysterious my husband would say lol). People on Nameberry keep telling me about the cocktail - which my husband and I had never heard of until then. I think it’s called a [name]Buck[/name]'s Fizz in the UK (maybe!?) so not too much of an issue really. Also has tons of cute nicknames like M, [name]Mim[/name], Mimie, [name]Mosie[/name]
[name]Ottilie[/name] - [name]Just[/name] adore it.
[name]Phaedra[/name] - [name]Love[/name]! It means the beautiful one, the bright one in Greek. And I like the mythological connection. The song by [name]Nancy[/name] Sinatra and [name]Lee[/name] Hazelwood got me onto this name. Nickname Phae is very sweet too.
Rosalita - sounds very Spanish. Quite sweet.
[name]Serena[/name] - reminds me of [name]Serena[/name] [name]Williams[/name]. Not a bad thing. I also went to school with a [name]Serena[/name] and she was nice.
