Opinions/Suggestions for first baby on the way

General Name Discussion
1

My husband and I just found out we are expecting our first child : ) (we just got married in [name]December[/name] and we”re unbelievably excited) We don”t know the gender yet, but we intend to find out. I”m at very high risk of having multiples, but we are hoping it”s just one for now.
We like regal, classical names. Our families are partly French so we prefer names with French origins, but it is not a requirement. I tend to like longer names, and prefer using full names rather than going straight to the nickname. We don”t like made-up names or anything that”s gender ambiguous. Our last name is French and two-syllables, starting with an L. The names we are considering for now are :

Girls :
[name]Beatrice[/name] ()
[name]Anais[/name] ()
[name]Delphine[/name]
[name]Eugenie[/name] ()
[name]Charlotte[/name]
[name]Celeste[/name]
[name]Victoria[/name]
[name]Juliette[/name] ()
[name]Ophelia[/name]
[name]Annabelle[/name] ()
[name]Celia[/name]
[name]Leonie[/name] ()
[name]Adelaide[/name]
[name]Florence[/name] (*)

Boys :
[name]August[/name] ()
[name]Augustin[/name] ()
[name]Seamus[/name]
[name]Damian[/name]
[name]Noah[/name] ()
[name]Arnaud[/name]
[name]Julius[/name] ()
[name]William[/name] ()
[name]Felix[/name]
[name]Edward[/name]
[name]Matthias[/name] ()
[name]Victor[/name]

The ones with an (*) are family names. I would really like some comments/opinions on those names, and suggestions for more we might like. I really want to get this right. Thank you so much!

2

Girls :
[name]Beatrice[/name] () love, might get really popular, but I would still use it.
[name]Anais[/name] () love
[name]Delphine[/name] so cute
[name]Eugenie[/name] () When it’s pronounced ooh-jhen-AY, I love it.
[name]Charlotte[/name] very lovely!
[name]Celeste[/name] one of my favorites
[name]Victoria[/name] this is a fine name but has been pretty popular in my neck of the woods, I know someone I don’t like with this name so now I’m biased.
[name]Juliette[/name] () delightful
[name]Ophelia[/name] Sorry I do think of [name]Ophelia[/name] in [name]Hamlet[/name] who went mad. But very pretty.
[name]Annabelle[/name] () so cute. love it spelled [name]Annabel[/name]. It’s on the hipster list, but I don’t think you need to worry about that unless you live in Manhattan or [name]West[/name] L.A.
[name]Celia[/name] love it. also a great nickname for [name]Cecilia[/name]. I think it could be a nickname for [name]Cecily[/name], too.
[name]Leonie[/name] () extremely cute and very different!
[name]Adelaide[/name] so cute! love addie. [name]Addie[/name] might get popular.
[name]Florence[/name] (*) wonderful, not so common. Also love [name]Flora[/name].

Boys :
[name]August[/name] () Yes, love it
[name]Augustin[/name] () Ditto
[name]Seamus[/name] I’m not wild about this, I don’t know why. I’m sure it’s a good name.
[name]Damian[/name] Ditto
[name]Noah[/name] () love
[name]Arnaud[/name] different and very French
[name]Julius[/name] () love
[name]William[/name] () one of my very favorites
[name]Felix[/name] so cute
[name]Edward[/name] really love
[name]Matthias[/name] () love a lot
[name]Victor[/name] love and it starts with a “v”! It is fun to say the sound “v” all day.

More you might like:

Girls
[name]Camille[/name]
[name]Genevieve[/name]
[name]Amelie[/name]
[name]Elodie[/name]
[name]Sylvie[/name]
[name]Estelle[/name]
[name]Coralie[/name]
[name]Eloise[/name]
[name]Giselle[/name]
[name]Heloise[/name]
[name]Joelle[/name]
[name]Leontine[/name]
[name]Mathilde[/name]
[name]Noemie[/name]
[name]Rosalie[/name]

Boys
[name]Vincent[/name]
[name]Hugo[/name]
[name]Marcel[/name]
[name]Enzo[/name]
[name]Luc[/name]
[name]Lucien[/name]
[name]Remy[/name]
[name]Sebastian[/name]
[name]Adrien[/name]
[name]Brice[/name]
[name]Didier[/name]
[name]Georges[/name]
[name]Xavier[/name]
[name]Sylvain[/name]
[name]Philippe[/name]
[name]Quentin[/name]

3

[Advance warning: I’m a complete dork about French names, so you pressed the right button to set me in motion. Let’s hope some of the other ladies can be a smidge more objective than I can.]

[name]Beatrice[/name]”lovely, but due to become trendy any day now
[name]Anais[/name]”this is a great name; exotic and attention-getting
[name]Delphine[/name]”gorgeous; feels very regal. With all the Danielles, [name]Nicoles[/name], etc., in the US, I can”t figure out why [name]Delphine[/name] hasn”t caught on here
[name]Eugenie[/name]”[name]LOVE[/name] IT. A bona fide regal name ([name]Princess[/name] [name]Eugenie[/name] in [name]England[/name], there was also a [name]Eugenie[/name] in the Bonaparte family).
[name]Charlotte[/name]”[name]Charlotte[/name] is fine, but it”s not a name I get excited about. You have so many bolder choices on your list, I”d want to steer you towards them instead.
[name]Celeste[/name]”[name]Love[/name] this one too. It”s one of those perfect names that everyone can pronounce, but it still stands out in a crowd.
[name]Victoria[/name]”very 80s
[name]Juliette[/name]”pretty, though I”d reserve it for a mn.
[name]Ophelia[/name]”I know an [name]Ophelia[/name] who was miserable her entire teenage life because she was teased mercilessly. (”Hey, [name]Ophelia[/name], come feel THIS!” “Yeah, I’d feel ya.”)
[name]Annabelle[/name]”pretty but super trendy; if you want to honor a family member, I”d keep it as a middle
[name]Celia[/name]”very pretty; I”m also fond of [name]Cecile[/name].
[name]Leonie[/name]”great choice, but will people have trouble pronouncing it?
[name]Adelaide[/name]”maybe [name]Adeline[/name] instead?
[name]Florence[/name]”when pronounced in the French fashion, it makes me light-headed; when given the American pronunciation, I”d recommend [name]Flora[/name]

Boys :
[name]August[/name]”trendier by the minute
[name]Augustin[/name]”a much better alternative to [name]August[/name]
[name]Seamus[/name]”a super-fun Irish name, but just like [name]Lola[/name] has that [name]Charlotte[/name]/harlot hangup, I always process this name as ”[name]Shame[/name] us.”
[name]Damian[/name]”I have a student named [name]Damian[/name] who”s single-handedly destroying my sanity. I can”t get past him to look at the name objectively.
[name]Noah[/name]”too popular
[name]Arnaud[/name]”[name]LOVE[/name] it! One of my favorite fun-guy names.
[name]Julius[/name]”I like [name]Julius[/name]. What about [name]Julien[/name] or [name]Jules[/name] as alternatives?
[name]William[/name]”again, I”d reserve it as a middle to honor family; I just can”t be excited about [name]William[/name]
[name]Felix[/name]”trending up
[name]Edward[/name]”bound to start moving up the ranks thanks to all the Twilight insanity; still, the love of my life is named [name]Edouard[/name], so I will always be partial to this name. :slight_smile:
[name]Matthias[/name]”I like it, thought like [name]Leonie[/name], I wonder if it”s going to present pronunciation problems
[name]Victor[/name]”this one still feels old-man-ish for me, hasn”t quite revived. I suppose it”s all the ”Days of our Lives” I watched in college. [name]Victor[/name] was bad news.

Here are some other French names I”d suggest. Some of these lose all their lustre when pronounced in the American fashion, and some would be better as middle names, but I wanted to bring them up anyway:

[name]Ad[/name]”le
[name]Anne[/name]-[name]Sophie[/name]
[name]Colette[/name]
[name]Eloise[/name]
[name]Evelyne[/name]
Genevi”ve
In”s
[name]Laurence[/name]
No”mie
[name]Pascale[/name]

[name]Ambroise[/name]
[name]Anselm[/name]
Aur”lien
[name]Baptiste[/name]
[name]Bertrand[/name]
Cl”ment
Fr”d”ric
[name]Honor[/name]”
[name]Ludovic[/name]
[name]Maxime[/name]
[name]Roland[/name]
[name]Xavier[/name]

And a couple of links to a favorite site of mine for French names. The first is a list of royal names, and the second is ”classics,” both of which should be right up your ally.

http://meilleursprenoms.com/site/LesCla … Royaux.htm

http://meilleursprenoms.com/site/LesCla … siques.htm

4

[name]Hi[/name] [name]Sophia[/name],

First of all, congratulations on your pregnancy! This is my first Nameberry post, so I hope I do this right. :slight_smile:

The previous posters have suggested some wonderful names, and the only other names I can think to add are:

[name]Josephine[/name]
[name]Cosette[/name]
[name]Vivienne[/name]
[name]Corinne[/name]

Best wishes to you and your husband!

5

[name]Hi[/name] again,

I didn’t intend for the words I wrote above next to appear in a brown square. Oopsies! I wrote comments next to each name, and am still trying to figure out what I did wrong!

6

That should read, “…I didn’t intend for the words I wrote above to appear in a brown square…” Um, yeah. I’m sure off to a great start with my posts! :slight_smile:

7

Thank you for the comments :slight_smile: You guys hit the nail on the head with your suggestions. [name]Noemie[/name] is my middle name, [name]Laurence[/name] is my mom’s name, and my husband is in love with [name]Vincent[/name]. I hadn’t thought of [name]Adrien[/name], but I love it. There are several of the names you mentioned that are very serious middle name contenders

We still have plenty of time, but our list is getting more precise. I have pros and cons for all of them, and I would love comments. It’s so hard to decide, and you’re so helpful!

Girls :

  • [name]Beatrice[/name]
    (this is the one I”m absolutely dying to use. It was my great-grandmother”s name, and my mom”s middle name. I”m very close to my grandfather and I know it would mean the world to him if I named my daughter after his mother. I adore the name, I”m just a bit worried about how popular it might become. [name]Do[/name] you think its likely to become really trendy and lose its charm?)
  • [name]Anais[/name]
    (we really love it. It would also be a great way to honor several [name]Anne[/name]”s in our family. I”m a bit worried about its ambiguity)
  • [name]Delphine[/name]
    (love it, not many cons, just not sure its as good a name as others on our list)
  • [name]Eugenie[/name]
    (also the name of a relative I would absolutely love to honor. I”m a bit worried about people not pronouncing it properly)
  • [name]Celeste[/name]
    (a more recent favourite. I”ve loved all the other ones for years, and I hope this one is not just a phase. I would love to occasionally use [name]Celia[/name] as a nickname)
  • [name]Juliette[/name]
    (I change my mind everyday about this one. I love it, if I don”t use it I”d seriously consider it as a middle, but I”m not sure I love it enough to put it in the front. Honors an important relative)
  • [name]Leonie[/name]
    (another more recent favourite. I”m having trouble figuring out how much I love it. Important relative)
  • [name]Florence[/name]
    (this one is quickly approaching the top of the list. We”d occasionally use [name]Flora[/name] as a nickname)

Boys :

  • [name]Augustin[/name]
    (both my parents were born in [name]August[/name], I love the idea of honoring them this way. I love the name, but it would need a shorter occasional nickname and I can”t think of any)
  • [name]Damian[/name]
    (I like it better in French. Not a favourite, but not ready to fully take it off the list)
  • [name]Arnaud[/name]
    (I think this is my favourite (pronounced Ar-NO) I love how French it is, yet easy to pronounce. Possible cons?)
  • [name]Edward[/name]
    (I love it pronounced in full, no nickname. In love with the French spelling, [name]Edouard[/name])
  • [name]Matthias[/name]
    (another favourite. Great way to honor a very important relative named [name]Matthew[/name]. Worried about how ambiguous it is. Wouldn’t want everyone to say [name]Matt[/name] 100% of the time)
  • [name]Victor[/name]
    (not sure how good a name it is, but I can”t help but love it)
  • [name]Vincent[/name]
    (my husband”s absolute favorite. I”m not sure how much I like it)
  • [name]Adrien[/name] (
    recent favourite, thanks to [name]Susan[/name]. [name]Love[/name] it)

Thanks a lot for your comments. I need them badly!

8

OK, based on the pros and cons you just said, I’d absolutely use [name]Beatrice[/name]. It definitely sounds like it honors the most important people, and it’s a great name! While it might be gaining in popularity some, as of 2007 it’s still only number 899… it’s unlikely that it’ll become so popular so fast that it’s no longer cute. It’s a classic. You could use almost any of your other names as a middle with this and it’d sound great. I’m personally a little obsessed with [name]Delphine[/name] right now, so my choice would be [name]Beatrice[/name] [name]Delphine[/name]… beauty!

As for boys…
[name]Augustin[/name], great way to honor your parents! [name]August[/name] is number 2 on my list right now! Two GREAT nicknames are [name]Augie[/name] and [name]Gus[/name]!
[name]Arnaud[/name], the main con is see is that people would probably call him [name]Arnold[/name] quite often.
[name]Edward[/name], love it.
[name]Matthias[/name], if you’re worried about people calling him [name]Matt[/name], I wouldn’t use it…

9

I think you should definitely use [name]Beatrice[/name] (if not as a first name, what about [name]Flora[/name] [name]Beatrice[/name]?), as it’s beautiful and you adore it. Of the boy’s names, I love [name]Edward[/name] [name]Augustin[/name] or [name]Edward[/name] [name]Vincent[/name] (you love [name]Edward[/name], and your husband loves [name]Vincent[/name]).

You have wonderful taste, and truly can’t go wrong!

10

Girls :

  • [name]Beatrice[/name] if I were you I would choose this name. A way to tell if you love it more than anything is: how would you feel if suddenly one of your good friends or cousins used it and then you couldn’t use it anymore? Would you be completely heartbroken? If you would be heartbroken, that means you really love it, even if it gets popular. I don’t see it getting to the top ten. My aunt’s name was [name]Beatrice[/name], so I especially love it even though I didn’t like her very much. I love family names.
  • [name]Anais[/name] this is really pretty
  • [name]Delphine[/name] pretty and fun
  • [name]Eugenie[/name] very pretty, but I would worry about the pronunciation, too.
  • [name]Celeste[/name] this is my personal favorite on the list.
  • [name]Juliette[/name] so pretty
  • [name]Leonie[/name] I love those lion names
  • [name]Florence[/name] I love it because I love the city.

Boys :

  • [name]Augustin[/name] Auggie and [name]Gus[/name], love it!
  • [name]Damian[/name] Sorry, I just don’t like it too much.
  • [name]Arnaud[/name] the con would be that people would mispronounce it and then you and later he would have to correct them and tell them how to spell it. But it is a wonderful name!
  • [name]Edward[/name] I love this name because it’s the first name of Mr. [name]Rochester[/name] in [name]Jane[/name] Eyre. Seriously, I would name my son after Mr. [name]Rochester[/name]. I’ve probably read that book at least fifteen times.
  • [name]Matthias[/name] He could end up being a [name]Matt[/name], especially as a teen.
  • [name]Victor[/name] so much fun! He could end up being a [name]Vic[/name], but I think [name]Vic[/name] is cute.
  • [name]Vincent[/name] this one is my favorite on the boys’ list. It is so fun to say. It would be fun to yell, too. You do have to yell your kids’ names sometimes, like when you call them to dinner. I love the sound of “v”, and I love [name]Vincent[/name] [name]Van[/name] Gogh. Nicknames are [name]Vin[/name], [name]Vinnie[/name], and [name]Vince[/name].
  • [name]Adrien[/name] glad you love this. I love it so much!
11

I love the idea of [name]Florence[/name] to honor your mother (the names are so similar), with [name]Flora[/name] as a pretty nickname. [name]Beatrice[/name] offers the lovely French nickname B”a (so much better than plain ol’ [name]Bea[/name]). And I agree with [name]Susan[/name], if you love it, you love it. (I had the same issue when I found out [name]Enzo[/name] is ridiculously popular in [name]France[/name]. But I love it, so there.)

I like [name]Celeste[/name], but it’s just not quite as exciting as your other choices, imo. And I’m infatuated with [name]Leonie[/name], but, as I mentioned last time, I worry that it will be a constant headache for her having to explain how it’s pronounced.

[name]Adrien[/name] is handsome, a real heartbreaker. [name]Augustin[/name] offers [name]Augie[/name] as an option, another favorite of mine. I also knew an [name]Augustin[/name] who was playfully called Guster by his dad.

The only real con with [name]Arnaud[/name] is that when people see it written, they’re going to try to pronounce the d. Also, there might be some confusion over which syllable to emphasize, but really, that’s minor. It’s just a cool name.

[name]Vincent[/name]'s just okay for me; I can’t get excited about it. I’d be too worried about [name]Vince[/name] and [name]Vinny[/name], which I don’t like at all.

12

I love [name]Vincent[/name] and [name]Vince[/name], but don’t love [name]Vinnie[/name]. There’s also [name]Vin[/name] which is amazing.
You could use [name]Arno[/name] instead of [name]Arnaud[/name].

I love the idea of [name]Florence[/name] nn [name]Flora[/name]. Fabulous!
I think I love the name [name]Celeste[/name] so much because I think it would sound nice with my last name. I know, that makes me biased. My last name is [name]Chesney[/name] and hmm, maybe it wouldn’t sound that great after all. This happens with most names-I don’t like them with my last name. But maybe your last name is easier to work with. Anyway I really like the name [name]Celeste[/name] because it’s not too long, pretty easy to say and spell, and I don’t think I would get tired of it. Also it seems like a power name that’s also feminine which is an unusual combo. And I love the nn [name]Celia[/name] although I never thought of it as a nn for [name]Celeste[/name] before. Great idea.

13

Girls :
[name]Beatrice[/name] - I think, too, that you should go with this one! It’s beautiful and even if it does get more popular, I don’t think that there will be 3 in every classroom by a long shot!! More that that, it is a name you love and is important to you.
[name]Anais[/name] - Umm, sorry I don’t know how to pronounce it . . . .
[name]Delphine[/name] - Pretty but I like some of your others more!
[name]Eugenie[/name] - You are probably right about people having pronouncing issues . . . Maybe a middle - [name]Beatrice[/name] [name]Eugenie[/name]?
[name]Celeste[/name] - Pretty! I think just [name]Celia[/name] as a name by itself would be great too
[name]Juliette[/name] - Pretty, and would be a great mn. [name]Beatrice[/name] [name]Juliette[/name], [name]Celia[/name] [name]Juliette[/name], [name]Celeste[/name] [name]Juliette[/name], how sweet!
[name]Leonie[/name] - I think that I like some of your others better.
[name]Florence[/name] - Oh, this is great, too! [name]Florence[/name] [name]Beatrice[/name]? [name]Florence[/name] [name]Juliette[/name]?

Boys :
[name]Augustin[/name]- I like this too (or just [name]August[/name]) You don’t like [name]Augie[/name] or [name]Gus[/name]?
[name]Damian[/name] - Hmm. I have the same reaction as somebody else - I know a horrible little [name]Damian[/name] so can’t even think about it objectively!
[name]Arnaud[/name] - I think this is going to be misspelled and pronounced A LOT!
[name]Edward[/name] - so NICE!! [name]Augustin[/name] [name]Edward[/name], [name]Edward[/name] [name]Augustin[/name]
[name]Matthias[/name] - I like this a lot. I think it is familiar enough to be easily said but has that exotic twist that (I think) you like. I don’t think that you could stop people from calling him [name]Matt[/name]
[name]Victor[/name] - This sounds like a mobster name to me :slight_smile:
[name]Vincent[/name] - ditto
[name]Adrien[/name] - Hmm, this is pretty spiffy. [name]Edward[/name] [name]Adrien[/name]? [name]Adrien[/name] [name]Vincent[/name]?

[name]Hope[/name] this is helpfull & good luck you have so many beautiful names to choose from!

14

I agree! [name]Beatrice[/name] [name]Delphine[/name] is divine :slight_smile:
As for boys [name]Augustin[/name] or [name]Edward[/name] are the top two :slight_smile:

15

i absolutely love love love delphine. its beautiful! and very different, yet refined. that definitely gets my vote.