Penelope, Augusta, Victoria, or Helena?

We are due mid-[name]August[/name] and have finally come up with some names we both like. Well, I like [name]Helena[/name] more than DH, but he does like [name]Augusta[/name], [name]Penelope[/name], and [name]Victoria[/name].

Thoughts? Is [name]Penelope[/name] likely to become way popular (it was #125 in 2012) and is on a major uptick. Does the fact that it was used by a Kardashian make it sound down-market? Does [name]Victoria[/name] inevitably become [name]Vicky[/name]?

Suggestions for middles/combos welcome. So far I have:

[name]Victoria[/name] [name]Tamsin[/name]
[name]Victoria[/name] [name]Claire[/name]
[name]Victoria[/name] [name]Margaret[/name]

[name]Penelope[/name] [name]Violet[/name]
[name]Penelope[/name] [name]Delphine[/name]
[name]Penelope[/name] [name]Augusta[/name]

[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Marguerite[/name] (need more MNs for [name]Augusta[/name]!)

[name]Helena[/name] [name]Margaret[/name]

Other ideas:

[name]Caroline[/name] [name]Victoria[/name]
[name]Clara[/name] [name]Marguerite[/name]

What do you think?

I love [name]Helena[/name] and [name]Augusta[/name]. I think [name]Victoria[/name] is a little dated and [name]Penelope[/name] is too overexposed if you’re wanting something less common. It’s pretty, though, so it just depends on your personal feelings about popularity.

I think [name]Helena[/name] would be a better choice over [name]Penelope[/name] or [name]Victoria[/name]. [name]Both[/name] are beautiful (one so beautiful that it drove a Kardashian to use it, but at least it’s a nice name and not something like, well, [name]North[/name]), [name]Penelope[/name] is a good name that has been becoming a super-name (possibly the next [name]Sophia[/name]). [name]Victoria[/name] is nice, but if you don’t like the possibility of “[name]Vickie[/name]” then perhaps you should keep it strictly on the middle name list. I’m not personally a big fan of [name]Augusta[/name]…but it could work for you guys. [name]Helena[/name] [name]Margaret[/name] is a beautiful combination! Here are some other options using [name]Helena[/name] and [name]Augusta[/name] based on your choices and some new ones:
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Caroline[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Claire[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Violet[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Tamsin[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Sophia[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Victoria[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Cassandra[/name] (may be a bit too literary, both are names of characters in The Illiad and The Odyessy but they sound nice together!)
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Marie[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Eleanor[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Louise[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Seraphine[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Violet[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Caroline[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Tamsin[/name]

[name]Hope[/name] this helped you!

[name]Helena[/name] and [name]Augusta[/name] are my favourites. I think that [name]Penelope[/name] and [name]Victoria[/name] are a bit more popular.

[name]Helena[/name] and [name]Augusta[/name] are my favorites- they have that fresh feeling that I don’t get with [name]Victoria[/name] (though it’s a classic) and [name]Penelope[/name].
My favorite combos:
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Louise[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Mae[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Charlotte[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Beatrix[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Antonia[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Genevieve[/name]

[name]Helena[/name] [name]Catherine[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Margaret[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Colette[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Caroline[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Lucille[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Lavender[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Elisabeth[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Pearl[/name]

I also really like [name]Clara[/name] [name]Marguerite[/name].
[name]Hope[/name] this helps! Good luck!

Honestly, all four names are gorgeous and you can’t go wrong with any of them. To answer your questions, no, the Kardashian association doesn’t make the name [name]Penelope[/name] seem trashy. That family’s fifteen minutes of fame should be just about over and anyway, the name [name]Penelope[/name] has a lovely, long history behind it that far outweights the Kardahsian association. As for [name]Victoria[/name], again no, a [name]Victoria[/name] doesn’t automatically became a [name]Vicky[/name]. Out of the handful of Victorias I’ve known, only one went by [name]Vicky[/name]. Out of all the combos you listed, my favorite is definietly [name]Penelope[/name] [name]Violet[/name], though I do like aj bear’s suggestion of [name]Helena[/name] [name]Pearl[/name].

I love [name]Augusta[/name] and [name]Helena[/name]! I’m not a fan of [name]Penelope[/name] and [name]Victoria[/name] is one of those names I want to like, I just don’t for some reason. My favourite combinations per name are:

[name]Victoria[/name]
[name]Victoria[/name] [name]Margaret[/name]

[name]Penelope[/name]
[name]Penelope[/name] [name]Violet[/name]

[name]Augusta[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Marguerite[/name]

[name]Helena[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Margaret[/name]

I also like [name]Clara[/name] [name]Marguerite[/name], but I’m not a fan of [name]Caroline[/name] [name]Victoria[/name].

Good luck!

Thanks for the suggestions. [name]Helena[/name] and [name]Augusta[/name] are my favorites, too, but DH likes [name]Penelope[/name] and [name]Victoria[/name] better. I’ll see what he thinks!

I love [name]Helena[/name]!

I strongly dislike [name]Penelope[/name] (nothing to do with the Kardashians, I just think it sounds prissy and clunky all at once. Too many ‘p’ sounds, and just…ugh). [name]Victoria[/name] is a bit laced-up, and prone to being shortened to ‘[name]Vicky[/name]’, which is horrible. I quite like [name]Augusta[/name].

I would suggest [name]Augusta[/name] [name]Paige[/name], [name]Augusta[/name] [name]Skye[/name], or [name]Augusta[/name] [name]Brooke[/name]. [name]Victoria[/name] is beautiful, and you could call her [name]Tori[/name] instead of [name]Vicky[/name].

I really like [name]Clara[/name] [name]Marguerite[/name]!!!

I personally dislike [name]Penelope[/name] and [name]Victoria[/name].

I like [name]Helena[/name] - how are you pronouncing [name]Helena[/name]? He - [name]LAY[/name] - na or HELL-en-ah?

I do like [name]Augusta[/name] - its on my list for middles!

I think all your names are nice. I have a cousin who is named [name]Victoria[/name] and she has never gone by vicky. [name]Helena[/name] margaret is my favorite although I may be biased:). I personally say he-len-a, there are three ways of saying [name]Helena[/name].

My only concern with [name]Helena[/name] is pronunciation, as some of you have suggested. I like HELL-en-ah or hel-[name]LEN[/name]-ah, but not He-[name]LAY[/name]-na. I guess there’s no way to avoid the pronunciation problems.

Upshot of [name]Augusta[/name]: it only has one pronunciation, and it’s not likely to be misspelled.

[name]Helena[/name]- HELL-en-ah.

Honestly, I love all your choices! [name]Helena[/name] and [name]Victoria[/name] are my favourites. I don’t think [name]Vicky[/name] is inevitable; it’s a bit of a dated nickname. Most of the younger Victorias I’ve known go by [name]Tori[/name] or their full name.

Possible combos:
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Beatrice[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Vivienne[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Claire[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Elizabeth[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Juliet[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Magdalene[/name]

[name]Helena[/name] and [name]Penelope[/name] are my favorites.

love [name]Penelope[/name] [name]Violet[/name].

If you are super worried about popularity, I would go with [name]Helena[/name].

good luck with it all

While I like [name]Helena[/name] if your husband prefers the others, I would choose one he loves as well.

[name]Victoria[/name] can be a [name]Vicky[/name] or a [name]Tori[/name]. I do think [name]Penelope[/name] is becoming increasingly popular. My favorite on your list is [name]Augusta[/name]. [name]Augusta[/name] [name]Marguerite[/name] is pretty. I also like:

[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Eleanor[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Caroline[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Juliet[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Annette[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Jane[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Claire[/name]
[name]Augusta[/name] [name]Anne[/name]

[name]Penelope[/name]- NMS
[name]Augusta[/name]- too masculine
[name]Victoria[/name]- Like name, love [name]Tori[/name] as NN
[name]Helena[/name]- love really beautiful

[name]Victoria[/name] [name]Claire[/name]
[name]Victoria[/name] [name]Margaret[/name]
[name]Victoria[/name] [name]Eleanor[/name]
[name]Victoria[/name] [name]Colette[/name]- FAV

[name]Helena[/name] [name]Rose[/name]- FAV
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Iris[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Maeve[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Blythe[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Belle[/name]
(one syllable MNs sound good with [name]Helena[/name])

GOOD [name]LUCK[/name]!

[name]Augusta[/name] sound very dusty even to me, a lover of vintage. [name]Penelope[/name] is too trendy and clunky for my taste.
[name]Helena[/name] is absolutely stunning and has all the [name]Troy[/name] beauty.
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Olive[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Pearl[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Natalie[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Sybil[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Beatrix[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Iris[/name]
[name]Helena[/name] [name]Ruby[/name]
[name]Victoria[/name] is less vintage but still luscious. I am a little biased because it’s my name but I find it so pretty and not boring despite its popularity.
[name]Victoria[/name] [name]Adeline[/name]
[name]Victoria[/name] [name]Alice[/name]
[name]Victoria[/name] [name]Evelyn[/name]
[name]Victoria[/name] [name]Georgine[/name]
[name]Victoria[/name] [name]Hazel[/name]
[name]Victoria[/name] [name]Juliet[/name]
[name]Victoria[/name] [name]Noemi[/name]
[name]Victoria[/name] [name]Opal[/name]
[name]Victoria[/name] [name]Zephyrine[/name]
I am sure I repeated some names but they are beautiful enough to be listed twice(or more). Good luck!

Oh my, such lovely choices!! I’m probably not much help. [name]Augusta[/name] was our top choice for a long time. Now that we’re expecting, it’s being edged out due to nickname considerations and consistency with older sister, Bened1kte. But I still adore it. I also harbour a long held love for [name]Helena[/name]. These are my my favourites. I do like [name]Penelope[/name] but see it is as ever so slightly an “it” name for 2012/2013 amongst the discerning crowd…not a bad thing for everyone but I really like to avoid trends of any kind if possible. This is entirely personal. [name]Victoria[/name], while classic and beautiful, is a bit too common for me. [name]Augusta[/name] for example is just more special to me and I really dislike [name]Vicky[/name], which I think is rather unavoidable unless you impose [name]Tori[/name], which is better but also not my style. You can’t really go wrong, they are all wonderful options.

So like many others, [name]Augusta[/name] and [name]Helena[/name] are my favourites and I love them with middles [name]Caroline[/name] and [name]Marguerite[/name], but also [name]Jane[/name].