We’re 12 weeks pregnant with our second child - our son’s name is [name]Henry[/name] [name]Isaac[/name]. We have a long, hyphenated last name - 5 syllables total (sigh). My partner loves [name]Mary[/name] for a girl - I like it, too, but need to find the perfect middle name that will make it “pop” - know what I mean? We don’t want to add a middle name that will make [name]Mary[/name] sound more Catholic, like [name]Elizabeth[/name] or [name]Catherine[/name]. Not a lot on the maybe list right now - kind of liking [name]Mary[/name] [name]Sage[/name] but not sure about the flow. [name]Mary[/name] [name]Celeste[/name] is lovely, but not in love with the ghost ship association. Any thoughts would be appreciated - thanks!
Can’t wait to find out if this little one is a boy or a girl! If it’s another boy, we’re set on [name]Edward[/name] [name]James[/name] - to be called [name]Teddy[/name]
I have no idea what names would make it more Catholic and which wouldn’t so some of my suggestions may not work, for that reason.
[name]Just[/name] off of the top of my head, here are some I think sound good with [name]Mary[/name].
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Colette[/name]* (or [name]Nicolette[/name])
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Cassandra[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Louisa[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Susannah[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Genevieve[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Gillian[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Jacqueline[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Annelise[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Emmeline[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Louisa[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Cecilia[/name]*
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Georgina[/name]
[name]Mary[/name]-- the Grand Old Name. The name that was considered to sacred to give to human beings for the first 1400 years of Christianity. It’s lilting. It’s dignified. But most importantly, it’s a blank slate-- no presuppositions of what a little [name]Mary[/name] will be. She can wear it and make it her own.
It’s falling, very slowly, from popularity. Each year there are fewer and fewer little girls given the name. In 2011, for every [name]Mary[/name], there were 9 Sophias born!
The middle name you pair it with will tell everyone how to read the name. [name]Mary[/name] [name]Margaret[/name] = Irish nun. [name]Mary[/name] [name]Clemencia[/name] = grande dame. [name]Mary[/name] [name]Caroline[/name] = Southern. [name]Mary[/name] Rosebud = quirky-fresh.
What vibe would you like? From your sons’ names, it appears you favor the classics?
As for the “sell me on it”…have you seen this old musical (song starts about 30 seconds in…)? Of course, there ARENT millions of [name]Mary[/name] anymore… Mary's A Grand Old Name - YouTube
I see [name]Mary[/name] as a fabulous opportunity to use an elegant or fascinating or mythical middle name…, something you might not have the courage to put right out front.
for not being Catholic, we like the [name]Mary[/name].
I personally love [name]Mary[/name] [name]Jayne[/name] (or [name]Jane[/name]) especially with a very long last name. But I also like some others:
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Noelle[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Nicole[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Christine[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Eliza[/name]
Look at the variations of [name]Mary[/name] if you feel it’s too religious. When thinking about naming a 2nd daughter after my mom (since 1st daughter will have my middle names) I fell for [name]Mollie[/name] and [name]Marielle[/name].
and the idea of [name]Mary[/name] Rosebud - we’d like some options with a quirky, spunky feel. I love “[name]Mae[/name]” - we plan to use that as a nickname if we go with [name]Mary[/name], though, so it’s off the list for middle names
Keep 'em coming! I’m also open to suggestions of other first names with the same feel - I really like Mary, but I could possibly be swayed if the right name came along. We’re looking for something classic, clean, not more than two syllables and not too high on the popularity list… and of course, it has to sound nice with Henry
I’m glad that you liked [name]Mary[/name] [name]Colette[/name]. That was my first thought and my favorite. The other that I liked from my first list was [name]Mary[/name] [name]Cecilia[/name]. I realized that for some reason I’m really digging a mn that starts with a C for [name]Mary[/name]. I think it sounds very charming, though I can’t articulate why. (Though, my children’s names make it pretty obvious that I [name]Love[/name] C names in general.) I also think [name]Mary[/name] [name]Celeste[/name] is wonderful, it’s sad that it has that association.
Going from that I also like:
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Cadence[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Callista[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Camille[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Caprice[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Coralie[/name]/[name]Coraline[/name]
[name]Mary[/name] [name]Cosette[/name]
Along with the pp’s suggestion of names similar in feel to [name]Mary[/name], I’d also include:
[name]Marie[/name] (Though I find it’s hard to pair as a fn)
[name]Anna[/name]
[name]Ruth[/name]
[name]Ruby[/name]
[name]Helen[/name]
[name]Rose[/name]
[name]Nancy[/name]
[name]Lucy[/name]
[name]Laura[/name]
[name]Ada[/name]
I love [name]Mary[/name], especially as a unexpected double name, like [name]Mary[/name] [name]Pearl[/name]. [name]Mary[/name] [name]Hazel[/name] falls in this category for me, and I think it’s wonderful, fresh and completely unexpected.
[name]LOVE[/name] [name]Mary[/name] [name]Hazel[/name]! Up to now I’ve been partial to [name]Mary[/name] [name]Amelia[/name], but I might have to rethink
You said you were thinking of using something a with a spunky, quirky feel, so here are some other ideas (but I really do like [name]Hazel[/name]!)
