We have finally chosen a first name, Noa, but continue to be stuck on a middle name. We are looking for a strong, elegant option that flows well with Noa and doesn’t sound too ‘out-there’. Our family is German/French and American, so it should be reasonably easy to pronounce and spell in English, German, and French.
What do you think about the following combinations:
Noa Charlotte
Noa Clementine
Noa Harriet
Noa Leonore
Noa Matilda
Noa Louise
Noa Alexandra
Which works best? Which don’t work at all, in your opinion? Of course, additional suggestions will also be appreciated!
The standout from your list for me is [name_u]Noa[/name_u] [name_f]Clementine[/name_f]. She’s just gorgeous, having both a sweet as well as a zesty sound to it. Very nice indeed.
The only middle from my list is [name_f]Harriet[/name_f] - so fair to say that’s my favourite name of them all. But I voted [name_f]Clementine[/name_f]. Sounds much better with [name_u]Noa[/name_u].
Thanks for your input! We both love [name_f]Harriet[/name_f] too, but I think you’re right, it doesn’t quite flow with [name_u]Noa[/name_u]. We also considered [name_f]Henrietta[/name_f], my maternal grandmother’s name, but are concerned that it has the same issue. [name_u]Or[/name_u] do you think it works better?
For me, flow, and thus ease of saying the name, matter a lot. When I said all of these out loud (as an American)…
These were easy:
[name_u]Noa[/name_u] [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f]
[name_u]Noa[/name_u] [name_f]Clementine[/name_f]
[name_u]Noa[/name_u] [name_f]Harriet[/name_f]
[name_u]Noa[/name_u] [name_u]Louise[/name_u]
These I tripped slightly on:
[name_u]Noa[/name_u] [name_f]Leonore[/name_f]
[name_u]Noa[/name_u] [name_f]Matilda[/name_f]
This one I had a hard time distinguishing the first name from last name when saying it:
[name_u]Noa[/name_u] [name_f]Alexandra[/name_f]
[name_f]Charlotte[/name_f] is a very cross cultural accessible name. It is familiar to Americans, [name_u]French[/name_u], and sounds good pronounced in a [name_m]German[/name_m] accent with [name_u]Noa[/name_u] (imo). This is why [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f] got my vote. [name_u]Louise[/name_u] also works well cross those same three cultures. Now, I don’t know how much you are expecting the family members to pronounce the name the American way versus a [name_m]German[/name_m] or [name_u]French[/name_u] name which could make a difference. If you expect, for instance, Clementine’s ending to sound like Time in [name_f]English[/name_f] when someone in [name_u]French[/name_u] is speaking it, I wouldn’t necessarily say it would be easy for them to pronounce. It would get an een treatment (which sounds gorgeous, by the way). I’m assuming you’re part of the American contingent of your family in this case. [name_m]Just[/name_m] things to think about
I think that does work better. There’s something about the first vowel being e rather than another a as in [name_f]Harriet[/name_f] coming off the -a in [name_u]Noa[/name_u] that makes it sound more distinct.
I love the name [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f] so I’m biased but I would say [name_u]Noa[/name_u] [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f] and [name_u]Noa[/name_u] [name_f]Clementine[/name_f] are the best.
Thank you for sharing your opinions, everyone! We are currently leaning towards using [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f], especially because it is so cross-culturally accessible. We also like that its pronunciations in [name_f]English[/name_f], [name_m]German[/name_m] and [name_u]French[/name_u] sound more alike than Clementine’s (thank you for highlighting possible pronunciation issues, @bb01jh).
[name_f]Lillian[/name_f] is another middle name option that has just begun to appeal to us again after being removed from our list a week ago. Any thoughts on that combination?
[name_u]Noa[/name_u] [name_f]Leonore[/name_f] has a bold, reverberating sound (strong, just like you wished, and certainly elegant). I love the oas and eos and oes.
I like both [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] and [name_f]Clementine[/name_f] on their own merit, but I don’t think they combine just as well.
Here’s my ranking:
