The Emmeline vs. Emily Dilemma

I love [name]BOTH[/name] the names [name]Emily[/name] & [name]Emmeline[/name] (& [name]Emma[/name]) for that matter, but I would probably never choose [name]Emily[/name] or [name]Emma[/name] b/c those names are just too popular. [name]Emmeline[/name], on the other hand, doesn’t even rank in the top 1000 in 2008.

However, everyone here at Nameberry seems to be talking about [name]Emmeline[/name] (variations [name]Emeline[/name], [name]Emaline[/name], [name]Emmaline[/name]). (And dare I say the vast majority of us love this name.)

Is the name [name]Emmeline[/name] destined to jump up the ranks, and become another popular name (even if it never reaches the top 10)? (Or is [name]Emmeline[/name] merely popular on this web site … I know that one’s perceptions of the popularity of names can be a bit skewed by hanging around this site, as the people who write on the Nameberry discussion boards are not necessarily a “representative” sample.)

Are [name]Emmeline[/name] and [name]Emily[/name] too similar in sound? Is [name]Emmeline[/name] perhaps appealing to us for the very reason of its similarity to [name]Emily[/name]?

Does the popularity of [name]Emily[/name]/[name]Emma[/name] detract from a name like [name]Emmeline[/name] (e.g., by reducing its uniqueness)?

[name]How[/name] do you think [name]Emmeline[/name] compares in feel/style/tone to [name]Emily[/name]/[name]Emma[/name]?

All three names are likely to use [name]Emmy[/name] as a nn. Does the overlapping nn add to the dilemma & confuse the names even more?

I pronounce the final syllable of [name]Emmeline[/name] with the same pronunciation as I would the word [name]LINE[/name] (not as [name]Lynn[/name]). [name]Do[/name] Emmelines face a lot of pronunciation issues?

Other thoughts?
Thanks!

I love the name [name]Emmeline[/name]. Yes, I do think that it does sound similar to [name]Emily[/name], but to me, it more resembles the name [name]Emma[/name] in feeling. [name]Emmeline[/name] is I think is more sophisticated that [name]Emma[/name] and more exotic than [name]Emily[/name]. I think of Emmelines as siblings to Adelaides, and Cordelias. [name]Emily[/name] is sister to [name]Sarah[/name] and [name]Elizabeth[/name] and Katherines. Emmas I see more so with [name]Grace[/name], [name]Claire[/name], and Annas.

Yes I think emmeline will become popular and in the top 50 but that will take time. Ppl like emmeline cuz it has the same feel as emma and emily. [name]Even[/name] though emma and emily are popular they still feel classy and fresh unlike madison and other. I think emmeline will always feel classic and not dated.

ditto

I love the name [name]Emmeline[/name] (and pronouce it like you do), and second [name]Dot[/name]'s Mom’s analysis of the slightly different feels of [name]Emmeline[/name], [name]Emma[/name], and [name]Emily[/name]. I also agree with [name]Meryl[/name]'s post about the [name]Em[/name] names standing tall despite their popularity.

Best wishes to you!

I [name]LOVE[/name] the name [name]Emmeline[/name]!!! [name]Way[/name] more than [name]Emily[/name] or [name]Emma[/name]. It just seems so classic. I pronounce it with a “line” ending. It reminds me of the movie [name]Blue[/name] Lagoon. My personal concern in using it is that it will just be shortened to [name]Em[/name] or [name]Emme[/name], and it’s full beauty will only occasionally be appreciated on her wedding invitation, etc.

I also love the name [name]Aveline[/name] and am considering using it. But I have the same concerns about it being shortened to some variation of [name]Ava[/name] and the pronunciation issues. [name]Will[/name] she forever be correcting people - a “line” ending vs. “leen” vs. “lyn”???
And with [name]Aveline[/name] there are pronunciation problems on the front end too! ( Ay sound vs. [name]Ah[/name] sound???) I love the “line” because it reminds me of what I love about the name [name]Caroline[/name].

I love [name]Emmeline[/name]! And as an [name]Emily[/name] myself, I agree that it has a different feel. [name]Dot[/name]'smom described it well. I also pronounce it line (not leen or lyn) and have never it heard it differently so I don’t think you’ll have too much of a problem there. I prefer [name]Emmeline[/name] spelling rather than [name]Emmaline[/name] or [name]Emaline[/name] or others. To me, it further distinguishes it as its own name rather than a variation of [name]Emma[/name].

I blogged on nameberry about this phenomena recently, here – https://nameberry.com/blog/2009/08/31/emmas-daughters/#more-5078. And I have to say, though I also think the names [name]Emmeline[/name] and [name]Emily[/name] and [name]Emma[/name] are all beautiful, [name]Emmeline[/name] or any of the other variations do feel like close relatives of the two extremely popular names and so do not stand out as much as they might. I know that’s not what you want to hear (and seems to go against most other opinions), but that’s how I see it.

I love the -INE ending on names like [name]Emmeline[/name], [name]Clementine[/name], [name]Adeline[/name], [name]Caroline[/name], [name]Eveline[/name], [name]Madeline[/name], Pomeline. But my favorite is [name]Emmeline[/name]. Can anyone suggest more names with this sort of ending. Three I’ve thought of (& which I [name]DON[/name]'T see becoming popular) are [name]Valentine[/name], [name]Olivine[/name] & [name]Ottoline[/name]. I’m not sure I’d be brave enough to use these ones, though. But maybe with the resurgence of [name]Ottilie[/name] …

I’m not looking for names that are pronounced -EEN, even if spelled with the -INE ending. It’s more pronunciation than spelling I’m after.

More thoughts on [name]Emmeline[/name] vs [name]Emily[/name]/[name]Emma[/name]?
Thanks!

I love the -INE ending on names like [name]Emmeline[/name], [name]Clementine[/name], [name]Adeline[/name], [name]Caroline[/name], [name]Eveline[/name], [name]Madeline[/name], Pomeline. But my favorite is [name]Emmeline[/name]. Can anyone suggest more names with this sort of ending. Three I’ve thought of (& which I [name]DON[/name]'T see becoming popular) are [name]Valentine[/name], [name]Olivine[/name] & [name]Ottoline[/name]. I’m not sure I’d be brave enough to use these ones, though. But maybe with the resurgence of [name]Ottilie[/name] …

I’m not looking for names that are pronounced -EEN, even if spelled with the -INE ending. It’s more pronunciation than spelling I’m after.

More thoughts on [name]Emmeline[/name] vs [name]Emily[/name]/[name]Emma[/name]?
Thanks![/quote]

[name]How[/name] about [name]Idaline[/name]?
[name]Ida[/name] has the same sort of warm feel as [name]Emma[/name], and works just as well with a line ending, but is FAR less popular.

I think that [name]Emmeline[/name] is beautiful and looks great on paper, but one thing to consider is that she’ll frequently have to correct people who hear [name]Emily[/name] when she says [name]Emmeline[/name] (if it’s pronounced that way, that is!).

I could definitely see this name becoming popular. That said, until it actually does, I would not worry about it. I much prefer [name]Emmeline[/name] to [name]Emily[/name] which (popular or not) I find incredibly dull and uninteresting (no offense to those who like the name or have this as a name). I would stick with [name]Emmeline[/name].

[name]LOVE[/name] [name]Emmeline[/name]! I’m an [name]Emily[/name] as well, and while I love my name, I always secretly wished to be [name]Emmeline[/name] so my name would be different from the droves of others.

I adore [name]Emmeline[/name]…
i think it’s gorgeous…
and if you pick it, you can still use [name]Emma[/name] (or [name]Emily[/name], for that matter) as a nickname…

I like the name [name]Emmeline[/name], although [name]Emily[/name] will always be my favorite of the two. It feels less frilly, more like someone you can be friends with, while I see [name]Emmeline[/name] being snobbier.

My mother had a distant relative in [name]Canada[/name] she really liked growing up named [name]Emmeline[/name], pronounced [name]Em[/name]-uh-leen. That doesn’t seem to be the common pronunciation here, but from my experience, it’s more what people are incline to say when they see it on paper. The spelling [name]Emmaline[/name], however, is more likely to be pronounced [name]Em[/name]-ah-line.

[name]Just[/name] my observation.