EDIT: Please excuse the typo in the heading haha I wrote this on my phone and it autocorrected without me noticing…
I was thinking about my reasoning behind my favourite names, and it made me wonder what led to you pick yours! Was it the way it sounded, or the meaning behind the name etc. So I thought it would be fun to do a thread where people explain why they picked their favourite names!
For me, my favourite names are Isa and Noora. I like both these names because they work for my heritage (Islamic) as well as not being too “weird” for the western world (I’m British). I love the softness of the “Ee” sound at the beginning of boys’ names, which led me to also love the names Ilias, Ismail, and Ibrahim! As for Noora, I like that it takes two common names in both my cultures (Noor and Nora) and combines them into one name. I also think it’s softer and prettier than the “Or” sound of Nora in a British accent which I think can sometimes be a bit harsh (to my ears).
@ferix08 I think [name_f]Elva[/name_f] is gorgeous! I like that it’s short and sweet and that it is quite magical sounding! I definitely understand your tendency to find names from TV and film… one of my favourite names is [name_f]Lana[/name_f] and I definitely was inspired by [name_f]Lana[/name_f] Lang from Smallville. All of your names are really great; I like how they’re unique but not bizarre (as some names tend to be…)
I wanted to add that I also think [name_f]Elva[/name_f] is a beautiful name! Not one of my favorites but I’d be delighted to meet one.
I’ll do my top three for boys and girls!
[name_u]Lionel[/name_u] - My favorite boy name and it took a while to get here! I initially really loved [name_m]Leopold[/name_m] because of a book character, which got me into lion related names in general. And then I fell in love with the idea of [name_m]Lenny[/name_m] on a boy when I heard it on The Marvelous Mrs Maisel, because I love vintage nicknames. Eventually, that led me to [name_u]Lionel[/name_u] and it’s been my top choice for over a year!
[name_m]Edmund[/name_m] - Another name I’ve loved forever. Growing up I loved the cartoon [name_m]Ed[/name_m], [name_m]Edd[/name_m] and [name_m]Eddy[/name_m] and I’ve always been into the idea of having a little boy called [name_m]Eddy[/name_m]. I like [name_m]Edmund[/name_m] more than [name_m]Edward[/name_m], [name_m]Edgar[/name_m] and [name_m]Edison[/name_m] so here we are.
[name_m]Ozzy[/name_m] - This one is the most random one. I never even thought about this name until a couple months ago when I heard it on a video game, and something just clicked. It has such a cuddly sound but I can imagine it on an adult easily! And it feels like a more unique alternative to [name_u]Ollie[/name_u], which is too common in the UK (I’m moving there for college in a couple months!)
[name_f]Clementine[/name_f] - Initially I really, really didn’t like this name. The first syllable made me think of clams. But my girlfriend loves this name and whenever we talk (AKA I force her to talk) about names she brought it up and I eventually warmed up to it and fell in love with both the nature connection and vintage feel. And the Walking Dead character is cool too! Also, I adore [name_f]Caroline[/name_f] but can’t use it because it’s common in the US and dated in the UK, and this is an obvious alternative.
[name_f]Adelaide[/name_f] - Not much of a reason for this one, I just love how it sounds and looks. And I really like the idea of the nickname [name_f]Heidi[/name_f] for it, it was my favorite book when I was little.
[name_f]Estella[/name_f] - I adore how this sounds, and the nickname Esthie. I fell in love with it when I read Great Expectations, despite the charater herself not being too nice. I don’t think I’d use it, because I’m worried she’d go by [name_f]Stella[/name_f] which I really don’t like, but maybe as a middle name!
I also like the name [name_m]Ilias[/name_m]. My family is from the middle east, and my boyfriend’s family is from [name_f]India[/name_f] and Pakistan. I am looking for names that fit both cultures, yet is familiar in English speaking countries and has meaning to us.
[name_m]Khalil[/name_m]- Still not sure if I like it spelt [name_m]Khalil[/name_m] or [name_m]Kahlil[/name_m]. My boyfriend and I love watching animated films. We found [name_m]Khalil[/name_m] from the movie ‘the prophet’ which was made from the book by poet [name_m]Khalil[/name_m] Jibran. We think it sounds cool and strong and it means friend.
[name_m]Amias[/name_m]- I just really.love how soft this name is and the meaning. I might prefer the name [name_m]Ammiras[/name_m] because it is arabic according to nameberry, but I cannot find much else on the name.
[name_f]Soraya[/name_f]- my boyfriend and I found this from the animated film ‘The Breadwinner’ about an afghani girl, Parvana. Her sister is named [name_f]Soraya[/name_f], and we absolutely love the name. My sister and I are fighting over it.
[name_f]Jamila[/name_f]- love the meaning, and nicknames jiji and jem. Also love the actress [name_f]Jamila[/name_f] [name_m]Jamil[/name_m].
Inara- I love the sound. I have been looking for a name the means light. My grandmother [name_f]Helen[/name_f] named her daughters [name_f]Sally[/name_f] [name_f]Ellen[/name_f] and [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f] [name_f]Elaine[/name_f] after her name, [name_f]Helen[/name_f]. My mom named my middle name [name_f]Elaine[/name_f] as well. While looking up alternatives to [name_f]Elaine[/name_f] that mean light, I found Inara. My other grandmother is named Intizara, so it is a shorter version.
When I was little I named one of my fish Inara after a book character!
[name_f]Estelle[/name_f] is a combination of my grandmothers names ([name_f]Esther[/name_f] and [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f]), and is an old Jewish grandma name so that fits. [name_f]Susannah[/name_f] is just pretty and more energetic than [name_f]Estelle[/name_f], so its a good middle. It’s also technically a book reference because [name_u]Percy[/name_u] [name_m]Jackson[/name_m]’s little sister is named [name_f]Estelle[/name_f].
[name_u]Elliott[/name_u] is also after my grandmothers (first initial), but it’s also the name of the kid from ET. My mom used to work for Universal and my family used to live in [name_m]Orlando[/name_m] so we would spend a lot of time in the Universal parks and me and my brothers favorite ride was ET (because it was the only one we were tall enough for, lol). [name_m]Stan[/name_m] is after my grandfather ([name_m]Stuart[/name_m]) but also [name_m]Stan[/name_m] [name_u]Lee[/name_u] because I love comics and [name_m]Stan[/name_m] from It because I love horror and [name_m]Stephen[/name_m] [name_m]King[/name_m] in general. [name_m]Rafferty[/name_m] is also from a book (UNICORNE files) but the character in that is a girl. I just prefer the name on a boy with the nickname Raffie
[name_u]Alex[/name_u]: I don’t know what made me [name_f]ADORE[/name_f] this name. My brother’s wife is currently pregnant with a little girl which will be named [name_u]Alex[/name_u] [name_f]Collette[/name_f] [name_u]Sawyer[/name_u]. This is when I first heard it as a full name and since then I love it!!
[name_u]Oakley[/name_u]: My brother has 2 kids, soon 3 as I told you. His boy is named [name_u]Oakley[/name_u]. When [name_u]Riley[/name_u] was pregnant (my brother’s wife) I suggested that name. This is when I started loving it for both genders!!
[name_m]Henry[/name_m]: I can’t remember when I started liking it, but it’s been a long time!
[name_f]Everleigh[/name_f]: I saw a man on YouTube that name his daughter like this and that’s how I discovered it!!
[name_m]Maddox[/name_m]: I can’t remember and I don’t know why?? But I love it!!
[name_m]Ethan[/name_m]: It has a very sweet and cute sound!!
[name_u]Quinn[/name_u]: I love it on both genders!!
I also like many nature/places names as you can see in my signature!!