Ok Berries. I’ve been spending too much time on this forum and I’m becoming desensitized to wild names!
My new favorite is [name]Xenia[/name]! Pronounced zeenya or zainya - not sure which I prefer. Not the ksenia pronunciation. Not [name]Zinnia[/name], though I like that too. Definitely not [name]Xena[/name]! (warrior princess.) Opinions on pronunciation, and the name in general? My mother is an [name]Alexandra[/name], and her favorite part of her name is the X, so it would be after her. She’s a wild artist, so I don’t think it’d be too far-fetched. Last name sounds like Garnet. Middle name [name]Alice[/name]? or Dear?
Other names:
[name]Ginger[/name] [name]Margaret[/name] (can’t get [name]Ginger[/name] out of my head - sorry folks! I know it’s loathed but I love it. [name]Margaret[/name] for a beloved aunt) Possible NN [name]Gigi[/name]
[name]Celia[/name] Dear ([name]Celia[/name] bc it’s an anagram of [name]Alice[/name], which has a nice association for my husband and I, and bc of the adorable and lovely Shakespearean character. Dear for my very close grandmother who was called by this nn) Everyone seems to love [name]Celia[/name] but I don’t know if it’s got enough strength. Thoughts?
[name]Acacia[/name] (Dear? not sure of middle) NN [name]Kay[/name]. I just think it’s beautiful. [name]Love[/name] botanical names, but the obscure ones are better with last name which is vaguely botanical. Anything like [name]Holly[/name] or [name]Daisy[/name] would be unusable. [name]Acacia[/name]?
I feel like I have too many names here. No baby yet, but working toward it. Boy name was easy. [name]Cy[/name]. Middle name prob [name]Linden[/name] or [name]Julius[/name]. Not too concerned about sibset matchiness at this point.
So what do you think?
I like it! And I like the Zayn-ya prn. I know a girl named [name]Zelia[/name] (goes by Ze), which might be a nice option for you given you like [name]Celia[/name] (which I also love).
[name]Acacia[/name] is OK - [name]Kay[/name] I’m not a fan of, it’s in the ‘Mum’ category for me.
I dont like the look of [name]Xenia[/name] [name]Alice[/name], or [name]Xenia[/name] [name]Celia[/name] although they sound nice. [name]Xenia[/name] Dear would be the best option I think.
[name]Xenia[/name] [name]Lilac[/name]
[name]Xenia[/name] [name]Saffron[/name]
[name]Saffron[/name] [name]Alice[/name]
[name]Saffron[/name] Dear
[name]Celia[/name] [name]Xanthe[/name]
[name]Zelia[/name] [name]Alice[/name]
[name]Juniper[/name] [name]Alice[/name]
[name]Alice[/name] [name]Camellia[/name]
[name]Laurel[/name] [name]Celia[/name]
Thanks Emelis! I will put that in the ballot box and sit on it. [name]Zelia[/name] doesn’t do it for me for some reason, and I definitely favor an X over a Z. Interesting that you like [name]Xenia[/name] Dear more than [name]Xenia[/name] [name]Alice[/name]. I wasn’t expecting anyone to go for that one. [name]Xenia[/name] [name]Lilac[/name] I like for sound and the fragrant intoxication factor, but I think it may sound too much like [name]Zinnia[/name] [name]Lilac[/name], esp with our last name. I think [name]Juniper[/name] [name]Alice[/name] is very pretty, but too common where I live, and evergreens won’t work with Gar1and.
I [name]Love[/name] [name]Xenia[/name]! Its actually one of my faves. From your choices, I also think that [name]Xenia[/name] Dear sounds best. I do not know what it is, but I do not like [name]Xenia[/name] [name]Alice[/name]. I knew a little girl named [name]Xenia[/name] [name]Isabelle[/name] and I think that was just lovely. Other suggestions…
[name]Xenia[/name] [name]Claire[/name]
[name]Xenia[/name] [name]Margaret[/name]
[name]Xenia[/name] [name]Ruth[/name]
[name]Xenia[/name] [name]Kate[/name]
[name]Xenia[/name] [name]Paige[/name]
[name]Xenia[/name] [name]Willow[/name]
[name]Xenia[/name] [name]Rain[/name]/e
[name]Xenia[/name] [name]Sky[/name]/e
[name]Xenia[/name] [name]Acacia[/name] = [name]Xenia[/name] [name]Kay[/name] (although I must say I don’t really care for [name]Acacia[/name], and [name]Kay[/name] is just ok)
Thank you Wink. Seems like [name]Xenia[/name] [name]Alice[/name] is out. I rather like [name]Xenia[/name] [name]Willow[/name], though Dear might be more meaningful… I will put it on my list.
Anyone have any thoughts about
[name]Ginger[/name] [name]Margaret[/name]
[name]Celia[/name] Dear
[name]Acacia[/name] Dear
[name]Xenia[/name] Dear
[name]Xenia[/name] [name]Willow[/name]
Opinions? What images do the names call up for you? What kind of girls do you imagine them to be?
Quite like [name]Xenia[/name]! [name]Xenia[/name] Dear is very nice and I also like [name]Xenia[/name] [name]Ginger[/name]! I agree, [name]Xenia[/name] [name]Alice[/name] the flow is a little off - both great names but they don’t do much for each other. And I like [name]Ginger[/name] [name]Margaret[/name]. I for one do not loathe [name]Ginger[/name] : D.
Thanks Jesba! It’s a little vulnerable putting my favorites out here, so I appreciate the encouragement. [name]Xenia[/name] and [name]Ginger[/name] huh? I think that together they might sound too much like zinger. I do think they’re the spunkier two of the four… so I guess I’m a little more drawn to them. [name]Xenia[/name] Dear and [name]Ginger[/name] [name]Margaret[/name] that is. My husband is has been really open-minded about names, though I think he slightly favors the pretty-girl names [name]Celia[/name] and [name]Acacia[/name]. [name]Celia[/name] might be the most sentimental of all of the first name choices, but I just worry that it lacks zest.
My husband says he only likes [name]Xenia[/name] with the pronunciation “zeenya.” He thinks “zainya” sounds too much like zany. I know what he means, though I think the e in [name]Xenia[/name] actually has a more open sound than the a in zany.
Anyone else want to weigh in on my top 4?
[name]Xenia[/name] Dear
[name]Xenia[/name] [name]Ysabel[/name]
[name]Ginger[/name] [name]Margaret[/name]
[name]Celia[/name] Dear
[name]Acacia[/name] Dear
[name]Just[/name] bumping myself forward because I’d love more feedback 
I love it - it’s playful yet regal at the same time. Beautiful meaning and Xenie is such a cute nickname. For pronunciation, I believe [zeenya] is the most correct in English. I like [ksenia] a lot, too.
[name]Xenia[/name] [name]Alice[/name] is beautiful. I also like [name]Celia[/name] Dear & [name]Ginger[/name] [name]Margaret[/name] - [name]Ginger[/name] is a cute nature name, even though I’d prefer to have a more “serious” first name like [name]Virginia[/name] or [name]Giselle[/name] or [name]Genevieve[/name] (a twinset of [name]Alice[/name] [name]Xenia[/name] & [name]Celia[/name] Dear would be so cute!).
My favorite from your list is [name]Ginger[/name] [name]Margaret[/name], hands down. Not a fan of [name]Xenia[/name] because of xenophobic and its meaning.
I like it but isn’t there a character in the Hunger Games called [name]Xenia[/name]?Not that it matters really! [name]LOVE[/name] [name]Xenia[/name] [name]Alice[/name]. Also [name]LOVE[/name] [name]Acacia[/name] as it was one of my first names that I got obsessed with. Floral suggestion-[name]Clematis[/name] nn [name]Clem[/name]/[name]Clemmie[/name]. Not really keen on [name]Celia[/name] as I just think of the word Coeliac for some bizarre reason. Suggestion-[name]Cecily[/name]. Dear is a cute mn. I would love to hear what you think about [name]Clematis[/name] though.
[name]Acacia[/name] [name]Margaret[/name]
[name]Xenia[/name] [name]Alice[/name]
[name]Clematis[/name] [name]Cecily[/name]
I would pronounce [name]Xenia[/name] as “ZEH-nee-uh” on first glance, which sounds like [name]Zinnia[/name] with a Nigerian accent. “[name]ZEE[/name]-nee-uh” sounds very close to [name]Xena[/name] to my ear, and I would assume was a mis-read of [name]Xena[/name]. “[name]ZAIN[/name]-ee-uh” just sounds like zany (erratic, crazy) to me.
[name]Celia[/name] is lovely, though I personally prefer it pronounced “SEH-lee-uh” as opposed to “[name]SEAL[/name]-ya.” Three syllables.
Perhaps you’d like [name]Aracelia[/name]?
[name]Acacia[/name] Garl@nd is possibly risky, depending on where you live (how common [name]Acacia[/name] trees are to your area). I like [name]Acacia[/name], but if you’re shortening it to [name]Kay[/name], [name]Cay[/name] makes more sense. Why switch letters?
You don’t have too many, certainly not compared to some! If you were days before delivery I’d call it crunch time, but even then you could do the whole “wait til we meet her” thing.
There was a contestant on the television show The Voice last year and she pronounced it SEEN-YAH. Anyone ever heard of this?
Either way, I like the name! The X looks awesome.
[name]Xenia[/name] is an ancient name which means “hospitality to strangers” [i.e. the opposite of xenophobia, fear of strangers]. It has a long and distinguished history in [name]Christian[/name] naming due to several saints with that name. In the States at least it’s pronounced zeen-ya [like the town in Ohio]
I am not over-fond of the middle name Dear as it sounds precious, and a bit choppy. Perhaps you could consider [name]Cherie[/name] instead? [name]Xenia[/name] [name]Cherie[/name]?
I’m with yellow, when I first read it I got ‘[name]ZEE[/name]-nee-uh’ but I like it pronounced either way. I’m a huge fan of the cutsie ‘Dear’ but I equally like the suggestion of [name]Cherie[/name] for meaning and sound. I also really like [name]Ginger[/name] [name]Margaret[/name] [[name]Gigi[/name]] but if it were me, I would like [name]Ginger[/name] [name]Margaux[/name] [french version of [name]Margo[/name] which is a variation of [name]Margaret[/name]] better. {and it incorporates your x!!}
Oh wow thanks All!
Sugarplum: Hadn’t thought of Xenie as a nick. Cute. I think if we do go with [name]Xenia[/name] it would have to be “zeenya” not [name]Ksenia[/name], though I like that too. I’m not into any other [name]Ginger[/name]-esque names, just [name]Ginger[/name].
Thuja: Thanks! Another vote for [name]Ginger[/name] I hear what you’re saying about xenophobic, but I don’t think it would be a problem unless her middle name were [name]Phoebe[/name]!
Whirligig: [name]Xenia[/name] [name]Alice[/name] huh? I kinda agree with others about this one. [name]Xenia[/name]'s so exotic and [name]Alice[/name] is not. I feel like if it were just the sound without its associations “[name]Alles[/name]” would work… [name]Clematis[/name]- I don’t like the clem sound (too much like phlegm- sorry) and the plant, though quite nice, holds no significance for me. [name]Cecily[/name] I like a lot, but don’t love. [name]Acacia[/name]- yes. Doesn’t it just break your heart how pretty it is? Celiac association is something to consider, since my [name]MIL[/name] is gluten intolerant! I haven’t read the Hunger Games, but perhaps I should. I hope the [name]Xenia[/name] character isn’t a villain, but it doesn’t phase me too much.
Yellow: Thanks for the perspective. Yes I do have time before I really need to decide. I half-agree with you about pronunciation. I feel like [name]Xenia[/name] and [name]Celia[/name] are both two and a half syllables. I really like the [name]NYA[/name] sound in [name]Xenia[/name], and the [name]LIA[/name] sound in [name]Celia[/name]… I know a Chinese man whose last name is Liu (not pronounced “lee-u” not “[name]Lu[/name]” but somewhere in between.) I think both [name]Celia[/name] and [name]Xenia[/name] work similarly. Arecelia- no. There’s a taxi company near me called Arecibo, so it’s a weird association. No acacia trees where I live. I do love many plants in the acacia family, especially mimosa, which has sentimental value for my husband and I. [name]Kay[/name] vs [name]Cay[/name]… I’m not sure. I will give it some more thought bc [name]Cay[/name] does make sense. I guess [name]Kay[/name] feels more like a real name to me, and my boy name is [name]Cy[/name]. If they were twins, maybe [name]Cay[/name] and [name]Cy[/name].
Ginaballerina: Thanks! I had no idea about [name]Xenia[/name]-“seenya” but why would anyone give an X an S sound when they could have a ziggy-zaggy jazzy Z-sound?
[name]Blade[/name]: Thank you for the etymological clarification and the history. I’m not [name]Christian[/name], but it’s nice to know that the name has some history and tradition behind it. The meaning is lovely too. [name]Cherie[/name] is too fussy for me. Dear- I know it’s precious, but really it’s what we all called my grandmother, who was not a precious person at all but very strong and intelligent. I was hoping the clean, monosyllabic sound might make it doable as a middle, because I’m so attached to it. Any thoughts on the other names? Which do you like most for a first name?
Cadismom: Thank you for your suggestion of Margeaux. It’s beautiful, but my husband dislikes it. [name]Ah[/name] well. I think I too prefer [name]Ginger[/name] [name]Margaret[/name], for all its R sounds, and for the connection to my aunt [name]Margaret[/name].