evangeline is my most favourite i first loved the name after going through old family trees with my grandpa and finding out his aunt’s names were evangeline and amelia. it has lovely memories attatched to it, and the meaning good news i love.
judith
judith is an honour name for a grandparent! i love its vintage feel, that it begins with j and ends with -th, and the nickname jude or dita it feels like such a happy, sweet name!
amelia
while i don’t love how popular it is, i think amelia is such a lovely name. there’s tons of nickname potential and, just like evangeline, it has wonderful memories attached to it.
ivy
i just love how short and sweet it is! it reminds me of sun the colour yellow, and is just such a bright, happy name.
fionnuala
it’s a subtle honour name for me, and i just love that it’s gaelic. the nicknames finn and nuala are adorable, and i love the way it looks as well!
runner ups: jasper & gwendolyn
boys
thomas
if i ever have a son, i’d love for his name to be thomas. i’ve never loved another name as much as i love this one. thomas feels so timeless and classic, and it could fit anyone of any age. it’s not the most surprising, but it is the most lovely name to me. i just adore it. plus, it’s Biblical and an honour name for plenty of people!
jesse
i love the Biblical connection with the name jesse and it starts with a j which i love so much. i could see it on people of all ages, and i just love the nickname jess!!
declan
declan has been a favourite for a while now. i love the gaelic connection, and the meaning is what made me really fall for declan. ‘man of prayer, full of goodness’ is just perfect!!
rafe
i think this is the newest name on this list! ‘wolf counsel’ is a pretty cool meaning, and i like the idea of having a raphael or a rafa and calling him rafe. i watched outer banks for the first time recently, and it sort of deterred me from the name rafe for a bit but hopefully that’s not an association to most!
shepherd
shepherd ‘sheppie’ or ‘shep’ is just i love the Biblical association as well! shepherd feels like such a sweet, kind, gentle name. it also subtly honours my friend, who is a shepherd
runner ups: arthur, james, riley & florian
i really couldn’t pick between the runner ups! i just love all of these! hopefully i’d get to use them as middles, if not firsts.
Girls
[name_f]Emmy[/name_f] - my favorite for almost 15 years
[name_f]Vada[/name_f]- my wife’s favorite
[name_u]Lux[/name_u]
[name_u]Sloane[/name_u]
[name_u]Ramsey[/name_u]
Boys
[name_m]Marsden[/name_m]
[name_m]Talon[/name_m] - a name I love that my wife keeps moving up and down the list but always in the top 5
[name_m]Roman[/name_m]
[name_m]Luke[/name_m]
[name_u]Leo[/name_u]
So many beautiful lists Thanks for this topic, it’s so interesting to see people’s usable favourites.
I’ve done a Top 6 for each…
Girls
Hero — we both love the strength and quirkiness of Hero, as well as its literary and mythological links. We’ve been unsure about wearability in the past but I now know so many children with such a variety of names that I don’t think it would stand out for the wrong reasons.
Cleo — Bright, sweet, sparky. Works brilliantly in French and has the same fresh, quirky feel in both languages. Basically ticks all of our boxes with bells on, although I’m not always convinced the spark is quite there for me.
Beatrix — I’ve never been out of love with Beatrix but only recently started to consider it seriously as a first name. I’ve always found it and Bea a bit too popular where I live, but I care less about that now I have children with names all over the popularity spectrum. Beatrix is so spunky and sassy but with lots of historical heft behind it too.
Vita — I’d personally rank this higher but my husband is a bit hung up on the Vita Sackville-West connection. I’m sure I could talk him round though! Vita is fresh yet vintage, pretty yet punchy, unexpected yet extremely accessible. I used to think it didn’t work with our surname but the Berries convinced me otherwise
Caro — love how soft yet feisty this is, plus it’s very familiar and uncomplicated but super rare (here) as a given name. Works well in French in terms of sound, but is slightly dated and very nicknamey there. Need to decide how much that bothers me…
Ramona — husband’s fave that I adore too but worry slightly about length and usability in French. Totally fabulous though and I love the children’s book connection and the stretchy nickname Rue/Roo.
Runners up: Ines (husband doesn’t like), Nell (too close to DD2 middle).
Boys
Ivo — we both love this and I think it hits all the right style notes for our family. I really like how short, bright, bookish and international it feels.
Jem — I’d prefer not to repeat initials but since there would be 3 non-J siblings between a Jem and his older sister J, I could definitely let it go. Love how sweet and warm Jem is, with literary links and a strong, simple sound.
Otto — husband loves this, and I really like it too. I like how funky-clunky it is, and of course I always fall for an O ending, as you can see!
Caspar – an old favourite rising up my list again. I adore the understated strength of this name, especially with the -ar ending, and Cas/Cass is the gentlest, most gorgeous nickname for a boy. We would have called #1 this if a boy so there would be a nice circularity here too.
Felix – we’ve never seriously considered this because a (fairly distant) relation named their son this just before our eldest was born. However, they live on a different continent so I think we cold get pas it. Felix is such a handsome, playful, idiosyncratic name with a wonderful meaning.
Rua – beautiful but probably a bit too unknown for my husband. I think he’d like the sound and could be got on side though.
Runners up: Tor (too close to grandpa’s name with same surname), Florin (husband would never agree), Rafa (too close to DS2), Rafe (“too posh” according to husband), Asa (husband has bad association)
[name_f]My[/name_f] SO and I have honestly infuriatingly different tastes, and have vetoed tons of each other’s suggestions at this point. So this was tricky! Not counting ones we’ve already chosen as middles, I would have to say
Boys:
[name_u]Jude[/name_u] - honestly I can’t imagine this not being #1 for a boy, it’s been my biggest name priority for the past 14 years, so thank goodness he loves it!
[name_u]Harper[/name_u] - soft and handsome, love the musical vibe
[name_u]Mackenzie[/name_u] “Mac/Max” - a meaningful name to us
[name_u]Sterling[/name_u] - the ultimate “farm boy chic” name to me, have yet to bring it up to SO
[name_u]Atlas[/name_u] - also have yet to bring it up
Girls:
[name_f]Emily[/name_f] “Emmy” - SO’s favorite name that has finally fully grown on me
[name_f]Tess[/name_f] - my current runner-up girl name
[name_f]Annie[/name_f] - sweet and has some special positive connotations for us
[name_f]Claudia[/name_f] - have yet to bring this one up to him on purpose, I’m scared he won’t like it! I’ve always loved [name_f]Claudia[/name_f]!
[name_f]Sylvia[/name_f] - a surprise approval from SO
eleanor
feminist and timeless, yet fitting for a darling little baby girl. imo, there’s nothing about eleanor that isn’t loveable. i first fell for her when i was five years old, when my grandma told me it was her mom’s name. i promised her i would name my future daughter eleanor, and i absolutely intend on keeping that promise.
margot
it was so hard to narrow down a margaret variant for my top five, but margot seems so perfect these days. i remember learning about anne frank in school, and when my teacher mentioned she had a sister named “margot“. that was the first time i heard this name and i’ve loved it ever since!
ivy
miss ivy. my only long-time love for my future daughter, other than eleanor. i have such a crush on botanical names, and i love how established ivy is as a name. i think it’s lovely to be able to name your daughter after a plant without getting funky looks!
florence
florence was the first name i searched on nameberry! this was long before i was hannahwren or emeraldsea. i was in middle school, and found out it was the middle name of a little girl i babysat. i’ve been smitten with florence ever since.
willa
i feel like i sort of saved the best for last with this one. willa has so much significance for me. it honors a wilhelmina and a william in my family tree, and one of my favorite authors. i also love the idea of calling her “bill”.
I’d generally say my faves list is curated enough so that everything is usable! Which I’m glad for, as I love all of my top names so much. But, I think my most usable names for ladies and gents (not in any major ranking order) would be…
Felicity: I love that she means happiness. Not that I’d want a girl called Felicity to be happy all the time or expect that she would be— but it’s such a beautiful meaning. And such a beautiful reminder that happiness is always the goal, always something to be found again.
Elizabeth: A family name that I just adore. So so so many gorgeous nicknames, and she just never gets old!
Alice: A variant / honor or my mother’s name, Alisyn. Also the heroine of my little sister’s favorite story (miss Wonderland). Vintage and so strong.
Florence: I’ve fallen in love with miss Flo in the last two or three years. Such a unique sound and beautiful look. Nature-y and serene, yet has such a fiery spunk and has suuuuch sweet nicknames. The inspiring Florence Pugh is an added sweet bonus.
Winifred nn Winnie: One I’ve always loved! Clunky and spunky, and just so sweet to say.
Phoebe: One of my favorite poems and another of my favorite novels include this name, spelt Phebe. It stands out as such a charming, collected little name. Bright yellow and so sturdy.
Matilda: I just like this one because I like it. No special reason. She’s just a great blend of literature, strength, sweetness, and old-fashioned warmth.
Rose: Again, a literary favorite. Soft, floral, and bold in its one-syllable, few-vowels little way. Rose Campbell is a personal inspiration (from a novel called Eight Cousins).
George: A staple! So adorable, so vintage, and I love the nickname Geordie.
Peter: Has such a charm to him! I love the mix of class and fun Peter seems to have.
Theodore nn Teddy: Feels like such a warm name. Teddy is the sweetest of sweet things. Literary and soft, like a cozy old book. I feel so inspired by this name. Reminds me of my little cousin, who is every good part of dear Teddy Laurence in my favorite: Little Women.
Laurence nn Laurie: Same goes, see above! ^Laurence has the added bonus of being a family name.
Oliver: A variant of my grandmother’s name: Olivia. Classic and grounded, and reminds me of one of my favorite people in the world.
Otis: I mean, just so dang cute. Stuffy and perfect. I love the old-man, sweet feel of this little guy.
Arthur: One that I just like because I like it! Feels very charming and old, like a well-lovedeather book.
Nathaniel nn Nat: Literary and uncommon, but familiar and warm. The idea of Nat on a little boy absolutely melts me. I just love it! Feels like such a cuddly name, but also a heroic one. I’d be so excited to call my son this name!
[name_u]William[/name_u] (my SO’s favorite, only if we call him Bill)
[name_m]Ethan[/name_m]
[name_u]Owen[/name_u] (my SO hasn’t vetoed, but I know he doesn’t love it even though it was his grandfathers name)
[name_u]Jameson[/name_u]
[name_u]Everett[/name_u] (he also doesn’t love this one but it means too much to me to let it go that easy)
I love [name_m]Colton[/name_m] but he vetoed that name so fast, it broke my heart. It was the first name I ever loved.
Girls:
[name_f]Kara[/name_f] (the only name he has agreed to )
[name_f]Lillian[/name_f]
[name_f]Audrey[/name_f]
[name_f]Grace[/name_f]
[name_f]Caroline[/name_f]
Okay there are so many names I could put on here, but just five…
[name_f]Phoebe[/name_f]
[name_f]Sylvie[/name_f]
[name_u]Romy[/name_u]
[name_u]Cleo[/name_u]
[name_f]Eloise[/name_f] / probably a thousand names that tie could be an alternate
Summary
I’m honestly considering taking [name_f]Eloise[/name_f] off because I just don’t love her anymore, but she’s been on my list so long, I don’t know if this is just a phase I’m going through with her or not because I have gone through that with [name_f]Phoebe[/name_f] and [name_u]Oliver[/name_u] before, but it did end up just being a phase with them, so I’m hesitant to make it “official” (even though I know I could easily add her back if I did change my mind)
[name_f]Winifred[/name_f]- [name_f]My[/name_f] longtime favorite, I love it’s meaning and style, and there are so many nicknames!! I like the name best in full, but [name_f]Winnie[/name_f] is so cute too!
[name_u]Anne[/name_u]- I’ve loved it just as long and it has a ton of personal significance to me
[name_u]Marian[/name_u]- It sounds so sweet and gentle to me, I love [name_u]Marian[/name_u]! I went through a time of considering taking her off my list but lately I’ve come back to her
[name_f]Wilhelmina[/name_f]- She’s a relatively recent favorite but I do love her! Probably too close to use with [name_f]Winifred[/name_f], but on its own I’d definitely consider it!
I don’t know if I really have a fifth for girls Either [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] or [name_f]Maud[/name_f], but I’m not 100% sure I’d use them!
Boys:
[name_m]Irving[/name_m]- A more recent addition to the list, but probably the one I could most see myself using! I’ve actually had dreams about having a son named [name_m]Irving[/name_m] haha. I love it’s clunky-cool feel!
[name_m]Frederick[/name_m]- The boys name I’ve loved the longest! It’s similarity to [name_f]Winifred[/name_f] does put me off a little bit though, so I couldn’t have both sadly
[name_m]Gilbert[/name_m]- Couldn’t use it with [name_u]Anne[/name_u], but I love how friendly and warm it sounds!
Sydney/Sidney- I’m so torn on the spelling, but either way I would love to use it!
[name_u]Clarence[/name_u]- [name_u]Love[/name_u] it’s softer sound and it’s older feel!
Thank you, I think you described really well my style!
Your list is lovely I am especially fond of [name_m]Simon[/name_m], [name_m]Hugo[/name_m], [name_u]Oliver[/name_u], [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] and [name_u]Florence[/name_u].
These are the ones I’m feeling right now at least lol it’s really hard to decide, I tend to lean towards C names for boys and A names for girls for some reason
i first loved the name after going through old family trees with my grandpa and finding out his aunt’s names were evangeline and amelia. it has lovely memories attatched to it, and the meaning good news i love.
it feels like such a happy, sweet name!
but hopefully that’s not an association to most!
Thanks for this topic, it’s so interesting to see people’s usable favourites.
Your kind comment is really sweet!
)
Either [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] or [name_f]Maud[/name_f], but I’m not 100% sure I’d use them!
I am especially fond of [name_m]Simon[/name_m], [name_m]Hugo[/name_m], [name_u]Oliver[/name_u], [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] and [name_u]Florence[/name_u].