The Baby Name Wizard

New baby alert, too:

Tobin Will1am
nn Toby

They considered Tobias but felt it didn't go as well with their long last name. I think I like it.

Stacy-(My that's hard to type without an E LOL)!
Re-Amelia vs Emilia I already wieghed in on which pron I say. I think if I were to choose which one I would actually USE it would depend on a few things:
-LN and also MN
-matchiness to siblings such as if I had an Aaron/Adam etc I might go with A or Ethan and Emilia but if I disliked matching I would purposely do the opposite.
-any family connections

Lastly I think of the style each one seems to convey, to me. Emilia seems a bit more formal than Amelia which seems rather soft. Emilia seems a bit more frilly or fluffy or something that Amelia is not. Also the 3 vs 4 syllable thing is a difference to me.

Inbal, the nickname Belle would certainly work. It reminds me a lot of the Disney princess Belle though (from Beauty and the Beast).

I also like Ina, pronounced EE-na (rhymes with Tina/Gina).

Dh's name would have been Emily (mn unknown). His mom was sure he was a girl and didn't have a boy name picked out. Then he was born in the car, on the drive to the hospital. When they got into the parking lot, my FIL yelled for help and 3 nurses came running. It was pouring rain and they were protecting the little baby while MIL was getting lashed in the face with water. She kept asking, "What is it? What is it?" and finally a nurse looked at her with derision and said, "It's a BABY!" She felt so martyred with the lack of attention that she named him Steven, after the first Christian martyr.
Fwiw, I don't see him as an Emily At.All.

I am a Christine and just asked my mom what I would have been called if I was a boy, and she didn't remember! 3 years later they named my brother Michael, but it wasn't on the list of potential names for me. I like Daniel and I think it would have suited me well. But I'm pretty sure it was never on the list.

My mother told me my name would have been Anthony and they would have called me Tony! This seems very strange to me as a Liz / Elizabeth.

I find it interesting how the names that we would choose for ourselves are often so different from those we would use for our children. It shows how strong the influence of the name zeitgeist of any given time and place really is.

re: Emilia/Amelia
Personally, I say these two names quite distinctly - but I also enunciate more than most people I know. I think that maybe the French (male) name Émile influences my pronunciation of Emilia because of the accented E. In my opinion, both Emilia and Amelia are pretty, and both have 4 syllables.

So, does that mean that people say the name Cordelia as cor-DEE-lya or cor-DEH-lya as opposed to cor-DEE-lee-a?

And what about the children's books about Amelia Bedelia? Is her last name said bə-DEE-lya by some? That totally messes with my mind, man...

Karyn-How funny that I never thought of those other names until you mentioned them. I would say Cordelia as Cor-DEEL-yah. I say Amelia Bedelia as more of Ah-MEEL-yah Bah-DEEL-ya but can also say them with 4 sylls so it is like DEE-LEE-ah. I think the Emilia is because of Emily the "i" rather than "e" in front of the "l" makes a difference. I say Em-I(short i sound)-Lee not Em-uh(schwa sound)-Lee. I think it's like the R-controlled vowel thing because I know in some words an "l" will change a sound too like Walk or Wall to me is said with a rounded mouth (like a short o sound as in hot) rather than (short a) to sound like bat or hat. Did that make sense? Miriam-comments?

The pronunciation I've most often heard is "Ah-MEEL-ya". Although the four syllable enunciation is not unknown to me.

The same people who stretch out "JOO-lee-a", as opposed to "JOOL-ya" probably would give "Amelia" the four syllable pronunciation.

I would have to agree instinctively with hyz's first reaction, that the four syllable deal, to some ears at least, strikes a slightly pretentious note. Not that that's rational-- I'm just giving one perspective, obviously.

stacy-- I know of two tiny Amelia's, and think it is definitely on the upswing. Parents who still like the over-used "Emily" now I think have begun to flock to Amelia. The "Emilia" spelling is not my favorite, and I do believe would be constantly misheard as Amelia, at least in English-speaking countries...

I'm a J@e Kaatherine, but had I been a boy, I would have been J@e Timothy. My first name is after my deceased brother, and Timothy was his imaginary best friend when he was little; my actual middle name is descended from my grandmother Kathleen and mother Kathy. I'm glad for being a girl, because while I've recently decided I like Timothy as a name, I think the J@e spelling of my first name is too feminine for a boy (though it's far from common even for a girl!).

If I had to pick a boy's name for myself now, though... I don't know. I'm fond of Bernard (pronounced BER-nerd), after my grandfather; or perhaps something like Josiah or Ezekiel. Something unusual, though, for sure. I like my unique name, despite having to constantly spell it for everyone.

My name is Kimberley R0chelle, but I would have been Craig Damon if I had been a boy, which is horrible. Thankfully, my mother realized that soon after I was born and my younger brother was named the much more palatable Steven D@vid. In between the two of us, my sister was born, and my parents, assuming she was a boy, had no girls' names picked out at all. In the end, my sister, born in 1974, is named - wait for it - Jennifer Kristin.

I am happy to announce that I am almost 15 weeks pregnant! We are thinking of Astrid for a girl and Hugo for a boy. Does anyone have other suggestions or middle name ideas?

In Chaucer's Knight's Tale, the beautiful Amazon bone of contention is Emelye, pronounced Em-uh-LEE-ya/Em-uh-LEE-uh. For any who like that pronunciation (and spelling), there is historical justification. Prins Willem Alexander and Prinses Maxima of the Netherlands have a daughter Amalia (Ah-MAHL-ya), so that's another possibility along with the French Amalie.

Trish - love your story, your poor MIL!

According to my parents I would've been called John, but I don't really believe that, I think it's just something they said to answer my questions. My brother is called Alun and that's more lkely what I would have been called.

My own choice - I like having an unusual name, I like the fact it's obscurely biblical and slightly androgynous, Hebrew in origin and un-frilly. So I'd probably go for Jude,except that's my son's nn. Micah, perhaps.

My husband would have been called Lorraine if a girl, which has a very different feel (in the UK) from Laurence, which is what he ended up with.

Actually, Amalia is on my hypothetical list for future daughter middle names to honour my aunt whose, Hebrew name was Leah (ie. the "lia" connection).

And Eo, hyz, and anyone else who imagines that the 4 syllable version would sound pretentious: I bet that if you heard it in context, it wouldn't strike you that way at all. It's not like I drag out the EE or specifically separate the syllables - it's only that the "i" and the "a" are distinct sounds.

And I don't suppose that I need to add this, but in my head the name Amalia is Ah-MAH-lee-uh.

Tirza, J&H's mom, RobynT and Valerie -
thanks for your input.

I decided to leave just Inbal on my resume, but at my interview today, I told the interviewer she could call me Belle. She seemed almost relieved to hear it! Although she did want to know how Inbal is pronounced. After hearing the proper pronuncition, she was even happier to have the Belle option. :-)

Ditta -
Jotham is another OT name that's rare here but is highly popular in Israel. There were 2 men named Jotham in the bible (pronounced Yoh-tahm). The first was Gideon's youngest son who protested the crowning of Abimelech, and who escaped death (unlike the rest of his brothers). The second was a king of Judah.
I really like that name!

The name Leda makes me think of a swan, probably cause I'm a Greek Mythology buff and Leda "gave birth" to Helen of Troy who came out of a swan egg. That's because Zeus had seduced Leda in the form of a swan, thus impregnating her with Helen.

Re: Amelia. This pronunciation discussion is fascinating. I was astonished to hear that some people say it has three syllables, as I'm from the UK where it would definitely be pronounced as four. I suddenly had a breakthrough when Eo mentioned "JOO-lee-a", as opposed to "JOOL-ya". Julia is my mother's name and she's spent part of her life in the UK and part in the US. As a result I've heard people use both pronunciations. And then it hit me. It's because of the L sound! I've noticed that some Americans say the L further back than Brits. (Is it back? Down? I need a linguistics expert!) Anyway, the tongue is definitely in a different position and I think that makes the difference.

what a great post! my name is claire and i would have been paul if i'd been a boy. i don't think "paul" would suit me.

Karyn--yes, I've always heard "Ah-MEEL-ya Beh-DEEL-ya", AND "Cor-DEEL-ya". Strangely enough, though, both "JOOL-ya" and "JOO-lee-ah" sound fine to me. I agree with Valerie about the difference in how the L is said, and that being a main source of the distinction.

KRC--Congrats!!!

I pronounce Amelia a-MEEL-ya, and Julia JOO-lee-a. I'd say Emilia the same way as Amelia unless corrected, and I have to say that the eh-MEEL-ya or eh-MEE-lee-a pronunciations sound forced and uncomfortable to me. I would feel more comfortable saying eh-mi-LEE-a -- it flows better, to my ear. I also say Cordelia cor-DEEL-ya. As far as the popularity of Amelia, I'd say that it's too trendy for my taste. Not necessarily too popular, but too trendy. I do like the sound and style of it though, so if trendiness doesn't bother you, I think it's a lovely choice.

KRC -- I love Astrid, and Hugo is growing on me. Other suggestions:

Milo, Henry, Jasper, Frederic, Sylvan, Forrest, Alistair, Ambrose, Augustine (aw-GUS-tin)

Matilda, Opal, Ingrid, Phoebe, Fiona, Felicity, Coral, Zinnia, Azalea, Pippa, Daphne, Sylvie, June with nn. Junie, Adele, Tabitha, Sigrid, Imogen, Ivy, Iris, Delia, Cornelia, Hazel, Violet, Olive

Inbal--you didn't happen to go to school in North Carolina ever, did you? It's just that I had a student named Inbal there, early 1990s, and her explanation of the name's meaning has always stuck with me--such a lovely meaning, and it completely changed how I saw/heard the name (which is unusual for me, I'm not one to put much emphasis on a name's meaning).

Belle seems fine as a nickname/adaptation--or Bella, if you want to get a little further from the Disney connection. It's very clever how it echoes both the sound and meaning of Inbal.

Hi zoerhenne

Thanks for the suggestions. I like Paige and Isabelle. I'd really like to find a name that's not too common. It seems I might have to make up a name!

I say a-MEEL-ya and cor-DEEL-ya, but I also say JOO-lee-a. However, with both Emilia and Amalia, I see them as Spanish so pronounce them with 4 definite syllables -- e-MEE-lee-a and a-MAHL-ee-a.

Congrats, KRC. It goes without saying that I love Astrid ;-) but I also adore Hugo. My husband wouldn't have gone for it because of the /u/, but I think it's a splendid name.

Other names I really like are Laszlo, Abraham, Solomon, Beatrix, Juniper, and Maud.

Eo said the four-syllable pron of Amelia might strike some as pretentious. I use the four-syllable pron and I wonder if the accent where I grew up is British-influenced. I know we say "rubbish" like "Throw your candy wrapper in the rubbish can," which people find amusing and Brit-like. Other than that I think we tend to pronounce every vowel although I sometimes think this is because of other languages that have influenced the region (e.g. Japanese). Ooh, and Valerie strengthens my argument!

JKE: I know a male J@ie. He said it is French.

I pronounce Amelia & Emilia differently. To me, Amelia has 3 syllables (although I can picture people using 4), and Julia is "jule-ya." However, this is probably due to me living in the South. :)

Had I been a boy, my name would have been Daniel. I was going to be named after my uncle one way or the other! Not much different than my current name, so it's not very hard to picture myself being named that. If I was choosing for myself, though, I think I'd probably have made a good Bryan or an Andrew.

Re: Amelia-
In the Southern US, I hear Amelia pronounced "Ah-MILL-ya." I'm not fond of this and much prefer the "Ah-MEEL-ya" and "Ah-MEEL-ee-ah" versions.
While the name does seem to be popping up more often, it does lend itself to a number of nicknames-Millie, Amy, Mia, Lia, should the name show up twice in your daughter's kindergarten room. I'm personally fond of the nickname "Mimi."

>>I find it interesting how the names that we would choose for ourselves are often so different from those we would use for our children. It shows how strong the influence of the name zeitgeist of any given time and place really is.<<

This is definitely true for me. Names I would consider giving a boy born today are not the same as a male name I would choose for myself, someone who was born almost 40 years ago.

I don't know what my boy name would have been, or even if my parents had been able to settle on one -- I have a vague memory of someone telling me that I would have been a Sam, but I don't know if that's right, because it doesn't sound that much like my parents.

I could see myself as a Michael, I think, but I always have trouble with boys' names.

I think I would have been Daniel. But, truthfully my mom always thought I was a girl, so I have heard far more about Elizabeth as the name my mother always wanted to name a girl, but didn't when I was born. I prefer my name to Elizabeth mostly because of the number of people my age named Elizabeth.

I think I would choose maybe Oliver. I really think I could be a good Oliver! But my mom was all over biblical, so that wouldn't have come from her.

Trish- That is the funniest story! So great!! What a great tale to have for your name.

I've seen the little slip of paper on which my parents brainstormed ideas for my name -- they saved it these 38 years! I loved being a Nicole as a girl, although now I find it a little slight and mundane. It's better than Lisa, though, which was another option, but not as good as Zoe or Esme, the other two options I can recall. (My father was a Salinger fan.)

If I had been a boy, I would have been Joel, my father's middle name. It's my younger brother's name now, and I think it would have suited me very well.

Very interesting topic!

Let’s see, my parents had planned for their firstborn (me) to be CJ for a girl or JC for a boy – Catherine Joyce or John Charles. Plans changed when I was born on St. Patrick’s Day and my father suggested Patricia as a middle name, so Catherine Patricia (nn Cathy) I am.

I suppose I could see myself as John (after my maternal grandfather). Hmm. Trying to follow Laura’s rules and not choose the name that I necessarily like best, but one that would more reflect me, and the time in which I was named.

I think, being a child of the 70s & 80s, intellectual, somewhat into sports, neither popular nor unpopular, a standard male name of that generation would have worked best for me, especially among my family & friends. I could see myself then & now as an Andy or a Tim…or maybe Brian. This is difficult.

My parents had a hard time agreeing on names. My father liked older, more traditional names; my mother tended towards names more popular at the time, but her taste was basically all over the place. I ended up being 1 of 2 kids – Catherine Patricia & Nancy Lynn – very different styles.

Another name my mother considered for a girl was Wendy. I guess she liked –y ending names (Cathy, Nancy, Wendy). I’m not quite sure I’m a Wendy.

Other boys names under consideration were Paul (my father’s choice) and Timothy or Kevin Michael – fairly standard at that time (my mother’s choices). Apparently my mother had also considered Ashley for a boy, and while I know the history, and I did go to school with a male Ashley who was very masculine, I just could not fathom having been a boy of the 70s/80s and growing up with that first name.

---

I wanted to add that it was interesting to see another Catherine (or perhaps a mom to a Catherine; no time to go back and read now), whose alternate name would have been Kevin Michael – on my parents’ list above.

Also, the Kristen who would have been Christopher caught my eye. My husband is Christopher Jason. He would have been Christina Joy if he were a girl. Had I been given the original full name my parents chose for me – Catherine Joyce – we would have had the exact same initials.

KRC-Congrats! I love the name K!mberley R0chell3 that is so pretty especially since Kimberley was among my dd's choices list. She might have been a Brian or Jeffrey if she had been a boy.

Felicia-Take a good look at some real names before you make one up please. Tell us your style and some things you like and don't like and we can help you more. Also, a name that was floating on these boards a while back and I know many have a fondness for is Pippa. Does the name only have to be a P or I? Or are those just some sounds you like?

Fictional baby name alert--and a Office spoiler--

On The Office tonight, Jan's new baby was named Astrid. I thought that might be of interest to at least a few here. I have a fondness for that name, since it belonged to one of my very wonderful and cool childhood friends, but it does seem to be on the upswing. I think there are two young Astrids in my (liberal, middle class, urban) neighborhood.

hopefully this makes sense:
my L in julia is more of a consonant while the L in amelia is more of a liquid (it's easier this way getting from the long 'ee' sound represented by e to the short, glide 'ee' sound represented by i). i guess that means i say a-MEEL-ya.

for me julia does not rhyme with 'fool ya.' it is 'julie-uh.'

the first sound in both amelia and emilia for me is schwa. the names sound the same to me. the initial vowel is so short that i don't have time to think whether it's schwa or a very short 'eh.' i would only hear a difference if the pronunciation was deliberately trying to be continental.

bill, what exactly do you mean by "continental"? If you mean the sort of fabricated not-quite-American/not-quite-British accent used by so many actors, then I'm not sure that I agree with you. (If you meant something else by "continental", please educate me.) Because I know that there is a distinct difference between how I say Amelia and Emilia, and there is nothing deliberate about it.. that's just how it comes out in my Anglophone Quebecer accent.

However, I am definitely willing to concede that differences that are clearly evident to one person might not be perceived by another. So, distinctions that don't exist in one dialect or accent might not be noticed by someone who belongs to that particular linguistic group.

So, while *I* can hear the difference in how I say the two names, and I'm willing to bet that my friends and family from around here would hear the difference too, (whether or not *they* said the names differently or not,) someone else listening to me speak might not.

Draiad: I should have known by your nn you're a greek mythology buff! ;) I'm with you, since I'm Greek *L*

Jenny L3igh:
The people I met with the little boy called Jotham pronounced it to rhyme with Gotham, and J as in Jonathan. I really liked it.
And yes, Leda makes me think of swan too... But (since we're sharing) our last name is Good, and I can't do this to a child...
Leda Good (life?)
This also means that any name ending in -be (ie Phoebe,) and names like Luke or Lucas, or Justin are out. Our last name can be really awkward.

Keren: Laurence is one of the names we have for a future boy (it's a family last name) :)Does your DH like it, and is he called any nns?

Anna

If I were a boy I would have been Alexander Stephen rather than Suzannah Margalit. My parents never shortened Suzannah so I guess I would have been Alexander rather than Alex (and definitely not Zander/Xander - they're not hip enough!)

Choosing my own male name is much harder. I guess perhaps something like William, shortened to Will, which I see as quite grave and gentle. Definitely not a "blokey" name. Will/iam is also my uncle's name, which fits in quite nicely.

My captcha is "maidens Hilda"! But I would certainly never name anyone that.

i am Bonnie but would have been Kirk had i been the expected boy. i think the two names have a similar flavour...both rather dated but likable Scots-abroad choices that no one IN Scotland would ever consider a name.

in high school i hated the cutesiness of Bonnie and wished i'd been Kirk (or - eep - Kirke) even as a girl.

Ditta - my DH likes the name Laurence. He's called Loz or Lozzer sometimes and his mum used to call him Lol. When he goes to America he's used to people looking at the name Laurence but saying Larry - no one in England would ever dream of calling him Larry!
The one drawback was that when he was at school some bullies added an F to the beginning of his name, which caused great misery.

If I had been a boy, I would have been Alan, but since that is now my brother's name, I can't think of my male alter-ego as an Alan.

I often imagine what other female names I would pick for myself, if I actually changed my name, but never had I considered male names for myself. Being female is such a large part of my identity, that I never even imagined what my male name would be.

Off the top of my head, I sort of like the idea of Stuart - recognizable but not terribly common, but still classic enough without being trendy, and a "man's man" name. Stuart can wear a suite, a flannel shirt and jeans or an AC/DC t-shirt with ease - in my mind anyway. I think I would go by Stu.

hyz - I was just about to write about that - my worst nightmare - Jan named her baby Astrid on The Office. I have often said to my husband that my worst nightmare was that someone famous would name a baby Astrid before our baby was born. I was thinking of a real person, but this is almost as bad.

PLEASE HELP ME!!! Is this as horrible as I think it is??? Is everyone going to say "Oh, like the baby on The Office"? I literally cried last night and felt so sick to my stomach I couldn't sleep.

We don't even know if this baby is a girl yet, of course. But I am just devastated.

Oh I love this topic (long time lurker here)
I have always know my alternate name
My parents had their favourite names picked out and it was a first come first served!

First born: Jason or heather - it was a boy so Jason it was
Second born: Heather or Aidan - I got Heather
Third born: Aidan or Natalie - and Aidan(m) it was

I grew up hating my name because it was so different.1970's Ireland wasn't known for its non-religious/traditional names and I was the only heather I knew, but i have gotten used to it and couldnt imagine being called anything else.
So my alternate name was Aidan - because my brother has it I could never imagine it being my alernate boy name.

>>On The Office tonight, Jan's new baby was named Astrid. I thought that might be of interest to at least a few here. ... it does seem to be on the upswing.<<

I have such mixed feelings about this! I selfishly want Astrid to remain a largely obscure name (perhaps I carry too much baggage as an Amy born in the late 60s?). However, I know my daughter is always *thrilled* when she hears of other Astrids. (As an example, I mentioned that KRC was considering the name, and her response was, "I'm popular!") And as my husband rightly points out, we ourselves are doing our part every day to acquaint people with the name and possibly increase its use. I still think it's a name that may be too ... challenging ... for most people, at least in the US.

Anyone else have this unreasonable territoriality about names? I don't mind when real people, esp on this blog, consider or use the name. But a TV show? Ugh.

Bon-Kirk is a name I cannot get behind. When I hear that all I can think of is Star Trek. Since I'm not at all a Trekkie, I could never use this name for anything.(Sorry to all the Kirk's out there).

Wondering also if we could revisit the last topic for a moment and offer comments on the name Damian. Does this too carry certain references (like Delilah) that should never be bestowed on a child or has a long enough time passed since those movies were out that the association has almost vanished? Did anyone who is now bearing children actually see those movies or were they too young? I myself have mixed feelings because it "sounds" like a nice name but then I think-umm no.

KRC-I for one would NOT be thinking "Oh like the baby on the show" because I don't watch that show. I do know of it and I am in the US. PA to be exact. Used to be in CT. Still, in either state I don't believe I've ever heard of an Astrid in real life except for the author of Pippi Longstocking's when I was growing up.

KRC -- I just saw your post. I think if you love a name, you shouldn't abandon it because it's in use by someone else (am I contradicting my earlier post?!?). I mean, The Office is popular now, but won't be forever. If people say, "Like the baby on The Office?" you just say "No."

Project yourself into the future, would you regret not using a name you loved because you were put off by something as fleeting as a TV show, or would you be relieved you'd chosen something off the pop culture radar? Maybe that helps.

And maybe you'll have a boy and can save Astrid for a later baby.

Felicia-More names for you:
Paula/ina; Peggy; Payton (popular here); Parker; Paris; Phyllis; Piper; Priscilla
Those are all the names starting with P but having a P sound in them there is also:
April; Aspen; Harper there really aren't that many. Of course names with I's in them are many I chose these for you to consider:
Adrienne; Alicia; Belinda; Bridget; Briony; Brittney; Camilla; Candice; Cierra; Clarissa; Corinne; Cynthia; Danielle; Dianna; Edith; Eileen; Elizabeth; Emily (and all its variants);Evelyn

I'll stop there and wait for some feedback.

I think I would regret not using it. I really like Hugo, but I am actually hoping for a girl, if only because I LOVE the name Astrid so, so much. It's as if I cannot imagine a more perfect name for my child. DH feels the same way. I am just so upset that the name will now enter into everyone's consciousness. Before, if I had announced Astrid (when the baby is born) my friends and family would be so surprised because it is a name that would have never occurred to them. Some in a good way, probably many in a bad way, but I was really relishing the newness. That part is ruined, but I still love the name. Although popularity would turn me off - does this mean Astrid will become the new Emma?

I love Beatrix too, Amy3, but my husband prefers Beatrice. We both also love Philippa nn Pippa but DH's last name begins witn Long- so that is out. I also love the name Cecily, but I have promised my grandmother that my first daughter will be named after my aunt who died of leukemia at 25 and her name was Leslie. Astrid Leslie works. Cecily Leslie does not.

The nausea will not go away.