How would these Brit names fit in?

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-25-2004
How would these Brit names fit in?
14
Tue, 09-27-2005 - 10:51am

Hello,

I am expecting my second baby in January/February and we're really struggling to find the perfect name this time.

I am American and my husband is English and we're living in the UK right now but plan to move stateside once this baby arrives. Our daughter is Philippa Violet (Pippa), and we both loved her name and had very little trouble coming up with it (Violet was hubby's grandmother's name). I'd like to stick with names that are distinctly British but won't sound too weird to the American ear (I think I've lived here too long to be objective!). Middle name will almost definitely be Alice for a girl or Dickson for a boy (family names). Here are the current contenders:

Girls:
Imogen
Cecily
Verity
Felicity

Boys:
Miles
Angus (Gus for short)
Finlay

I'd love to hear your thoughts on these or other suggestions! I've been reading your other posts and I trust your judgment already :)

Thanks!

ehk8apThanks, mom2jess_n_ky! <

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iVillage Member
Registered: 04-03-2003
Mon, 10-03-2005 - 8:17pm
We have two friends from England living in the states who recently named their twins Imogen and Jemima. And, yes, all of their American friends mispronounced both at first, but the names are certainly distinct and have grown on us. Guess there is no Aunt Jemima syrup in GB? :)
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-08-2004
Mon, 10-03-2005 - 9:52pm

You have wonderful names to choose from! When we named our kids, we looked almost exclusively at British names. I love them! If we had a girl, she would have been either Jemina or Philippa! Pippa was just too different for DH's

Amy, mom to Nate (9), Calvin (7), and Tobias (4). You can find me at my blogs:

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Tue, 10-04-2005 - 9:31am

I'm not a fan of Imogen, but the other three names are nice and go very well with your older dd's name. So, you really can't go wrong with any of them. I think I like Cecily and Felicity better than Verity, just because of the nn's Ciel and Fliss. But again, all would be great choices. Here are some other suggestions you might like.

Gemma -- This isn't even in the top 1000 here, but is cute, and not so unfamiliar that no one would pronounce it correctly. Gem would be a cute nn.

Penny -- This is a great name. Used a bit more, but not in the top 100, so it's not real popular. Pen would be a cute nn. You could even use Penelope as a given name, which is even less popular, and use Penny as a nn. However, I do know that Pip is also a common nn for Penelope, so I'm not sure how that feels to you.

Esme -- This is rarely used, and I think it's a great choice. There is no nn here, but I think Pippa and Esme is really cute!

Dahlia -- Used, but not popular. Again, no nn, but it's very cute paired with big sis Pippa.

Now for boys.

I like all of these names, though I think I prefer Finley to Finlay, though Finlay is a fine choice as well. I am having a hard time pairing them with your dd's name though, I don't know why. It's probably just be me, and if you love them then you should go for them. Like I said, they are great names. I'm just having a hard time pairing them with Pippa or Philippa. Here are some other suggestions, that I think would be great with your dd's name:

Alec -- Used but not popular. No nn, but you could go with Alexander as a full name and use Alec as a nn. I will warn, though, that if popularity concerns you, that Alexander is in the top 20, while the common nn, Alex is in the top 70.

David -- This does seem a bit plain for you, but I think Pippa and Davy is too cute too overlook. David is in the top 20. You could also get Davy from Davis which is not even in the top 100.

Robin -- I think this is a great name for a boy. And Pippa and Robin is really cute. It's also rarely used. It could also be used as a nn for Robert, which is in the top 40.

Clive -- No nn, but it's very handsome, and rarely used. Pippa and Clive make a very nice combo.

Good luck!

Jayme
mom to Johnathan Corey (1/16/01)
and Ethan James (10/15/03)
ttc #3 c2 cd23 6dpo
http://www2.fertilityfriend.com/home/9a48a

 

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iVillage Member
Registered: 02-22-2005
Tue, 10-04-2005 - 1:32pm

Girls:
Imogen
Cecily
Verity
Felicity

Of these I like Cecily or Felicity. I don't think Imogen would be spelled correctly here, and Verity is NMS.

Boys:
Miles
Angus (Gus for short)
Finlay

Of these I like Miles. However, I think Angus is nice, too. Finlay sounds like Finley, which is becoming a girls' name here in the US.

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