Name help needed!

We're expecting our first and as we're not finding out the gender it's causing naming headaches galore! If it's a boy, we want to use the middle name Oscar (after grandpa - haven't ruled it out as a first name). No idea on middle names for girls. Please post your thoughts on the following, and any suggestions would be welcomed! Our surname is Perry and we want something uncommon but not 'yoonique'!

GIRLS

Evelyn (nn Evie)
Bella
Stella
Estella
Rosa
Helena
Cleo
Elsa/Elsie
Maeve

BOYS
Theo
Milo (unlikely as DS is Australian and this is the name of a chocolate drink over there!)
Oscar
Nate
Rex
Jasper
Evan (love but SIL's son has same name)

mrs_p wrote:We're expecting our first and as we're not finding out the gender it's causing naming headaches galore! If it's a boy, we want to use the middle name Oscar (but haven't ruled it out as a first name). No idea on middle names for girls. Please post your thoughts on the following, and any suggestions would be welcomed! Our surname is Perry and we want something uncommon but not 'yoonique'!

GIRLS

Evelyn (nn Evie)
Bella
Stella
Estella
Rosa
Helena
Cleo
Elsa/Elsie
Maeve

BOYS
Theo
Milo (unlikely as DS is Australian and this is the name of a chocolate drink over there!)
Oscar
Nate
Rex
Jasper
Evan (love but SIL's son has same name)

Comments:

Evelyn (nn Evie) - This is a cute nickname, but I prefer the name as a middle name.
Bella - I would prefer a longer, less trendy version, like Arabella.
Stella - This is cute; I like Stella Vivienne Perry, personally.
Estella - I love it! More interesting that Stella, but has the same meaning and feminine edge. Estella Marie Perry would be pretty!
Rosa - I prefer Rosaleen, and I don't love names with Rose.
Helena - Pretty! Helena Madeleine Perry is gorgeous.
Cleo - Reminds me of a dog name or something; don't like it!
Elsa/Elsie - I like this as a nickname for Elisabeth.
Maeve -Would be a nice middle name....

Suggestions - GIRLS - Evangeline, Evangelia, Arabella, Isabel, Estee, Rosaleen, Rosalia, Rosamund, Heidi, Heloise, Clementine, Calliope, Elisabeth, Eleanor, Elspeth, Muriel, Magdalene, Marguerite

Comments:

Theo - Like as a nickname for Theodore, and Theodore Perry sounds quite dignified!
Milo (unlikely as DS is Australian and this is the name of a chocolate drink over there!) - I don't love, but I don't hate it...
Oscar - Cute, especially in the middle. I wouldn't be bold enough to use it as a first name (Oscar the Grouch on Sesame Street)!
Nate - I far prefer the full Nathaniel.
Rex - This seems like a dog name to me, sorry!
Jasper - This seems to be getting rather popular, but I just can't latch onto it! It seems harsh and almost spooky.
Evan (love but SIL's son has same name) - I don't personally care for this name, and a relative has used it.

Suggestions - BOYS - Theodore, Thaddeus, Tobin, Tobias, Milton, Miles, Oliver, Otis, Othello, Nathaniel, Archer, Augustus, Julian, Jude, James, Devin, Ethan, Elias

My Favorites:

Estella Marguerite Perry "Stella"
Helena Madeleine Perry "Lena"
Evangeline Rosa Perry "Evie"
Arabella Helene Perry "Bella"

Theodore Milton Perry "Theo"
Nathaniel Oscar Perry "Nate"
Julian Augustus Perry
Ethan Anderson Perry

I love a lot of these!

Evelyn (nn Evie)-- not really a fan, I prefer Eva or Genevieve to get to the nickname Evie

Evelyn Amelie
Evelyn Beatrice

Bella-- seems a little insubstantial to me... what about Arabella, Mirabelle, or Isabelle?

Bella Josephine
Bella Jessamine

Stella-- very pretty, but getting popular...

Stella Annabel
Stella Miriam
Stella Claire


Estella-- nice name, not really my style

Estella Rosalind
Estella Ivy

Rosa-- this is my name! I like it :)

Rosa Eleanor
Rosa Isabel
Rosa Genevieve

Helena-- I like this name! I prefer the pronunciation he-LAIN-a

Helena Marguerite
Helena Sophie
Helena Vivian

Cleo-- lovely!

Cleo Isadora
Cleo Eliana
Cleo Juliet

Elsa/Elsie-- too nicknamey. What about Elisabeth nn Elsie?

Maeve-- I LOVE this name!

Maeve Alexandra
Maeve Elizabeth
Maeve Aurelia

BOYS
Theo-- I love it as a nickname for Theodore

Theodore James

Milo-- I think it's very cute!

Milo Sebastian
Milo Raphael

Oscar-- nice, not my style

Oscar William

Nate-- I like it as a nickname for Nathaniel

Rex-- too much of a dog name for me...

Jasper-- I love this!

Jasper Elias
Jasper Jonathan

Evan-- nice, really popular though

Evan Alexander

My favorites are Maeve, Rosa, Cleo, and Helena, and Jasper and Milo for the boys. Here are some others you might like:

Alice
Juliet
Willa
Calista

Arlo
Sebastian
William
Henry

Evelyn (nn Evie): This is pretty popular, at #55, which may or may not bother you.

You may also like Genevieve (nn Evie), Evangeline, Vivian/Vivienne, and Ivy.

Evelyn Charlotte
Evelyn Camille
Evelyn Frances
Evelyn Hazel
Evelyn Kate
Evelyn Mae
Evelyn Margot
Evelyn Scarlett

Bella: I think it's pretty, but with Isabella as the #2 name and Ella at #19, I guess it feels a bit overused to me.

You may also like Annabelle, Arabella, Mirabelle, Marielle, and Estelle.

Bella Caroline
Bella Josephine
Bella Katherine
Bella Vivian

Stella: I think this is pretty, and it feels fresher to me than Bella.

Stella Beatrix/Beatrice
Stella Genevieve
Stella Josephine
Stella Katherine
Stella Margaret

Estella: I think this is beautiful...

Estella June
Estella Margot

Rosa: I love Rose, Rosalind, Rosabel, and Rosalie (but not Rosalie with Perry) more than Rosa, but I do think it's a sweet name.

Rosa Beatrce
Rosa Catherine
Rosa Juliette/Juliet
Rosa Mirabelle

Helena: I really, really love this name, with the only drawback being that I've heard it pronounced as Helen-uh (how I pronounce it), Heh-LAY-nuh, and Heh-LEE-nuh. I think it's beautiful, and love the Lena and Nell nicknames.

Helena Camille
Helena Charlotte
Helena Jane
Helena Kate
Helena Louise
Helena Scarlett
Helena Simone

Cleo: I think that Cleo is a great name, and I also really like it as a nickname for Clementine. I think that some of the longer first names have a better flow with Perry, though.

Cleo Genevieve
Cleo Jessamine
Cleo Margaret
Cleo Rosalind.
Elsa/Elsie: I like some of your other names more, but I do think that Elsa is pretty.

You may also like Eliza, Eloise, and Anneliese.

Elsa Catherine
Elsa Caroline

Maeve: I think that Maeve is beautiful, but I think some of the other names work better with Perry.

You may also like Fiona, Finola, or Aveline.


Maeve Catherine
Maeve Caroline
Maeve Elizabeth
Maeve Josephine
Maeve Louisa

Theo: I really love (seriously love) the name Theodore, nn Theo, but Theo on its own feels like a nickname for me.

You may also like: Leo, Milo, and Arlo.

I'll list middles in case you don't go with Oscar. :-)

Theo Alexander
Theo Benjamin
Theo Frederick
Theo Gabriel
Theo Gideon
Theo Samuel

Theodore August
Theodore Charles
Theodore James
Theodore Miles

Milo: If he doesn't like it, he may like Leo, Arlo, or Hugo. I love this name!

Milo Benjamin
Milo Everett
Milo Gabriel
Milo Gideon
Milo Nathaniel
Milo Sebastian
Milo Xavier

Oscar: I think Oscar is a very cool name. :-)

Oscar Benjamin
Oscar Maxfield
Oscar Phineas (you may not want the PP initials, though)
Oscar Samuel
Oscar William

Nate: I love Nate as a nickname for Nathaniel, but on its own, it doesn't feel substantial enough to me.

Nathaniel August
Nathaniel Charles
Nathaniel Edward
Nathaniel Franklin
Nathaniel Jude
Nathaniel Joseph
Nathaniel Oscar

Rex: Because Rex reminds me of the dinosaur and anorexia, I like some of your other choices better.

You may also like Felix, Dexter, Maxwell, or Xavier.

Rex Donovan

Jasper: I love Jasper, but Jasper Perry sounds pretty p heavy when I say it out loud.

You may also like:

Arthur
Atticus
Calvin
Dexter
Elias
Jude
Oliver
Simon


Jasper Augustin
Jasper Elias
Jasper Samuel
Jasper William

(I'd avoid M middles with Jasper, because when I see Jasper M___ and say it out loud, the M attaches to the "sper" in Jasper to sound like "sperm.") :-)

Evan: You may also like

Calvin
Everett
Donovan
Roman

(I listed U.S. popularity statitstics before I read that you're in Australia...Sorry about that!) :-)


Best wishes to you! :-)

Love Oscar for a boy. I don't think you'd regret using it as a first name.

For a girl Helena or Elsa. I'm thinking Elsa for my #3 who is due in January. We like Elsie as a nn.

GIRLS: my 2 favorite are
Evelyn (nn Evie)
Elsa/Elsie

BOYS: my 2 favorite are
Nate but as a nn for Nathan or Nathaniel
Jasper

Of your choices I like Estella best, then Helena and Stella. I agree with the poster who suggested a longer name with the nn Bella (ie: Isabella or the less trendy Arabella). I really like Estella, though...the name always makes me think of "Great Expectations."

For boys I love the name Nate...Theo would be second for me.

Best of luck!

Thanks so much everyone! Oscar and Theodore (nn Theo) are probably my two fave boys' names (also love Rex but not sure I'm brave enough to use it!), and Estella, Evelyn and Helena (pronounced Heh-lay-na) for girls. It's all made far more complicated by the fact that DH is Aussie, I'm a Brit and we're both living in the States - so many things to consider! Thanks again, and if anyone else wants to offer their sage advice I'm all ears! x

I vote for Evelyn and Theodore ... people might mispronounce Helena and mishear Estella as just "Stella," which means a lot of correcting in grade school. And I agree, Theodore Perry sounds very dignified. Plus, great nns = evie and teddy

mrs_p wrote:Thanks so much everyone! Oscar and Theodore (nn Theo) are probably my two fave boys' names (also love Rex but not sure I'm brave enough to use it!), and Estella, Evelyn and Helena (pronounced Heh-lay-na) for girls. It's all made far more complicated by the fact that DH is Aussie, I'm a Brit and we're both living in the States - so many things to consider! Thanks again, and if anyone else wants to offer their sage advice I'm all ears! x

I love Theodore as I mentioned above, and, of your girl names, my favorite is probably Estella. Like another poster mentioned, it always reminds me of "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens, and I adore literary names. I think it is more elegant and unique than Stella, and if you like, it offers more nicknames. Helena is very pretty, too! I knew a girl named Helena who pronounced it Heh-LAY-nuh like you want it to be pronounced, but there are also those who say HELEN-uh. Both are pretty! I know many Namberryites love Evelyn, but it honestly reminds me of my pediatrician. I do like Evie for Evangeline, though.