Name Sage: Naming a Sister for Harris and Jude

Lisa writes:

I am really looking for a girl’s name that will sound good with my two boys.

Their names are Harris and Jude.

Please help?

Thank you!

The Name Sage replies:

Sometimes naming a baby feels tough because our list of requirements is a mile long.

Imagine: It has to work in English and Bulgarian, incorporate the family honor name Lesley, and hopefully be short and simple enough to offset a double-barreled surname. Oh, and if it could refer to a leading figure in science, even better.

But at other times, the opposite challenge presents:

When you have every choice in the world, how do you narrow it down?

Starting with Harris and Jude, it sounds like some preferences are clear.

We’re probably looking for a shorter name, and something not likely to be reduced to a nickname. We’re avoiding the most popular choices, but still sticking with current, stylish names rather than obscure vintage revivals or novel word names.

And while there’s no reason to avoid the initials H and J, it might be a good starting point.

The family’s last name begins with an M and includes a long A sound, like in James, so Maisie or Layla might not be the best choices, either.

That leaves us with a really big list of possibilities – but I think we can start to come up with some promising suggestions!

A SISTER FOR HARRIS and JUDE 

BLAIR

Tailored Blair sounds like classic Claire. (And the spelling Blaire is rising in use, too.) Blair leans feminine, thanks to television characters from the 1980s into the early 2000s. Think Leighton Meester as Blair Waldorf in the original Gossip Girl. Blair hasn’t ranked in the boys’ Top 1000 for over two decades, but it’s been in the girls’ Top 500 since 2018. It’s brief and brisk, like Jude, and a surname name, like Harris.

DAPHNE

Vintage Daphne might get a boost as one of the prime Bridgerton names, but it was already on parents’ radar in our age of Chloe and Penelope. Like Jude, it offers plenty of history as a given name. But it represents a third style – mythological, versus Biblical Jude and surname Harris. They’re three names with distinctive roots and sounds, but still very compatible.

KENZIE

Mackenzie caught on in a big way in the late 1990s. Today it’s Kenzie – hold the Mac – that feels most current. The downside: it might be confused for names like Kinsley and Kylie. But it has a cool sound that might be just different enough from your boys’ names to feel right.

MARGOT

Originally a Margaret nickname, Margot has long stood on its own. The ‘o’ ending is vibrant and interesting. And while Margot could shorten to Maggie or Meg, few people seem inclined to do so. It’s a perfect fit with Harris and Jude.

POPPY

Bright and energetic, Poppy is a flower name that’s gaining in use. With other florals like Lily and Violet so popular, Poppy is a logical choice, something just slightly new. That makes it a good match for Harris and Jude – familiar names that feel very twenty-first century.

SUTTON

Like Blair, surname Sutton enjoys more use for our daughters than our sons. But the numbers are a little more evenly split on Sutton. Still, actor Sutton Foster of Broadway, Bunheads, and Younger fame, puts this name on Team Pink.

WREN

A gentle nature name, Wren offers yet another style direction. It’s spare and compact with an unmistakable sound. Like Harris and Jude, Wren is a twenty-first century favorite that will wear well.

ZARA

Zara looks quite a bit like traditional Sarah, but it’s a separate name. There’s something sparkling about the initial Z. It’s a great blend of classic and unexpected.

Overall, my favorites are probably names like Zara, Daphne, Wren, and Margot. They’re compatible with Harris and Jude, but represent a slightly different style, too.

Oh wait, that's half the list!

Okay, I'd put Zara as my top suggestion. It's the kind of name that everyone recognizes, but still feels fresh. In terms of popularity, it's midway between Jude and Harris, which seems like a good balance, too.

Readers, please visit the forums to share your best suggestions for Harris and Jude's sister.