Baby name consultation: Twin baby miracle girls!

sanctanomina Baby name consultant, , , ,

I have such a fun consultation to share with you all today! Kristin and her husband are expecting twin girls!

Kristin writes,

“After 9 years of marriage, infertility, and countless prayers & tears, my husband and I are finally expecting! Not just expecting, it’s twin girls! They will be here shortly after our 10th anniversary March. God is so good!!!!“

You guys! What a story! 😍😍😍

“Throughout our infertility and this pregnancy, we pray to St. Gerard Majella, St. Elizabeth, and Our Lady of Perpetual Help. I was convinced I was having a boy, so we thought to name him Elliott Gerard. Now that it’s two girls, we just don’t know what to do.

We don’t want our twins to have matching names, but rather names that go together well. We’d prefer not to have the same initials or rhyming. We both like more traditional names that are less common. Old fashioned names are great.

Our last name is Pelletier (Pell-let-ee-ay) and my husband is half French, half Italian. His first name is Olivier (Olive-ee-ay) so from growing up with his name he has two criteria: shorter names & nothing that rhymes.

We’d like to pull in his heritage with international names, but don’t want anything that is too difficult for American speakers. We considered Amelie, but after mentioning it to a number of people there were a lot of mispronunciations, usually Amelia. It’s somewhat on the table, but simple is best.

Names that work well in both English & French are nice to have, but not a hard requirement. From that we really like the name Alice. I like Alice Elizabeth, but her monogram would be APE so that’s out 🙂

On the Catholic side, we’d love to have a saint for each girl either in her first or middle name. We have lots of saints that have been a part of our prayers, but aren’t sure how to incorporate them [the above named St. Gerard Majella, St. Elizabeth, and Our Lady of Perpetual Help, as well as] St. Andrew and St. Faustina.

We currently love St. Catherine of Sienna and St. Clare of Assisi as such strong women that fiercely followed their faith. We also like St. Francis (although it’s not my favorite name) and St. Clare, representing the strong bond that they shared. St. Cecelia has also been popping up in discussions – she is my grandmother’s namesake … We’re open to nicknames/shortened versions of saints if you know of any!“

As for names and combos they’re considering:

“We’ve been tossing around Alice Frances and Eloise Claire, but they don’t feel ‘perfect’.

Other names we like are Rose, Mae, Nora(h), Claire, Camille, Amelie, Violet, and Felicity.”

There are so many things about all this that I love! Two girls to name! French and Italian names! Saints’ names! Less common+traditional, old fashioned, short versions of saints’ names or nicknames! A great list of ideas!

Alright, so for my own mental organization I first condensed all Kristin and Olivier’s thoughts/criteria thusly:

  • Shorter, simple names (but with meaning) and no rhyming, different initials (and none that spell something like APE), no matching (but want names that go together), old fashioned is great
  • Elliott Gerard was their boy pick (so awesome)
  • French and/or Italian names would be nice (hubs’ heritage), but nothing too difficult (e.g., Amelie)
  • Names that work in both English and French would be nice
  • Current list includes Alice Frances and Eloise Claire as well as Rose, Mae, Nora(h), Claire, Camille, Amelie, Violet, Felicity
  • Saint for either first or middle (St. Andrew, St. Gerard Majella, St. Elizabeth, Our Lady of Perpetual Help, St. Faustina, St. Catherine of Siena, St. Clare of Assisi [and her friendship with St. Francis], St. Cecilia)
  • Open to nicknames/variants of saints’ names

Alright! I also just have to start by saying that I love Amelie! I know not everyone gets it, but I’ve long loved it, and we know a family at church with an Amelie—I love hearing it! I also think that if they end up going with Alice Frances and Eloise Claire—or any of the names on their list, really—I wouldn’t be at all disappointed and I can’t imagine Kristin and her hubs would be either. Such a great list!

You all know that I almost always start a consultation by looking up the names the parents like/are considering in the Baby Name Wizard as it lists, for each entry, boy and girl names that are similar in terms of style/feel/popularity. It was really fun to do so for these babies, since Kristin and her hubs’taste is really consistent! I also combed my own mental files for ideas, and based on all that, I came up with these:

(1) Elise
This is the first of several ideas I have regarding variants of saints’ names. Elise is so similar to Alice, but it’s a French short form of Elizabeth, so it gets the St. Elizabeth connection in there, as well as being a short, French name that I think is pretty easy to work with/pronounce. Elise Frances would be a lovely alternative to Alice Frances.

(2) Cate
Like Elise instead of Elizabeth, Cate instead of Catherine could be the answer to naming a baby after St. Catherine of Siena without using the long Catherine.

(2) Louise
I had thought that Eloise was a variant of Louise, but I looked it up and it seems that’s not correct (though Louise is sometimes thought to be related). But I love Louise on its own because it’s (1) French, and (2) a variant of Louis, which could be a nice nod to any of the Sts. Louis, but I was specifically thinking of St. Louis Martin because he’s French! Haha! There are certainly other Sts. Louis, and Bl. Louise de Marillac is a great option as well.

(3) Lucy or Lucie
How sweet is Lucy?! It’s a style match for Alice and Nora, and I posted a birth announcement not too long ago for a little one named Lucie—that spelling, because it’s the French spelling.

(4) Rosalie
This was another name inspired by one of the names on their list (Rose). I think it’s my current favorite Rose name, but for I love it for this family because it’s the French form of Rosalia! It’s a bit longer than Rose, maybe a bit too long for their taste, but it’s so pretty I had to include it.

(5) Sophie
I think Sophie hits so many of their requirements: short, simple, old fashioned, great meaning (wisdom), and Sophie’s the French form of Sophia. There’s also the French saint, Madeleine Sophie Barat, who was known as Sophie (St. Sophie’s Day in France is in her honor) and—so fun!—the Sophie the Giraffe teether was named after that same saint!  Sophie can also be considered Marian since one of Our Lady’s titles is “Seat of Wisdom.”

(6) Grace
Along the same lines as Sophie (short, simple, old fashioned, great meaning) is Grace, which is a style match for Alice, Rose, and Claire. Also, like Sophie, Grace can be a Marian name, after Our Lady of Grace.

(7) Annabel(le)
Speaking of Marian names, I know Annabelle is long, but it was such a great match for them per the BNW and one of my very favorites that I had to suggest it! I’ve recently become aware of the fact that Annabel is considered to be a variant of Amabel, which arose in Scotland in the Middle Ages. Amabel is a variant of Amabilis, which means “lovable” and is part of the Marian title Mater Amabilis (“Mother Most Amiable,” where amiable=lovable). What a beautiful and unexpected Marian name! For this family, I thought the Annabelle spelling was best, since it makes it more French.

(8) Juliet(te)
Speaking of great matches for them—Juliet is a grand slam! It’s a style match for Elliott, Claire, Camille, and Felicity (as well as Annabelle, which is how I was able to determine that Annabelle would be great for them). Can you believe it?! I love the name Juliet, and spotlighted it recently to pull out the faith connections. The Juliet spelling can fit into their “short, simple” requirement I think, but the Juliette spelling is more French.

(9) Maylis
This is also based on a name from Kristin’s list: Mae. Maylis is a French name with a pretty straightforward spelling and pronunciation; it’s the name of a town in southern France that behindthename says is possibly derived from “mother” + “lys” (French for lily) and is also sometimes considered a contraction of Marie + lys, both of which point to Our Lady, so beautiful!

(10) Ruby, Pearl
Ruby’s a style match for Rose, Violet, and Alice; Pearl’s a match for Rose and Mae. They’re both short, simple, and old fashioned, and they can both have great faith connections—I spotlighted Ruby here and Pearl here with a follow up here. I like them each on their own, and I *might* even like them as names for twin sisters, but that’s probably too matchy for Kristin and her hubs. No worries—I have a few ideas of how to pair up some of the names I suggested (below)!

So I had a lot of fun trying to come up with name pairs that I thought were great names for twin sisters that fit the criteria and tie in the saints Kristin and her hubs love! I was toying around with middle names, but they were really my secondary concern—I just wanted to give an idea of how I could see the first names pairing up with middle names that include all the criteria.

Elise Majella/Maiella and Rosalie Chiara—I focused a lot on coming up with French names in my suggestions above, since Kristin said they’d really like names that work in both English and French, but I didn’t forget that her husband is also Italian. It could be really fun to do Italian middle names that nod to their saints … Majella is for St. Gerard of course, or they could do Maiella, which was St. Gerard’s actual last name (given that he was Italian; Majella is the Anglicization of it). Chiara is for St. Clare of Assisi—since she too was Italian, her actual name was Chiara (Clare is an Anglicization of it). I love Elise and Rosalie together—they’re both elegant and French; they both point to important saints for this family (St. Elizabeth, and the Rose names always point to Our Lady in my mind); and they could even take the sweet nicknames Ellie and Rose/Rosie. I like the shorter Elise paired with the longer Majella/Maiella and the longer Rosalie paired with the shorter Chiara.

Sophie Majella/Maiella and Grace Perpetua—I like Sophie and Grace together a lot, since they’re both virtue names and can both refer to Our Lady. Majella/Maiella for St. Gerard, and Perpetua can be specifically for Our Lady of Perpetual Help.

Clara/Clare and Lucy; Claire and Lucie … Claire Majella and Lucie Frances—I think the Clare names pair well with Lucy. I like the French-ness of the spellings Claire and Lucie, but the other spellings are great too. I also like the idea of Claire’s twin having Frances as a middle name (or even Francesca? To get some Italian in there?).

Elise Majella and Louise Perpetua—this is closest to their Alice and Eloise idea, just sort of with a twist. I might normally think that they’re a little too matchy because of having the same ending spelling-wise, but since they’re said differently (at least the way I say them: eh-LEES and loo-EEZ) I think they’re okay. I’m a big nicknamer and could see Elise and Louise going by Ellie and Lucy, cute!

Cate Cecilia and Lucy Faustina … or Cate Amelie and Lucy Faustine—I know that Catherine is too long for the, but they could totally bestow Cate as a full name (I chose the C spelling to specifically refer to St. Catherine of Siena; they could be even more specific with the first+middle combo Cate Siena … Lucy Majella could be a nice match for that), and I love Cate and Lucy as sisters. So sweet! In my second set there, I changed Faustina to Faustine to match the French Amelie.

Juliet and Annabel; Juliette and Annabelle … maybe Juliet(te) Frances and Annabel(le) Claire?—I know they’re too long, but I just love seeing them written out. 🙂

Lucy and Nora

Nora and Cate

Cate and Rose

Camille and Juliette

Amelie and Maylis

Felicity and Rosalie

Violet and Juliet (too matchy?)

Catherine and Elisabeth (I couldn’t resist! Catherine is the French spelling of the name, and Elisabeth is a French spelling … I know they’re too long for them, but I love seeing them together! Nicknames could be Cate and Ellie … Cate and Lily [Lily is a nickname for Elisabeth/Elizabeth] … Cat and Bess … so many options!)

Another thought that might be helpful in trying to work in as many of their special saints as possible is that St. Gerard was a Redemptorist, and the Redemptorists were instructed by Pope Pius IX to “make [Our Lady of Perpetual Help] known” (the Redemptorists actually just celebrated their 150th anniversary of being given that task) … so I could see a name connected to St. Gerard also sort of being a nod to OL of Perpetual Help and vice versa.

Other ideas that might be helpful for middle names (or even first names) are: Franca and Francesca are both Italian forms of Frances; Cecile, Cecily, and Cicely are all variants of Cecilia; Siena and Assisi could both make interesting middle names that nod specifically to saints that are special to Kristin and her hubs.

Whew! Those are all my ideas! What do you all think? What names would you suggest for these sweet little baby girls?

94 thoughts on “Baby name consultation: Twin baby miracle girls!”

  1. What a fun consultation!! And such great ideas! Congrats to this family on their girls; how exciting! I secretly wanted twins both times I was pregnant…I’m not sure if it was to get two babies or to get to name them (probably a little of both!).

    Kate, I adore your suggestion of Elise and I actually really like it with Sophie (we just got my LouLou a Sophie the Giraffe this weekend and I took great pride in telling my whole family that she was Catholic – thanks to you!) – which reminds me, I have a soft spot for Louise/Louisa, so I’ll throw out another vote for that! Some of my other favorites that you suggested are Rosalie (maybe they’d like Rosemarie, too? that might be too long for them), Annabelle (perhaps they’d like Isabelle since that’s a form of Elizabeth?), and Lucie. Love the idea of using Majella as a middle name!

    I can tell these two little girls are already so loved and I’m sure will be super well-named!

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  2. I absolutely love your suggestions- many of them are on my girl name list and I think you found a lot that meet their criteria! The only other name that came to mind was Marie. So classic and sweet, and for Our Lady of course. (Our first is Maria- our last name is Italian- and I’ve come to love the name so much!)

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  3. Such great news! I suggest Marie & Elise: two French short names that go together after two wonderful intercessors! For middles I like your idea of using Italian names: Majella, Chiara, Cecilia, Siena and Francesca are all great options.
    Another idea for twin girls is Cece and Cate (for St. Cecilia and St. Catherine of Siena), but maybe it’s too matchy.

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  4. First, congratulations, what a wonderful, exciting blessing!

    Second, I like your suggestions a lot, Kate! If these were my babies and this were the list I were working with, I would definitely Italy name them Elisabeth and Catherine, which both pair beautifully with their surname and both have many nickname options, but give them the opportunity to have a sophisticated, grown-up name should they choose to use it as adults.

    I also liked your suggestion of Sophie and Grace, because my sister and I are Grace & Sophia. (She was even called Sophie as a child but sometime around age 13 decided she preferred Sophia.)

    Finally, with their Alice and Eloise pair, maybe just switching the middle names around would help them have a better “ring”? That was you don’t have the rhymey quality of all the “s” sounds in Alice Frances, or the matchy look of the -oi in Eloise and the -ai in Claire. So Alice Claire and Eloise Frances? This sounds a bit more balanced to my ear.

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  5. I LOVED this. I don’t have much to add because I’m not super familiar with what’s French and what’s not, or how pronunciations change, etc. BUT a friend of mine just had twin girls and named them Frankie and Stella (actually Stell@ Lun@ and Fr@nces Josephine) and I LOVE THEM together… so now I feel a great need to suggest Frances and Stella to any and every parent expecting twin girls. 😉

    For a while I’ve also thought Sophie and Bennett would be great together for twins – a stretch connection to Benedict and Scholastica (Bennett as a short for Benedict and Sophie bc of similar meaning to Scholastica) – of course, they’re having twin girls so that’s not a first name option given their feminine taste, but I can see Bennett being used as a middle and feeling very feminine with the right first name. Sophie Elise and Rosalie Bennett, Sophie Louise and Lucy Bennett, Alice Sophia and Felicity Bennett, etc.

    But really between their lists and your suggestions they can’t go wrong!!

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    • Benedict and Scholastica are such fun inspirations for twin names because of having been twins themselves. I love the idea of Bennett as a middle name! I also love Frances and Stella, so sweet!

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      • Oh gosh!! I love Stella Frances as a full name!!! And now that I’m thinking about it, Frances Stella would also be beautiful. I’m pretty committed to using Francis for a boy’s first name (lol welllll, assuming I get married and the husband agrees to the name – I’d honestly LOVE for a man to be like “you choose the names.” Wedding gift!), so I’ll probably miss out on the fun of Frances 😦 But Stella is one of my top 5 girl names! Stella-Louise Magdalene, actually. 🙂

        (ps do you call your niece Stella Frances, or just Stella? I love nicknames but I think Stella is one – maybe the ONLY name – I likely wouldn’t shorten. Although El/Elle/Ella is so sweet!)

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      • Haha! My husband has let me name all of our children but I do give him power of veto if he JUST CAN’T with some name.

        My niece’s first name is Stella and middle name Frances, so she just goes by Stella. Between her, her sister Helen, and my daughter Elisabeth, we have the “el” names covered in a big way! Lololololol!!!

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      • And let’s be real, seeing the absolute heartache my sister and others I know have experienced with naming—with an obstinate husband who digs his heels in on her favorite names primarily to be contrary and not because he has his own names that really matter to him—I think it’s very fortunate.

        The father generally gets to bestow his surname on the child, and in some ways, that’s even a bigger deal. I think it’s very loving, respectful, and honoring for a man to give the other naming privileges to his wife, especially if she really cares about it and he doesn’t.

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      • The “el” names are some of the best names!!! Some more I love are Eliza, Eleanor/a, and Felicity. 🙂 🙂 And while I love J.K. Rowling for writing the Harry Potter series, I’m a tad mad at her for exposing the name Bellatrix to us all… and then ruining it!!! If not for the character I think it’d be an AMAZING name. I love Beatrix, so at least I can use that one. 😉 (Also, now that we’re having this convo and I’m typing out these names I love, I’m kinda itching to tell you both the names I have planned for future kids, God willing!! lolol!!)

        And I totally agree about the mom getting a little bit more say, at least when it comes to first names, if she’s more interested. I would never be like “Well they’re getting YOUR surname, so *I* get to pick the first and middle!!” But I would feel extremely blessed and loved and honored if my husband suggested that *I* make the first list of potential names. Does that make sense??? I think it’s a lovely gesture. Especially since I’d be in the difficult process of GROWING that baby! 😉 🙂 (There are exceptions, but it seems like men tend to care less about the names anyway, unless it’s specifically after a loved one or a tradition.)

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      • Okay so this is gonna be a “let your freak flag fly” moment and everyone is gonna know how crazy I am because I have all these names planned out. 😀 😀

        Miriam Elizabeth Day – I love the idea of a first daughter being named Miriam because it means “wished-for child.” Elizabeth because 1. I like the name 😉 2. One of my best friends is named Elizabeth, so that’s a nice connection and 3. St. Elizabeth. And Day for Dorothy Day 😀 Literary – Elizabeth Bennett.

        Felicity (Felicity Jane Noelle if it’s Christmastime!) – St. Felicity, Jane Eyre, Christmas.

        Beatrix – love the name and the meaning “She who brings happiness” but no middles picked out yet lol

        Stella-Louise Magdalene (I pronounce Louise loo-ees not eez, though I like it both ways) I just love the names Stella and Louise. Mary Magdalene is a favorite. Louise also makes me think of Louisa May Alcott.

        Margot-Marie Elanor – after St. Margaret Mary Alacoque. Elanor for the Lord of the Rings.

        And I really like a bunch of other names, but haven’t fully thought them out yet!! haha. (Some are Seraphina, Rosalie/Rosalind/Rosemary, Hildegard as a middle, Winifred, Zellie – but not as a first for a sister of a Stella..)

        As for boys – my top three favorite are

        Francis John Forest, Patrick James Rohan, and Oliver Jude Cornelius. I’ve thought they’d be great as triplet names since they coordinate with the one syllable J names in the middle and because Finn, Patch, and Ollie are awesome together, but that’s unlikely and I also love them each on their own –

        Francis for Pope Francis (and I love St. Francis of Assisi), John for St. John the Baptist, and Forest for the chapter The Forest Again from Harry Potter.

        Patrick for St. Patrick (Patricia is also my second first name, so I guess that’s cool? lol), James because I love it, and Rohan for Lord of the Rings.

        Oliver because I’ve loved the name since I was little AND one of my best friends (more like a sister) is named Olivia, Jude for St. Jude, and Cornelius for Caspian’s teacher in The Chronicles of Narnia.

        I also love Samuel, Pip, Theodore nn Teddy, Lewis, and Rory (got that from you – can’t decide if I like it better for Robert or Gregory!!). We will see. 🙂

        Personally I’m okay with names being slightly repeated as long as they’re not both in the first name position. Aka I’d be okay with a daughter named Jane and a son named Michael John – just not Jane and John. Same even with things like Joseph and Josephine or different versions of the same name, like James and Seamus – again, they just can’t both be in the first spot. That would be too much for me. 🙂 I also want there to be a literary connection in every name.

        Annnnd now I’m sure you think I’m crazy. 😀

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      • I LOVE THESE NAMES!!!!! You have so many great names, and the combinations!!!! Miriam Elizabeth Day! Felicity Jane Noelle! I already knew about your Stella-Louise Magdalene, and I love Margot-Marie Elanor too! And Finn, Patch, and Ollie! Ohhhh my!! You have some great taste Charlotte!!

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      • Thankya thankya! This is fun haha. I learn about and then love new names almost everyday, so things might change, but I’ve been pretty sure about those 7 names (the Miriam, Felicity, Stella, Margot, Francis, Patrick, and Oliver combos) for a long time, so hopefully I get to use those, God-willing. 🙂 And I GUESS husband-willing lol, but maybe I’ll get lucky and find one who lets me do the naming 😀 😀

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  6. Darn you’re good!! I love so many of your individual suggestions, middle name suggestions, and the twin combos are fantastic!

    Congratulations to Kristin and Olivier!!! 💕

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  7. This is so awesome! I am so happy for them. My last name is very very similar to theirs, and I love French names with it. It is hard to discount all the longer names though – Genevieve and Madeleine are great, as are Catherine and Elisabeth like you mentioned. Lucie is the French spelling, and I like that with Sophie. Sophie and Lucie! So sweet. But I think if they were mine I’d go with Isabelle (form of Elisabeth! And so French!) and Sophie. I can’t wait to hear what they choose 🙂

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  8. High five! Elise was my strong first thought, too, when I read the criteria. I feel like Alice & Eloise is very cute, but definitely into “matching” territory. Elise meets them in the middle, and frees them up to use another name from the list!

    Elise & Olive[tte]
    Alice & Eleanor
    Miette & Elise
    Alice & Marie
    Pauline & Eloise

    Some ideas that are probably too long or strange, but might spark something:
    Bernadette
    Delphine
    Fleur
    Solenne
    Ondine
    Colette
    Leonie
    Adele

    Ooh, how about Adele & Elise?

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  10. Sylvie? There is a Saint Sylvia, mother of Saint Gregory, who is a patron saint of pregnant women.

    There’s also Gianna, as in St. Gianna Beretta Molla. I had a classmate named Monique, which is a French form of St. Monica, mother of St. Augustine. Monique’s family was very Catholic.

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  11. Oh I love the name Eloise (but it’s a no-go with our S last name)! I also love Cecily for Cecilia, and I have a friend who spells it Cecilie, which looks a bit more French ish to me but might confuse the pronunciation in reality…I don’t know much about French pronunciation. And on that note, I’m curious how you pronounce Amelie. I have never heard it out loud, and when I look at it, it looks like Emily but with a short a sound up front.

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  12. My sister is a mom of twin girls! (And I’m a very proud auntie.) My sis has another Catholic friend with twin girls (born only a few months before), and theirs are named Juliette and Vivian, which I think would be a great combo for these parents.

    I loved the suggestion of Elise, and I could maybe see a Catherine & Elise pair. (Sidenote: I’m a Catherine and have always wondered if my life would be different if I was a Cate and not a Cat! –My parents didn’t nn me, so that came about in my middle school years and has now stuck enough to be on my business card 20 years later.)

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  13. As a mom of a Clare I would love twin girls Claire and Lucie! Also, if you look at the image of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, she has a star on her veil. I think that Estelle would make a lovely French choice for honoring our lady under that title.

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  18. My two middle names are after my two grandmothers, Alice and Ruby. I love them together and separately. And they both showed up in the post. Just saying from someone who has lived with the names. They are beautiful and significant!

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  19. I have a Jane Kathr@n and a Claire Elizab@th. They could change the spellings of the middle names to reflect the French spellings (Catherine and Elisabeth). While my girls aren’t twins, I always thought the names Janie and Claire would be cute for twins.

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  22. I don’t think I have much to add in terms of names! Every name you suggested in perfection! Everything about this post speaks to me in terms of names

    I think if I was naming their twins, I would go with Catherine Clare “CC” and Elizabeth Frances “Lily” 😀 OR just Catherine and Elizabeth if they’re not into nicknames!

    Also, their story of strength and prayer waiting for their babies makes my heart so happy. While my time for having children is most likely far in the future (I’m a single pringle and I love it, lol), infertility is a big fear of mine and getting pregnant might be difficult for me, so this story just gives me hope. It shows the magnificent power of God and what faith in Him can do!

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    • It is such a wonderful story, and I was so happy to be able to share it for the hope it gives! Catherine Clare “CC” and Elizabeth Frances “Lily” are awesome! I like the CC kind of gets in Cecilia in a subtle way, since Cece is a nickname for it.

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  23. I hadn’t commented, as this post overwhelmed me (in a good way). How to choose? So many great options/ideas and since it is twins, DOUBLE, the possibilities! I love so many of the names they are considering, the consultation names from Kate, and the wonderful follow-up recommendations. No matter what, it sounds like they will have lovely and meaningful names – these miracle girls.

    I have a very soft spot for Elise. I love it and would have loved to use it. It is definitely a top 3 name for me and has been for decades. I hope it makes the cut somewhere. I like the Elise and Adele idea as well as paired with Claire or Lucie or Cate or Juliet. Oh, endless possibilities.

    I think Alice and Celia is super cute too.

    I like the twin name pair considered at top of their list but actually would swap middles to Alice Claire and Eloise Frances (Alice Frances has same ending for both so twists my tongue a bit.)

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  24. And I don’t think they should rule out Amelie if they love it. I think if you hear it a few times before you ever see it written it helps solidify the pronunciation and that is how I became acquainted with it on a little girl in our community. Now looking at the name it totally makes sense and I wouldn’t confuse it with Amelia. There is a second Amalie in our local community as well but with that variation on spelling which I think phonetically even makes it more likely to pronounce as intended to non-French speakers. Maybe consider a variation on spelling.

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  25. On the comments regarding “el” sound in names. I have to say that those – straight “l” and “el” sounds are my favorites. Without consciously saying I am going to pick “l” sound names those have consistently been my go to for girls. I have a Leah and wanted to use Elise or Elyse, Elena, Lauren but never got the chance. Now in my top girls’ cue if I were naming babies today I would add Eleanor, Isabelle, Stella. LLLLLLove it.

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  26. And I wanted to add a comment on Eloise. When I see it, I definitely think something feminine from Louis, like Louise would be. I knew that Aloysius and Louis are same root and felt like Eloise had to be connected to Aloysius. So searching around I find many references to that being the case. [And also the Germanic from Heloise – different roots] Seems a name that has sprung for a couple shoots.

    ELOISE – French: Famous in War. Variant of Aloysia: Feminine Form of Aloysius, Which is a French Provincial Variant of Louis. Also a Variant of Louise

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  27. Wanting twin names to coordinate but not match! You already have a good start on that.
    Several of the names on your list have connections to “light” in their meaning — Clare, Lucy, Nora (go look at Eleanor’s meaning).
    Felicity got me thinking about names with the happy/joyous meaning– Beatrice (my fave), Blythe, Joy.
    Rose and Violet made me think of Fleur and Iris (second meaning associated with rainbows; babies born after miscarriages are sometimes called rainbow babies…making leaps due to the title of the post).

    Now let’s think about some combos:
    Beatrice Lucy and Felicity Clare (happy and light meanings)
    Nora Blythe and Clare Felicity.
    Felicity Fleur and Beatrice Rose.
    Lucy Iris and Clara Rose.
    Lucy Felicity and Clare Beatrice.
    Nora Joy and Lucy Blythe

    You really can’t go wrong. I’m loving all your name choices!

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  28. We have at home nicknames that we don’t use much in public. Josephine is sometimes Posey among family.

    The nicknames of some of the combos I suggested above could be…awesome in your family unit, little much for the outside world.

    Felicity and Beatrice. Fliss and Tris.
    Beatrice and Clare. B and C.

    I’m hoping for boy/girl twins one day so I can name them Beatrice and Edward, two perfectly respectable names. At home, I would revel in calling them Betty and Teddy or Bea and Bear. 🐝 And 🐻!!!!!

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