Baby name consultation: A first name, C middle name for baby girl No. 5

sanctanomina Baby name consultant, , ,

Josh and Mari are expecting their seventh baby, and fifth girl! You might remember this beautiful family from a birth announcement I posted for them last year; to recap, this little lady joins big sibs:

Ariana Camille
Audrey Caroline
Caleb Daniel (Daniel is Josh’s middle name)
Amelia Clare (“Millie”)
Anne-Catherine Gianna (“Gianna” or “Gigi”)
Charles Michael (“Charlie”)

Such beautiful names, all! As you can see, there’s a clear A.C. theme for the girls, which Josh confirmed that they do, indeed, want to continue with, and that the only names they’ve really thought about so far include:

Annaliese
Angeline (Mari’s middle name)
Cecilia
Charity

I love working with themes! And I love the names they’re considering! Anneliese is a favorite of mine; Angeline is so wonderful because of it being Mari’s middle name; and Cecilia and Charity are two beautiful, faith-filled names (as are Anneliese and Angeline, of course). I would hesitate over using Anneliese though, since it’s an Ann- name and they’ve already got Anne-Catherine (and Ariana and Gianna). I really think my favorite idea for them is Angeline—they want an A name, and they’ve already used Josh’s middle name, so using Mari’s A middle name seems perfect. Angeline Cecilia has a beautiful flow, and a really heavenly feel to it. Angie, Lina, Cece, Celia, and Lia could all be nicknames.

That said, of course I have more ideas! 😁 I went through the Baby Name Wizard first, looking up each of the names Josh and Mari have used and those they like/are considering, looking for any A and C names that are similar in style/feel/popularity to their other kiddos’ names, and then I also perused the list of saints’ names in the back of the book for inspiration (it’s a bit more offbeat than the usual lists of saints’ names, which I thought would be helpful here, since so many A+C names have already been used), and of course picked through my own mental files. Based on all that, here are my A ideas:

(1) Avila
This is one of the first I thought of for this family. It can be for St. Teresa of Avila or St. John of Avila, and can take the sweet nickname Avvie, or even Ava.

(2) Ava
Ava is actually a really good fit for them style-wise, and I know of families who have used it coupled with Maria, as a nod to Mary via the Ave Maria (Hail Mary). I could see Josh and Mari doing something like Ava-Maria C___, but even just Ava could be a nod to Our Lady, as it’s a variant of Eve and Mary is considered the New Eve.

(3) Alice, Alicia, Adelaide, Aleydis
All these names are variants of the same name, which is why I’ve grouped them together. Alice is such a sweet, vintage-y name that is popping up all over; Alicia is so similar in spelling but with a more modern feel; Adelaide has such a beautiful sound and the fun nickname options Addy, Ada, and Laidy; and Aleydis is such an unusual variant (I’ve also seen it spelled Aleidis). You can read about saints with these names here.

(4) Adeline, Adele, Adelia
These, too, are variants of the same name, though different from the grouping above (even though Adelaide and Adeline look similar they are unrelated as far as I know). Like Adelaide, Adeline is beautiful and nickname-rich—Addy, Ada, Della, and Lina. Adele is fairly associated with the singer, but not overly so I don’t think. My cousin recently named her baby Adelia, which I’d never heard of before, but turns out is a variant of Adele, and it opens up the possibility of Delia as a nickname. This St. Adele was German, which is a nice since Josh and Mari have some German in their ancestry.

(5) Aurora
I’ve been loving the name Aurora ever since I found out how Marian it can be. Aurie and Rory are both sweet nicknames for it.

(6) Abigail
I originally liked Abigail for this baby because it ties into the biblical-ness of Caleb’s name, but then I found a St. Abigail (her Irish name is Gobnait, which is usually anglicized as Abigail). Abby’s a great nickname!

(7) Amata, Amanda, Amy/Aimee
These names are all related as well—they all mean “beloved,” and can all take Amy as a nickname. Since their Amelia goes by Millie, I think Amy would be okay as a nickname; Amanda could also be Mandy (which is funny because I know a Mary Angeline who goes by Mandy!). Some saints by these names are here and here.

(8) Agnes
Like Alice, Agnes is an old name that’s coming back into fashion. I love the nickname Aggie, and St. Agnes is one of the best.

(9) Antonia
Though this is a feminine form of Anthony (and can take St. Anthony as a patron), there are a bunch of Sts. Antonia. Toni, Tia, and Nia are all doable nicknames (I would stay away from Annie because of the other Ann- names they have).

(10) Augusta
My last A idea is Augusta. I knew an Augusta when I was little—she went by Gussie, and I thought it was the coolest name. The great St. Augustine can be patron, or this St. Augusta.

Now, onto the C names!

(1) Charis (or Carys)
I love love the name Charis! Josh and Mari’s idea of Charity actually gave me the idea, because they’re so similar in spelling, though their meanings are different. Charity stems from the Latin for love, while Charis means grace/favor/gratitude, which is the actual meaning of the “charis” part of Eucharist. I’ve heard of families choosing Charis for their daughters because of the connection to the Eucharist, beautiful! A name that sounds exactly the same but is closer to the meaning of Charity is the Welsh name Carys, which means “love.” Either Charis or Carys could be a really pretty and meaningful middle name.

(2) Cara, Carine/Carina, Caritas
Speaking of names that mean “love,” Cara comes from the same root as Charity and in Italian literally translates as “beloved.” Carine/Carina are elaborations of Cara and might provide the right rhythm for a middle name. If they wanted to be more obviously Catholicky Catholic, Caritas itself (the Latin word Charity comes from) would be a pretty and unusual middle name.

(3) Cora, Corinne
Similar in appearance and sound to Cara and Carine, but different in meaning, Cora and Corinne are technically related to the Greek for “maiden,” which could point back to Our Lady, but a closer connection would be the Latin word “cor,” which means “heart,” and I know of several families that have chosen Cora for their daughters because of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. It could also be chosen for the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Either way, how beautiful and meaningful! (I should point out that though Corinne can be said the same as Carine, I’ve mostly heard it said kor-INN).

(4) Clementine
Josh and Mari had actually had Clement on their list for when they were expecting Charlie, and Mari wasn’t a huge fan, but I wonder if the feminine and fabulous Clementine would make a difference? It means “merciful” and I was pushing it on a lot of families during the Year of Mercy, haha! But a mercy name is always a good idea, even though the Year of Mercy’s over.

(5) Colette
I only recently learned about St. Colette, and I’ve been loving her! She’s a patron saint of women hoping to conceive, pregnant women, and sick children.

(6) Carmel, Carmela/Carmella, Carmen
These names all point to Our Lady of Mount Carmel, and could be really beautiful tributes to Mother Mary, especially if Josh and Mari have a Carmelite sensibility.

(7) Casey
This might be too unisex for their taste (and they might even like to save it for a future boy!), but Casey can also be used for girls, and I’m thinking specifically of Ven. Solanus Casey, to whom my family has a special devotion.

(8) Chloe
Like Abigail, I was interested in Chloe for this baby because it’s a biblical name like Caleb, Daniel, Michael, and Anne. It’s got an unusual spelling and rhythm and could be really perfect as a middle name to the right first name.

(9) Christina, Christine, Christiane
Of course the Christ- names are always a beautiful, meaningful choice for a Catholic baby. If they liked this idea, I’d probably choose the one that went the best with the chosen first name, since each of them has a different rhythm and would pair best with different first names.

And those are all my ideas! What do you all think? What A+C ideas can you come up with for this family?

68 thoughts on “Baby name consultation: A first name, C middle name for baby girl No. 5”

  1. Some friends just had a baby girl last week and her middle name is Constance, as a reminder of God’s constant love for us. I’ve fallen in love with it as a name option!

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  4. Alexandrine (or Alexandra or Alexandria, but Alexandrine is both royal and unusual), Alodia, Anastasia, Antonietta (look up little Venerable Antonietta Meo), Asteria, Aurelia, Alethea isn’t a saint, but it means “truth.” I interviewed two girls years ago, both of whom were named Alethea. Both went by Allie.

    Calista, Calliope, Candida, Carissima, Celestine, Charity, Clarissa, Columba, Cornelia, Cosima, Crescent, Cynthia, Cyrilla.

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  5. I love all your name suggestions and don’t have anything really new to add, EXCEPT, my moms name is Corinne and she pronounces is cor-een AND one of my daughter’s godmother’s name is Corinne pronounced cor-een. They always joke at family gatherings because it’s not a super common name and they both pronounce it the same way!! 🙂

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  6. Angeline is my favorite “angel” name and I think it sounds sweet at the end of their list! I also really like the sound of Adeline or Amy from your suggestions. A and C have so many possibilities. I will be looking forward to a birth announcement from this family!

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  8. Another alternative to Angeline if they wanted to switch it up a little would be Angelie. We used to know a little girls named that many years ago and it was so sweet.

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  9. My first thought when reading their suggestions was that Aneliese was too close to Anne-Catherine, both being clear Ann combos – then you said exactly that as well. Angeline is sweet and does fit well with the sisters in style and has that added connection of tying in a parental middle name.

    Of the suggestions I like Alice, Abigail, Adele, and Agnes.
    -Alice really fits with Millie and Audrey as peaking about a century ago (though Audrey is really coming back strong already in past few decades). I like the variation of Alicia mentioned and also Alisa or Alyssa.
    -Abigail is excellent for the OT connection to Caleb and also the nickname Abbie is great with Millie.
    -Agnes is such a great saint name and making a comeback in Catholic circles, but still doesn’t sound as soft to me as the other girls names.
    -Adele, a great new patron would be Servant of God Marie Adele Garnier, found of the Tyburn nuns – http://www.tyburnconvent.org.uk/site.php?menuaccess=161

    I like the idea of Constance as middle. Cora and Clementine to but not sure how they fit with my prefered “A” names. Of their list I like Cecilia.

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  10. Great suggestions! I think Abigail and Adelaide suit their style so well. Either would be beautiful with Cecilia. I’d like to add Alannah. (Feminine form of Alan, after Bl. Alan de la Roche.) Wishing them well!

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  12. How fun to consult for specific A/C names! From the post Adelaide, Amata, Alice, Colette, Charis, Carmel, and Christiane stood out to me the most but there are so many great and unique suggestions!
    Also, for ‘C’ options Cordelia and Cosette popped into my head.

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  14. I LOOOOVE Angeline best, but also Amata, Antonia, and Carmella!!!

    I see Aurelia, Clementine, Cosette, and Constance already made the comments, but this family has great names and great options! ❤

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  15. I love so many of the names they’ve used and the ones you’ve suggested!! I smiled when I saw Clementine because it’s one of my favorites and it was the first name I thought of when I read the C condition. I particularly like the sound of Ava Clementine, but I think it works with a lot of the names. Angela Clementine, Aurora Clementine, Angeline Clementine, etc. I know Agnes is getting a lot of love lately, but I also adore Agatha. (Lame joke about Agatha Christie fulfilling their conditions here lol.) Agatha Colette, Agatha Celeste, Agatha Clio (apparently Clio means glory, so I kinda like that), even Agatha Clementine.

    I also loooove your suggestions of Augusta and Antonia!!

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  16. I really like Aurora Celestine, which means “heavenly dawn.” They seem to like names with the letters R, L, and/or N.

    Other saintly A names that I don’t think have been mentioned that I think would be fitting are Azelie, Anatolia, Ayelet, Alena, Alexandrina, Antoinette, Aquilina, Archangela, and Apollonia.

    Other saintly C names that I don’t think have been mentioned that I think would be fitting are Casilda, Cecily, Chantel, Celine, Claudia, and Columba.

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  17. As a mom of an Audrey and a Cora, and my own name being Catherine Ann, A and C names are loves of mine! (Our little Audrey was almost named Amelia, so I think I have pretty similar tastes as these parents!)

    I loved the suggestion of Agnes and could see Agnes Christine.

    As for new ideas, how about Amity? I knew a girl with that name in high school, no nicknames.
    Another suggestion is Alyce. My mom spells her name this way and pronounces it Alice, but I know someone else who has the same spelling and pronounces it like Elise. (And based on the telemarketers that called our house growing up, I think Elise is the more phonetic spelling.)

    C names – Caeli would make a great middle name. (I’d pronounce it chay-lee, but it’s a middle name, so doesn’t matter as much). As much as I love the name Cora, I really don’t think it lends itself well to a middle name, just due to flow.

    Amity Celeste, Agnes Caeli, Alyce Corinne

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  18. Ooo, I love their style! Aurora or Adelaide or Azalea would be my top picks for the first name, then Cora or Clementine or Charis or Caeli for the middle. The possibilities are endless…they could have 6 more girls, no problem! I think my top sets would be Adelaide Clementine, Aurora Caeli, and Azalea Clementine.

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  19. I realized this is a somewhat old post, but just came across your blog from Mama Loves Coffee, and I’m so happy to find a fellow Catholic mama who loves baby naming as much as I do! I give (non-professional) baby-naming advice whenever anyone lets me! 😉

    I felt a kinship with the expectant mama of this post. (Has she had and named her baby yet?) I’m expecting our 5th baby right now (due May 13th, the 100th anniversary of Fatima and our 17th wedding anniversary!)

    We all have “A” names, which has posed its own unique challenges in the baby-naming journey, for sure! I’m Ann Marie, my husband is Andrew, and we have Aidan William, Arlan Xavier, Audrey Colette (see? Mari and I have extremely similar tastes), Aleksander (Alek) Henry, and the new baby is Amelia Hope.

    You know, a couple other “C” girl middle names that we considered were Chiara (Italian form of Clare, my husband lived in Rome for a few years, so he loves everything Italian), and Celeste (heavenly, or from heaven.) I also love Charity (the root of all virtue.) My sister loves the Callista (beautiful challice.)

    In naming our newest addition, the name Adelaide was also close in the running. It was my great-grandmother’s name. I recently heard of a little Adelaide whose nickname is “Della”, which I think is adorable.

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