I hope you all had a wonderful Feast of the Assumption! My story (not) about the name Assumpta continues to be one of my favorites. 😂 Enjoy this consultation by our new baby name consultant, Theresa Zoe Williams, and offer your ideas for this family!

Mary writes in asking for help naming green bean baby #6! Baby will join older siblings:

Anthony Raphael

Kathryn Rose, who goes by Katie Rose

Daniel Louis

Martha Claire Therese

Christopher Karl Benedict

Agnes (in heaven)

Joseph Martin (in heaven)

She writes that they have some names on their shortlist, too, but just don’t feel like “the one”:

• Sarah
• Felicity
• Alice
• Nathan
• Benjamin
• Peter
• Isaac

Names one of them likes but the other doesn’t or they can’t use for various reasons include:

• Samwise
• Mary Magdalen
• Arthur
• Amy
• Mercy
• Gwenfair/Mairwen
• Gregory
• Patrick

First, a few thoughts on their shortlist.

Sarah– Great name! So classic, you can’t go wrong. It’s also a style match for literally every one of their other children’s names, including their babies in heaven. Being honest, I think they’ve found The One.

Felicity– I love the femininity of this name and that it means “happy”.

Alice– That they love this was a little unexpected to me! It’s such a great name–– short, snappy, down to earth.

I love the combo Sarah Felicity Alice! It has such a great flow on its own and with their last name.

Nathan– I don’t agree that he’d get called Nathaniel (something Mary was worried about with her other kids’ names) but I guess anything is possible. This is a great name with their other kids.

Benjamin– If they’re only worried about him being nicknamed, have no fear. I know several Benjamins who are not Ben or Benny or Benji or anything else. Plus, they’ve kept all their other boys from having nicknames, especially Christopher! So I don’t think they’d have anything to fear here. Also, Benjamin Joseph is such a strong name and then could be nicknamed, if this tickles their fancy or funny bone, Banjo, like a slur of Ben Joe. Always good to have a laugh!

Peter– Great name that I actually don’t hear get nicknamed to Pete very often. My Peter is just Peter, if that’s helpful. With their other kids, I don’t think they could go wrong with this name.

Isaac– Another one that surprised me in the best of ways! Isaac is such a happy name, to me, and I think he’s so sweet with their other children’s names.

A note on double middles. Mary wrote wondering if three kids in a row with double middle names would be too much. To that I say, love them! I and all of my children have them. If they gave this child two middle names, half of their children would have double middles and half would have single middles.

On to new suggestions! I’ll start with the girls first.

(1) Veronica

This reminded me of one of the other names on their list, Victoria. It’s got the punchy V and more feminine feel. It’s frilly but still down to earth, which I thought might bridge Mary’s and her husband’s styles. It’s also a style match for Anthony, Kathryn, and Daniel. It means “true image” which is such a great reminder to be an image of Christ in the world! There is, of course, the St. Veronica who wiped Jesus’s face, but there’s also Sts. Veronica Giuliani, Veronica of Binasco, and so many more.

(2) Anna

Anna, rather than Ann(e) is a little frillier but still, short, spunky, and down to earth. I love that for these guys. There’s also tons of saints to take a patronage from and means “grace”. It’s a style match for Martha, Christopher, and Agnes and also Sarah, so it’s right in their wheelhouse.

(3) Helena

I thought of this name almost immediately for them. Mary’s love of the name Mercy made me think of this as it’s St. Faustina’s birth name and that ties it into the Divine Mercy. It also means “torch” or “moon” giving it lots of different faith tie-ins. It’s a style match for Martha, Christopher, and Agnes, too.

(4) Flora

This is a style match for Martha, Christopher, and Agnes and means “flower” giving it the tie-in to St. Therese. I like that this is a little more unexpected, like Martha, and is short but still feminine. I had no idea until I looked it up but there are several saints with this name! Sts. Flora of Cordoba and Flora of Rome, Bl. Flora of Beaulieu, and Ven. Flora Bracaval.

(5) Marina

This is maybe my most unusual girl name suggestion. I was thinking of Maria for them but then this name came up as a match for Anthony, Kathryn, and Daniel and it struck me as a good name for them. It has the down to earth, classic feeling of Sarah with the longer femininity of Felicity. It means “of the sea” so it can be a reference to Mary as star of the sea. In the Eastern Church, St. Margaret of Antioch is known as Marina and there are several other saints Marina, too.

On to boys!

(1) Henry

A good strong name with very few natural nicknaming possibilities. This name is a style match for Martha, Christopher, and Agnes and thought it brought Mary’s more classic tastes and her husband’s strong tastes together really well. There are a couple saints to go with the name, too, if they need that.

(2) Rufus

Initially, I didn’t think this name was a great fit for them, but as I continued researching, it grew on me. It’s a style match for Martha, Christopher, and Agnes and there are several saints, including a companion of St. Paul to go along with it. That surprised me, too! There’s not too much info on any of them, but St. Polycarp called one of them a “very happy man”, which I thought would be sweet for a son.

(3) Paul

Speaking of Paul, what about his name? It’s a match for most of their children’s names and is a good, strong name with no nickname potential. I was thinking that if they love Peter but are worried about nicknames, maybe they’d like Paul instead.

(4) John

It doesn’t get anymore classic and strong with little nickname potential than John! It’s a style match for all of their other children’s names, too. Their love of the name Sarah actually made me think of John and then he matched all of their kids. They cannot go wrong with this name. The only drawback might be that it’s still pretty common.

(5) Samuel

I know they’d worry about him getting called Sam or Sammy, but they’ve done such a great job with making sure their other boys don’t get called by nicknames that I think they could handle this one, too. Samuel is a style match for all of their other children’s names and Sarah and it means “God has heard”. I couldn’t not include this name as I really think it’s a home run for them!

So those are my thoughts. What do you think?

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Email Theresa at TheresaZoeWrites@gmail.com to set up your own consultation! (Payment methods remain the same.)

During my hiatus, please don’t forget about my book! Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon (not affiliate links) — perfect for the expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady in your life!