Baby name consultation: “something balanced and rare; not a made-up name, but something not used in ages” for baby girl

sanctanomina Baby name consultant , , ,

Happy four-days-before Christmas, everyone! Are you all familiar with the O Antiphons? As the U.S. Bishops explain,

“The Roman Church has been singing the ‘O’ Antiphons since at least the eighth century. They are the antiphons that accompany the Magnificat canticle of Evening Prayer from December 17-23. They are a magnificent theology that uses ancient biblical imagery drawn from the messianic hopes of the Old Testament to proclaim the coming Christ as the fulfillment not only of Old Testament hopes, but present ones as well. Their repeated use of the imperative ‘Come!’ embodies the longing of all for the Divine Messiah.”

Today’s antiphon is O Radiant Dawn:

O Radiant Dawn,
splendor of eternal light, sun of justice:
come and shine on those who dwell in darkness and in the
shadow of death.

Beautiful! You can find the rest of them here, and an article I wrote for Nameberry about baby names inspired by the O Antiphons here.

Speaking of names for a Christmastime babe … today, I have such a fun consultation for you! This baby has actually already been born and named, but the mama and I really wanted you all to have access to the consultation, in case it’s helpful to you. As the mama said, “There’s no way you can put that much effort into all this and not get a juicy post out of it!” 😂 I will post the birth announcement in the next couple of days, so check back before Christmas!

Sheri and her husband were looking for help naming their fourth baby, second daughter. Baby Girl joins big siblings:

Finnian Anthony

Roanan Michael

Zeda Zelié (pronounced ZEEdah ZAYlee)

So cool, right? What a great bunch of names!!

Sheri wrote,

“We’ve never had a problem figuring out names for our kids because they just kinda ‘came’ to us, and felt right right away. Perhaps the oddest one is Zeda, but that’s my grandmother’s name, obviously quite unique and Great Grandma Zeda is just the best. She’ll even watch my kids for me at her apartment at the drop of a hat, and she’s 80. However, we kinda want to avoid names similar to, well, pretty much anyone we know (in my defense, Finnian was NOT as popular as it is now 10 years ago. I didn’t know any Roanans either!).”

(Isn’t that funny how that happens? I was just thinking the other day about two baby girls I encountered with names that, at the time, I thought were so old fashioned — Lillian [25 years ago, when I was in college] and Evelyn [when my 19yo was in preschool] — that are now mainstream and even popular!)

Sheri continues,

“That said, we HAVE kinda settled in on the first name of IVY. Why? Well, it was the first name that we thought ‘Oh that’s not bad, I don’t know any Ivys,’ and I had an acquaintance suggest it to me because she’s our 4th kid. Get it? Roman Numeral IV is 4, so… IVY! I’m hoping it’s not too obvious a pun to be cringy for starters, but for… seconders? It still just doesn’t seem complete! So we’ve been bandying about various middle names and nothing seems to just ‘click’ like the rest of our kids’ names. We’ve run out of saints that we’re really close to, and others just don’t seem to ring right (like Catherine, or Elizabeth… Even Mary/Marie or Josephine just seem to fall flat). And I don’t want to leave it up to fate and give her the name of the saint whose feast day she’s born on, because I like to celebrate feast days separately from birthdays with the rest of the kids, and that doesn’t seem fair. That also kinda leaves out all the fun names you could use to hint toward her December birthday (Holly, Noelle, Emannuella), because with Ivy it seems little TOO on the nose. And what feast day/saint would we commemorate then?

So I also considered double-barreling either her first or middle name. Ivy Grace? Oh right, we aren’t big on virtue names (and I have a whole family of friends who are Mary-something, so that’s out too), and I kinda liked Ivy Rose, but Rose locally is becoming a pretty popular, and then she also just sounds like a variety of flower. And then a two-part middle name seems to get cumbersome with 3-letter Ivy. Ivy Catherine-Marie? Goodness.

And here we are. My husband has had a few ideas, but again, nothing has been an ‘oh! YES’ feel of a name. I kinda thought of doing just I.V. as initials, but I’m not overly familiar with I or V names (Isla Victoria? Iris Veronica? Ehhh). I just have a feeling that her name overall is going to be something balanced and rare; not a made-up name, but something not used in ages … and I haven’t found it yet. I like references to botanicals or the moon… but everything I’ve found just seems too… looney! We know we don’t want a common name — if one of us suggests a name, more than half the time we say ‘Oh I know someone with that name’ even if they aren’t familiar acquaintances, so obviously we’ve been pretty frustrated and stuck on ideas.”

Two final details that I used to help with ideas:

  • Sheri and her hubby were “grade school (8th grade to be specific) sweethearts” who grew up “at St Mary of the Assumption in Lancaster Ohio, which was just designated a minor basilica!”
  • The older kids are calling the baby Jellybean (so cute!)

Isn’t this so fun?? Sheri even hilariously said, “I think you’re earning your 50 bucks this time around, sister!” But you all know I love a good challenge!!

First off, Zeda Zelié made me think of a particular idea: would it be fun for sisters to share a pattern of same initials for the first and middle names? Going with the Ivy idea for a minute, I like the idea of something like:

  • Ivy Immaculata
  • Ivy Inez/Ines/Inessa (variants of Agnes)
  • Ivy Isabel/Isabelle/Isabella
  • Ivy Ignacia/Ignazia

All of these match the feel of Zeda’s middle name Zelié, which I think of as particularly Catholicky Catholic. Immaculata for Our Lady, the Immaculate Conception of course (Immaculée is another variant Sheri and her hubs might like, and is French like Zelié); Inez/Inés/Inessa for St. Agnes; Isabel (or Isabelle, Isabella) for any of the Sts. Elizabeth; Ignacia/Ignazia is for St. Ignatius (of Loyola or of Antioch).

So let’s spring off of that to talk about Ivy for a minute. I love Ivy! I love that it is, indeed, perfect for a fourth baby, but not in a weird on-the-nose kind of way (NOT “cringy” in my opinion). Sheri’s I.V. idea is a good one, too — in fact, I remember hearing about an Isabella Verity (I think that was the combo) who went by Ivy and I remember thinking that was amazing! I really like Sheri’s Isla Victoria and Iris Veronica ideas, too, so maybe my taste is just off enough from hers that my ideas won’t land? But I had a lot of fun trying to come up with I.V. ideas just in case I hit on something she hadn’t thought of that hit just right. These are my favorite ideas for I names:

  • Imogen: this is my favorite idea for this baby. When I was looking for ideas, I wanted to consider Finnian’s and Roanan’s obvious Irish-ness while also respecting the fact that Zeda isn’t Irish. Imogen is originally a misspelling of Innogen, which is thought to derive from the Gaelic word for “maiden,” which makes me think of Our Lady. Even though it has Gaelic roots, it feels mostly British, I would say, which I think makes it equally plausible as a sister to Finnian and Roanan as well as to Zeda (which itself makes me think “British” because of Catherine Zeta-Jones).
  • Isolde: The literary Isolde was an Irish princess, so this, too, feels like a good sister for Irish-named brothers, while not being too Irish (especially since the original Tristan and Isolde was first recorded in French).
  • Irene: I’ve been seeing Irene a bit here and there, and I like that it has the long I sound in the beginning, which makes extra sense of the nickname Ivy if they were to do Irene V___. It also has the awesome meaning of “peace.”
  • Inez/Inez/Inessa: I mentioned this above as a possible I middle name for Ivy, but I also like any of them as a first name. I like that Inez has a Z like big sister; Inés is the Spanish form and is properly written with the accent, which might make this one better for the middle (and another nice connection to Zeda’s middle name Zelié); Inessa is so pretty and unexpected (a family I’ve posted about a few times on the blog has an Inessa, which the mom also pointed out is the name of a kind of butterfly! How pretty! That family also has a matching-initials theme — I’m sure you’d love to read through all their posts! Their Inessa’s full name is Inessa Irene. Gorgeous!).

Those could work as middles for Ivy, too, if they like the I.I. idea. I particularly like Ivy Imogen (Ivy could be the faith name here, as Ivy is in my book of Marian names because “Kenilworth ivy (Cymbalaria muralis) has also been known as Tears of Mary”).

My favorite V names include:

  • Vesper: I really love this one because it means “evening,” which can nod to Sheri’s love of the moon, and it also has pretty cool faith significance, in that “Vespers” is a familiar Catholic term (it refers to Evening Prayer because of “vesper” meaning “evening”).
  • Verity: Verity means “truth,” which also makes this one a great Catholic name! But is it too much of a “virtue name,” like Sheri said you doesn’t care for?
  • Violet: A beautiful botanical name that I included in my book of Marian names because the “violet flower (Viola odorata) has been called Our Lady’s Modesty, and has also been considered to represent her humility.” They could also consider the French Violette, which they might like if it helps with pronunciation of the whole first+middle combo, since they could stress the -ette, and connects to the Frenchness of Zeda’s middle name.
  • Vivian/Vivienne: This name means “alive” and like with Violet, they could do the trimmer Vivian or the frillier French Vivienne (which can also change the stressed syllable to help with the flow of the first+middle combo, and connect with Zeda’s middle name).
  • Vianney: For St. John Vianney; I’ve posted about a couple little girls with this name: this family has a Vianney Jean-Marie and this one has a Vianney Violett.

Given all that, some I.V. combos that I think are beautiful are:

  • Imogen Violette
  • Irene Vianney
  • Inessa Verity

Another idea is to use a middle name that doesn’t start with a V but has a prominent V sound in it, that could still make sense of Ivy as a nickname for an I first name with one of these middle names. Names like:

  • Maeve: As mentioned a couple times already, I liked the idea of working in an Irish (ish) element in order to loop in Finnian and Roanan’s Irishness. Maeve is a familiar Irish name, so you don’t need to worry about mispronunciations, and I included it in my book of Marian names because:

“I’ve seen people bestow it on their daughters in honor of Our Lady, mistakenly considering it to be a variant of Mary, but I do believe it can be considered Marian in a different way: the Baby Names of Ireland website … presents one of the meanings of Maeve as “cause of great joy,” which is similar to Our Lady’s title “Cause of Our Joy” (Causa Nostrae Laetitiae). Additionally, it would not be out of bounds for parents to combine the names Mary and Eve into Maeve.”

Its prominent V sound could work nicely with an I name to lead to the nickname Ivy!
  • Eve, Eva, Ava: Speaking of Eve, why not Eve? Or Eva or Ava (which is a variant of Eve). Our Lady’s title New Eve is a nice connection for this!
  • Naomh or Niamh: Niamh is the Irish name that’s more familiar of these two — it means “bright,” which is a great meaning; it’s often anglicized to Neve. Naomh is a newer name and means “holy,” which is also a great meaning! I think this could be anglicized as Neve, too, or Nave. I spotlighted them both here.
  • Aveline, Evelyn: Of the two, I prefer Aveline for this family, as it’s more unusual, but Evelyn, which is a variant of Aveline, is also a possibility.
  • Genevieve (I think you could even use Ivy as a nickname for Genevieve!), Evangeline: These might feel a little too familiar for Sheri, but I like them both because of their Vs, and their length could be perfect for a really short name like Inez. Inez Evangeline nn Ivy sounds pretty amazing to me!
  • Xavier: I know this might seem like a really odd addition, but there is precedent for a girl to have this name: Mother Cabrini, who is St. Frances Xavier Cabrini. Certainly she took inspiration from St. Francis Xavier — Sheri can do the same for her daughter. I don’t know what Sheri’s preferred pronunciation is — ex-ZAY-vyer and ZAY-vyer pronunciation are equally legitimate — though I had the ex- pronunciation in my head when I put together the combos below. I also like that Xavier as a middle name would mean Zeda has the cool Z initial and new baby girl would have the cool X.
  • Imogen Eve
  • Imogen Eva
  • Imogen Niamh
  • Imogen Naomh
  • Imogen Xavier
  • Inez Evangeline
  • Inessa Maeve
  • Isolde Evangeline
  • Irene Xavier

So much fun to make such beautiful combos!

I also wanted to discuss Sheri’s idea of adding to Ivy to make a double first name, since she said Ivy doesn’t feel complete, but shes doesn’t care for virtue names, and Ivy plus any flower name feels too floral. Also, I agree with her that a double middle name feels like a lot with the tiny Ivy (though I love a long single middle name with it because it’s so tiny!). So I came up with a list of names that I thought could work! My very first idea was Ivy-Jane, which I was really gung-ho about, until I remembered that Sheri has a niece with a similar construction! Gah! I like these others (I’m using a hyphen because I think it makes it more obvious that it’s a double-barreled name and not a first+middle, but of course they don’t need to use a hyphen if they don’t want! But, if Sheri and her hubby like the I.I. initials idea that I suggested above, using the hyphen will allow I to be the initial for the entire first name combo):

  • Ivy-Kate or Ivy-Cate: I’m not biased because Kate is my own name! Except, maybe I am! I have often thought how much I like Kate as the second part of a double name and considered doing something like that with any daughters I might have as a way of nodding to me without using my full name Katherine. Ivy-Kate or Ivy-Cate (the C spelling feels fresher, maybe?) can nod to any of the Sts. Katherine/Catherine and don’t make a possibly weird “phrase” when coupled with Ivy.
  • Ivy-Cara, Ivy-Chara: Cara means “beloved” in Italian and Chara means “happiness, joy” in Greek and “friend” in Irish.
  • Ivy-Laine or Ivy-Lane: This could be venturing too close to cutesy? I like the image it brings to mind, though.
  • Ivy-Reina, Ivy-Reine: Reina and Reine mean “queen” (Spanish and French respectively), and are said RAY-na and REN. These could nod to Our Lady, Queen (Regina). (Is it weird to think you could also have fun with these combos being “green Queen”?)

Okay, on to new ideas! Since Sheri and her husband have mostly decided on Ivy as a first name (which I wholeheartedly support, either on its own or with any of the alternative ideas I suggested above), these might not be helpful at all, which is totally fine! I really just wanted to be sure they had lots of ideas associated with their taste and the things that are meaningful to them, as well as names that might feel perfect as the sister to their older kids. I was looking for names that fit Sheri’s “balanced and rare,” not made up but “something not used in ages” criteria that might also have something to do with botanicals or the moon. I used the Baby Name Wizard (affiliate link) as usual, as it lists, for each entry, boy and girl names that are similar in terms of style/feel/popularity, and went with my gut as well. These don’t check off all the boxes, but they’re pretty close I think! I also only have five names instead of the promised seven, because I included so many ideas above:

(1) Avila

If the sound of Ivy is what draws Sheri and her hubs to it, I thought other names with a similar sound might appeal. Avila came to mind right away — it’s the kind of name I’d generally put in the same category as Zelie, in terms of “very Catholic” and “somewhat unusual.” St. Teresa of Avila is a Doctor of the Church, which is so cool for a little girl! (This could also work as a V-prominent middle name with an I first name.)

(2) Ivelisse

Another name that could hit the Ivy note in an even more perfect way for this family is the name Ivelisse. I know a woman named Yvelise, which I always thought was gorgeous — I looked it up to see if there’s an I variant, and there is! Though Behind the Name has this name ultimately deriving from Ivo, which is the name of some male Saints (Ivo/Ives/Yves), and is thus related to Yvette and Yvonne, I also saw that the -elisse ending could be considered an elaboration of Yves using Elise — a French short form of Elizabeth. So they could think of Ivelisse (or Ivelise) as including St. Elizabeth (which Sheri listed as a possible saintly connection, but one that didn’t “seem to ring right”), and could use Ivy as the nickname!

(3) Maisie

Maisie is a diminutive of Mairead, which is the Irish form of Margaret, and has traditional usage as a given name in its own right. I like that it has the Irish feel of Finnian and Roanan while sharing the Z sound of Zeda. Margaret means “pearl,” so this name can nod to Our Lady because she’s referred to as “Pearl of Virgins” in the Litany of Our Lady of Seven Sorrows.

(4) Ailís, Ailish; Eilís, Eilish; Eilidh

These names are also inspired by the Irishness of Finnian and Roanan, but also by the long I in Ivy. Each of these can have the long I as the first syllable: Ailís, anglicized as Ailish, is from Alice; Eilis, anglicized Eilish, is from Elizabeth. (I say “can have the long I” because I’ve also seen the long A sound as the first syllable. If any of you like these ideas, you might want to do your own research to be sure of the consensus re: pronunciation and be sure you’re comfortable with others’ opinions about this.) Going off Irish for a sec to Scottish, Eilidh is a diminutive of Eilionoir and “also taken to be a Gaelic form of Helen” and can be anglicized Eily, which is so similar to Ivy (but also to Isla, which Sheri already said she didn’t love. So maybe this idea isn’t a great one!).

(5) Selene or Selena

Finally, Sheri’s love of the moon made me think of Selene, which means “moon” in Greek; Selena is a variant. I really like how Ivy Selene and Ivy Selena sound as first+middle combos! And, for that matter, the Helen(a) names (including Eilidh above) are said to mean “torch” or “corposant” (St. Elmo’s fire), but Behind the Name says they’re also “possibly related to” the Greek selene (“moon”).

Finally, I had a few middle name ideas that weren’t connected to anything discussed above, but are related to those two miscellaneous details Sheri included that I mentioned in the intro:

  • Ivy Assumpta: I love how this flows! It’s inspired by how Sheri and her hubby grew up at St. Mary of the Assumption (and bonus Behind the Name considers Assumpta to have Irish usage!) (It’s very possible Sheri is sick to death of my Irish connections at this point!)
  • Ivy Julienne or Ivy Juliet/Juliette: These are entirely inspired by their “Jellybean” nickname for the baby! The similar Jilly is a not-untraditional nickname for the Julia names, so I thought it might be a sweet (sweet! Like candy! Like jellybeans!) nod to the baby’s in-utero nickname to include something similar in her middle name. I like Julienne and Juliet or Juliette the best of them as middles for Ivy.

And those are all my ideas! What do you all think? Feel free to offer any ideas that you think might be helpful to any readers who share a similar taste in names! Or any guesses about what you think Sheri and her hubby ended up naming the baby! Stay tuned for the birth announcement!

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation here.

For help with Marian names, 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). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Birth announcement: Maria Josephine!

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I hope you all had a wonderful feast of St. Nicholas!

I had the privilege of doing a consultation for the first baby of Kathleen and her husband last spring, and am delighted to share that they had a girl and gave her the gorgeous name … Maria Josephine!

Kathleen writes,

“Our baby GIRL arrived on August 31st. We named her Maria Josephine. We love the idea of honoring the Blessed Mother with our Irish heritage (naming the first girl after Mary) and Alex’s Greek heritage with Maria being the Greek form of Mary. Thank you for the inspiration!!!!

Josephine, of course the feminine version of Joseph, is in honor of my dad and his confirmation name.

We can’t thank you enough for your help and encouragement!“

Isn’t Maria Josephine absolutely lovely?? I love that it incorporates Mom and Dad’s Irish and Greek heritage as well, and works in a nod to Kathleen’s dad, which was important to her. Just beautiful!!

Congratulations to Kathleen and her husband, and happy birthday Baby Maria!!

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation here.

For help with Marian names, 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). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Birth announcement: Stephen Scott!

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I posted a consultation for Kathryn and her hubby for their fifth baby last spring, and I’m delighted to share that their baby has arrived — a little boy given the fantastic name … Stephen Scott!

Kathryn writes,

“Hi, Kate! A few weeks late but wanted to let you know our precious Stephen Scott was born in October!

As you know, Scott Hahn was instrumental in my conversion to Catholicism so I really wanted to honor him with this baby’s name! When I was considering Scott as a first name, there was something you said in your consult ‘the J/J/S/S pattern is very pleasing’ which led me to search out all the Biblical ‘S’ names so we could have that first initial pattern, but also maintain our Biblical/Saintly theme for first names (which you also helped me realize I wanted to do!)

After re-reading the story of St. Stephen in Acts, I was so moved by his great faith & just knew that name was the one!

St. Stephen, pray for us!“

Isn’t that a great name story?! I think Stephen Scott is absolutely wonderful, and I still do feel like brothers James, John, Samuel, and Stephen have a very pleasing pattern with the J/J/S/S — I love it! And I really love the combo Stephen Scott — it sounds great together, and I’m so glad Kathryn was able to work Scott Hahn’s name into her baby’s name in a way that was peaceful to her. A success all around!!

Congratulations to Kathryn and her husband and big sibs James, John, Samuel, and Emilia, and happy birthday Baby Stephen!!

(His blanket! 🥰🥰🥰)

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation here.

For help with Marian names, 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). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Birth announcement: Benedict Jude!

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I did a private consultation for Shelby and her husband a few months ago, and I’m excited to share that her baby boy has arrived and been given the fantastic name … Benedict Jude!

Shelby writes,

“Your consultation was so helpful; after reflecting on it, we just fell more in love with the name Benedict and felt more comfortable gifting him that robust Catholic name! I’ve been calling him Benedict and Benny (*swoon*) lots…..and my husband and oldest daughter have been using Bennett…….it will be interesting to see what sticks. We love all the name in all its variations🙂 

Jude was the perfect middle name to ‘lighten’ the name a bit, pay tribute to a special Saint to us, and use a name that we love.”

Benedict is SO handsome, with so much faith significance!, and I love how Shelby said Jude “lightened up” the name Benedict — I think that’s a great way to put it! I’m swooning right along with her over nicknames Benny and Bennett … I love all of this!

Congratulations to Shelby and her husband and big sisters Emelia and Felicity, and happy birthday Baby Benedict!!

Benedict Jude

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation here.

For help with Marian names, 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). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Spotlight on: Ferris

sanctanomina Spotlight , ,

Good morning, everyone! I’m so happy it’s Friday!

I received a thrilling email recently, because it contained name info that I never knew! I absolutely love being surprised by a name or by name info, and the tidbit this mama shared with me is one that’s been dancing around in my head ever since. She wrote,

“I also wanted to tell you, my oldest child and only boy is named Ferris. We liked the name but we were also considering Peter after my husband’s father, and then in a bookstore we said oh why not look up Ferris one more time in a baby name book, and saw ‘Ferris, a form of Peter’. It is so special to us! So if you have any boys looking to honor a Peter without using the exact name, there you go.”

What is this??!! I thought to myself! FERRIS is a form of PETER?? Well, of course I had to go look it up immediately, and it took some digging (Behind the Name only has a user-submitted entry, which notes that it’s a surname with English, Irish, and Scottish usage, but doesn’t offer any further info other than it might also be related to Fergus), but I did eventually find this from a new-to-me site, Think Baby Names:

“Ferris as a boys’ name is of Irish and Gaelic origin, and the meaning of Ferris is ‘rock’. Anglicized spelling of Phiarais, of Piaras, a Gaelic form of Peter. May also come from a surname, originally a form of Fergus. See Hamish for a similar derivation from a vocative. Brought to attention in the 1980s by the movie ‘Ferris Bueller’s Day Off‘.”

You know how wary I am of almost all baby name-meaning sites, but I was impressed with the Think Baby Names entry, and found confirmation of the connection in Irish Names and Surnames by Rev. Patrick Woulfe (available online at Library Ireland):

“… the family being probably descended from a person called Ferris O’Helie (Pierce Healy)” (source)

and

“Mac PHIARAIS — M’Fearis, Mac Feerish; ‘son of Piers’; a variant of Mac Piarais; very rare” (source)

There’s also a street in Ireland called “Corrán Fhearann Phiarais” in Irish and anglicized as “Farranferris Crescent” (“Fhearann Phiarais” becoming “Farranferris”).

Isn’t that all so cool! So, like the mama who wrote to me said, if you have any boys looking to honor a Peter without using the exact name, there you go. Have a great weekend!

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation here.

For help with Marian names, 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). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Baby name consultation: Some really fun name rules (hopes) for baby no. 5

sanctanomina Baby name consultant , , ,

Happy All Hallow’s Eve’s Eve, everyone!

Today’s consultation is for a little green bean (= gender unknown🌱) due on Holy Thursday — the family’s fifth baby. Before sharing big siblings’ names, you should know that Mama Tricia wrote, “We love all our children to have a family name, patron Saint, and title of Mary in their name” — I’m amazed at how well she and her hubby did especially with the title of Mary! Check out these beautiful names:

Noah Samuel William (“Our Lady Queen of Patriarchs is the Marian title, St. William is patron, Samuel is the family name“) 

Maria Joy (“Marie is heavy family name, Joy is a play on her dad’s name Roy. Patron Saint is Maria Goretti and Our Lady Cause of Our Joy“)

Adam James (“Adam was the middle name of my brother who died as an infant, patron St. James the greater. My husband proposed on his feast day and hiking the Camino was a really moving experience for me. Title of Mary is Our Lady Queen of Apostles“)

Martha Lily (“Martha is my grandmother’s name and confirmation Saint. Lily is a name I’ve always loved and St. Joseph is my husband’s confirmation Saint. Her patrons are St. Martha and St. Joseph, and Our Lady Most Pure“)

What do you think of these names?? Aren’t the Marian title just amazing?? I love them all!!

I also want to point out, in case it’s helpful to anyone who might be considering these names for their own babies, that Maria goes by Mia sometimes within the family, and Martha goes by Millie sometimes within the family, as a mashup of Martha and Lily. I love those!

Tricia continues,

“Holy Thursday is my favorite liturgy — I was so happy to hear it would be our new child’s due date. There are so many feasts around that time too! I am open to naming the child something related to the day they are born, if indeed they come on the Annunciation, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter!” 

Names they can’t use include:

  • Aubrey 
  • Clark
  • Cecilia 
  • Juliette 
  • Miles 


Names they like for girls:

  • Agnes (“esp for an Easter girl“)
  • Dolores (“esp for a Good Friday girl, probably call her Della, but my husband doesn’t like it“)
  • Anna 
  • Monica 
  • Catharine “Kate”
  • Greta 
  • “I love Matilda and Gloria, but my husband says no“
  • “He likes Avila and Zelie, beautiful names but I’m worried about everyone always mispronouncing“

Girl middle names:

  • Felicity 
  • Sage (“seat of wisdom“) 
  • Pieta (“esp for Good Friday“) 
  • Ann (“my middle name“) 
  • June (“my mom’s middle name, maybe Immaculate Heart as title of Mary“) 
  • Fiat (“if bday is March 25?“) 

Names they like for boys:

  • Gabriel (“esp for March 25 bday“) 
  • John (“prob front runner, his dad’s name, lots of great Saints, James and John were brothers“) 
  • Luke (“I have always loved Our Lady of Częstochowa“)
  • Judah 
  • David 
  • Ambrose “Bo”
  • Maybe Pascal “Cal” (“for a Holy Thursday boy“) 

Also, some family names that could work include:

  • Theresa June (“my mom“)
  • Krista Lynn (“his mom“)
  • Gregory Michael (“my late father who I love so dearly, definitely think of honoring him but my brother is also a Greg and my nephew is Miles Gregory after him …”) 
  • John Samuel (“his dad“)

Tricia also wrote,

“I’d love more ideas especially with possible holy day birthdays, maybe what your favorites are?” 

Just to reiterate, in case you didn’t catch my enthusiasm above (!), I am just really impressed with how Tricia and her hubby worked a family name, a patron Saint, and a title of Mary into each of their children’s names. I love “Queen of Patriarchs” for Noah; Adam James is very handsome, and I love the family connection to Tricia’s brother; I’m also kind of blown away by their girls’ names: Maria Joy and Martha Lily are unexpected combinations to me, and I LOVE them! So lovely!

I wanted to offer some thoughts on the names they like, in case they find them helpful:

  • Agnes: Considering Noah, Maria, and Adam, I wouldn’t have thought of Tricia as liking “old lady” names (said with the utmost respect), but then with Martha, Agnes makes sense to me! Because of the baby being due on Holy Thursday, I thought of how one of you readers once told me you like the combo “Agnes Daisy” because it sounds like “Agnus Dei” — I thought it might be the perfect idea for this family! Daisy is a traditional nickname for Margaret, which derives from the Latin word for “pearl” (margarita), but its French form, Marguerite, is the same as the French word for the daisy flower (hence the traditional nickname Daisy). So there are a few layers of meaning in the middle name Daisy! It could work as the “title of Mary” element: as I wrote in my book of Marian names,

“The common daisy flower (Bellis perennis) has also been known as Mary’s flower or Mary-Loves, and the oxeye daisy (chrysanthemum leucanthemum) has also been known as Mary’s Star.”

Additionally, since Daisy is connected to Margaret, and Margaret means “pearl,” Tricia might also like this bit from the “Pearl” entry in my book:

“Though Pearl is a variant of Margaret, since Margaret means “pearl” (Latin: margarita), Pearl can take its place as a Marian name through the fact that Our Lady is referred to as ‘Pearl of Virgins’ in the Litany of Our Lady of Seven Sorrows.”

The connection to Our Lady of Sorrows can also be appropriate for this baby based on the due date, since the last four are connected to Jesus’ Passion and Death (The Meeting of Jesus and Mary along the Way of the Cross; the Crucifixion, where Mary stands at the foot of the cross; the Descent from the Cross, where Mary receives the dead body of Jesus in her arms; the Burial of Jesus).

  • Dolores: this is in keeping with the older feel of Martha and Agnes, and Tricia’s planned nickname of Della is darling! That said, I’m a big fan of finding names that both mom and dad like, so my advice would be for them to shelve this one for now since her hubby doesn’t like it (though it is perfect for a Good Friday baby!)
  • Anna: I love the name Anna! It’s one of my very favorites BUT — they already have Adam, and I’m going to propose some additional A names below that I like better for them than Anna, so my vote is to either cross Anna off the list entirely, or consider a related/soundalike/nickname-connected name like Susanna or Hannah. I have seven boys, and for all of them, if they’d been a girl, our chosen name was Susanna. We intended to use Anna for a nickname, which Tricia and her hubby might like as well! Hannah is another great option — it’s the same name as Anna etymologically-speaking, and gives them a different initial from Adam with nearly the same sound as Anna; it can also honor Tricia as an Ann name, since Ann is her middle name. I like that both Susanna and Hannah are Old Testament names like Noah and Adam, too.
  • Monica: Monica also has that older feel, and I do love it, but I’m also thinking of their Maria and Martha and how adding Monica to the mix is really M-heavy.
  • Catharine/Kate: How could I not love this name, with my own name being Katherine/Kate?! It’s a great option, and so timeless — it fits right in with the older names Tricia likes, and Kate is specifically a style match for Adam.
  • Greta: This was one of the reasons I thought of Daisy as a middle name for Agnes! I love Greta — it’s one of my favorites of the Margaret names, and it, too, has that older feel. I gave a lot of thought to how Tricia could honor her dad, Gregory Michael, and I think she could consider Greta to be for him, given that they both begin with “Gre.” If she did something like Greta Michaela or Greta Michelle, that could really hammer home the point.
  • Matilda and Gloria: Tricia’s style is so clear!
  • Avila and Zelie: I see these names a lot with the families I work with — I think of them as “new favorites” among Catholic families, while still being traditional names with solid, saintly history and usage. If Tricia’s concern is solely related to pronunciation, I would be inclined to advise her not to worry too much about that — Zelie especially is becoming more and more common (I wrote about it several years ago; as an added data point, my 9yo has a girl in his class named Xaylie). It is true that the names Tricia likes are ones that generally won’t be mispronounced, so I can see why the possibility of mispronunciations might bother her. At the same time, so many “normal” names have the possibility of being mispronounced — Madeline and Caroline can be said to rhyme with “lynn” or “line”; I’ve seen some people think Sean is pronounced like “seen”; even Maria is said like Mariah sometimes in England — and I always tell parents to just be firm and consistent with correcting people and teach their children to be as well.
  • The middle name ideas: I love all of these! I find it especially fun to discover that someone has a middle name that’s unexpected, which these parents have done with Joy and Lily, and their middle name list is similar! To me, unexpected middle names are the ones that don’t follow the traditional path of names like Marie, Rose, and Grace, which have been incredibly common for girls (for a reason — they’re incredibly beautiful!). I also like when currently popular first names are used as middle names, like they did with Martha Lily. That particular point made me think to suggest Sophie or Sophia as an addition to their middle name list, since, like Sage, they also mean “wisdom.”
  • Gabriel: Because Tricia doesn’t like the possibility of mispronounced names, I feel like I have to share that I know a Gabriel who frequently has to deal with people (doctor offices, for example) thinking his name is pronounced like “Gabrielle” (which I know is legit as the Spanish pronunciation, but he uses the English pronunciation and lives in a predominantly English-speaking area). I’m always surprised by that — I would never have thought that Gabriel was a difficult or unfamiliar name, given that it’s biblical and all! I would imagine this would be a dealbreaker for Tricia, so my suggestion is to make it a middle name. I particularly like it with John — John Gabriel is so handsome! Especially for a March 25 baby, like she said.
  • John: I think of John as one of those names that can take a bigger/more unusual/out-there middle name, which, as I’ve mentioned a few times already, I love! Johnny and Jack are great nickname options, too.
  • Luke: I love how Marian Luke is, not only his connection to the various images of Our Lady with the Child Jesus (Our Lady of Częstochowa as Tricia mentioned; Our Lady of Perpetual Help is a particular devotion of the Redemptorist Order, which founded my parish; etc.), but also that his gospel is the most Marian and contains her beautiful Magnificat.
  • Judah: I do love Judah — the sound, the “h” on the end, all of it — BUT I do think that its similarity to Judas might be a little too much for a Holy Week baby? Especially Holy Thursday?
  • David: I loved discovering that “Tower of David” is one of Our Lady’s titles! David also fits in really nicely with the Old Testament-ness of Noah and Adam. My older boys have a friend who has always gone by Davy, even now as a high school junior — I love, love Davy! So sweet!
  • Ambrose/Bo: You are speaking my language! We had Ambrose on our list of possibilities, and coming up with nickname ideas was one of my favorite things. Bo was definitely one of them! I also thought of Sam, Bram, and Brody (especially if paired with a “D” middle name, like Ambrose David). However, Tricia and her husband have a definitely style going on with their older kids, and the more unusual names on their list seem better suited to middle names I think. Again, I’ll go back to John: John Ambrose is incredible! They could even still do Bo as a nickname if they want (one of my boys goes exclusively by a nickname of his middle name and it hasn’t been a problem at all).
  • Pascal/Cal: Another awesome name that was on my own list! And I LOVE Cal! John Pascal (or similar) would be my preference for this family for the reasons I mentioned above, and would be really great for an Easter baby.

Tricia also gave a list of family members they’d like to honor if possible — I had a couple thoughts that I thought might be helpful:

  • Theresa June: I love both Theresa and June! They’d both be lovely for a girl. Junia is a biblical name — I wonder if that would appeal to Tricia in honor of her mom?
  • Krista Lynn: I was thinking that Kristopher could be a great middle name to honor Tricia’s mother-in-law! Maybe John Kristopher?
  • Gregory Michael: I had mentioned Greta above as a possible way to nod to Tricia’s dad; I also wanted to point out that the name Greer is derived from Gregory. I don’t think Greer is this family’s style, but maybe as a middle name?
  • John Samuel: John as a first or middle is great!

Okay, on to new ideas! I did my usual research, looking up in the Baby Name Wizard (affiliate link) the names they’ve already used and those they like as it lists, for each entry, boy and girl names that are similar in terms of style/feel/popularity. I also considered details of Holy Thursday that might offer some inspiration. Based on all that, these are my ideas:

Girl

(1) Abigail

Abigail is a style match for this family according to the BNW, but what originally inspired me to add it to the list was that Holy Thursday is when Jesus instituted the priesthood, and Abby is similar to Abbey and Abbott, which can be considered priest-y!

(2) Olive

Olive has that “older” feel of so many of the names Tricia likes, and was also inspired by Jesus going to the Mount of Olives on Holy Thursday night.

(3) Carmel or Carmen

These names were my attempt at finding a name similar to Avila and Zelie but without the pronunciation issues that Tricia’s worried about. Carmel is a holy place name like Avila, and has, to me, an “older generation” feel (I know an older lady named Carmel); Carmen is a variant of Carmel, if they prefer that form more. A bonus is that these names can be related to Holy Thursday, too! They mean “garden,” which calls to mind Jesus praying in the Garden of Gethsemane. I really like this idea for them.

(4) Mandy

This is inspired by Holy Thursday’s alternate and old name of Maundy Thursday; “Maundy” derives from the word mandatum and refers to Jesus’ words from Holy Thursday: “I give you a new commandment.” Mandy can be a reasonable nod to it, right? Mandy is one of those sweet nicknames that always feels so affectionate to me! I have a friend named Mary Angeline who goes by Mandy — I would love to suggest that here, except that they have a Maria already! Amanda is the most familiar way to get Mandy, and means “beloved,” which is fantastic; it also doesn’t start with M, which is something I’m trying to stay away from because of Maria and Martha. In the style of Mary Angeline, maybe something like … Amata Nadine? Angela Madeline? (Or Madelynn, incorporating Tricia’s mother-in-law’s name?) This could be fun to work with!

(5) Elizabeth

I love that Elizabeth has the biblical connection that the other kids have, and the Visitation is one of my favorite Marian feasts. I also thought Tricia might like the nickname Ella, since she has Della as a nickname idea for Dolores (which I love!).

Boy

(1) Andrew

Andrew is a style match per the BNW, but I also consider it (and other An- names, like Anson and Anthony) to be a possible way of honoring an Ann (St. Ann, and/or, in this case, Tricia because it’s her middle name), which I think makes this a really strong choice for them!

(2) Benjamin

I was very influenced by the fact that Noah and Adam have Old Testament names, so when I saw Benjamin listed as a style match, I thought it was a great choice! I think Ben is one of the friendliest nicknames.

(3) Nathan or Nathanael/Nathaniel

Nate was the inspiration here — it was listed as a style match for this family — and I like both Nathan and Nathaniel as the formal name for it. Using Nate as a nickname would probably knock Catharine/Kate out of the running for the future, but maybe that’s a chance they’d like to take? Nathan is shorter like Noah and Adam, and I love what I consider to be the Old Testament feel of Nathanael/Nathaniel (it feels weighty like Abraham and Melchizedek and Solomon). Nathanael has the added benefit of being an alternate name of the apostle Bartholomew, who of course was at the Last Supper — a nice Holy Thursday connection.

(4) Caleb

Caleb sounds like a natural brother for Noah and Adam, and it can take the nickname Cal, which they already have on their list for Pascal!

(5) Oliver

Finally, Oliver, which I’m including for the same reasons as Olive above. It’s one of the sweetest names, and I love that it can have a Holy Thursday connection via the Mount of Olives.

Tricia said she’d “love more ideas especially with possible holy day birthdays, maybe what [my] favorites are,” so I went through the feast days from two weeks before her due date to two weeks after, and these jumped out as me as possible ideas, either as a first or a middle:

March 14: Eve, for Bl. Eve of Liège and Our Lady (the “New Eve”)

March 15: Clement or Clementine for St. Clement Mary Hofbauer (my parish’s patron and one of my favorites) and Our Lady (“O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary”); Peter or Pascal for Bl. Peter Pasquale

March 17: Patrick, for St. Patrick

March 18: Clement, Clementine, or Mercy for Our Lady of Mercy

March 19: Joseph, for St. Joseph

March 20: Lucy for St. Photina of Rome, the name traditionally given to the Samaritan woman (Photina means “light” and so does Lucy)

March 28: Kristopher for Bl. Christopher Wharton and Tricia’s mother-in-law

March 29: Agnes for Bl. Agnes of Chatillon (she’s also celebrated the day before by the Cistercians)

March 30: Irene for St. Irene of Rome

March 31: Benjamin for St. Benjamin the Deacon

April 1: Sofia or Zofia for Bl. Zofia Czeska-Maciejowska

April 7: John for St. John Baptist de La Salle

April 8: Julia for St. Julia Billiart

April 11: Helen for Bl. Elena Guerra

This is not an exhaustive list of holy ones with feast days during that four-week period, just ones that jumped out at me. If you’d like to look through them yourself, start here and go forward day by day.

And those are all my ideas! What do you all think? What names would you suggest for the little sister or brother of Noah, Maria, Adam, and Martha?

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation here.

For help with Marian names, 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). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

“Old man” names for girls

sanctanomina Naming nitty gritty ,

Hi everyone! Happy feast of the Guardian Angels!

I’ve been meaning to write this post for ages, ever since Food Network’s Molly Yeh named her second daughter Ira. Ira! Sister to Bernadette who Molly refers to as Bernie exclusively. Bernie and Ira!

Bernie’s full given name is Bernadette Rosemary and, silly me, being immersed in Catholic naming all the time as I am, I thought that maybe Molly and her hubby would give their second daughter an equally heavy-hitting Catholicky Catholic + Marian combo (despite the fact that the story at that link includes the reasoning behind the name, in which no faith talk was mentioned) and was so excited for the birth announcement. Ira Dorothy was so surprising to me until I recalibrated my thinking and thought that Bernie and Ira sound perfect together — but as *gentlemen* of an older generation! In fact, if you search “Bernie” on the Social Security web site, you’ll see it defaults to male results and it peaked in 1937 at no. 469; Ira, too, defaults to “boy” and it was at its most popular in 1900 at no. 107.

It made me think of this chef on Tasty named Merle (full name Merle Shane O’Neal), and while Merle is listed on Behind the Name as both feminine and masculine (taken as a variant of Merrill or Muriel), the only Merle I’d known before Girl Merle on Tasty is a professor I had in college who was, yes, an older gentleman. Another “old man” name! Like with Bernie and Ira, a search on the SSA site for “Merle” defaults to only male results, with a peak in 1918 at no. 170.

You can actively choose “female,” which I did for each name after searching without choosing gender, and was interested to discover:

  • Bernie was not in the top 1000 for girls at all, though Bernadette was until 1994 and peaked in 1946 at no. 146
  • Ira actually does make an appearance for girls pretty regularly from 1900 until 1947, peaking in 1900 at 480
  • Merle peaked for girls at no. 295 in 1903 and dropped off the charts in 1957

Anyway, I didn’t know any of this about these names having usage for girls in the past — I was really caught up in this old-man-names-for-baby-girls thing when I read this article from August (very recent!) called “‘Grandpa’ Names for Girls With That Vintage-Cool Vibe” by Rita Templeton! I knew it! It talks about the “hundred-year rule” where “popular names gradually lose steam and fall off the charts, and it takes a hundred years for them to become in favor again.” So grandparents’ names tend to be ones that current baby namers are drawn to — we’ve seen it here with names like Agnes, Edith, George, and Hank-for -Henry. The article points out, though, that “what is fairly new is a trend we’re seeing in 2023 that takes the hundred-year rule and turns it on its head: using these traditionally-male vintage names for girls. ‘Grandpa names’ for girls feel both timeless and trendy — clunky yet cute, giving kinda the same vibe as those lug-sole loafers that are back in style.” I love that! I think “clunky yet cute” like “lug-sole loafers” is such a fun way to describe this!

So tell me! Have you seen the “grandpa names for girls” trend in your own circles? Can you share any examples?

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation from either Theresa or myself here.

For help with Marian names, 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). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Replying to emails now!

sanctanomina Uncategorized

I know I owe a bunch of you emails, and I’m going to work through them right now — I’m so sorry for the delay! I had a couple of Urgent Care runs last week for sprained fingers for one boy and a fractured and dislocated femur for another, which resulted in surgery and a hip-to-toes cast that has required much rethinking of systems and schedules in our house! I’m grateful for your patience!!

Birth announcement: Marigold Elizabeth!

sanctanomina Birth announcement , , , , ,

I posted a consultation for Maria and her husband in June, and I’m so very happy to share today, on the feast of the Queenship of Mary, that their little girl arrived and has been given the amazing name … Marigold Elizabeth!

Maria writes,

“We are so happy to announce the safe arrival of Marigold Elizabeth. Our sweet Mary born on August 9 at 1:45 pm.

Although we originally came to you looking for a unique middle name for Mary, your mention of Marigold made us realized it was just the perfect first name! We plan to also call her Mary.

Once we landed on Marigold, the more traditional Elizabeth was just the right fit for a middle name, giving us that a Mary-Elizabeth visitation connection that I also have in my name.”

Isn’t this just so perfect?!! And today is the perfect day to post this announcement because the feast of the Queenship of Mary has been taken by two of my other Marigold mamas as the name day for their little girls (here, here) (the gold of her crown –> Mary’s gold). I absolutely love it! And for this family, who had originally decided on Mary for the first name, using Mary as a nickname for Marigold is just right. I love it all!

Congratulations to Maria and her husband and big sibs Samuel, Phoebe, and Anna, and happy birthday Baby Marigold!!

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation from either Theresa or myself here.

For help with Marian names, 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). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Baby name consultation: “Well known but not often heard” name needed for baby boy

sanctanomina Baby name consultant , , ,

Happy Monday, everyone! Today is my grandmother’s birthday, whose name was Anne, and she was one of the reasons St. Anne seemed perfect for Sancta Nomina’s patroness. My grandmother, who I called Mimi, passed away 33 years ago — if you think to say a Hail Mary for her and our family, who all still miss her, I’d be so grateful!

I posted a consultation for Erin and her husband two years ago when they were expecting their daughter, and I’m so happy to be able to offer ideas for her third baby — a little boy, her second son! Little Man joins big sibs:

Calvin Frederick

Lucy Renee

I just love these names together! Such a lovely set!

Erin writes,

“I like to include saint/biblical and family names in some combination. My husband is not Catholic, so a name with a religious tie is less important to him. Calvin and Lucy were in our family trees. Frederick is my husband’s MN and grandpa. Renee is my MN and Godmother’s name.

We are having a little boy due September 2nd!

Our top choices we are considering are:

  • Henry
  • Samuel
  • Franklin
  • Walter

All of these are family names. Our favorite is probably Henry, but both of us feel it is more popular than we want. I’m also feeling drawn strongly to Samuel, but struggle with it feeling perennially popular. We really liked how Calvin was a well known name but not often heard. Franklin we both like but don’t love, although I do love Frankie as a nick name. My husband really likes Walter. I like Walt, but Walter feels a little too ‘grumpy old man’ to me lol.

Some other names I liked:

  • Isaac
  • Emmett
  • Bennett
  • Abe*
  • Peter*
  • Ambrose
  • Beau
  • Otto
  • Theo
  • Everett

Other names hubs liked:

  • Max
  • Mac
  • Harrison
  • Elliott
  • Benjamin
  • Hugh
  • Thomas

*Family names

We also both like August, but we’re unsure with his due date being so close to the month.

Our daughter is rooting for Sammy, and our son is convinced his name is Blaise! Lol

Family names we can’t use include: Archie, Eli, Oliver, Joel, Adam, Gavin, Caleb, Charles, and Cole.

Top contenders for middle names are: James and Douglas (my grandpa or dad’s name), but we aren’t super set there.

Can’t wait to hear what you come up with!“

Alrighty, let’s get to it! 😄

As I usually do, I thought I’d start with offering my thoughts on the names Erin and her hubby have discussed, in case they’re helpful:

  • Henry: I’m not surprised that Erin said their favorite is probably Henry, as it was far and away the biggest style match for them when I did my usual research in the Baby Name Wizard (affiliate link)! It’s a great name! I wonder if switching up the form they use might help it feel fresher, even if they use Henry on an everyday basis? Some of its international versions that I thought they might like include Henrik/Henryk, Hendrick, Hendry, Henning, and Henderson (which is similar to Harrison on Erin’s husband’s list). I think Henry can work as a nickname for all of these, or the traditional Henry nickname Hank. Since Erin mentioned popularity, I looked up the SSA rankings for each of the names and will include them as I discuss them; Henry is no. 7, Henrik is no. 926, and none of the others are in the top 1000 (though Henderson ranked in the top 1000 almost every year between 1900 and 1944!). (For reference, Calvin is no. 148 and Lucy is no. 48.)
  • Samuel: Another great name! Samuel is less popular than Henry at no. 20; it’s been rising in popularity for a long time, but slowly — it entered the 20’s in 1997 at no. 27, so in the grand scheme of things it hasn’t moved too much at all. It’s so cute how Erin said her daughter is sure this baby’s name is Sammy! If the nicknames are a big draw for them, I thought I’d mention that my husband and I considered Sam as a nickname for Ambrose, which I see on Erin’s list. I wonder what she and her hubby would think of that? Ambrose is no. 720.
  • Franklin: Franklin definitely feels like Calvin to me — “well known but not often heard,” as Erin said. Such a cool name, and awesome that it’s a family name for them! Frankie is a darling nickname, too. I wonder if they’ve considered Francis or Frank as given names? Franklin is no. 408, Francis is no. 462, and Frank is no. 439 (this name family is very consistent popularity-wise!).
  • Walter: It’s so funny that Erin’s husband likes Walter but she thinks it’s too “grumpy old man”! I agree that Walt is adorable, and I actually used my own husband’s like of what I considered to be “old man” names to try to convince him of the given name Walsingham with the nickname Walt for our youngest! Walsingham is the name of a Marian apparition location in England, and Our Lady of Walsingham is one of her titles, so I thought I was being incredibly clever; my husband did not agree, haha! One thing that Erin might like about Walter is that I’ve seen it with increasing regularity among the families I work with because of Servant of God Fr. Walter Ciszek. Here are some birth announcements: here, here (he has a big brother Henrik!), and a sibling group that includes a Walter here.
  • August: I know what Erin means about August for a baby due in the beginning in September! If he ends up coming early, in August itself, I wonder if that would that make it easier or harder for them to use? Would they consider Augustus or Augustine?

Of the names Erin and her hubby like, I won’t comment on them all except to say:

  • Emmett, Bennett, Everett, and Elliott are very revealing! I absolutely tried to find an idea that ends in -tt for them when I was doing my research!
  • Abe and Beau (Bo) are both names that I think can work as nicknames for Ambrose; also Bram, which was my favorite idea when I was pitching this to my husband!
  • I really want to figure out something with Harrison and Henry, since Harry originated as a nickname for Henry … using Henry as a nickname for Harrison is normally the kind of thing I’d go for, except I’m having a hard time with the fact that it would technically be going *backwards* — Henry isn’t  a nickname for the Harry names, Harry is a nickname for Henry! But I want to mention it anyway, in case it strikes this couple as the perfect solution.
  • Popularity of all these:

Isaac: 42

Emmett: 115

Bennett: 83

Abe: Not in top 1000

Peter: 214

Ambrose: 720

Beau: 89

Otto: 309

Theo: 99 (Theodore is no. 10)

Everett: 81

  • I also wonder about their son’s idea of Blaise — what do they think of that?? Could be very cool! Blaise is not in the top 1000.

On to new ideas! I did my usual research for Erin and her hubby in the Baby Name Wizard, looking up the names they’ve used and those they like to find style matches. I was also inspired by all of the names ending in -tt that are on their lists and wanted to find similar options for them. What do you all think of:

(1) Stanley

Walter on their list made me think of my own name conversations with my husband, as I noted about re: Walsingham nn Walt. I wondered if the name that my husband was really crazy about would appeal to them: Stanley nn Stan! I’ve actually seen an uptick in interest in this name among the families I work with because of the recent beatification of Bl. Stanley Rother. I did a really thorough spotlight of Stanley here. Stanley is no. 778.

(2) Malcolm

I was mostly inspired by Mac and Max on Erin’s hubby’s list when deciding to include Malcolm in my official suggestions, as well as the ideal of “well known name but not often heard” like Calvin. I absolutely think both Mac and Max can be nicknames for Malcolm, and I quite like it as a brother name for Calvin and Lucy. Though I don’t think there’s a St. Malcolm, the name itself means “disciple of St. Columba,” who was a great Irish Saint. I had suggested it to Haley from Carrots for Michaelmas — she has a Lucy too! Malcolm is no. 285.

(3) Name ending in -tt

I had fun looking through the BNW for names ending in -tt! Of them, my favorites for this family are:

  • Garrett: Garrett is derived from Gerard, which gives it its saintly connection. I love that! It’s no. 463.
  • Beckett: This can be literary (Samuel Beckett) or saintly (St. Thomas a Becket(t)) — or both! Beck is a fun nickname. It’s no. 195.
  • Dermot(t): This name is usually spelled with one T, but can be spelled with two. There are a few Sts. Dermot; the name in either spelling (Dermot or Dermott) is not in the top 1000.
  • Grant: Okay so, yes, Grant doesn’t end in -tt. But it showed up in my research as swirling around the kinds of names this couple likes, and I know of a family who chose Grant for their son with the “grant us peace” part of the Mass in mind, which I thought was clever. Grant is no. 220.
  • Atticus: Okay so, yes, again, this doesn’t end in -tt — and doesn’t end in T at all! But when I was skimming the BNW index the double T of Atticus caught my eye and I thought maybe it would be perfect! I’ve seen Gus used as a nickname for it, which kind of loops in their August idea. Atticus is no. 274.

So those are my official suggestions, but I also want to mention that I considered Leo (no. 22), Lincoln (no. 54), Martin (305), Philip (no. 494), Barrett (no. 208), and Rhett (no. 151) for them as well before whittling my list down to just the ones I mentioned above — maybe one of those would be perfect after all?

And those are all my thoughts! What do you all think? What name(s) would you suggest for the little brother of Calvin and Lucy?

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation from either Theresa or myself here.

For help with Marian names, 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). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!