Help! Baby Names!

Updated on March 15, 2010
S.B. asks from Savannah, GA
29 answers

We have a little list but I'm having such a hard time deciding. I'm 30 weeks pregnant and just want to pick a name already. I don't like super common names but I also don't want something WEIRD. My daughter now her name is Angelina McKenna (McKenna was my maiden name and there are no boys in my family so I thought it'd be nice to carry it on one more generation).
New suggestions are definitely welcome!

We have....in no particular order of liking:
Ariana (my neice's middle name)
Cecelia (my Nana's name- although now it may become popular since the Office character apparently had a baby that name)
Samantha (my husband loves this name and I like it...but it's always in the top 15 for baby names)
Gabriella
Norah
Viviana

I don't particularly want to insult anyone by picking a family name...but at the same time I've always loved Cecelia and Ariana. But as of right now I lean towards naming her Norah Cecelia...but of course my fickle mind changes daily. lol. soooooo please what's you opinion...and if you have new names don't hesitate to throw them out here. :)

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So What Happened?

EDIT: Definitely don't want to wait til she's born. If we decide once she's born we don't like the name...then we'll figure that out when it happens. I've asked my daughter several times but she insists we call her "Roly Poly" ha ha. Anyhow...thanks for all the suggestions. I'll let you know what we ultimately decide.

Of course we had a boys name picked out--- Charles (Charlie) Kenneth after my husbands grandfather and my Dad. We thought for sure it was going to be a boy for some reason. Soooo....now on to picking girls names!

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B.L.

answers from Atlanta on

My daughter's name is Gabriella Adria. We call her Gabby. the middle name was my Italian Aunt's who died.

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A.M.

answers from Atlanta on

Just wanted to add you need to think about whether you like the shortened form of the name - you like Cecilia, but do you like Cece? Or Ari? Gabby? Viv? I loved the name Nicole but hated Nikki, so we kept Nicole as her middle name so it wouldn't get shortened by anyone.

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B.B.

answers from Augusta on

Trendy names drive me nuts. Caitlyns and Briannas and Kaylas...there are at least 2 of each in any given elementary classroom.

I absolutely adore Norah Cecelia!!!!!!!!!! Nora (or Norah) is such a good, strong Irish name, and St. Cecelia is the patron saint of musicians (so if you're Irish Catholic, you've got it made!).

I love the old-fashioned names! My vote is for Norah Cecelia!

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T.W.

answers from Milwaukee on

When we were picking out names for our daughter, my mom told me to stand at the bottom of the stairs and yell some names. Whatever sounds the best we name her since we will be yelling it alot if she will ever be like me and my sisters... well we named her Caitlyn, and shes a wild little girl that I constantly have to kept using her name. And I love it.

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L.S.

answers from New London on

I love it! I also love Samantha.

edited to add: if you like Charlie, name her Charlotte and nickname her Charlee or Charlie. I love Charlee for a girl. :)

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V.S.

answers from Augusta on

Those are all beautiful names. I agree with lots of the other posts - say the names together (sisters) as well as the first and middle name - how it sounds and and make sure no snafus with the initials (like we couldn't use any "B" names b/c our last name starts with "S" - ha).

We have ALL boys, so we didn't have the opportunity to experiment with girl names. However, each time we found out we were expecting, we did generate a list of possible girl names - just in case. Some family names we considered were Tatum, Claire or Clara, Elaine, and Charlie (my Dad's name is Charles - thought we could name her Charlize and call her Charlie).

However, with our boys, we came up with "short lists" and waited until we saw them. With our last child, we even asked the nurse in the hospital for a baby name book, just to make sure we loved the name Garrett.

Good luck! Let us know what you decide. And ask your first daughter what name she likes!

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B.L.

answers from Spartanburg on

i love nora without the h...good luck!

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H.J.

answers from Minneapolis on

Well with Cecelia being a top pick on our list I have to agree I like the name. We would be naming after my father as his middle name is Cecil. I do like ariana, I also just met an Audrina and I think it is a pretty name. I love the names Chloe, Andreya, Karli, Cassia(personal fav but hubby wont do) and Carla. Best of luck picking a name I will be 31 weeks in a few days with our third and am having a tough time picking names

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J.K.

answers from Mansfield on

I like Cecelia too. I am sure you are also considering how it sounds with your last name but liked what sandra said about the names sounding good together. There is a great site that tells you origin and meaning of kids names- that could help you. too.http://babynamesworld.parentsconnect.com/
I would not worry about offending anyone about naming a child after someone- My youngest is named after my grandmother- no one on either side is upset about it. My middle daughter is named after my husband and I (feminine of his first name and my middle name) our son is not named after anyone (which he is kinda bummed about).
Hope this helps :)

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Y.W.

answers from Athens on

I'd like to throw a couple of my favorite names out there too. I'll warn you ahead of time that no matter how much you agonize over her name and come up with the most perfect name for her, she is going to hate it. Most girl dream of changing their names. Few do. I wanted to change mine when I started reading to Betsy! Only because it was the girl's name in the reader. Thank GOD! That is not my name.

I like Gabriel, Kennedy, Montana, Savannah, Hannah, Vivian, and Wilson.

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A.W.

answers from Columbia on

My name is A. and I love it! Of course when my parents named me 23 years ago I was the only A. they knew of and although the name has become more popular it is still unique! My middle name is Megan (very popular in the 80's). The only negative about A. is it get mispronounced often but oh well I just correct them. Good luck!

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J.M.

answers from Dallas on

Hi! First of all congratulations on your new Baby! Now, I just wanted to share something in which I personally truly believe and that is, the meaning of the names you choose for your children. Imagine it this way... every time you or someone calls out your child they are saying to her whatever the name means and don' t ever underestimate the power of the word. So make sure to know the meaning of the name you picked cause that' s how she' s going to be called every time. Think of it as an opportunity to bless your child by giving her a name with a blessed meaning!

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K.E.

answers from Atlanta on

Beautiful names! Of the list you have going I like Norah, Samantha, and Cecilia best. Gabriella is becoming very popular.
My daughter's name is Linley Abigail...other names on our list were
Eleanor
Gretchen
Anaya (my husband is from Honduras, so we used the spanish form Anais)

Good luck and let us knwo what you choose!!!

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S.E.

answers from Charleston on

Wait until she's born. Chances are that when you see her, the right name will stand out above the rest. We actually had to adjust what we called my son because the "perfect name" we had picked didn't fit him once we met him.

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S.R.

answers from San Francisco on

I like Cecilia Ariana, I think it would go great with her sisters name. Angelina and Cecilia. Norah is good to but I think Cecilia goes better when saying both of your daughters names.

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L.N.

answers from New York on

i love Norah (although where i come from it's spelled Nora), Ariana is also a very common name (where i come from), which means golden.
The name Nora has a beautiful legend behind it, in short, she is a woman representing bravery, courage, beauty, and faithfulness.
I never liked the name Cecilia.

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A.G.

answers from Boston on

My boys all have very common names but I waited until after I could spend a little time with each of them before I named them. Im not sure if this is an option since you want to get it over with but if you wait then you can try a few out and see what you like.

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A.J.

answers from Atlanta on

Love Cecelia! I think it's great that you have a family tie to that name.

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M.S.

answers from Philadelphia on

Both of my sons have a grandparents last name as their middle name. My sister didnt decide on a name til she had her child. I've always liked Kylie or Mckayla for a girl.

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B.K.

answers from Chicago on

I saw a name I liked recently so I'll just pass it on to you: Maridia Anastasia.

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B.B.

answers from Atlanta on

I like the name Amelia. It is unique because it is not overused but also very recognizable. Good luck!

B.
www.mamabeartales.com

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B.I.

answers from Atlanta on

HI S.,
I hope this finds you well and may prove to be helpful.

I had a huge dilemma naming my daughter. I let her older brother choose.

I had a list as well. and here it is as follows: Sara Ashton, Olivia Paige, Catherine Paige, Sara Elizabeth, Ashton Elizabeth, Catherine Olivia, Ashton Kathleen.

Ashton is MY favorite name, I do like Samantha too. I think it's very pretty. I liked Samantha Nicole.

My daughter was named Meghan Elizabeth. She couldn't be any other name. Meghan suits her to a t.

With family names, the "tricky" thing is to make everyone happy. Ii am curious if your neice is called Ariana? That would make it harder to use.

I know in my family, we have two Michaels. One spelled Micheal and one spelled Michael. Micheal uses the name and Michael uses his first name. LOTS of Lees for middle names, as it was a family name from waaaay back when.

Does your baby's name need to end in an "A"?
Is this a family tradition to end in "A"?

I know a family who always chose three syllable names and they ending in a's. Kinda sweet tradition.

Some other thoughts:
Adrianna
Ariella
Amara
Amanda
Amalia
Malia
Susanna
Cynthia
Jessica
Jessa
Julia
Julianna
Anna
Azaria
Amelia
Celestia
Nathalia/Natalia
Amberley
Leah
Alondeia

I hope this list helps... LMK if you need more suggestions. these are off the top of my head. I have about 6-8 name dictionaries since I LOVE names and meanings.

Congrats on the new baby.

B.
deaffmommie

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R.M.

answers from Nashville on

I like Norah best, and I like it with the H. :)

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A.I.

answers from Dallas on

i have a Camryn Janelle
and a Cassidy Renae

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G.R.

answers from Peoria on

Using a family name can be very special...my sister named her daughter after me and I love it:) You already have some pretty names to choose from, but here are few others to consider. Hope it helps!

Jacqueline
Danielle
Jocelyn
Isabella

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D.P.

answers from Pittsburgh on

I like Sammy. Or Norah/Nora second. Here's a wild card idea---a classic, yet still modern--Piper. Love it!

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K.S.

answers from New York on

Hi S.,
Congrats! We were the same way, something a little different but could be said in a boardroom in 25 years. :-) We also went traditional with the middle name just in case the girls just can't live with their names.

Anyway, from your list I like Ariana and Viviana. Best of luck and let us know what you end up choosing!

~Kristal
(mother to Kara Lynn Pearl and Dakota Marie)

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H.S.

answers from Columbia on

My husband and I always had a very hard time choosing names for our children and were still talking about it on our drive to the hospital :) I like to have it narrowed down by this time and then decide after seeing the baby. Sometimes seeing what they baby looks like helps with the decision. Good luck!

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J.G.

answers from San Antonio on

I love the names you have. My friend is Samantha, and what's nice is you have a few possibilities for nicknames 'Mandy, Sam, Sammy'

I really love the name Norah. If my cousin didn't have a Norah, I might name my future daughter that. I have one son, and if he has a sister one day, my favorite girl names are Olivia, Olive, or Evelyn. Just make sure if you like Olivia, don't name her Olivia Samantha, or her initials would be SOB.

With Ariana being your neices middle name, I would probably keep it as a middle name for your daugher as well. Just a suggestion. I think it'd be cool if a girl here and there in the family all have the same middle name. My neice has my middle name.

I'm sure you'll figure out the perfect name, even if it doesn't come for certain until after she's arrived. You'll have a couple days at the hospital to figure it out.

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