D. writes:
I am due with my second child on October 4th. We are having a girl who will be sister to Gabriel Lane. We have narrowed the list down to a few names and but are stuck now. We like unisex names, even if more masculine, as well as cute boyish nicknames from longer, feminine names. The middle name will be Ruth, after a deceased grandmother, or Brucie, after a deceased uncle. I know Bruce is an odd name but due to a large family here is not so uncommon for a girl so I feel ok with it as a middle name depending on first name choice. Here are our finalists:
Josephine (nn Joey or Josey)
Micah (Some people say this is ok as a girls name and know only girl Micahs, but others say no way, only boy)
Charlotte (nn Charlie-only reservation is it is very popular right now)
Sylvie (name from deceased grandmother Sylvia)Thanks for the help! We are agonzing over this. I am open to new suggestions as well.
My favorite is Josephine: it gives you the cute boyish nicknames for a long feminine name, and I think it’s cute with your surname and good with the middle name Ruth. Josephine Ruth Johnson is an excellent name.
My second favorite—nearly tied for first—is Sylvie. Sylvie Ruth Johnson is also an excellent name.
I don’t even feel inclined to add more suggestions, with such good names already on your list.
I like Josephine too. Usually I’m not a big fan of first and last names starting with the same letter, but Josephine seems to work very nicely in this case. Gabriel and Josephine is such a nice sibling set. You could also call her JJ for short.
My second favorite for you is Sylvie. And I love both of your middle name possibilities.
When I see the names on your list I also think of: Beatrice, Cecile, Clementine, and Elise.
Good luck!
I am firmly in the ‘Micah is a boy’s name’ camp, sorry. I do love Josephine, nicknamed Josie. While Josephine isn’t super rare, I do like a more unusual name with your super common last name, and I feel like Josephine Bruce would actually be nice. While I usually despise boy names on girls, I like the meaning, and it’s fun slipped in the middle spot. I also like the repeating S sounds in Josephine Bruce Johnson. I think they tie together nicely without sounding cartoony.
i know a girl named Mika, which i think is a girlier feeling, if that helps. but how about Joelle or some other way to get the Jo/Joey nn? good luck!
I think Josephine Johnson sounds fine, but Josey/Josie Johnson may be more ‘cutesy’ than what you have in mind.
My favorite from your list is Sylvie, and I would put Ruth with it. I like the two names together, and that they each honor a grandmother would add to the specialness of the name for your daughter.
Sylvie Ruth Johnson
Gabriel Lane Johnson
I think those names are great together — Gabriel and Sylvie.
I love Zoa!
What about the nickname Jo for Josephine? I love Sylvie though. Can’t go wrong. Good luck!
My favourite from your list is Sylvie. Josephine is great too.
If I saw Gabriel and Micah written down, I’d instantly presume both children were boys from a Christian family. With the Biblical angel association for Gabriel, it leads you to presume Micah is a boy.
Like many of the others, I like Josephine Ruth best. Charlotte would be my second choice.
Alexandra Ruth (Alex)
Maxine Ruth (Max)
Samantha Ruth (Sam)
Sylvie is my favorite by a long shot. I like Josephine, but don’t know how I feel about Josie or Joey Johnson as mentioned above. Sylvie Ruth is great!
If you want another suggestion, one of my favorite names is Francesca (Fran-chesca) with the nn Frankie. I also know a Stephanie (which is I guess sounds dated these days, so maybe Stefania or Stefana, Italian versions) with the nn. Stevie.
Good luck!
Another possibility: Georgia (Georgie)
I don’t particularly like Josephine, Joey or Josey Johnson. Too much alliteration and it just sounds cartoony, like a bad superhero alterego.
Sylvie is adorable and goes very well with Ruth and I like someone else’s suggestion of Georgia too. Micah is a boy name to me (unless spelled the Dutch way – Meike), especially with such a famous classically biblical name like Gabriel.
Love the name Josephine!
Definitely think Micah is for boys!