A. writes:
I’m having such a hard time deciding between 2 middle names for our new little one.
We already have a daughter: Bethany Grace and our newest little lady will be named Matilda.
We have narrowed the middle names down to 2: Eve and Pearl
I’m just so stuck. I have always loved Eve and my great grandmother’s name was Eva so I just always thought I would use it if we ever had another girl.
However, more recently, I discovered Pearl. Pearl also has family significance as my grandmother’s name is Peggy which means Pearl and hubby’s grandmother’s name Rita also means Pearl.
Hubby wants Pearl. I like Pearl but I was stuck on Eve for such a long time that I just can’t decide. Initially, I was still leaning towards Eve as that has been a favourite for so long but the more I look at Pearl the more it grows on me and since hubby has made a firm decision and I’m still stuck in limbo, I find myself considering Pearl more and more.
I guess I’d generally like to know what you and your readers like best and which combination goes best with our other daughter’s name. I always think Bethany Grace is such a pretty name, I want Matilda’s name to be just as pretty. I often use both our daughter’s names when speaking to her (ie Bethie Grace) and I have tried the same for Matilda using both options: Tilly Eve and Tilly Pearl… agrhh! I just don’t know which way to go!
Tilly is due early February! I’m getting anxious about not having decided before the big day!
Thanks so much for your help!
The upside of this type of dilemma is that you love BOTH options, and so whichever one you choose, you will love it. The downside is that no matter which one you choose, you’ll be letting go of an option you love. We had a similar dilemma with my youngest’s middle name: three great choices, all of which we loved, all of which had some significance. I remember lying awake agonizing over it. If it’s any comfort, at this point I look back at and I STILL think that ANY of the three names would have been great—and also, in retrospect the decision seems less crucial.
Might you have more children? I’d find it soothing to think that there still could be a chance to use the other name later on.
If you can’t decide which of the two options is prettier, I think that means you think they’re equally pretty, and so that can be taken out of both sides of the equation. If you can’t decide if you prefer Tilly Eve or Tilly Pearl, I think that means you think they work equally well, and so that too can be taken out of both sides of the equation. Were you close to your great-grandmother Eva? Are your grandmothers’ names Margaret/Marguerite, or are Peggy/Rita their given names? If you barely knew your great-grandmother and the given names are Rita and Peggy, the honor connections seem equal as well.
All that remains is preference: you’d prefer Eve, and your husband would prefer Pearl. If neither one of you wants to give up their choice, it may be necessary to abandon both names and look for something new you can agree on. Since you’d like the sisters’ names to coordinate, I might look for middle names similar to Grace:
Matilda Jane; Bethie Grace and Tilly Jane
Matilda Jo; Bethie Grace and Tilly Jo
Matilda Joy; Bethie Grace and Tilly Joy
Matilda June; Bethie Grace and Tilly June
Matilda Rose; Bethie Grace and Tilly Rose
I think my own preference between Matilda Pearl and Matilda Eve would be Matilda Eve. The name Matilda is a very recent revival, and so is Pearl; the Ev- sound is fully in style, and so I like the way Eve would give her a more current name to coordinate with Bethany Grace. Let’s have a poll to see what everyone else thinks:
[yop_poll id=”45″]
Name update! A. writes:
Thank you for posting my baby name dilemma back in January when we were deciding on a middle name for Matilda (Eve or Pearl).
Well, our princess is here now and we decided on Matilda Pearl!
I had pretty much swayed more towards Pearl by the time my question was posted but it was so lovely to have it reaffirmed by so many of your readers. Now that she’s here we have had lots of compliments on her name and as you said, because I loved both options, I would love whatever I chose and I do!
Thank you again for your help.
I voted for Matilda Pearl because it’s so much easier to say–rolls right off the tongue. Whereas with Matilda Eve there’s needs to be a bit of hesitation while the tongue repositions itself…..
Having said that, both names are beautiful, you cannot go wrong.
Both are a lovely and beautiful choice. The only addition I can think to mention is that the “E” in the middle could make a word out of initials. “MEG” or “MEH” for example, and if she choses to change her name at marriage then she might run into that. BUT I would say that for some people this would be a total pro, not a con. (Me. MEO and call her MEOW.) But that is the only additional thought I can think of. Good luck!
Because the title of the post put forth the question so clearly, I stopped to consider which combination I liked better before I read it and learned any of the circumstances and I decided I liked both pretty well, maybe Pearl a smidge more but by so little it would have to depend on the circumstances. I still like both, but I do like the way Pearl ties both families together. On the other hand, when the child has the father’s last name, I tend toward favoring names from the mother’s side, so that’s a reason for Eve. I think Swistle’s question about how well you knew all three namesakes is relevant and could be the deciding factor.
Tilly Eve sounds too much like Tel Aviv too me. I would go with Matilda Pearl – Tilly Pearl.
This is sort of a non-problem because you really can’t go wrong. I like Matilda Pearl a smidge more because it rolls off the tongue a little easier. I also think Tilly Eve sounds a bit like it could be a holiday or something.
Based on sound alone, I think Matilda Pearl or Tilly Pearl flows better.
I think both are great but I voted “Pearl” because I think it flows better. I don’t like the adjacent vowels in MatildA Eve or, especially, TillY Eve.
I would pick Pearl.
Tilly Eve sounds like a way of saying ’till eve’. The sounds run into each other.
I voted “I can’t decide”. Both are pretty and lovely names. Both have great meaning to you. As swistle mentioned, you have a good predicament; sounds like you love both and either way, you would be happy. If that is the case, then perhaps give the husband this one?? Unless your grandmother Eve was a very important person in your life (compared to Rita) then if that is the case then maybe fight for it???
I personally love both names. Pearl is more unique and less used then Eve so just for that reason I would go with that name. Tilly Pearl is so sweet and spunky. Love it.
Another thing, is you could always call her Tilly Eve and yor husband could always call her Tilly Pearl, despite what her middle name legally is. People have various nn that don’t have anything to do with their actual names so you guys could always use the other as a nn/family name; that way both you and your husband get the name they love :)
Keep us posted! Love your daughters names!
Both are pretty, but in the end I voted for Pearl. I find the ending “ee” of Tilly slurs into the start of Eve, making the nickname option sound like one word, TIL-eeve. The flow of Tilly Pearl is just nicer for me.
Matilda Pearl and Matilda Eve are both lovely, but like the others I find Tilly Eve to be difficult to say/less ear-pleasing than Tilly Pearl. I voted for Matilda Pearl, but you can’t really go wrong!
Once I saw Matilda Rose, I got fixed on that combo. Bethie Grace and Tilly Rose … gorgeous! I also thought if you ever had another girl you could use Evelyn Pearl. Bethie Grace, Tilly Rose and Evie Pearl … I am absolutely loving that!!
I also forgot to comment that I too love Matilda Rose. Tilly Rose. So sweet.
Your suggestion of Evelyn Pearl. Evie Pearl. So loving this name as well :)
I’m not sure why it matters if the grandmothers’ names are Margaret/Marguerite instead of Peggy/Rita? I’m guessing they are, but it’s the formal name that means “Pearl” and I’m guessing the nicknames only do because of their derivation.
I’ve always loved that particular name/meaning because my grandmother is also named Margaret and it’s my middle name. (I loved it enough I named my daughter Margaret!) I think using Pearl instead is a lovely way to update it if Margaret isn’t your style. (and/or you don’t want to have to choose between the English/French spellings.)
Between the two I prefer Pearl on sound alone–the honor and preference issues all seem to net out. However, once I saw Matilda Joy, I was hooked on that. Lovely balance with your other daughter’s name, and reminds me of a name combo I had thought up a couple years ago for a potential daughter, Marguerite Joy. I love it!
I think it’s hard to say Matilda Eve with the first name ending in a vowel and the second starting with one. They blend together for me. So both are pretty but I definitely prefer Matilda Pearl.
Also, if the original Pearl honor names are Margaret (and those are the nicknames), there’s also the Daisy connection? Because daisy in french is marguerite, daisy is a traditional nickname. Matilda Daisy?
Use both!
I will just duck in to say that both names are absolutely gorgeous and you have fantastic taste. I think I like Matilda Pearl just a smidge better because the flow seems a tad nicer. That said, it won’t likely be the norm to say them both out loud so use whichever you love the most. Or flip a coin. Or see what she looks like when she’s born.
I have a daughter named Evelyn so I’m a big fan of the name Evie. I think it’s adorable on little girls. It doesn’t get much cuter than Evie Pearl!
Best of luck!
I see why there’s a problem because I also love both Eve and Pearl! My grandmother’s name is Pearl so I’m partial ; ) I think Matilda Pearl just flows better, so that’s what I voted for. That would be such a beautiful name!
Matilda Eve doesn’t flow as well. Perhaps you could use Eve for a future child?