Hi Swistle,
You helped us (through a private consultation) name our little boy Charlie almost 18 months ago. Now we’re expecting his little brother or sister in early October and would love some input from you and your readers.
The issue this time around? Finding a good match to go with Charlie. Our favorite names are Audrey for a girl and Henry for a boy. Despite these being our clear favorites, I’m hesitant because the rey/ry endings seem perhaps too close to Charlie’s name. So the question is, am I over thinking this? Or should we avoid these names and move on to others we are also considering?
For more information Charlie’s full name is Charles Gray (sounds a lot like, but isn’t quite) Alber. We call him Charlie 99% of the time. Gray is my mother’s maiden name and is my middle name. This baby’s middle name will be Bryce (my maiden name).
For a girl, in addition to Audrey, we also like:
Emilia (but maybe a little too fancy paired with Charlie?)
Eliza (or maybe Elizabeth with the nickname Eliza?)
Louisa (also seems a bit fancy with Charlie)
SadieFor a boy, in addition to Henry, we also like:
Samuel (nickname Sam)
Jonah
Jack (but maybe sounds a bit..geriatric…when paired with Alber?)Names we like but can’t use:
Caroline (my absolute favorite name, but I had to give it up when we named Charlie)
Eleanor (another big favorite, but too close to my mother in law’s name, Ellen, and Jewish families do not name children after living relatives)
Alexandra (a little alliteration is ok, but Alexandra Alber is too much)
Molly (love this one with Charlie, but we already know several little Mollys)
Josephine/Josie (my husband vetoed, sigh)
Sabrina (also vetoed)
Nathaniel/Nathan/Nate (too close to my name, which is Natalie)
Theodore/Teddy (another favorite, but already used by close friends)So please Swistle, and your insightful and creative readers, help us name baby Alber!
Thank you!
Natalie
I don’t think the endings of Audrey and Henry are too close to the ending of the name Charlie, so I would stop right there and not even move on to the other names on the list. I think a second -lie/-ly ending (Lily, for example) might be too matchy, and that having a group of, say, four children all ending in -ie/-y (Charlie, Audrey, Henry, Ivy) might be too matchy, but if you hadn’t pointed it out for Charlie/Henry or Charlie/Audrey, I wouldn’t have noticed it. It further works in your favor that Charlie is a nickname for Charles: Charles/Henry and Charles/Audrey aren’t too similar at all, and I don’t think it matters nearly as much how nicknames fit.
Name update!
Hi there,
Our sweet baby girl arrived on October 9. I took one look at her and knew she was our little Audrey. Thanks so much for all the wonderful feedback.
I agree with Swistle that Charlie and Audrey or Charlie and Henry don’t evoke a too matchy sibling set. Audrey Bryce seems off to me though, I’d probably go for Audra Bryce and the nn Audrey. Wondering why you had to give up Caroline as a potential girl name in naming Charlie, was that a deal with your husband? Or because you don’t like alliteration?
I agree Audrey and Henry are just fine with Charles/Charlie and since they are your favorites, I’d go with them. I do like some of the names in your second string. Emilia, Louisa, & Samuel/Sam are all nice matches. If you used Eliza, I’d recommend making it a nn for Elizabeth. I like the parallel with Charles/Charlie.
I agree that Audrey and Henry both work well with Charles and present no real problem with Charlie. However, i ie-y endings bother you, you could use nicknames for Henry or Audrey in everyday use.
Charles and Henry – Charlie and Hank
Charles and Audrey – Charlie and Audra or Drea
I completely agree with Swistle // yes, you are over thinking it.
Stick with Henry and Audrey.
I agree with everything that’s been said but I also wanted to respond to your reservations about Emilia and Louisa being “too fancy”. I think both go great with Charles and both lend themselves to nicknames that work great with Charlie so I wouldn’t let the fanciness hold you back!
I agree with Swistle.
But you since you listed Sadie, and use Charlie as a nickname for Charles, I wanted to throw in a pitch for Sarah with its traditional nickname of Sadie. Sarah is really becoming more unusual these days, and I think Sarah-called-Sadie is quite surprising and nice.
But, also yeah– Audrey works fine with Charlie, as does Henry. Not too repetitive at all. My only concern with Audrey is its similarity Aubrey/Aubree. The latter, when its two most common spellings are combined, is a top 10 name that is rapidly rising. I know Audrey is different– different feel, at least– but the popularity of Aubrey is something to consider.
Please update us when the baby is born! Good luck.
I was going to mention the similarity to Aubtey as well. In all its spellings, the name is growing by leaps and bounds and there is a chance that Audrey would get confused for Aubrey a lot. I dint know if that’s an issue for you. My son’s name, Conrad, gets mistaken for Connor a lot and it really bugs me.
I think the Audreys being born now will be repeatedly taken for Aubrey/Aubree in the future. I’m a white 1980s Kayla/Kaela who my whole life has been mistaken for Katelyn/Caitlin, over and over and over, because that was the more popular name for my demographic/age group. It’s not something I get chewed up about, but it’s also not enjoyable when it happens.
Thanks for the comments everyone! You’re giving us a lot to think about (and now I’m revisiting the second string). To answer A’s question, we had to give up Caroline because it’s actually a feminine form of the name Charles. Otherwise, that would be the easy choice.
I think this is a good demonstration though of the fact that a lot of people won’t notice/know. Even some people who read baby names websites don’t notice! So it really only matters if it bugs you.
(In my father-in-law’s family, the two youngest siblings were Charlotte and Charlie. It took me years to notice).
Audrey & Henry are both fine with Charlie. I agree it helps that Charlie is actually a nickname for Charles. But even if Charlie were the given name, I don’t really see a problem.
For your runners up-I agree Emilia seems a bit frilly compared to your other girl names (and next to Charlie).
Eliza/Elizabeth is great! It’s my 2nd favorite after Audrey. I like how both Charles & Elizabeth seem proper & dignified as given names, but Charlie & Eliza seem fun and approachable. Louisa is fine next to Charlie. Perhaps a nickname like Lou or Lulu would help? I like Sadie, but not so much as a given name. I’d prefer Sarah with Sadie as a nickname.
I know a sibset of Henry, Charlie & Sammy, so your choice of Samuel seems spot on. It’s my 2nd favorite after Henry. Jonah seems a lot trendier than your other names. I don’t think Jack sounds geriatric at all.
I have some friends that named their kids Charles, John, and Emilia Louise and they call them Charlie, Jack, and Emmylou (she’s a baby now, I doubt they’ll call her that as a teenager). I think all the names you are considering would work well. Audrey and Henry are great, and out of your other options, I love Eliza and Sam. Best of luck to you!
I would still use Caroline. It is not so similar as other feminizations of names such as Theodore and Theodora. The only thing that does come to mind however is I grew up watching Little House on the Praire and the parents names are Charles and Caroline. I kind of find that connection endearing however.
I’m a huge fan of your top two choices. Audrey and Henry are both fantastic names, particularly when paired with Charlie. I don’t think that they are too similar to Charlie at all. I actually agree with you that Louisa and Emilia don’t pair as well with Charlie as Audrey does (at least in my mind). I think you’re set!
Why not Caroline? Charles and Caroline is adorable to me
The person who wrote the letter commented above that Caroline is a feminine form of Charles (which I totally did not know). I still think Caroline and Charles would be adorable siblings, and I highly doubt that anybody would know or comment on the name derivation. I like Caroline a little better than Audrey, and using it would prevent the Audrey/Aubrey confusion, which seems likely to happen a lot.
I don’t think your favourite names (Henry or Audrey) are too matchy at all. Especially considering Charlie’s real name is in fact Charles. Charlie and Henry. Love this combination. I also like Audrey or Audra even as a full name or nn.
Running off the list of other girl names you like, you mentioned you like Louisa but felt it was too fancy. What about Lucia (loo-see-a) and you could use Lucy as a shortened name?? Charlie and Lucy. SO CUTE. So in love with this combination. Love the old vintage charm yet still young, fresh, and spunky.
I also have to go on the record and say that I LOVE Henry and also LOVE Jack. Don’t think you could go wrong either way.
Good luck and keep us posted!!
I wouldn’t use Charlene with Charles but do think Caroline is fine with Charles. While their is the traditional connection between the two, they sound very different. Charlie and Carrie, Charlie and Lina.
I felt compelled to weigh in since my two oldest are Charles and Henry. We did start out worrying that Charlie and Henry had very similar endings, but then when our oldest got to Kindergarten he insisted on being called Charles and not Charlie so it became a moot point.
I know sisters that have variations of the same name – but the variations are so significant that I had no idea, for about five years, that they had this sibling connection in their names. When I did realise, I thought it was really lovely. They haven’t been given the ‘same name’, they’ve been given connected names. It’s made me want to link my children’s names in a subtle way, so perhaps Caroline is worth another thought? (Though I think Audrey is wonderful, and would be my preference.)
Thanks everyone! My husband and I were discussing your comments all weekend. The Audrey/Aubrey connection hadn’t even occurred to me. The names just seem so different to me. But since I MUCH prefer Audrey to Aubrey it’s something to think about. I also find it so interesting that people aren’t aware of the Charles/Caroline connection. I agree the names sound great together, but I just can’t bring myself to use essentially the same name for two kids. Good thing you all have given me a lot more confidence in Henry and Audrey. We’ll probably go to the hospital with Henry/Samuel (Sam) and Audrey/Elizabeth (Eliza) and make a decision once we meet the new baby. I’ll be sure to update once the little one arrives.
I know it’s been some time, but I have to say, I LOVE Eliza/Elizabeth. I think it looks and sounds fabulous with Charlie. Charlie and Eliza. So refreshing and adorable. I don’t have a problem with Audrey/Henry either, but I am absolutely crazy about Charlie and Eliza — they are different but have a very similar feel.
You can’t go wrong with any of them, though. Good luck!
Wow we have similar naming tastes. I have an Audra and an Elizabeth (Eliza) and considered Henry. So I thought I’d offer our other names (though you’re considering lovely choices already). Mara is our oldest and Anselm (Ansel) our youngest.