Hi Swistle!
You helped us with our second boy, Matthew William Joseph Wrightman in we loved William but didn’t want to honor grandpa bill. We are now on our fourth baby and hoping you can guide us with your expertise.
We have Bennett Patrick- Bennett we loved , Patrick after my late mother, Patricia, his name still makes my heart skip a beat. Name we like plus honor name.
Matthew William Joseph- after grandma Martha (a stretch, I know), grandpa bill and grandpa Joe. I love that we honored all living grandparents yet his name doesn’t quite seem original enough for the entity that is my son Matthew- who at 2 years, declared that his name is actually “Matthias”. If I could go back, I would name him Maxwell Theodore and call him Wells or Teddy. Something a little more spunky. My “dear” unmarried childless sister in law called dibs on Theodore many years ago after their grandpa Ted. This will not deter us now that we are on our fourth child and she remains single and childless with no prospects.
Annabelle Joy- her name is like magic to me. She is every bit as wonderful, beautiful, delicate and joyful as her name. It is perfect.
Ann is after my and my mother’s middle name and joy has special meaning to me.Our next daughter will have Ann in her name or middle name, and/or Joy as a middle name, ideally. I love this connection and it is important to me.
We love and hope to find a double letter name- can we do this and fulfill everything I love and want in a name to make it magical. ?
I have always liked Lillianna, Lilly for a nickname. The double letters and loveliness is there, with Ann, Lillianna Joy is nice. I worry it with end up in the same compartment as Matthew to me, a wonderful, strong name that my husband and I agree on, but a bit of eh factor as time moves on, because it is common and there are a ton of other Lillys. Thoughts?
I love the nickname Liv- can we make this happen with double letters?
I adore Olivia but feel like it is so popular. Husband loves Olivia as well.
We call Annabelle: Belle, Bells, Bellsies or Annabelle.
I love Belle and Liv, Belles and Livs, Bellsies and Livvies, pitter patter goes my heart. We may spell it Livvy or Livvie if that’s what we go by.My thoughts are:
Livianna- Livianna Joy. Bell and Liv
Husband says this is a made up name.
I also love Livia as a shortened name.I love it because it has Ann, double letters, the nickname Liv and can have Joy as a middle name like Annabelle.
Annalivia
Husband says this is even more made up.
Again, love Liv, Ann, double letters plus Joy as middle name
Annabelle and Annalivia- too much? Not enough? Belle and LivvyHusband would rather do Olivia to get Liv as nickname but it’s way to popular and no double letters.
Other names I love:
Seraphina no double letters, husband thinks its too much,
Livianna Seraphine?Caroline- going down the ranks for me lately
Everly- adorable but getting too popular, husband says made up, no double letters
Thoughts? Opinions? Ideas? We would possibly want one more after this baby. Next boy would be Maxwell Theodore.
Thoughts on Lilly vs Livvy?Katie
I would like to start by discussing what will happen if you do have one more child after this baby and the next child is another girl. If you have two girls who have Ann in their names and Joy as a middle name, will you feel the same has to be done for the third girl? And if so, are you able to come up with a third name that meets that requirement? My feeling is that you could get away with Annabelle and Lillianna, or Annabelle and Livianna, but that it could be somewhere on the difficult-to-impossible spectrum to come up with a third -ann- name that didn’t seem like too much of a duplicate. Annabelle, Lillianna, and Livianna? No. Annabelle, Lillianna, and Annalivia? No. I hear you when you say it is important to you to use Ann and Joy for both daughters, but I feel the risk is high of getting truly stuck.
If this is a risk you’re willing to take, then onward we go. Lillianna seems great to me. I like Livianna even better, because it makes your heart beat faster and you love the nickname, and because it introduces a new sound. It doesn’t strike my ear as “made up”-sounding, I think because Anna- and -anna mash-up names are so traditional and common.
I would not personally want to do another Anna- name. Annabelle and Annalivia seem way too close. If that doesn’t bother you, and you’d like us to continue looking for more Anna- names, I would caution us before we begin about the potentially sensitive nature of Anna+L names, especially if the N is not doubled. Because you specifically want double-letter names, it is less of an issue—but I would still feel wary when playing with names such as Annaleigh.
Annalynn
Annamaria
Annarosa
Annasophia
Annastasia
Anneliese/Annalise
Annika
Annora
Options that don’t start with Ann-:
Adrianna
Alanna
Arianna
Aubrianna
Audrianna
Avianna
Ellianna (repeats -ell- as well as -anna-)
Evianna
Gianna
Giovanna
Illianna
Joanna
Julianna
Lianna
Lucianna
Olivianna
Orianna
Savannah
Susanna
Vivianna
My top choice from this list is Vivianna. Vivvy/Vivi is similar to the Livvy you like.
A sampling of names with double letters but without the -ann-, just in case:
Amaryllis
Brynna
Camellia
Camille
Charlotte
Clarissa
Corinna/Corinne
Emmaline/Emmeline
Gemma
Juliette
Lillian
Linnea
Livinnia
Lucienne
Lucille
Marietta
Marilla
Millicent
Mirren
Molly
Philippa
Priscilla
Romilly
Stella (repeats the -ell-)
Vivienne
Willa
Willemina/Willamena
Willow
Winnifred
On another note, I think it would be a kindness to leave the name Theodore behind, if you can bear to. I realize it’s annoying when someone who may not even have a child calls dibs on a name, but in this case I would measure your fortune and happiness (marriage, buckets of children) against hers (no relationship prospects so far, childless so far), and consider leaving her something to hold on to. If she’s truly a pill, I can see the temptation; and I don’t believe in dibs on names, especially if it means a grandfather may go unhonored—but there is something a little sad here that is bringing out my feelings of mercy. Perhaps you could use Dorothea or Theodora as a middle name for a daughter, honoring the grandfather without claiming the name. Or perhaps you could use Theodore as the middle for a son, but with a word to her about how you are remembering she wants to use it as a first name, and that you think it’s lovely to use the name more than once.
[Edited to add:] On re-reading, I see I have misunderstood the question. I was thinking the plan was to use another Ann name for the first name, plus Joy again for the middle; the actual plan is to use Ann and/or Joy for the first or middle. In that case, my top choice is to use Joy as the middle, and not use a first name with Ann in it. This also removes the risk of getting stuck with a third daughter’s name: it would not be difficult to use Joy as the middle name again.
My top favorite choices:
Vivienne; Annabelle Joy and Vivienne Joy
Clarissa; Annabelle Joy and Clarissa Joy
Emmeline; Annabelle Joy and Emmeline Joy
Philippa; Annabelle Joy and Philippa Joy
My first thought was: yikes, I hope the “dear” SIL doesn’t ever stumble on this post. :(
That said, I really like this mom’s naming style, and I like pretty much every name she listed, as well as most of the names Swistle listed. A wealth of options!
I agree with Swistle. Claiming Theodore just because you can will hurt your relationship with your sister-in-law. She may have a child some day: these things can happen fast, and with adoption, ART, etc. it’s not exactly like you need “prospects” (what is this, Jane Austen?). Would Grandpa Ted want to see his grandchildren feuding over a baby’s name?
I like Dorothea a lot–Bells and Dot seem to hit the note you’re looking for and it would satisfy your husband’s request for a real name. If you want to go all Hamilton about things, maybe Theodosia? A little out of step with your other kids though.
For double letters, I like Julianna, Lianna, Corrina, and Camilla the best. Annalivia and Livianna don’t seem like a great fit with the more common/historic names of your other kids, and they do give me thoughts of body parts and functions (saliva, liver, etc.). Not a double-letter name, but what about Magnolia? You could call her Maggie and she’d have a double-letter nickname.
As the sister in law of a couple who did in fact use my acknowledged childhood favorite for their third child, I can attest to this^ No matter how you want to rationalize it, using Theodore (at this point all she has) is sort of cruel. It’s only been three years since my niece was born, and I’m now in a position to use her name, so yes, things do happen fast! And while I’ll never bring it up to them (or hold anything against my niece), I’d be lying if I said it didn’t sting a little.
I’m going to go ahead and encourage you to use the name too! I have cousins with the same first and last name since family tradition dictated that you use the paternal and then maternal grandparents’ names first. So there are two Rita since both brothers followed tradition. And it’s fine. They don’t seem to mind it. It’s better if they have different last names for down the line credit type reasons, but it’s not a deal breaker. Hell I keep getting emails for a Christine “Mylastname” in Ohio and it’s mostly hilarious. She might be even more active volunteering in her community if they could find the correct email :)
Honestly, at this point it’s not the idea of doubling up that upsets me (though ironically my SIL is very bothered by suggestions that I might use the name anyway, go figure).
What about Brianna (nn: bree), or Theora as a stand-in for Theodore? My grandma was named Theora…
I would suggest doing either an Ann name or Joy, not both, and ideally I would only do it in the middle spot. Sisters having the same middle name can be a sweet connection, and reusing Ann (or a variation) in the middle would probably be fine, but I think this baby deserves her own unique first name, not something that is so similar to her sister’s. (Especially since you regret that Matthew’s name is popular and thus doesn’t feel as special as you’d like. I think you might end up feeling the same if you gave another daughter a name so similar to Annabelle’s.) Juliette Anne, Vivienne Joy, and Camille Anastasia (which has the Anna sound despite being an unrelated name) would be my picks for Annabelle Joy’s sister.
If you like your SIL I would leave her Theodore or talk to her about you using it as a middle or a variation of it here for your girl. I wouldn’t use Joy and Anna again, although maybe a name that means joy or happy. Are you married to having a double letter name? Thea Felicity is beautiful and goes with your other names. Felicity (nn Fliss for a double letter name) Theodora or Dorothea. Hilary (Hillary, if you swing Democratic!) and Letitia also mean happiness or joy.
Since you’ve indicated some regret over Matthew’s name, I think you should go for what you love over honors or double letters or other limitations. That said, I think Charlotte, Lillian and Vivienne (Swistle’s suggestions) go beautifully with your other names.
Good luck and congratulations!
Also! Are there other women or men in the family you would like to honor? I know that you said Ann is after your mother’s middle name, what about her first or grandparents or the like?
Other names you might like – Evelyn, Silvana (has a little bit of the “anna” type thing going on)
I really like the suggestion of Juliette! Bells and Jules! So wonderful. And Juliette is sleek like Liv is. Would you consider Juliette Annajoy or Juliette Livianne?
Felt compelled to mention that my two daughters are Annabelle and Juliette, and we call them Belle and Jules! Reading your post really made me smile! 😄
It seems like there are a lot of rules and considerations at play. I want to cut through it all and note that the only name you mention both you and your husband like is Olivia. It gets you the nickname Liv, but not the double letters or the “anna.” Only one out of three things you’d like, but both parents liking it might outweigh all other considerations.
If he does come around to Livianna, that gets you everything you want. It sounds more like an established name to me than Annalivia and less repetitive with Annabelle. I also like Caroline in this sibling set, but you say it’s fading for you and doesn’t meet too many of your preferences. Good luck!
I like the option of Vivianna Joy but I would prefer getting Ann out of the first name and make the middle name a bit more unique. Have you considered Joyanna or JoyAnna or AnnaJoyfor a middle name?
Double letter girls names that I really like include:
Juliette Joyanna
Susannah Joy
Romilly AnnaJoy
Cathleen Joyann
What about Julianna? I love Vivian (my mom’s name) and all variants thereof. Livianna is absolutely a real name, I know someone who has it.
I would agree about using EITHER -ann- OR Joy, and not both. But you could use -ann- and a name MEANING “joy” and it wouldn’t be too much. Julianna Beatrice? Felicity Ann?
I think I’m in the same boat as Swistle… if you intend on having more children, you could be roping yourself into a very small corner/predicament if you repeat the “Anna” in the first name, what would you do if you had another girl?? If you are done having children after this or you don’t mind if you break trend with the next, then no problem!!
Off your list I love Lillianna and Livianna. I actually wouldn’t say that Livianna seems made up, to me I would just assume that it was a name from somewhere like Romania. I really like them both.
I also really like Vivianna.
What about Georgianna?
I know I am biased because I have a Juliet. But I really like the idea of Juliette with Annabelle. Belles and Jules. Belles and Etta. Etc. so many good nn you can pull out of both. Definitely a good option if you move away from double first name. Also, you could easily give her one or two middle names, using Joy and Anna.
As for the boys. Am I the only one who thinks it wouldn’t be horrible to use Theodore for a middle name spot? I wouldn’t use it as a first name. But realistically, you could talk to her and say you would really love to use it as an honor middle name and if she has a boy, that she should still use it if she wants. Plus, it’d be a neat way to tie the cousins in together.
Ps. I love Wells. When we were pregnant with Juliet, had she been a boy she would’ve been Maxwell nn Wells.
Good luck.
Oh my gosh, I have such heart-eyes for Georgianna. GREAT suggestion!!
I can see sort of see using a shared element in each girl’s name (although I don’t really see why that should be important for the sisters yet not the brothers), but I think repeating Ann AND Joy is too much and might lead to jealousy between the girls — especially the younger one, who might eventually feel that her name was chosen less for being loved and more for fulfilling a logic puzzle. I mean, sibling coordination is one thing, but this is something else entirely.
I agree with the comment that if you love Olivia and the nickname Liv, then you should name her Olivia and be done with it. If Olivia is just too common for you (which I can understand — I jettisoned my all-time favorite baby name, Sophia, because by the time I was pregnant it was too popular for me), I suggest focusing solely on the names that you and your husband love and forgetting all your coordination/duplication rules. AFTER you’ve made a list of names that make your hearts go a-flutter, then you can decide if the rules are still important to you.
Of the names you’ve mentioned, I think Livianna sounds like a real name, Caroline is lovely, Everly is a bit incongruous with the siblings, Lillianna is lovely (I’d spell it with one “L” to keep me from going cross-eyed,, but that’s quibbling), and Annalivia looks somehow obscene for reasons I can’t quite identify.
Oh, and regarding Theodore — I think using it for a third son is especially unpleasant, as if you were telling SIL, “Yeah, it’s only our SIXTH most favorite boy’s name (after Matthew, William, Joseph, Bennett, and Patrick), but we’re STILL going to take it away from you, so there!”
My daughter is named Livia. Although we always liked Livia the best, we were concerned about the popularity of Olivia and considered Liviana, but eventually decided to go with the one we liked best. I haven’t regretted it. We call her Livi as a nickname, but I think as she gets older, Liv will become used more (her teacher this year calls her that). I will say the one downside with Livia is that we get a lot of people calling her Olivia or being confused and having to say, “It’s just Livia” on first meeting. All that being said, I’d say go with what you like best–even if it’s popular, it’s worth it to have the name you love.
I also have a Livia! When I chose it, I sort of knew Olivia was popular, but did not realize how much we would be correcting people, and in particular how hard children her age would find it to say her name without an “uh” sound at the beginning. It fits her perfectly, though, and I’d never want her to change it. But Livianna is beautiful, and I might have considered it, had I even thought of it (Livia was sort of hard won, in that my husband had been nixing all my other suggestions, so the second he agreed, I stopped looking).
Such good suggestions and comments as usual. A name popped into my head when reading: Ellery. It’s not more androgynous but I really like it and ‘ll’!
What about Ann-Olivia? A double name first name?
I personally am totally against repeating Ann and Joy for your second daughter. You say that it is important to you, but I think it is also important that your second daughter have her own name. I’m not trying to be rude about it, but even Lillianna is to close to Annabelle for me. If I heard this sibset, I would be like, Wow they REALLY LIKE the name Anna. I think you should focus on finding complimentary names! Your sons do not have any matching names, so why this for the daughters? So many great names to chose from, please try not to hem yourself in.
Swistle suggestions that I agree with: Charlotte, Emmeline. Olivia is a beautiful addition to your sibset! It’s a lovely name.
Some 3-4 syllable suggestions: , Abigail (Abby), Madeline (Maddy), Natalie (Nat, Tallie), Eleanor (Ellie), Matilda (Tilly), Penelope (Penny, Nelly), Victoria (Vicky, Tori), Rosemary, Helena, Margaret (Maggie), Louisa (Lulu), Elena/Elaina (Lena, Ellie)
Suggestions to replace Joy: Blythe, Faith, Faye, Lark, Eve, Mae, True, June, Claire, Pearl
Combos- Bennett Patrick, Matthew William Joseph, Annabelle Joy and little sister:
Rosemary June
Abigail Blythe
Olivia Faye
Emmeline Claire
Charlotte Rose
Madeline Eve
Louisa Pearl
PS. I would save Theodore for your SIL. You’re having a girl this time anyway. Thea would be cute, but doesn’t match much of your other criteria.
Using another ‘Anna’ name just seems too similar to me and I personally wouldn’t do it.
Vivienne and Juliette are great suggestions! What about Livinnia?
Gabriella or Emmeline sound lovely with Annabelle. I especially like Annabelle and Emmeline nn Emmy together!
Good luck!
I personally wouldn’t use Anna in a second daughters first name…if you really want the connection I think Joyann or even Joy would be ok as a second /middle name. If you had a 3rd daughter you could use a similar 2nd name..thus linking them all by honouring your Mother and the special feeling you have for Joy.
My sister’s and I share Mary,Maria and Maree as our 2nd names and it was never an issue. Of my 6 sisters-in-law (husband’s sisters) there are 3 Marys’, 2 Anne’s, and an Ellen – first name Rosemary.
(Clearly Catholic and born in the 60s and 70s)
The same or similar middle names is a nice link I feel.
I have seen Olivianna before if you really want to have ‘Anna’ and use ‘Liv’ as a nickname.
Annabelle and Olivianna
I agree that you’re really boxing yourself into a corner if you happen to have another girl after this one and you’ve already given Joy and names with “Ann” or “Anna” to both. If it were me I would stay far away from repeating either of those names. Then again, liking or disliking the repetition of names in a sib-set is a matter of opinion! For me, it would be a huge negative, and I suspect it would be for many others. You obviously love it, if I were in your shoes I would just want to have considered that it may raise some eyebrows.
I don’t disagree with your husband that “Livianna” and “Annalivia” both sound kind of made-up. “Livianna” sounds nice and so similar to many other names that it would not bother me at all, however. “Annalivia,” for me would be too close to Annabelle and also does sound a little… biological? Someone above said something about liver and saliva and I must admit that it reads that way to me too. I really like “Lillianna” and it doesn’t sound made up to me. What about something like “Lillianne” or “Vivianne” so you’re getting “ann” with both girls, but it’s a bit less duplication than repeating “anna”?
In your shoes though, I’d go with Olivia Joy. It seems to be the name that gets both you and your husband the most things you each want in a name.
I agree with those who wouldn’t repeat “Anna” in the first name. I like Olivia Joy, Charlotte Olivia, Emmeline Joy or Emmeline Charlotte, and Juliette Lilly or Juliette Vivienne. I also think Vivienne could work as a first name, but then I would not do Joy or Ann in the middle.
Here are some names that have ann in them (in spelling, or just in sound), and that I feel work with Annabelle:
Arianna
Rhiannon
Tiffany
Bethany
Angelina
Marianne
Channing
Lachlan
Cassandra
Francine
Liana
Moana
Morgana
Bianca
Tana
Viviana
Diana
Esperanza
I definitely believe that the second daughter should have her own name, but, I think that it could potentially be a sweet thing for you and them to know that they both have that part of your name/ your mom’s name in theirs – IF the second name is unique, just as your second daughter will be unique. For example, Annabelle and Cassandra do not seem too the-same to me, but do both have that connection for you. I would not, by any means, feel comfortable replicating one daughter’s name in another.
Also, if your daughter ends up being quite vivacious, you could call her Vivi regardless of her actual name! :) If anyone asks, there is the tie-in; “She was just so vivacious, that we started referring to her as that, and then it became Vivi!” You could even turn it into Livi, especially if you used a name like Liana/Lilliana, because you could go from Vivacious Liana/Lilly to Vivvy Livvy//Livi/Livvie. Vivvy Livvy is precious to me, for a vivacious L-name girl. And, you would then have both Livvy and Lilly as nicknames for her.
I would recommend looking for another middle name, as well…. One that is meaningful to you, and that makes your heart soar/patter, but that is not “Joy.” Grace? Hope? Serene/Serena? Faith? Prudence? Honor? Haven? Amity? Jewel? Rose/Fleur/Flora? Liberty? Naomi means “my delight.” Miriam means “wished-for child.” Glory? Sky/Skye/Dawn? Olivia, and just use that as your reason to call her Liv, no matter what her first name is?
Plus, I would suggest deciding which of your name preferences is the most important to you. Double letters in all of your children’s names? Ann in the first name? Joy as the middle name? Your second daughter might like that her name is the same as her older sister’s, or she might HATE it. And I think that the latter is the more likely of the two. Personally, I would prioritize giving her a name that matters to you, but that you have not already used for her big sister.
I do worry, too, that if you were to essentially re-use your first daughter’s names, that you would lose the joy that you feel about them once they have been done again. Having an Annabelle Joy and an Annalivia Joy ((a name that I would not use anyway, due to “an-al” issues)) might take the spark out of the names for you. Additionally, I dislike that Annabelle is well-known and Annalivia is unheard of. Livianna is better, but my phone offers some crazy suggestions for what I may mean instead, such as “Luciano,” and “Libyans,” which it absolutely does not feel the need to do when I write Annabelle. Annabelle and Olivia are a much closer style and popularity match, for me. (((Annabelle Joy and Olivia Faith? Or Olivia Juliana, to be called Livvy and Jewel/Jules? Livvy Jewel, so cute and sweet!!!)))
I hope that this has provided some helpful ideas for you!!
I do love the idea of Savannah or Hannah or something with a somewhat hidden “Anna.” Could you do something that means joy .. like Allegra? It fits the two-letter requirement, it sounds popular but isn’t and has the adorable nicknames Allie or Leggy :) Or Winifred (means joy & peace)? Or Farrah, which has a similar look to Anna but isn’t Anna (also means joy)?
For me, using Joy as the middle name again would not feel ideal. If you really wanted to do that, I would consider using a different spelling or variant such as Joie or use Anne for the middle name, but I would instead explore names that mean “joy” like Abigail (gives joy) Beatrice (bringer of joy), Allegra (cheerful/lively), Blythe (happy), Bliss (happy).
It seems you really like the Olivia/Livia/Liviana first name.
I think Annabelle and Olivia sound great together and would not worry so much about the popularity. If you want to include the double letters, you could always go with Olivianne, Olivia-Anne, or Livianne.
Based on your criteria, I think all of these names go together well but also have their own unique spark:
Annabelle and Vivianne
Annabelle and Livianne
Annabelle and Livianna
Annabelle and Olivia
Annabelle and Alivia
Annabelle and Emmelia
Annabelle and Abigaille
My favorites would be:
Vivianne Blythe (LOVE THIS THE MOST!)
Olivia Anne
Livianna Bliss
Olivia actually has a double letter, sort of, two “i”s! I know they aren’t together… But you could spell her nickname Livvi anyway, as suggested. I too would be cautious about overdoing the Anna Joy thing. My sister and I shared a piece of our names, and it was a point of confusion and as the younger one I often felt I didn’t have my own name. Maybe Joanna as a middle name? Similar to Anna Joy but unique too.
I love this point! Double letters, just separated.
Bennett and Annabelle have more than one set of double letters each, and yet that does not make Matthew a lesser choice. So, why not Olivia, and just emphasize that all of the kids do have more than one of at least one of the letters in their names?
Olivia, nicknamed Livvi (for extra double-letter-ness), would be a great match with Annabelle nicknamed Bells. Annabelle Joy and Olivia Grace, Livvi and Bells.
I have kids that share initials and kids that have the same dominant vowel, we have used family names for each and I would be fine with cousins sharing names and in fact ours do almost.
So all of that to say that I’m not extreme about name sharing/stealing etc…. but two names that start with Anna__ is mighty close for sister? Sharing middles is kind of cool though. I personally would choose either Anna or Joy to repeat but not both OR use matching initials if you like that OR have Anna embedded in the name (beware the ‘last’ child not actually being the last – mine wasn’t).
If you want to go with anna my favourite is Sussanah with Annabelle, same number of letters and syllables, a double letter but a completely different nickname and sound to my ear Zuzu and Belle, Susy and Bellesy, Su and Bee!!! Cute but wearable for a grown woman.
For a boy I don’t support Dibs on family names (my BIL called dibs and we over ruled with the proviso that he could use it too if he wanted) but …. you have 4 kids and she doesn’t have any…. OUCH. That has to really hurt even if she loves your kids. I had two miscarriages before my first and my cousin fell pregnant and it …. hurt. A LOT. I don’t know if I could have held up the smiles four times over. And if she had used ‘my’ name…. I would walk very carefully around this. I certainly would not point out to her or anyone in the family that the name might not get used if you aren’t the one to use it. I definitely wouldn’t speak the words ‘no prospects’ out loud. I don’t know. I think your hubby needs to negotiate this one with his sister. This could be family relationship deal -breaker and I don’t know if this is the hill I would choose to die on. Good luck.
I have to agree with all of this on the dib names. Generally, I don’t think dibs count, but as a lady who’s been watching all her friends have kids and still doesn’t have any of her own, it’s hard to not see your SIL side. It hurts to see everyone else having babies (cute ones you get to name!) when you’re the one who has no current chance (this is from my personal experience). She might not have any prospects now, but it seems like you would be rubbing it in to use Theodore (even if that’s not what you mean!). Is there any other way you could honor your grandfather, his middle name, etc.?
Anyway, with the girl that you’re having, I love Olivia from your list. It has double letters and sounds so good with your other kids’ names. With a name that means joy for the middle, that would be a great connection for the sisters while still giving them their own names.
I think Livianna is a lovely name — definitely not made up, though Liviana is the more traditional spelling — and I don’t think it’s overly similar to Annabelle. But I will also echo others in suggesting that it’s important for you to love this daughter’s name on its own merits, not chiefly because it resembles her older sister’s name in certain ways. And if you repeat “Anna” this time around, I wouldn’t repeat “Joy” as well. Maybe save “Joy” as a sister-link for a future daughter, in case you aren’t able to settle on a third “Anna” name?
Oh, and a few lovely possibilities that haven’t been suggested are Tatianna, Katrianna, and Leanna.
Just adding another double letter name to the mix: Ottilia. I think it’s a strong and uncommon name, although it doesn’t have the ann or joy reference…
Joyce is a lovely, old-fashioned variant of Joy.
Filed under the “Would I want to have this name?” test: I would not want a super similar name to my big sister… but can totally see them revelling in a similarity. That said, I vote for a middle name of “Joyanna/JoyAnna” and a unique initial/first name.
Echoing previous commenters about the re-using of Anna or Joy: I get that it is super important to you that your daughters share a name, but I honestly wonder if it would be important to them. Having the same middle name is fine, but humans (especially young adults) crave individuality and identity, and it seems unfair to set them up where they need to break free to fix their own identity. Give them their own identity in first names at least.
Joanna or Johanna = Joy + Anna
Olive is a real name that is less common than Olivia.
Lavender or Lavina could get you the nn Liv and are both quirky
I like Annette or Annika for a middle name.
All that said, I would give this baby at least her own first name. Maybe even just stick with the double letter fn theme and a different honor middle. Or just choose your favorite regardless of patterns. Olive Dorothea is nice, as are the many other suggestions above. The girls will get lumped together for many things, at least give them their own identities.
I think Livianna is pretty but way too close to Annabelle.
Olivia is beautiful and despite being common I have only met one.
I’d walk away from the idea of repeating Anna and Joy. Could you find a middle with the meaning joy as mentioned?
Olivia Felicity
Olivia Alaia
Olivia Blythe
Olivia Beatrice