Hi Swistle!
Longtime reader here, and currently facing a baby naming dilemma. Our daughter is due in a few weeks. She’ll be our second and last child – younger sister to our son C!yde Thom@s. Our last name sounds like Fifer (like the famous actress, Michelle).
We’ve narrowed it down to two options: Louisa Jean or Margot Virginia. Jean is an honor name for my husband’s side of the family, while Virginia is a nod to my side. We’re not interested in switching the middle names (Ie Louisa Virginia or Margot Jean). I honestly love them both, but I’m afraid I will regret not using whichever one we don’t choose. We have not (and will not) ask our family and friends for their opinions because that always seems to lead to even more second-guessing and confusion. Hoping we can do a quick poll with your readers.
Thank you for you help!
Yes, let’s do a poll! Here it is: Twitter poll. [Poll closed; see results at end of post.] And don’t worry if you can’t vote on Twitter: we shall use that poll as ONE measurement (of people who can vote on Twitter—likely including some people who are voting without reading the post and without being baby-name enthusiasts, as well as many who HAVE read the post and ARE baby-name enthusiasts), and the comments section on this post as ANOTHER measurement (of people who have likely read the post and are baby-name enthusiasts, but are not on Twitter and/or have more to say about their choice). I think one of the true values of polls is the REACTION to them, anyway: a parent may find they are hoping for a certain result, or feel disappointed at seeing a certain result, which is good for clarifying feelings.
In the situation where you love both names and think you will feel regret either way, I will tell you how I would start making this decision: with the honor names. Here are two activities I would do:
1. I would think about the person Jean and the person Virginia, and think about which one has stronger positive feelings associated with them. For example, if Jean were your husband’s beloved grandmother who helped raise him, and Virginia were a great-aunt you met several times, I would say the name Jean has the stronger feelings and the stronger reason to use it.
2. I would look at how the honor names had been distributed so far. Which family’s surname do the children have? Is either the name C!yde or the name Thom@s an honor name, and if so, for which side of the family? For example, if C!yde is your father’s name and Thom@s is your brother’s name and both children have your family surname, then this time I would let the honor name from your husband’s side of the family be the deciding factor.
Name update:
It was so helpful to read all of the comments on your post about my baby name question. Interesting that the Twitter poll went slightly in the direction of Louisa, while the comments on the post were pretty overwhelmingly for Margot. Our daughter was born a few weeks ago, and we went with Margot Virginia! Thanks again for everyone’s comments.
MARGOT VIRGINIA. I don’t know why, but the combination is magical.
I am enchanted with Margot Virginia. Im trying to figure out why…I think it’s bcs Margot feels both old & edgy- trendy, like Clyde. AND Virginia in the middle is unusual. I love Louisa but I want MORE out of a middle than just Jean. It feels more cutesy & filler-ish, both qualities I avidly avoid. My vote is definitely for Margot Virginia. I think if you really want Jean too, Margot Jean Virginia or Margot Virginia Jean would be lovely.
I came here to vote for Louisa Jean, but the points made in this comment have swayed me towards Margot Virginia!
I am also team MVP. Though, even better would be Margot Virginia Jean. Why not use both honour names? Two middles is fairly common these days. Louisa is also gorgeous though. I can see the struggle.
My first born is Louisa, which I adore. But my vote for a sister to Clyde is Margot Virginia!
Oh my goodness that is brilliant! Yes! Assuming your surname is spelled the same as Actress Michelle’s I think MVP is such a great set of initials that it would sway me in the Margot Virginia direction.
On the plus side, though, both names are wonderful so you really can’t go wrong.
I like both names but voted Margot Virginia for two reasons:
1) I like Margot more than Louisa overall
2) Virginia is a family name from your side and since, presumably, both kids have your husband’s family surname I think it’s fair to have middles come from Mom’s side…even if Clyde and/or Thomas already come from your side.
Now, if as Swistle mentioned, Jean is someone you’d like to honor more than Virginia, then I think there’s your answer. Or vice versa.
Vote for Louisa Jean
I like Louisa more than Margot. Lou is such a sweet nickname. In this case, I also like Louisa better with your last name. So I’d be solidly team Louisa. BUT both names are sweet and well balanced so you can’t go wrong! If you like both, I’d bring them both to the hospital—it might be clear which she is when she’s here. (Our daughter was clearly one of our top three names as soon as we met her.)
MARGOT VIRGINIA!!!! I agree, this name
is just pure magic to my ears!
I very slightly like the way Clyde and Louisa go together a smidge more than Clyde & Margot. But not enough to tell you to walk away from that beautiful name.
LOUISA JEAN is so good and particularly excellent with Clyde! Margot Virginia is also amazing, this is a win-win situation.
Margot Virginia. And while you’re impatiently waiting for the birth, I highly recommend you watch The Durrells in Corfu on Amazon Prime. It’s utterly charming and the two leading women characters are Louisa and Margot.
Margot Virginia, 100%. MVP are the best initials ever, plus it’s much more elegant. Margot Virginia sounds like your cool artist friend, Louisa Jean sounds like someone from the Titanic, or possibly a 1930s farm?
Both names are beautiful but if forced to choose, I would say… Louisa Jean.
Agree that this is a win-win! Both are gorgeous names. If there were a gun to my head I might pick Louisa Jean (due to combined love for Louisa May Alcott and Jean Louise “Scout” Finch, I think), but you really can’t go wrong with either option.
Another vote for Margot Virginia! This emphasis pattern is perfect: MAR-got vir-GIN-ia . Middles with the emphasis on not-the-first syllable usually sound best with an emphasis-on-first-syllable first name.
Louisa Jean also has a nice emphasis flow. But I like Margot Virginia best.
Another vote for MV!
So I’m thinking Bonnie & Clyde and Thelma & Louise and because of that Louisa sounds like a sister to Clyde.
I think Margot Fifer sounds better than Louisa Fifer – maybe something about the vowel sounds together?
Although I love both first names, I think Margot sounds like a perfect pairing with Clyde and the combination with Virginia outshines Louisa Jean. MVP is the icing on the cake.
I know you said you wouldn’t consider switching middle names, but what about Margot Louise?
I am sure there is a reason this can’t be done but why can’t she use Virginia Jean. She loves both names and it sounds great.
Ahem, some of you guys are a little hard on the name Jean lol.
But Margot Virginia got my vote too :)
Love this. ;)
Louisa Jean because of the better popularity match with Clyde.
Margot Virginia for SURE. I like Louisa Jean, and you really can’t go wrong— but Margot is one of my very, very favorite names.
Both names are perfection!
My first instinct was Louisa Jean but when I started repeating both aloud with and without the surname, I became torn because they are both so perfect. I just hope that which ever name you don’t choose inspires one of Swistle’s other readers to use it because both names deserve life.
I don’t think you can go wrong with either name, but I like the way Margot Virginia goes with Clyde.
By the way, I love the name Clyde! One of my top boy names my husband didn’t go for.
There’s a country music vibe I enjoy
Margot Virginia
I like Margot with Clyde better than Louisa with Clyde.
I think Margot sounds better with your last name.
Margot Virginia Jean is definitely worthy of consideration — or Margot Virginia-Jean.
I LOVE Margot but my vote goes to Louisa. I think the three syllable fn sounds better with your 2 syllable ln
Margot Virginia!
One thing to consider: are you nickname people?
Louisa is much more likely to get shortened to a nickname unless you are insistent otherwise. And even then once school hits… that gets a bit out of your hands. Maybe you are! And that’s fine! My husband and I don’t prefer nicknames so we chose 2 syllable names that don’t lend themselves that way for our kids.
Clyde wouldn’t be a name to get instantly nicknamed, and Margot seems short enough to lessen that likelihood as well.
With your last name and brother Clyde, I prefer Margot. But I don’t think you can go wrong.
I love the name Louisa so much, so I personally would use Louisa Jean and melt every time I said it, but both full names are so smashingly perfect. I also really like the name Jean (more than Virginia) and think it’s due for a comeback. And like everyone else, I think MVP has an incredible rhythm to it.
I can picture calling “Clyde! Margot!” more than “Clyde! Louisa!” so I think that sibset has the slight advantage.
Swistle’s criteria are the most important. My personal preference, because I I have personal ties to both names, is Margot Virginia. (In fact, my never going to use it name is Margot Fay, but I’ve just added Virginia as a second middle. Margot Fay Virginia. Beautiful. With or without my aunt’s name in there.)
Ooh tough call! I think the flow of Louisa Jean is adorable… but I don’t like it as much with the Jean taken out, the double ‘er’ ending sound of LouisA FifER isn’t my fave (although also by no means problematic).
Also, I’m biased, I’ve got a Margot! So I pick Margot Virginia. I also think it’s nice to have honour names from your side if your last name is your husband’s.
Both beautiful names, but another vote for Margot Virginia! I also don’t mind Margot Virginia Jean, as others have suggested.
My name is Louisa so I vote Louisa Jean!
I see what the problem is – you’ve come up with two wonderful names. If I HAVE to choose, it’s Louisa Jean. Margot is trendy where I live and Louisa isn’t yet. Margot Virginia tickles me more than Louisa Jean, but for daily use, Louisa gives me more of a thrill than Margot, and first name matters most in my book.
Louisa Jean did remind me (way in the back of my mind) of Jean Louise from To Kill A Mockingbird, which is fun. That said: MVP! And I cede to Swistle’s advice, which was very good.
Love Louisa Jean with Clyde
I was too late for the Twitter poll, but I vote Margot Virginia. It’s beautiful and I like it with Clyde.
I love both names, Margot and Louise/Louisa are on my own future baby names list. But in your situation I would definitely go with Louisa Jean. I agree with everybody else that you really can’t go wrong, but I think Louisa Jean matches Clyde perfectly, actually I think it’s a far better style match than Margot and Clyde. Good luck!
Also, I personally wouldn’t want to be M. Fifer in those situations where you’re just given the first initial and your last name. I know that’s usually only a few formal situations, but even so. Then again your daughter’s generation probably won’t have the Michelle Pfeiffer association. Thought it was worth mentioning though.
A strong vote for Margot. I prefer Margot to Louisa but even with putting that to one side, I think Margot sounds better with both Clyde AND your surname. I know you’re not interested in changing middle names but I would myself vote for Margot Jean!