Here is the game we are playing:
We are going to pretend that we are naming a baby and that the name MUST start with a certain letter, and so we will need one name starting with that letter for a boy and one name starting with that letter for a girl, or else one name that would work for either, EVEN IF we don’t like any of the names that start with that letter enough to Actually In Real Life choose them. It is just a game where we place artificial restrictions on reality in order to create the kind of tension that makes games fun—like when you have to choose what foods you’d eat if you could only eat three foods for the rest of your life: the fun is in thinking it over AS IF it were a real forced decision, while KNOWING it is not. There is a baby! It MUST be given a name with a particular letter! That is the game.
After that basic concept, we can decide our own sub-rules, based on what makes the game fun and not stressful. Some examples:
• I’m not planning to play that the name has to fit with the names of my other children or with the surname, though this would be an option for anyone who would LIKE to play it that way; I think I will have more fun if I pretend it is a stand-alone baby and that the surname is not an issue, though I may change my mind as we go. (And if I narrow it down to a few options and can’t decide, I might use siblings/surname as a tie-breaker.)
• It is also fine to narrow it down to a few finalists without getting to The One Name.
• It is fine to wave aside issues such as a friend who already used that name, a famous person with the name, etc., if that makes it more fun and less stressful to choose. This is just pretend, so you can pretend that those things aren’t issues if you want to. (Or you can let the issues stand as they are in real life, if THAT is more fun.)
• We can also all make our own decisions about whether the names have to be ones we think we’d ACTUALLY USE in that hypothetical scenario, or just our FAVORITE names starting with that letter, regardless of whether we think the names are practical; I am not sure which way I will play it, and I likely won’t be consistent.
• If you already have a child with a name starting with the letter we’re working on, you get to pick again from all the names that remain; you don’t have to choose your child’s name as your favorite just because it WAS your favorite: this is a FRESH baby, and you wouldn’t give it the same name as your existing child. (If you would normally prefer not to repeat an initial within a sibling group, you can just pretend that’s NOT a preference for the sake of the game.)
• You can do as much or as little explanation as you like in your comment: you can just list the names you chose, or you can explain your process/preferences/reasoning/runners-up, or whatever is most fun.
Today’s letter is S. I have Sabrina, Sally, and Simone on my girl-name list already. I’d want to consider Seraphina, Sophronia/Phronsie, Susanna(h), and Sylvia, too. But I think I would end up choosing Sabrina.
I have an S name on my boy-name list already, too, and it’s Simon; however, we named a cat Simon. (My policy going forward: NO POTENTIAL GRANDCHILD NAMES FOR ANIMALS.) A recent surprising addition to my list is Stanley, which came from watching the show Detectorists, which I recommend for nice calm viewing in These Stressful Times; I have a Cute Boy association with the name, because of Stan in the Beverly Cleary book Fifteen. I have had Shepard/Shep and Smith on my list, but I don’t think I’d use either one. I like Solomon, but people already think we’re a religious homeschooling family and I don’t want to feed into that. Oh, Sullivan! I’ve had Sullivan on my list. I like that. I think if I were naming an actual child of mine, though, I would end up using Simon, with the for-the-game assumption that everyone could get over the issue of the cat’s name.
Now you! If you want to! Only if it’s fun and not stressful! Feel free to adjust the game-play to be fun and not stressful!
Stanley is such a great choice for a boy. I love Sasha for a boy and though some may find it too common and boring, I’ve always loved Sara.
Sybil! I named one of my pet rats Sybil and she is such a delight but I am a teeny bit annoyed with myself for using the name for a pet instead of hoarding it for a child. Well, that’s not to be helped.
I also like Seraphina and Serena.
For boys, I’m fond of Simeon, I think. Sasha on a boy is also lovely, but that may be partly because Sasha Velour (drag queen, Sasha in and out of drag) is so sweet and lovely and warm and kind every time we meet.
One of my daughters is named Serena and it hits that sweet spot of being not-overused but still is easy to pronounce and spell.
Hi fellow lover of rats and drag queens! My housemate J used to have two pet rats, and when they died J got tattoos of them as drag queens on each shoulder.
Sadie and either Sullivan or Solomon.
Shea for a boy, I think. Though I don’t think it’d be my first choice for a boy in general.
And for a girl, Sabine. I realllly like Sabine.
Susanna and Seamus
Sutton or Sloane for a girl!
Smith or Silas for a boy!
Sylvia and Samuel.
I also regularly think about a Baby Name Wizard post from years ago, discussing unisex names for an intersex or transgender child. Unisex names are not usually my style, but in this instance, Sage is one of my favorites.
I was coming on to say Sylvia and Samuel as well! I also like Stephen. Though, I have to say, while I like those masculine S names, I truly love, love, love Sylvia, and it’s at the top of our (admittedly hypothetical) list.
Sabrina for a girl and Simon for a boy. They were on my list when naming my two kids and continue to be favorites.
For a girl I have Sabrina, which I love. I also like Samira. For a boy I’m not in love with any of the names buy I like Saul and Samir.
Sorley (boy) and Sorrel (girl). These are our current top names for baby due in March. Obviously using one rules out the other for a future child which is sad. But I would be very happy with either of them so we will see what we get!
If they were going to be siblings I would say Sorley and Solveig (I pronounce it Solve-eye so without the g).
Oh I LOVE Sorrel! It’s been one of my favourites since I was a little girl.
For a girl, I like Sadie and Sabine. But the winner is definitely Simone. I just love Simone.
For a boy, I like Simon and Sullivan, but I think I would go for Sinclair.
Saskia! Love it. And Stanley is lovely in an old fashioned way. Simon, too.
Susannah is one of my favorite girl names so that would be easy, assuming I was willing to give up my short names rule (since my kids have a five-syllable hyphenated last name). For the purpose of this game, I’m giving up the rule.
That’s funny you have a cat named Simon because our (recently deceased) cat’s middle name was Simon. (Yes, I give the cats middle names.) It’s a favorite, and I don’t think “cat’s middle name” is a reason not to use it. My father’s name was Steven, so I could use that but I’d be more likely to use it as a middle.
I have children with five-syllable hyphenated last names and I am delighted to report that the one with the nine-letter, three-syllable first name loves her name. And Susannah is lovely!
My cat has a middle name! It’s Amadeus. I don’t even remember why I picked it (he’s 12) but since I kept his shelter name, I wanted to pick out part of it.
Years after, I realized a middle name I could have given him that would have made his whole name a pun with my last name. Oh well.
Soren for a boy, definitely. Not sure for a girl. I’d probably choose something like Sloane or Sage.
I have many S names loves. I love Sally and Sadie, would I want to name a daughter Sarah with a designated nickname? Susannah is probably my favorite but it’s my niece’s name (and Simon is my nephew!). I like Samantha a lot but it FEELS like an 80s name to me? (Is it the American Girl Doll?). Sophia and Stella were favorites when I was pregnant with Gabriel, but they have lost their freshness for a new 2020 baby. I really like Sabrina I think I like Sylvie, or maybe Sylvia, more. Yes I’m going with Sylvie.
For boys, Seth was one of my favorite names when I was a kid naming imaginary children, but now I’m around to thinking it’s too lispy. Simon is occupied by aforementioned nephew. I think my favorites are Sawyer and Silas. I think my favorite is Sawyer.
Ok Sylvie and Sawyer.
Unless, hmmm. Sam? I do LOVE Sam (for Samuel). No I’ll stick with Sawyer.
Scott and Sara!
Those are my cousins’ names! They are siblings.
Seth and Simone. Or Sage for either gender.
A+ choices
Susanna and Samuel, or maybe Soren…
For a girl, I like Stella or Sophie. For a boy, my secret favorite is Sidney, which gives me such a 1920s gentlemanly vibe! But I don’t think I’d use it IRL…I’d probably instead go with Sebastian, nn Seb.
Scarlet or Skye for a girl
Sean or Sebastian for a boy
I also love Shea and Shepherd
SO many good S names!!
For girls, I love Sally, Sarah and Sadie. Samantha and Sabrina were my favorites as a kid, but the both feel dated to me now. I has a brief love-affair with Stella. But now I’m feeling Sierra and Simone. I don’t know that I can chose between the two… Simone. Sierra.
For boys I quite like Sawyer and Sullivan nicknamed Sully. Simeon and Simon are both wonderfully adorable. And Sebastian (Sebby) makes me very happy. But my long-time favorite S name is Seth.
I really like Silas, Sage, Shane for boys but would probably go with Silas.
For girls, I have long wanted to use the name Sara-Rose. I also like Sarita and Skylar but would have to with Sara-Rose.
Simone for a girl, Sebastian or Santiago for a boy!
Ooh this one is tougher! Lots of S names I like. I think for a girl I’d be torn between Susannah and Sylvie/Sylvia. And for a boy, maybe Solomon or Seth? I know a baby Solomon nn Solly and it’s SO CUTE IRL.
Okay, my favorite girl’s name starting with S is Sunniva. I LOVE it, and love its meaning (sun gift). But I don’t know if it would be a real-life pick for me, maybe a little too unusual. In that case, I think my favorite (tamer) choice would be Selma, which I also like a lot.
For a boy, my older child was nearly named Sylvester (would have used the nickname Sy) but at the last minute we went with a less unusual name (which I don’t regret, it is perfect for him). So I’ll choose Sylvester/Sy for this game! Still love it and its meaning of “forest dweller.”
Silas! Silas! I LOVE that name. My sister in law just used it for my nephew and I’m sooo glad she did because I can’t. My first son is Miles and Miles, Silas is just too close to Miley Cyrus in my head that I couldn’t do it for a real child.
And for a girl… Sabine or Sarah.
Oh yes, S is just as tough to choose as T was – so many faves! And hubby put his foot down on repeating initials, and his starts with an S. (Which I find odd, as he was the only S in a family of 4, with three Js. And I repeat my initial with my dad so our mail often got mixed up, yet I’m fine with repeating initials.)
I know IRL (boys) Solomon and Sullivan and Sasha and love seeing their names. I have not met a Sara/h yet that isn’t fairly wonderful.
Girl: Sabine (partly because nickname BEAN!?), but Simone and Sybil I’d also choose in a heartbeat. (Simone is a bit tough because we pronounce our French-Canadian friend Simon’s name like Simone – SEE-mo. And I’ve always loved loved Billie for a girl, but my stepdad is B1lly, so I thought a sneaky way to get to Billie might be Sybil nn Billie – if it fit her.)
Boy: Stellan, but I also love the name Scott!
For a girl, in this pretend-land where I don’t worry about how it sounds with the last name, I’d use Sh1r@, for my beloved grandmother Sh1rl3y.
I also love Sabrina, and like Sylvia and Sutton and Seraphina. My childhood favorite was Shannon, but that feels dated.
For a boy, my favorite is one we used already as a middle name, S@mu3l. Also very fond of Simon, Sebastian, Solomon (Solly!), and I’d love to meet a little Seamus though I wouldn’t use it as we’re not of Irish descent.
oh, and Stella!
Oh, there are so many good names to choose from, the more I think about it. Tried to narrow it down for my top choices 2020.
Girl: Sally
Boy: Silas
Other top contenders from various phases of my life:
Sean, Spencer, Seth, Simon, Sasha/Sascha, Sage, Sheridan, Sophie, Sylvia, Simone, Sarah.
Samuel & Susanna
Totally forgot to put in Siobhan for a girl! My husband is Irish and it’s pretty common over there. I love the sound of it!
Samuel and Sybil. I love a name that starts with S and ends in L.
Well, I’m finding S difficult and a bit overwhelming. But! I must persevere.
I think for a girl I would go with Seraphina.
In this imaginary world my husband would not veto this immediately. (This is how I’ve decided to play the game. NO RULES. Last names don’t matter. Current children’s names don’t matter. Husband’s opinion doesn’t matter.) Although, I also like Sutton.
And for a boy: Sawyer. Backup would be Sebastian.
My biggest regret in naming my daughter is that she has no honor names (and there were so many Good ones with GOOD reasons to use them–she was the first born great grandchild & born on great grandma’s birthday & how cute is Janie?! My maiden name is B3verly and my dad has no brothers or sons. . . ) So for hypothetical baby that has to have an “S,” is easy:
Girl-Sylvia (my other grandmother)
Boy-Smith (my mother’s maiden name)
We’re into the “wealth of choices” letters, and I’m so behind! Going back now to do all the letters I’ve missed in hopes of actually needing that list (pls cross fingers).
Susannah and Simon
I think I’d be torn between Sybil and Susannah but would likely end up with Sybil as it honors a beloved great aunt. Also loving Sally and Stevie a lot these days.
For a boy, Sullivan or Seth or Spencer are faves. I’d probably go with Sullivan, nn Sully.
Sloane and Sebastian
For a boy, absolutely Sebastian. Love, love, love!
I’d be tempted by Serena or Sophia for a girl, but ultimately, my heart belongs to the gorgeous Seraphina. It basically combines the best parts of Serena and Sophia, after all!
Girl: Sky
Boy: Sheridan
Runners-up: Scarlett, Starling, Sutter, Selene, Sidonie, Sylvan
Shiloh for a girl
Silas for a boy
Though I love Seth and Simon as well
My firstborn is Stephen, pronounced Steffan and is a family name I wish my hubby hadn’t talked me into. Stephen doesn’t mind, though. Today is his 22nd birthday!
We almost went with SIDONIE as my daughter’s middle honor name. She’s nearly 21 and still wishes we had!
For a boy, Stephen
Oh, I love Sidonie, I forgot that one. It’s beautiful!
TL:DR Silas, Sonia
S is a big name for me. I have a son who has both a first and a middle name that start with S, Simon Samuel. My girls name (which never got used I only have boys) was Sonia Sylvia.
So my favorite names are Simon and Sonia, but if I am choosing again for the boys I think I would go with Silas.
I do have an outlier name for boys or girls which is Shelby.
I love Siobhan for a girl, though I would anticipate perpetual spelling and pronunciation difficulties in the US. For a boy, Seamus (keeping the Irish theme) or Skip as a nickname for… anything, I think?
Solomon nn Solo with Seth a close 2nd for a boy
Siobahn or Saoirse for a girl
Oh my goodness, I came up with my S names for the game before reading Swistle’s post, and I chose Sabrina & Simon!
IRL I have a son named Samuel.
Ha, IRL I have a Sebastian and I just named my imaginary son Samuel.
Yay! Easiest letter, yet.
For a boy, Sebastian, for a girl, Serena.
Summer Susannah
Sebastian
I have a Spencer but I also love Simon. And for a girl, Solveig, though in my Norwegian family we pronounce it SOUL-vay, unlike the comment above.
One of my actual children has an S name (Sebastian, which of course I love!). I would not want to repeat initials but if I pretend I absolutely must for some reason…
Samuel for a boy. Sam has always sounded like a friendly guy to me, and Sam and Seb as brothers is sort of cute.
Sybil for a girl. I’ve been rewatching Downton Abbey lately and it has really grown on me. Sybie is an adorable nickname, and I like that it would give me three very different endings for my daughters’ names.
There are so many S names but I don’t find myself loving them! I think in general it is not a letter I am drawn to, but we did name our dog Sullivan/Sully and I love that name now.
I guess I will say Sage for a girl and Simon for a boy.
Boy: Spencer
Girl: Sarah
Sophie or Sebastian.
Sylvie, or Sylviane nn Sylvie, is my top girls name so that’s easy.
For a boy, would be tossing up between Sidney & Schuyler, but would most likely go with Sidney nn Sid.
Boy: Simon
Girl: Susanna
Susannah and Samuel
Other contenders: Stella, Sabrina, Saskia, Sylvie, Sasha and Serena; Stellan, Silas and Sebastian
Spalding. We named our cat after the late performer Spalding Gray (a problematic dude, to be sure) but I still would have used it for a human child if it wasn’t already associated with my dearly departed cat.
I also love the names Santino and Solomon.
Skylar was my favorite as a baby name nerd.
I have a Salvatore, nn Sam (It’s a family name, and a family nn. )
If I were naming a future boy, I’d go with Silas
Girl would be either Skylar or Sidney
I like Salvatore! My great-uncle was Salvatore but always went, inexplicably, by Bud.
I’m guessing you’re Italian? I had some Italian great-uncles who each had an Italian name, an English name, and a very random nickname. Lawrence/Lorenzo went by Rex. Joseph/Giuseppe went by… I kid you not… Boob.
I have always loved the name Samantha for a girl nn Sam. Recently someone I know named their little girl Scottie and I am in love with that name. I also love Sloane and Stevie (too much Schitt’s Creek these days). I think if I have to pick one right now, I am going to say Scottie.
For a boy, I like Sullivan, Smith, Sheppard and Solomon from your list and Sebastian, Spencer and Soren. My number 1 pick for a boy today is Solomon.
There are a number of “s” names that I like and one that definitely wins for a boy, but it would rule out the similar name that I would pick for a girl if I were actually to have both of these hypothetical children.
For a boy, I like Solomon, Simon, Seamus, Shane, Selwyn, Soren, Sebastian, and Stellan. But the top four are Skandar, Struan, Sylvan, and Sylvander, and Sylvander wins.
For a girl, some version of Sylvia/Sylvie/Silviana would be the winner, but it would be ruled out by the boy’s pick. Other names I like are Seren, Stella (couldn’t go with a boy Stellan, of course), Svetlana, Shoshana, Soraya, Sitara, Saoirse, Sunniva, Saskia, Solveig (pronounced Sole-vay), Sheherazade, and Sundari (which might be the sort of name that requires a father of the right background). Selina, Sabrina, and Serena all rhyme with my name, so they are ruled out. Sarai is ruled out by my actual son’s name ending in “ai.” I’m not sure about the winner. Maybe Sunniva if I could make sure the nickname was Evie or Niva and not Sunny.
Sela & Scott
There are so many good S names!
I’d go with:
Sage for any gender
Simone for an AFAB baby, with the nickname Mo.
Sylvan for an AMAB baby. I love the forest connection.
Other S names I love:
Soraya
Soren or Sorrel
Solana
Serena or Sabina
Sydney
Saskia
Sasha (for any gender)
Seth
Silas
Shoshana
I also kind of love that Sylvie/Sylvia is coming back. I had multiple great-aunts with those names so I always thought of them as Old Lady names, but hearing them with fresh ears makes me really like them.
Oooh, Sebastian and Siobhan! Neither of which I would use in real life (Sebastian doesn’t really work with my surname, and I don’t have enough of a connection to Irish language/culture to feel comfortable using an Irish name) and both of which I love.
Skye and Shea
I love the name Silas! I would’ve used it for one of my sons, but our last name is Smith and that’s just too many S’s
For a girl I like Selah and Savannah… if I had to pick I’d probably go with Savannah
I think Sadie is super cute. I also like Saoirse, and I think folks in the states are more used to it now? I also like the idea of Spring.
Solomon was a strong contender for my son and I still love it. I also like Septimus
For girls, I like Sasha, Saskia, Selma, Sophie, Sadie, and Sage, but I think in the end I’d choose Sage. For boys, I like Simon and Samson; I think I’d pick Simon.
Simeon for a boy.
Sabine for a girl.
Sadie and Sascha are my girl favorites I’ll never get to use (family pet names)
I also love Sloane, but I know too many in the 3-8 year old range. I think Sadie is my favorite.
Stone has always been a guilty-pleasure name for me. My last name is a nature-name/noun, so I don’t see us using it.
Sadie and Stone.
I have a boy named Silas and love the name. If I had another baby with an S name, I think I’d choose Sadie for a girl and Soren for a boy. I also kind of love Sunny for a girl but don’t know if I’d be able to commit.
Sylvie and Sebastian!
Shira (AFAB) or Shai (any gender)
Shira was one of our top choices for our second kid. I also love Selena, Serena, Sheila (looking forward to the comeback), and Sivan.
If I got too concerned about the homophony with Shai (shy), maybe Simon?
I have a friend who has a son Shai– it totally works! She has trained her son to say the full sentence “My name is Shai” rather than just Shai to questions about his name, and she has “it means gift in Hebrew” practically tattooed on her body, but it works. It also helps that her Shai is distinctly not shy.
Good choices! I just met a Sivan recently.
Sylvie and Simon, which are both names I’d use for real.
S: Sylvie and Samuel
T: Theodora and Timothy
U: Una and Ulysses
V: Vera and Valerian
W: Willa and Walter
X: Xenia and Xavier
Y: Yvaine and Yves
Z: Zinnia and Zachary
Ooo @BSharp, this is great! Now I wish I could see everyone’s full list. (Plus your kids would all be excellently named)
S: Simone, Sylvan, Sage
T: Talia, Theodore
U: Uma, Uriah
V: Vanessa, Vaughn
W: Wednesday, Wade
X: Xiomara, Xavier
Y: Yvonne, Yonatan, Yael
Z: Zora, Zayn
thanks!
I just wanted to say how much I enjoy the words “this is a FRESH baby” every time I read these posts.
As for names: Sybilla, Stanley
Susannah and Salvador
Girls –
Scarlett
Snow
Spencer
Summer
Boys –
Samson
Saviour
Sullivan
Easy peasy: Simon and Sussanah
Sidney & Seren
Love Sullivan for a boy! Sheila for a girl.
Girl -Scarlett
Boy- Sonny closely followed by Simon.
Girl: my sister’s name, Sylvia is up there. Also Savannah is such a pretty name. I like Sage and Sybil but I think Sylvia is my favorite!
Boy: Simeon + Sebastian
Sarah was nearly my daughter’s name and I like Sadie as a standalone name. I also use Sally as my “coffee name.” I think that would make a fun discussion – What is your coffee name and how did you chose it?
Sylvia caught my eye while going through the list of S-names. Sasha, Sebastian, Simon, and Stuart are all nice.
I think Sarah nn Sadie and Simon.
S is probably my least favourite letter of the alphabet, but I do have a few very favourite names starting with it nevertheless. Saskia has long been one of my top favourites for a potential baby and I’d be happy to use it. I also like many of the Sophia names. Sophia or Sofia itself feels too overwhelmingly globally popular, but if I had to use a Sophia name perhaps Sofiya/Sofija or Sophie could work. I could have a Sapphira nicknamed to Sophie, as I love Sapphira too. Or Safiyah, but I guess that would be confused with Sophia a lot, especially if I called her Sophie. If I chose that route and have a Sapphira nicknamed to Sophie, I’d be also happy to nickname her to Fia or Fee or Fifi. I think Saskia is a more unexpected choice, plus I already have a sister called Zofia whom I often call Sofi so Saskia feels a more realistic choice to me.
For a boy, I have a few types. I love Samuel, though the nickname Sam feels very bland. I could sometimes call him Sammy though. I also like Sasha but used to have a cat with this name, and while he only spent a few weeks with us, we still strongly associate it with him nevertheless. I also like Sandy for both genders but for a boy I prefer it more as a nickname for Alexander than a standalone name. But hey, I could have a Samuel Alexander nicknamed Sandy, why not? Recently I’ve fallen in love with the name Salathiel too, but I’m not sure it could work for me realistically. I also adore the Celtic Seamus and Seoc but think they also wouldn’t be too usable in my situation. So I think Saskia and Samuel Alexander it is. Actually, since Samuel has a middle name, I guess I should pick one for Saskia too… And because I was talking about all the Sophia names before, I’ll pick Josephine, because this way, if I’ll really want to nickname her to something like Sophie and decide that the similarity to my sister doesn’t bother me after all, it’ll be possible. I think I could have such a sibset in real life and be happy (provided I lived in an English-speaking country).
For a girl, Síomha (SHEE-uh-va).
For a boy, Seamus.
Sage is great for any baby.
Sonny! I’m biased because it’s my first born’s name and it will always spark a little jolt of glee in my heart. We considered Stanley for his little brother as it was my grandfather’s name but thought the pair would be a bit much as a subset. For a girl I love Sloane and Sylvie.
I like Simon nn Si (like sigh) for a boy. For a girl, I have a soft spot for Samantha, though it was a little too common for me to use.
I’ve recently fallen in love with the name Simona. Too odd? If I had to name a girl today, I think it would be Simona Joan.
I forgot to do S earlier so here is my answers to keep up the list.
My husband wanted Sebastian and I didn’t at the time… and now I think I love it. so it is the name that got away. nn could be Bas or Seb and the Spanish is Sebastiano… sigh.
Sarah is my S choice. I might even have done a double name. Sarah Rose.
Senna – even though (as I recently found out) it is a commonly used drug to treat constipation…BUT this is imaginary, right? So I’m going to imagine that drug doesn’t exist. I love the sound of Senna and that it is also a plant. So I’m sticking with Senna.
Sullivan. Easy choice. It’s a family name near and dear to my heart. And Sully is an adorable nickname for a little one.
I absolutely love Shane for a boy. Or even Shannon. Sullivan and Shaw and Shae are lovely too.
For a girl maybe Sloane? Sadie? Shay? Summer? Girls names are harder.
This game is so fun. My husband has never shown interest in any S names, though I quite like them.
I’d never truly considered Sylvie/Sylvia (though I’ve always liked them) until seeing them in the comments here. I have a positive association with the names. They make me think of graceful forest nymphs (because of the Latin root of silva/forest) and poets (because of Sylvia Plath). Reading more about the name, I’m liking it even more. I toyed with choosing Sylvia as my girls name, but it feels too impulsive since I’ve only started crushing on it recently. Instead, I’ll pick Susanna because I’ve liked it for a long time, so it feels safer.
There are so many great boys names, but I choose Solomon. I imagine a tall, deep-voiced, wise, dignified man. I don’t think I’d ever get tired of saying it–such a fun rhythm. Solomon Solomon Solomon.
S: Susanna and Solomon
T: Theresa and Theodore
U: Ursula and Ulrich
V: Victoria and Victor
W: Winifred and William
X: Xandra and Xavier
Y: Yvette and Yakob
Z: Zelie and Zechariah
This one is easy for me! I just had twins in January and named one Sullivan. He is such a Sully through and through. My girl S name would definitely be Susie!