K. writes:
Our spontaneous, completely unexpected, anticipated with trepidation triplets (girls) are due in September. We have names for baby 1 and baby 2 (Claire and Norah) but not baby 3. Please help us!
We like Georgina (Ginny) as a nickname – but can we have two non-nickname Names and one different? I think she’d only really be known as Ginny.
The same goes for Evangeline (this is my first chose), also with Ginny (maybe Linney or Evie) as an all-the-time nickname. And can one have plain names like Claire and Norah, and then Evangeline? Do they go?
Other liked names don’t seem to go well (Freya with Norah, Elspeth, Clementine, Helen – but the nickname is Nell, and Norah and Nell?).
Our question is two-fold – can we have two children go by first names and one by a nickname, and does a more fancy name like Evangeline go with Claire and Norah? Our two year old son is Peter and our last name is McKinley.
Help!
While tidiness and personal preference incline me to make sets of either three nickname names or three non-nickname names, and to make three names of similar length/fanciness, I think this is the kind of issue where it matters a lot during the naming stage and not much after that. I was thinking about this the other day at a get-together: when I turned my mind to the names of the other women’s children, I could see various issues we might have discussed in the kinds of discussions we have here (sharing an initial; two siblings sharing an initial when the other siblings don’t; two siblings with -y endings and one without; one modern surname name and one name that peaked ten years before the child was born), but none of those issues seem to matter at all now that all the kids are school-aged. I didn’t even notice most of the potential name issues until I deliberately turned my mind to it, and I am likely at the uppermost end of the name-noticing spectrum.
Multiples do tend to get more name-noticing—but although the public will enjoy as much matchiness as you’re willing to give them, there’s no reason to make it a priority. It may help to imagine the girls born one at a time: if you’d named your first daughter Claire, and a few years later had a second girl named Norah, and a few years later were expecting a third girl, I think the name/nickname issue might still be raised, but with less of a feeling of significance.
With my twins, I wanted something that tied the names together—and after many, many lists and much frustration, I ended up with one plain name and one fancy, because those were our two favorite names. I do think this led to a few slightly disappointed reactions when I was telling the names, but that lasted perhaps a few seconds (and some people won’t be pleased unless you name them Faith, Hope, and Charity, or Lily, Rose, and Violet). And now that the twins are in elementary school, their names are not the big deal they were at birth: they tend to meet people individually, and it only comes out later that they have a twin and other siblings.
It can sometimes help to rearrange the order of the names: for example, Evangeline, Norah, and Claire. This is less impressive in writing, but when said aloud it gives a nice progression from four syllables to two syllables to one. But if the one with the longest name is likely to go by a nickname, this is likely to be an issue for only the few weeks when you’re first announcing the given names.
In short, if your top favorite three names are Claire, Norah, and Georgina (Ginny), or Claire, Norah, and Evangeline (Evie), I see no reason you can’t use either of those sets. It’s hard to imagine Ginny/Evie coming to you later saying, “Mom. Dad. We need to talk. I’ve always felt like the name/nickname you gave me means you love me less.” It might not ever even be noticed. And if it is, it seems as if “We just chose our favorite three names” should take care of anyone who isn’t determined to be upset.
(However, I notice that Linney McKinley is a little bit of a tongue-tangler; if you think she’d go almost exclusively by the nickname, I’d lean toward Ginny McKinley ((a little sing-song/rhymey, but not tangley)) or Evie McKinley.)
Furthermore, it can be hard to predict what names and nicknames will end up actually being used. Perhaps Ginny will be Ginny until third grade when she decides to be Georgie, and Claire will go by Claire at school but always Claire-Bear or Eclair or Clarabelle at home, and Norah will be known as Pepper because of some childhood incident.
Another option is to give names that work with Claire and Norah as nicknames: Clara, Eleanor, and Georgina; Claire, Norah, and Ginny. Clarissa, Honora, and Evangeline; Claire, Norah, and Evie.
Or start with Georgina and Evangeline and find a third fancy name to go with them. Perhaps Clarissa or Eleanor or Honora.
Or scrap Georgina/Evangeline and find a third name to go with Claire and Norah:
Alice
Audrey
Ella
Eve
Grace
Hope
Jane
June
Ivy
Lucy
Molly
Rose
Ruby
“can we have two non-nickname Names and one different?
can one have plain names like Claire and Norah, and then Evangeline? Do they go?
can we have two children go by first names and one by a nickname, and does a more fancy name like Evangeline go with Claire and Norah?”
I always have the hardest time with “can we” questions. Because, quite obviously – yes you can. It’s your child & you can do whatever you want.
Do they go? No. But I think you already know that. So I think it’s a question of how much you like the name versus how much you want them to coordinate with one another.
Personally, Ginny McKinley or Linny McKinley is annoyingly rhyme-y to my ear. Combine that with all the ways it doesn’t go with Claire & Norah and its 3 strikes & your out for me.
I’d much rather see a Sophie, Olivia, or Grace with the sibset.
Also random – I like Nora so much more without the h. The h seems like such a needless 5th letter.
Good luck!
I think the letter-writer knows she “can” – she’s just looking for an outside perspective. ;)
Personally, I think Claire, Norah, and Georgina “go”‘, so that’s also a matter of opinion.
I commented below before reading the other posts. Good observation about Ginny McKinley; I didn’t catch that. When you put the surname with the girls’ names, I don’t think Ginny works well at all:
Claire McKinley
Norah McKinley
Ginny Mckinley.
It appears that Ginny is a favorite name that the parents are trying to get to with a longer name, so suggesting Georgina called Georgie or Gina probably won’t work.
The rhyming quality of GINnY McKINleY now makes me think that Ginny should probably be eliminated as a possible name in favor of a name that pairs better with non-nickname Peter, Claire and Norah.
I am going to buck the trend and say Ginny McKinley is fine as long as she has a longer name to fall back on if she doesn’t like it. Norah, Claire and Georgina get my vote!
I actually like Norah with the H! It looks more like a stand alone name, whereas Nora seems more like a nickname (for Eleanor or Honora). It just goes to show how much of it is personal preference!
And I agree wholeheartedly about Ginny. I don’t care for it with your surname. So I would scratch it from the list.
Did you know that Ginny Weasley from Harry Potter is a Ginevra? Or Geneva is another nice name. This still gives you the nn Ginny. I still don’t like it with your surname, but perhaps she would be Ginny to family & friends, but when announcing her full name, she’s Ginevra McKinley? Kind of like my nephew. He’s Taggart Grade, nn Tagg. He’s known to most of us as Tagg, but doesn’t go by Tagg Grade – it’s always Taggart Grade. (Using pseudonyms here).
I do think that Evangeline and Georgina both “go” with Claire and Nora- they don’t match but they sound pleasing together. I actually really like Claire, Evangeline and Nora as a group of triplets.
I do agree that Ginny McKinley might be a little too sing songy (unless you’re going for that effect). I like the name Liv as an alternative.
(P.S. There’s a blogger named Sarah at “The Great Umbrella Heist” who has girl, identical triplets. Their names are Alicienne (Ali), Anna and Emily- you might want to check her out!)
I like Georgina, Norah, and Claire (3, 2, 1 syllables respectively). But if you’ll mostly call her Ginny, have you considered just naming her Ginny?
While I do find Ginny McKinley a touch rhyme-y, have you considered Virginia?
I kinda like how baby #1 has 1 syllable, baby #2 has 2 syllables and baby #3 has 3 syllables (if you pick Georgina).
^^^Yes! This was my thinking exactly :)
It excuses any non-matchiness in my eyes, because it would be such a fun “secret” triplet-naming technique. Honestly I don’t think Georgina clashes at all…but if you are more attached to Ginny than Georgina, I might suggest Regina instead. Claire, Norah, and Regina sound very fitting to me.
I love that! It connects the names and eliminates any questions on who gets the “plain” name, etc.
FWIW I prefer Georgina to Ginny in both the sib set and with the last name. Good luck!
If you really like the name Ginny, why not just name her Ginny? It might be a little strange as a stand-alone name, but if that’s all you’ll call her anyway there’s not much of a reason not to. It will eliminate the possibility of her being able to go by Georgina for professional purposes when she’s older, but with the rise of more unusual names lately I doubt that will be much of a big deal. Plus, if you don’t like any of the other nicknames for Georgina it will make her less likely to want to be called Georgie or something later on. (Same goes for Evangeline/Linney/Evie).
That said, I really don’t think it’s a big deal at all to just use the original three names you picked out. As Swistle pointed out, it’s an issue that people might notice when the babies are first born but will notice less and less as they get older–especially if she’ll be going by a nickname. Plus, having a longer name isn’t necessarily better or worse than having a shorter name, so it won’t be like you’re giving one of your children a “better” name than the other two. For example, Georgina/Evangeline would have a fancy name with a cute nickname and the advantage of being able to decide which one to use, but Claire and Norah will have names that are easier to spell and they won’t always have to remind people that they go by a nickname.
If you really want to balance things out, perhaps you could give Georgina/Evangeline a short middle name and long middle names to Claire and Norah. I’m picturing something like Claire Evangeline, Norah Clementine, and Georgina Ann. That way, when you send out birth announcements and everything people probably wouldn’t even notice that one name is longer than the rest.
Basically, just go with whatever name you like the best. If it’s very important to you that all three names “match” then by all means choose something different, but there’s certainly nothing wrong with the names you picked out.
Have you considered Clarissa or Clara with the nickname Claire? It’s personal preference but I’d rather be one of the first two, with the option of Claire, than plain Claire– especially if I had a sister named Evangeline or Georgina (which are gorgeous names!).
Going further down this route, what about Eleanor or Eleanora with the nickname Norah? Or Honora or Annora? I know, this is getting into quite fancy-name territory– but it’s an option.
My suggestion with your surname would be Evangeline, Clarissa, and Eleanor with the nicknames Evie, Claire, and Nora(h), or if you don’t want to repeat the first letter E, then Georgina, Clarissa, and Eleanor with the nicknames Georgie, Claire, and Norah.
To my ear, both Linney and Ginny are too rhyme-y with your surname– though Ginny would be OK enough. Linney McKinley is a bit too picture book-rhymey. Evie and Georgie are very cute.
Good luck!
I think 2 very short names & one longer, fancy name would bother me . I am pretty opposed to matchy names for multiples, but this seems like too much of a difference. I would also be bothered by 2 non-nicknames and 1 nickname, but probably more for my own children. If it’s other people’s kids, I may not even know 1 of them is always called by a nickname while the others aren’t.
Personally, I am not a fan of Ginny or Linney with your surname. I also think Ginny is a bit of a stretch as a nickname for Georgiana or Evangeline. If it’s the name you really love, I’d suggest using just Ginny or something where Ginny is more traditional as a nickname (Ginevra, Virginia, etc). It’s totally possible that Georgiana called Ginny is going to become Georgie, despite your best efforts.
From your list, I really Claire, Norah & Helen. I wouldn’t use a nickname for Helen though. I also really like Swistle’s suggestion of something like Eleanor, Georgina & Clara with the nicknames Norah, Ginny & Claire. I think Eleanor, Virginia & Clara would make a great set of sister names, for triplets or singletons. It does seem more balanced & gives all of the girls options if they later decide they want a nickname (or not).
FWIW, I know a sister set of Clare, Nora & Eve. I think this would be a really sweet set for triplets & you could still use Evie if you wanted.
Yes! I LOVE Eve for them! Eve McKinley. Brilliant.
I think personally I’d prefer something more stylistically similar to the other two names. I think Bryn, Paige, or Rose would be nice with the sibset. I agree with others about Ginny and Linney being too rhyme-y with your last name.
The 2 non-nickname names with a nickname name, doesn’t really bother me. Its not my ideal scenario but as swistle said, its not likely to come up after the naming phase. Also, as pointed out, its hard to guarantee whether or not nicknames will be used and what the nickname will be.
Personally, I’m more bothered by the syllable differential. Claire and Norah fall into what I consider “short and sweet” and Evangeline is long and frilly. I don’t care for Georgina much (and Ginny even less) but i’d pick it over Evangeline with your sib set. I think Peter, Claire, and Norah are absolutely exceptional together. Georgina and Evangeline work but aren’t a magical fit with the other 3. As others have pointed out, I don’t love your nickname options for either name with your last name either.
What about Georgia? I also love the suggestion of Alice or Audrey.
Its hard naming one baby, much less three so I’d go with whatever you like! nothing i have said would automatically disqualify a name for me :)
I vote for Claire, Norah and Ginny. I think they all sound sweet together, and tie well together with similar lengths but different numbers of syllables and separate endings.
What about Claire, Norah & Jean? I find Jean pleasingly retro with the sib set, and Jeannie will be a natural nickname.
My daughter’s name is Claire and Norah is the name I dream of naming her little sister someday, so my naming style is right in line with yours. :) From your list, I like Evangeline best. From Swistle’s list, I also love Alice, Jane, and June (Juniper?). Juniper would give you the one syllable, two syllable, three syllable effect, with June and Junie as great nicknames. Good luck, and let us know what you pick!
I definitely like Eve over Evangeline with Claire and Norah.
Suggestions:
Adele
Alice
Audra
Edith (Edie)
Elsie
Emily
Grace
Hazel (my favorite)
Mabel
Margot
Sadie
In the end, you need to go with the name that you love! Best of luck to you!
Using your chosen names, I like either Claire, Norah, and Eve (nn Evie) or Clarissa (Claire), Eleanor (Norah), and Georgina (Ginny). The first option gives you two kids with one syllable names and two with two syllable names, creating a nice balance within the sibset.
I also like Evangeline, Georgina, and Clementine.
What about Julia as the third name?
Claire and Norah are lovely names! I’m personally not a fan of Georgina as a name in general and since I love the other two names I automatically think it doesn’t work, I do though love the name Georgia and think Claire, Norah and Georgia are gorgeous together!
I love the suggestions of Ivy and Eve or Eva
Claire, Norah and Eve
Claire, Norah and Eva
Claire, Norah and Ivy!
How about Hannah? Claire, Norah and Hannah!
Congratulations on your 3 baby girls! Looking forward to hearing what you choose!
Just adding my voice to say Ginny/Linney McKinley is definitely too rhymey for me (although the one longer name doesnt neccesaarily bother me.) i like the suggestions of:
Eve/Eva
Georgia
What about:
Bridget
Fiona
Maeve
Although i do love both names Georgina and Evangeline, i think that with your other kids names they will look too out of place. It may not bother you now but because you are having triplets you are going to hear everyone’s opinion, and any negativity may get old, really fast. Why not use those names for the middle spot?
I really like the suggestion of Eve, and Audrey is one of my favorites, but Alice seems almost perfect.
Claire, Norah and Eve
Claire, Norah and Audrey
Claire, Norah and Alice
I’d name them the names you like best. It doesn’t seem ‘fair’ to the baby who might have been “Ginny” to forgo a name you love for one that seems to blend better with the other two names. I love Georgina and think Ginny is a cute nickname for it. Claire, Norah and Georgina — Claire, Norah and Ginny — are all names that can be seen as vintage/classic/ traditional names. (Those terms seem to be getting broader as the name pool is expanding with all manner of new names, nonstandard spellings, etc.) It seems to me that using Georgina (rather than Evangeline with a longer stretch to “Ginny”) gives the sibling set an English/British flavor (perhaps even more so if you use the English Clare instead of the French Claire: Clare, Norah and Georgina?). I like the three names together. I don’t think it matters that one girl will be going by a nickname. Your daughters will be a ‘set ‘ in so many ways that I think it’s nice that their names blend well, but are not too closely matched. Best wishes, and I hope you’ll let us know what you decide. Triplets aren’t an every day occurrence on this blog or anywhere!
I commented below before reading the other posts. Good observation about Ginny McKinley; I didn’t catch that. When you put the surname with the girls’ names, I don’t think Ginny works well at all:
Claire McKinley
Norah McKinley
Ginny Mckinley.
It appears that Ginny is a favorite name that the parents are trying to get to with a longer name, so suggesting Georgina called Georgie or Gina probably won’t work.
The rhyming quality of GINnY McKINleY now makes me think that Ginny should probably be eliminated as a possible name in favor of a name that pairs better with non-nickname Peter, Claire and Norah.
I love Jane: Peter, Claire, Norah and Jane. She could be called Janie (similar to Ginny) as a sometime-nickname. Peter, Claire. Norah and Jane — classic names with individuality.
I second Eva or Georgia as alternatives to Evangeline and Georgina that match the style of Claire and Norah. I also would love to see Helen used, no nickname required. It’s such a wonderful name and underused!
I like Clara, Eleanor, and Georgina/Evangeline with Claire, Norah and Evie or Gia for short.
I also like the idea of Claire, Norah, and Grace/Eva/Alice/Rose
First of all, I think that you can name your babes whatever names you like best! If you like Claire, Norah, and Georgina best, then go with that!! I think they are all classic names and give off the same feel plus I do love the idea of 1-2-3 syllables for babes 1, 2 and 3!! It does in fact kind of tie them together! If you like Evangeline and Norah and Claire, then I say do it!! Like Swistle said, naming twins the same style/feel/length/etc. seems like a huge deal the first couple of times when you announce their names as newborns but I think for the remainder of their lives, this “issue” will be less important. Pick names that you love. Don’t settle on another name that you don’t really love because you think it “goes” better with the first two.
Another option, if you go with first names that don’t seem to “match” per-say…. I’m not sure if you already have middle names picked out, but you could tie all three of them together in their middle name spot. You could give them all the same middle name or names that have the same meaning…. something along those lines.
As for nicknames, like Swistle stated earlier, sometimes what you plan for doesn’t occur. So if you were planning on calling them Claire, Norah and Ginny you might actually find you call Claire – Clarabelle and Norah – Nor and Georgina – Georgie. What I would do, is pick official first names that both you and your husband like. PLUS, even if you like Ginny and prefer to call her that mostly I would still personally name her Georgina, so she has a more formal/official name that she can choose to use later down the line as an adult (say for resumes or applying for a job, etc).
Also, to quickly comment – just to prove that everyone has their own preferences, I prefer Norah spelling over Nora!! So go with what you love.
Other options with Claire, Norah, and:
Eve nn Evie
June
Etta
Ruby
Rose nn Rosie
Ada
Faye
Thea
Willa
Lucy – still a classic that I love so much. Has the same classic, yet sweet feel as Claire and Norah.
What about Ginette? Similar to Georgina, gets you Ginny as a nn, with also Ette or Etta as other potential nicknames. I feel like Claire, Norah, and Ginette look slightly more similar than Georgina (if that is still really bothering you)
Another option, is to throw out Claire and Norah and stick with the longer, seemingly more fancy names of Georgina and Evangeline which you also stated you both love.
I immediately thought of Clementine since this was another one of your favourites!! This combination could be perfect for you guys!!! Georgina, Evangeline, and Clementine. Ginny, Evie and Clem. Fab!!
Other names with Georgina, Evangeline and:
What about Magnolia? You could use nn Nola – very close to Norah, so thought maybe you’d really like this option
What about Vivienne. Georgina, Evangeline, Vivienne. Ginny, Evie, and Viv
Ottilia nn Tilly
Amelia. Ginny, Evie, and Mia
Veronica nn Vera, Rooney, Nica, etc
Violet
Lucia (loo-see-a) Ginny, Evie and Lucy
Annabelle
Good luck and keep us posted!! I think all your names are lovely and that they could all work together :)
I just thought I’d point out that Alice McKinley is the protagonist of a pretty popular series of books for teen girls, so you might not want to use that particular suggestion, although I do like it in the sibset.
I think it’s fine to have some names with nicknames and others not, but I also think if Evie is the nickname you want, Eva, Eve, or Evelyn are better stylistic matches with Peter, Claire, & Norah than Evangeline. I like Evelyn best. Similarly, I like Georgia better than Georgina, but it doesn’t get you the nickname Ginny.
I think Georgina and Evangeline go fine, but I like a previous commenter’s suggestion of Virginia over Georgina. The sing-songy part doesn’t bother me, but anecdotal evidence for you – I know a Virginia Benny who goes by Ginny and EVERYONE I’ve ever heard say her name calls her GinnyBenny, one word. Like some sort of baby nickname she just can’t shed. She was in college when I met her and eventually got married and changed her name so I imagine it worked out at some point.
I think Georgina is lovely but Ginny doesn’t go well with your last name. What about simply Georgia?
I think a bigger issue than sibling name coordination is how different options sound and work with McKinley. More and more women are choosing to keep their maiden names when they marry, or hyphenate them, so in weighing different choices, I’d probably make this my priority, followed next by sibling name coordination, and in very last place, trying to arrive at a particular nickname.
Helen, nn’d Nell is a great option, and works well in all respects. And even though Claire & Nora(h) don’t yet have nicknames in your imagination, it’s quite possible that they, too, could end up with one.
I love to hear that someone is even considering Evangeline, but do find the leap to 4 syllables a bit too much of a leap. I agree with others that if you go this route, Evie would work better than Ginny with McKinley. But I’d probably go with Evelyn or Eve or Eva or Ellen. Has anyone suggested Emma? Claire, Norah, & Emma balance really well while having distinctive “vibes”.
Good luck–My fervent wishes for the best possible birth and first year experience!
I was trying to think why Ginny McKinley sounded so familiar and then I remembered my sister’s friend Jennie MacKenzie. One of three Jennifers in her class of 18 students (my sister was one of the other two). She was always JennieMacKenzie like it was one name. But then, my sister was JennyLastname like it was all one name too.
Why not just go with Ginny if it’s where you want to end up?
Peter, Norah, Claire and Georgia
Peter, Claire, Norah and Anabel
Peter, Norah, Claire and Lauren
Claire, Norah, Lauren and Peter
Norah, Claire, Georgia and Peter
Claire, Anabel, Norah and Peter
For me, Georgina doesn’t fit w/ the Norah and Claire but Georgia does very nicely; though I prefer the nickname options of Georgie or Gigi with McKinley much better than the rhymie Ginny McKinley. It would be fun to get Gigi from Georgia Grace! Safe delivery!
I like Heidi, Blythe, Lena, Tess, and Elise for you.
Congratulations on the triplets–how exciting!!
I don’t mean this comment to sound too hard on the names you’ve shortlisted–I assume that since you’ve posted here with that question, you (1) have some interest in making sure the names DO “go,” and (2) want to consider any reasons why you might stay away from either of them. But please know that Evangeline is one of my all-time favorite names; I love its drama and femininity! My comments:
Do they “go”? Though I love Evangeline, it definitely doesn’t strike me as a match for sibling set Peter/Nora(h)/Claire. If I met three siblings by those names, I’d assume their parents liked and had intentionally chosen spare, classic, wholesome-feeling names. If I met their sister Evangeline, I would assume she had been named in honor of a late relative, or by the parent who hadn’t chosen the other three kids’ names. Other than the French origins of both Evangeline and Claire, the names don’t strike me as having much in common as a set. From that standpoint, I think Georgina “goes” better with the first three, and the syllables balance out fine.
Can Evangeline be used to get to Ginny? Well, if you love both names, I see no reason you’d have to justify yourself beyond that! But to my ear, Evangeline doesn’t lend itself organically to Ginny. If I met an Evangeline who went by Evie or Angie, I’d assume the nickname derived from the sounds in her name. If I met an Evangeline who went by Ginny or Livvie or something like that, I would 100% assume the nickname had developed separately from the full name and I would probably ask, “Oh, where did Ginny come from?” (Well, I wouldn’t ask unless we were friends, but you get the idea!)
Ginny with McKinley? As others have said, this definitely has a singsong quality to it. Not a dealbreaker in my book. However, keep in mind that women named Ginny spend their whole lives clarifying that “it’s G-I-N-N-Y, not J-E-N-N-Y.” While this isn’t the end of the world either, since Jenny was once so popular and is now sort of an anachronism, it might be worth thinking about.
I wholeheartedly agree with Swistle that you should use whatever names you love. If you love Georgina, I think you could use that to get to Ginny without deviating from the style you’ve already established (there are plenty of sister sets named Elizabeth and Anne, I’m sure, and nobody bats an eyelash). Use Evangeline if you like it, but not because it lends itself obviously to the nickname Ginny, and not in an attempt to match the other names.
Since it doesn’t look like anyone has suggested it, what about Imogen? I see it suggested frequently here and elsewhere when Nora is on the table, which makes me think both names would appeal to people with a certain naming style.
One more thing–to me, introducing the triplets as “Nora, Georgina, and Claire” completely smoothes out any syllabic mismatch. That sounds great, compared with some other orderings! But like Swistle says, this will probably come up only rarely.
Lastly, personal preference, I too like Nora better than Norah, especially if you’re going to use Georgina.
Oh, and I think Alice matches the other names perfectly–but because I’m weird about these things, I would probably do either:
Peter, Norah, Alice, and Clare (all 5-letters), or
Peter, Claire, Nora, and Alice (a variety of letter numbers)
Yes you can definitely have two non-nickname names and one with a nickname. If it ever comes up as an issue (“why don’t I have a nickname?”) you can tell the child that you chose the three names you liked best, and ask her if she would like to choose a nickname for herself. Or if it is a question of fanciness, you can point out that you chose the fancier spellings of Claire and Norah over Clare and Nora.
However if Georgina and Evangeline aren’t quite right (and I’m not sure they do ‘fit’ with the other names), Geneva or Genevieve could also get you the nicknames of Ginny or Evie. I also like Jemima for you as it has some of the sound of Ginny but the vintage of Norah. And I second the suggestion of Jean.
It’s probably been mentioned before but if you like Norah and Nell, you could always go with Eleanor and then have both nicknames available depending on her personality.
If you haven’t already chosen middle names, perhaps this is an area where you can add nicknames and also subtle matchiness for the girls, e.g.
Claire Clementine, nickname CC
Eleanor Evangeline, nickname Norah or Nell
Georgina Grace, nickname Ginny
Good luck and all the best with your little girls.
I agree that you should use the names you love. That being said, I thought the grouping of Clara, Nora and Eva might be quite nice with the shared endings. Or even Clara, Norah and Evangelina. The shared ‘ah’ ending ties them together so I notice the style difference less.