Our first was hard to name. We had 5 names, all of which my husband loved, but none felt ‘right.’ Once she was born both of us just KNEW she was Olivia. Even though it was neither of our top names.
Hoping for similar success with our second girl, but we can’t even get a list of 5. My last name is Wendelborn. Olivia is Olivia Park (a family name, and its short, Olivia is a lot of syllables).
We have the following but none feel right:
Peyton (I dont like boy/girl names, but my husband loves it).
Sloan(e) (too manly? we also like it without the e so people dont say “sloan-ey” but everyone says the e makes it a girl)
Addilynn (I dont love)
Ella (too spanish?)
Emma
Lucy (this and Emma above seem kind of boring)
Saylor (I love it, but my husband doesn’t, and I”m scare to commit to an unusual name if he isn’t on board)
Rowan (same as Saylor, means little red head, and would only do it if she has red hair (very likely) but might need another red head name)
Amelia (family name, lots of good nicknames, I dont love Amelia, but as far as family names Amelia and Olivia were sisters)
Claire
Caroline (this and Claire, pretty but a little boring like Emma, Ella, etc)
Charlotte (pretty name, but no quick nicknames when talking to her, we call Olivia “livi” when we need a quick name)We’re all over the place. Help!
I was curious about the usage rates for Sloan/Sloane. Here’s what we have for 2014:
Sloan: 336 F, 72 M
Sloane: 874 F, 6 M
So while it does look as if parents opting to use the name for a boy strongly prefer the Sloan spelling, and parents opting to use the name for a girl somewhat prefer the Sloane spelling, both spellings are used for girls and I think you could take your pick. I’m hoping we have a commenter who has experience with the Sloane spelling; I wouldn’t have expected people to pronounce it Sloan-ey, but I haven’t had experience with it to know.
The name Sloan(e) doesn’t seem manly to me; I’m familiar with it as a name used mostly for girls. It is quite a change from the syllables/style of Olivia. I wonder if it would make a good middle name? It seems nicely similar to Park. Something like Olivia Park and Amelia Sloan is pleasing. But perhaps you have another good family name for the middle.
I wonder if you’d like Fiona or Sophia or Josephine? They all remind me of the sounds of Sloan and Rowan.
With the sister name Olivia, my favorite name for a possible redhead is Rose. Olivia and Rose. So pretty. And Rose Wendelborn sounds spectacular to me: I want it for my own name.
I love Olivia and Amelia together, and I love that the namesakes were also sisters.
Olivia and Charlotte are great together, and a quick nickname for Charlotte is Lottie. Livi and Lottie! Charming.
Ella doesn’t feel Spanish to me. I like it in style with Olivia, but it feels maybe a little L-heavy with it: Olivia and Ella feels like I am making a lot of the same sounds, except that Ella has fewer of them. I also find Ella Wendelborn a little difficult to say.
I like Olivia and Claire together, too. I like the way they LOOK together, too. Not that that’s important, just appealing.
If I were in charge of your list of five, this is how I’d do it:
Sophia
Amelia
Charlotte
Claire
Fiona
plus Rose as a bonus name, if she’s a redhead or even if she’s not.
Name update!
First of all, you have no idea how much your advice and your reader’s advice helped. Ella was ruled out pretty quickly – Charlotte was a top contender, and Sloane we still loved, but it never really ‘went’ with Olivia. Even though we didn’t take everyone’s suggestions, it took us from ‘all over the place’ to a handful of solid name suggestions.
Ms. Emma Alexandra Wendelborn was born last Tuesday. With her strawberry blonde hair, and big sister Olivia’s love for the name Emma on our list, it fit her perfectly.
Thanks again for all of your help!
You are the best. Rose is a family name on my husband’s side, so maybe that’ll be the winner. Can’t wait to share this with him. Hopefully this girl will be here soon and I’ll share what we chose.
I like Amelia, Charlotte (nn Charlie or Lottie), Claire, Emma, and Lucy best with Olivia.
It seems like you’re struggling with the style of name you want- traditional or not. The traditional names seem pretty to you but you’re worried they’re boring. Then again with the more unusual names, you’re afraid they’re too out there. In general, I think the traditional names are a better match with Olivia, but if you go in the more unusual direction, Rowan seems closer to the style of Olivia than Saylor does.
I like the suggestions of Fiona & Rose.
I also love Fiona and Rose.
I think any sort of gender neutral name with such a girly older sister name is going to sound off-putting. I do love the idea of Sloane in the middle name spot (or even Sloan).
and to reply to myself, Saylor/Sailor is way too popular for both boys and girls in celebrity names right now. It does not feel right with an Olivia (because Sailor/Saylor is so popular with both genders, at least from what I read online, I think it would sound like one boy and one girl).
Rose and Fiona were the first two names that I was inspired to suggest based off your list/letter, and I’m happy to see Swistle agrees.
All of your contenders are great choices too. Olivia is a wonderful name to pair with. I’m particularly drawn to Rose for being beautiful, but not too frilly.
Good luck with your naming adventure and congrats on your upcoming daughter.
We have similar taste in names. I have always liked the name Sailor/Saylor. I also really like Sloane! Our top name right now is Charlotte, picked for the nickname Charlie. I think that’s adorable. I think Amelia is cute & you could use the nicknames Millie or Lia. I think most of your names have great nickname options. Lucy could even be Lu or Lulu. What about Vivian (Vivi/Vivie)? Beatrix (Bea/Bix)?
Good luck! You have nice choices already! Maybe when you see her you will know.
Rose Wendelborn! What a lovely name! Swoon.
I never would have placed Ella in a “Spanish” category.
Other names that have reddish meaning that are super fun:
Flannery(!) – not sure how I feel about it with Olivia, but I do love the spunk!
Maple – maybe too outside your style, but oh my goodness I’ve fallen in love with it recently.
Ruby – maybe too literal on a red-headed daughter, but Olivia and Ruby are such great sister names!
Rosalind/Rosalia – In the Rose vein, but a little more ..substantial? They also pull Olivia from the Top Current Names to Classic Strong Women for me (not that either category is bad, just seems like you’re going for a bit of uniqueness?)
Rory – maybe too masculine, but I do think Girlmore Girls made it quite feminine :)
Also, Sofia would have Fia in it, which means fire .. a stretch by a nice tie-in if your daughter has fiery hair :)
I also think Amelia Rose has a stunningness to it.
With Olivia my favorite is Amelia but I also like Ella and Juliette.
Rose is so pretty! Rosalie nn Rose/Rosie perhaps? Olivia and Rosalie are adorable. Love Rose!
Aurora nn Rory came to mind. Rory means red haired too. Olivia and Aurora nn Livi and Rory.
Susanna nn Sunny and Juliet/Julia nn Jules would be my other suggestions. Amelia ‘fits’ so well with Olivia but I do prefer the Emilia spelling. Livi and Emmy.
Lucy has always been one of my favorites. Would you prefer Lucille or Lucinda with the nn Lucy? Livi and Lucy are so sweet together!
Good luck!
Amelia or Fiona :-)
I like Rose Wendelborn when reading it but don’t care for it when said aloud (“Ro Swendelborn”). My top 5 for you would be the same as Swistle’s. Best of luck!
Amelia was on our list. I love it and it sounds great with Olivia.
We have a Juliet and a Rose. We both fell in love with Juliet’s name (our first) and so when it came time to naming our next two (we also have an Oliver) I had a really hard time as I didn’t fall in love like I did the first time. But, as soon as they were born and as time went on, I actually fell in love with the names just as much as I did with my first-born. In fact, Rose’s name is my favourite!! We call her Rose or Rosie.
SO ON THAT NOTE: Olivia and Rose. SO CUTE! Love it.
Other variations: Rosalie, Rosalina, Rosetta, Rosalind, Rosemary. I personally like Rose or Rosalie best.
Other names that I really like:
Stella —> LOVE STELLA
Sophia or Sophie
Isabel
Juliet
Violet
Ruby
Georgia
Vivienne —> Vienne or Vienna are super sweet shortened names
If you like Ella or Emma but not quite there, what about Emmeline?
I like Amelia. I actually prefer the spelling Emilia.
Hey… what about Esme?
If Lucy feels boring, what about Lucianna or Lucia or Lucienne?
I feel like Sloane or Rowan would make a good middle name but is very different feel than Olivia.
I think Fiona sort of bridges this gap nicely…if you are wanting to have a different feel stylistically than Olivia, Fiona could be a nice transition.
My favourites are Olivia and Rose. Olivia and Vivienne. Olivia and Sophia.
Good luck and keep us posted!
I know two people named Sloane, both about 30, one a boy and one a girl. I had never heard the name when I met them, but I wouldn’t have thought it should be pronounced “Sloan-ey”. I like the name, though Olivia is so feminine and Sloane is more gender neutral.
I like Swistle’s choices for you. Charlotte seems particularly compatible with Olivia. Caroline is also very pretty with it.
Some other options might be…
Ava
Emily
Katelyn
Elena
Good luck! It is so hard to name number two!
The girlfriend in “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” is my first thought when I see or hear Sloane. I never would have thought of pronouncing it with two syllables. I prefer the -e spelling.
Even though “ella” means “she” in Spanish, Ella is now so common as a first name (currently # 17 in the US https://www.ssa.gov/cgi-bin/babyname.cgi ) that everyone just thinks of it as a girl name.
Fiona was the redheaded princess in the movie “Shrek”, which is probably why a few of us think of it as a redheaded name.
I absolutely adore Rose!! I also thought of Margaret, which I think is so under-used and has such gorgeous nicknames. Maggie is always suitable for a redhead! Metta is a Scandinavian form of Margaret (usually pronounced more like ‘Medda’ than ‘Met-a’) that I also love. I also thought of Greer, which has a similar feel to Sloane, and is one of Brook Shields’ daughters (the other is Rowan). That always strikes me as a redhead name as well.
Peyton, Sloane, and Saykor are fine names but seem more masculine next to Olivia. Using a more unisex name after a clearly feminine daughter may make your daughter wonder at some point if you wished she was a boy.
I don’t think names like Ella, Emma, Lucy and Claire are boring but you can make them more distinct if you like. What about Stella, Gemma, Lucille, or Clara?
While I like Charlotte and think the nickname Lottie is adorable with Liv , it is extremely popular. I also like Amelia nicknamed Lia. Liv and Lia – Olivia and Amelia have a nice balance. My only issue with that is that it was someone else’s pairing before you. It kind of feels unoriginal in a weird sort of way.
All that said, I also swoon over Rose with your last name. Maybe your husband would go for Rose Peyton although I love Rose Amelia.
Evelyn or Vivian?
Emma, Ella, Claire, Lucy, and Caroline are all great with Olivia, and seem just as “boring” as Olivia to me — which is to say, on-trend, pretty, and classic. I don’t think you’d go wrong with any of those. If you want something a little longer, I like the suggestions of Sophia, Georgia, Vivian, and Isabel(la). Or how about Elizabeth or Eleanor or Lucinda (lots of good nns for all of those)? Scarlett seems like a nice bridge between the very classic Olivia and the more modern names that you also like.
Charlotte can become Lottie or Charlie, but at two syllables I’m not sure it needs a nickname anyway. Charlotte and Olivia are perfect together.
Peyton, Saylor, Sloan(e), and Rowan are all nice names. The style is different from Olivia, but the fact that they’re all current names makes them fit better with Olivia. I would peg Saylor and Sloan(e) as the girliest of those. I’m skeptical that you’d hear “Sloany” often enough to make it worth not spelling the name the way you like. Saylor makes me think of Layla and Skylar (both quite popular right now, which, again, ties them in to Olivia).
Really, you have a great list of choices. The two I’d strike off are Addilynn (at least, with that spelling, which seems like too much double letters) and Amelia (amazing with Olivia, but you don’t like it that much and you already have tons of excellent options).
I don’t think Sloane is at all manly– I actually think it sounds like a sweet, spunky name for a little girl, or a sleek and professional one for a grown woman. I also would never think to pronounce it “Sloan-ey”. Sloane Wendelborn. That sounds great to me! It doesn’t totally match style-wise with the more flowery Olivia, but to me that’s less important.
I love Rose, for the exact same reasons I love Sloane. BUT, I’d be wary of using any R-name with your W-surname; when I say “Rose Wendelborn” aloud I almost want to pronounce it “Wose Wendelborn”.
What about Scarlet? Olivia and Scarlet. Scarlet Wendelborne. Ooh, I like that all around!
I completely agree with all that Swistle said! My nieces are named Olivia and Sophia so they definitely are sister names to me. Olivia’s middle name is Rose, and her parents often call her that as well. I am partial to Claire, as that’s the name I chose for my girl, I don’t think it’s boring at all.
I wouldn’t ever have thought of Ella as Spanish or of pronouncing Sloane with an ‘e’ sound.
I look forward to hearing what you decide on when you get to meet her!
I love all of Swistle’s suggestions, especially Rose. If you’re looking for another red-head name, I really like Rooney. I’m not sure it matches Olivia very well, but Rooney Rose would make a pretty cute red-head. :)
I also really love the recommendation of Scarlet; I think it works great with Olivia.
I think Olivia and Rose or Olivia and Amelia are beautiful sister names.
My other suggestion was Shay/Shae.
Let us know what you decide : )
As a red head, I would encourage you to not name her something that means red or red-head, especially if that meaning is obvious. It’s just a bit much.
I don’t know anyone who would say Sloan-ey for the spelling Sloan. It just isn’t intuitive & I think the name is familiar enough that people won’t be uncertain the way they might with a name they’ve never encountered before.
Ella is not too Spanish, but if you are concerned, perhaps you’d like Ella better as a nickname? Something like Ellen, Eleanor, Abrielle, Ellery, Ellis, etc. could work.
I like Lucy & don’t find it to be boring at all. However, Lucy & Livi seem a bit too tongue twistery together.
I like Amelia & think the connection to the 2 sisters in your family tree is nice.
Charlotte is pretty & I think Charley/Charlie/Lottie are all easy, intuitive nicknames. You could also do something like Etta if you wanted something a bit different.
I’ll suggest Julianna, Felicity, Isabell/Isabella, Audrey, Harper, Addison
Naming her Emeline gives the name Emma a little “more.” But then, I have a daughter named Emeline so I am biased. I love Olivia and Emeline together, though. I don’t really like Sloane with Olivia because Olivia is so feminine and Sloane is so . . . not. I really like both names, but not together so much. Good luck!
So many great names that will work. I think stay away from unisex and creative. Stick with classic and girly and you can’t go wrong. Olivia goes nicely with
Charlotte. Love Livy and Lottie ! Perfect
Rose. Or Roselyn nn rose
Amelia. Or Emilia and nn Emmy. Livy and Emmy
I’m going to also suggest Audrey Rose nn Addy
I know two Olivia’s (one niece and one cousin) they both have one sister and both of the sisters are named Emily. Emily can be Em, Emmy, or Mily for a nn. I really like Emily Sloane as a sister to Olivia Park. Both first names are classic and girly while both middle names sound more modern and unisex.
Aurelia would be a lovely alternative to Amelia. I have a great aunt with this name, and she goes by Ria.
Rowena/Rowenna combines your desires for Rowan with a classic feminine match for Olivia. It also goes well with most of your list for a middle:
Rowena Claire
Rowena Adeline
Rowena Lucille
or…
Rowena Sloane/Saylor nn “Rose”!!!
It’s not on your list but Phoebe seems a good pairing w/ Olivia; Phoebe Rose Wendelborn; Olivia and Phoebe…?
I had a Sloane (girl) in class. I always knew that it was one syllable, not “Sloane-ey.” I will say that I had Sloane in kindergarten, and there was a very common pronounciation problem among her classmates. The other little kids always called her “Sa-loane” – 2 distinctive syllables, because they couldn’t blend the S and L sounds together. I used to correct them all the time, but eventually I gave up. I’m not sure if that would bother you.
Another thing is, and this might not be a popular opinion, but I think that Sloane is a name to grow into. It’s beautiful, but for some reason it seems like a big name. Maybe it’s because it’s so strong/unisex, I’m not sure. It seemed like a big name for a little girl, but now that she has grown up a little I think it fits her better.
Peyton: Seems completely mismatched with Olivia.
Sloan(e): I’ve only ever heard it for girls, but it doesn’t sound particularly feminine to me. I doubt the e would encourage that pronunciation and do think it looks prettier.
Addilynn: Don’t love either. Discard.
Ella: I’m sure it’s been pointed out that Ella is a word in Spanish and doesn’t sound like the name. I love Olivia and Ella together.
Emma: I agree that it’s boring, Ella is nicer.
Lucy: How about Lucia?
Saylor: If it is any consolation, Sailor seems to be on its way up popularity-wise. There’s also similar sounding Selah, which looks like a better fit with Olivia.
Rowan: Feels much more familiar than Saylor and is lovely with Olivia. I don’t think it is only for redheads.
Amelia: Perfect with Olivia
Claire: Olivia and Claire are gorgeous together. Along with Caroline, I don’t find this boring at all. Rather, it is familiar but refreshing on a child, and you can go wild with the middle name.
Caroline: As above. Perhaps, Claire Sailor, Caroline Peyton, Charlotte Rowan.
Charlotte: Lotti is a quick nickname. Livi and Lotti are pretty cute!