Now I know my ABCs...I think.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_x_blackroses_x/]

My mom and I were playing a little game with our baby names book (Name Your Baby by Lareina Rule: bestest evar!) the other day--the one I invented called, “Would You Rather Be Named __, __, or __?” By the time we made it through playing the entire alphabet, I decided it was time to try and update my favorites list. I came up with a Top Ten for each letter for girls, and just a bunch of lengthy lists for boys… though I’m going to try and narrow it down to Top Fives just to share here. Whatcha think?

I have edited it a teensy bit...



Astrid*
Anya
Ariel
Alma
Adelaide

Beatrix**
Britta**
Bebe**
Bella* [also Bellatrix** & Belladonna**...wasn't at first going to list such "out-there" ones, but heck, they are real names and I love 'em.]
Bernadette (Bernadine is also pretty. I rather like Bianca, Blanca & Blanche too...eh, it's sort of a tough letter. But then so many are. :p)

Claudia*
Cassidy
Cleo
Clementine
Caprice

Delilah**
Delphina*
Donna
Dagmar
Dominique

Electra**
Elle**
Estella*
Esmeralda*
Eudora (between that and Eulalia)

Freya* (Freja)
Fern
Felicity
Florence
Frieda

Georgette*
Gretchen
Gerta
Ginger
Germaine (just edged out Ginevra or Genevieve, w/ the French pronunciation.)

Heidi
Henrietta
Helga
Hilde
Hesper

Ilsa**
Ivy**
Imogene**
Inga**
Ilka

Jemima**
Johanna
Joyce
Janine
Josephine

Katina
Kirsten
Kathleen
Kim
Kristine

Lola** (I also love Lolita.)
Loretta
Lydia
Laverne
Lucretia

Margo**
Mercedes**
Myra**
Mariah*
Mavis (Martina is almost in the top 5…very close…)

Narcissa
Noel
Naomi
Nicola
Nellie

Ophelia*
Opal*
Oceanna
Octavia
Olympia

Petra** (I also love Petronella.)
Paige
Penelope
Prudence
Priscilla (I also like Peg/Peggy a lot, but decided not to count it since it's only listed as a nickname...={ )

Forget Q! My favorite is Quintana though.

Rita**
Roxanne**
Rosanna*
Regina
Ramona

Sybil** (Or Sibyl, I'm never sure which spelling I prefer!)
Sasha**
Sage
Sheila
Sonia

Tallulah*
Thelma
Tabitha
Tess
Theodora (Either that, Tuesday, or Trixie--though I’d use the latter as a nn.)

Ulla**
Uma
Ursula
Uta
Una

Vivian** (I like variations such as Viviane, Vivienne, & Viviana, but just straight Vivian is my fave.)
Valentina*
Violet
Viveca
Virginia (edges out Velvet, Vera, Vanessa...)

Wednesday
Whitney
Wanda
Willow
Wynona

X=Xena

Yvonne
Yvette
Yolanda (that’s about it for Ys)

Zsa Zsa
Zelda
Zinnia
Zoe
Zaida

That was somewhat difficult. XD I love names. The ones with asterisks (single or double) are my overall favorites.

Now for the guys. I have to say, they’re even harder, because I like some truly old-fashioned or foreign or otherwise just plain WEIRD ones, and sometimes it seems it’s either that, or really common ones that I’m not such a huge fan of…but I’ll try not to make the lists too bizarre-looking.

Austin
Argyle
Alistair
Adrian
Algernon

Bradley
Boris
Bjorn
Benedict
Bernard

Cagney
Claus
Calvin
Chase
Chester

Douglas
Derek
Dietrich
Darius
Dimitri (not so sure about this one, I like quite a lot of Ds)

Everard
Emery
Edmund
Esteban
Earl

Felix
Fletcher
Flint
Franz
Fiorello

Gordon
Gunther
Graham
Gage
Glenn

Hector
Hans
Howard
Hastings
Herschel

Ingmar
Isaac
Ignatius
Ivan
Ian (either that, or Irving, or Ira)

Jules
Julian
Jackson
Jorgen
Johan

Karl
Kendrick
Kent
Killian
Kirby

Luca
Lars
Leif
Leonid
Luther

Miles
Magnus
Maxmilian
Merlin
Milo (or Maddox)

Neal
Noah
Nathan
Nicholas
Niles

Orin
Owen
Oliver
Olaf
Odin

Preston
Patrick
Philip
Pierce
Percival

Quentin, Quincy…

Roland (Rollo)
Reeve
Rigby
Renshaw
Randall (almost tied w/ Royce, Russell)

Seth
Sebastian
Sven
Seymour
Sinclair (another of the more difficult letters…I just barely knocked Siegfried out)

Talbot
Terrence
Thurlow
Timothy
Thatcher

Uriah
Ulric
Ulysses
Upton
Only gots 4 for that one. ^^

Virgil
Vernon
Vaughn
Vincent
Vladimir

Walden
Wade
Wheaton
Winslow
Wyatt (I wanted to include Wolfgang, though. ^-~ And Walter. So I’m mentioning them.)

Xavier!
And York is my favorite Y.

Zeke
Zachary
Zale
Zane
Zared



P.S. How do you pronounce Arabella? (I always switch among saying “Air-uh-bella,” “Arr-uh-bella” or just sorta “ara-bella”…)