Noa

[eatmorepi.livejournal.com]

I have a heck of a time thinking of girls names that I actually like...I am completely "meh" about 99.9% of names for baby girls. I love tons of boys names, but always get stuck on female names.

I do, however, love the name Noa. To me Noa is definitely a female name, of Hebrew origin. My mom is Jewish and while I did grow up with some Jewish traditions, my family is actively non-religious. The obvious problem with this name is that "Noah" is a really popular boys name right now....and I don't like it for boys. The last thing I would want to do would be to saddle my daughter with a name that people are always messing up - I think names where one's gender is unclear are problematic given that so much communication is online these days. I wouldn't want her to forever be addressed "Mr." and have to correct people.

So, thoughts on this name? Did you know that Noa is a Hebrew female name? Would you have assumed someone named Noa was a girl or a boy?

Thanks!

Comments

[juniorfan29.livejournal.com]

I would have assumed that Noa was a boy who had a mother that felt the need to be all Kree8tyv with spelling.

[eatmorepi.livejournal.com]

Ergh, cringe. That names me sad, because Noa is definitely a traditional Hebrew female name.

[juniorfan29.livejournal.com]

I don't doubt you. Maybe if I lived in a more Hebrew-centric country or if I had more experience with a Hebrew culture, then it wouldn't seem so out of place to me. But, for me, Noah is a boy's name and it is spelled NoaH.

[eatmorepi.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I don't blame you. I've never met anyone with the name myself and if I heard someone say "Noa" out loud I would automatically assume it was a boy as well. Oddly enough I don't even like the name on boys.

[juniorfan29.livejournal.com]

I love the name Noah for a boy, but I'd never use it. It's just becoming too popular. As an Amanda born in the 80s, I shudder at names that are too popular.

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

I agree...

[thismakebelieve.livejournal.com]

This.

[solitudete.livejournal.com]

I had no idea Noa was a Hebrew female name. I would probably assume Noa was a male. Maybe Nola or Nora?

I know that Miley Cyrus has a younger sister named Noah (though I wouldn't consult the Cyrus family for naming advice).

[eatmorepi.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I don't mind Nora. I like Noa better though.

I wouldn't use Noah for a girl, that's more like taking a boys name and giving it to a girl. Noa is not a unisex name, it is definitely a girl's name.

[winninghearts.livejournal.com]

I knew Noa was a Hebrew female name. Seeing Noa on paper, I would assume girl. It looks much more feminine than Noa. I don't think a Noa would have much problem, because even though it IS a real female name, people are also naming girls Noah. (Not at the same frequency of boys at all, but it happens.)

[winninghearts.livejournal.com]

*It looks much more feminine than Noah.

[eatmorepi.livejournal.com]

Thanks, I'm glad people have heard this name before. I wondered if maybe the reason I knew it was a female name because I have Jewish background, or what.

[winninghearts.livejournal.com]

I don't have a Jewish background, I just know...way too much about names, haha.

[bandnerd88.livejournal.com]

I knew Noa was a female Hebrew name, but then I'm really nerdy about stuff like that. If I saw the name Noa spelled out I would instantly assume it was a female. However, if I heard someone calling for a Noa I would assume they were calling a little boy, since obviously you can't see how a name is spelled when someone's saying it. ;D

I think that Noa, with this spelling, is fine on a girl.

[eatmorepi.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I wouldn't want people to assume I was trying to be "kry8ve" by giving my daughter a masculine name :( I think it's just a reality that there are more male Noahs out there than female Noas, and people would automatically assume it's a boy (I would too). I don't think that would deter me from using it, though.

[todaydream.livejournal.com]

Maybe you should move to the Netherlands then ;) Here people use 'Noa' for girls and 'Noah' for boys and I think the popularity of both is about the same :)

I personally would only use Noa, though, since I think the name sounds very feminine.

[elemmennope.livejournal.com]

I love Noa and know it's a legit female name.

But I've been following names and naming trends for more than a decade now. I know that most people have no idea Noa is a real name. It always mistakingly gets trashed for following boy-name-as-girl-name fads. And that's by people reading and posting on naming message boards! People out in the real world wouldn't have a clue.

I love the name, but if you use it, just know ahead of time that she'll get comments her "boy name" her whole life.

[eatmorepi.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I suppose that's a reality I/she would have to deal with. I would hate for people to think I was being trendy, but I'm sure they would no matter what. To be fair, I've never met anyone named Noa, or even heard of anyone (non-famous) with the name. That would probably be different if I lived in Israel, but I don't and don't ever intend to!

I love the name, but there are obvious cons to using it. Not sure if they outweigh the pros.

[xsongsaboutrain.livejournal.com]

I didn't know it was a female name, but I would think it was a girl when I saw it spelt that way.

[eatmorepi.livejournal.com]

Would you think it was trying to be trendy?

[samaside.livejournal.com]

I like Noah and Noa both on girls. I don't know why. I just do. And, yes, I knew it was a Hebrew name. And with more and more girls being named Noah I wouldn't think it was that big of a deal if you did use it. In fact, if I were you, I probably would.

[kilobites.livejournal.com]

Had I heard it out loud, I probably would have assumed it was "Noah" and was a boy's name.

Had I seen it written, I would know that it was a female name, Hebrew in origin.

[miss-tee.livejournal.com]

yes I did know but I am Jewish.

[a-tergo-lupi.livejournal.com]

I'm completely unfamiliar with it, but if I saw it written, I'd assume it was feminine. It looks way too ... I don't know... to be trendy. I think you could certainly get away with it. Plus, you're more likely to be in social circles where it's familiar.

[penguiny7.livejournal.com]

Yes, I really like Noa. I knew it was a female name. I know Noah can also be female, but it's so popular on boys that I wouldn't use that spelling for a girl.

[monkey-fruit.livejournal.com]

If heard, I'd assume you were talking about/to a boy. Noa has a more feminine look, but I still might assume the mother thought she was being creative. :/

[0o-faerie.livejournal.com]

If I would see Noa written down, I'd assume she was a girl. Noah is the male version to me. I suppose it's because about two years ago Noa became a relatively popular girl name here, to the point where I almost forgot it was a boy's name as well.

If Noa is a name you really like, I would definitely use it if I were you.

[jordle.livejournal.com]

If I saw Noa I's assume it was a girl and even though I didn't know the Hebrew history to it I would assume that it was a cultural name somewhere.

[th3-unicorn.livejournal.com]

Afaik, Noa is girl and Noah is boy. Unfortunately, they *are* pronounced the same and Noah for a boy is more common. But I don't think it's any worse than the confusion with Ashley, Taylor etc. and now with Ryan, Jordan, etc.

While I was growing up, there was this cartoon about rival witches, the "good" one named Bia (Bee-ah) and the "evil" one named Noa :)

[krosp.livejournal.com]

I knew it was a Hebrew girls name but only because I'm a bit obsessed with names. I think it is a weird name for boys anyway, so feminine really, and without the h it looks all girl to me. But I wouldn't assume that other people see it this way.

[sandtree.livejournal.com]

I know that Noa is a Hebrew girl's name. If I saw it spelled out, or if I heard the name and saw the girl at the same time, I would know exactly what name it was. But if I just heard it spoken without any reference to the sex of the child, I would probably assume the person was talking about a boy named 'Noah.' Most people probably would, but as soon as they saw her, obviously the confusion would end.

I'm not Jewish, if that makes any difference.

[laminy.livejournal.com]

I did know that it was a female Hebrew name (I learned it from this community awhile ago, actually), so when I saw it spelled Noa, I knew that it was for a girl. It is definitely a female name on its own, it's not Noah. I love Noah, but I'm actually unsure of what I think about Noa. I don't find it to be a pretty name, and I like girl names to be pretty.

[mrssubee.livejournal.com]

I'm the opposite- I have a ton of girls names I like and feel just so-so about most boys names
If you like Noa- I say go for it
I always liked Noah for a boy and do think of it as a boys name- but, without the "h" I do see it differently
since you like Noa, how do you feel about Nora?
btw, if you give her a name like Noa "girly middle name here" -
no one will ever address her mr.

[soulsplinter8.livejournal.com]

I knew it was a Hebrew girls' name, but I grew up in a fairly predominantly Jewish area, so I don't know how many people would actually be aware of the name's origins.

[kort-ni.livejournal.com]

I knew it was a Hebrew girls' name but that is because I have Israeli friends who are naming their daughter Noa. And they are giving her a girly middle name in case she doesn't care for Noa later on in life (her mom goes by her middle name, so she knows that it's a little bit of hassle, but a very little bit).

[laura-anne.livejournal.com]

I didn't know the origins of it, but Noa seems feminine (and a pretty name to boot) to me. :)

[amaterasa.livejournal.com]

A very good friend of mine is named Noa. She is Jewish and she never had troubles with her name.

[aislincalum.livejournal.com]

Noa is my cat's name. :) I love it and used it for my lovely kitten simply because I haven't had kids yet.

Noa is a definitely a-okay by me!! But I grew up in a Jewish family, so the spelling and origin are familiar to me. I'm not sure what someone else would think.

[holidaylights.livejournal.com]

I love Noa, and I would definitely know it's a Hebrew girl's name...but I'm Jewish and I tend to love Hebrew names in general, so I might not be the best person to ask.

Your daughter will probably end up having to correct people a lot. Since it's such a short name, if you really love it, maybe add a second name that's clearly feminine?

[pegasus2o5.livejournal.com]

I've been peripherally aware that Noa-without-an-H is used on girls, though I didn't realize it was a "real" name. I thought people were simply co-opting the boy's name for girls (and frankly, I disapproved of it!) Now I know the error of my ways.

Were I to see Noa spelled, I would think it was at least possible this was a girl. Unfortunately, since there's no way to know the difference when it's said out loud, she'd still get mistaken for a boy plenty of the time.

[freezemyazaleas.livejournal.com]

I know it's a Hebrew girl's name, but I am Jewish. I actually knew a girl named Noa. It might get confusing because it's pronounced the same as Noah in English (I believe there is an ever so slight pronunciation difference between the two in Hebrew). Noa written out looks obviously female.

[lalazizara.livejournal.com]

theres a girl named noa at the camp i work at

[hemlockheart.livejournal.com]

When I was pregnant I was really anemic, and the blood doctor happened to share his office with the cancer doctors, so the majority of the packed waiting room was elderly people. I heard a woman's name called, dunno if it was spelled Noa or Noah but I thought it sounded really odd, especially for an older woman to have a name I thought was almost exclusively masculine... so yep, I had no idea, and before that and this I'd never heard of Noa as a girl's name, but it's nice... what does it mean, the same as masculine Noah or no? Do you like it for it's tradition/meaning, or just the sound of it? Just curious.

[fleckerbug.livejournal.com]

I think the only time she'd get addressed as 'ms. so and so' is when someone is reading her name, and it is pretty obvious to me that Noa=girl. (Noah=boy)


I knew it was a girl's name. I also knew it was a perfume. That'd bother me more than gender confusion.

[chirpygirly.livejournal.com]

I think Noah and the whole story of him and his ark are so prevalent that more people than not will assume boy's name, even spelled Noa, I think they would just assume someone either forgot to type down the h, or that some parent was spelling it without the h. I also think it sounds masculine, not feminine at all. I also think Noa/Noah is not a good name to use because of the world no in the English language and how often does a parent have to keep saying know to an infant/toddler/child. I just don't like the flow of "No Noa/Noah, don't do that", etc.

I think Nora would be a better and close enough, alternative.

[chirpygirly.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I meant no instead of know.

[arbus.livejournal.com]

i did know that about noa, but i think its an extremely little known fact, even in the jewish community.

i adore noah on a boy though, so i am biased about it. i would hate to see it go unisex (not saying thats the case here, just saying)

[ex-bluebonn.livejournal.com]

If I heard the name without seeing it, I'd think "boy", but if I saw it as Noa, I'd think "girl".