Contraction Nicknames

What is a contraction nickname you ask? Just like contractions in English, a contraction nickname takes the first part of a name and the last part of the name to form a shorter nickname, sans middle. There are so many great options if you like contraction nicknames--take a look and let me know your favorites!

Ada: Adalia, Adamina, Adara, Adelina, Adina, Adriana
Adele: Adelaide, Adeline
Alexa: Alexandra, Alexandria, Alexandrina, Alexandrita, Alexia
Ana: Anahita, Anala, Anastasia, Andrea, Andromeda, Angela, Angelica, Angelina, Anita, Annabella, Annika, Annissa, Annora, Antonella
Aria: Arcadia, Arcelia, Arianna, Ariella, Arizona, Artemisia
Aura: Aurelia, Aurelina, Aurora
Bay: Bailey
Bea: Beata, Becca, Beeja, Begonia, Belinda, Bellona, Bertha
Bex: Beatrix
Bria: Brianna, Brietta, Brigitta, Britta
Cara: Carlotta, Carolina, Carissa, Carmela, Cassandra
Clara: Claribella, Clarinda, Clarissa
Clea: Clementina, Cleopatra
Corie: Coralie
Dana: Danica, Daniela, Danita
Elsa: Elisa, Eloisa
Emme: Emmanuelle, Emmeline
Eva: Evangelina, Evanthia, Evelina
Fae: Fable, Faustine
Fia: Felicia, Fidelia, Fiona, Fiorella
Gala: Gabriella, Galatea, Galena
Gia: Gardenia. Georgia, Giada, Gianna, Gilda, Giordana, Giovanna, Gisella
Ina: India, Indiana, Indra
Isa: Isabella, Isabetta, Isadora, Isauara, Isla
Jette: Jeanette, Juliette
Jessa: Janessa, Jessamina, Jessica
June: Julianne, Juline, Junelle, Junette, Junine
Lena: Leanna, Leona, Levina
Lia: Lavinia, Lelia, Leocadia, Lilia, Lilianna, Linnea, Liviana
Lola: Lolita, Louella
Lora: Lorena, Lorenza, Lorinda
Lula: Ludmila, Luella
Luna: Luciana
Mia: Maria, Melania, Milada, Milagra, Milena, Miranda, Mireya, Mischa
Mila: Michaela, Milada, Milagra, Milania
Mina: Marina, Martina, Milena, Minerva
Mira: Milagra, Mirabella
Nia: Nabila, Nadia, Nahlia, Natalia, Nelia, Nicasia, Nicola, Nicolina, Nigella, Nina, Nisha
Noa: Nola, Nona, Nora, Nordica, Norma, Novella
Ola: Olida, Olina, Olivia, Olympia
Pia: Pamelia, Pascasia, Patricia, Petunia, Pippa, Piritta, Portia
Pippa: Philippa
Ren: Reagan. Reign
Roma: Romana, Romola
Rory: Rosemary
Rosa: Rosalia, Rosalinda, Rosanna, Rosetta. Rosita
Sara: Sahara, Samara, Samira, Sandra, Sapphira, Sarika
Sia: Sienna, Sierra, Silvana, Simona, Sistina, Sophia, Sophronia, Stephania, Sylvia
Tara: Takara, Tamara
Thea: Theodora, Theodosia, Theresa
Thora: Theodora
Zara: Zahara

Names with "an"

I recently got an email from a reader asking for some naming inspiration.

Fiona writes:

My first 2 children both have a theme of "an" - Marianne and Kassandra. It happened accidentally, but the more we think about future names, the more we seem attracted to this sound. It would be great to have some help and inspiration please! 
Our second child was only born this year, so we are jumping the gun a little but we do plan a 3rd child (hopefully, as obviously thanks to mother nature's blips, having a child is not in our complete control!) and our experience is that it is never too early to start thinking about names.

With many thanks,
Fiona 

Past the page break I have put together an exhaustive list of names with -an in them. I've italicised the ones I think work best with Marianne and Kassandra. Feel free to leave your thoughts or suggestions for Fiona in the comments. If you have a naming question that you would like me to post on the blog, feel free to email me at skihm (at) hotmail (dot) com. 

10 I Names You Never Thought of Using: Girls

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Everyone loves Imogen. She doesn't even rank in the top 1000, but she's Nameberry's most popular girl name. I love Imogen too, but she's gotten so much attention lately, that I don't know if would want to use her. Thankfully, I have a list of I names that are no where near as trendy. So take a look and tell me what you think.

Ida- Ooh, I adore Ida! I love her retro feel (and wouldn't she make a good sister for Nell?). More people should use this quirky favorite.
 
Inbar- What a gorgeous Israeli name. I think she would work really well in the states. She's perfect if you want to honor your heritage with a less common name.

Indra- Okay, so India is not too popular, but Indra makes a good alternative. I personally prefer her over India. I think Indra has more spunk.

Io- Ask any baby name fanatic to name a two letter name, and the answer you get will be Io. Granted, she's one of the only two letter names out there, but she's well talked about in the community. I love Io on her own, but if she's too short for you, try one of these next two.

Iola- She's heavy on the vowel sounds, but that L in the middle makes her sound extra feminine and fluid.

Ione- Ione is such a cool name, yet almost no one knows about her. You could also use Iona, which would be a fun way to honor a Fiona.

Inoa- Noa has been getting some attention as of late for being a cool option for girls. Inoa lets you use that nickname, while having a more feminine appellation to fall back on.

Isabeau- Another favorite in the baby name community. I hear about Isabeau all the time. She is a lovely choice, and the nickname Beau is extra adorable.

Isaura- This name reminds me of a medieval princess. She sounds regal and grand, and I can picture her on a girl of all ages.

Italia- Maybe it's because I just got back from Italy, but man! Italia seems like a wonderful name for a girl. Florence, Roman, and Milania are all well used, so why not Italia?

Full Names for Mia

Does your partner love Mia, but you not so much? Maybe you want something a little more interesting. This list offers spunky ways to get to Mia.

Amelia
Camilla
Demia
Euphemia
Hermia
Magnolia
Malia
Maria
Michaela
Milada
Milagra
Milania
Milena
Mina
Mirabella
Miracle
Mireya

Full Names for Millie

Millie is an adorable nickname. Many parents nowadays are jumping at the chance to name their daughter Millie, but some aren't willing to go with Millicent. Here are some full names that Millie could be a nickname for.

Camilla
Camille
Emmeline
Margaret
Mary
Mila
Milada
Milagros
Milan
Milana
Milania
Mildred
Milena
Miliani
Milla
Millay
Miller
Millicent
Romilly
Smilla