Modern -lie and -ly Names

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Many people would agree, three syllable names that end with the -ly sound are pretty cute. Emily has been popular for a long time, but there are other names that have a similar sound, but are way less popular. Take a look.
Expected:
Amelie- Amelie is darling. And the movie makes me love her even more (it's one of my favorites).
Emily- Yes, she's popular, but for a reason. Emily is a versatile name that works on so many girls.
Natalie- Like Emily, she's very popular but holds up well. I can picture Natalies of all ages.

Unique:
Cecily- Peppy and cute, but wearable on a adults as well.
Coralie- Downton Abbey has made Cora fresh again, so why not go a step further and choose Coralie?
Rosalie- Out of all the Rose names, she seems the most modern right now.

Unheard of:
Aurelie- Aurelia may be too much, but Aurelie is sweet (and a good alternative to Aurora).
Eulalie- You don't hear a lot of Eu- names nowadays, but Eulalie would be perfect for a baby.
Ottilie- Call her Tilly.

Full Names for Lottie

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I'm surprised I don't hear about more Lotties. I know many Charlottes, but the prominent nickname is definitely Charlie. Lottie is much more feminine, and fits in with many of today's popular names. She's a great name to consider, even if Charlotte is not quite your style.

Expected:
Charlotte- When people think Lottie, they think Charlotte (or maybe just baby namers, who knows?)
Lotta- I prefer Lotta over Lottie. The "A" sound makes her seem a little more refined.

Unique:
Carlotta- Perfect for families with Latin and Scandinavian heritage.
Loretta- Sarah Jessica Parker put Loretta in the middle spot for one of her twins. Could she make a comeback in a few years?
Lotte- I had Lotte on my own list for a while. I love short names, but I worry that Lotte is too short.

Unheard of:
Lieselotte- This would be a lot to saddle a baby with, but using Lottie as a nickname makes it acceptable.
Lolita- Lolita should get more use. She has the trendy double "L," so why not?
Lotus- They have different "O" sounds, but Lottie would make a sweet nickname for the adventurous Lotus.

College Names: Part Three (N-Y)

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My trip is almost over. Tomorrow I see my last college (Cornell) and then head home. Today I'm at Wesleyan, which is perfect because I put him on the list for boys. He'd make a great alternative to Wesley.

Girl:
Olivet
Siena
Sierra
Sofia
Sonoma
Tiffin
Trinity
Unity
Valencia
Winona

Boy:
Nichols
Otis
Pace
Patten
Pierce
Pine
Regis
Rhodes
Rider
Rocky
Roger
Rollins
Shaw
Smith
Stanford
Sterling
Stetson
Tabor
Vaughn
Wade
Wagner
Walden
Warren
Wells
Wesleyan
Wiley
Wilson
Xavier
Yale
York

Either:
Palmer
Parker
Quincy
Reed
Rivier
Rowan
Sherman
Taylor

College Names: Part Two (E-M)

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Today is my only day this week without any tours, hooray! Yesterday I saw Swarthmore, and today we are driving to Brown. Enjoy this next round of college names, and I'll catch up with you Friday.

Girl:
Elmira
Elon
Embry
Emory
Geneva
Grace
Hope
Iona
Juniata
Kendall
Keuka
Lesley
Liberty
Lourdes
Lynn
Marian
Marietta
Medaille
Mercy
Meredith

Boy:
Emmanuel
Ferris
Franklin
Gannon
Garrett
Gordon
Hamilton
Harding
Harrington
Hendrix
Howard
Jarvis
Judson
Kean
Keene
Kenyon
Knox
Langston
Lawrence
Lewis
Lyon
Macalester
Miles
Miller
Mitchell
Morris

Either:
Ellis
Gardner
Grinnell
Lander
Lane
Lee
Lehigh
Lyndon
Malone
Mercer
Molloy
Monroe
Montclair
Morgan

College Names: Part One (A-D)

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This week is my Spring Break, and I am going on college trips to the East Coast. Yesterday I was at Carnegie Mellon, and today I'm at Johns Hopkins. In honor of this, I have compiled a list of colleges with great names that could work for a baby. I'm not sure how I feel about naming your child after your alma mater, but these schools do offer some great inspiration.

Girls:
Agnes
Alice
Alma
Alvernia
Augusta
Augustana
Aurora
Avila
Azusa
Bellin
Berea
Berry
Bethany
Bethel
Beulah
Brescia
Briar
Cairn

Boys:
Adler
Alfred
Allen
Alverno
Anderson
Angelo
Austin
Averett
Barnard
Barry
Barton
Bates
Becker
Bennett
Bennington
Bentley
Bradley
Brandeis
Brevard
Brigham
Bryan
Calvin
Case
Clayton
Davis
Dean
Denison
Dillard
Drake
Drexel
Duke

Either:
Albright
Asbury
Ashland
Auburn
Bay
Baylor
Beacon
Berkeley
Bucknell
Carleton
Carlow
Carroll
Claremont
Clark
Clemson
Colby
Cornell
Drew

Full Names for Elsie

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Elsie is such a wonderful name. I love her as a nickname for Elsa, but I'm worried that Elsa's popularity will rise as a result of Frozen. If you want some other great names that shorten to Elsie, I have some picks for you.

Expected:
Elise- Elise is surprisingly common, ranking 151. Rearrange her letters to get Elsie.
Elizabeth- Pair this uncommon nickname with the classic Elizabeth.
Elsa- The obvious choice. I adore Elsa.

Unique:
Elisa- Not nearly as common as Elise, but very similar.
Ellis- Use Elsie to make this unisex name girly.
Eloise- Literary darling.

Unheard of:
Ellison- Usually used as a boy name, but Elsie makes an unexpected and sweet nickname.
Elspeth- A lovely form of Elizabeth that should be used more often.
Elysia- Hardly used, but her sounds are in vogue.

I apologize for the boring week, my Spring Break starts tomorrow and I have a fun week planned out. More great posts are coming, including my Junior Research Paper, which is all about names and destiny. Have a good weekend!

Alternatives to Isabella

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People love Isabella. She's ranked number one is past years, and while she's falling, she's certainly still popular. For many she is too popular, in that case alternatives are needed. Here are some great ones.

Sight:
Isabeau- I love the name Isabeau. This is an amazing choice for adventurous parents.
Isadora- Slightly clunky but completely charming.
Isannah- A great exotic choice.

Sound:
Annabella- She has all the frills Isabella has.
Arabella- She's so pretty in her own right, I wouldn't even use the nickname Bella.
Gabriella- Gabriella is climbing the charts, but is not at Isabella's level. Yet.

Style:
Cassandra- I personally prefer Cassie over Izzy.
Ivanna- Not popular, and has a similar feel to Isabella.
Juliana- She would make a great sister for Isabella.