MM basketballsIf the boys’ opening round held relatively few surprises, the girls’ sweet sixteen was chock full of upsets.  Voting for our favorite girl names always seems a little more difficult, doesn’t it?

  • Top seed Elodie squeaked by Emmeline.  This was the closest match, maybe in all of opening round history, but certainly for this year’s opening round.  Emmeline had the lead a few times, but Elodie kept on catching up.
  • #2 ranked Esme fell to the enchanting Lorelei.  I’m a little heartbroken about this one, as I do truly love Esme.  Lorelei does seem to be on an upward trajectory, masked by alternate spellings.  There’s Lorelai and I’ve even seen Lauralee, which could be a separate name …
  • #3 seed Mila went down to underdog Isla.
  • Noa lost to Adelaide – though given Adelaide’s status as a past finalist, this is much less of a surprise.  The dynamics of March Madness seem to be this: the unusual names make it into the opening round, but the mainstream names rise over the course of the competition.
  • Ottilie handily beat Indie – maybe this reflects Indie’s status as unisex name?
  • Clio upset Sloane.  I feel a little weird about my daughter’s name competing.  Obviously I’m rooting for Clio … but Sloane is a great name, too!
  • Romilly won over Eithne.  Romilly is such a great name that I’m always surprised she’s not more common.
  • Not a shocker here – Lila won over Nevaeh.  Heaven-spelled-backwards garnered just over 2% of the vote, making that match a landslide victory for the lovely Lila.

My predictions?  I’m still banking on Lila or Adelaide winning it all.  But it will be interesting to see how it plays out.  There are some tough matches in the quarter finals!

Now please go vote!

The top-ranked Elodie takes on the resounding victor from the first round, Lila

Two unusual three-syllable names face off: on-the-rise Lorelei against under-the-radar Romilly

Scottish heritage choice Isla competes against Greek muse Clio

The regal Adelaide takes on quirky onomast favorite Ottilie

About Abby Sandel

Whether you're naming a baby, or just all about names, you've come to the right place! Appellation Mountain is a haven for lovers of obscure gems and enduring classics alike.

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What do you think?

8 Comments

  1. My picks that made it into the 2nd round: Lorelei, Adelaide, Ottilie, Clio, and Lila.
    My picks this round: Lila, Lorelei, Clio, and Adelaide. I’m happy about all of those names making it into the 3rd round, if any of them do. Though right now it looks like Elodie will beat Lila and Isla beat Clio. And Adelaide beat Ottilie.

    1. @Hazel – A lot of people have. 🙂 Ottilie and Romilly are catching up since yesterday!

    1. You’re welcome, I just thought it was a good find since I read your blog almost every week plus Alexander and Clio sound cute together.

  2. I doubt my picks this round are going to win, except maybe Elodie.

    On a side note I’m re reading one of my favorite books at the moment and at a glance I looked at the author’s bio to see that his children are in fact an Alexander and Clio!
    The author’s name is Adam Williams by the way.

    :]

  3. Wow. Everything I voted for in the first round won. If only I were this good at the basketball March Madness.