actress Evie Greene (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
One of the most popular sounds in girls’ names today is Evie. The name Evie isn’t huge in the US – she ranked just #644 in 2012. The British are far more likely to pen Evie on a birth certificate – she’s been a Top Ten choice in England for the last few years, a sister for Alfie and Charlie.
If you’d prefer something more formal for the birth certificate, never fear. There are dozens of ways to get to this attractive, vintage short form, and parents are in love with many of them.
Possibilities extend beyond this list, of course. Turn-of-the-century actress Evie Greene – she starred in the smash hit musical Florodora – was born Edith Elizabeth.
The Straightforward Choices: Want an obvious formal version? Use the Biblical Eve or the Latinate Eva. Depending on your perspective, they’re either attractive, compact choices like Mae and Mia, or not substantial enough to warrant a short form.
The Vintage Revivals: There’s a list of names that drip with lace and pearls, gentle, lady-like appellations from a time gone by. Evelyn is the most popular of this bunch, followed by Evangeline and Evelina, plus variations on all three: Evalyn, Evaline. The variants straddle the line between Vintage Revival and the next category.
Modern Reinventions: There are names that feel legitimate, but have no real history of use. They might be family names or attempts to femininize a masculine moniker. They’re not truly nouveau, but neither are they traditional. Think of Evanna, Evania, Evanie, and Evonne. Evanie, in particular, has rafts of spellings: Evany, Eveny, Evonie, and on and on.
Imported Obscurities: While these names have roots, they’re not well known in English. The Greek Evadne or Evanthe, the Turkish Evren, the Hebrew Elisheva, the Spanish Elvira, Evita, and Evelia.
Borrowed from the Boys: So popular is the sound that even some conventionally masculine names feel wearable for a daughter. Evan and Everett are the two most obvious ones, though respellings abound. Everette and Evyn probably belong in the Modern Reinventions category.
The Buried Ev: A long list of names could possibly lead to Evie, but they start with a letter other than E.
Modern Noun Names: Straight from the dictionary, there’s modern virtue name Ever, a name sometimes linked to the Irish Éber. Another intriguing possibility? Evening, a little bit darker and more daring than Twila.
21st Century Innovations: Many of the most appealing appellations are modern monikers, names almost entirely unheard of as given names until recent years.
- Evalie
- Evalise, Evalyse
- Evaluna
- Evely
- Everly, Everlie, Everleigh
- Evolet
Have I missed any of your favorites? If you were going to use the nickname Evie, would you use a formal name?
Louise says
May 7, 2015 at 8:58 AMHow about Evie being short for Evette?
Erika says
July 26, 2013 at 1:47 PMI have been a facebook follower for a long time, so I am sure you have read my comments about my second daughter’s name. She is Eleanor Violet, named for both mine and my husband’s great-grandmothers, Ella and Lucy Ellen. We absolutely love Violet and it felt like the most beautiful name combo. My older daughter was 2 when Eleanor was born and couldn’t say her name. We call her Evie. She is 3 now and has recently learned themeaning behind her name and announced last night that she wants to be called Ella Violet lol!
anna says
September 24, 2012 at 7:06 AMi really need your help i am of greek origin and live in the uk i have to name my baby after my mum she is called evridiki or can be spelt everydiki. i have compromised to call her evie for short , does this work out? evie seems to be short for all ev names am i right ?
Lacey says
August 16, 2012 at 12:46 AMI really love Everleigh but feel like it sounds too..Idk it just doesn’t sound like enough of a real name. I adore the nn Evie though! So adorable and vintage sounding. I also love Evangeline so much but a family member just named their baby girl Evangeline so that’s out but I am determined to find a name that can be shortened to Evie! Thanks for this excellent post 🙂
Michelle says
August 14, 2012 at 8:54 PMI love Evie as a nickname. I’ve always liked Eve as a name, and recently I’ve fallen in love with the name Evelyn. 🙂 It doesn’t seem very “lace-and-pearls” to me, though.
Laura says
August 14, 2012 at 12:54 PMI’d never use it, but am so intrigued by the thought of Evening now!
Shelby says
August 12, 2012 at 9:56 AMI suggest Ginevra be added to the list of “The Buried Ev.”
Michelle says
August 14, 2012 at 8:51 PMI was thinking the same thing. Like Ginevra “Ginny” Weasley, haha.
Julie says
August 10, 2012 at 11:59 PMMaybe Everdeen?
Michelle says
August 14, 2012 at 8:50 PMOh, goodness no. Too much a reminder of Katniss Everdeen from the Hunger Games. I’m not a big fan of her character, though I like her sister, Prim. Anyway, it sounds too much like a last name either way, in my opinion.
Anna Bliss Kessie says
August 10, 2012 at 11:18 PMI know a Nevada and there is something about it that intrigues me
waltzingmorethanmatilda says
August 10, 2012 at 10:57 PMEvie has a very special place in Australian hearts.
I see Eve, Eva, Evelyn and Evangeline as very common and hassle-free ways to get to Evie.
Yvie is also very popular, and I can never decide if it’s supposed to be short for Yvonne or Yvaine or some other name.
Sharalyns says
August 10, 2012 at 6:38 PMOur daughter born last year is Evangeline nn Evie (long E at the beginning). My cousin had her baby girl 5 weeks after ours, and her name is Evelyn nn Evie (short E at the beginning). My friend just had a baby and named her Ever. 🙂
Lola says
August 10, 2012 at 5:32 PMI’d use Guinevere and maybe call her Evie. Honestly though? She’d more likely be Gwen or Neve before Evie.
We have an Elisabeth, nn Ellie right behind us, Evie is far too close for me to use.
Pretty, but unusable for me. 🙁
katybug says
August 10, 2012 at 4:55 PMGreat choices! When my husband and I were first married, I was convinced that our first daughter should be named Evans (a family surname on his side), nicknamed Evie. Other family members beat us to the punch with an Eva, and the names are too similar for me to use Evie. Sad to let it go–it’s a darling name, however you get to it!
Lou @ Mer de Noms says
August 10, 2012 at 12:26 PMI adore the name Evie – like most Brits! – but if I were to use her as a nn for another name, I’d likely opt for Maeve or maybe even Reverie.
Megalady says
August 10, 2012 at 11:20 AMEvie is adorable, though perhaps a bit too lace-and-pearls for me, and I’d definitely want to use a more formal name on the birth certificate.
Lovely list of options, especially Evelina, Evadne, Doveva, Reverie, and Yvaine, though I’d shorten Doveva to Dovie and perhaps Reverie to Rory. I also kind of love Vanessa’s Everdean. However, Yvaine would probably be my top pick to get to Yvie (Evie).
And with family names Yvonne and Mary Evelyn, I’ve seriously considered Yvaine and Evelina, but most often in the middle name spot.
Great post!
KO says
August 10, 2012 at 11:00 AMAnyone else see Evely and hear “evily” in your head?
Vanessa says
August 10, 2012 at 8:35 AMDid you write this for me? Last year, before we discovered we were expected a second boy; several of these names were on my very long list. Top contenders were; Evangeline, Everett/Everette, Everley, Everdean, Evolet, and Genevieve. Evonne and Evette were considered momentarily. The “V” is VERY important and historical in my family.
cara says
August 10, 2012 at 8:29 AMEvie was our girl’s #1 name on the list. We considered just Evie (eh-vee), but my husband wanted a more formal name. We considered Everly, but decided on Evelyn. We had two boys though and didn’t get the opportunity to use it.
Jennifer says
August 10, 2012 at 8:02 AMOh thank you for making this post! I LOVE the nickname Evie, but don’t feel it’s substantial enough to stand on its own. This gives me lots of great options!
Photoquilty says
August 10, 2012 at 7:54 AMI have a hard time using Evie for any name that starts with a short E sound.
Charlotte Vera says
August 10, 2012 at 3:50 AMI’m personally a fan of the saintly Everild!
A new aquaintance here in NZ just named her youngest Evie. A friend in Canada has a preschool-aged Evie, short for the family name Evelyn.
appellationmountain says
August 10, 2012 at 6:24 AMOh, Everild should absolutely be on this list. Great addition!
Kaeli says
August 10, 2012 at 2:54 AMI love the name Eva (ee-va) and one of my favorite girl names right now is Geneva, with the option of Eva. I also love Evadne. I wish we could use Ever (or Everleigh) but I don’t think it would work with our last name, unfortunately. Ooo, and Evening! I’m adding that to my list right now! That’s stunning!
I wouldn’t name a daughter Evie but would give a more formal name. However, I would be more included to just name a daughter Eva. As you can see above, I love so many Ev- names and in actuality, would name her Geneva or Evadne with the nickname of Eva so I could get the best of both worlds!