Name Help is a series at Appellation Mountain. Every week, we discuss reader’s name questions, usually on Tuesdays and Fridays. We’re relying on thoughtful comments from the community to help expectant parents narrow down their name decisions. Thank you in advance for sharing your insight! To have your question considered, email appmtn (at) gmail. Looking for your own private #namehelp post? Order one here.
A UNIQUE MIDDLE NAME FOR MADELYN, JUST LIKE MOM
Jasmine writes:
I have a middle name that I have never heard on anyone else before: Lullaby. It’s kind of a joke that stuck. My dad misheard my mom’s last name as Lullaby and asked a mutual friend to introduce him to so-and-so Lullaby. It was incredibly embarrassing at one point, but I’ve grown to really love it.
Now I’m pregnant with a daughter, and I’d love to find something equally interesting and meaningful, something that can be all my daughter’s own.
Her first name will be Madelyn, which my husband suggested, so he’s on board with almost anything for a middle name as long as it’s not “crazy,” which I know is pretty vague.
The problem is that I don’t have a name with a good story. But I feel like so many kids have different names now that I have permission to choose something really unique, even if it’s not really a name.
I’ve considered:
- Arabesque – saw it on a discussion, love it but I’m not a dancer or anything like that
- Alouette – from your bird list
- Azure – because my favorite color is blue
- Lioness – sort of obsessed but maybe this is too much
- Persimmon – love the way this sounds, but maybe not with Madelyn
- Promise – I just like the way it sounds
- Terpsichore – goddess of dance, Arabesque sort of led to this one, maybe too complicated to pronounce even as a middle name
- Valancy – found this on your site and I really like LM Montgomery, plus I like the way it ends with a Y like Lullaby
I feel like I’ll know it when I hear it.
Please read on for my response and leave your thoughtful suggestions in the comments.
CREATIVITY PLUS MEANING
Abby replies:
Congratulations on your daughter!
My first thought: why not hand down the middle name Lullaby? I like it with Madelyn. It’s a great story. And it’s an even better story because now it’s a family middle name, too.
If not a Lullaby encore, I think there are two general directions to consider:
- A name with deep personal significance to you and your husband. I wonder if this list might inspire some fresh ideas?
- A word name that points to the natural world, virtues, or some other universal quality or experience.
I can’t guess at the former, so I’m going to focus on the latter. I do think Promise is, well, promising.
It sounds great with Madelyn. It’s different. And yet it’s an open kind of virtue, a flexible and positive meaning that’s very forward-looking.
UNIQUE MIDDLE NAME SUGGESTIONS
AMORET
Poetic word name ultimately from the Latin amor, meaning love.
BRAVERY
Avery plus BR, but with all the bravado of Lioness.
BRIO
A musical term meaning spirited.
EVERMORE
An enduring promise of a word name, even better if you’re a Taylor Swift fan.
FABLE
Literary word name that reads like Faye plus Mabel.
KESTREL
Another bird name possibility.
SONNET
If Amoret and Fable are close, but not quite, Sonnet might appeal.
VESPER
The evening star, a night sky name with mythological roots.
Overall, I really love the idea of handing down Lullaby to your daughter. It’s almost a family name on your side, right? And it preserves that story well into the future.
If not Lullaby, I think Promise from your list is pretty much perfect.
And if I had to pick from my suggestions, I’m drawn to Madelyn Vesper.
One thought: you haven’t shared your daughter’s surname, but saying these together might help determine which rhythm is best.
From your list, I like Promise the best. I feel like is the equivalent of saying you promise to always support her, be on her side, etc.
From Abby’s list I have always loved the hushed twilight imagery of Vesper.
From the suggestions, two really stand out to me.
Madelyn Morning – love the alliteration and all the sunny vibes of this.
Madelyn Nightingale – this may be my favorite. I love how it conjures Florence Nightingale in addition to the bird. It has the same night tie as your name but what the name nerd in me geeks out on is the it takes the L of Lullaby and adds M and N. You are looking at a way to continue a …well new … tradition and this literally keeps counting. Jasmine (k) Lullaby and Madelyn Nightingale.
Best of luck on name hunting! You have so many great options.
In like manner of other comments, another musical word might make a nice nod to you IF you didn’t want to give her Lullaby.
In which case, how about Minuet?
Madelyn Minuet
Or something heavenly like Halcyon?
Madelyn Halcyon
Or perhaps Amnesty?
Madelyn Amnesty
An alcyone is a kind of bird (kingfisher).
Madelyn Alcyone
Doveva is a Hebrew word for ‘grateful’.
Madelyn Doveva
A gentian is a bright blue flower!
Madelyn Gentian
Sterling would make a nod to authenticity.
Madelyn Sterling
Congratulations and best wishes!
I would also think of things that are important to you and your husband and brainstorm the most pleasant sounding word names from them, e.g. Symmetry for a family of mathematicians/scientists, etc.
But if you wanted to connect it closely to your name without repeating the exact name, there’s also…
Lullay
Rockabye
Hushabye
Bayu or Bayou (Bayushki bayu is used in Russian to lull a baby to sleep and it sounds like bayou)
Isabeau
Loveday
Dove
Bliss
Honor
Dawn
Pilgrim
Blaise
Snow
Sunflower
Mariposa
Butterfly
I really like Madelyn Vesper or Vespertine. (Vespers are a church service in the evening & this connects with “Lullaby.”)
You could even use Evening.
Madelyn Evening.
Or her birthstone…for example, May is Emerald.
Madelyn Emerald (not sure when you are due).
Finally, two other ideas:
Starlight
Fairlight
Starlight connects with “Lullaby” because of the evening…Madelyn Starlight.
Fairlight is a name I recently discovered and could be a way for you to give your daughter a name you hope she will embody – being a “fair” “light” in this world. I believe Fairlight has been used in Appalachia, but I think it works for lots of baby girls from different ethnicities/regions etc.
Madelyn Fairlight
Best wishes!!
The fairlight is the time of day when the sun is not above the horizon, but there is still light from it in the sky (both pre-dawn and dusk). Lovely.
I like the idea of passing down the middle name Lullaby or something similar, but her own. Some ideas….
Madelyn Melody
Madelyn Lyric
Madelyn Sonnet
Madelyn Serenade
Madelyn Harmony
Madelyn Berceuse ( French for lullaby, pronounced behr-suz)
What I love about your middle name is it’s a nod to the relationship between your parents. I don’t think anyone but you and he can figure out a middle name for your daughter, if that’s the tradition you want to pass down. Is there a song or place or a smoosh of your names?
Otherwise I agree Lullaby could be nice to pass down.
What I love about your middle name is it’s a nod to the relationship between your parents. I don’t think anyone but you and he can figure out a middle name for your daughter, if that’s the tradition you want to pass down. Is there a song or place or a smoosh of your names?
Otherwise Lullaby could be a nice to pass down
How about Aubade – a morning love song – as a counterpart to the nighttime Lullaby?
Madelyn Morning has potential too.
Among the musical suggestions, Cadenza has a pleasing sound and meaning – part of a musical piece in which the performer can improvise and create something uniquely their own.
Madelyn Aubade
Madelyn Morning
Madelyn Cadenza
Congratulations and enjoy your daughter!
Solstice
Everglade
Pipistrelle
Nightingale
Ardent
Cerulean
Rudbeckia
Chrystanthemum
Dandelion
Honesty
Garland
Firelily
Bluebell
Wisteria
Amaryllis
Anemone
Amarantha
Buttercup
Cascade
Cypress
Evergreen
Oleander
Rivian
Rialta
Mahogany
Sequoia
Saffron
Flint
Diamond
Peridot
Topaz
Cricket
Feather
Fennec
Theory
Veracity
Velocity
Epiphany
Integrity
Oasis
Thunder
Eclipse
I knew this question would bring out your best lists – thank you!!