Is Arietta the Best Name for Scarlett’s Sister?

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.

HAVE THEY FOUND THE PERFECT NAME?

Greg writes:

My wife and I have had a rough time naming our second child. Our first born is Scarlett, nicknamed a mixture of Lottie, Scottie, and Lots. We both liked the name and its various nicknames. Scarlett really suits her now she’s three and her personality is out in full force.

My wife usually only really likes rare names.

I’m happy as long as it’s not a flash-in-the-pan name too heavily time stamped with a particular generation or connotation. I loved classics like Isabella and Harriet with nickname options.

Names we have considered include:

• Aurelia – no great nicknames, too flourishy
• Lenora – annoying too similar to the brand Lenor (note for American readers: this is what Downy fabric softener is called everywhere else in the world)

We’ve now landed on Arietta. The meaning we love, and it goes well with our surname, which starts with a Mc and is three syllables.

Perhaps it’s just the confidence we need to choose it? It does sound like Harrietta with the H dropped which is a drawback.

Help us please! 

Please read on for my response and leave your thoughtful suggestions in the comments.

ARIETTA: WEARABLE AND DISTINCTIVE

Abby replies:

Congratulations on your second daughter!

Naming a second child can feel a little like solving a riddle. There are all these qualities you love in your first child’s name that you want for her sibling, of course. But you also don’t want to take away from what makes your older daughter’s name uniquely hers.

I do think part of the challenge is exactly what you mentioned: confidence. Once we’ve experienced how well a name choice works out for our firstborn, it can feel like that magic will never happen again.

A few things to keep in mind:

• There’s always a moment of uncertainty. I’m guessing Scarlett’s name feels so right for her now that any hesitations are almost forgotten.
• Longer names are almost always versatile. Just like Scarlett’s nicknames give her options, nearly any longer name offers nickname possibilities. This means your daughter can try out different versions of her name, and introduce herself in a way that feels right for the person she becomes.
• There are advantages to Top 100 favorites. We all know the drawbacks, but a more popular name is almost always easily spelled and pronounced. They’re often well-liked, too, because … well, they’re popular. And there’s a lot of space between Top Ten favorites like Olivia and Amelia and merely Top 100 picks like Eloise and Clara. If you’ve loved Scarlett’s reasonably familiar name, I suspect you don’t need to choose something really one-of-one to feel like this daughter’s name is perfect, either.

ARIETTA: THINKING IT THROUGH

The name Arietta would satisfy any desire for an unusual name. It’s incredibly uncommon, not just in the English-speaking world, but throughout Europe, too.

While the name is very unusual, it’s built from familiar sounds. Top 100 favorites in England like Aria, Arabella, and Harriett all sound something like Arietta. So does traditional Henrietta. That makes the name feel like a fit, even if it’s very different.

If we’re scoring for unusual/familiar, I’d say it checks the box for being a very distinctive name, but ties to familiar favorites like Aria and Harriet make it more accessible. That’s a good spot.

My one hesitation: are the obvious Arietta nicknames too close to Scarlett’s nicknames? After all, they both share a strong ETT sound as well as an AR sound, and Scarlett answers to Lottie and Scottie. Would you call Arietta Arie for short? If so, I think it works beautifully. Lottie and Etta are sweet together, too. But Arietta called Ettie is probably too close to Lottie. Just something to ponder.

Also worth considering: you would have to spell and pronounce Arietta far more often than Scarlett’s name. People will forget it and confuse it with something else. The positive is that Arietta’s name will be all her own.

I’m going to suggest some more names, not because I think Arietta needs to be replaced, but because I think it might help you test out whether anything can top Arietta.

MORE NAMES TO CONSIDER

DAVINA

Uncommon but straightforward, Davina feels like it ought to be popular. It shortens to boyish Davy or minimalist Vee. And speaking of Vee, it shares that great middle sound with Olivia, Ivy, and Ava.

ELOWEN, ELOWYN

Lenor is lovely and feminine, but rather tailored – just like Scarlett. I wonder if something ending with an -N might appeal? The -wyn spelling is gaining in popularity, while the -wen feels a little more traditional. Something similar happened with Bronwyn/Bronwen, and the Y spelling became the standard.

ISADORA

Might Isadora be the middle ground between Isabella and something really rare? It’s used in small numbers. And the nicknames? Isa, Issy, Ida, Dora, Dory, Dot … nearly endless.

JUNIPER

June and Junie are sweet, summery, vintage choices. Juniper is different. It feels a little on the modern side, except it’s not unknown in the 19th century, either. Juniper’s energy matches Scarlett. And it has that same feel – a name that feels like it belongs, but still stands out nicely.

MARIEL, MARIELLA, MARIELLE

Arietta is lovely, but if it’s too different, there’s always Ariella. But then Ariella made me wonder if a name like Mariel or Marielle might feel slightly more restrained, and less fanciful? Of course, since your last name begins with M, it’s possible you’d rather avoid any first names beginning with the same sound. But I do think it works nicely.

ORIANA

Golden Oriana shares the same meaning as Aurelia. But I find it just a little more compact and maybe slightly more distinctive. It reminds me just a little bit of Lenora, too, with that strong OR sound. The downside? Ariana is more popular, and Oriana will probably be occasionally misheard. That said, if Ariana represents the popular choice and Arietta the really surprising one? Oriana might be right in the middle.

PERSEPHONE

Persephone shares the pop of Top 100 favorites Penelope and Poppy. But it’s less common, while still being immediately familiar. Shorten it to Persie, Pers, Sephie, and more.

SABRINA, SERENA

These are two completely separate names, but the sound is similar. I tend to think of them both as problem-solvers. They pair beautifully with so many names, but defy easy categorization. The only potential downside is that your girls would share an initial. But if that’s not a dealbreaker, I think both of these work beautifully.

Overall, I’m not sure any of these are better choices than Arietta for Scarlett’s sister. But Arietta is very different. If that’s a concern, would you consider a name that’s closer to the mainstream? I love both Juniper and Elowyn as a sister for Scarlett, but if you’re looking for something slightly more flowing, I keep returning to Isadora.

But maybe the truest test is this: if you’re looking at all of the suggestions, mine as well as the comments, and thinking “nope, none of those are nearly as good as Arietta …” Well, then, you have your answer!

Readers, over to you! What do you think of Arietta? And what other names would you suggest for Scarlett’s sister?