Name Help is a series at Appellation Mountain. Every Saturday, one reader’s name questions will be discussed.
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!
Amanda and her husband already have two nicely-named children: son Bram and daughter Maren.
Now they’re expecting their third child. It’s a girl!
They’re looking for a name that is:
- Uncommon
- Frills-free but still feminine
- Possibly nature-inspired
- Bonus points if the names shares the same ‘a’ sound as Bram and Maren
Their current list includes Freya, Selah, Sela, Zara, Esme, Garnet, Greta, and River.
Please read on for my response – and share your helpful thoughts and suggestions in the comments!
Hi Amanda –
I love the names Bram and Maren, and I think you’ve got a great start with your short list!
Let’s see if we can come up with a few more ideas that meet your criteria, and then narrow down the list!
A Sister for Maren & Bram: More Ideas
We all know a frilly name when we see it: Arabella, Eleonora, Marietta, Antoinette. They’re elaborate, even frou-frou. It can be a little bit harder to describe a frills-free name, though I’ve tried to make a list!
From your list, Garnet and River are the most tailored names. They’re also used for boys and well as girls, which seems like a line you’d rather not cross. But they’re nature names, and Garnet shares the same ‘a’ sound as Bram and Maren. So that’s a plus.
But most of the names on your list are still frills-free, even if they’re clearly feminine: Sela, Selah, Freya, Zara, Greta, Esme. None of them are too dramatically feminissa.
So there’s no way to discard any of these names as an outlier.
Other names that might fit:
- Lake – Wrong ‘a’ sound, but a frills-free nature name that feels feminine.
- Bay – Same potential – and problems! – as Lake. But I wonder if you’d prefer to avoid repeating the initials B and M?
- Luna – A nature name, a frills-free name, and hey, a Harry Potter heroine role model, too! But is Luna too popular? Neither Bram nor Maren is in the current US Top 1000, so that makes me think that Top 200 (and rising fast) Luna needs to be crossed from the list. Which reminds me, I really want to suggest Iris, but it’s a Top 1000 name – and doesn’t have that ‘a’ sound, either.
- Arbor – Now here’s a nature name we don’t hear very often. (I first came across it on a flower girl at a wedding – very appropriate, right?) Not in the current US Top 1000, definitely a nature name, and while it’s frills-free, it also seems feminine.
- Arden – Again, not in the US Top 1000. It’s literary, thanks to Shakespeare’s Forest of Arden. It’s frills-free. But, like Garnet, it has a history of use for boys. So that’s a possibly drawback – though that’s changed in recent years, and Arden definitely trends feminine these days.
- Afton – One more two-syllable, A name: Afton, as in the river. There are lots of reasons to love this name.
- Lark – If you like the idea of a nature name, would you consider something with wings? Avian names are a big category. Wren is the most popular possibility and fits your list nicely, too. But Lark shares the ‘a’ sound with Maren and Bram. And because it ends in k, I think it feels different from your older kids’ names, too.
A Sister for Bram & Maren: My Favorites
I worry I’m not doing you any favors by adding more ideas to your list!
So let’s go back and choose some favorites.
From your list, I love:
- Sela – On the downside, Selah is slightly more familiar, and it might cause some spelling confusion. But I think the plusses outweigh that one drawback here. It’s a nature name – from the Hebrew for ‘rock’, as well as an Old Testament place name. (Sela and Selah have different roots.) And it checks the other boxes, too – the right ‘a’ sound, feminine but not frilly.
- Greta – One of things I love about Maren is that it can be tied to the Latin word for the sea, but also to the ever-so-classic Mary. Greta has that same spin-on-a-classic appeal, since it’s originally a form of Margaret. Another plus? Margaret can be linked to daisies, via the French Marguerite. It’s the most popular name on your list, but it certainly isn’t common.
- Zara – Even though there’s no nature name tie here, I’m drawn to Zara for the same reasons as Greta. Zara feels like an update to the evergreen Sarah, which makes me think of Zara as a natural sister name for Maren. Another possibility? Zora. Literary like Bram, and with a nature name tie: it comes from a Slavic word meaning dawn.
From the list of new possibilities, I’d add:
- Lake and Lark – They’re short, frills-free nature names that I expect to hear on a girl. Lake doesn’t have the right vowel sound, but I think it still works.
- Afton – This name has such a great story. It pairs well with Bram and Maren, and it’s a nature name, too.
- Iris – Okay, it doesn’t fit what you asked for at all. But Bram, Maren, and Iris – I think it works, too. And as with Esme and River, sometimes considering names that don’t exactly fit your criteria can help you decide how important those criteria really are to your final decision.
Okay, readers, over to you! What would you name a sister for Maren and Bram?
Some not mentioned which I think fit: Aura, Azura, Lyra, Tamar, Terra
My first thought was Wren or Wrenn, I just love it for a girl and it is natured inspired. May be too close to Maren. I also like Larken, close to Lark but not as harsh. A little dramatic but not nature inspired … what about Bardot or Harlow. Good luck.
As the mother of an Afton, I have a soft spot for that for you! I also have Freya on the short list for a potential little sister, along with Carys – wonder if you’d like Carys? Apparently it’s been suggested above!
Another name that popped into my head was Fallon.
From the list of suggestions, I love Laurel. it makes me also want to suggest Linden and Rowan.
Good luck! I love your naming style!!
Mavis and Laurel immediately sprung to mind. Both are nature-inspired, have some sort of A in them, are uncommon, and don’t seem frilly to me. Another name that came to mind was Petra (rock). Selah is my favorite name from your list. I love it!
On the basis of the post title alone, and the request for “no frills”, my first thought was Celia — not as common as Cecilia, less frilly, a little bit old-fashioned like Maren and Bram — so I was quite pleased to see Sela(h) and similar names already on their short list!
Bram, Maren, & Lark <3
I agree, that sounds great! Also, what about Fawn?
Bram, Maren & Fawn
Thanks for all the ideas everyone! I’m going to add many of these to our long list and discuss with my hubby.
To clarify –
Bram rhymes with Sam
Maren rhymes with Erin/Karen/etc
I think the a sound is soft in both but not identical. I was actually looking for a name with a long A sound (like Kate, Faye, Dana, for example) though I must have explained that poorly. But regardless, the A criteria is low on the list compared to our other must-haves 🙂 It’s just a bonus because I find it pleasing to the ear.
Thanks Abby!
Thanks, Amanda – and that’s my fault! I grew up in eastern Pennsylvania, and pronouncing the letter ‘a’ is such a challenge for me …
My first thought was Ember, but I’m not sure it has quite the same feel or style as Bram and Maren. And goes for more of the M sound than the A sound they are after.
Laurel could be lovely, even though the A sound is a little different.
Or how about Sable, Zaria, Audra or Calla?
I love Freya and Esme from your list, and Abby’s suggestion of Lark. I also love the suggestions of Carys, Liv, Sloan, and Thea. Bram and Maren both feel a little Nordic to me, so I’m going to try to suggest some names along those lines, plus your other requirements of being frills-free, uncommon, and nature inspired.
Aya
Calla
Ingrid
Juna/Junia/June
Pearl
Gaia
Senna
Olive
Flora
Delia
Tatum
Sable
Delta
Anya
Clover
Rhea
Orla
Sage
Colette
Azure
Not all of these have the same a sound, but many of the names on your list are similar to those we had on our own list for girls, so I thought I’d suggest some we considered.
Feena, it’s a rare Irish name meaning “small fawn”
Zinnia, I love this completely underused flower name. Zinnie is such a cute nickname
Fern, shares some nice sounds with your other kids and is nature-y.
Hazel, pretty and feminine without being frilly
Thea, so pretty
Dagny, fits the whole Scandi thing you have going on
Annika, same as above
Oona, I’ve always loved this name because I think it’s spirited
Good luck!
I’d suggest Liv. Bram, Maren & Liv.
I’d like to throw in two nature names that both begin and end in ‘a’: Alba and Astra. But you’ve got loads of good options – looking forward to hearing what you pick!
I know sisters named Marin and Elise. I always thought they went well together, and I think Elise fits in the no-frills category, although Elise is quite a bit more common.
Bram, Maren and Adair.
Ooh, I like this!
Adele works as well.
Greer?
Amber
Opal
Jade
Jay (as in the bird)
To match your other names, I like Luna and Arbor.
My favorites from the post are definitely Arbor and Afton. Carys is a great suggestion from the comments, and one of my enduring favorites. I’d maybe add Hera, which i think is lovely but very under the radar.
Linnea, Avalon
I have such a problem reading names without hearing pronunciation! Maren and Bram hardly have the same vowel sound in my head, though maybe it’s that the “r” is in a different spot? But then I got to your comment about Garnet. “Gar” rhymes with car. However, the only Marens I’ve ever know the “Mar” rhymes with air. So what does Bram rhyme with?
I’m completely confused by this as well. I wonder if it’s a regional thing? I’m in western Canada, and the vowel sounds in Bram, Maren, and Garnet are completely different to me. Bram rhymes with ham; Maren is like air; and Gar is like car.
I agree, I don’t get the same a from any of these names – must be an accent thing?
I immediately thought of Maeve or Mavis without reading the whole letter. I also love Sloane, but it doesn’t share an “a” sound. From your list, I’m partial to Selah.
I love Selah and Zara from your list! I also quite like Abby’s suggestion of Zora. Beautiful names that aren’t too frilly.
Other names I’d like to suggest:
Carys
Anouk
More nature-themed ones:
Acacia
Saffron
Bram and Maven are great names. I’m looking forward to hearing what you name the newest addition!
Love this naming style!!
Laurel might work. Or Ivy (but no ‘ah’ sound).
Opal is completely feminine without the frill. It has that ‘ah’. It’s nature-related. AND it’s not popular.
If you don’t mind repeating an initial, Mavis is lovely.
Autumn isn’t as obscure as your other names, but it meets some of your criteria.
From Abby’s list, Zora is my favorite.
From your list, Selah takes the cake! Beautiful!
Best wishes as you welcome your new addition! 🙂
I have a boy Abram and a daughter Hazel and we are expecting a little girl and we are naming her Maren 🙂 so I was going to suggest Hazel to you!! You’ve probably had the baby now. But people live Hazel when I tell them her name. We call her Hazey and Haze 🙂