Name Help is a series at Appellation Mountain. Every week, 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!
Ellie writes:
Choosing names has always come easy for us. We named our son about ten minutes after the ultrasound tech declared, “it’s a boy.” Our daughter was down to two or three favorites, but we agreed right after she was born.
Their full names are Ethan Edward and Tessa “Tess” Marie. Edward and Marie are family names that happen to be kind-of-sort on both sides of our families. Our last name is a presidential surname that starts with C and ends with -er.
We are now expecting twins – a boy and a girl. They will complete our family.
We have a name picked out for our son: Levi Andrew. But for a daughter, we’re stuck.
I’m not sure if we have any can’t-break rules, but generally:
- Because our last name is a popular first name, we don’t want to use anything like Madison that would lead to confusion.
- I don’t like alliteration. Tessa was almost Clara, but I decided Clara C. sounded too cartoon-character to me.
- We would prefer to avoid repeating initials, so no more names that begin with E, T, or L.
- Nicknames are okay when they’re obvious, like Tess for Tessa.
Neither of us is very adventurous. We’re not going to have a kid named Blue Ivy or anything like that. But we do know a lot of kids at this point, and names like Olivia, Isabella, Evelyn, and Emma/Emily and Amelia are probably out because we know more than one, though they are all names that we like.
Please read on for my response and share your thoughtful suggestions in the comments.
Dear Ellie –
Congrats on your twins! With your new son named, you’re halfway there … now let’s see if we can’t come up some ideas for your daughter.
The more kids you name, the tougher it can get to avoid repeating sounds. We’ve ruled out four letters of the alphabet: C for your surname, plus E, T, and L for your other children’s names. That leaves 22 letters, though, so I think we can work with that.
Alice – Spare and straightforward, but filled with a mix of storybook innocence and real-world resilience, Alice strikes me as a fitting sister name for Tess. It’s a different initial, too, and while I questioned if Ellie and Alice were too close, I think they pass the test nicely.
Georgia – Tessa reads spunky, and so does Georgia. At just two syllables, it doesn’t require a nickname, though Georgie is obvious and available.
Grace – Single-syllable names tend to feel nickname-proof. That’s not quite true, but I think Grace/Gracie falls into the same category as Tessa/Tess – it’s a logical, obvious choice, one that your daughter could use or not over the years.
June – My first thought was Jane, but maybe June feels a little more like a sister for Ethan, Tessa, and Levi? It’s a fresh choice, upbeat and optimistic. But it also feels traditional, the kind of name that we all recognize, even if we don’t hear it often.
Molly – My first suggestion was Lily, but that clashes with Levi. So I substituted Molly instead. In many ways, it’s a traditional name – short for the evergreen Mary. But it’s also casual, a natural sister for Tessa.
Nora – Clara always makes me think of Nora. Because it avoids the initials C.C., would Nora suit?
Ruby – Ruby introduces a new vowel sound into the mix, and has a different first initial, and is pretty mainstream without being too common. Could Ruby work?
Violet – Okay, Levi and Violet might be a little too close. But I like the subtle link with the shared ‘vi’ sound in the two names, so I can’t resist adding it to the list. And I do think Violet meets all of your requirements nicely.
Overall, I’m most attracted to June and Grace. I think Junie and Gracie are nicknames in the same way that Tess is for Tessa. And I like the sound of Ethan, Tess, Levi, and June (or Grace) a lot.
But I know the community will have some great suggestions … so over to you! What would you name a twin sister for Levi Andrew?
Congratulations on your two new arrivals!!
I came to second Maeve with possible nn Mae. Ethan, Tess, Levi and Mae. Keeps the two syllable boy name / one syllable girl name pattern and keeps an “e” in all the names.
Seems like you like the “e” vowel sound — both the long and the short. Your own name Ellie, is both the long and the short too! “Eee” for Ethan and Levi and Marie. “Eh” for Tess and Edward. So if not Maeve maybe another name with an eh/ay sound? Like Kate as a nn for Kaitlyn? Or Cecily? Tessa and Cecily seem like sister names. I think Grace works here too for the “eh/ay” reason too. Or perhaps Megan nn Meg? Meg is quite spunky. Ethan, Tess, Levi and Meg?
Anyways, congratulations again!
I like Nova as a sister for Levi. Nice repetition of the V but they don’t sound the same at all.
Nola is another sweet name I think would go nicely with Levi, Tessa, and Ethan.
Love the suggestion of Olive.
I know a little Tessa who goes by Tess. Her sister is Elise, which repeats the E first letter, but the two names do go nicely together.
What was the other name you had on your list for Tessa (besides Clara)? That one doesn’t feel right anymore?
Tess is one of my all-time faves. Love the spunk. So a sister for Tess…(beyond the already great suggestions – i have a soft spot for Georgia, and Lucy, Hazel, Sadie, Gemma, Willa seem like the right match, although i was coming to say MAEVE! perfection both with sister and Levi)
Ethan, Tessa, Levi & Mia
Ethan, Tessa, Levi & Daphne
Ethan, Tessa, Levi & Simone
Anna is a funny one, looking at these comments. I would think it’s not very common these days, but when I had my first check-up with my second daughter (a few years ago), the nurse asked me what other names we had considered and when I said Annie, she said ‘oh thank goodness you didn’t choose that, we have Annies and Annas galore lately!’ That being said, I only know two Annas IRL spanning ten years, and my kids are in kindergarten and preschool. Maybe it depends on the area…
Margot Jeanne
Sophie Blair
Zoe Elizabeth
Tori Grace
Lucy Jane
Charlotte Ruth
Laurel Anne
Maybe:
Phoebe
Vivian
Sadie
Julia (could go by Julie or Jules or use it in full)
Zoe
Gemma (I think this would make a great match for Tessa!)
Fiona
Isla (Levi and Isla sound really nice together, I think)
Willa (another nice match for Tessa, and shares the L sound with Levi)
Serena
Olive (shares sounds nicely with Levi)
I also love soneone else’s suggestion of Nina! From Abby’s suggestions, I think Molly fits best.
I love the suggestions of Georgia, Sylvie, and Ada!
I’d also throw in a few more:
Anne/Annie (Anne is so classic and pretty–but I feel like I NEVER hear of any little Annies)
Nina
Rose/Rosie
Mara
Noelle
If alliteration is out, then K would also be stricken from the list.
I think from the above list, Nora and Alice address my favorite choices.
I’d like to throw out there:
Della
Jenna
Mira
Jillian (Jill)
Audrey
Maeve (Mae)
I know we want to avoid repeating initials but Lydia is so sweet with Tess (and Ethan and Levi). But I’m usually anti twins matching sooo… I’ll second Ruby and Anna.
I don’t think June will work, if they’re trying to avoid ‘common’ names. I assume their last name is the same as Jimmy’s, so isn’t June too much like June C____ Cash?
Of the ones Abby suggested, I most like Georgia. Georgia and Tessa are adorable together!
Ada
Audrey
Darcy
Flora
Hazel
Isabel / Isabella
Sylvia / Sylvie
My favourite is Ada. Ada and Tessa. Levi and Ada. Ethan, Tess, Levi and Ada. Adorable!
I didn’t even THINK of that! You’re right … June might not work.
I really like June, Nora, Molly and Grace.
Otherwise maybe:
Juliet
Hannah
Rose
Mary (nn Molly or Polly)
Abigail
Naomi (unless that is too different to Tessa?)
Anna
Sophie or Sophia
Stella (too same-y as Tessa or good match?)
Love this list! Anna is one of those names we tend to assume is very popular. And I do know a bunch of girls with names like Annabelle. But Anna? I’ve only met one. I think it stands out nicely.
I think Naomi suits particularly well — especially because, like Levi, it’s an Old Testament name that ends in “i.” A subtle twin-link!
That’s a really good point!