Vintage Girl Names to Match Margo and Mabel

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! To have your question considered, email appmtn (at) gmail. Looking for your own private #namehelp post? Order one here.

WHEN YOU WANT TO MATCH BUT ALSO NOT MATCH

Alicia writes:

We are expecting our third daughter in September, and finding a name for her is turning out to be so hard, and so we’d love some help.

Our two daughters are Margo and Mabel. They’re twins. I know their first names are very matchy. When we first found out we were pregnant, our two favorite names for girls were Margot and Mabel. We couldn’t decide, so when we realized we could use both names, it was almost a relief!

The one change we made was spelling Margo without the T, because I liked the idea of their names both having five letters. I sort of regret this now, because I find myself saying “Margot, without the T” or “Margot, but with just an O” a lot, and it’s still confusing.

We know we do NOT want another M name for this baby. But that’s about all we know.

If this baby was a boy, we had mostly settled on Felix. My husband wasn’t 100% but I liked the way it has five letters, but didn’t sound anything like our girls’ names.

Also, our last name sounds like Gets. The spelling is different but I worry about teasing, and think word names can make it even worse.

Names we agree on, but don’t feel like the one:

• Elodie – I think it’s so pretty, but we know a few girls named Ella, Ellie, etc. and I’m not sure if Elodie is different enough.
• Sadie – My husband’s favorite. It’s growing on me, but I still think it’s a little too cute.
• Gemma – One of my favorites, but my niece is Emma. She’s only a few months older than Margo and Mabel, so we ruled out Gemma for them. I’m not sure if we could use it now, but my gut tells me it cause some problems.
• Daphne – A definite frontrunner until someone told my husband it was a Bridgerton name. (That’s not where I got it. It was from White Lotus!)
• Daisy – Breaks my word name rule. Also, my sister-in-law used to have a dog named Daisy.
• Nora/Norah – I feel like we’d be saying “Nora with an H,” so opposite problem from Margo’s name now

Both of our girls have family last name middle names. To give you an idea, it’s like Mabel Haverty Gets and Margo Ellison Gets. We have a few options for this baby:

• Harrison – But I like this so much for a boy, I kind of want to keep it just in case
• Barrow – Would’ve used with our girls, but it didn’t sound great with Margo or Mabel.
• Lawrey
• Pierce

I think that’s it! I love reading everyone’s ideas so thank you in advance!

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

NAMING A SINGLETON AFTER TWINS

Abby replies:

Congratulations on your new daughter!

I think naming a singleton after multiples can present some specific challenges. No matter how hard we work to see our twins as separate, unique individuals, we do tend to say their names as a set more often than might otherwise be the case.

And parents often do try to coordinate their twins’ names in some subtle way. In your family’s case, Margo and Mabel are great together. But they’re also both five-letter vintage girl names with strong sounds that start with M.

My best advice is to match the style, not the letters.

Except that I, too, am tempted by choosing another five-letter name. While I don’t think it’s a must-do in any way, it was helpful for narrowing down the options. And without even really trying? (Almost) every single one of my suggestions is five-letters long.

A few thoughts on your current list:

If you’re mildly frustrated by Margot versus Margo, I would probably avoid Norah. It’s a great name, either spelling. But I think the default is typically Nora. Since you already know that an alternate spelling feels like a hassle for you, I’d avoid it.

Regarding duplicates (or near dupes), it really depends. I can imagine families with a Gemma and an Emma that don’t give it a second thought, and others where it starts an all-out war. Same thing for Daisy. But since it feels like those are potentially issues, I’m going to assume Gemma and Daisy are off the list, too.

I think Elodie is distinctive. But it’s not about me. If you’re grown weary of hearing lots of El- names, or imagine your Elodie could easily be called Ellie for short? That’s a good sign you might need to avoid this name. (Though I think it’s probably worth the risk.)

It sounds like Sadie and Daphne are the current frontrunners. Since Daphne is much less common, it feels like that gives Daphne an edge. Then again, Sadie is just five letters, which fits in nicely.

So, yes, we it’s time to dream up some fresh ideas.

Let’s get started!

NAMES LIKE MARGO AND MABEL

CHLOE

I like this as a substitute for Daphne. It feels vaguely vintage, like Margo and Mabel. Like Daphne, it’s a name that’s really only been popular in recent years – but it was in use. And I think that’s a winning combination. I love the way Chloe is also five letters, but has a different beginning and ending sound. Just a thread of connection, but still her own name.

DINAH

Okay, Dinah doesn’t rank in the current US Top 1000. It hasn’t since the 1960s. It’s really are. But everyone knows it. (Downside: they may sing the old folk song.) But it’s sort of like Norah, turned up to eleven. And the H is truly meant to be there.

ELIZA

Yes, it’s an EL name like Elodie, but the emphasis falls more on the Z. I think that makes a big difference.

HELEN

Classic Helen is rising in use lately, and I’m so here for it. Maybe it’s a little more serious than Margo and Mabel? But I appreciate the way it’s compact, with a single, clear spelling, and truly timeless.

NAOMI, NOEMI

My first thought was Noemi. Except … there’s still a very strong M sound. Margo, Mabel, Noemi. I’m not sure I love it. But the more popular, and far more familiar version of the name is Naomi. And I think that has potential.

TESSA

Suggesting Tessa here because I think it’s a substitute for Gemma. Brief, sparky, a little bit vintage but really very 2025, too.

STELLA

Stella is both a consistent Top 100 name in recent years and a sparky standout. Maybe that shouldn’t be possible, but it just is. I love this name with Margo and Mabel. Also: it comes in at six letters, but somehow it still seems perfectly balanced when I see all three names together: Margo, Mabel, Stella.

WILLA

Of course, Willa is nearly as appealing as Stella … and does stick to the five-letter limit.

Overall, I’m stuck on Stella, with Eliza and Chloe tied for (a very close) second place. For something really daring, I’d say Dinah.

Clearly, I really like my list! But I’d be remiss if I didn’t note that I think Elodie is still distinctive and different, even in a world with lots of El names. I really do like the sound of Margo, Mabel, and Elodie.

Readers, over to you! What names match Margo and Mabel – but not too much?