So I posted on the baby name board last night, and got some (welcome but maybe surprising) positive feedback for the name Isolde. Obviously I really like it but I'm worried it might be too much. Any of you heard of anyone actually named Isolde? Other thoughts?
Frogger5 said:
So I posted on the baby name board last night, and got some (welcome but maybe surprising) positive feedback for the name Isolde. Obviously I really like it but I'm worried it might be too much. Any of you heard of anyone actually named Isolde? Other thoughts?
It's really pretty, but 2 things come to mind: one - it might be pronounced as "is old," not a great homonym of "Isolde," and two - as I'm sure you know, Isolde is the heroine of the German romance Tristan & Isolde, who dies alongside her lover when she's very young. In this way, it's like Juliet - a lovely name, but you're also naming your child after a very tragic figure. That said, it is beautiful and romantic. Would you call her by her full name or a nickname?
Rainbow Baby? {2.1.21} MC at 8 weeks {EDD 9.2.20} Rainbow Girl! {2.28.16} Baby boy, lost at 16 weeks {EDD 6.10.15}
@adorebel - Isolde really comes even before the Wagner opera, from Arthurian legend times. I kind of like that it's a tragic namesake. I hadn't thought about nicknames. What about Iseult instead? Less confusing on the pronunciation? Seems to be a legit variant.
I don't know, I love the Isolde spelling! I think you should go for it. It's so lovely and romantic, and I doubt anyone will really associate it in any literal way with that one story. As she gets older, it's the kind of name I'm sure she'll love more and more.
ETA: One of our top two girl names is a way-out-there name from Welsh mythology, so I totally get the literary impulse! We're worried about spelling/pronunciation too.
Rainbow Baby? {2.1.21} MC at 8 weeks {EDD 9.2.20} Rainbow Girl! {2.28.16} Baby boy, lost at 16 weeks {EDD 6.10.15}
I love the name Declan. My brothers best friend named their son Declan. I watch revenge and I loved the name. Also the name Nolan is another one I love but we agreed on Colton.
@Frogger5 Tristian & Isolde is considered the pre-cursor to Romeo & Juliet, if I remember correctly. There's a movie out there too. It's a great literary name. As an English nerd/English major I really like it, but she may be pronouncing it her whole life for people, something to keep in mind.
@adorebel Tristian & Isolde is considered the pre-cursor to Romeo & Juliet, if I remember correctly. There's a movie out there too. It's a great literary name. As an English nerd/English major I really like it, but she may be pronouncing it her whole life for people, something to keep in mind.
I'm a literature PhD/fellow nerd too! I guess I associate that legend with German folklore, but I don't actually know its exact temporal/geographical origins.
Rainbow Baby? {2.1.21} MC at 8 weeks {EDD 9.2.20} Rainbow Girl! {2.28.16} Baby boy, lost at 16 weeks {EDD 6.10.15}
Also @Frogger5 and @ohiodoxiemama08, now that we're talking about legends and fairy tales and literature, I saw these Folio editions of the Andrew Lang fairy books in a shop last month and was dying over how beautiful they are! You hardly ever see the whole Andrew Lang fairy series anymore. Too bad I am not now, nor will ever be, a millionaire, since they cost $100 a volume!
Rainbow Baby? {2.1.21} MC at 8 weeks {EDD 9.2.20} Rainbow Girl! {2.28.16} Baby boy, lost at 16 weeks {EDD 6.10.15}
Forget about cribs and onsies, just register for those beauties! Too bad you can't count of them being available forever, or you could do something like buy one for each birthday your kid has.
I don't know, I love the Isolde spelling! I think you should go for it. It's so lovely and romantic, and I doubt anyone will really associate it in any literal way with that one story. As she gets older, it's the kind of name I'm sure she'll love more and more.
ETA: One of our top two girl names is a way-out-there name from Welsh mythology, so I totally get the literary impulse! We're worried about spelling/pronunciation too.
@Frogger5 Tristian & Isolde is considered the pre-cursor to Romeo & Juliet, if I remember correctly. There's a movie out there too. It's a great literary name. As an English nerd/English major I really like it, but she may be pronouncing it her whole life for people, something to keep in mind.
ETA: tagged the wrong person!
I seem to remember that I didn't like the movie's plot as much as some of the other variants I've read. It's been a while since I've seen it, though.
Also, my last name is one that no one automatically can pronounce or spell correctly, and my first name has multiple spelling choices, so I guess I don't think too much about that as being a problem. Or perhaps my bitterness in constantly having to spell my name and hear it butchered has made me want to pass that on to the next generation !
@Frogger5 - Isolde is perhaps my most favorite name ever (German pronunciation, of course!), but I know I'd never have a realistic shot at convincing DH. As much as I adore it, I know she'd be hearing "is old" for as long as she lives in the U.S.
None of the other variations (from Iseult to Ysolda) are as pretty to me.
We have Ivan William for a boy-Ivan being my father's nickname and William being my DH middle name and father's first name. I can't decide on a girls name for the life of me but DH likes Eliza Jane I had a sister Elizabeth and our mother's names are Jan and Joan so a happy medium?
We have our hearts set on Carolina Rae (Carolina pronounced like the states) for a girl. I'm not missing anything "awful" about this name, am I?
Are you southern? I don't think I'd personally do it if not (just seems southern to me, probably because of the states) but certainly nothing awful about it! I'd say it that way too, I wouldn't go to Caro-LEE-na or anything if I saw it written down. Go for it!
P.S. This is so much fun now! I can see how it will turn more terrifying when we're all 35 weeks if we haven't decided yet!
@Frogger5 - Isolde is perhaps my most favorite name ever (German pronunciation, of course!), but I know I'd never have a realistic shot at convincing DH. As much as I adore it, I know she'd be hearing "is old" for as long as she lives in the U.S.
None of the other variations (from Iseult to Ysolda) are as pretty to me.
On Behind the Name they say the German pronunciation is ee-ZAWL-du. Is that right? With an "oo" vowel at the end?
@Frogger5 - Isolde is perhaps my most favorite name ever (German pronunciation, of course!), but I know I'd never have a realistic shot at convincing DH. As much as I adore it, I know she'd be hearing "is old" for as long as she lives in the U.S.
None of the other variations (from Iseult to Ysolda) are as pretty to me.
On Behind the Name they say the German pronunciation is ee-ZAWL-du. Is that right? With an "oo" vowel at the end?
I think it's more of a schwa at the end. I'm also side-eyeing the "ZAWL" part, but hey, what do I know, I could be wrong.
(Disclaimer: I am not German, but I was a music major, and Wagnerian opera did come up here and there in those four years. )
@neongreen See I think it's a little odd to have the schwa at the end, but that's what the English pronunciation is, too, supposedly. I didn't realize because I'd seen it written down first. I was saying "i-ZOLD". That's why I'm thinking Iseult instead. Sigh. The best thing about all these posts on this one name is that MH isn't even sold yet! Good thing we have time!
We have our hearts set on Carolina Rae (Carolina pronounced like the states) for a girl. I'm not missing anything "awful" about this name, am I?
Are you southern? I don't think I'd personally do it if not (just seems southern to me, probably because of the states) but certainly nothing awful about it! I'd say it that way too, I wouldn't go to Caro-LEE-na or anything if I saw it written down. Go for it!
P.S. This is so much fun now! I can see how it will turn more terrifying when we're all 35 weeks if we haven't decided yet!
@Frogger5, yes. Born and raised in Richmond, VA and now in Texas. Agreed about this getting terrifying later on!
@frogger5, I sort of know someone named Isolde (pronounced eye-sol-dah). I liked the name until I realized that this particular woman was a terrible person. I don't think it's too out there if you have a girl, but she'll definitely have to tell people how it's pronounced all the time.
Me (31) Him (31) Married: 5/2013 CP: 9/18/14 (4w:4d) BFP: 10/16/14 EDD: 6/21/15
For a boy we have Carter James - Carter is my all time favorite boy name and my husband finally agreed and I may finally get to use it this time! And James - my husbands full name is Jimmy, so James is in honor of his name.
For a girl we are stuck between Lucy and Lola with no middle name options yet. We are on team green, so I think we will make the decision of the baby ends up being a girl.
Our children's names are Tucker Richie, Ava Selina and Sadie Mae.
I love Patrick. I have a 5 y/o Patrick and the surprisingly nice thing about it is that even though it's a really nice traditional name there are not a lot of other kids with that name currently! We haven't had another Patrick in any class or play group yet!
Me (29)DH (29)ODS (8/07)DS (6/09) And adding a team green baby via rc/s 6/1/15
We've just about settled on James Alastair for a boy. James is one of the handful of boys names 1.) I actually like 2.) flows with our surname and 3.) isn't already used. It was a commonly used name in my Scots-Irish family until the 20th century. Alexander was our top mn pick until I learned that Alastair is the Scottish form of the name.
DH and I don't really see eye-to-eye on girls names. The ones he likes are too traditional for my taste and dated to the 80s and 90s and he sees mine as whimsical, bordering on weird. I think Katarina and Adelaide are the only ones we've really agreed on.
Girl: Gianna, Giovanna, Juliana, Evie, Gigi (flame away). I'd probably never have the guts to use Gigi as a full name, only a nickname.
Boy: DH wants to name him after his father who passed away, Francesco. I'm trying my hardest to make that a middle name as I'm not a fan. I like the mail versions of the first 2 names above.
DH is 100% Italian, 1st generation. I'm a mix of European nationalities. We want something a little European.
Franco Paul born 6/4/15 at 39 weeks. Mila Francesca born 10/19/13 at 37 weeks. Both born via C-Section after 6 years of fertility treatments, disappointments and losses. Love them!!
@Frogger5, it's Olwyn (with Wyn as a nickname). Our other girl names are much more conventional, but H and I both have some Welsh roots and think this name is lovely!
Rainbow Baby? {2.1.21} MC at 8 weeks {EDD 9.2.20} Rainbow Girl! {2.28.16} Baby boy, lost at 16 weeks {EDD 6.10.15}
@Frogger5, it's Olwyn (with Wyn as a nickname). Our other girl names are much more conventional, but H and I both have some Welsh roots and think this name is lovely!
@Frogger5, it's Olwyn (with Wyn as a nickname). Our other girl names are much more conventional, but H and I both have some Welsh roots and think this name is lovely!
That's lovely.
Ok we can put Isolde and Olwyn into therapy together for their weird names someday. That is, if we have girls!
Rainbow Baby? {2.1.21} MC at 8 weeks {EDD 9.2.20} Rainbow Girl! {2.28.16} Baby boy, lost at 16 weeks {EDD 6.10.15}
Re: so, what baby names have you come up with so far?
It's really pretty, but 2 things come to mind: one - it might be pronounced as "is old," not a great homonym of "Isolde," and two - as I'm sure you know, Isolde is the heroine of the German romance Tristan & Isolde, who dies alongside her lover when she's very young. In this way, it's like Juliet - a lovely name, but you're also naming your child after a very tragic figure. That said, it is beautiful and romantic. Would you call her by her full name or a nickname?
MC at 8 weeks {EDD 9.2.20}
Rainbow Girl! {2.28.16}
Baby boy, lost at 16 weeks {EDD 6.10.15}
MC at 8 weeks {EDD 9.2.20}
Rainbow Girl! {2.28.16}
Baby boy, lost at 16 weeks {EDD 6.10.15}
ETA: One of our top two girl names is a way-out-there name from Welsh mythology, so I totally get the literary impulse! We're worried about spelling/pronunciation too.
MC at 8 weeks {EDD 9.2.20}
Rainbow Girl! {2.28.16}
Baby boy, lost at 16 weeks {EDD 6.10.15}
MC at 8 weeks {EDD 9.2.20}
Rainbow Girl! {2.28.16}
Baby boy, lost at 16 weeks {EDD 6.10.15}
MC at 8 weeks {EDD 9.2.20}
Rainbow Girl! {2.28.16}
Baby boy, lost at 16 weeks {EDD 6.10.15}
P.S. This is so much fun now! I can see how it will turn more terrifying when we're all 35 weeks if we haven't decided yet!
Me (31) Him (31)

Married: 5/2013
CP: 9/18/14 (4w:4d)
BFP: 10/16/14 EDD: 6/21/15
For a girl we are stuck between Lucy and Lola with no middle name options yet. We are on team green, so I think we will make the decision of the baby ends up being a girl.
Our children's names are Tucker Richie, Ava Selina and Sadie Mae.
Good luck everyone!
OMG! I didn't even see that, I feel so silly. I still like it though, I am a Disney fan so it works I guess.
And adding a team green baby via rc/s 6/1/15
Franco Paul born 6/4/15 at 39 weeks. Mila Francesca born 10/19/13 at 37 weeks. Both born via C-Section after 6 years of fertility treatments, disappointments and losses. Love them!!
So stuck for a girl....top
Contenders are Avery, Camille or Cameron.
MC at 8 weeks {EDD 9.2.20}
Rainbow Girl! {2.28.16}
Baby boy, lost at 16 weeks {EDD 6.10.15}
GIRL: Liliana Elizabeth, Leighton Mae, Harper, or Savannah
Boys names: Bailey Logan or Oscar Joseph
MC at 8 weeks {EDD 9.2.20}
Rainbow Girl! {2.28.16}
Baby boy, lost at 16 weeks {EDD 6.10.15}