Following on the heels of the birth of a certain Vivienne Marcheline, we’re sure to see this vivacious and elegant choice get a boost among baby namers. Yet I have a feeling Vivienne will bring a few copines with her. French names have always fallen in and out of favor in the U.S. My American friends have the same names as those of my French mother-in-law: Nicole, Danielle, Monique. All peaked in the 70s and 80s here, but were the height of fashion in France much earlier. Adopting names from another culture always comes with the caveat that they may no longer be in fashion in their home country. So today I opt for French names, like Vivienne, that were relatively popular in early twentieth century France, and would sound fresh on any girl today. Of course, in France, they’re naming their girls things like Emma, Lea, Lola, and Jade.
Adèle- “noble”
Augustine- “great, venerable”
Blanche- “white, fair”
Célestine- “heavenly”
Cléo- “glory of the father”, short form of Cleopatra
Colette- “victory”
Colombe- “dove”
Constance- “constant”
Eugénie- “well-born”
Eulalie- “well-spoken”
Geneviève- “white wave”
Honorine- “honor”
Joséphine- “addition”, “he will add”
Léontine- “lion”
Louise- “famous warrior”
Lucienne- “light”
Marcelline*- derived from the Roman God Mars
Marguérite- “pearl” and in French, “daisy.”
Rosalie- “rose”
Seraphine- “fiery, ardent”
Sidonie- may mean “of Sidon” or be related to “St. Denis”
Solange- “religious”
Victorine- “victory”
Violette- “violet”
Zélie-possibly from Solène, “sunlight, eastern wind”
Other French monikers with real possibility that didn’t fit today’s criteria, but are not to be ignored:
Agnes, Aliénor, Amélie, Anaïs, Anouk, Apolline, Ariane, Aurélie, Béatrice, Camille,Cecile, Céleste, Charlotte, Christiane, Clémentine, Coralie, Corinne, Delphine, Elodie, Eloïse, Emeline, Estelle, Fabienne, Florence, Giselle, Inès, Juliette, Justine, Laure, Léonie, Maëlys, Margot, Marianne, Mathilde, Maxine, Mélisande, Ondine, Ottilie, Simone, Solène, Sylvie, Zoë.
*On a side note, Marcheline is not French, but an invented compound for Marcia Lynne, which was the birth name of Angelina’s mother. Marcelline would be the authentic choice.
Image Above: Léopold and Cléo, from Taschen’s Art Nouveau
{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
As is so often the case, a beautiful, delicate-but-strong name emerges from a God of War, this time Roman. I’m referring to Marcelline, whose counterpart, Marcellina, you mentioned in your previous post on Saints (and today’s her day, July 17th, so happy saints’ day all you Marcellines and Marcellinas out there, wherever you may be.) I am currently feeling faint, and while possibly from the heat, I feel fairly sure it’s because I’m swooning over this name. And no, it has nothing to do with the brand-new Vivienne Marcheline Jolie-Pitt or her lovely mother or deceased grandmother, RIP. It’s because to me it has both prettiness and gravitas and hasn’t been done to death, at least not in these parts!
I know we didn’t post the exact same topic on the same day, LOL!
But oh my, Eugenie and Seraphine – what heart-stoppingly lovely appellations!
Abby, blame Angie.
Did you know those two you mentioned are both on my shortlist? Well, Eugenie was. I think she’s out now.
I love the look of Eugenie but rarely like names with more than one pronouciation. The English princess pronouces Eugenie something similar to ‘use your knees’(!) but I think the French pronouce it more along the lines of Eu-janey and I’ve heard countless people speak of Eu-genie’s so you see confusion reigns!
So many of those names are utterly breath taking: Celestine, Agnes, Ottilie, Aurelie, Clementine, Beatrice, Violette, Seraphine… (be still my beating heart!!)
Ona slightly different note, I noticed Amelie in the list at the bottom of the post. I don’t know how she is faring Stateside but she’s showing all the signs of being an up and coming star in the UK (2007 ranking – 59)
Amelie debuted on the U.S. SSA list in 2002 at #881. She has risen steadily each year since, as American parents start to see this as a real pronouncable possibility. In 2007 she was still at a moderate #758.
Eugenie is another story. The multiple butcherings of this name, including that of the Duchess (I’m not crazy about the way she says “B!tches” for Beatrice either), are another obstacle to this lovely gem being viable stateside. The prominent EUGENE doesn’t help her case much either.
You’re so right, I love Beatrice but because of this and the perceived snobbishness of the name my other half will never allow it
Just a note to let you know, you have Marguerite listed as the meaning ‘pearl’ but it is actually the direct translation french word for Daisy.
Yes, Kim, Marguerite does mean “daisy” in French, which explains the obscure nickname Daisy for the English Margaret. The origin of this name is Margarites, which in Greek does in fact mean “pearl.” The flower was probably so called for its whiteness.
It’s kind of like Madeleine, which is a kind of French pastry, but actually means “from Magdala.” So you’re right, in French, Marguerite means both “daisy” and “pearl” and I will add that to the definition!
I love Violet, but think I love Violette even more… Violet is on my list, but so far my partner won’t even consider it. *pout*
Violet and Violette are so lovely! My other half is against them for their “violent” aspects, which I think is fairly ridiculous. They’re utterly floral and just say “Purple flower” to me. Also, Violets are the flower for February, so I say they honor anyone who was born in February, just in case you have that family tie to push it over the edge. Good luck, Deevaa. What else is on the list?