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Help20 French baby names
I came across a link to a site with "20 French names you'll want to steal immediately." I'm not sure they have the right meanings for all of them. Feel free to comment, complain, etc.
Aveline- hazel tree
Bale- royal (doesn't seem right, but I'm not fluent in French, either) https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/B%C3%A2le
Bellamy- fine friend
Cabot- to sail (Because John Cabot was a navigator?) https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/cabot
Coralie- coral
Danton- var. of Dante
Elize- var. of Lisa, means pledged to God
Henri- var. of Henry
Janvier- January
Jorden- var. Jordan
Landry- ruler (close, I guess) https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Landry
Luc- man from Lucania
Marielle- dim. of Marie
Montgomery- man power (close) https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Montgomery
Solene- var. of Solange
Mathis- sounds like Matisse, alt. to Matthew
Anaelle- grace (???)
Olivier- olive tree
Fleur- flower
Remi- oarsman (close) https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/remi
http://www.rantchic.com/2015/07/14/15-french-baby-names-youll-want-to-steal-immediately/?utm_campaign=RantIncFB&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=referral
Aveline- hazel tree
Bale- royal (doesn't seem right, but I'm not fluent in French, either) https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/B%C3%A2le
Bellamy- fine friend
Cabot- to sail (Because John Cabot was a navigator?) https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/cabot
Coralie- coral
Danton- var. of Dante
Elize- var. of Lisa, means pledged to God
Henri- var. of Henry
Janvier- January
Jorden- var. Jordan
Landry- ruler (close, I guess) https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Landry
Luc- man from Lucania
Marielle- dim. of Marie
Montgomery- man power (close) https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Montgomery
Solene- var. of Solange
Mathis- sounds like Matisse, alt. to Matthew
Anaelle- grace (???)
Olivier- olive tree
Fleur- flower
Remi- oarsman (close) https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/remi
http://www.rantchic.com/2015/07/14/15-french-baby-names-youll-want-to-steal-immediately/?utm_campaign=RantIncFB&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=referral
This message was edited 8/23/2015, 3:38 PM
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Replies
As a native Frenchman, I can tell that some of these names aren't actually used here. It's kind of like Bijou, Jolie, Beau, Cherie, Rochelle, etc. - they're of French origin, but not used as names in France.
Aveline- I don't think I've ever met an Aveline.
Bale- never heard this before, actually.
Bellamy- Nope, we don't use this as a name.
Cabot- Maybe as a surname. Definitely not as a given name!
Coralie- The meaning's correct, and it is used here.
Danton- I've never heard of anyone with this as a name.
Elize- I've never heard of an Elize, but I kinda like it.
Henri- pretty common name here.
Janvier- I've never heard of anyone named Janvier. The meaning is correct, though.
Jorden- I've never met anyone with this as a name. I know a few Jordans (all male).
Landry- I've only encountered this as a surname, never as a given name. It is a saint's name, but it's more of a historical name as opposed to one used in modern times.
Luc- I know a few Lucs. It's okay.
Marielle- I kinda like this
Montgomery- I thought Montgomery was a Scottish surname?
Solene- I've seen this in real life.
Mathis- God, this name's soooo trendy here. I have two cousins with sons named Mathis. But I do like it.
Anaelle- this is French. I don't care for it.
Olivier- it's common here. A little dated, but I like it.
Fleur- flower
Remi- It's a variant spelling of Remy, and technically there's an accent over the E.
Aveline- I don't think I've ever met an Aveline.
Bale- never heard this before, actually.
Bellamy- Nope, we don't use this as a name.
Cabot- Maybe as a surname. Definitely not as a given name!
Coralie- The meaning's correct, and it is used here.
Danton- I've never heard of anyone with this as a name.
Elize- I've never heard of an Elize, but I kinda like it.
Henri- pretty common name here.
Janvier- I've never heard of anyone named Janvier. The meaning is correct, though.
Jorden- I've never met anyone with this as a name. I know a few Jordans (all male).
Landry- I've only encountered this as a surname, never as a given name. It is a saint's name, but it's more of a historical name as opposed to one used in modern times.
Luc- I know a few Lucs. It's okay.
Marielle- I kinda like this
Montgomery- I thought Montgomery was a Scottish surname?
Solene- I've seen this in real life.
Mathis- God, this name's soooo trendy here. I have two cousins with sons named Mathis. But I do like it.
Anaelle- this is French. I don't care for it.
Olivier- it's common here. A little dated, but I like it.
Fleur- flower
Remi- It's a variant spelling of Remy, and technically there's an accent over the E.
This message was edited 8/25/2015, 5:51 AM
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How in the world does Aveline mean "hazel tree?" How? The meaning for Bale also seems dubious... just makes me think of bales of hay.
And Mathis is closer to Matthias than Matthew.
And Mathis is closer to Matthias than Matthew.
This message was edited 8/24/2015, 11:09 AM
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I like some of these: Aveline, Coralie, Marielle and Montgomery
However, I am dubious that all of these names are "French".
Montgomery for example, doesn't sound like a French name to me and BTN says it is an English surname derived from a French word - not really the same thing.
Jordan / Jorden definitely isn't French and Bale, Bellamy, Cabot, Danton and Landry don't sound particularly French either... unless Cabot is pronounced cab-oh
However, I am dubious that all of these names are "French".
Montgomery for example, doesn't sound like a French name to me and BTN says it is an English surname derived from a French word - not really the same thing.
Jordan / Jorden definitely isn't French and Bale, Bellamy, Cabot, Danton and Landry don't sound particularly French either... unless Cabot is pronounced cab-oh
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Agh, this site keeps getting suggested to me on Facebook, both by the site and people who know I like names. Where do they get their information? I really like some of the names, but their usage and provenance in French is questionable. They should ransack the French popularity statistics instead - many would be surprising to English speakers.
Anyways, I really like Bale and Bellamy, Henri, Elize, and surprisingly Danton.
Anyways, I really like Bale and Bellamy, Henri, Elize, and surprisingly Danton.
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*sigh*
Aveline - very rare in France, see database for etymology which has FA to do with hazel trees and is so not 'the French version of Hazel', LOL. (hazel = noisette; hazel tree = noisetier) However, the Latin name for the hazel tree is Corylus avellana. 'Avellana' refers to Avella in Italy and is still not French for hazel, no matter how you look at it
Bale - English surname derived from Norman French word for outer wall of castle. Not used as a name in France
Bellamy- surprise, also not used as a name in France. Mainly English surname of pretty obvious Norman French origins
Cabot - yet another surname with historically French origin. Possibly comes from an Occitan word for cap. Also not used as a first name in France
Coralie- wow, actually a French name
Danton - another surname. Not a variation of Dante, but a locational name meaning 'from Anthon'. Has some rare historical use as a first name
Elize - fairly rare kre8iv version of Élise
Henri - actual proper French name
Janvier - very occasionally used as a name in France, but it was about as common as January in English-speaking countries - i.e. really not - and has more or less died out (average bearer is 88)
Jorden - not listed in the INSEE database at all, not used in France, and not a French name, except perhaps in the blogger's mind
Landry - mostly a surname, but getting some recent use in France as a first name. Medieval French version of Germanic Landric. Fairly close on the meaning there
Luc - common French name. O MY I MUST STEAL THIS SO UNUSUAL
Marielle - ditto, only less common and more dated
Montgomery - and another surname of French origin not used as a first name
Solène, Mathis, Anaëlle, Olivier, Fleur & Remi - actual in-use French names.
Aveline - very rare in France, see database for etymology which has FA to do with hazel trees and is so not 'the French version of Hazel', LOL. (hazel = noisette; hazel tree = noisetier) However, the Latin name for the hazel tree is Corylus avellana. 'Avellana' refers to Avella in Italy and is still not French for hazel, no matter how you look at it
Bale - English surname derived from Norman French word for outer wall of castle. Not used as a name in France
Bellamy- surprise, also not used as a name in France. Mainly English surname of pretty obvious Norman French origins
Cabot - yet another surname with historically French origin. Possibly comes from an Occitan word for cap. Also not used as a first name in France
Coralie- wow, actually a French name
Danton - another surname. Not a variation of Dante, but a locational name meaning 'from Anthon'. Has some rare historical use as a first name
Elize - fairly rare kre8iv version of Élise
Henri - actual proper French name
Janvier - very occasionally used as a name in France, but it was about as common as January in English-speaking countries - i.e. really not - and has more or less died out (average bearer is 88)
Jorden - not listed in the INSEE database at all, not used in France, and not a French name, except perhaps in the blogger's mind
Landry - mostly a surname, but getting some recent use in France as a first name. Medieval French version of Germanic Landric. Fairly close on the meaning there
Luc - common French name. O MY I MUST STEAL THIS SO UNUSUAL
Marielle - ditto, only less common and more dated
Montgomery - and another surname of French origin not used as a first name
Solène, Mathis, Anaëlle, Olivier, Fleur & Remi - actual in-use French names.
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I love Rémi and Montgomery. I also like Bellamy, but on a boy only. Not a fan of the other ones.
I especially dislike Luc (very old fashioned and boring), Jorden (still as bad as Jordan) and Danton (hate Dante, hate Danton).
I especially dislike Luc (very old fashioned and boring), Jorden (still as bad as Jordan) and Danton (hate Dante, hate Danton).
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Aveline- according to this site, it is a form of Avila, which might mean "desired"
Bale- French form of a German form of Basle, a place in Switzerland.
Bellamy- eurgh, pretty sure this is an anglicized combination of "belle" and "amie"... I'm pretty sure French people don't actually use this?
Cabot- according to my good pal Google Translate, this is slang for dog (like pooch/mutt) or a short form of cabotin (hammy/cheesy/corny)...
Coralie- they got this one right!
Danton- I don't think this would be a form of Dante, unless it was a nickname, since "on" is used to mean "little", like chaton for kitten.
Elize- 'z' isn't used much in French, but this name would be a form of Elise, not Lisa
Henri- they got in right! Pronounced awn-REE.
Janvier- that's what it means. I like month/day names!
Jorden- could be, I guess, but it would be pronounced zhor-DEHN.
Landry- yup yup
Luc- yep, form of Luke
Marielle- yep
Montgomery- yep, though I think of this as more English/Scottish than French...
Solene- yup
Mathis- since there's no 'e' after the s, it would be pronounced ma-TEE
Anaelle- a submitted name says it's a French feminine form of the Biblical name Anael, which could either mean "God answers" or come from the same root as Hannah/Anna and mean "favor/grace"
Olivier- yep yep
Fleur- cheesy as anything but right
Remi- yup
Aside from Cabot, all of these have all right meanings! I would think twice before calling your kid a "corny dog"... though I guess if you used the English pronunciation that would be all right!
Bale- French form of a German form of Basle, a place in Switzerland.
Bellamy- eurgh, pretty sure this is an anglicized combination of "belle" and "amie"... I'm pretty sure French people don't actually use this?
Cabot- according to my good pal Google Translate, this is slang for dog (like pooch/mutt) or a short form of cabotin (hammy/cheesy/corny)...
Coralie- they got this one right!
Danton- I don't think this would be a form of Dante, unless it was a nickname, since "on" is used to mean "little", like chaton for kitten.
Elize- 'z' isn't used much in French, but this name would be a form of Elise, not Lisa
Henri- they got in right! Pronounced awn-REE.
Janvier- that's what it means. I like month/day names!
Jorden- could be, I guess, but it would be pronounced zhor-DEHN.
Landry- yup yup
Luc- yep, form of Luke
Marielle- yep
Montgomery- yep, though I think of this as more English/Scottish than French...
Solene- yup
Mathis- since there's no 'e' after the s, it would be pronounced ma-TEE
Anaelle- a submitted name says it's a French feminine form of the Biblical name Anael, which could either mean "God answers" or come from the same root as Hannah/Anna and mean "favor/grace"
Olivier- yep yep
Fleur- cheesy as anything but right
Remi- yup
Aside from Cabot, all of these have all right meanings! I would think twice before calling your kid a "corny dog"... though I guess if you used the English pronunciation that would be all right!
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