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use Noel
I always thought Noel/Noelle sounded feminine no matter what form and I would consider the person female initially. I have a friend who's middle name is Noel and he hates it for that reason. I think you can use Noel, it still sounds feminine, its a middle name and it IS your child...people will adjust.P.S. Saoirse is my very favorite for a girl!
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Hi Aria and Kate, thanks for your thoughts!It looks like there are definitely varying opinions on this issue! While I prefer Noel with the spelling of the first name and last name for reasons of symmetry, I don't want to totally ditch "naming" rules...after all, I chose to use the proper spelling of Saoirse rather than some weird phonetic one. If she ever wants to use the mn as her first-it's making me think I should use the "lle" ending (which I prefer on a first name) also-When reading her name-people will probably have trouble knowing what gender she is just by looking at her first name, that the second name will give them a hint. But are those reasons enough-or should I just go with what looks "more balanced to me? I'm going nuts, but need to decide soon so as to get her SSN and send out the birth announcement, lol!
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When reading her name-people will probably have trouble knowing what gender she is just by looking at her first name, that the second name will give them a hint. But are those reasons enough-or should I just go with what looks "more balanced to me?I have actually seen Saoirse used on a boy (his father was from Ireland), although it is a popular girls name in Ireland.I would definately spell the middle name Noelle. If my middle name was Noel it would really bother me it wasn't spelled "right." I wouldn't care if Noel looked better written out.
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Considering all these reasons, even when ignoring that Noel is originally male, I'd go with "Noelle".Unless you completely hate it as a middle name, you will probably get used to the spelling. (And personally I don't think it looks unbalanced :)
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Thank you both for your responses. I actually like the lle spelling better, just thought the male spelling looked bettter when paired with her other names. I agree-I think I'll go with the lle ending, just b/c the incorrect usage bothers me. The only way I can see using Noel is if one were to use it seasonally, i.e. the child was born at Christmas and you want it to refer to the season-not the proper name. Since she was not born then that is a non-issue, and I really want it to be a name she feels good about.Thanks so much everyone!
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