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[Opinions] Isobel
What are your feelings about Isobel as a first name?I really don't think I like Izzy as a nickname-- it just seems super unfeminine to me. Does it seem to be inevitable? Do you think Belle would be a natural nickname....? Are there any other nicknames you've heard for Isobel?Also, Charles is a family name-- would you consider Isobel Charlotte if you were hoping to also use Charles as a boy's MN at some point?I also like Isobel Linnea and Isobel Jessamine. Any thoughts/other suggestions? Something with a Greek twist might be nice, as we want to use Zoe as a sib name.
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I love Isobel and Zoë. But they seem a bit samey under one roof. How about (sort of) combining them into one dd: Isolde, nn Zoë? Just a thought.

This message was edited 6/21/2013, 3:09 PM

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I don't think Isobel looks very attractive. That o just ruins it. Isabel is okay. I don't think Izzy is inevitable, and probably an Isobel would grow out of it eventually. Belle is just gross to me.I wouldn't use Charlotte for a middle name if I had my heart set on using Charles later on. If I did use Charlotte, and then had a boy, I'd just suck it up and not use Charles.
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I like Isobel well enough particularly the combo Mary Isobel, but I'd say overall, that I'm getting over the entire set of similar names: Isabella, Isabelle, Isabel, Isobel and especially Izzie / Izzy. I do find Belle refreshing so it would make sense to me that Isabelle would be the spelling for the full name. Isobel Charlotte is lovely but seems incongruent to me because Charlotte is so French while Isobel is so Scottish. And yes, I'd use Charles and Charlotte in my children's names as long as they both weren't fns. Isobel Jessamine is lovely. It truly is. Jessamine is so unexpected in the middle.
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How about Ibby / Ibbie as a nn for Isobel?
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I like Isobel very much in any position at all.At university I knew two inseparable friends - ditzy, pretty Drama students - who were both Isabel. For convenience, they were known as Bella and Iz. I prefer Bella to Belle - less bicycle - but either would do. And I don't find Izzy unfeminine - can't imagine a male Izzy, and wouldn't it depend on the owner? A very girly Isobel would swing it, and a tomboy Isobel would make anything seem butch and tough ...I've also heard of Tibbie as a nn for Isobel, Isabella etc - allegedly Scottish - but I have no direct evidence. I do know an Isobel who says she was known as Iso (pronounced Izo) at home, but all her friends plus husband use Isobel.I dislike Charlotte and find it both boring and unpleasant; and I don't like the sound of it. So, yeah, use it in the middle if anywhere! If it were me, I'd much rather go for Caroline or even Carl(ott)a. Caroline, especially, is far enough away from Charles to go unnoticed - except on these boards, of course!Isobel Linnea is tricky to pronounce. OK, one doesn't do it often. Jessamine sounds better but it's a bit too frilly for me. Isobel Mary, Isobel Dorothy or Dorothea, Isobel Anne, Isobel Fiona (good rhythm but perhaps aggressively Scottish?), Isobel Susan or Suzanne, Isobel Ruth - anything there that appeals to you?
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Isobel is probably my favourite girl's name right now (and I'm saying this as someone who hates Isabelle/Isabel/Isabella etc). As a synaesthete, it has an incredibly beautiful look to it.I too dislike the nickname Izzy, but it would probably be the most natural nickname. Belle is a gorgeous nickname though.I wouldn't use Charlotte as a middle name if you were also going to use Charles. It's too similar, and too obvious a theme. That being said, Isobel Charlotte on its own it quite nice. I also like Isobel Selene (moon in Greek; also a sort of pun for me because my aforementioned synaesthesia makes Isobel look like a full moon in the night sky).
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I'm really not a fan of Isobel/Isabel/Isabelle. No real good reason, I just don't like the sound. The spelling of Isobel seems like it could lead to a somewhat complicated life of never having people spell her name correctly. I do think the nn Izzy is probably inevitable. At least when she's young. I'm sure people wouldn't call her that as an adult, unless it gets established as an "official" nn when she's a kid. Belle doesn't work as a nn, imo. It would seem forced to me - is her name Isobel or is it Belle? That's just how I feel, anyway. The only other nn I can think of is Iz. Personally, it would bother me to have one child with the mn Charlotte and the other with the mn Charles. They're way too similar. It kind of looks like you were going for a theme.Isobel Linnea and Isobel Jessamine are nice combos, I prefer them to Isobel Charlotte. The flow of Isobel Jessamine is a bit rocky, so I prefer Isobel Linnea. What about Isobel Georgia? Georgia is Greek and fits nicely with Isobel, in my opinion.
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