View Message

Valerie
I never really considered this name because I knew a Valerie who wasn't very nice and I was reminded of her every time I thought of the name. I met a really sweet Valerie recently and she helped me to see it in a more neutral way, I guess. Now I think it could really grow on me. I still find it a tiny bit 60s/70s dated but it is still a name that has been used for a long time so it's also a classic to me.Anyway, what do you think of Valerie? Dated? Do you think it will rise in popularity anytime soon? I know Valeria entered the top 100 for a short time a few years ago.Valerie or Valeria?
Archived Thread - replies disabled
vote up1

Replies

Valerie is a lovely name. Valeria is too. I like both equally.
vote up1
Meh. It's not that bad but not one of my favourites either. It's not that it doesn't work for a little girl but it is very dated, and I don't think it will rise in popularity.Having said that, Valerie is at least 10 times better than Valeria. Valerie sounds reasonably friendly, whereas Valeria sounds like the noise I make when I throw up. That's how much I dislike it.
vote up1
I think of the Zutons/Amy Winehouse song "Valerie", although that's not really a bad association. I find it a little dated but it has a nice sound. I just find Val a really unattractive nickname. I prefer Valerie over Valeria, because Valeria reminds me of malaria!

This message was edited 10/2/2012, 10:16 AM

vote up1
I prefer Valerie. I don't find it dated, but I don't think that it will become really popular again anytime soon. It hasn't been long enough.Valeria is a pretty name when it's pronounced vah-LAY-ryah, but it's more likely to be mispronounced than Valerie. I don't like VAL-ə-ree-a.

This message was edited 10/1/2012, 9:13 PM

vote up1
I like Valerie. I think it's only a tad dated, because it has never struck me as a very popular name. I doubt it'll rise much in popularity.I prefer Valerie to Valeria because it's more attractive- Valeria is too heavy and rhymes with "malaria." Valerie is light and youthful and cute.
vote up1
I've only known one Valerie, I believe, so it doesn't seem dated to me. What do I think of it? I don't know. It's not on my radar at all. I don't hate it. OTOH, I don't especially love it either. Valeria looks beautiful written down. I just don't like that it reminds me of 'malaria.' Between the two, I'd go with Valerie.
vote up1
I hate Valeria (malaria), but don't mind Valerie at all. I know one who is 60ish and very kind and gentle. I also know one who is almost 30 and a fun tomboy type of girl. I can't see it skyrocketing on the charts any time soon.
vote up1
I sort of like it..In fact I like it so much that's our daughter's name. :)To me, Valerie is a classic, but not in the same way that Mary or Anna is a classic. Valerie hasn't been used nearly as long or as often as those names, so while it's gotten a lot of use in the last fifty years or so, it still seems fresher and less "default" than a lot of other classics. It did get popular in the fifties/sixties/seventies, but for some reason people don't tend to find it dated like they might find Linda or Carol, for instance.I definitely prefer Valeriae over Valeria.
vote up1
I agree that it seems fresher than most classics. It's a really sweet name and the meaning is awesome (just looked it up).
vote up1
Valerie was to be my name (1964) until my father decided the ride to the hospital was a good time to bring up changing the name. [Good timing, Dad! :-/ ] So I might not be the most objective on the name. But I do like the perkiness of Valerie. It makes me think of jewel tones for some reason. It's known, but not overly used, which is always nice.Dated? I didn't know any Valeries growing up. So it doesn't scream 60s / 70s the way names like Lisa and Kimberly do. Then again, I'm not that bothered by how dated something sounds. I'm more interested in how it's likely to sound in the future, over the course of the child's life. A forty year time lag doesn't seem as bad as a ten year one, if that makes sense. But my bottom line is that just about any classic will wear well, and Valerie has as good a chance as any.Valeria is beautiful and I'm glad to see it making the top 100. That sort of surprises me because the only time I've ever seen it on a name board it was hooted out of contention. "It sounds like malaria!" was the general outcry. I was the only one defending the poll parent. Perhaps recent immigrant populations are bringing lovely names like Valeria with them and making them more popular than I realized. (I'm in the U.S. if that matters.) Between the two I'd go with zippy Valerie.
vote up1
Really? You are so NOT a Valerie! Then again, I'm not exactly a Kelly either. ;-)
vote up1
Heh! :-)
vote up1
If you look at the numbers Valerie is a late 50's and 60's name and then saw a brief revival in the 80's. The only Valerie I've ever known well was a friend of my mother and she was either born in the 50's or 60's. You're right that Valerie has never been super popular. At its most popular year which was 1959 it was at number 60.I personally have always liked the name Valerie. But when I was growing up I kept meeting people who told me that they hated it and I've never understood why. I've only met a few people who like the name Valerie. But I haven't asked in a long time, maybe now people don't view it as being dated and maybe since people have been loving V names it will see a come back.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This message was edited 10/1/2012, 12:20 PM

vote up1
I think it left the top 100 last year, in 2011. But it made the top 100 for 4 or 5 years before that (I'm too lazy to look it up right now). It never reminded me of malaria. This is the first time I hear of it being associated with malaria.Not really as dated as Lisa and Kimberly, but it only made the top 100 in the 60s and 70s so I thought it might feel dated to some.
vote up1
I still see Valerie as dated but it could make a comeback. Valeria sounds like a disease to me (not really sure why).
vote up1
Probably because of malaria.I agree that Valeria reminds me of malaria. It also reminds me of words that end in -eria like hysteria.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This message was edited 10/1/2012, 11:47 AM

vote up1
Probably because it looks like Malaria and sounds a bit like diarrohea
vote up1
Actually, I believe Valeria rhymes with malaria, not diarrhea. The stress is on the second syllable.
vote up1
Oh my bad, thank you :)
vote up1
No problem. It's not a very common name. Easy enough to do. :-D
vote up1