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HelpMore on Griselda.
So far I've heard that most people find Griselda as ugly, hideous, gross, or have other unfriendly feelings toward it. A selecet few have put into words how I feel about it. I find it beautiful and a fairy-tale sounding kind of name. I had originally toyed with the name Zelda, but as my husband is a video game fanatic and would go telling everyone that he named his baby after the Legend of Zelda, I didn't think that best. We are thinking about the combo:
Griselda Harriet Olwen (P last name.)
We can still use Zelda as a nickname.
I have approx 5 weeks left to figure this out for certain.
How do you feel about the flow and how the names sound together?
Also, I'm wondering if anyone knows why Griselda got a little spike of popularity in the 1970's-1990's? And I should probably ask on the facts board, but if anyone knows any more history on the name, could you point me in the right direction?
Griselda Harriet Olwen (P last name.)
We can still use Zelda as a nickname.
I have approx 5 weeks left to figure this out for certain.
How do you feel about the flow and how the names sound together?
Also, I'm wondering if anyone knows why Griselda got a little spike of popularity in the 1970's-1990's? And I should probably ask on the facts board, but if anyone knows any more history on the name, could you point me in the right direction?
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I love Griselda and this combo is lovely. It flows together quite well. Zelda's a cute potential nickname.
For more information on the name K. M. Sheards' Llewellyn's Complete Book of Names has a entry on the name detailing Griseldas' literary and television history and of the popularity of the name in the Middle ages.
For more information on the name K. M. Sheards' Llewellyn's Complete Book of Names has a entry on the name detailing Griseldas' literary and television history and of the popularity of the name in the Middle ages.
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I've never met a Griselda of any age, but I'd like to. It has an over-the-top dignity and also playfulness that appeals to me; though the medieval Patient Griselda character is enough to raise the hackles of any modern woman.
I do think it's usable, and though it would have been a surprise in, say, the 1930s, in today's world stranger names than Griselda get used daily and nobody flinches. Your suggested combo is beautiful and wonderful and too good to waste - go for it!
I do think it's usable, and though it would have been a surprise in, say, the 1930s, in today's world stranger names than Griselda get used daily and nobody flinches. Your suggested combo is beautiful and wonderful and too good to waste - go for it!
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Visually, I can perceive the fairy-tale charm you see in Griselda but I can't say I'm able to appreciate it by ear. I quite enjoy Zelda; it's the "Griz" I struggle with but, while not appealling to me, I don't actually find it "hideous" or "gross". (I do like Gertrude, Gretchen, Greta and other "clunky" names folks tend to find ugly-sounding).
My own ear aside, I have to say that your combination is charming and flows nicely. For what it's worth, I also think that Zelda Harriet Olwen would be lovely and, as a non-gamer who has seen the game, I personally don't find that coincidental association a deal breaker.
It would be a bold choice and she could find, down the road, she's truly bothered by people tending to react negatively to her first name. Perhaps you feel confident you can raise her not to care.
I hope you'll arrive at a decision you feel confident and settled with and that all goes well with her arrival. :)
My own ear aside, I have to say that your combination is charming and flows nicely. For what it's worth, I also think that Zelda Harriet Olwen would be lovely and, as a non-gamer who has seen the game, I personally don't find that coincidental association a deal breaker.
It would be a bold choice and she could find, down the road, she's truly bothered by people tending to react negatively to her first name. Perhaps you feel confident you can raise her not to care.
I hope you'll arrive at a decision you feel confident and settled with and that all goes well with her arrival. :)
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Well, I'm not one of the "select few" who feel about it as you do. lol.
I think the flow is fine. Not crazy about the initials.
Regardless of whether you use the full name or Zelda, her dad will still say/think it refers to Legend of Zelda. Which it does, to him, and how is that truth not "best"? The game character is a much nicer image than many people generally have of Griselda. Being inspired to use an ancient name by a video game is not any less cool than being inspired because it has a "fairy tale quality" to you. Is it?
Griselda isn't going to seem as ugly on a young child, at any rate - any "witchy" image people have of it, will only make it seem hipster-ironic to them, like it fits right in among girls named Olive, Matilda, Jocelyn, and Hazel.
My guess about the small spike is that it was Hispanic usage, inspired by something or someone in Latin American culture.
I think the flow is fine. Not crazy about the initials.
Regardless of whether you use the full name or Zelda, her dad will still say/think it refers to Legend of Zelda. Which it does, to him, and how is that truth not "best"? The game character is a much nicer image than many people generally have of Griselda. Being inspired to use an ancient name by a video game is not any less cool than being inspired because it has a "fairy tale quality" to you. Is it?
Griselda isn't going to seem as ugly on a young child, at any rate - any "witchy" image people have of it, will only make it seem hipster-ironic to them, like it fits right in among girls named Olive, Matilda, Jocelyn, and Hazel.
My guess about the small spike is that it was Hispanic usage, inspired by something or someone in Latin American culture.
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Zelda is a family tradition in my family and one of my middle names. Both my first name, and my other middle name, are pretty rare, but it's Zelda people tend to find interesting.
It's rare enough that people comment on names in real life, but I have had quite a few remarks about Zelda, from Visa offices through to doctors, uni staff and just about anyone who'd see my full name. Coming home through French border control recently, I even had a border officer comment on it. Some people have found it odd or old-fashioned but I've also had a lot of people who've really loved it. And, unlike my other names, nobody needs to hear it pronounced or get it spelled out for them.
But since it's one of my names, I find it difficult to get fussed about it. I do think it has pizazz, and character. If I ever have a daughter I like it enough to use it as a middle name or one of her middle names, without it seeming like too troublesome a casual tradition to pass on, and I think many people couldn’t honestly say that about their own names, inherited or not. But, eh, since it's so familiar to me I can't get enthusiastic over it. It's fine. People seem to like it, or at least notice it. It's easy to spell and has a nice enough sound. If it weren't one of my names I'd probably find it quite fun and spunky.
Griselda is... okay. I think of Cats. Y'know, the musical. And I don't think it's as strong-sounding as Zelda. I'm not a huge fan of the Gri- sound.
But I wouldn't mind seeing Griselda used in real life. It'd be interesting, at least. And another Zelda, or a little Zelda, would be cool – not everyone will love it, but it’s certainly a memorable choice.
Harriet Olwen is wonderful, though. I love that a lot!
It's rare enough that people comment on names in real life, but I have had quite a few remarks about Zelda, from Visa offices through to doctors, uni staff and just about anyone who'd see my full name. Coming home through French border control recently, I even had a border officer comment on it. Some people have found it odd or old-fashioned but I've also had a lot of people who've really loved it. And, unlike my other names, nobody needs to hear it pronounced or get it spelled out for them.
But since it's one of my names, I find it difficult to get fussed about it. I do think it has pizazz, and character. If I ever have a daughter I like it enough to use it as a middle name or one of her middle names, without it seeming like too troublesome a casual tradition to pass on, and I think many people couldn’t honestly say that about their own names, inherited or not. But, eh, since it's so familiar to me I can't get enthusiastic over it. It's fine. People seem to like it, or at least notice it. It's easy to spell and has a nice enough sound. If it weren't one of my names I'd probably find it quite fun and spunky.
Griselda is... okay. I think of Cats. Y'know, the musical. And I don't think it's as strong-sounding as Zelda. I'm not a huge fan of the Gri- sound.
But I wouldn't mind seeing Griselda used in real life. It'd be interesting, at least. And another Zelda, or a little Zelda, would be cool – not everyone will love it, but it’s certainly a memorable choice.
Harriet Olwen is wonderful, though. I love that a lot!
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I am not expert, but I believe that immigration from Spanish-speaking countries has a lot to do with the popularity spike. Griselda is still considered beautiful in Spanish nations... so those moving to the States would have no qualms about using it. Since latino immigration has simmered down into a sort of assimilation of cultures, it stands to reason that more and more are choosing trendy names more common to the continental US.
For what it is worth - I love Griselda.
But, I also happen to love Drusilla, Greta, Ingrid, Nogah, and Bertha too.
For what it is worth - I love Griselda.
But, I also happen to love Drusilla, Greta, Ingrid, Nogah, and Bertha too.
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