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Help[Opinions] Re: Theodore vs Theodora
in reply to a message by Bex
I love Theodore most, I named my son that...we call him Theo. I like Theodora as well, though not as much, and there are definitely girl names I like much more. The "Dora" part is just too pronounced for me, and years of having small children make it nearly impossible for me to even think that name with out the stuttered "D-d-d-d-Dora!" as in the explorer :/ I have personally known 2 Theodora's, one middle aged and one child. Neither was called Theo though, the older was known as Dora (cringe) and the younger was called Teddy. I really do hate to see solid boy names used on girls, b/c it seems when that trend takes hold the name eventually becomes a "girl" name ...so while I agree Theodora is quite nice, I don't love the idea of calling a girl Theo. I mean, I can see the appeal, but I think Thea would be a better choice. I'm obviously somewhat biased on that, though.
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Listen to Mustn'ts, child, listen to the Don'ts.
Listen to the Shouldn'ts, the Impossibles, the Won'ts.
Listen to the Never Haves, then listen close to me.
Anything can happen, child, Anything can be.
-Shel Silverstein
_______________________________________________________________
Listen to Mustn'ts, child, listen to the Don'ts.
Listen to the Shouldn'ts, the Impossibles, the Won'ts.
Listen to the Never Haves, then listen close to me.
Anything can happen, child, Anything can be.
-Shel Silverstein
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Replies
I get what your saying about using boys names on girls. But i'm not using Theo, i'm using Theodora with the possibility of the nickname Theo. Its no different than using Alexandra "Alex" or even Charlotte "Charlie".
I love feminised names like Theodora with short boyish nicknames, our other favorites are Thomasina "Tommy" and Wilhelmina "Billie".
I love feminised names like Theodora with short boyish nicknames, our other favorites are Thomasina "Tommy" and Wilhelmina "Billie".
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You're right, it is just like Alex and Charlie...which are firmly unisex names here now b/c of that ;) I would never assume an Alex is a boy, in my DD's school there is pretty even mix of genders with the Alex's... little safer to bet that Charlie is a boy if they are over 5, but under 5 it's anyone's guess with Charlotte as popular as it has become.
And I can't disagree on the cute factor of a feminised name with a boyish nickname...I've always thought that was adorable, ever since a show I watched called Sisters years back, there were four sisters Alexandra, Theodora, Georgiana and Francesca...who were called Alex, Teddy, Georgie and Frankie (their father wanted boys, so the story goes). Anyway, I always loved the names. My daughter's name actually is a feminised version of the name shared by my two great grandfathers, Cecil. They were both usually called "Cec" or "Ceci" which we call her often (I'll admit we call her Cecil around the house, but she frowns upon it in "public"...she's seven now and has her own opinions ;) So it's not really analogous unless you only plan to use the nicknames occasionally within the family... I even will admit that when I was pregnant with my son, we toyed with using Theo either way, Theodore for a boy, Theodora for a girl. But now, having faced the reality of naming a son, it's sorta tough when so many names have been "stolen" or made to seem unisex... It's a phenomenon that really only works one way, I suppose, unfortunate, really. But true nonetheless. So I generally don't endorse it, even thought I used to like it too. I'm not really a hypocrite, just, having a son really changed my perspective on this.
And I can't disagree on the cute factor of a feminised name with a boyish nickname...I've always thought that was adorable, ever since a show I watched called Sisters years back, there were four sisters Alexandra, Theodora, Georgiana and Francesca...who were called Alex, Teddy, Georgie and Frankie (their father wanted boys, so the story goes). Anyway, I always loved the names. My daughter's name actually is a feminised version of the name shared by my two great grandfathers, Cecil. They were both usually called "Cec" or "Ceci" which we call her often (I'll admit we call her Cecil around the house, but she frowns upon it in "public"...she's seven now and has her own opinions ;) So it's not really analogous unless you only plan to use the nicknames occasionally within the family... I even will admit that when I was pregnant with my son, we toyed with using Theo either way, Theodore for a boy, Theodora for a girl. But now, having faced the reality of naming a son, it's sorta tough when so many names have been "stolen" or made to seem unisex... It's a phenomenon that really only works one way, I suppose, unfortunate, really. But true nonetheless. So I generally don't endorse it, even thought I used to like it too. I'm not really a hypocrite, just, having a son really changed my perspective on this.
This message was edited 4/30/2014, 7:25 PM
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