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I really like Portia, but that may be because I worked with a Portia who was beautiful and elegant, and had an interesting personality.

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She was a tall, very thin African American lady. When I first met her, she was very obese, however. She had surgery for the obesity and it was very successful. She exclusively wore clothing by a famous designer. Unfortunately I can't think of his name right now. Anyway, she always was impeccably dressed. I sat next to her in a month-long class. She seemed really flaky, and it would seem that she didn't absorb the material being presented. But then later she would come out with some statement that showed she not only understood everything, but had thought it through thoroughly and had some complicated questions. At one point she turned to me, smiled, and said something like "I seem like I'm really confused, but I always do really get it." She was quite charming. She went on to be an excellent supervisor.

Portia feels flighty to me. Not that a flighty name is good or bad, really, but that's the feeling I get.

I like it, but in a guilty pleasure way. It makes me think of the car Porsche too much, otherwise it might not be a GP for me. It's pretty, but not overly so. It has a bit of a harsh sound to it, but it somehow has a softness and elegance to it too.

I dislike it. I know a family with a daughter named Porsche after the car and they pronounce it the same as Portia.

When I hear the name Portia, I think of a cartoon pig straight away. I figured it must be the name of Porky Pig's girlfriend, but a search just revealed her name to be Petunia, so...I don't know why I think that. I didn't consciously know that Portia means pig until I did a search on the name, although I'm sure I read it at some point before.

I know one - not very well, she's a friend of a friend. So when I hear the name, I think of her, and then The Merchant of Venice, and I get 'straight-backed, clear-eyed heroine with excellent eyebrows' and rather like it.

I love Portia because it succeeds in being stately and sprightly at the same time.

I think it kind of sounds ugly when I say it. It doesn't look bad when I read it, but when i say it, I don't like it. If that makes sense:)
And it does also remind me of the car, Porsche.

I guess it is okay. I think of Porsche (the car) when I hear it.

This message was edited 3/4/2014, 12:02 PM

I respect it in a way, because it's classic and Shakespeare used it, but I just can't like it. Just doesn't sound nice to me.

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On a personal level, when I hear it, I always think of my SO's fourteenth cousin seven times removed or whatever she is. I think she's really his first cousin twice removed. I think? Anyway, her name is LaPorsha and everyone calls her Porsha. It's not a bad association or anything, as I always liked her just fine. Different spelling but sounds the same.

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