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I love the name Penelope but unfortunately so does everyone else in the US. :P

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I just adore the nn's Pen, Penny, Nell, and Nellie.

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I think Penelope is cute and nerdy. I imagine someone who loves to wear a mix of geeky shirts with vintage skirts and quirky glasses or sunglasses.

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If this name wasn't so popular I think that I would consider using it for a daughter some day.

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This message was edited 9/2/2017, 11:28 AM

I love Penelope. I've loved Penelope ever since junior high, when we all read "The Odyssey" (or at least an abridged version, since we were 11 years old). And at the time I had never met a real-life Penelope, only read about characters or seen them on TV / in movies. The name seems to be getting more traction now, breaking the Top 30, so I doubt it will stay unique.

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One thing I don't like, though, is the apparent inevitability of the nickname Penny, which is the smallest form of currency in the U.S. I wouldn't want to call my daughter, or have her be called, a coin. If I could get the nickname Nell to stick instead, that would be great.

It's getting quite popular isn't it? I don't like it at all, though I'm usually a sucker for anything from Greek mythology. It just sounds like a mouthful of syllables and Penny is just....well.....dreadful!

When people say "original" I think they just mean to say "I haven't heard it in a while!".

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My niece is named Penelope and I have always liked it. My sister chose it because of the old Hana Barbara cartoon "Penelope Pitstop".

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I have know at least three people I graduated high school with that named their daughter Penelope.

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Also, the year after my niece Penny was born, a Kardashian used Penelope on THEIR kid and the popularity shot up.

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It's a very cool name, but I imagine there are more out there than we think.

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BTW- most people I know use Nellie as the nickname for this. My sister wanted to use Penna, but Penny naturally evolved.

I'm beginning to adore the wild, galloping sound of Penelope. It's long been a favorite of my DH. I have on our "maybe" list as Penelope Io Violet. the popularity only puts me off it a tiny bit.

This message was edited 8/31/2017, 7:13 AM

I absolutely love this name, but unfortunately it's hardly original. It's becoming VERY popular.

I like Penelope. I like nicknames Nell, Poppy and Penny. It has become more common and I think most people who use it think they're being super original so that's kind of a bummer. But the fact that it has many great nicknames at least makes it seem less popular as 4 Penelopes may go by 4 different names.

Penelope's my least favourite name. It sounds like the name of a spoilt, stuck up brat, and there's something about the sound I just really dislike. It's not the 'pee' sound either, because I like Calliope. I can't stand it.

I really like Penelope but I'm not keen on Nell or Penny as nicknames.

I just checked the stats before I wrote this post and was honestly shocked to find how statistically popular it is! #27 in the US and #69 in England (where I live).

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I can't make many statements for popularity or originality in America because it's not where I've been,

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However, in England I think it's growing. It's considered very much middle-upper class and in the private school I worked in we had one Penelope and one "just" Penny in the same reception-nursery class. I think the nickname Penny makes it more accessible for use on younger children however I'm not a fan of this nickname, preferring Nell or Nella over this.

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Penelope is growing on me. The more I hear it, the less pretentious I think it is...

The pee thing bothers me too and the fact that pene means penis in Italian. Since I know this I can't get it out of my head. I also always see the word elope in it even though I know it doesn't appear in the English pronunciation. On the other hand I like that it is a name with a long history. It's way too common at the time, I could easily see it becoming a top 20 name, it's very close already. I can't really decide if Penny would bother me or not but I definitely prefer the full form. Overall it's fine for someone else but I wouldn't use it.

I don't like it because it ends in "pee".

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