Re: Magdalene and Raphael
by Dot (Spider from Mars)
11/14/2007, 5:51 PM
Raphael actually screams Jewish to me, not Catholic, probably because it's the first name of my very, very Jewish friend (as opposed to the majority of my friends, who are just Jewish) who goes by his middle name Harpo. (Raphael Harpo? Strange parents. But it fits.)
Magdalene is a bit heavily religious but I don't think it has to be, if that makes sense. When asked, I certainly think "Well, of course it's religious!" but if I met a girl named Magdalene my first thought wouldn't be "Wonder if she's Catholic?" Interesting to note I adore Magdalena and I'm plugging right on using it in combos but would probably not use it for a real child for the same reason- I'm an athiest and it would feel odd. (However, I do have lots of Catholic heritage and have thought about it as a real MN possibility for my heritage but not religious beliefs. Probably won't have kids anyway. Back to the question you asked in the first place, sorry!) Opinions on your combos:
Magdalene Cecilia - Magdalene Celia would feel more natural. For some reason I feel like I have to work to get all the syllables in for Magdalene Cecilia. Either is gorgeous, though.
Judith Helen - Absolutely lovely.
Xavier Allan - Never loved Xavier though it's okay. It sounds a bit off with Allan. Much prefer Laurence Allan.
Raphael Christian - Well, now it's far too religious, yeah. I would rearrange the names so you don't have these two together, if you definetly want both. So, my revised suggestion of your four names is:
Magdalene Celia
Judith Helen
Laurence/Xavier Christian
Raphael Allan / Allan Raphael
OR
Magdalene Celia
Judith Helen
Christian Allan
Laurence Raphael / Laurence Xavier
Hm. Not sure about that, but might work. Would you consider making Allan or Christian a first name, and/or Raphael or Xavier a middle name?