I love this name so much! It's simple in an elegant way, though I'm extremely biased, since my girlfriend is named Opal. I call her Opie (at her request), which is an absolutely adorable nickname. Also love the concept of names from gemstones or precious stones/metals. (again, biased, since "Laz" is short for "Lazuli").
I'm considering this name if my next is a girl, I love the gemstone and I love the idea of Polly as a more youthful nickname. It ticks a lot of boxes for me as it's simple, easy to spell, classic/old-fashioned, with the added benefit of a nickname.
Opal Lee is an American retired teacher, counselor, and activist in the movement to make Juneteenth a federally-recognized holiday. She is often described as the "grandmother of Juneteenth".
Opal Palmer Adisa is a Jamaican award-winning poet, novelist, performance artist and educator. Anthologized in more than 400 publications, she has been a regular performer of her work internationally. Professor Emeritus at California College of the Arts, Dr. Adisa is also the current Director of the Institute for Gender and Development Studies at the University of the West Indies, Mona Campus, Jamaica, where she currently resides.
Possibly my favorite of the O- female names. I think it is versatile on multiple different types of personalities and is slightly unusual without being completely unheard of. It is a nice "middle of the road" name. I always think of Because of Winn Dixie and have considered just flipping the character's name: India Opal "Opal" and using it as Opal India for the sake of conciseness. It is a lovely name if you are considering it.
I still consider it a strange name, because I had not heard it in my life, but hey, I do not consider it an ugly name. What's more, I think it's original and beautiful. A bit mature for my taste, I see it more suitable for an older woman than for a girl, but I still like it. Cool. I would like to hear it more often.
A bit of an old lady name, but still super cute and sweet! I just wish it had some nice nicknames. Only one I can think of is Peri, which is cute, but doesn't quite work.
This is probably my favourite name for a girl. I love that it's short and simple yet still manages to sound elegant. It's uncommon but not too far out there.
My name is Opal after my great-grandmother, born in 1983. I personally loved my name because growing up there were tons of Stephanies, Ashleys, Jessicas, etc., but only one of me! I think people should consider that when naming their children. You don't feel all that special if you're the sixth "Amy" in your class. Also, Opals are a beautiful stone!
In 2018, 84 is the most common age for an American (U.S.) Opal who is registered female with the Social Security Administration. It is the 1, 188th most common female first name for living U.S. citizens.
― Anonymous User 10/18/2018
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No. Just. No.
― Anonymous User 9/29/2018
-25
There's a girl named Opal in The Apprentices by Maile Meloy.
― Anonymous User 9/26/2018
4
A bit quirky but it's gorgeous in it's simplicity. I like how it's the national gemstone of Australia, great name for a little Australian girl.
Opal Tometi is a New York-based Nigerian-American writer, Strategist and community organizer. She is the co-founder of Black Lives Matter. She is the excurive director of BAJL (Black Alliance For Just Immigration). Tometi collaborates with Staff and communities in Los Angles, New York City, Oakland, Washington DC And communities throughout the Southern states. Her work has been published by The Huffington Post.
Pretty sure this was Oprah Winfrey's birth name, but people mispronounced as Oprah so she went by that.
― Anonymous User 6/11/2018
-14
The comment about Oprah Winfrey is completely wrong. Her mother wanted to name her Orpah after the character in the old testament (book of Ruth), but she misread it and thought it was Oprah. It has nothing to do with Opal.
― Anonymous User 10/18/2018
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SO GORGEOUS! Ópal is a beautiful name. I like Luna Ópal for example or maybe Ópal Elise.
― Anonymous User 6/10/2018
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Opal is the mother of the three Otter children in PB&J Otter.
― Anonymous User 5/23/2018
2
Our 5 year old daughter is Opal. We live in Australia and she has vivid blue transparent eyes, although we didn't obviously know this at the time of naming. We love her name, she gets "O", "Opes" and Opal. She seems to love her name and we do as well. Yes Opal is the name of bus/train passes round here (came out after we named her) - but still would have picked it. To me it is beautiful, strong, unique and Australian. Happy to hear otherwise.
A girl I went to school with named her daughter this, she would be about 11 now & I still find the name intriguing. It’s very different, I kind of like it.
Hurricane Opal was a Category 4 hurricane that caused severe damage along the Gulf Coast of the United States. It was the ninth hurricane and the strongest of the 1995 Atlantic hurricane season.
Normally I love names that start with "O" (the letter "o" tends to draw my eye), and I think the Opal stone is gorgeous in its many color varieties. However, as a name... my tongue trips over the second syllable. I could never use this, or the elaboration Opaline, as a name.
Opal is the name of my 6 month old rescue pure white mini-Rex bunny. She came with her name and it fit her so perfectly that I didn't even consider changing it. I didn't know until reading this site that it was so old fashioned though. Sounds like it fits into the modern world of girl names just fine.
Besides being my favorite stone/gem, this name is an oldie but goodie. I would rather hear the name Opal than Jewel or Jade personally. Those names to me sound "trashy." Please forgive me if that is your name. In the book and movie "Because of Winn Dixie" Opal is the name of the young girl in the story.It also has a southern charm to it! This name deserves a comeback!
This is such a beautiful, rare name. (♥ó㉨ò)ノ♡ I think it's seriously harsh calling it "ugly". ಠ╭╮ಠ I don't mind at all that this name is considered old-fashioned & I LOVE how it's the birthstone of October! (#⌒∇⌒#)ゞ.
― Anonymous User 10/11/2014
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The Opal is the national gemstone of Australia, and the black Opal is the state gemstone of New South Wales.The Australian national women's basketball team is called The Opals because of this.
For some reason, I really like this name, and think it would be a great middle name. :) I'm not sure why though.
― Anonymous User 9/11/2009
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Opals may be beautiful, but as a name, it just sounds really ugly! The 'o' sound stressed, the ''pulll'' sound following it. It's just ugly in its short entirety. It's very old-fashioned too.
This is my name, and I love it. My mother told me she named me this because of the gem. She said she loved that an Opal has a milky white (innocent) outside, but still has a fire (spunk) on the inside, and that's how a girl/woman should be. Stay nice and sweet, but have a fire and spunk inside.
― Anonymous User 4/14/2008
4
In the Middle Ages, opal was considered a stone that could provide great luck because it was believed to possess all the virtues of each gemstone whose color was represented in the color spectrum of the opal. However, modern superstition attributes bad luck to the stone, though some believe this is avoided if opal is the owner's birthstone (that is, the owner was born in October) or if the stone is a gift. Even under the last czar at the beginning of the 20th century, it was believed that when a Russian of any sex, of any rank, saw an opal, amongst other goods offered for sale, he or she would not buy anything more, since, in the judgement of subjects of the czar, the opal embodied the evil eye. It's possible that the stone's extreme fragility (when compared to other gemstones) has contributed to this bad reputation.
― Anonymous User 4/14/2008
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I think this name is so cute and sweet! It has been one of my favorites since I was little. :)
I think I once heard, sorry if I am wrong, that an opal is actually meant to be unlucky? If so, and you're one of those superstitious people, perhaps this isn't the best name for your child.
Opal was the name of Opal Whitely, a woman who became very famus in the 20's for her childhood diary, which she published, but people accused her of fraud. This is a very interesting story that almost no one knows about, I would recommend it.