What's in a Name? Part 2

I know you all want the birth story. I'm working on it. In the mean time here is the rest of the name post that I typed up before she was born when I had more time. Hopefully this will tide you over. Thanks for all the comments...keep them coming.
By now you know our baby's name is: (drum roll and trumpets)

Charlotte Whitmer

Now that the secret if finally out I can explain at least part of why we chose the name. I say part because I still don't want to give away the other 3 girls names we like in case we use them on future children.

The Stats:
Name Meaning: petite and feminine (French), Free (English)
Name Popularity:102- for 2007 (3,266 Charlottes last year in the US), 47 is the most popular rank it ever had back in 1943
http://www.socialsecurity.gov/cgi-bin/babyname.cgi

The results of the poll were: 29 Total Votes
Short and Modern 4- 13%
Unisex 0
Long and Classic 21- 72%
Biblical 1- 3%
Unique 3- 10%

I would say Charlotte falls under long and classic even though it is only 2 syllables. It is rather long at 9 letters. It is almost twice as long as any other name that we liked and it's the only name on our list in the long and classic category (so it's interesting that so many chose that category). That's as many letters as my maiden first and last name put together. But I just didn't like Charlot, or even Charlott, or any other variation I saw. I love double letters and I like e's as well so hopefully she won't mind that many letters. I think the double letters and only 2 syllables makes it seem shorter than 9. In this case I like the traditional spelling the best. Hopefully she won't have to spell her name for too many people since it is by far the most common way to spell it (once she learns to spell it herself). It is also tricky with Ch making a sh sound but she can handle it.

Now that I've told you all my qualms about the name let me tell you why it became THE name.
1. First of all Matt and I both agreed on it. It is pretty much the only name that met that requirement. We did have 3 others that we both liked but we couldn't agree on any of them for this baby.
2. Neither one of us have ever known a Charlotte very closely. It was nice to have no real people to associate it with, all of the associations will start with her. It's kind of like choosing a unique name without having to tell everyone how to spell it or say it.
3. Everyone has heard of the name from Charlotte's Web, Charlotte Bronte (my favorite author by the way), The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, Charlotte in Pride and Prejudice...but it isn't common enough that there will be too many other Charlotte's. Unless 2008 or after has a record year for people naming their baby Charlotte or some celebrity or TV show makes it more famous.
4. It has always been on the list for the top 1000 because it is a classic name but it hasn't been very popular for quite a while. It is becoming more popular but 102 isn't too popular for me to like it.
5. All of the associations I have with Charlotte in the books I listed above and the few Charlotte's I've met once or twice have been pretty good ones: a true and wise friend to Wilber, fantastic writer, brave sailor, and Lizzy's friend (I do hope she doesn't end up marrying a Mr. Collins type however).
6. I like the way the name sounds when you say it
7. I like the way it looks when you write it

We're not planning on shortening it at this point. There isn't a widely accepted shortened version of Charlotte. Neither Matt or I like any of the nicknames that we found. Since it is only 2 syllables hopefully most people will call her Charlotte or a nickname based on something else.

Why no middle name? I don't have a middle name, my sisters don't have middle names, most of the girl cousins on my mom's side don't have middle names, my mom and aunt don't have a middle name, and my Grandma Tayrien doesn't have a middle name. Basically it's a bit of a tradition. I didn't feel like I HAD to keep the tradition, I just wanted to. In fact she will be the first granddaughter to not have a middle name (my niece Lia didn't have one when she was born but later got a middle name when she was about 4). I've always liked not having a middle name... one space you don't have to fill in on all the forms. I now use my maiden name for a middle name sometimes so I don't feel like I had to give it up or have 4 names. You don't have the pressure of naming her after someone or choosing another name that you both like. We will probably give any boys we have a middle name because it seems more tradition to give boys family middle names and boys will never have a new last name. Since her first name is longer not having a middle name will hopefully make up for some of the time filling in her first name.

I hope you all like the name. Everyone has their own opinions about how to name children (as illustrated by the comments for Part 1). You just have to do what you like. That's the joy of naming your own children- you can do it your way. No name is perfect, and no name will please everyone, and I'm sure some of you probably don't like it for whatever reason. But, I hope as you come to associate it with our Charlotte it will grow on you. We're excited to see what she makes of her name.