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[Opinions] Merry
Does Merry work as a full name for a girl?Do you hear a difference between Merry and Mary?Do you like Merrily?Would you pick Merry, Merrily or Holly?Any ideas why Merry didn’t catch on?It’s pretty with a good meaning, kind of like Holly or Grace or Joy.
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Merry doesn't work for me.
Merry and Mary sound very different in my dialect, which is basically UK.
Merrily doesn't work for me at all.
Out of Merry, Merrily and Holly I'd pick Mary. Sorry, but I couldn't face the others.
More sensible people than usual?
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Merry does work as a full name, too similar to Joy for me to feel differently. I do not hear a difference between Merry and Mary. I would pick Holly out of Merry, Merrily and Holly. Merry might have not caught on because it might be considered a butchered form of a classic girl name - it also reminds me quite a lot of Christmas. The commercialization of the holiday might have been turnoff for some. The other thing is that it might sound too sappy, and not as natural as other names with the same meaning.
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I don't think it works as a full name. Too much of a Christmas elf name.I pronounce Mary and Merry differently.I dislike Merrily.Holly.Too festive?
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I'd prefer Merry as a nickname.In my American accent, Merry and Mary (and "marry") are totally distinct, though most Americans I know don't differentiate between those three. (I'm from Long Island.)
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I really like Holly but not Merry. I think Joy would be a good middle name.
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It works, yeah - not well. Better than Happy works, but not as well as Joy works. It works mainly because of sounding so much like Mary.
Merry sounds pretty much the same in my accent as Mary, but the vowel's a tiny bit shorter and weaker ... a difference is probably not detectable but I "feel" I'm saying it differently.
I'd pick Holly. I like the sound of Merry but not that it's a word.
I think Merrily is bad, because it's an adverb. Kirrily, Romilly, Beverly, Cecily, Kimberly don't sound like adverbs. But Everly and Amberly do, and Merrily actually is one... way too wordy. Also evokes rowing your boat gently down the stream. Merrilee or Merelie seems nicer to me by far. Even Merraly would be better than Merrily.
If I wanted Merry I'd use Mary or spell it Meri, to get away from the word. The word merry, in my mind, slightly alludes to drunkenness or silliness ... merrymaking, merriment are partying and laughter. So it doesn't just connote joy, it's more akin to mirth ... like something you deliberately choose to "make" rather than it being a blessing. It lacks the reverence of Holly, Grace, and Joy. That doesn't make it bad, but I just feel differently about the word as a name.

This message was edited 11/26/2023, 2:45 PM

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Quick question - why do you say Holly has reverence? I can see it with Grace and Joy too for the most part. Just curious.
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Symbolism - I think the plant is associated with both pagan and Christian symbolism. It's a little bit like Laura or Rowan, in my mind at least. I might be the only one who thinks that, I dunno.
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Ok, I can that symbolism. And I guess with a play on words it does have Holy in it.
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Yes, it does, but I prefer it as a nickname, especially for Mercedes and Marina.Yes, on the R's.To be honest, I never thought I would do, it sounds great for a fictional character! However, it's too cheesy to be used in real life... I wonder what caused the sudden peak in 1942.Merry.Maybe it followed the same path as some virtue names? Like Verity, Clemence, Love, Glory... these hardly, or never, cracked the top 1000.And I agree, it's quite pretty.
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No
Yes
No
Holly
Probably because of Christmas Merilyn or Meredith would work as full names with nn Merry
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1. Not really (I much prefer it as a nickname)
2. Yeah
3. Im sorry but very much no
4. I dislike all but I guess Merry
5. Same as Aussie, it being greeting.
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1. Technically it could, but it’s probably more used as a nickname.
2. Yes.
3. It’s interesting and kind of pretty. It reminds me of Kirrily.
4. Never been a fan of Holly, so I would go with Merrily, and probably use Merry as a nickname occasionally.
5. No idea really, but a guess would be that it’s part of a greeting, like Merry Christmas etc.
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