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Leona or Fiona?
Which do you prefer? What are your general opinions on both names.
Also which would you prefer if the mn was Marguerite or Marian?
If you feel up to it what do you think of these nn's for a girl:
Lee, Leo, Lea, Leonie, and Oni?
Fi, Fio, Fia, and Oni?
Thank you for all your help.
--------------------My Favorite Names:Serafina, Fiona, Leona, Artemis, Hazel, Luna, Stella, Adelina, Deirdre, Frieda, Eleanor, Maple, Ursa, Callisto, Augustine, Ravenna, Iris, & Juniper.Ciaran, Connor, Arthur, Rowan, Magnus, Adrian, Finn, Teagan, Cedric, Quinn, Xavier, Theron, Taliesin, Julian, Gavin, & Griffin.

This message was edited 7/31/2016, 4:57 AM

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Prefer Leona, think it sounds nicer than Fiona.Fiona is a bit too frumpy for my likingI think Marian is a better middle name for both. I like Lee, Lea and Oni for nicknames (I think of Leonie as a separate name)
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Fiona! I like Fi and Fifi for nicknames! I like Fiona Marguerite!
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Fiona, by a mile. It just seems so much more exuberant than Leona. I've only known one Leona IRL and she's my age (29 or so) but I remember always thinking how dowdy and old it felt.
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LeonaI've used both of them in stories, but I think I like Leona better! I also think Lea is the perfect nn for it, or Leigh!As far as combos go, I'm gonna go with Leona Marian, since I don't much care for Marguerite. It is growing on me, but not enough so I can use it yet.
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One other question...Would it be weird to use the combo Leona Marguerite if it also was my husband's great grandfathers sister's name? The surname would also be the same as her maiden name.Only when doing some genealogy research recently did I realize that Cecil's sister Leona had Marguerite as her middle name. It makes sense since she was the first daughter and Marguerite was her mother's name. My husband and his mother never knew her so it isn't like they want or don't want to honor her.
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This message was edited 7/31/2016, 5:15 PM

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Leona Marguerite has an awesome sound. I'm normally not a fan of Marguerite but pairing it with Leona makes the entire name stunning. I wouldn't use it to 'honor' but it would be a neat connection and a great name.
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I don't think it's even slightly weird; but nor do I like Leona so if it were me, the question wouldn't arise. I'd go for Fiona without hesitation.Leona could be Leeona, Layona or leeOHna. Fiona is easier for the public, it seems, though I did encounter one FIEona once. Rather than Leona, I'd consider Leonie but probably wouldn't choose it over Fiona either.
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Leona. I have always hated Fiona. Leona has a more adult sound, Fiona is whiny. Liora, however, is better than both. I also prefer Marian - Marguerite is so over the top to me.
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I adore Leonie, but I'm afraid that love doesn't extend to Leona for some reason. OTOH, I really like Fiona. If I had to choose between Leona and Fiona, I'd easily choose Fiona. Between Leonie and Fiona, I'd go with Leonie. Re: mns, I think Marian would be the better complement to Leona or Fiona although I do prefer Marguerite.Re: nns, I quite like Leo, Fi and Fia.
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I like both but I prefer Leona over Fiona when faced with a choice.Leona Marguerite is lovely. Leo & Lea are nice nn's.

This message was edited 7/31/2016, 2:48 PM

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LeonaIf Fiona were being pronounced FEE-na, then that would win.
Lea is a nice nickname for Leona.
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FionaLeona sounds gawky to me somehow, I dunno why. And aged. I have always liked Fiona, although not enough to use because it somehow feels too strong for me - strong the way that strong tea is strong. But Fiona seems much more current and pretty and appealing than Leona.Fiona Marguerite or Fiona Marian are both good.
I'd probably use Fi or Fifi if I shortened it affectionately. It does not need an everyday nickname and all of them are awkward if they're not being used by someone very familiar.For Leona, Lee, Leo, and Lea all seem to work. Oni does not, except maybe for a toddler, as it sounds very childish. Leonie to me is pronounced LAY-o-nee so that does not work. Lee-O-nee doesn't shorten Leona but could work as an affectionate name.
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You're either the first or one of few people to mention Leona feeling aged. I didn't realize until I looked that Leona in the US was very popular in the 1900's reaching its height of popularity in 1905. Based on the % of the population that was given the name it would have been the 23rd or 24th most popular when compared to names in the 2015 year. That feels odd to me because I've met very few Leona's and they were all been born in the 80's or 90's. Maybe I don't spend enough time around the elderly and if I did I'd run into more of them.
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This message was edited 8/1/2016, 2:51 AM

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I've never actually met a Leona! I think my impression is about 80% Leona Helmsley ("We don't pay taxes. Only the little people pay taxes"), and 20% various unremembered and unconscious associations. I imagine that it looking like the first part of Leonard is one of those small things. If I'd ever met a young Leona, that'd probably make a big difference in my perception of it.

This message was edited 7/31/2016, 10:05 PM

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or Leona Lewis. That's who I associate it with...she's an amazing singer!
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I've only met one to three Leona's before. One of my regular customers at the first coffee shop I worked at was either named Leona or Lorna I can't quite remember. She was probably born in the late 70's or early 80's. That was about 10 or 11 years ago so I am having a little trouble remembering. Man that makes me feel old.I just remembered that another one of my favorite regulars was named Trini which I had assumed was short for Katrina but then I asked and it was short for Trinidad. She is definitely the only Trinidad I've ever met. Sorry went a little off topic there.
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This message was edited 8/1/2016, 3:47 AM

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FionaFiona Marian nn Fi / Fio. I like Marguerite with Leona.Leona just makes me think of yodeling for some reason. Fiona I was always iffy about but then came around to it.Funny story about Fiona ...I have a cousin who goes by Fiona nn Fi; it's not her birth name. She was a toddler around the time the Shrek movies came out and was a huge fan. Somehow her family started calling her Fiona and it just stuck to this day. I don't even remember her real name.
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I want to say Leona...because the petulant part of me wants to go with the one that's less precious and not as on-trend. ;-) But I do think Fiona is the prettier of the two and would have to say that it'd be my pick.I don't care for Marguerite. Fiona Marian is really lovely.
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It's so weird that it's "on trend" in the US. In Australia, it's kind of dated. Most Fionas are in their 30s or 40s now
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FionaI have a cousin who's name is Fiona Marian! But personally I like Fiona Marguerite better.I don't think either of them really need a nickname. Leo is cute though.
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Cool that your cousin has this name.I prefer Marguerite myself but unfortunately Marian flows better in sound when you add on our surname.I didn't mention the surname part but once I'm having a child I probably will. We always planned on having a kid around now but with my husband starting law school this summer our plans have changed. Going to be 30 next year and we're probably going to wait for his last year of school or after he has finished school to have a child. A friend of mine just got pregnant and I suddenly have babies on my mind even though it's going to be a while for me.
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This message was edited 7/31/2016, 4:57 PM

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Leona
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FionaI don't dislike Leona, but I much prefer Fiona.I prefer Marian over Marguerite, but Marion over both.Leona nns - Leonie, Leo.Fiona nns - Fi, Fia.
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LeonaI prefer Leona. It looks fresher than Fiona and isn't associated with a big green troll. I prefer it with the middle names as well. If I were to use Leona, I would use the nickname Nola or Lea.
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I like the character Fiona from Shrek. Also it's weird because Fiona has always been a granny smith apple green color to me and then I watched Shrek and she is the color of green that her name is. I associate Fiona with granny smith apples or some other green apple so it makes me think of autumn. Fiona is also a Spring time name to me. It reminds me of fresh bright green shoots and branches
Then there is Leona which reminds me of just before the sunrise or just after the sunset. It's that deep dark purple and blue color with just a hint of orange.
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This message was edited 8/1/2016, 4:41 AM

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LeonaI really like Leona! It has a very soft touch to it.Fiona has a nice sound, but it has become too popular in my opinion.Leona Marguerite sounds fine. Marian is nice, but a little too masculine to me.I'm not a fan of nicknames, but Leo makes sense. But on the other hand, it's quite masculine and therefore probably not the best choice. But again, I am not fond of purposely choosing a nickname (before a child is even born).
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Haha you're like my husband with nn's. I on the other hand feel that nn's should be plentiful and that whichever she actually likes will be used or used the most.I never had any nn's because my name doesn't lend itself easily to them. As a teenager I had a couple of nn's and they were chosen by myself and only used by one friend or on the internet.Growing up I'd give my sister as many nn's as I could come up with. She hated some and loved others. The ones she hated I used to tease her. :P They were all used depending on my mood.
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Haha, that's funny!But I actually think it is not the child that decides on the nickname but the parents- and this is what I dislike about it. And it also doesn't make sense because why do you even give your child a name when you call him very different anyways?
If you really love a name and think it fits your child perfectly, you should name him or her that way. If there is some kind of nickname that comes to your mind once he or she is born, this is perfectly fine with me.
But I don't think that a nickname should be decided on before. A nickname is very personal and needs to really fit a person and their personality.
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I agree!like there's this YouTube channel I watch called Gardner Quad Squad, which of course is a family with quadruplets...lol anyway, their first-born quad is named Indie, and they started calling her Pie because she's so sweet. They also call one of the others, Evangeline, Heavy Evie for being the heaviest of the bunch! lolSorry if I got off-topic...
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