Romy

Romy began life as a nickname. Behind the Name lists it as a diminutive of Rosemarie and Rosemary, used in German, Dutch, French and English, and the Dutch Meertens Institute describes it specifically as a German pet form of Rosemarie. In other words, it is the sort of name a family calls a little Rosemarie at home, which later stepped out on its own and started appearing on birth certificates.

The parent name has two explanations, and both are found in the sources. One treats Rosemary as a simple pairing of Rose and Mary. The other points to the herb: rosemary comes from Latin ros marinus, roughly 'dew of the sea', the same root as French romarin and Dutch rozemarijn. The Meertens Institute adds that the English had a long habit of turning plant names into girls' names, and that the Dutch word rosmarijn was once a tender way of addressing a woman. English Wiktionary offers a further, less common reading, treating Romy as a feminine counterpart of Roman.

Pronunciation shifts a little by country. In English it is usually ROH-mee, with the first syllable as in 'road'; Germans and Dutch speakers say much the same with a pure, long o; in French it becomes ro-MEE, with a short open o and the stress at the end. Spellings such as Romey, Romie and Romi also turn up.

Because Romy is short and bright, a longer middle name balances it well: Romy Elizabeth, Romy Josephine, or Romy Rosemary for a nod to its roots. Brothers and sisters with the same easy feel might be Ivy, Esme, Hazel, Theo or Felix.