Name of the Day: Wren
Today’s post goes out with a Happy Birthday to my sister, a.k.a Bird, and her namesake niece.
Thanks to Katharine for suggesting our Name of the Day should be the fine feathered Wren.
We don’t suggest you name your child Cheetah. And Boa Constrictor is obviously inappropriate. But there are a handful of subtle nature names that translate from the wilds to the nursery with grace and style, and we think Wren is among them.
A wren is a small songbird. Various wren cousins live all over the world. They’re fairly average avians – though many species’ songs are far bigger than you’d imagine from their petite stature.
The bird was known as the wrenna in Old English and can be traced back to the Germanic werna. After that the trail goes dry, but we like the linguistic convergence that happens in other languages. Because of the bird’s golden crest, French, Dutch and many other languages choose names for the wren that connote royalty. This comes full circle to a happy little sound-alike: wren and reine, or the French word for queen. It adds a little touch of sparkle to a homespun nature name.
Wren has been worn as a surname, and is the first name of children’s author Wren Blackberry. A handful of fictional Wrens might catch your eye. There’s comic strip character Wren MacPherson, the youngest child in the Baby Blues family. Sci fi authors Sherwood Smith and Phillip Reeve have both used the name, too.
She’s never appeared in the US Top 1000. Perhaps Wren is best suited for parents dismayed to learn that Brooke is solidly installed in the Top 50. She might also appeal to parents who favor lesser used letters – other than the dated Wendy and Wanda there aren’t many W-choices, though Willow, Wilhelmina, Willa and Wynne are options. And bird names are not without precedent. You’ve probably already heard of a girl called Raven (if only tween sensation Raven-Symone) and those of us who came of age in the 70s and 80s probably all knew a Robin. (And Robyn. And Robynne.)
It’s a spare, simple choice that fits well with current trends but remains so seldom heard that it is distinctive.
Of course, we’re biased – this is one of our darling daughter’s middle names. We chose it to honor an aunt nicknamed Bird. (She’s not fond of her given name, and it didn’t lend itself to easy reinvention.) It’s impossible to say how many parents-to-be have an ornithological backstory, but if birds are big in your life, this is a quiet way to honor that connection.
Filed under: Names for Girls, Names of the Day, Nature Babes | 13 Comments
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I really like Wren but only perhaps as a middle name.
It seems weak to give as a first name.
Another *bird* name I quite like is Lark.
Oh and a family member just had a baby girl, her name Is Naomi Rachel.
Not the right section but I just wanted to let everyone know
I think Wren is so cute and a total guilty pleasure of mine. I would love it as a nickname for something else or maybe a middle name. It’s the epitome of dainty and feminine to me.
it is cute but wouldn’t use as a first name.. too spare for me. I have read 2 books with someone called Wren in them… one a fiction book (not at all famous)for teenagers – and the other was a true story, sometimes they called their duaghter (named Karen) Wren as a nickname..
Wren is lovely! It’s one of my favorite middle names to suggest, and I like it as a first name, too. Though it’s very sweet and feminine, it still remains fresh and unexpected, and it’s just the thing to liven up a common or classic first name. Elizabeth Wren is currently one of my top 5 combinations.
Not only would this work well for the birdwatching types, but I can imagine it suiting an architect’s daughter (bestowed in honor of Christopher Wren).
I’ve never heard the Old English Wrenna, but I think that would be a beautiful first name.
Thanks for a great Name of the Day!
I like Wren, in theory. She’s a bit hard to grow up with (I know one, she’s 35 this year, friend of my kid Brother) but she’s got a lovely sound and is easy to figure out. I like her etymologic loops too!
Wren’s okay with me. Not for me, but I don’t mind her at all.
I could use it, like Shannon, as a completely unrelated nickname but am far more prone to cuppycake and sweetpea myself.
I really like Wren – she’s short but packs a punch in her own spunky yet graceful way. I like her best in the middle or as Lola and Shannon have suggested as an unrelated nickname…
Kevin Bacon’s character in Footloose was named Ren. I’ve always kind of wondered where that came from (I don’t remember it being a nickname) and whether many boys have had this given name IRL.
Yay for Wren! She’s one of the few modern names to receive a reasonably positive response. (Our experience has been the same – while Clio has been controversial, Wren has been a big hit.) We realized after she was born that her godfather is the son of an ornithologist – really not a planned thing, but a funny coincidence. I suspect she has a few pen and ink sketches of birds in her future.
Emmy Jo, I agree that Wrenna feels like an interesting option. I’m a fan of Brenna, too.
SKS, I know a Ren. He was born Reynolds. (Mother’s maiden name or something like that.) And I suspect that’s the source for many male Rens. That said, I recall a hockey player from the 60s named Wren – possibly he’s wearing a surname, too, as Wren sometimes pops up as a last name. The one problem is, of course, Ren and Stimpy – one of my few hesitations in using the name in the first spot. (In the third, who cares?)
BTW, did you know they’re planning a remake of Footloose with Zac Efron in Kevin Bacon’s role? Nothing is sacred!
I really love Wren. I think she’s beautiful and spirited. I’ve often wondered if we can pull her off as a NN for Bronwen or if it’s just too far-fetched for most people… (I’m kind of a fan of not-all-together-intuitive NNs, like Whit for William, or Thad for Nathaniel…)
And just read up on Clio’s name, and it’s a great story. How beautiful, too, in full! (I like Clio, btw, darling NN)
our gorgeous baby daughter born in 2007 has the middle name wren and we love it, slightly unusual but not odd, girlish without being too girly … and although many had not heard of it used other than a surname it has received positive reactions across the board; harriet wren – the classic with the modern we like the balance
G, that’s great! Ever since we tucked Wren in the middle of our daughter’s name, I find myself drawn to birds. As I start thinking about her big girl room, I’m wondering if it would be so wrong to have an avian theme …
And Harriet is great, too! What a lucky girl.
there’s a book called Jenny Wren from the turn of the last century, a novel about a young woman.
My daughter’s name is Wren and we love it, we normally get not so nice reactions to her name but have enjoyed reading everyones comments here. It totally suits her and we cant imagine her being called anything else!!
She was born in 2007 as well