Starbaby News: Welcome Satyana Denisof

How I Met Your Mother’s Alyson Hannigan and her husband, Alexis Denisof, have welcomed a daughter named Satyana.

This one has me stumped!  It reminds me of Japanese names – like Satomi – as well as Russian appellations like Tatiana.  (And Denisof’s bio indicates that he is of Russian descent, and has a family name himself.)  But a Google search turned up the Satyana Institute, which claims the name is Sanskrit – sat means truth and yana means vehicle; together, it means “a vehicle for action infused with the grace of spirit.”  Or so sayeth the site.

What do you think of Satyana?

Sunday Summary: 3/29/09

We baptized our daughter this morning.  I mention this for two reasons:  first, even though our priest has baptized plenty of Jaydens and Ashleys without complaint, I’ll admit it was nice to have a saints’ name for our daughter’s baptismal certificate.

Second, my daughter’s godmother is named Sheryll.  As soon as the priest handed over the baptismal certificate to check for typos, her eyes immediately went to her name – she knew it would almost certainly be spelled wrong.  (And it was.  Even though I’d carefully spelled it for the church secretary.)  The year she was born, Cheryl ranked #49 and Sheryl #246.  But Sheryll is pretty unusual.

I can only imagine how all those little McKaylas and Mikaylahs are going to feel in twenty years.

On to the round-up:

  • First, file this under fun games to play: Elisabeth at You Can’t Call It “It”  has a post called Complete the Celebrity Sibset inviting us to imagine what expectant star couples will name their next.  It’s a diverting list.  I mean, how will Kimora Lee Simmons follow up her two daughters’ names?  Will Nicole Richie and Joel Madden name Harlow’s little sister or brother something surnamey, too?  Alicia’s guesses in the comments are worth reading, too;
  • Laura Wattenberg’s Namipedia allows users to add new baby names.  Now she’s also going to occasionally allow users to vote yea or nay – not to indicate whether we like the submissions, but whether we consider them legitimate.  It’s an interesting puzzle.  I could name a child Lorvornyxia, but does it really belong in a baby name book if I just made it up?  The only catch is that you’ll have to sign up for Twitter to vote;
  • In an interview, Martin Sheen referred to his new grandsons as Max and Robert – yes, Robert, not just Bob!  I’ll admit that I’m relieved for baby Bob;
  • Real World: New Orleans alum Melissa Howard Beck and her husband Justin welcomed a daughter named Shalom Mazie.  I like the sound of Shalom – and the meaning peace – but I can’t shake the idea that it is a smidge like naming your baby Hello;
  • E! News correspondent Kristin Dos Santos is running a poll about her baby-to-be’s gender and date of arrival.  Apparently she and her husband are still undecided about the baby’s name, too, so you can make suggestions in the comments;
  • Daddy Types ran a list of names heard at the zoo, including a girl called Beckett – and another named Rainbow Bright.  Really;
  • I’ve never watched soap opera Guiding Light, but actor Daniel Cosgrove has an appealing baby naming style.  He and his wife have just welcomed Finnian Jack, and the couple also has Lily, Esme Rose and Ruby Willow.

That’s all for this week!  Thanks for reading.