For those of you in the US, I hope you’re having a lovely, fireworks-filled Independence Day weekend.

First up: a quick users’ guide note: when I write a post, I try to bold any given name the first time I use it.  If the name is a (blue) hyperlink, then I’ve written about the name before – and one quick click will take you to that post.  I also try to link movies and television shows to the Internet Movie Database.

On to the news:

• Speaking of movies, Nancy mentioned the big Pixar reveal: a female heroine called Merida, star of their 2012 feature Brave.  It’s already getting some attention with expectant parents;
• Nameberry covered Irish Baby Names following the announcement of their official statistics for 2010.  I love Orla for a girl and Lorcan for a boy – oh, and Cathal, though I find it feminine;
• Elea explored popular Welsh Boys’ Names, including choices like Cai and Rhys that would work perfectly in the US, too;
• Bewitching Baby Names profiled Oregon.  It’s an unconventional choice, but fresher than Dakota;
• Waltzing More Than Matilda posted about Australia’s answer to the Duggars: Jeni and Ray Bonnell and their fifteen kids, including newborn son Damian.  No, the older fourteen kids don’t have D names;
• From the wayback machine: the feature name in 2008 was clunky Clarence; in 2009, the antique Ada; and just a year ago, it was the lovely, but perhaps burdensome Jocasta;
• Is it me, or does it get easier to play Elisabeth’s Sibset Game as the posts at You Can’t Call It “It” go farther and farther up the rankings?  Some of my favorites from the 700s are Kim W’s Luka Ellis, Ingrid Frances, Elin Rosemary, Soren Lewis, and Sonia Julianne and Kailee’s Rory Conrad, Lewis Eugene, Julianne Frances, Susan “Susie” Campbell, and Corinne Rosemary.  From the 600s, I’m intrigued by Ashley’s Tomas “Tam” Sullivan Cale, Callen “Cal” Memphis Clark, Dahlia “Dolly” Phoenix Anne, Noemi “Emme” Paloma Adrienne, Isis “Izzy” Raven Amelie, and Lawson “Lars” Nash Channing.

I wrote about the first generation of eclectic Hollywood baby names for Nameberry last week.  In more recent celebrity news:

• Thalia and Tommy Mottola welcomed a second child, son Matthew Alejandro.  He joins big sister Sabrina at home;
• Tia Mowry and Cory Hardrict welcomed a son, son Cree Taylor.  Tia and her twin sister Tamera are starring in their own reality show on Style later this summer, so we could hear much more about baby Cree;
• Denise Richards adopted a daughter, Eloise Joni.  Joni honors Denise’s mom, while Eloise was picked by big sisters Sam J, called Sami, and Lola Rose;
• Yes, it’s fake.  But it is funny to see not-Victoria and not-David Beckham ponder baby names like Gucci, Milan, and Benditlike.  (Love Elea’s quote from the Facebook page: “They could go Ancient Greek and pronounce it ben-deet-LEE-kay.”

Tomorrow’s post for Nameberry is the first in another two-parter, and it features one of my favorite names for a boy: Clark.

That’s all for this week.  As always, thanks for reading and have a great week!