History is precisely where co-authors Michael Sherrod and Matthew Rayback discovered the raw material for their book.  The staff at Ancestry.com couldn’t help but notice that, in the not-so-distant past, Fairy was a common choice.  (Don’t believe me?  Check out the Social Security stats, and you’ll see that it peaked in 1905, when 32 baby girls were named Fairy – as many as Bridget, and more than Diana, Melissa or Annabel.)

Read on for some of my favorites – and some lessons gleaned from this diverting little book.

• Names that are stunningly odd are not a 21st century innovation.  Sherrod and Rayback gleaned these appellations from the archives:  Panties Moberg, Tackle Feigenbutz, Sinner Ogle and Chastity Chestnut.
• A perfectly normal name can become rather awkward if later shared with a fictional character.  Since census data was first collected in 1790, Oliver Twist might’ve been a grown man when Charles Dickens published his novel in 1838.  And Harry Potter, Veronica Mars and Bart Simpson probably went to their rewards ages before they became household names – though their tombstones probably raise a few eyebrows days.
• Even the most classic first name can go wrong when paired with certain surnames.  Emma, Helen and Amanda should have it made, right?  Sure, unless their full names are Emma Royd, Helen Back and Amanda Bury.  Yikes!  And don’t get us started on Ima Hogg, Ima Hooker and Wanna Funk.
• Those outlandish celeb names?  Not as staggeringly original as you might think.  Pilot (son of My Name is Earl‘s Jason Lee), Seven (Erykah Badu’s son) and, of course, Apple (Gwyneth Paltrow’s firstborn) all garnered plenty of press when bestowed.  But everyone of them has appeared in census records at least once before.

In some cases, the names might’ve been prompted by family tradition or simply saying “I Do” to James Royd or Samuel Bury.  (Though Panties defies the imagination.)  And while the Census records are reasonably accurate, they are also handwritten and subject to human error.  In an era before every adult carried a driver’s license and possibly a passport, names were a bit more fluid.  (My own grandmother was born Maria Rosa in New York City during the Great Depression – but died Rose Marie in New Jersey eighty-some years later.)

But overall, this is a lovely edition to any namenik’s library – and reassurance aplenty that naming your daughter Cordelia or son Archer isn’t really so different after all.

So little wonder that baby names are far more adventurous than in earlier generations. But there is a category of names that could be classed as Trying Too Hard, Burdensome to Your Kid, All About You, Inconsiderate.

Even – dare I say it? – Bad Parenting.

And I nominate the following boy’s name for the top of the heap: Maverick.

Many of us who are now of an age to name our babies remember Maverick as Tom Cruise’s daredevil fly-boy character in Top Gun. It’s worth noting that Maverick was his callsign – his given name was Pete.

And yet in 2006, this name was given to 388 baby boys born in the US. It’s no Jacob, sure, but that makes it more common than compelling choices like Deacon, Matthias, Atticus, Heath, Rhys, Paxton and Beckett.

Of course, Maverick has been in the dictionary since long before Tom Cruise flew into the danger zone. From www.dictionary.com, a maverick is a lone dissenter, as an intellectual, an artist or a politician, who takes an independent stand apart from his or her associates.

The term originated when Texas rancher, Samuel A. Maverick, decided to leave his calves unbranded.

It is also a missile.

Now I will grant you that, calves and weaponry aside, Maverick is not as wacked out an X-Man choice as Wolverine, Storm or Rogue. (None of which are currently in the Top 1000 – though Storm made a brief appearance, peaking at #840 in 1995.)

Maverick is both a surname name (think Finley, Madison and Tyler) and a noun name (a la Story, Journey and Lyric.)

What’s more, Maverick has appeared in pop culture before. Back in 1957, Maverick ran on ABC – an old West show about a family of reluctant gunslinger heroes, the gambling Maverick clan. First came Bret, then Bart, Beau and Brent before the series ended in 1962.

This lends Maverick some cowboy cachet, not unlike rising star Wyatt (#82 in 2006, the highest it’s ever climbed.) In fact, Maverick flirted with the Top 1000 during the television show’s initial run, in 1958 (#792) and 1959 (#988.)

And yet, this name crosses the line from interesting and cool to outlandish and cruel, and here’s why:

• Maverick is a comic book character – this is a red flag for baby naming!
• Maverick is a Yugioh villain – again, anime names are, at best, dicey choices.
• The name has been given to a roller coaster – would you name your kid Viper, Steel Dragon or El Toro?
• Ford has used Maverick for four different models – including their European SUV. While some little girls are named Camry, this is another big stop sign in baby naming.
• The Mavericks are Dallas’ NBA franchise. As a general rule, professional sports teams names do not lend themselves to becoming good choices for our children. Imagine: “This is my son, Steeler Smith. Hi, I’m Red Wing Jackson.”

But lastly, there’s just something about this name that feels over-the-top. Beyond the gamblers, the hoop stars, the thrill riders, this noun name just feels like it’s putting way too much on your child.

What if your Maverick is more of a laid back, go-with-the-flow kind of kid? It’s a big name, an eye-popping name, and it just feels like much too much.

Don’t go there.

***For the full list of Mavericks, see Wikipedia’s page.