The Number 30
The Number 30 by Herman Turnip via Flickr

It strikes me that I’m now into my fourth year of writing at AppMtn.

About Abby Sandel

Whether you're naming a baby, or just all about names, you've come to the right place! Appellation Mountain is a haven for lovers of obscure gems and enduring classics alike.

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What do you think?

23 Comments

  1. I used to don my judgy pants over Coco. I no longer care. It seems to pop up a bit in Aussie BAs as well as the Times/Telegraph papers alongside sibs called Willow and Poppy.

    Rosamae Susan Marie FTW! Anything but Rosemary. It’s my overdose cooking herb of choice and I can no longer see it as anything but deliciously edible. That and the horrendous Mrs West.

  2. Yes Abby, thanks for another fantastic week and week’s end! Look forward to seeing you tomorrow on Nameberry.

  3. Funny that you spotted Avalon as a middle name for boy, just a couple of days after Phyllon’s middle name was revealed: Joy. I actually like it for a boy, and goes well with his dad’s name Sunnery.

    1. It is interesting, isn’t it? I’ve been thinking lately that the complaint “Parents are stealing all the boys’ names for girls” isn’t quite right. It ought to be “Parents have too narrow a definition of boys’ names.” Except, of course, Aly is currently irritated that he has a girls’ name. I can’t quite imagine how he’d feel about being Ashley.

  4. Don’t know anyone named Coco. But I do have a cousin named Koko. She’s not Japanese, she just has bohemian parents.

    1. Does she like her name? I normally don’t love the k-for-c swap, but Koko isn’t any more out-there than Coco, so I find myself liking it quite a bit.

      1. You know, I never asked. We don’t know each other that well. She’s actually the child of one of my grandma’s foster children, so we’re not biologically related. When she was born, Koko was 100% gorilla to me. Now I don’t give it a second thought. She’s now 13 and seems to wear it well.

  5. Hm. Not sure what I’ll vote for on Nicole’s baby boy name poll – George is fun, but Peter is nice, and I can see her with a little Oscar. But, I’m going with Tobias, both because I can picture a male version of Eleanor being called Tobias and because I definitely see Nicole with a Toby…

    (Note to Nicole – I could also see you with a Curtis, Holden, Isaac, or Julian.)

    Lyndsay, I love Coco, too, but as I mentioned on a post a few days ago, Coco Reese Lakshmi is a lot of celebrity names in one for the baby of a celebrity – so, I’m not keen on the combination. Corina would be my pick!

      1. There’s a little Julian in my ‘hood. It wears well, but he’s the second under-5 Julian I know. Not sure if that’s a fluke, or a sign that Julian is the new Henry.

      2. I don’t think it’s a fluke. I know one small Julian, and I’ve heard it around quite a few times. It IS a great name, though.

  6. I don’t speak Portuguese but I would always read the Portuguese translations of my former church bulletins. Between that and being a Spanish speaker I was able to enjoy the Portuguese site you linked to above.

    Rough translation of the subtitle “Where we adore personal names. Because we all have one”.

    I’ll be checking in on that one from time to time. Love seeing international angles on names.

    1. Thanks for the translation, Christina! I didn’t even try to translate anything, but I still found scanning the name lists interesting.

      When I was in Spain a few years ago, I decided against taking a side trip to Lisbon. We really didn’t have enough time, but I always wish I’d went. Except we ended up at the Alhambra instead, and I did love the Alhambra, so … I guess I just need to go back!

      1. Christina, that’s a great translation! ;D

        Thank you very much for the shout out! I hope you all can get pass through that portuguese obstacle and keep visiting ;D

  7. I’m probably alone, but I love Coco. I would prefer it as a nickname for something like Cordelia, though. No Doubt is my favorite, and I think their kids names seem totally fitting for them. Ace is a personal favorite (though again, as a nickname), and I love Rio. I hated Zuma at first but somehow it seems to fit him. I’m starting to actually like it. Plus, I showed Dash a picture of Zuma on a swing and told him his name, so he started saying it in adorable toddler talk, it’s really quite endearing that way!

    I voted for Frederick, I really want there to be more of them in the world, and since my husband will never agree to it…

    <3 Lunette, I'm glad for the reminder that you covered her!

  8. I’m one of those lurkers. Love reading the topics, just rarely feel like I have something of interest to add to the discussion. Thanks for all your writing!

    1. Why thanks, T.R. I don’t mean to sound judgey about the lurking thing – I lurk on a LOT of cooking blogs, where I truly have nothing, nothing, nothing to say except “Oh geez, there’s more for dinner than pasta?”

  9. I would definitely use Rosemary Susan for the combined name. Mae seems unnecessary and even redundant to me considering it is a form of Mary. My daughter’s middles honor three out of four of her great-grandmothers. Magina got left out. 😉 Though I guess if we were stretching, Mae could be for her too, but I don’t think she would see it that way.

    1. I was thinking the same when I saw the post. Mae is a diminutive of Mary, and Susannah Rosemary got my vote.

      1. I was actually going to say Susannah Rosemary, but then I’d worry (if it were me) that people would think one of the grandmas was Anne/Anna, so I stuck with Susan.

      2. True – I’m not sure if all of the grandmothers are living, but I wonder if the question wasn’t in part about using four names, to ensure that no one is missed. Which would make my daughter Irene Mariarosa Jadwiga Amalia.

        Hmmmm … I can see why more people don’t try that trick.

      3. She could also use 2 names now, and save two for the next baby, if there’s to be a next baby?

        I have twins and nearly named them Elena Josephine and Neda Maria, after Helen, Josephine, Edna, and Maria Maura. We went with non-family names instead.

        Thanks for the link to the Portuguese name blog. Fun!