Sunday Summary: 6/12/11

Number 12

Image by always13 via Flickr

Is it me, or was the coverage of Jennifer Connelly’s new daughter rather restrained?  Connelly and husband Paul Bettany welcomed little Agnes Lark earlier this week.  Agnes joins big brothers Stellan and Kai.  Usually headlines like “stars choose bizarre name” or “stars revive classics” are all over my feedreader a day or two after a birth announcement, but this time?  Crickets.

Since we’ve started with celebrities, let me also mention:

I’m writing a celebrity-inspired baby name post for Nameberry tomorrow.  It’s a two-part series.  My favorites from this week’s list are Miro, Ridge, and Asa.  But it’s a game and you can play, too.

Elsewhere online:

  • The day before Agnes’ birth announcement, Nameberry posted a Say Yes to S list, about choices from Lotus to Leatrice that could join Alice and Frances among the stylish;
  • ForReal spotted a Greta.  She’s climbed modestly since returning to the US Top 1000 in 1999.  (She’d left after 1982.)  I always Greta is one of those short, sweet, complete and completely underrated names.  At #666 in 2010, she’s still far from common;
  • Okay, I kind of like Hennessy.  But please don’t name your daughter Chardonnay;
  • Millicent: too fusty, or ripe for revival?  British Baby Names makes me think the latter;
  • I never liked Sailor or Saylor, but Nancy’s post changed my mind.  All of a sudden, it is less Taylor-goes-to-sea and more quirky gem;
  • Are you reading Namestory?  Proof that even the most common names can have fascinating tales to tell;
  • Did you see this post at Swistle where the older child has the nickname River from Richard IV?  Tough to explain maybe, but pure genius;
  • Elisabeth had some great ideas for Dante Xipil’s little sister.  Ylva is fantastic, and I like Kristen’s suggestion of Kahlo, too.  Kim Kardashian, are you taking notes?  Far more stylish than, say, Kash or Kynlee.

Have too much free time?  I have a Facebook page.

That’s all for this week.  As always, thank you for reading!

Baby Name of the Day: Annora

Wenceslas Hollar - Holme Pierrepont

Image via Wikipedia

She’s a medieval rarity that would be right at home in today’s Top 100.

Thanks to Christina for suggesting Annora as our Baby Name of the Day.

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Baby Name of the Day: Tamsin

T44

T44 by Too Far North via Flickr

Tammy is stuck in the 60s, but this unrelated import could wear well in 2011.

Thanks to Fran for suggesting Tamsin as our Baby Name of the Day.

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Baby Name of the Day: Inez

Poster for The Contrabandista

Poster for The Contrabandista; Image via Wikipedia

She sounds like a South America import, but this simple choice boasts a long history of use in the US.

Thanks to Stephanie and Kelleita for suggesting Inez as Baby Name of the Day.

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Baby Name of the Day: Clarissa

 

Title page from the first edition

Title page from Clarissa; Image via Wikipedia

 

There’s spare Claire and vintage Clara.  But what about the frilliest of them all?

Thanks to Fran for suggesting Clarissa as Baby Name of the Day.

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Baby Name of the Day: Annis

She’s a medieval standard, long out of use.  But she might be a great choice for a 21st century girl.

Thanks to Jillian for suggesting Annis as Baby Name of the Day.

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Name of the Day: Mae

She’s small but mighty, packing a surprise amount of style into a mere three letters.

Thanks to RockingFetal for suggesting Mae as Name of the Day.

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Sunday Summary: 2/7/10

I usually don’t pre-post my Sunday Summaries.  (I do schedule my Name of the Day posts, sometimes weeks in advance.)  But a record-setting snow is descending on Metro DC, and as you read this, I may be huddled ’round a Maglite with a 5 y.o. who really wants to watch Team Umizoomi now and doesn’t care about downed power lines.

Let’s hope not.

But just in case it really is the Snowpocalypse, here’s the news through, er, Friday night Saturday morning.

  • Charlotte remains top dog at Nymbler in January, followed by Ava, Ella, Amelia, Audrey, Jack, Benjamin, Finn, Grace and Addison.  Jack and Addison are both making their debuts in the Nymbler Top Ten;
  • The always-more interesting new names include Tenley (Influenced by The Bachelor or nostalgia for Winter Olympics past?), Finnigan, Huck, Ryden, Jovie and Bently.  On MTV reality show Teen Mom, one of the couples named their son Bentley.  Either way, I guess it is slightly more subtle than Lexus;
  • Bewildertrix spotted a Nixon.  Yes, in Australia, so maybe it doesn’t have the same politically charged meaning on the other side of the world.  And he’s a little brother for Reid, Cruz and Rourke, so it seems like the parents were going for an “underused surname” vibe rather than a “disgraced US president” thing;
  • Nancy’s Bad Tattoos and Baby Names should be required reading for all expectant parents considering bestowing a cross-cultural name on their child;
  • Speaking of names from other cultures, have you seen Nameberry’s post on French baby names?  It’s a guest post from Stephanie Rapoport, the founder of  Meilleurs Prenoms.  I love Hugo and find Lilou intriguing.  A few others on her hot list surprised me – the Italian Enzo, the Irish Kylian (it’s Cillian en français) and Louane, which reads 1950s to me, but might be quite charming on a jeune fille;
  • Speaking of Enzo, Elisabeth at You Can’t Call It “It” spotted one in her most recent Ohdeedohkey post.  Plus a Bijou, which yes, is a French word.  But search it on Meilleurs Prenoms and it will tell you: Le prénom bijou n’existe pas;
  • With the debut of Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland just weeks away, the Baby Name Wizard wrote Names on the Verge: Alice, asking whether the name really is headed for the top of the charts;
  • Sebastiane covers Agatha at Legitimate Baby Names. That’s one that is really growing on me, and with all the little girls called Abby and Addie, wouldn’t Aggie fit right in?  Elisabeth Shue has kids called Miles, Stella and Agnes, so something tells me we might hear more of both Ag- names.  Sebastiane also covered Disa, which is far more wearable than the related Dis;
  • I need to stay away from Yahoo!Answers, but I followed a thread about the name Madden and stumbled on this quote about the best spelling for Kayden:  “I have always liked that name Caden, but i prefer it spelled Caden with a “C” and with out extra y’s because i think it looks less trashy and made up.”  I don’t get it.  Wait, I do – I understand that Caden looks restrained compared to Kaydyn.  But it still is a name of recent coinage – attractive, maybe, but undeniably trendy.  Spell it as you like, but it still isn’t William;
  • Speaking of names of recent coinage, 4Real spotted a Wolverine Collin Christopher and a Featherlee Blossom.  Words fail me.

It’s been a light starbaby week, but Busy Phillips explained daughter Birdie’s name at Celebrity Baby Blog.  Apparently the actress – born Elizabeth Jean – was intent on choosing a nickname-proof name, because she disliked explaining her name.  Ten bucks says that Birdie calls her kid Margaret.  And so the cycle continues …

The only other celeb birth this week was Brothers & Sisters’ Sarah Jane Morris welcomed a son, Emmett Andrew.

Thanks for reading!  And if you’re also snowed in, I’m sending warm thoughts your way!