Tag Archives: Archer

Sunday Summary: 10/17/10

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I’m on a reality television kick.  (Right, well, it’s worse than usual.)  How can I not, with names like Truely on Sister Wives and Bret Michaels’ daughters Raine and Jorja on his new series.  Will the trio of real life monikers become the new Destiny, Skye, and Alivia?  Or will the trends take us elsewhere?

Speaking of celebs, this week we welcomed Egypt, a son for Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz, plus twins GideonHarper, a son and daughter for Neil Patrick Harris.

Elsewhere online:

Lastly, to all of those parents thinking that Flynn was the perfect, simple, unusual, swashbuckling, Irish surname for a son’s first name, the name never to be shared by another, I regretfully inform you that the hero in Tangled, Disney’s upcoming Rapunzel reboot, is called Flynn.  Yes, he was originally named Bastion.  And yes, Flynn was awfully close to the white hot Finn anyhow.  Regardless of the movie’s success, this is Disney, and suspect Flynn will rise.   Of course, he’s never been in the US Top 1000.  But Disney plus the single syllable trend that seems to be accelerating?  Make that he has been in the US Top 1000 yet.

That’s all for this Sunday.  Check out the Facebook page for more Summary-esque chatter during the week.

As always, thanks for reading and have a fabulous week!

Baby Name of the Day: Archer

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Bow and arrow

Image by Valerie Everett via Flickr

He’s a nineteenth-century rarity, newly returned to the Top 1000 in 2009.

Thanks to Rachel for suggesting Archer as Baby Name of the Day.

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Parker Lewis vs. Parker Posey

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Parker has a long history of occasional use as a given name.  Originally an occupational surname for a gamekeeper or geographic name for someone who lived near parkland, he’s charted as a boys’ given name in the US most years since 1880.  In 2009, he entered the US Top 100 at #96.

Just like Larkin was a medieval diminutive for Lawrence, Parkin was a pet form of Peter.  And between Spider-man’s alter ego, Peter Parker, and 90s Fox sitcom Parker Lewis Can’t Loose, lots of parents probably view Parker in a positive light.

He’s a little bit preppy/Southern family surname: “Oh yes, my mother was one of the Providence Parkers” or “Great-great-grandfather Jebediah Parker first came to Atlanta after the War.”  But he’s also in step with occupational surnames like Archer that seem so current right now.

But what about Parker for a girl?

Indie darling Parker (Yes, it’s her birth name) Posey was named after supermodel Suzy Parker. As Posey’s star has risen, so has Parker for girls.  She first charted at #875 in 1999, and has made a steady ascent to #502 a decade later.

Two small screen uses of Parker keep me thinking of this:

  • In a recent ABC Family movie, Revenge of the Bridesmaids, Raven-Symoné played Abby and Joanna Garcia played Parker;
  • On TNT’s Leverage, Beth Riesgraf plays talented cat-burglar Parker – though her background is mysterious, and it isn’t clear if that’s her first name or last.  (And if Riesgraf sounds familiar, it is because she’s mom to the oh-so-famous Pilot Inspektor, with ex-husband Jason Lee.)

I know many readers feel strongly that boys’ names should never, ever be used for girls, but in an era when the musical Harper and Piper are popular picks for daughters, it is easy to imagine some parents digging Parker’s nature vibe and thinking she’d be pretty in pink.

Readers, thoughts?

Baby Name of the Day: Bridger

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If kids can be Brooklyn and River, why not this one?

Thanks to Urban Angel for suggesting Bridger as Baby Name of the Day.

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In Reserve: Possible Names for a Second Son

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Even before the pregnancy test came back positive, I had a strong sense that our second child was a girl.

Intuition didn’t stop me from discussing boys’ names with Arthur.  So much that he finally insisted that we wait until the ultrasound, at which point it was moot.  Claire Caroline Wren – Clio – was on her way.

Our firstborn is Alexander Arthur, after my father-in-law Alexander, my grandfather Arthur and, of course, Arthur.  There just wasn’t a clear choice for a second boys’ name.  Plus, I always feel like we flubbed his nickname – though he wears Aly fine.  Our list for a second daughter is well thought out, but a boy?

We would have figured something out.  I think.

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Name of the Day: Shepherd

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Trade names are hot, and if boys can be called Mason and Cooper, why not this equally workaday appellation?

Thanks to Corinne for suggesting Shepherd as Name of the Day.

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Name of the Day: Seger

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Siegfried is best reserved for Las Vegas lion tamers and Wagnerian dragon slayers, but this related surname choice could wear quite well on a boy born in 2010.

Thanks to Karen for suggesting her son’s name as Name of the Day: Seger.

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Sunday Summary: 1/24/10

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Before I move on to the weekly sum-up, one quick piece of business:  I only approve comments written in English, regardless of whether or not I understand the comment.  (Make that especially when I don’t understand the comment.)

On to the names:

  • I’ve finally spotted it on Yahoo!Answers – the dreadful, but inevitable marriage of Ryan/Riley and Wyatt: Ryatt.  All of a sudden, Rylan sounds as classic as James;
  • Then there’s this post:  What about the baby name Reznor?  Yikes;
  • ForReal Baby Names spotted a Brewer. Sure, Brewer’s an occupational surname name a la Archer and Carter.  But this one seems hard to wear – or maybe too easy to wear around the college years;
  • Also via ForReal:  if Erykah Badu can have name her daughter Mars Merkaba, why not Aries Antonia?
  • Thanks to Sebastiane for pointing out that Liv is more than just a short form of Olivia – she’s an Old Norse name with a different derivation;
  • Nancy wrote a thoughtful post on Chinese names.  They’re about to limit names that can be bestowed upon a child – and get this, it will be retroactive!
  • Guest blogger Jill Barnett wrote about Colonial names at Nameberry.  Her lists are interesting, but there’s also a fun literary fact in her post.  Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women were inspired by her and her sisters, as were their names.  Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy were actually Anna, Louisa, Elizabeth, and Abigail May, called May.  I find Amy/May anagram especially intriguing;
  • Speaking of fictional sibsets, the trio in Jackie Chan’s new comedy, The Spy Next Door are Nora, Ian and big sister Farren.  Not sure if the movie gives a reason for bestowing a Karen/Fallon mash-up on the firstborn.

In starbaby news, all via Celebrity Baby Blog:

Lastly, one year ago today I wrote about Isabeau.  And two years ago today?  Well, January 23 was the first ever post at AppMtn: Ava and Harlow.  

So thanks to each and every one of you for the past two years!

Sunday Summary: 8/2/09

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How can it possibly be August?  Of 2009!?

As I marvel at the date on the calendar, why don’t you hop in the wayback machine to 2008 when August was Name of the Day?  It’s still one of my favorites for a boy.

Here in my RL, I’ve got a few new babies to report:

  • Elizabeth Violet, nn Elle – classic, but not dull;
  • John Paul – not sure if he’s John-Paul or even Jean Paul, but parents definitely use both names together;
  • Did I mention I met a Polly?  IMHO, the world could use a few more Pollys.

Also in RL, but in ones far more glamorous – or at least visible – than mine:

And in the blogosphere:

  • Jill’s post on NameShame?  Rocks.
  • Speaking of naming regrets, the mom blogger at Kicky Boots wrote about deciding to rename their toddler.  Karenna Jolie is, I must say, a lovely choice for their daughter.  Who cares it if it took a few months post-utero to settle on it?
  • During our discussion of Cinderella, Sebastiane mentioned that she’s heard of it on Cajun women.  There is something fascinating happening in Louisiana, isn’t there?  Nancy did a post on Cajun names from the Civil War, including Justilien and Dazincourt;
  • Did you check out the Nameberry Faves post – Beatrix, Penelope and Clementine are their Top Three.  Beatrix is clearly a favorite here, too.  Wonder if we’ll see that reflected in the US rankings in a few years?
  • Xanthe Linnea wrote about Cedric.  Anyone else think that the Harry Potter/Twilight connection might make Cedric an unlikely choice in, say, a decade and a half?  Edward Cedric, anyone?
  • Bewildertrix spotted Asher on a girl; Elisabeth reports a girl called Archer.  Asher doesn’t surprise me, what with Ashley/Ashlyn/Ashtyn.  But Archer?  Knock me over with a feather;
  • I loved Bewildertrix’s post on villain names like Regan, Judas, Iago, Jezebel, Hannibal … whenever I ding Regan, I can expect a few angry comments.  But I’m with her on this one – Regan wasn’t much of a role model to begin with, and the fact that the name caught on post-Exorcist?  Scary.  Even better, her comment on Lucifer – “Sound wise it’s magnificent.  To use it?  Cruel.”
  • A pair of Canadian parents insist they are angst-free over their decision to name their daughters Shade Star Pirate and Styles Knight Mansion.  I respect the amount of thought they put into their choices.  But I can’t help think that somewhere in there, they could’ve given their daughters a less aggressively unusual name, just in case the girls grow up to have interests other than their parents’ professions, Star Wars and attractions at Disney World;
  • Let’s end on a high note – Sebastiane featured a truly classic girls’ name over at Legit Baby Names – Martha, Marta, Marthe.

In semi-name news, I’ve been coveting my neighbors’ gas-sipping, eco-chic SmartCar for months now.  I was charmed to learn that the forerunner of today’s Smart wore the lovely name Isetta.  Hey, if girls can be named Camry.  And Shade …

Thanks for reading!