Corylus avellana flowers; Image via Wikipedia

Depending on your perspective, she’s either a nouveau spin on current favorites, or a medieval rarity prime for a comeback.

Thanks to Kayleigh for suggesting Aveline as our Baby Name of the Day.

Her sound is incredibly current:

• Ava ranked #5 in 2010, with Avery at #23, and variants like Averie, Averi, and Avah in use;
• Ends-in-line options include the Top 100 Madeline and Caroline, as well as up-and-comers like Adeline and Evangeline;
• Don’t forget Ev- choices like Evelyn and Eva.

It is inevitable that some parents would invent Aveline.  But she has more history than you might expect, tracing back to Norman England.

Aveza is a Spanish verb, a very rare given name in the US, and possibly an early Germanic feminine name, too.  She’s considered the root of medieval appellations like Avice and Avis, and possibly Averil, derived from avi – desired.

Avis brings to mind rental cars – and birds.  The Latin avis refers to all thing avian.  In our age of Sparrow and Robin and Wren, it is likely that some parents will find her fine-feathered associations pleasing.  Daniel Baldwin has a little Avis Ann.

Other names share the avi element, including Avela and Avila.

Avila takes us in a very different direction, to Spain.  Teresa of Ávila was a sixteenth-century mystic considered a Roman Catholic saint.  She’s also a Doctor of the Church – someone whose work has had a significant impact on the shaping of Catholic doctrine and theology.

Ávila is the name shared by the Spanish province and the capital city.  Today, it is just a day trip from Madrid, but for centuries, it was an imposing fortress of a town.  You can still see the walls of the old medieval city.  Ávila was established by the Vettones, a Celtic tribe, probably by the fifth century BC.  They called the place Obila – high mountain.

Visit Ávila today, and you might notice the pronunciation emphasizes the first syllable – AH vee lah.  Odds are that any American English speaker would favor ah VEE lah.

Aveline and Avelina may have developed as diminutive forms.

There’s one more possible origin for Aveline: some list it as the French word for hazelnut.  If that’s true, she keeps company with other edible appellations like Pomeline and Clementine.  But the word typically used in French for hazelnut is noisette.  A nineteenth century French-English dictionary lists avellana as the English word; aveline and noisette as the French.

It’s a bit tangled, but it makes sense: corylus avellana is the scientific name of the common hazel, derived from avellana nux sylvestris – wild nut of Avella – a term used to describe hazelnuts dating to a sixteenth century botanical guide, and referenced by writers as far back as Virgil.

1980s British television series Bread focused on the Boswell family of Liverpool, including only daughter Aveline.  But she’s never made the US Top 1000.  Choose the name today, and confusion could follow:

“Meet my daughter, Aveline.”

“Madeline?”

“Aveline!”

“Oh, Adeline.”

“No, with a v, like Eve.”

“Oh, Evelyn.”

And yet, she’s undeniably attractive, and works well for families seeking  a name that isn’t too closely tied to any one culture.  I found a lovely baby Aveline on this blog, written by a globe-trotting mama.  If you don’t mind repeating your child’s name, Aveline might be a perfect just-a-little-different option.

And so, with the first day of April just a few hours away at last, here’s the Name of the Day: Avril.

Avril Lavigne’s career exploded with the 2002 release of her smash debut album Let Go.  Even if you’re past the age for pop music, her singles “Complicated” and “Sk8r Boi” probably caught your attention.  She’s had plenty of success since.

In the US, however, her name has never cracked the Top 1000.  The same seems to be true internationally, including Lavigne’s native Canada.  Given Avril’s similarity to the white hot Ava, her nature name vibe and French flair, this seems surprising.

April has been a popular choice for girls in the US for years, ranking in the Top 100 from 1967 through 1991.  (She was #310 in 2007.)  Avril has been worn by a handful of others – including legendary British comedienne Avril Angers – but has never attained April’s popularity.

Perhaps it is her pronunciation.  I can count at least three versions in use:  ah VRIL, ah VREEL and AV ril.  Chances are there are more – and you’d hear every one of them if you chose this name for your daughter.

And yet, Avril has an appealing meaning.  She comes from the Latin aprilis.  While she might sound ripped from the calendar, the word has deeper roots.  In Ancient Rome, Aprilis was the month dedicated to the goddess Venus.  Scholars speculate that Aprilis is derived from the Etruscan name for Venus – Apru – which, in turn, is a translation of her Greek name, Aphrodite.  It may also relate to the Latin word aperire – to open, or bloom.

Avril and April have also been in use as a surname.  The name could simply be given to someone born in the month.  But there’s a second, intriguing theory – perhaps April was given to individuals with a mercurial temperament.  Just like April’s weather is changeable, your neighbor might’ve been unpredictable, too.  If people were named for their brown hair or for living near the river, why not for their temperaments?

While Avril’s meaning initially seems straightforward, mix in those two bits of information and she’s also a subtle goddess name and the right choice for an imaginative, inventive child.

Xanthe Linnea pointed out Avril’s similarity to Averil, which also connects her to the old saint’s name – though it usually written Everild.

Avril could represent that perfect balance of standing out and fitting in.  She seems like she ought to be more popular – after all, Miss Lavigne has inspired plenty of young women to buy her music.  (Perhaps her fans simply aren’t having children of their own yet.)  

With her “v” sound, she’s feminine but still sharp.  And while May and June – and even April – are sweet and gentle appellations, there’s something a little bit wild about Avril.  She could wear well on a daughter.

And what’s not to love? It’s simple, it’s glamorous, it’s feminine without being frilly. Ava pairs well with a variety of last names, too.

But now that it is well installed in the Top Ten, plenty of parents are looking for an alternative to naming their daughter Ava, too. Read on for a few ideas.

The first option is to simply elaborate on Ava. There is the pitfall of creating an ersatz princess name like Aviella if you go this route, of course. But there are a few choices worth consideration:

• Avery – Borrowed from the boys, this name is familiar to anyone who’s ever ordered office supplies. It’s appealing, frills-free and wears well for a child or an adult. However, it was also the 52nd most popular choice for girls born in 2006 – so while it isn’t quite as hot as Ava, it’s not far behind.
• Avril - While April seems stuck in the 70s with macrame wall hangings, the French version makes for an appealing nature name. Pop-punk princess Avril Lavigne lends the name some familiarity. Toulouse-Lautrec immortalized Moulin Rouge dancer Jane Avril in his paintings, giving the name a certain ooh la la. Avril has never appeared in the Top 1000 names in the US.
• Averil - At first glance, Averil looks like an elaboration of Avril, but its origins are completely distinct. A seventh-century English nun who helped found a religious community, her name is sometimes listed as Everildis, Everilda, Everild or Averil. The latter two versions seem best for the 21st century. Averil has never appeared in the Top 1000 names in the US.
• Avalon – One of our favorites here at ApMtn, Avalon was a paradise in Arthurian legend. The name may translate to island of the apples, making it something of a nature name, as well, and a place name – Avalon, California and New Jersey are both appealing waterfront communities. A choice both unusual and familiar, Avalon has never appeared in the Top 1000 names in the US.

But if it is Ava’s simplicity that draws you, adding an extra few letters might not quite suit. Instead, you might consider other equally simple, two-syllable, ends-in-a choices like:

• Anya - It’s the Russian form of Anna and a Sanskrit name, too. In fact, it’s easy to imagine Anya blending gracefully into almost any language. But its simplicity also makes it a stand out. Perhaps that’s why it is climbing the popularity charts, ranking #405 in 2006. While that’s not obscure, it’s not common, either.
• The -ora family: Cora, Dora, Nora and Zora – While each havs distinct origins, they have a similar appeal. Dora and Nora emerged as nicknames for Dorothea/Theadora and Eleanor, but are comfortably bestowed as independent names. Cora is from the Greek for hill; Zora from the Slovak for sunrise. They’re a nice set of throwback names due for a resurgence in popularity. Circa 1880, Cora was the 15th most popular name for girls in 1880. Along with Nora and Dora, this trio spent the late 19th and early 20th centuries in frequent use – all three charted in the Top 100. Zora might sound like a modern innovation, but in fact, was the 304th most popular name given to girls in 1880. All four have possibilities today, with Dora the most obscure (it has not been in the Top 1000 since 1992), followed by Zora (#960 in 2006) and Cora (#384). Nora is the most common -ora variant, ranking at #245, with the related Norah standing at #513.
• Zara – While this seems like a twist on Sara, Zara is an Arabic name that means shining. It gained worldwide attention in 1981, when Princess Anne chose the name for her daughter. Fashionistas know that Zara is a Spanish clothing chain akin to the Limited, now making inroads in the US. It’s a simple choice, and one that is familiar but still quite rare. In 2006, it was the 858th most popular name in the US.
• Lila/Lilah – Without the final h, this name appears in Sanskrit, Swahili and Persian; with the final h, it is used in Hebrew. The result is an appealingly international name with considerable flair. Lila was #329 and Lilah #867 in 2006.

And if it is Ava’s glamour-girl image that draws you, consider these other choices drawn from Hollywood’s Walk of Fame: Stella, Lauren, Veronica, Tallulah, Natalie or Esther.

At the time, I nodded. I knew what she meant – they weren’t going for anything outlandish, and the name they chose for their son – Matthew – was as straightforward and practical as my friend and her husband.But limiting yourself to the names of Roman Catholic saints is not, well, limiting.

First, a quick note on sainthood, for the non-Catholics among us. For the first thousand years or so, a person became a Saint through local custom. Not so today – Rome has slowly codified the process. The result is over 10,000 saints and beati, some of doubtful historical veracity.

So, yeah, there are gonna be a few humdingers in there.

You can search the index over at www.catholic.org yourself. But you know I’ve already whiled away a few hours musing over some very underused, very interesting saints’ names.

Nestled among the myriad Mary and abundant Annes, here are a few gems:

• Endellion – Like many early female saints, she was a virgin and a recluse. But your Endellion might live up to this Gaelic name’s meaning: fire soul. With the pretty nickname Della or the boyish Lio, it’s an interesting choice.
• Leocadia – I first noticed this name on a painting in the Prado Museum in Madrid. While the woman in the portrait was no saint – she was believed to be Francisco Goya’s lover, and mother of his child – she bears the interesting name of a fifth century Spanish martyr. If Leo is hot for boys, then Leocadia seems like a valid choice for girls. It could also be freshened up as Leocadie or Leacadie. In French, it’s Locaie – perhaps a bit too like “location” to work in English.
• Marina - She’s another virgin, this time from the eighth century. Marina lived near the Black Sea and the name has a wonderful sea-faring quality. Unlike most of these choices, its also somewhat familiar. It was #406 on the 2006 Social Security baby names’ list.
• Aurelia is one of those names that isn’t just old school; it is positively BC. The Roman patrician clan even had a road named after their family – the Via Aurelia. Saint Aurelia was a princess, too, but a tenth-century Austrian one. She earned sainthood as a recluse. The name’s meaning – golden – is quite appealing. This seems like a better choice that modern inventions like Aubrianna and Ariella.
• Everild - If you like the sound of the noun name Ever, this unusual Old English name might appeal. A seventy-century noblewoman and abbess, she is sometimes called Averil, perhaps a less extreme option. It’s one of the few Old English choices that might work in the 21st century – certainly the names of Everild’s companions, Saint Bega and Saint Wulfreda, are best left to obscurity.
• Hermione - It will, of course, bring to mind the clever witch from the Harry Potter series.  but Hermione is an ancient martyr mentioned in the Bible.
• Thais - If you’re looking for a simple name like Brooke or Paige, but want something a little less common, Thais might fit the bill.  The temptation is to say “Tice,” but this is actually two syllables:  TAH ees.  It’s a fourth-century name, but sounds just right in the 21st.

Sunday School dismissed, but check back for the boys’ edition, coming soon.