Violet pansies; Image via Wikipedia
She’s a vintage botanical in full bloom circa 2011.
Thanks to Heather for suggesting Violet as our Baby of the Name.
Baby Name of the Day: Violet
24
Tag Archives: Charlie
Baby Name of the Day: Farrah
Image via Wikipedia
She made a triumphant return to the US Top 1000 last year.
Thanks to Sarah for suggesting Farrah as our Baby Name of the Day.
Baby Name of the Day: Amoret
Sunday Summary: 11/28/10
Things for which I am grateful: name blogger Xanthe Linnea is back with the story of her son’s name, Leo Nathaniel. And Emmy Jo shared Julius Arthur‘s name story, complete with absolutely adorable photos! They make for great reading. Plus, be on the lookout for another Reader Baby Name Story here next Saturday!
Another thing that fills me with joy: your boundless creativity, as seen in the Holiday Baby Name Game: Thanksgiving Edition. The suggestions were fabulous – I’ve winnowed it down to a few choices for the polls. Vote for your favorites below!
I’ve been putting more and more Real Life name spottings over at Facebook, but here are a few I couldn’t resist:
The first two sets run afoul of my How Close is too Close? tests. And while I’ve defended alternate spellings, Emett makes me want to backspace. I wonder if there’s a reason?
Elsewhere online:
- Nameberry raised the question of cool names we’ve spotted. The comments were amazing – North, Cosmo, Padget for boys, and Posie, Lulabelle, and Persia for girls – and that’s just a sample;
- Speaking of cool names, For Real spotted boys called Fox and Zen, plus a Wallace Gannon, which I kind of love;
- This was pure fun: Nancy’s round up of Happy Days-inspired baby names like Fonzie and Chachi. Really!
- Speaking of odd names, I’ve often said that being named Dweezil could not have been the strangest thing about growing up with Frank Zappa for a dad. Evidence that parents with unusual outlooks and vocations choose names accordingly: at DaddyTypes, Kenny Scharf designed this wild crib for his daughter in the 1980s. Her name? Zena;
- It goes the opposite way, too. Also via DaddyTypes, CPC Designs features super-cute, super-preppy little jumpers and such, made by a trio of friends. They have five kids between them: Charlie, Teddy, Paige, Cooper, and Madeleine.
The big Hollywood news was the birth of Benjamin Travolta. But with Pink among the currently expecting celebs, we can only expect a bumper crop of fabulous baby names in 2011.
Hope you had a great week, and for those in the US, a fun Thanksgiving.
Thanks for reading, and see you next week!
Baby Name of the Day: Inez
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.
Baby Name of the Day: Spencer
Screenshot from Broken Lance; Image via Wikipedia
Today’s choice is the given name of a Hollywood titan, and the surname of real life royalty.
He’s also quite the popular pick for a boy. Thanks to Emma for suggesting today’s Baby Name of the Day: Spencer.
Sunday Summary: 10/31/10
Happy Halloween! More proof that I truly have a one-track mind: let’s start with two name-related thoughts, prompted by my kids’ costumes:
- There will be more little boys named Anakin in the future. Nancy tells us there were 117 in 2009 alone. Despite my insistence that Aly is Luke Skywalker, he keeps correcting me – no, Mommy – ANAKIN Skywalker. “But he’s the bad guy, Aly.” “No he’s not!” A younger generation might very well find Anakin as wearable as Julian.
- What name do you use to get to Minnie as a nickname? It’s a great nickname, but much too cutesy to stand on her own – moreso, I think, than Millie or Sadie. The Shopaholic series has recently given Becky a daughter by the name. Minnie Driver was born Amelia. There’s Minerva, too, but that’s a lot of name for a little girl – almost too sharp of a contrast to sweet Minnie. So what’s left? Araminta? Minnesota? Ideas welcome!
Here’s a question for readers with daughters. Did American Girl start sending you catalogs, as if they knew you were having a girl before the ultrasound results were in? My first catalog arrived before Clio could roll over, must less request outrageously expensive doll babies. Still, I do enjoy the names in the catalogs: Kaya, Felicity, Josefina, Addy, Rebecca, Kit, Molly, and Julie are the main Girls of the moment. 2010 Girl of the Year was called Lanie. A number of the Girls have friends – Julie’s BFF is Ivy, and there’s also Emily, Ruthie, and Elizabeth. So much better than Bratz.
And while we’re on pop culture, anyone else notice that the upcoming Nutcracker flick the little girl’s name has reverted to Mary? The original ETA Hoffman story called her Marie, but she’s been Clara in nearly every adaptation since.
Elsewhere online:
- What a lovely sibset over at Swistle, and you can help them name another daughter! Their current family consists of Ottilie Fflur, called Tilly; Adalia Seren, called Addie; Cecily Roma; Nolia Betsy; and Violet Lucina;
- New at Nymbler in September:Brynley, Kiptyn, Snow, Galileo, Irelyn, and Posy. One of the contributors to Celebrity Baby Blog, before it was absorbed by People Magazine, had a son named Galileo, but I think they called him Leo. About ten years ago, I knew a couple who used Ireland for their daughter’s middle name. I like it full strength, but find the Irelyn spelling diluted;
- For Real goes to Texas and you know it is going to be good! She spotted Abel Marcel, Hayes Gentry, Nicholai Luther, Landree Natali, Priscila Bethsabe, and Vierra Nichole. That’s the second time I’ve heard Gentry for a boy this week. I don’t get it.
- For Real also hit Tennessee where she found Isavela in the middle spot, plus River Gracily, Consuella Eliesa, Annalinne Rachel, and Atom Leegan. Is Gracily a Grace-Lily smoosh or a just an inventive elaboration? It is pretty, even dainty;
- At Nameberry, Pam raves about ends-in-s names for boys. There are some really great ones. I’ve known little boys called Magnus and Silas, and they wear well. Plus, they can be more subtle than some of the ends-in-o options.
There were a number of celebrity births this week, but first, Jeremy Sisto’s 16 month old daughter is named Charlie Ballerina. How did I miss that?
Back to the newborns:
- Celine Dion’s twin sons, Eddy and Nelson, got all the press, but another newsworthy set appeared this week: Top Chef alum Brian Malarkey and wife Chantelle Marie welcomed son Miles James and daughter Sailor Elizabeth. The twins join big brother Hunter – Huntingdon O’Neil - at home. I like all of the names just fine, but I don’t expect Hunter and Miles to have a sister named Sailor – Olive, maybe, or Louisa or Felicity;
- Jessica Capshaw, a starbaby in her own right, welcomed daughter Eve Augusta.
Over on the Facebook page, I think Stanley has officially been declared wearable.
Keep an ear out for interesting names worn by your Trick or Treaters, and have a great week!
Baby Name of the Day: Harley
Image via Wikipedia
He’s an English surname with a nature vibe, but it’s hard to hear this one and think of anything other than the open road.
Thanks to Kelly for suggesting Harley as our Baby Name of the Day.
Sunday Summary: 9/18/10
Image by hansco via Flickr
Let’s begin with a random, rag-tag assortment of thoughts sparked by the arrival of a boy called Buddy Bear Maurice:
- Bewildertrix listed a bunch of possible names for the littlest Oliver, including Tex. I was just musing that Tex (and Texas and Texan) don’t seem to pop up much as baby names, despite their -x factor, don’t-mess-with-me rugged appeal, and iconic place name status. Dixie Chick Emily Robison did give the middle name to her daughter, Julianna Tex, back in 2005. Nancy tells us that 10 boys were called Tex in 2009, plus another 11 named Texas. Dallas, on the other hand, has appeared in the Top 1000 every year since 1800;
- But back to Buddy, the given name of the new arrival. Yes, we know that the English have been busy naming their kids Alfie and Charlie, and plenty of American parents have embraced the nickname trend, too. But most famous Buddys were born something else. Comedian Buddy Hackett was born Leonard. Rocker Buddy Holly was Charles. And Buddy Ebsen, who went from The Beverly Hillbilles to Barnaby Jones, was born Christian;
- Will Farrell’s character in Elf, however, was Buddy. So was Bill Clinton’s dog while he was in office;
- And let’s close with the Buddy Bears – peace, love, and understanding through ginormous bear sculptures painted to represent all the countries recognized by the U.N. They’re on exhibit in Helsinki now, if you’re eager to see them in person.
It’s not as if I expected Jamie and Jools to call their new kiddo Edward, but this one sparked more hmmm … than the usual unusual starbaby name. At least for me.
Let’s continue with the celebrity news:
- Big Kenny, of country music duo Big & Rich, and wife Christiev have adopted a son, Dakota, a little brother for Lincoln;
- Actor Patrick Fabian welcomed a daughter, Abbey Ray. The purist in me feels compelled to say that an abbey is a convent or monastery; Abby is a given name. But I’m seeing Abbey more and more, so I suppose it’s no more objectionable than Kelley, Carlee, or Tracie.
Elsewhere online:
- If you go into labor at a fish and chips joint called Harry Ramsden’s, then naming your son Harrison seems logical, right?
- I’ve written about the rise of Maylee before, but ForReal spotted a Daylee Katherine. And a Haddilee Rose, which must be a Hadley/Natalie mash-up;
- I don’t always agree with Swistle, but her analysis of Evelyn and commentary on name popularity is spot on;
- Sebastiane mentioned Thelma a few days ago. Despite the road-trip-gone-awry-girl-power of blockbuster buddy flick Thelma and Louise, Thelma seems more moldering than antique, but I do think she’s underrated;
- Kate of My Kids Eat Off the Floor made a very smart comment on nicknames. She was specifically thinking of the perils of Persephone, but I do think her 1% guideline is a good one for any parent attempting to bestow a longer moniker without using a nickname;
- New ABC drama No Ordinary Family includes a teenaged daughter called Daphne. If the show is a fraction as successful as Michael Chiklis’ last venture, this could cement Daphne as the new Zoe;
- Speaking of television, will the latest version of assassin Nikita’s tale convince parents to adopt it for their daughters? Despite Nikita’s masculine origins, in English, the name is inevitably viewed as feminine. Make that in French, too – Luc Besson’s 1990 film kick-started the juvenile delinquent-turned-secret-agent franchise. Elton John had a hit single about another female Nikita in 1985. Nicole has been on the decline for years. Incidentally, Paris Hilton’s little sis Nicky is actually named the even-more masculine Nicholai.
Lastly, I haven’t checked to see if it is on the shelves at my local Target, but I’m wondering if Temple St. Clair’s jewelry collection for the mega-retailer will boost the unusual name’s usage.
That’s all for this week, but as always thank you for reading, commenting, and name-spotting along with me!
Sunday Summary: 8/22/10
Please tell me that I’m not the only person who watched My Fake Fiance, the first pairing of Melissa Joan Hart and Joey Lawrence? It was raining, the baby was fussy … wait, never mind. Someone else must’ve tuned in – enough of us for ABC Family to greenlight a new original series called Melissa & Joey. The series premiered this week, and this time I didn’t watch. But I did Google enough to learn that Joey is a manny to Mel’s orphaned niece and nephew. The boy is called Ryder and the girl? Her name is Lennox! The actress playing Lennox is named Taylor, so maybe Lennox isn’t so outrageous. Plus, there’s the china. And a very minor Agatha Christie character was a girl called Lenox Tamplin. But if this one starts appearing embroidered in pink, it’ll be a surprise.
Speaking of character names:
- Jason Bateman plays Wally in The Switch. The cute kid answers to Sebastian, but that’s a solid Top 100 pick these days. Will Bateman breathe new life into Walter and Wallace?
- The Nanny McPhee sequel gives us kids called Norman, Megsie, Vincent, and their London cousins Cyril and Celia. The young actors’ names are interesting, too – Asa Butterfield played Norman, and Eros Vlahos played Cyril. Aggie – the baby from the first Nanny McPhee flick – also features in the plot, though she’s all grown up. In the 2005 movie, Aggie was played by twins named Hebe and Zinnia. That’s quite a pair!
While we’re on the subject on sibsets:
- This month’s issue of Real Simple featured an office makeover for a mom of five girls: Tabatha, Mabel, Annabelle, Evalyn, and Rachael, plus baby boy Leo;
- Babynamelover brings us a great set of TWELVE from the Telegraph: The birth announcement for Florentina Emilie revealed that she’s a sister for Georgina, Christopher, Charlie, Clementina, Gabriella, Montgomery, Cordelia, Angelina, Seraphina, Decima, and Delphine. I love that they used Decima for baby #10;
- Nameberry explored celeb sibsets that tend towards the quirky and creative. Tamerlane, Kansas, and Judah for a girl make the lists.
Elsewhere online:
- Names for Real spotted a Prairie Taylor. Muppet aside, I stand by my comments from the post about Meadow – this is one nature name I thoroughly enjoy;
- Here’s an intriguing smoosh: Sebastiane spotted a Hannabeth in Alabama;
- There’s a fascinating analysis by Nancy on Strong Names/Weak Names for boys, backed up with mucho data from 2009. It’s a much more productive approach than insisting that Kelly is a boy’s name. (Except that I still think it is. In fact my new hair stylist is a guy called Kelly from Texas. But I did hair stylist, not auto mechanic or lion tamer.)
- Leelee Sobieski calls daughter Louisanna by the nickame Louie – that’s no surprise. Except that she spells it Lewi, which I don’t get.
And lastly, the name was released for Paz Vega’s third child, son Lenon, a little brother for Orson and Ava.
But here’s the important news: next week is re-run week here at Appellation Mountain. I periodically try to update posts from 2008 because, you know, time marches on. But I’ve never done so in a systematic way. So instead of a new post, look for a week’s worth of revamped, revised, and re-invigorated names.
Things get back to the normal – meaning new posts – on Monday, August 30.
Thanks for reading, and have a great week!
