Tristan and Isolde by Herbert Draper; Image via Wikipedia

She’s been a tragic heroine for centuries, and yet her name sounds surprisingly modern.

Thanks to Sadie for suggesting Isolde as our Baby Name of the Day.

A bad ending doesn’t doom a name.  Look at fair Juliet, currently leaping up the US rankings to #285 in 2010, her vaguely French vibe meeting a generation of moms who remember Claire Danes wearing angel wings and kissing a very young, pre-Titanic Leonardo DiCaprio.

Isolde is also trapped in an affair fated to bring unhappiness to all, but in many accounts it is of her own making.  The story generally goes something like this: Isolde is a princess, betrothed to King Mark of Cornwall.  The king dispatches his nephew Tristan to retrieve his bride.  All’s well so far.  But Isolde ends up with a love potion in her possession, and somehow, she and Tristan drink it down together.  Even though Tristan dutifully delivers the princess and she obediently promises to love, honor, and obey her intended groom, the die is cast.  The pair conduct a scandalous affair, which Mark ultimately discovers.

In some accounts, Isolde is said to have tricked Tristan into drinking the potion with her; in others, their actions are accidental.  Either way, their story ends unhappily.  It was probably first written down during the twelfth century by a Norman poet named Béroul and a French poet called Thomas; but like many a legend, it is almost certainly much older.

There are other Isoldes in myth and literature, but she’s the one that we remember, especially because her story has been told and re-told, time and time again:

• Tennyson was just one of the nineteenth century poets to revisit the tragedy;
• Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde remains one of the composer’s most important works;
• Film adaptations began a silent movie in 1909 and have continued, at least one most decades, right into our era;
• The most recent movie was 2006, with James Franco as Tristan and Sophia Myles as the leading lady.  In this version, there is deception on the part of both lovers, but there is also plenty of room to forgive them both.

Maybe if the movie had been a hit, Isolde might have attracted more attention.  Instead, she’s never appeared in the US Top 1000, even as the similar-sounding Isabella stands at the very top of the popularity charts.

As for the origins of her name, just like Tristan, there’s no consensus.  Some say Celtic, others say Germanic.  Variants abound: Eseld in Cornwall, Esyllt in Wales.  You’ll find Isot, Iseult and Yseult, too.  Isolde is no modern innovation, however; she appears as early as the 13th century.  Isotta is Italian – and also the name of Isabella Rosellini’s twin sister.  Isolda also surfaces in romance languages.

That last one – Isolda – is probably the closest to a phonetic pronunciation of the name.  While Iseult would probably reduce her sound to just two syllables and the French say ee ZOLD, the consensus appears to be that Isolde’s final -e is not silent.  Some favor more of a z-sound: ih ZOL dah, while others prefer a softer s-sound: ih SOL dah.

A little Isolde would probably endure some teasing – Isolde what?  Did you get a good price for it? – but considering how very in-step she is with current trends, I suspect this rarity that would fit in with other wildly romantic, yet restrained choices, from Juliet to Giselle.

Image by Leo Reynolds via Flickr

We live in a magical age.  Earlier this week I spotted an unusual name scrolling across Nameberry’s “currently being viewed” ticker, and mentioned it on my Facebook page, with a link to the entry.  Within minutes Elixyvett appeared in their Most Popular Names cloud, and stayed there for a few days, prompting a thread on their message board.  At the same time, Nameberry’s Pam sourced an entire post on Old People Names from a Twitter craze.

Saints and royalty and popular legends and music and novels and television and movies have all put new names on the map.  Surely social media will function in a similar fashion.  But will there be, say, a baby name Elixyvett because a mom-to-be spotted the name when it loomed large in the tag cloud?  Will someone’s Twitter handle inspire a future baby name?

Elsewhere online:

• Stork Bites Man must be the best dad blogger site name ever, so it is no surprise that his daughters are nicely named, too – Astrid and Elsa;
• I’m not sure Google translate is coming through for me with Voornamelijk’s post on Madelief and Flores.  Is there really such a thing as a celebrity gardener?  Regardless, I love the idea of Madelief, derived from the Dutch for daisy;
• There’s a brilliant post at the Baby Name Wizard on The Antique Name Illusion.  I’ll never forget the time a mom told me her daughters’ names – Stella and Matilda – were “old family names.”  Maybe they were, but they’re also about as stylish as you can get right now, and betcha she overlooked a Gertrude or a Beulah in the mix, too;
• I can understand why you might name a child Lennox.  I cannot fathom why you might feel compelled to respell it Lenixx;
• Has anyone read the Penderwick sisters stories?  From the cover art, and even the plots, you might think the books are gentle antiques from the era of Louisa May Alcott.  Instead they’re a contemporary series, with the latest installment just published.  The four sisters answer to Rosalind, Skye, Jane, and Batty.  I’m dying to know if Jeanne Birdsall reveals their full names, or explains them at any point;
• This list at British Baby Names had me captivated – Curiosities of the Seventeenth Century, proving that you might meet a Jeronimo, Dessorell, or Nazareth in ages past;
• For Real met a girl named Candle.  How cool!  Or should I say smokin’ …
• How well can you define your name style?  Nameberry’s Pam pegs hers as “Eccentric Aristocrat” while Bewitching Names’ Isadora calls hers “Worldly Strega.”  I have a theory about my style – and I’ll share eventually – but after years of thinking about names that we could actually use, I think I’ve lost touch with those I just love because I love them;
• This irritates me: an expectant mama writes in that she and her husband have decided to name one of their twin boys Decklan.  What should his brother’s name be?  I’ll admit that I prefer the Declan spelling, but let’s face it – the original is Deaglán.  The longer I write, the more I feel like I should wear a tee shirt that says “Variant spellings are not going to bring down Western Civilization.”   The reverse of the shirt would say “Of course, you can go too far.  Lenixx is too much.  And Reillee hurts my eyes.”

Spotted amongst the glitterati:

• Pink’s daughter arrived, and she’s named the rather reasonable Willow Sage, a flower child for the tough chick.  My favorite headline has to be this one, from Holy Moly: Pink has baby girl, names her after shrubbery;
• Actress Dorian Brown welcomed a son, Cayman Tyson Pham.  No word on the parents’ inspiration for the choice.  Brown is set to appear in the American remake of quirky Australian TV series Wilfred.  I’d give Cayman and Wilfred equal odds of catching on;
• I’m enjoying learning more about Australian celebs thanks to Waltzing – this week alone brought us a baby girl called Allegra Eve and a boy named Lux Edward.  Lux joins a big sister called Autumn Claire.  I came across a boy named Lux years ago and had a hard time thinking of it as masculine, probably thanks to Lux Lisbon in Jeffrey Eugenides’ The Virgin Suicides.  But he really could fit right in with Luke, Max, and Gus, couldn’t he?

I’ve gone out on a limb and waded into deep water for this week’s Nameberry post.  I think it is one of my wackier, less wearable lists – but also a trend that seems to be catching on.  Last week’s post was Surfer Names, a list I ended up really loving.

That’s all for this week.  As always, thanks for reading and have a great week!

Diamond copy of the Koh-i-Noor; Image via Wikipedia

Want something more subtle than naming your daughter Diamond, less expected than calling her Claire?  Here’s a culture-spanning appellation that might fit the bill.

Thanks to Sarah for suggesting Noor as our Baby Name of the Day.

In 1876, Queen Victoria became the Empress of India.  Part of her suite of jewels was a serious stone, the Koh-i-noor.  It had been acquired by the East India Company almost three decades earlier and the British public had a chance to view it in London at the 1851 Great Exhibition, where it was a major draw.  The gem has been part of the crown jewels ever since, despite some diplomatic controversy about its acquisition.

Koh-i-noor means mountain of light, and at 105 carats, that seems like a fair appellation.  A similar stone is the Darya-i-noor – sea of light – and there’s also the Noor-ol-ain – light of the eye.  The pink Noor-ol-ain is the central gem in a tiara made for former Iranian Empress Farah Pahlavi.

Some say that the Koh-i-noor is cursed, but that hasn’t stopped monarchs from squabbling over it for centuries.

The rulers of the Mughal Empire were among those who possessed the diamond.  Their dynasty also gives us an early use of Noor as a given name.  In the seventeenth century, Noor Jahan was the favorite wife of the Emperor Jahangir.  Several accounts tell us that Noor was an extraordinary woman, one of the very few consorts to share power with her husband.

You’ve probably also heard of Queen Noor of Jordan, the blonde, American-born monarch of a foreign land.  Born Lisa Halleby, she married King Hussein of Jordan in 1978.  Her husband passed away in 1999, but she continues her work on behalf of international relief organizations.

Noor can also be spelled Nor or Nur, and is equally likely to be a masculine moniker.  Variant Nura is exclusively feminine.  Compound names containing the element are common, too: Nurul, Nuray, Nurislam.

Noor also brings to mind Nora and Eleanor.  Doubtless that’s why Noor feels so accessible to an English-speaking world.

While she’s never cracked the US Top 1000, she’s quite popular elsewhere:

• Israel, for Muslim and Druze girls (the country separates data by religious identity);
• Spain, probably also for Muslim girls;
• Belgium, but in this case she’s a short form of Eleanor.

The element also appears in popular names from Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan.

All of this makes for a globe-trotting name with a lovely meaning.  Mainstream choices like Claire and Lucy share her sense of light and bright.  Noor is frills-free and tailored, and would fit right in with girls’ names today.

The only possible drawback is the rise of Nora – she’s up to #159 in 2010, and seems likely to regain her Top 100 status from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.  Coupled with the popularity of Eleanor and Elinor, Noor might not feel like a completely original sound.  But she still makes for a truly stand-out, international appellation.

Image via Wikipedia

Even if you’re not even a teensy, eensy bit interested in the royal wedding, it would be pretty tough to avoid the topic today.  William and Kate’s wedding is an all-out media frenzy.

Chatter about royal baby names has been non-stop since the engagement was announced, and I’ve very much enjoyed dreaming up possible names for a future heir to the throne.

But here’s the big baby naming question that I’m wondering about: when commoner Kate becomes regal Catherine, will C become the new K?

In 1909, Catherine was slightly more popular than Katherine, but variant spellings muddy the picture:

• Catherine ranked #23, with Catharine at #324 and Cathryn at #719;
• Katherine was a respectable #53, but variants like Kathryn #74, Katharine #296, Katheryn #684, Kathrine #691, and Kathryne #731, probably gave a slight edge to the K spellings;
• Don’t forget Kathleen, at #135.

By 1959, the Ks had it:

• Kathy ranked #15; Kathleen #23; Kathryn #69; and Katherine #79;
• The only C-spelling in the Top 100 was Catherine, at #40.

And by 1989, a host of other Kate-names were in play:

• K outpaced C, with Katherine at #26, Kathryn #58, and Kathleen #90;
• Catherine remained a Top 100 choice at #67;
• Caitlin, the original spelling, was still most popular at #49, but variants Katelyn #76, Kaitlyn #95, and Kaitlin #100 were gaining fast;
• Katie was popular as a stand-alone name, at #45.

That brings us up to the present, our Kardashian-soaked era of kreative naming.  Looking at the 2009 stats:

• The Top 100 includes a host of vaguely Katherine-related names, all starting with K: Kaylee #29, Kayla #35, Kaitlyn #67, and Katelyn #89;
• Then there’s reality TV’s Khloe at #95, one of fastest gainers of 2009, though she still can’t catch Top Ten Chloe.

K’s grip has been strong.  Intriguing word name Cadence inevitably became Kaydence, and choices like Kassidy, Kinley, and Kenzie were big gainers in ’09, too.  But C shows signs of life:

• Caylee appeared at #263, up 250 paces in 2009;
• Classics Claire, Charlotte, and Caroline were all Top 100 gainers;
• Farther beyond the Top 100, vintage gems like Clara, Cecilia, Camille, and Cora all found favor with more parents.

The influences have been many, ranging from the tragic 2008 death of Caylee Anthony to the success enjoyed by actress Cate Blanchett.  The Office baby answers to Cece, and Cora owes a little something to celeb chef Cat Cora and something to the movie Coraline, too.

Factor in the newest member of the royal family, and I wonder: could we see more names creatively spelled – with a C?

Collins Fieldhouse girls basketball team, 1917 Seattle Municipal Archives via Flickr

March Madness continues, and the competition is fierce!

Elodie barely squeaked past Claire.  A mere two votes decided that race.

The biggest victory went to Adele.  She thoroughly trounced Eithne, garnering 86% of the vote to her rival’s mere 14%.  Lydia and Lila both won by impressive margins, suggesting that L truly is the letter to watch.

One surprise was watching Louisa win handily over Stella.  Has this star already had her moment?  Are too many Hollywood littles wearing out Stella before she really catches on?

My biggest heartache was watching Romilly lose out to Lorelei, especially because that was a close one – Lorelei earned 55% of the vote.

And now, on to the quarter-finals!

It’s a rhyme time match-up: Isla versus Lila

Little Women’s Louisa versus Hamlet’s Ophelia

The elaborate Lydia versus the trim Adele

Three-syllable showdown: Lorelei versus Elodie

Image via Wikipedia

She’s a medieval spin on the evergreen Julia, a name that first found favor in the 20th century.

Thanks to Photoquilty for suggesting Gillian as our Baby Name of the Day.

Name enthusiasts often insist on correct spellings, but that’s a slippery prospect.  Standardized spellings are a relatively recent phenomenon, and most names with a long history of use will have more than one valid variant over the centuries.

Julian appears in the historical record as both a feminine and masculine name – the fourteenth-century equivalent of Peyton.  But it appears that the vernacular forms evolved differently for boys and girls.  Boys became Jolyon; girls became Gillian.

Plenty of other versions were in use, too.  There’s Julitta and Juliote, Giliane, Jillian, and Gillie.  Some of those are diminutives; others, just the way the name was written down, based on dozens of variables.

Names related to Julian have an enduring history of use.  Nursery rhyme “Jack and Jill” suggests that Jill would’ve been in use in the 1700s.  But Jill, Gillian, and company were all rediscovered in the twentieth century.

Gillian appeared in the US Top 1000 only in these years:

• 1968/1969
• 1972/1973
• 1977-1992
• 1995-2008

Spelled with a J, she has a far better record, debuting in 1976 at #620; leaping to #236 a year later; and peaking at #96 in 1982. She’s bounced around in the Top 200 ever since, ranking #157 in 2009.

As for Jill, she debuted in the Top 1000 in 1929, climbing quickly to rank in the Top 100 from 1958 to 1983.  But she fell fast, leaving the rankings after 2000.

There’s no shortage of actresses answering to the name:

• Jill Balcon is better known for her midcentury work on the stage – and for being the mother of Daniel Day-Lewis;
• Jill St. John was a Bond girl in Diamonds are Forever;
• Jill Eikenberry launched another baby name – the surname of her character, Ann Kelsey, on L.A. Law from 1986-1994;
• There’s also two-time Oscar-nominee Jill Clayburgh;
• R&B singer-turned-actress Jill Scott;
• Law & Order alum/Crossing Jordan star Jill Hennessy was born Jillian.

That leads us to famous women named Jillian.  The highest profile figure right now might be The Biggest Loser’s no-nonsense trainer Jillian Michaels.

And then there’s the Emmy-winning Gillian Anderson, better known as Special Agent Dana Scully, the skeptical partner to Fox Mulder on long-running series The X-Files.  There’s also Eastenders alum Gillian Taylforth.

I can’t help think that Jill would be surprising and friendly today, a sister for Kate, Jane or Claire, but far less common than either.  She’d be lone Jill amongst the oceans of boys answering to Jack.  And Gillian seems vaguely brainy – possibly because of the lasting impact of Anderson’s character.  All three of the names feel more wearable than worn out, making them good options for parents who don’t want their daughter to be another Emma, but still want a familiar name.

Image by seriykotik1970 via Flickr

There’s Cordelia and Cornelia, Coralie and Coraline.  What about just Cora?

Thanks to Photoquilty for suggesting our Baby Name of the Day.

Short names often inspire elaborations.  Claire becomes Clarissa and Clarice and even Clarinda.  It is easy to imagine Cora leading to Cordelia and company.

But that’s not so.  While many of those names have ancient roots, Cora is, in some ways, a fairly recent addition to naming options.  Her roots stretch back into Greek myth, but she wasn’t used as a given name until James Fenimore Cooper chose the name for his ill-fated Cora Munro in The Last of the Mohicans.

The novel was published in 1826, but set seventy-five years earlier.  The name made for a good choice for Colonel Munro’s older, dark-haired daughter.  While it isn’t widely known, Cora is of mixed-race descent.  The Mohican warrior, Uncas, falls in love with her.  It’s an adventure tale with a romantic plot, but neither Cora nor Uncas survive.

Cooper’s book was a success, and Cora caught on as a given name.

It wasn’t new, exactly.  Cooper might have been inspired by the Greek Kore, another name for the goddess Persephone.  Persephone’s tale of living in two worlds was appropriate for Cora Munro.  But Kore was more of a title than a name.  Kore literally means maiden.

Corinna was the given name derived from kore.  Corinna was worn by an ancient Greek poet, and the fictional love interest of Ovid in his Amores.  Truly ancient name, ancient poet, used by Ovid for a character.  In the 1600s, poet Robert Herrick penned Corinna going a-Maying.

Cora fits right in with fellow antiques like Emma and Clara, but she’s relatively undiscovered.  While she’s never left the US Top 1000, she ranked #15 in 1880, and #778 in 1980.

Cora started climbing in 1992, reaching #303 in 2009.

She could bring a whole list of Cor- names with her, though Corinne is quite out of favor, and most of the possibilities are still heard more often on baby name discussion boards than on real life playgrounds.  Parents might like the idea that Cora is close to the French coeur – heart – from the Latin cor.  There’s no real relationship, but plenty of names benefit from what they seem to mean.

Any name once so popular may very well climb the charts again.  For many parents, Cora will hit exactly the right balance – unusual, but familiar, and brief, but complete.  If Cordelia seems too elaborate, Caroline too popular, and Cori too fleeting, Cora could be for you.

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.

A recent post featuring Larissa prompted comments about the -ssa ending.  It’s true that many -ssa names are fading: Melissa, Vanessa, Alyssa, and Marissa all have their best days behind them, mostly in the 1970s and 1980s.

Clarissa, too, is more of a modern success than a vintage revival.  Her best year in the US was 1994, when she peaked at #236, before falling to a distant #602 in 2009 -  about where she ranked in the nineteenth century.

Her 1990s use probably has something to do with Nickelodeon’s Clarissa Explains It All.  Melissa Joan Hart played teenager Clarissa who did, indeed, break the fourth wall to explain everything to her young viewers.

There was nothing controversial about Hart’s good girl character, but the original pop culture Clarissa was a different story.  The title page pictured above is from Samuel Richardson’s 1748 Clarissa, or, the History of a Young Lady.

Richardon’s Clarissa is virtuous, but saddled to a nouveau riche family with greater social aspirations.  Her parents and brother conspire to make an advantageous match for the lovely young Clarissa.  Their plans end badly; her attempts to thwart their plans go even worse.  Despite her many trials, she remains an admirable figure.

It’s difficult to say how many girls were named Clarissa after the novel, but it appears that Richardson did put the name back into the mix.  The Latin clarus – clear, bright, famous – generated many a given name.  Clarice, Claricia, and Clarrie can be found in the Middle Ages.  Clarissa appears to have been a Latin form of Clarice, or sometimes a diminutive derived from the Clar- names.  Fifteenth century aristocrat Clarice Orsini married Lorenzo de Medici; they’re the parents of Pope Leo X.  She’s referred to as both Clarice and Clarissa in the historical record.

Other notables include:

• Clara Barton was born Clarissa, though she’d shed her -issa by the time she organized the American Red Cross;
• Poet and psychoanalyst Clarissa Pinkola Estés is known for her advocacy on a range of social justice issues, but also lends the name a certain New Age vibe;
• Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway is named Clarissa;
• Celeb chef Clarissa Wright is known in name circles for her extended appellation.  Her full name is Clarissa Theresa Philomena Aileen Mary Josephine Agnes Elsie Trilby Louise Esmerelda Dickson Wright.

Despite her -ssa ending being out of favor, Clarissa could be that perfect alternative for parents weary of finding all the -ella ending names overused.  With Claire ranked at #53 and Clara rising to #199 last year, Clarissa fits in.  But since she’s never been overused, she’ll still stand out.

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:

• From the Telegraph UK comes a fascinating report: parents consider, on average, twelve names for their child, and more than a third of all couples quarrel about the final choice.  My reaction:  Just twelve names?  And not 99.9% of couples?
• I loved Sebastiane’s post on Jenny – it is a great reminder that nicknames attach to different names over the years;
• Remember my post about Archer?  The Name Lady talks a mom-to-be off the ledge after she frets that Archer is getting “too popular” – while the Name Lady assures her, the only thing is that the mom’s fears might be right.  While there aren’t that many, there might be more than you expect in your circles.  Our friends and family and even colleagues often tend to have similar naming styles.  I know two boys named Finn, another two called Kai, plus two girls called Esme.  None of them seem remarkable to me, though they’re not common in statistical terms.  I imagine that happens a lot – I also don’t know a single Nevaeh;
• I’ve been pondering the emerging trends for 2011, and the one that seems clear is this: the rise of single-syllable names for boys.  It’s been coming for a while, but look at this list For Real compiled from Montana: Cade, Quade, Gage, Drake, and Clive.  Over in Minnesota, there’s Jence, Joab, Jude, Tate, and Clark;
• Are we really going to name our children after the rescued Chilean miners? Or are names like Esteban and Lilianett (the wife of a miner) irresistible even without the happiest ending outside of a Disney movie?
• This is fascinating: remember Elisabeth’s post on twin girls Ellis Catherine and Claire Emerson at You Can’t Call It “It”? Check out the same question at Swistle.  I still like the original set just fine, but it is fun to see two different bloggers tackle the same question.

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!

And yet, Charlotte recently mentioned Lecandro – surely the invention of a creative mama – and I found myself liking it quite a bit.

Maybe it is that I’ve found there’s a backstory for nearly any name.  Or possibly I’m far more aware that my own opinions have changed over the years.  Two decades ago, Finn would’ve been a shark reference, destined to hear the low strings of Jaws.  Today he’s among the most fashionable of names, even before Glee ricocheted him to wider notice.

And the name news:

• I’ve been meaning to post this ever since Kim sent it my way: Wee Decor posts lists of names parents have ordered on nursery wall art.  Check out their Summer 2010 list here. Dario, Allica, and Juddefrey are all gracing the name of a nursery somewhere.  But hey, if you love it enough to put it on a birth certificate, why not put it on a wall;
• Or chisel it on a stone(age) wall.  Nancy tells us that in the 1960s, some parents went prehistoric and named their daughters Pebbles shortly after the animated series adding a daughter;
• Check out For Real’s list of baby names featuring alliteration – though some of these go too far.  Alexis Alexandra and Coleton Cole both feel repetitive.  Ava Autumn is lovely, and I kind of like Elijah Ezra, too;
• Speaking of how close is too close, I’m intrigued by this post at You Can’t Call It “It” about twins named Claire Emerson and Ellis Catherine … or maybe something else entirely;
• Even if you read zero Dutch, you can pick out the names Emma posted from Benelux’s Next Top Model. I ran the page through Google Translate to confirm – there apparently is a contestant named Epiphany;
• Here’s a quick check at the box office.  Besides the animated owl sibset I mentioned on Facebook – Soren and Eglantine – there are a few other intriguing choices.  Renee Zellweger’s just-in-time-for-Halloween horror flick Case 39 includes a little girl named Lillith.  In Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, we learn that Gordon Gekko named his daughter Winnie.  And Ben Affleck’s The Town is generating buzz for other reasons, but also gives us two to consider – a criminal named James who answers to Jem, and Jem’s niece, a little girl called Shyne.

As for the starbaby round up – it’s a girl.  And a girl, and a girl …:

• This is an interesting choice: Yul Kwon, the winner of 2006′s Survivor: Cook Islands is a new dad to daughter Genevie;
• Here’s a truly lovely choice: Esai Morales and his girlfriend have welcomed a daughter, Mariana Oliveira;
• What percentage of girls called Madeline (or Madison, Madelyn, Madasyn, etc.) answered to Maddie?  And how many are Maddy?  Rascal Flatts’ Jay DeMarcus has announced his daughter-on-the-way will be called Madeline Leigh, answering to Maddy-with-a-y;
• James Van Der Beek bucked the Hollywood embrace of unusual names to choose Olivia for his newborn daughter.

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