Ella Fitzgerald; Image by The Library of Congress via Flickr
Hello, Ella. Where did you come from?
Thanks to Ivy for suggesting our Baby Name of the Day – the short, sweet Ella.
Baby Name of the Day: Ella
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Tag Archives: Ella
Pregnant in Heels: My Reaction
I was half asleep when Pregnant in Heels debuted on Bravo, determined to stay awake long enough to see Elisabeth on television. Oh, and check if my guess about the baby’s name was right. I figured odds were 50/50 that I’d be asleep before the opening credits rolled.
About ten minutes in, I was wide awake, sitting in the dark with a pencil, scribbling down notes. Spoiler Alert: If you haven’t seen the episode, you may not want to read on.
Baby Name of the Day: Perdita
Dalmations by Dawn Endico via Flickr
She’s a literary invention famously worn by a noble dog.
Thanks to Fran for suggesting Perdita as our Baby Name of the Day.
Baby Name of the Day: Ileana
Princess Ileana of Romania; Image via Wikipedia
Looking for a Romanian heritage name other than Nadia? Seeking an intriguing royal choice beyond Mary and Margaret?
Thanks to Photoquilty for suggesting one option: our Baby Name of the Day, Ileana.
Starbaby News: Welcome Benjamin!
This name isn’t a surprise – it was announced a few weeks ago – but I wanted to share the news that John Travolta and Kelly Preston’s son Benjamin has arrived!
It is interesting to see how their naming style has changed over the years. Their firstborn was apparently named after John’s love of aviation, hence Jett. And daughter Ella Bleu has a name that’s somewhere between traditional and daring. Both names were ahead of the curve and inspired other parents. But Benjamin ranked #20 in 2009 – his most popular ever. No word yet on their name choice – I’ll be curious to hear if they comment on their inspiration.
Congratulations to the family.
Baby Name of the Day: Ellington
Image via Wikipedia
He’s a surname worn by a jazz great. How would he work in the first spot for a child born today?
Thanks to Chantelle for suggesting Ellington as Baby Name of the Day.
Baby Name of the Day: Eluned
The flag of Wales; Image via Wikipedia
She’s another obscure saint’s name, and an impeccable Welsh heritage choice. If you’re looking for something less obvious than Gwendolen, here’s one to consider.
Thanks to Charlotte for suggesting Eluned as our Baby Name of the Day.
Sunday Summary: 8/16/10
Can the end of summer really be so near? It feels like just yesterday, Washington DC was digging out of the February snowstorms.
Speaking of the February snowstorms, we were at the city’s summer concert series on Friday night and we’re anticipating A LOT of November babies. One expectant mom was kind enough to tell me they’re naming their baby-on-the-way Maxwell, but mostly I’m looking forward to a pre-Thanksgiving wave of birth announcements.
Speaking of waves of BAs, there were so many Hollywood births in the past week that I’m putting them first:
- Annie Wersching, of 24 fame, welcomed a son, Freddie;
- Songwriter/producer Ryan Tedder and wife Genevieve are new parents to son Copeland Cruz;
- General Hospital’s Rebecca Herbst is now mom to three. New son Emerson Truett joins Ethan and Ella Bailey at home;
- Singer Luke Bryan also announced the birth of a son, Tatum Christopher, called Tate. Tate joins big brother Bo – Thomas Boyer;
- And the sole girl to make her debut this week was Chaplin Haddow, a daughter for Ever Carradine.
Is it me, or are gender-neutral names truly staying neutral? Conventional wisdom was that once a name had “gone girl” it would never be considered for a boy. But many of these celeb names are solidly ambiguous – and still used for sons.
Which reminds me:
- For Real Baby Names spotted a boy named Addison Alex;
- Nancy uncovers the true story of Johnny Carson’s name-changing sons: Christopher kept his name, but Kim Arthur, distressed that he was meeting so many girls with his given name, became Richard. Son Barry became Cory, apparently just because he liked it better;
- Legitimate Baby Names gives us Laine – a two-syllable feminine appellation in Estonia, but this side of the Baltic, inevitably mistaken for a respelling of single-syllable gender-neutral Lane;
- The Name Lady weighs in on whether you can honor a beloved brother by naming his niece Jacob. Well, not exactly – they want to put Jacob in the middle spot. The Name Lady says yes, and for once, I find her answer absolutely wonderful and agree completely;
- But if you want to be sure your son is all boy? For Real reports that Georgia parents went with Remington Colt for their little gunslinger. In the same list you’ll find Dusty Phideles. Could it be a play on “Adeste Fideles,” better known in English as “O Come All Ye Faithful” – could it!?
- Equally unthinkable, brought to us from the Yahoo! Answers community – is Twitter a good name for my daughter? – via That’s Crazee;
- Babynamelover has a sweet little list of less common girls’ names that end in -a, from the exotic (Svea, Raja) to the throwback (Ida, Flora) to the new (Gala, Vega) and everything in between;
- I spotted a tweenager reading one of these books the other day and kept meaning to Google it, but Laura Wattenberg beat me to the punch – check out her post on Theodosia.
I dragged a very reluctant Aly to shop for school shoes today and was delighted to overhear a father calling out Hasting. It was in the Nordstrom’s at the Annapolis Mall – you sort of had the impression the kid might’ve been Something Hasting Something IV. It’s possible I misheard, and he was Hastings, as in the Battle of, raising the possibility that his parents are experts on the Norman Invasion.
That’s all for this week. As always, it wouldn’t be worth writing if you weren’t here. Thank you!
Baby Name of the Day: Wade
He’s a little cowboy with an outdoorsy vibe to boot.
Thanks to Alta for suggesting Wade as Baby Name of the Day.
Sunday Summary: 7/25/10
First, Happy Birthday to me. Well, actually, my birthday is tomorrow. And so I’ll be doing something I haven’t done since shortly after I started writing Name of the Day posts in May 2008 – I’m choosing the names. All week. And I’m starting with my discarded given name tomorrow.
But enough about that. The big news in baby naming this week was Baby Name Wizard’s report on the fastest rising names of 2010. As usual, the coverage missed the critical fine print: these are the fastest gaining searched names, not names being inked on birth certificates by parents. Not everyone searching is expecting a child; not everyone searching and expecting would ever choose a daring name. And yet, it’s interesting to see the list, and there are definitely trends to be spotting among the fastest rising.
They are as follows, girls first:
1. Tenley
2. Harper
3. Everleigh
4. Martina
5. Sookie
6. Navi - There’s been plenty of speculation about Avatar’s impact on baby naming. Combined with actress Navi Rawat, could this be the film’s big contribution?
7. Charlotte
8. Eloise
9. Lorelai
10. Ursula
11. Briella
12. Kinley
13. Tinsley - The next Kimora?
14. Mhairi – It’s a twist on the Scottish form of Mary, but would probably be pronounced Mary in the US, so is she anything more than an impressively creative spelling?
15. Leighton
16. Maelle
17. Ever
18. Kinsley
19. Lux
20. Everly
There are some interesting picks for boys, too:
1. Castiel
2. Bentley
3. Eoin
4. Easton
5. Lucian
6. Aarav
7. Zion
8. St. John
9. Kaiden
10. Sterling
11. Callan
12. Leland
13. Harper
14. Mikah
15. Dashiell
16. Eliah
17. Dawson
18. Kayden
19. Lennon
20. Dorian
Other than the rise of the Ever- names, my real take-away is this: I suspect Charlotte is headed for the US Top Ten. She’s gently French, literary, and feminine without being fussy. Her nickname options are great. She’s also climbing rapidly, without any sign of hitting a plateau.
Putting my crystal ball away, here’s the rest of the news:
- Here’s a list that’s subject to the same flaws, yet seems more likely to suggest future US name trends: Luke Eales of babynames.co.uk guest posted at Nameberry, sharing the fastest rising names on his site. Jude and India, anybody?;
- Nymbler posted their June 2010 update. The Top Ten were the usual snooze of nice-but-oft-heard choices: Charlotte, Ava, Noah, Oliver, Owen, Amelia, Ella, Olivia, Grace, Henry. But the Top Four brand new names? A delight as always: Saylor, Loki, Zadie and Sookie;
- Speaking of Sookie, anyone want to take the over/under on when we’ll hear of a baby girl named Snooki? For real, that is … Jersey Shore’s Snooki was born Nicole;
- Forget New Jersey – what’s up with North Carolina? Check out these names spotted by For Real Baby Names: Fanny Celeste Marin, Jenton Stone, River Cruz, Kwynn Patricia, Mayden Jane. There are some really unexpected combos on that list. But she also found some lovelies: Ingrid Julieth, Emily Miranda. If Maylee is the new Kaylee, I guess Mayden might be the next Jaidyn;
- Speaking of -ayden, check out Nancy’s tally of boys receiving -ayden names in 2009. I won’t spoil the grand tally, but there were lots. No, really. There are more than you think, including seven Xhaidens and six Sheadons. All of a sudden, Castiel and Jenton sound as sensible as Joseph and James;
- This one is just for fun: Listicles posted the 12 Worst Name-Generating Websites. My Sarah Palin baby name is Fire Patriot. My vampire name? Mary Maundrell. What does it say when Twi-fying yourself produces the better result;
- File this under Only Vaguely Related: Mr. Clean’s first name is Veritably;
- While I’m on a random tangent, here’s another, this time via Fritinancy. The French word for weasel is belette. I had no trouble finding Bellette listed on baby name websites;
- Let’s end where we began – remember Lennon from the Baby Name Wizard list? If you’re a fan of the Fab Four, John, George and Paul are fair game, and Lennon and Harrison, why not? But Ringo? Names4Real spotted a Ringo Isaac.
It was a quiet week for starbabies. Juan Pablo Montoya – who is racing on our TV as I type this – welcomed a daughter, Manuela. The NASCAR notable is also dad to Sebastian and Paulina.
That’s all for this week, as always thank you for reading!
