Image via Wikipedia
She’s a medieval rarity that would be right at home in today’s Top 100.
Thanks to Christina for suggesting Annora as our Baby Name of the Day.
Baby Name of the Day: Annora
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Tag Archives: Grace
Baby Name of the Day: Grainne
Image by arbyreed via Flickr
She’s a daring pirate queen, and a mythological princess, too. Why haven’t more parents considered her?
Thanks to Claire for suggesting Gráinne as our Baby Name of the Day.
Baby Name of the Day: Ever
Big "E" by Orin Zebest via Flickr
Milla Jovovich said it was a boy’s name when she used it for her daughter. Alanis Morrisette gave the name to her son without explanation.
Thanks to Pat for suggesting the intriguing Ever as our Baby Name of the Day.
Sunday Summary: 2/6/11
Number 6 by jontintinjordan via Flickr
This is all kinds of intriguing – check out The Board: An Unofficial Guide to The Bump’s baby name forum. First, because there’s great content. I watched Rant 55: All Your Kids Are Named the Same Thing twice. And, okay, I’m hugely flattered to be on their Best Blogs list. But it is especially interesting to see the conversations in a well-used discussion board rounded up and expanded.
Elsewhere online:
- Now this is a great sibset: Ronan Joss and Carys Eleanor;
- I liked this Rookie Moms post about names from the J. Crew catalog and/or nature;
- Here’s a name I’m really liking – Agnessa, spotted over at Baby Names Garden. I’m not so sure about the premise of post, though. The names are terribly stylish, but if you’re raising your child in an English speaking country, you’re probably better off with Theodore or Richard than Teodor or Rikard;
- Yes, parents really are naming their daughters Aniston. It’s the new Addison, which was the new Madison, which was a cultural phenomenon that still surprises me. I might just have to profile Madison at some point – how did that happen?
- I overheard this one on Saturday: there’s a Swiss freestyle skier called Conradign Netzer. He’s been around for a while, but this is the first I’ve noticed his name. The sportscaster pronounced it con RAD eh GAN. Anyone know where it came from?
- In 2009, I wrote about Eben. And last year, it was Roxana;
- Nancy has the Most Popular Baby Names in Armenia. Narek tops the boys’ list, and Mane is most popular for girls. Neither seems like a promising import, but Milena is also popular for girls, and I’m hearing it here, too;
- Elisabeth spotted a Hendrix over at Ohdeedoh. I mentioned Hendrix in my most recent Nameberry summary, inspired by Oscar nominees. Is Hendrix the new Jaxon?
Which reminds me – stop by Nameberry tomorrow for the girls’ list inspired by Oscar nominees.
Amongst the famous, or at least famous enough to be mentioned in People Magazine over the last week:
- I’m still wondering about Zac Brown’s daughter’s name, Joni Mason. I do like a surname in the middle spot, and yet that’s another use of Mason for a girl – Kelsey Grammer and his Real HousewifeCamille have a daughter named Mason Olivia;
- Ziggy Marley welcomed his third child, a son named Abraham;
- I need to look this one up, but I think Jesse Csincask and Ann Lueders are the second Bachelor couple to marry and start a family.The pair recently welcomed a son, Noah Theodore;
- Late night host Craig Ferguson and wife Megan also welcomed a son, Liam James. Ferguson has an older son, Milo Hamish, from a previous marriage;
- And, this week’s big news: Christina Applegate and Martyn LeNoble are new parents to daughter Sadie Grace. If you’re looking for a name with the same style, but less expected, check out Sadie’s Sisters.
Tune in this week for Ziva, Winston, Abilene, Monserrate, Rachel, and a special Saturday post for a reader who is due quite soon.
Thanks for reading, and have a great week!
Baby Name of the Day: Temperance
Baby Name of the Day: Mirabelle
Blossom of Mirabelle plum; Image via Wikipedia
Miracle has been in the US Top 1000 for over a decade. So why not this subtle alternative?
Thanks to Elena for suggesting her daughter’s name as our Baby Name of the Day: Mirabelle.
Sunday Summary: 11/7/10
I mentioned Katniss in a prior Sunday Summary, but hadn’t gotten around to reading The Hunger Games. Until last weekend, when I picked it up and devoured it in one sitting. I’ve yet to get my hands on book #2 in the trilogy, but found myself thinking that Gale is a handsome name for a boy.
Elsewhere in the world:
- A recent article in Parade mentioned Soledad O’Brien, and the intriguing names of her siblings: Orestes, Estela, Cecilia, Maria, and Tony;
- Photoqulity reported a mistmatched sibset – brothers Jackson and Cash, plus sister Amelie. Emily sagely reminded us that parents often have very different naming styles for sons and daughters. Sisters named Annabelle and Aubrey sound mismatched from a style perspective, but they’re cousins if you focus on their sounds. It’s a good point, and the complexities of style were driven home by this Name Lady post;
- Here’s an intriguing option from a comment on the Facebook page: Could Teal be a nickname for Matilda?
- For Real spotted a few great names in Alaska, including Talitha. Remember supermodel Talisa Soto? I always loved her name. Alaska’s B.A.s also included Daxter and a girl called Carigan, both of which feel inevitable, if a little messy;
- If single-syllable names for boys take off will Kahn/Khan catch on? Yikes!
- I know this happens all the time, but Laura Wattenberg’s post on how names are changed from books to big-screen adaptations was interesting – be sure to check out her comments about the re-named Bennet sisters in a rebooted version of Pride and Prejudice. Braelyn, indeed;
- I’m not crafty, but I follow craft blogs. (Those who can’t … surf?) Anyhow, I spotted this appealing project and couldn’t take my eyes off the name: Ellaria. I can’t decided if I love it or just find it meh, but the project is fantastic;
- This made me laugh out loud: Nancy uncovered a surprisingly large number of girls named Aquanette, and traced it not to the hairspray, but to B-movie actress Burnu Acquanetta;
- Overheard on the Nameberry message boards surfaces again: Jovie, from Elf. One of the Green Baby Blog mamas has a Jovi. (And a Roscoe!) Nameberry points out that while Jovie might pass as a nickname for Jovana, she’s really a modern coinage in the key of Jodi. Still, I think she’s catching on.
Hollywood’s population held steady this week, but The Real World: New Orleans alum Matt Smith welcomed his second daughter when wife Canydce gave birth in their car. Happily, the baby’s name is as attractive, auto-reference-free as big sis Norah Grace. The new baby was named Stella St. Clare.
On another reality show note, American Idol finalist Chris Sligh is a first-time dad to daughter Keira Lennon. And yup, according to the People article, Sligh was able to “negotiate a Beatle” into his firstborn’s name.
That’s all for this week. As always, thank you for reading!
Baby Name of the Day: Truman
With Tru and Truely attracting attention for girls, he sounds like a nouveau coinage. But this surname has a solid history.
Thanks to Photoquilty for suggesting Truman as Baby Name of the Day.
Sunday Summary: 10/24/10
Is there a baby names arms race?
I happen to be writing from New York City, just a week after the Health Department released their 2009 stats proclaiming Isabella and Jayden top of the charts. Yawn.
But then the Wall Street Journal’s Metropolis blog interviewed Baby Name Wizard’s Laura Wattenberg on the results. Two things stood out: first, Wattenberg is a master of linguistic analysis. She declares that today’s parents prefer names lacking “two consecutive voiced consonants.” Buh-bye Robert and Alfred, Nancy and Betsy.
But this quote grabbed me: “Individuality has become a prized virtue and there’s a kind of competitive landscape — a baby name arms race — where parents are determined to make their child stand out.”
It is true that even the most common given names are given to fewer children with every passing year, whether that name is Mary or Isabella or Ava, John or Jacob or Jayden. But I’m not sure that we’re intentionally competing for a stand-out name for our kids … more in a future post.
Elsewhere online:
- Speaking of standing out, here are a few rarities mentioned in the NYC Health Department press release: Nava and Zeidy for girls; Pinchus, Orion, and Drake for boys. Not sure about all of them, but those last two? I imagine we’ll hear a few more Orions and many more Drakes in future years;
- And back to the arms race: apparently, friendships really do end when two expectant mothers land on the same name. I’m with ParentDish UK’s Tamsin Oxford on this one: “So what if you’re going to call him Sam, it’s not like he’s going to be the first child with that name, and there’s no way he’s going to be the last. Surely what counts is the fact that he is your Sam?”
- Here’s an often-heard pheonomenon: I don’t like made-up names, but I like this one I made up. Swistle weighs in on Junuh, which I think she rightly concludes feels both feminine and invented. The respelling Junah might hold up better, but it would never have the masculine appeal of Cannon or Gunnar. Or even Greg;
- Nancy asks whether more of us will name our children Kindle. It’s a hop, skip, and a jump from Kendall to the e-Reader. She also tells us that 24 girls received the name in 2009. And don’t forget surname picks like Kinsey and Kinley, both of which are heard more and more;
- On the AppMtn Facebook page, I mused about the sibsets of the future: Buster and Minka, anyone?
- Can’t get enough of wacky celebrity names? Here’s another slideshow. Call me jaded, but I’m finding it harder and harder to be surprised by any baby name, chosen by anyone. Okay, well maybe Audio Science still seems extreme. Well … and Jagger for a girl. And … okay, I lied. It’s an inexhaustible subject;
- Which reminds me, what do you name your child when your name is Beyonce? That’s one Nameberry contest I can’t wait to enter;
- Here’s a cheerful name: ForReal spotted a Pollyanna Nell. Plus girls called Laurette, Odette, and Isla Antoinette in Washington. Are the -ettes ready for a comeback yet?
- DaddyTypes gives us a list of Footloose-inspired baby names – with Ren and Lulu on the list, it isn’t as outrageous a suggestion as it appears;
- One of Swistle’s posts resulted in a daughter named Felicity, nicknamed Fliss. Love that nickname!
- If there a baby names arms race, here’s the finish line. (Though I don’t think this post is legit.) What should she name her triplets, gender TBA? Current options are, boys first: Mystique Mariah, Blueberry Love, Disney Cinderella, Raven Superman, Dave Superman, Clandestine Superman.
In celeb news, I was so busy speculating about Egypt catching on, and what Beyonce might name her maybe-baby, and how crowd-sourcing works because second-born Bowen Brees has a much better name than elder son Baylen … well, I missed the arrival of Lance Armstrong’s daughter, Olivia Marie, a little sister for Luke, Isabelle, Grace, and Max.
And, of course, Matt Damon and wife Luciana welcomed daughter Stella.
Celine Dion has also welcomed her twins – two boys! – but names have not yet been released. Please leave a comment if you hear anything!
That’s all for this week. As always, thanks for reading!
Starbaby News: Welcome Gideon and Harper!
Neil Patrick Harris is a new dad. He and partner David Burtka welcomed twins on Tuesday! And the names are Gideon Scott and Harper Grace.
Harper is, of course, the Hollywood it name of the moment – the new Ava. But Gideon is refreshing. Wonder if it will catch on?
Congratulations!
