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.

Between the seventh and thirteenth centuries, a quartet of popes used the name Honorius.  There were also two saints, a Roman emperor, and possibly a medieval magician, too.

Honorius shares his roots with the Latin honorem, the source of our word honor.  Variant Annora surfaces in the Middle Ages:

• Annora of Saint-Valéry married Robert III of Dreux in the 1100s.  Her name is also given as Aenor, which links the name to Eleanor and suggests that more that one name might’ve contributed to Annora;
• Maud de Braose, Lady of La Haie and an heiress in her own right, married a powerful baron and defended their lands.  She also incurred the wrath of King John and paid with her life.  Among her sixteen children were daughters called Flandrina, Loretta, and Annora, who entered religious life;
• In the thirteenth century the Scottish Earl of Buchan gave the name to his fifth daughter and youngest child, though the girls’ names are listed inconsistently.  Elizabeth is also Elizabetha, Emma is sometimes Agnes, and Annora appears as Margaret, too.  I’m not sure if that’s due to inconsistent recordings, or a difference between their baptismal names and those used in daily life;
• But the real story of Annora’s endurance has to do with the Pierrepont family.  Sir Henry Pierrepont’s ancestors were part of the Norman invasion.  Henry married Annora de Manvers, heiress to Holme, a town near Nottingham, England, in 1281.  Holme Pierrepont has been the village’s name ever since, and you can still visit the family’s ancestral home, pictured above.

In fact, the Pierreponts should get credit for preserving Annora:

• In the early nineteenth century the 2nd Earl Manvers named his daughter Annora Charlotte.  She married Charles William-Wynn;
• In 1853, the 3rd Earl – Annora’s brother – named his daughter Emily Annora Charlotte;
• Maud Annora Williams-Wynn married Lord Harvey of Tasburgh in 1920.  I’m not positive of the connection, but there’s that name again, still standing, just like Holme Pierrepont.

Honora and Honoria are also in use.  Honoria has a particularly distinguished history, from Ancient Rome to the novels of Charles Dickens and PG Wodehouse.  Annora could succeed because she fits with so many trends:

• She’s a virtue name, as gentle as the Top 20 Grace, but distinctive without venturing into the new-agey vibe of choices like Serenity;
• There’s always a place for Ann names.  Hannah and Brianna had their day. Annabelle, Anneliese, and frilly Lilianna are current now.  Annora can even feel like an elaboration of Anna;
• Nora has made a comeback, but some parents are debating if Eleanor is the right formal name, or if Nora can stand alone.  Annora is a nice compromise; it is also a smoosh of Ann and Nora, if you’re trying to honor two grandmothers;
• Lastly, let’s not forget impact of starbaby Honor – she and daddy Cash with their trend-setting noun names could prompt more parents to flip to Annora in their baby name book.

But mostly, Annora remains undiscovered.  That’s good news if you’re looking for something a little bit different that your daughter won’t have to share, something traditional that isn’t common.  She could also serve as culture-spanning choice – remember the Arabic Noor?  Anura is a variant form.

With nicknames from the cute Annie to the elegant Nora, her medieval pedigree, and a great, undisputed meaning, Annora makes for that most elusive of finds: a truly wearable rarity.

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.

Like many an Irish choice, Grainne’s pronunciation is not obvious.  She looks an awful lot like the English word grain, and probably comes from the Gaelic  word for grain, grán.    But her pronunciation sounds like GRAWN yeh;  you can listen here.

The original Grainne may have started out as a goddess, something along the lines of Ceres or Demeter.  But the stories give us a princess, the daughter of Cormac, a High King of Ireland.  Her tale goes like this: she’s engaged marry Finn McCool, but she’s in love with Diarmaid, a warrior in Finn’s army.  Finn’s much older than Grainne, but Diarmaid is closer to her age.  Diarmaid returns Grainne’s affections, but is reluctant to betray his commanding officer.

Grainne puts a spell on Diarmaid, and the pair run off.  For a while, they live happily ever after, raising a family together.  Despite the intervening years, Finn eventually takes his revenge, declining to get help for Diarmaid after he’s been injured in an accident.

But the Grainne that really gives her name bite is sixteenth century Grainne O’Malley, sometimes called Grace.  Her dad was chief of Clan O’Malley, and the O’Malleys were a sea-faring.  It’s said that Grainne stowed away on one of her father’s ships headed into battle, and matched wits with Queen Elizabeth I in negotiations.  Some of her power was inherited from dad, but she was still an extraordinary woman, battle-tested and bold.

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.

The pair of starbabies named Ever has caused quite a bit of chatter online, but Ever has a long history in Hollywood.  Actor Robert Carradine gave the name to his daughter back in 1974.  His Ever is all grown up, and a mom herself, to daughter Chaplin.

The question, of course, is wherever did the parents find Ever?

Milla said it was a Scottish boys’ name, so I went searching for her source.  Scottish Gaelic has given us some names – Donald, for one.  There’s also Scots, a Germanic language, ancestor to Broad Scots and Scottish English, which was why it took you three attempts to understand the dialogue in Trainspotting.  Neither turned up an obvious source for Ever.

A few other options emerged:

• The Gaelic Eimhear or Emer appears in myth as the accomplished wife of Cu Chulainn.  The name might relate to eimh – swift – but the modern pronunciation is generally given as ee MER;
• The surname Everly is often linked to the Old English eofor - wild boar;
• Our word meaning always comes from the Old English æfre.

Then there’s the Biblical Eber, Heber, or Éver.  The Old Testament tells us he’s the descendant of Noah through his son Shem.  Eber is the ancestor of the Israelites.  Some even given him credit for Hebrew.  The story goes like this: his family refused to help build the Tower of Babel, and so their language remained uncorrupted; Hebrew comes from his given name.  Or maybe not – there’s a lively debate on the issue.  Eber’s original meaning is also unclear, though most sources connect him to a word that means beyond.

While never in the Top 1000, Ever appears in US Census records as a given name; at a glance, I’d say it was slightly more common for women than men.  But there’s nothing that suggests all of those Evers shared the same background.

Despite mama Milla’s claims and a handful of possible sources, I’d venture to say that most parents choosing Ever today would also have options like Journey and River on their short lists.  In fact, Ever may be appearing on more and more parents’ radar.  Besides the high profile births, consider:

• Word names are big, from old school choices like Grace to modern inventions like Cannon;
• Ever’s v sound is very, very popular, from Ava to Evan;
• Ever fits with those vaguely spiritual choices – think of Haven and Bodhi;
• Word names tend to be gender neutral, and Ever is no exception.

Of course, Ever can also be elaborated: Twilight’s Cam Gigandet has an Everleigh and musician Anthony Kiedis has an Everly Bear.  In case you’re considering this one, note that the ends in -ly version does double duty.  That’s Miss Everleigh Gigandet, and little Mister Everly Kiedis.

Something tells me we’ll be hearing much more of this one, probably for boys and girls.  But whether the name will be as enduring as its meaning, well – time will tell.

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!

Image via Wikipedia

Temperance appears steadily in the US Census records, but never in the US Top 1000.  But the virtue figures even larger in American history.  Back in 1874, a handful of reform-minded women formed the Women’s Christian Temperance Union in Cleveland, Ohio.  The group wasn’t exactly after a complete ban on booze, at least not early days.  But the group’s membership varied widely.  Some chapters did, indeed, march into saloons singing hymns.  Others were more interested in social work, aiding new immigrants and working on a wide range of causes.  They’re still around, too.

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.

Miracle has an over-the-top quality shared by names like Nevaeh and Unique.  You can imagine why parents choose such names, but they still feel extreme.

Mirabelle shares Miracle’s roots – they both come from the Latin mirabilis.  But she has a very different vibe.  Mirabelle fits in with many a current trend, especially parents’ affection for 2009′s #1 Isabella, as well as Annabelle and Gabrielle. Many a -belle and -elle name has surfaced on message boards in the past few years.

Mirabelle also sounds like a vintage revival, and she is – but not from the nineteenth century.  She’s never appeared in the US Top 1000, and her closest cousin – Maribel – first appeared in 1961.

Instead, Mirabelle and company first appear in the Middle Ages.  You’ll hear that Mirabelle was used for men, too – it is perfectly possible, but the only one I can find is a character in the popular seventeenth century comedy, The Wild Goose Chase.  I did find a male Mirabeau – he was president of Texas in the 1830s.  There are oodles of mirabilis-inspired names, though, from the full-on Mirabilis to the vaguely masculine Mirable to the frilly Maribella and Mirabella.  Some are place names or surnames, while others occupy the first spot.

The Crusaders might have brought this name into fashion.  They used Mirabel for the name of a palace in what is today Israel, built in the mid-1100s.  Names like Basil and Jordan caught on in the English-speaking world thanks to their travels.

There’s a second stronghold answering to the name.  Chances are you’ve seen Salzburg’s Mirabell Palace – maybe not in person, but as of the locations for the movie The Sound of Music.

Other references to the name include:

• In Gone, Baby, Gone, the little lost girl’s doll was called Mirabelle.  It seems trivial, but turns out to be a major plot point;
• In the 1990s, Mirabella was a woman’s magazine, created by Vogue alum Grace Mirabella;
• There’s a minor Hobbit by the name;
• Enid Blyton’s St. Clare’s series included a character named Mirabel, a friend for twin sisters Patricia and Isabel.

Mirabelle could also serve as a sister for Clementine, thanks to the mirabelle plum.  That’s a blossom in the picture above.

There’s every reason in the world for Mirabelle to catch on, but happily, so far she remains relatively undiscovered.  Maribel, at #952 in 2009, is also uncommon.

If you love the idea of a name that ends in -belle, but would rather your daughter doesn’t have to share, Mirabelle and company are names to consider.  Their meaning can’t be beat, and the history is intriguing.

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!

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

There aren’t a ton of virtue name options for boys, but Truman could be the brother of Grace or Faith.

The Old English triewe became the Middle English trewe, evolving into our word true by the sixteenth century.  There’s speculation that the word relates to the Old Celtic root for an oak tree – dru.  Apparently, Anglo-Saxon used one word to refer to both trees and truth, implying that a Truman is one as steadfast as an oak.

That might be a bit of a poetic stretch, but it is a nice idea.  Truman may have been in sparing use in Medieval England, either as a nickname or a given name.  We can certainly find similar names containing the -trum element, as well as -trud and -trun.  But he mostly appears as a surname in more recent history.

But Truman also ranked in the US Top 1000 every year from 1880 into the 1950s.  History gives us figures like former Secretary of the Navy and Senator from Michigan, Truman Newberry.  He was named after his grandfather, a Cleveland banker called Truman Handy.

When FDR died in office, Harry S. Truman became President of the United States.  The year was 1945, and Truman rocketed to the #248 spot in the US, his most popular ranking ever.

Then came Truman Capote.  Born in 1924, when the name was not uncommon, he became famous as the author of novels like Breakfast at Tiffany’s, as well as the sensational true crime account In Cold Blood.

Despite the author’s fame, Truman fell out of favor as a given name.  He hung on to the fringes in the 1960s and 70s, but by the 1980s was almost entirely out of use.

The one place Truman lingered was the funny pages.  In Motley’s Crue, parents Mabel and Mike had a son called Truman.

Then came 1998′s The Truman Show.  Two years before Survivor, but six years after The Real World,  the movie’s premise was simple: a corporation adopted a baby and filmed his entire life.  His world was a soundstage, his loved ones were actors.  Jim Carrey played the all-grown-up Truman Burbank who would finally discover that his life … wasn’t.  Truman was the obvious name for the character, but it seemed an unlikely inspiration for parents.

In 2004, 2006, and 2007, Truman reappeared at the outer edges of the US Top 1000.  Besides the lingering effect of the movie, there was also:

• Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson’s youngest child is Truman Theodore, born in 1995;
• From 1998 to 2006, hit sitcom Will & Grace featured the likable character Will Truman.

Truman fits with the tenor of the times.  He’s virtuous and vintage, and yet his surname status makes him feel like a new discovery.  Truman sounds at home on the playground with Jackson and Tyler.  And that two-syllable ends-in-n construction has been so dominant for boys that Truman might appeal to parents seeking something original, but fearing that many possible choices will migrate to the girls.

With his appealing meaning and style credentials, it is easy to imagine Truman catching on.

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!

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!