Tag Archives: Matteo

Baby Name of the Day: Matteo

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M

M by Mary Hockenbery via Flickr

Matthew was a Top Ten staple from 1974 through 2007, a Biblical boy with a long history of use.

Today parents are borrowing the Italian form for a name that’s fresher and more interesting, but every bit as enduring.  Our Baby Name of the Day is Matteo.

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Baby Name of the Day: Luca

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Boys playing music, illustration of Psalm 150 ...

Boys playing music, by Luca Della Robbia; Image via Wikipedia

Despite his -a ending, he’s a 21st century sensation for boys.

Thanks to Jenna for suggesting Luca as our Baby Name of the Day.

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Sunday Summary: 3/27/11

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27 by Cappellmeister via Flickr

First, I’m incredibly excited to see who wins March Madness!  Thanks to everyone who voted so far, and if you have not, please remember to weigh in: Boys’ Final and Girls’ Final.

I thoroughly enjoyed compiling Rock’n'Roll Baby Names for Nameberry last week.  This week’s list is equally edgy.  Here’s a hint: Buffy is on the list.

Elsewhere:

  • I haven’t seen Just Go With It, but I’m fascinated by the names.  Nicole Kidman plays a not-so-nice character called Devlin.  Brooklyn Decker plays a girl named Palmer.  The 2011 film is based on a 1969 movie, which was based on an American adaptation of a French play.  Up until now, Palmer’s character called was Toni.  I’ve no idea why they opted for such an unconventional choice in the remake;
  • Swistle posted a reader question about the name Story.  Comments suggested Astoria as a formal name.  I’m torn – Astoria is an undeniably pretty sound, but have you been to Queens?  Then again, a less-than-idyllic setting hasn’t hurt Brooklyn;
  • Which leads us to Nancy’s note about baby boys named Travolta.  More than you’d think, less than you’d fear;
  • From Nomes e mais nomes: which do you prefer Carolina or Catarina?  It’s the kind of question that makes me want to say “twins!”
  • Step into the Wayback Machine.  In 2009, the featured name was Lana.  Last year, it was Orla;
  • I always enjoy her birth announcements, but this one really surprised me: For Real spotted an unusual combination, which just happens to be my cousin’s name;
  • She also spotted Jaxlen McCade, Riggen Joseph, Brawk David, and Dash Ayden.  Oh, and a Dollie Michelle.  I adore Dolly as a nickname for Dorothy, but I think it would be tough to answer to Dolly at 25.

On to Hollywood.  There’s been much chatter over Rachel Zoe’s new son’s name, Skyler Morrison.  It’s not the stylish choice I would have expected, but what really stunned me was a comment in New York Magazine.  The writer congratulated Rachel & Rodger on their healthy baby boy and “also for naming him normally. Baby names shouldn’t be trends.”

I’ll be curious to hear Rachel’s explanation for choosing the name.  Maybe she’ll have the kind of backstory that makes me regret every snarky thought I’ve had about her choice.

In other starbaby news:

  • The conversation of the week should really be this: How did Luca and Matteo become the sibset of moment?  Top Chef’s top chef Tom Colicchio and wife Lori welcomed a son, Mateo Lev.  Mateo joins big brothers Luka Bodhi and Dante at home.  Impeccable Italian heritage picks, right?  Masculine without going overboard, classic but not plain.  Last month, E’s Kristin Dos Santos welcomed a son, Matteo Tomaz, a little brother for Luca Alexander.  And Colin Firth and his wife Livia Guiggioli are parents to Luca and Mateo, too;
  • TLC’s Design Star Vern Yip welcomed a daughter, Vera Lillian Beatrix.  He and partner Craig Koch are also parents to son Gavin Joshua Mannox;
  • Quarterback Eli Manning is a first-time dad.  He and wife Abby welcomed a daughter, Ava Frances.

If you’re looking for more talk of celebrity births and general name talk, check out my Facebook page.

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

Sunday Summary: 2/27/11

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#27 by DJ Dwayne via Flickr

I’m a television addict under the best of circumstances.  But when I’m under the weather?  I’m incorrigible.  The TV stays on 24/7.  I’ve just recovered from the sickest I’ve been in years, and here are my hastily scribbled notes from a few days’ with the remote in one hand and Puffs-plus in the other:

  • A sibset from one of those bringing-home-baby shows: Genesis, Marlena, Tina, Justin, and the family’s newest addition: Paris Angelina, because it was a “classy” name.  They seemed like a nice couple, but maybe not the most thoughtful of babynamers.
  • I watched a healthy chunk of the Haylie & Hilary Duff vehicle Material Girls, where the real-life sisters play characters with a passing resemblance to real-life sisters Paris and Nicky Hilton.  Should I admit this? Anyway, their characters were named Ava and Tanzie Marchetta.
  • Then there was a predictable-but-sweet Julia Stiles movie, Carolina.  Julia plays Carolina, big sis to Georgia and Maine.  All three sisters were named after the states where they were born – “postmarks” as Carolina tells it.  During the flick, Georgia has a son she names California Theodore;
  • At rock bottom, I watched several episodes of Toddlers & Tiaras.  A pageant-obsessed mom to an uncooperative 18 month-old said she had considered naming her daughter America, so she’d be Miss America.  Instead, they went with Samijo.

Elsewhere online:

  • I’m thoroughly enjoying Nancy’s series on Hollywood Baby Names, like her post on Kiefer;
  • ForReal spotted a boy named Vale Joseph.  I’m very curious about the -ale names.  I mentioned Vail here last year, inspired by Young and the Restless actress Vail Bloom.  It didn’t get a great response for a girl.  Is it any better on a boy?
  • This gallery of celebrity-inspired baby names was fun.  Bowen and Bardot, anyone?
  • Ooh, look … Nameberry mentioned Nona!
  • And a Swistle reader named her daughter Cleo Celine, a little sister for Meryl and Quentin;
  • Nomes e mais nomes mentioned the lovely Cleodora on a list of mythological names – but it isn’t approved for use in Portugal.  Too bad!
  • Here’s a story from Texas about a couple with two kids – Evonne, called Evie, and Cohen, plus baby-on-the-way Cate Elizabeth.  The names are unsurprising, but it’s that last paragraph that really bugs me: how many parents really “agree on a theme, such as modern or spiritual” then “each make a list of their favorite names, then compare …”  Um, okay.  If I’d asked my husband to define his baby naming style, I can guarantee I’d have been met with a blank stare.  Has that approach worked for anyone?
  • By now I’m sure you’ve read reports about babies in frontier states having more unusual names. There’s something to their findings, I suppose, but I’m not sure they’ve got the whole picture. Statistics also show that moms living in the Northeast are, on average, several years older when they have their first child.  Experience tells me that older parents tend to choose more conservative names, and they’re far less likely to use off-the-wall spellings.  Their findings on names might be correct, but their assumption that frontier states’ individualistic cultures are the reason … not necessarily so.

It was a quiet week in Hollywood, but there was one notable new arrival: E’s Kristin Dos Santos welcomed a son, Matteo Tomaz, a little brother for Luca Alexander.  As Pam pointed out, those Mateo and Luca are also the names of Colin Firth’s two sons with Livia Giuggioli.

Tomorrow at Nameberry, I’m bringing you NASCAR-inspired baby names.  There are more than you think.

Be sure to visit next Saturday, when we’ll kick off March madness.  I’ll have a post up explaining the play-off process later this week.

As always, thanks for stopping by!

Baby Name of the Day: Orlando

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With a rich legendary and literary past, it would be a mistake to give this one over to the Mouse.

Thanks to Jane for suggesting Orlando as Baby Name of the Day.

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Baby Name of the Day: Amedeo

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He’s an artistic, even flamboyant choice with a fashionable -eo ending.

Thanks to Meredith for suggesting Amedeo as Baby Name of the Day.

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In Reserve: Possible Names for a Second Son

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Even before the pregnancy test came back positive, I had a strong sense that our second child was a girl.

Intuition didn’t stop me from discussing boys’ names with Arthur.  So much that he finally insisted that we wait until the ultrasound, at which point it was moot.  Claire Caroline Wren – Clio – was on her way.

Our firstborn is Alexander Arthur, after my father-in-law Alexander, my grandfather Arthur and, of course, Arthur.  There just wasn’t a clear choice for a second boys’ name.  Plus, I always feel like we flubbed his nickname – though he wears Aly fine.  Our list for a second daughter is well thought out, but a boy?

We would have figured something out.  I think.

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Name of the Day: Juliet

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She’s a doomed romantic teenager, an eternal reminder that teenagers fall in love hard.

Thanks to Melissa for suggesting Juliet as Name of the Day.

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Sunday Summary: 10/18/09

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First, congratulations to reader Photoqulity for a successful showing of her work Fuzzhead by DP at the Newport News Fall Festival of Folklife.  Her bibs rock!

Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming.

True fact: I can recite the original text of Where the Wild Things Are.  From memory.  (And yet I regularly forget my PIN number.  Go figure.)  

Parlor tricks aside, it sounds like Spike Jonze has managed to turn Maurice Sendak’s beloved classic into an appealing children’s movie.  Best of all?  He got to name the monsters! Fritinancy linked to an interview with Jonze and Sendak about christening the five Carol (male), Alexander, Ira, Judith and Douglas.   But we all know that the name to get the biggest boost from this flick is probably the already popular Max – he of the wolf-suit, who could soar in the 2010 rankings.

Speaking of heights, unless you were under a rock, surely you caught the not-flight of Falcon, the boy who ran up a bill with NORAD in a balloon built by his daredevil Dad.   (Except not.  It turned out Falcon was on terra firma the whole time.)  No, you’re not imagining it, either – Daphne du Maurier penned an all-but-forgotten novel titled The Flight of the Falcon back in 1965 – but her main characters were Aldo and Armino.  Falcon has brothers named Bradford and Ryo, and the whole family recently featured on an episode of Wife Swap.

While we’re talking television:

  • On FOX’s high school musical Glee, quarterback Finn suggested a baby name to cheerleader Quinn: Drizzle.  Quinn was not impressed;
  • On the baby shower episode of 18 Kids and Counting, grandma-elect Michelle fixed Mackynzie’s name on the sheet cake after the bakery biffed the spelling.  The first, I’ll bet of many such incidents.

In real life, non-reality-TV baby  names:

  • Bewildertrix wrote about the Boo phenom.  I have yet to spot it in the US, but apparently there’s an epidemic of girls with names like Daisy Boo elsewhere in the English speaking world.  And she spotted a Kherington – as in Fame!  Of course, hers was a middle name – Brooke Kherington;
  • In News from the North, parentcentral.ca reports on a new baby named Briese Lively.  The first name is a friend’s surname, pronounced Breeze.  I can’t help think that Briese would’ve benefitted from a more restrained pick in the middle spot;
  • From Canada to Russia, with love … Nancy posted about the most popular names in Vladivostok, Russia, where the As have it – Anastasia, Alexandra, Anna, Alexander and Artem share the top spots, along with Vladislav  - can you imagine being Vladislav from Vladivostok;
  • Speaking of global names, Laura Wattenberg posted on the Global Hit Name You Haven’t Noticed - Matthew.  And Matteo, Matthias, Mate, Mathieu …

A few other notes:

  • Actress Nia Long’s son (he’s eight) is called Massai Zhivago.  Call me crazy, but I love it;
  • Real World alum Rachel Campos-Duffy (back from Season Three, San Francisco, when we were all watching) grew up and became an occasional guest host of The View, the political conservative they call on when their regular reality-star-alum/political conservative isn’t available.  I might not agree with her, but I like the names she and husband Sean picked – and they’ve had a lot of practice.  Baby #6 is on the way – the first five are Eva Pilar, Xavier Jack, Lucia-Belen, John-Paul and Paloma Pilar;
  • Now that’s how to name twins! Arrested Development actor Jeffrey Tambor and wife Kasia have welcomed Hugo Bernard and Eli Nicholas, little brothers for Eve Julia and Gabriel Kasper.  Then again, dad has plenty of experience.  He’s 65;
  • SNL’s Bill Hader and wife welcomed daughter Hannah Kathryn.

But the big starbaby news of the week is the arrival of Lou Sulola.  Check out Nameberry’s Pamela Redmond Satran’s slideshow up at The Daily Beast, listing the many celeb babies given names that range from gender-neutral to gender-bending.

And lastly, I’m headed to New Orleans for a friend’s wedding this weekend.  The Names of the Day posts will continue as planned, but if I do post a Sunday Summary, it will be brief!

Sunday Summary: 4/12/09

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Happy Easter!  Thanks for putting down that chocolate rabbit long enough to visit. 
  • I recently heard a writer named Ethlebert Miller read at the local indie bookstore;
  • Nameberry had a great post on Easter Names.  I’m intrigued by Parasha and Birch.  And I went to high school with a Pascal.  (Or was it Pascale?  Or Pasquale?)
  • The Toronto Star column I mentioned last week spotlighted a baby called Dante Matteo this week – which reminded me …
  • This week’s post on Elliot had me thinking of Christopher Meloni, father to Dante Amadeo and Sophia Eva Pietra.  I quite like his naming style;
  • Emmy Jo’s article on Naming Ahead of the Curve was quite interesting.  The idea of choosing a name like Cynthia or Shirley, Dennis or Raymond might seem unfashionable.  But if your goal is to stand out while still using a “normal” name, it’s a great approach;
  • Actress Penelope Ann Miller welcomed Maria Adela, little sister to Eloisa May;
  • Iron Chef Cat Cora and her partner Jennifer welcomed Thatcher Julius, little brother to Zoran and Caje.  I must admit, I’m not wild about their first two sons’ names, but I love this one.  Julius is a family name on Jennifer’s side.  Thatcher is coming up as a Name of the Day on 4/15 in honor of readers Nick and Erin’s son Thacher.  And get this – the Cora family is expecting one more baby this summer.  Jennifer delivered Thatcher; Cat is also pregnant with a baby boy!
  • Speaking of boys, there was an adorable toddler called Finn at our Easter Egg hunt yesterday.  I really think he’s the new Max;
  • Yesterday, I tuned into ABC Family for their showing of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, in an attempt to introduce Alexei to anything other than Thomas the Tank Engine and Pixar’s Cars.  It didn’t take.  But I was reminded that the little girl in the story is called Jemima.

I wrote a few weeks back that I’m scaling back Name of the Day posts to Monday through Friday.  I’ll actually write daily through May 8th.  That’s because my first Name of the Day post was on May 5, 2008.  (The name was Juniper!)  So I’ll have written for more than 365 days straight.  Which, I dunno – I’m kind of impressed with myself.  :)

Anyhow, I’m planning to use the extra time to improve the site.  It could use a little oomph!