About Abby Sandel

Whether you're naming a baby, or just all about names, you've come to the right place! Appellation Mountain is a haven for lovers of obscure gems and enduring classics alike.

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What do you think?

11 Comments

  1. Maybe some kids don’t like hearing they’ve been named after a hurricane or storm.

    It doesn’t always have to be a reminder of something bad, it can be a reminder that your kid can be powerful or survive anything!

  2. As someone who lives on the Gulf Coast, I would definitely NOT think it was cool to have a hurricane with my name!! I hate that they ruin good names with these destructive storms… I wish the hurricane namers would pick names that are already terrible and evil, like Adolf, Beelzebub, Rasputin, Saddam, etc.

    1. Ah, Elizabeth – you’re right! I worked for a woman from New Orleans when Katrina hit. I’d have been upset under any circs, but watching her grief and frustration really drove it home.

      But that prompted me to look – Katrina, a fairly common pick for some time, was indeed adversely impacted as a baby name in the aftermath of the storm. In 2005, she ranked #246 – up a few spots from her prior ranking, but at around the same level as years past. By 2006, she’d fell to #381, in ’07 to #603 and ’08 to #717.

      I have a friend from Louisiana – given his wit, I can imagine him naming a daughter Katrina if she were born in the weeks following a storm. But for most of the US, Katrina seems to be off the table – despite having all the hallmarks of a name that would be quite popular in 2009.

  3. Thanks for sharing! The bizarre hurricane/cyclone names were what kept me sane through high school geography (actually, it might have been laughing at my teachers blatant crush on the Channel 10 weatherman, but that’s neither here nor there).
    We’ve also had a Cyclone Larry down here in Australia – unless Larry and Laurence are the same cyclone? Larry stands out to me as being the most inappropriate name of all of them. Actually, most of them are. Hurricane Danny? Cyclone Narelle? I’m just quivering in my boots here…

  4. You know you’re a name nerd if… I mean, really – who else is going to get excited about hurricane names? I had not realized that there was an Atlantic and a Pacific list. I’m more in tune with earthquakes. Thanks for sharing

    1. LOL! You’re absolutely right. It’s a clear sign of a problem. 🙂

  5. You’ve got me looking up hurricanes names now. I remember there being a Hurricane Emily when I was a little girl. (Like photoquilty, I thought it was cool to share my name with a storm.) Anyway, I just looked up “my” hurricane and discovered it actually started on my birthday! How cool is that?

  6. Erika with a K, hm? Interesting. Hurricane Anika. That would beinteresting, too. When the hurricane with my name hit (about 15 years ago) it barely touched up north. It rained for us that day, and I remember thinking it was fun getting rained on by myself. Dumb little girl. 🙂

  7. Wow! I’ve always wondered why they use people names for hurricanes, I guess “it’s easier that way” is the simple answer! I don’t think I’d like to have a hurricane named after me, especially a bad one!

  8. Oh and I wanted to add that Waldo is a family name for me but I just can’t quite embrace him fully….

  9. I’ll place my bet that Joaquin is gonna be a doozy! He sounds a bit sneaky to my ear. 🙂 Thanks for sharing!!