Name Help is a series at Appellation Mountain. Every week, one reader’s name questions will be discussed.
We’re relying on thoughtful comments from the community to help expectant parents narrow down their name decisions. Thank you in advance for sharing your insight!
Jaclyn writes:
We have a baby on the way and are looking for names to pair well with our son, whose name is Ember Rio.
Our last name begins with a Z, and our preference is to stick with nature names.
Thanks!
Please read on for my response, and leave your helpful suggestions in the comments.
Dear Jaclyn –
Ember Rio is a great name for a son! It clearly nods to the natural world, but it sounds like a first and middle, not two word names.
I’ll start with a name list, and then see if we can mix and match some great combinations.
Nature Names for Boys: Animals
Parents have embraced animal names like Bear, Wolf, and Hawk in recent years. I think the one with the most potential is Fox. Thanks to names like Felix and Max, Fox feels more like a name than some of these – even though Wolf has history galore. It’s also just entered the current Top 1000, which makes it just slightly familiar.
Nature Names for Boys: Rugged Terrain
Names like Canyon and Ridge possess a certain rugged, outdoorsy quality. I particularly like Ridge. It’s just inside the current US Top 1000, but it feels distinctive. Like Ember, it’s obviously borrowed from the natural world, but it feels less obvious than, say, Hawk.
Nature Names for Boys: Water
Ocean, Bay, and Lake all come to mind, but I wonder if they’re too close to River? Harbor, Shelter, and Cove also feel very wearable.
Nature Names for Boys: Green and Growing
We tend to leave botanical names for the girls, and that’s a mistake. There’s Hawthorn, Sage, Alder, Elm, Birch, Grove, Branch, Forrest/Forest, Oak, and a handful of other options that wear well for boys. I really like Hawthorn with Ember.
The Scandinavian name Leif is often pronounced Leaf in the US. That might make either spelling an option.
Nature Name for Boys: Sky
Night sky names appear throughout the list of popular girl names. There’s Luna and Stella, along with many a rarity. While fewer night sky names come to mind for boys, there are a few. The constellation Orion sounds very much like a brother for Ember. Cielo is the Spanish word for sky – and also heaven – making it an interesting brother name for Rio.
Nature Names for Boys: Kinda Sorta
Would you consider a place name that evokes a rugged, outdoorsy feel, like Colorado? Mountain name Everest has also seen some use. I really like Journey, especially in the middle spot, with Ember Rio, too – while it’s not quite a nature name, it has a similar vibe. An ever rarer possibility with a related meaning might be Quest.
Kodiak is an island in Alaska, as well as the name of a bear native to the region.
Ari means eagle in Norse and lion in Hebrew. Would that appeal?
Calder reminds me of caldera, as in the craters at the top of volcanos. Too much of a stretch?
Combinations
One of the challenges is finding something that pairs well, without sounding too much like a sentence.
- Hawthorn Bay
- Fox Hawthorn
- Ridge Cielo
- Alder Sage
- Forest Sage
- Kodiak Orion
- Fox Orion
- Quest Kodiak
- Leif Orion/Leaf Orion
- Leif Kodiak/Leaf Kodiak
- Ari Everest
I keep coming back to Fox Hawthorn and Ari Everest, but I love so many names on this list.
Readers, it’s your turn. What nature-inspired name would you name a brother for Ember Rio?
How about Aster Ren. It is equally charming for male or female. Aster means Star which connects to Ember and Ren means water lily or lotus which is not only a flower, but is water related and begins with an R like Rio.
From the suggestions I love Ridge and Hawthorn. Going from the sky/space names… what about Cosmo? I looove the idea of brothers named Ember and Cosmo. I think my favorite option would be Cosmo Ridge. Ember Rio and Cosmo Ridge; Ember and Cosmo. Plus the shared R middle names might be a sweet connection. (Also, if they’re into nicknames, I really like the nn Moe.)
Other names I like with Cosmo – Cosmo Birch, Cosmo Dune, Cosmo Phoenix, Cosmo Ranger, Cosmo Wren, Cosmo Hudson, Cosmo Beckett, and Cosmo Fern (I like this one a lot – the sound of it is great to my ears, and I like the balance of each boy having unisex names that seem to be used more often for girls – Ember and Fern). I like the sound of both Cosmo Ash and Cosmo Blaze, but the downside is that they could sound like nouns rather than names. Cosmo Frost is another.
Other ideas – August, Robin, Hue, Lark, Gale, Hayes, Spruce, Blaze, Haven, Moss, and Jay (as in blue jays…)
August Ridge: Ember and August; Ember Rio and August Ridge.
August Stone: Ember and August; Ember Rio and August Stone.
August Ash: Ember and August; Ember Rio and August Ash.
Gale Augustus: Ember and Gale; Ember Rio and Gale Augustus.
Hawthorn Gale: Ember and Hawthorn; Ember Rio and Hawthorn Gale.
Gale Hudson: Ember and Gale; Ember Rio and Gale Hudson.
Robin Ridge: Ember and Robin; Ember Rio and Robin Ridge.
Robin Bay: Ember and Robin; Ember Rio and Robin Bay.
Robin Orion: Ember and Robin; Ember Rio and Robin Orion.
Robin Gale: Ember and Robin; Ember Rio and Robin Gale.
Hue Hawthorne: Ember and Hue; Ember Rio and Hue Hawthorne.
Orion Hue: Ember and Orion; Ember Rio and Orion Hue.
Hue Everest: Ember and Hue; Ember Rio and Hue Everest.
Jay Alder: Ember and Jay; Ember Rio and Jay Alder.
Cosmo Moss: Ember and Cosmo; Ember Rio and Cosmo Moss.
Haven Ridge: Ember and Haven; Ember Rio and Haven Ridge.
Spruce Hawthorn: Ember and Spruce; Ember Rio and Spruce Hawthorn.
Hayes Orion: Ember and Hayes; Ember Rio and Hayes Orion.
Jay Hudson: Ember and Jay; Ember Rio and Jay Hudson.
Hayes Hawthorn: Ember and Hayes; Ember Rio and Hayes Hawthorn.
Haven Colorado: Ember and Colorado; Ember Rio and Haven Colorado.
Ari Oak: Ember and Ari; Ember Rio and Oak Ari.
Moss Hawthorn: Ember and Moss; Ember Rio and Moss Hawthorn.
Everest Hayes: Ember and Everest; Ember Rio and Everest Hayes.
Gale Hudson: Ember and Gale; Ember Rio and Gale Hudson.
Haven Oak: Ember and Haven; Ember Rio and Haven Oak.
Ari Moss: Ember and Ari; Ember Rio and Ari Moss.
Lark Ridge: Ember and Lark; Ember Rio and Lark Ridge.
Gale Canyon: Ember and Gale; Ember Rio and Gale Canyon.
Forest Lark: Ember and Forest; Ember Rio and Forest Lark.
Everest Oak: Ember and Everest; Ember Rio and Everest Oak.
August Blaze: Ember and August; Ember Rio and August Blaze.
Spruce Calder: Ember and Spruce; Ember Rio and Spruce Calder.
Blaze Hawthorn: Ember and Blaze; Ember Rio and Blaze Hawthorn.
Everest Gale: Ember and Everest; Ember Rio and Everest Gale.
Welp this is too much fun so I think I better cut off my novella here before it turns into a full-fledged novel. 😉
How about Arrow? It’s very close to Aaron. Ember and Arrow.
And for a little lady:
Fira could work for a girl… it has a connection with Ember. Mira and Kira are familiar, so Fira wouldn’t seem unknown. Fira Brook would be a feminine equivalent of Ember Rio.
Fira Selene would give the meaning of “Fire Moon”.
Zephyrine has a warm breeze to her.
Eartha is a rich, glamorous moniker.
Oceane has the romance of the water.
Best wishes!
If I was Ember Rio’s mother– or more appropriately, grandmother– I think I would put forth Auran Sky. So you would have something like ‘Glowing River’ (Ember Rio) and ‘Golden Sky’ (Auran Sky). You could also try Auran Cielo which parallels the pattern you have with Ember Rio.
Maybe Parker Wolf.
Spruce is a lot like Bruce… so it seems wearable. And something like Felix would be Helix.
How about that combo? Ember Rio and Spruce Helix.
That’d be my vote for another gentleman. 🙂
Have to think about a little lady.
Jasper or Zephyr Cove–they would share the -er ending and aquatic middle names. Orion sounds great with Ember though, and Alden is a handsome name.
Ridge Cielo is my clear favorite. Kai and Koa are on my Names I Love list, but I like the solid noun to go along with Ember.
Tamarack (or Larch for that matter), Frost, Tundra, Cairn
If you ever have a girl, I quite fancy Samara which means, among other things, the wing structure on certain seeds most notably maples.
I have fictional twin brothers named Sage Rio and Kale Mar. Seeing Ember Rio made me think of them, and Mar as a possible middle name. As for a first name, I personally love the names Canyon and Hawthorn. Hawthorn Mar seems cool and naturey without feeling like a word name. I do also agree with others that Orion and Ember to work exceptionally well as a sibset without seeming like you are trying to be all matchy matchy. Orion Mar could work as a little brother’s name to Ember Rio