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Can we talk about the names Cameron Diaz and Benji Madden chose for their children?
Like many high-profile parents, they keep their children’s identities pretty quiet. But they have revealed their names. Firstborn daughter wears the bold, nearly one-of-one name Raddix Chloe Wildflower. The second child, son Cardinal, has a name that feels a little more mainstream, a mix of nature names, colors, and even numbers.
Now they’ve welcomed a second son. His name? Nautas.
I’d say we’re back in Raddix territory.
Dad Benji announced his birth with an explanation of his name: “Sailor, navigator, voyager. One who embarks on a journey and fears not the unknown.”
My reaction?
- For children of celebrities, the weirdest thing about your life is never going to be your unusual name.
- I don’t love the name, but I do appreciate the effort and imagination. Strictly speaking, while the Latin nauticus does refer to ships and sailors, the fearless part is the Madden family’s embroidery. Then again, the Nautilus was both the world’s first submarine and the fictional version from Jules Vernes’ Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea. There’s quite a bit of adventure baked in to the sound.
- Overall, it’s a mash-up of Raddix (invented, with trending sounds) and Cardinal (word name with ties to the natural world).
Their style might not be my style, but there’s no question that they have a strong and independent point-of-view. That’s tremendously appealing.
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ELSEWHERE ONLINE
Kelli’s annual Playground Analysis is the best! She tallies up all the alternate spellings in the new data release and tells us which names we’re actually likely to hear. We all know that Ailany is even more popular than it looks. Same for Jackson. But whoa – Kayson surprised me! And it’s always interesting to look at names like Lily, Lillian, and Liliana. They all rise in the rankings, but combine them? And every other girl is called Lily.
Oh this so sad-sweet, emotiaonl name story from Eventide Pennant Company. Proof that ” … sometimes names carry stories we don’t even mean to write.” I’ve had others tell me that they were drawn to a name only to later discover something new about it. This happened to me with my daughter’s name. After settling on it, I kept finding more and more layers of meaning.
This list of girl names outside the top 1000 with neutral, nickname, nature vibes is absolutely worth a read. Worth noting: some are more popular for boys like Carson and Kai. But I think Pearl and Lark nailed it, and we’ll be hearing more of these names in the future.
UPDATING & THINKING ABOUT
Kelso isn’t a name anyone is (really) using. But it could be.
Summer has become a modern staple for our daughters, and I love the mix of easy, casual energy combined with tailored, surname style.
Briar is one of those fast-rising unisex names defining this moment. A thoroughly 21st century name, just as surely as Mildred and Floyd fit perfectly a century ago.
That’s all for this week. As always, thank you so much for reading and have a great week!
Have you talked about Kate Bosworth’s baby name? I heard she had a girl last year named Katherine Mai.