Strictly speaking, there are no rules in baby naming. But there are some guidelines that I believe in strongly enough to call rules, at least here on Appellation Mountain. And here’s the first: The Middle Matters.
READ MORE >>Bookshelf: Cool Names for Babies, Revised & Updated
If you’re a namenik, you may well recall what baby name books looked like before Pamela Redmond Satran and Linda Rosenkrantz hit the scene: plodding lists in alphabetical order, with descriptions, origins, nicknames and possibly a note about a famous bearer or two. But for the most part, Abelia and Amanda were treated equally. Then […]
READ MORE >>As Seen on TV: Gossip Girls
The writer’s strike may be putting a hitch in the television schedule, but babies need naming every day of the year. And what better naming inspiration than a pair of rich-as-sin, pretty-as-starlets characters on a television drama about privileged teenagers? Serena and Blair, welcome to Appellation Mountain.
READ MORE >>Railway Names
I have a 3 y.o. son, and he is wild about trains. We’ve been careful not to feed him a steady diet of Thomas the Tank Engine – in fact, he’s only recently discovered the other Little Blue Engine That Could. But as I watch the show – over and over and over again – […]
READ MORE >>Spotlight: Fiona
Let’s suppose that you’re expecting a new baby girl in 2008, and you’ve always liked Sophia. But you’ve just learned that Sophia cracked the Top 10 last year, and shows no signs of slowing down. If you call your new little dear by this pretty and meaningful name, she may very well be one of […]
READ MORE >>Stuck in the Middle
Poor Marie. The name hasn’t been in The Top 100 since 1957. But if you check the drivers’ licenses of women around you – in your office, your family or even just waiting at the bus stop – odds are that quite a few of them will have the middle name Marie. The same is […]
READ MORE >>Ava and Harlow: Hollywood Baby Names
Editor’s note: This post was the very first one ever published at Appellation Mountain, on January 23, 2008! It was revised and reposted on January 26, 2012. Nicole Richie and Joel Madden named their new little one Harlow Winter Kate. Their daughter arrived on January 11, 2008, and the name has caused a sensation. She’s […]
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