By the time you read this, I’ll be home. But I’m writing this from the middle of the Magic, in Disney World. It’s been ages since we’ve been here. (Or much of anywhere really.)
But here we are. Or were. And I forgot how much I love Disney World #namespotting.
Kids wear their names on ears and personalized tees. Cast members’ name tags are easy to ready. And the parks are dotted with names for dozens of other reasons, too.
But here’s the trend that leapt out at me most clearly: double names.
It’s a challenging topic, because double names themselves can create headaches. Do you smoosh, hyphen, or just use a first and a middle together consistently?
There’s no obvious answer, and in the US, different states handle things differently. But I hear more and more parents making the choice, and with slightly less expected names. My two favorite finds of the week? Leighton Ruth and Hanna Zoe. They’re not exactly what you’d ever expect to hear as double names – not Lily Mae or Anna Rose – but they work beautifully, don’t they?
Now excuse me while I go shake the pixie dust out of my suitcase. While I’m doing that …
ELSEWHERE ONLINE:
Some great finds on these lists of rare names for girls and boys at Nameberry. I’ve written about many of them over the years, and it’s surprising how often my train of thought is the same. It starts: okay, this name is kind of crazy-bananas, but let’s see what I can learn about it. And ends with: wait, this name is justsoGOOD! Why isn’t everyone using it?!
I adore the name Clarity. So how ’bout … Integrity? Laura has the scoop on novelties ending with -ty, and why they may be here to stay.
So interesting to see Delphina Moon’s take on popular names! Especially ones like Madison. I can remember when no one was named Madison (or Mackenzie or Taylor), but since she’s writing from a younger perspective, she hears the names differently. It’s a good reminder to me that I’m not necessarily hearing the full story on names like Linda or Barbara, either. Our generation colors our perspective – and that’s not necessarily a bad thing, just a reality to acknowledge.
Speaking of popular, it looks like parents might be more likely to choose one-syllable names for boys than girls – at least based on Nancy’s lists. Some of that’s driven by evergreen classics like John and Luke. But I think it’s more than that. I’ve spotted LOTS of boys named Zane, Kai, Cole, and Reid this week, but many fewer girls with equally brief names. It’s like we’re all naming Ninjago characters.
There’s a paywall on this one, but if you’re a New York Times reader, this interview with Nameberry’s Pam is worth a review. She talks our love of the letter L, the push-pull between Lucifer and Saint, and more naming trends.
Can’t wait another week for all sorts of name chatter? Sign up for the weekly newsletter here, and find more naming thoughts delivered to your inbox every Tuesday:
That’s all for this week! As always, thank you for reading – thinking of you!
