Sunday Summary: That Ship Has Sailed …

Here’s a frustration I hear all. the. time. Parents work hard to find a name that feels uncommon, only to discover that it has risen in use.

Sometimes “risen” means it breaks into the Top 1000 a dozen years after their child’s birth. But other times? There’s a pop culture sensation that pushes your rare gem into the spotlight: a high-profile celebrity baby, overnight sensation pop singer, a character on the television series everyone is watching.

So this article (thanks, Erin!) probably expresses what plenty of parents feel. The mom chose an unusual name for her daughter – Esmée – four years ago. But now Esmée is headed to kindergarten, and the mom has grown weary of meeting other girls with the same name. Learning that her Esmée would be one of three in her class pushed her over the edge.

I get it. Choosing an unusual name takes work, and often first-time parents miss the mark. Either we don’t know lots of little kids, so we aren’t aware of the trends, or we don’t check the data – or both. In this case, if she’d only searched on Esmée, she might have missed the rise of more popular spelling Esme.

Before you protest that the name is still plenty rare, it’s worth noting that the mom is in the UK. Esme ranks in the current Top 100 – as it did when her daughter was born. It’s easy to say the mom should’ve checked the data, but that’s often the kind of thing that happens. We’ve never met anyone with the name, and we’re not parents yet, so we’re not super-up on what others are naming their kids. So we stumble into the Next Big Thing, thinking it’s our own private discovery.

I wish there were an easy fix for this, but I’m afraid there’s not. It’s the kind of thing that happens, and the only real consolation is to recognize that you’ve chosen a great name – so great that everyone else has caught on, too.

Elsewhere online:

• I’m reading Joshilyn Jackson’s The Almost Sisters, and there’s an accusation of name theft in the story. But get this – the name wasn’t stolen for another child, but for a fictional character. Interesting twist, right?
• Is three middle names the new two? I’ve spotted it a few times recently, like this birth announcement for Romilly Elizabeth Dora Joan from British Baby Names.
• Jinger Duggar Vuolo’s J-name is, arguably, the most out-there of the 19 J-named siblings. But now she’s welcomed the best-named grandDuggar, I think – daughter Felicity Nicole. It’s a virtue name, but one that feels very wearable and current, too.
• Speaking of virtue names, I love this spotlight on Shepherd from Sancta Nomina.
• Fun fact: in Europe, Moana – as in the latest Disney princess – is named Vaiana. Post found via the amazing Clare’s Scoop.it page for Name News.
• Seven strong names for girls – no, make that women! – from Laura Wattenberg. It’s hard to choose a favorite, but I think I’d go with Frances.
• Trend analysis from Amelia – some really interesting observations in this post!
• Need advice about coming up with the right middle name? This Swistle post has some great suggestions.
• If you haven’t voted yet, time is running out to pick a winner in the New Names Showdown 2018! The boys’ final is posted here, and you can find the girls’ final posted here.

That’s all for this week! As always, thank you for reading – and have a great week!