The Art of Naming

Here are some interesting boy names that originate from Norman French or Old French origins. These have a variety of popularity and usage levels in the US. Amis/Amias/Amyas - medieval names taken from Amice and the Latin amicus meaning "friend". It was popular in the middle ages. There is also a medieval French poem titled "Amis and Amiles".  While Amis only landed on the US popuarity charts once with 5 births in 1928, Amias is skyrocketing. It first appeared in 2000, but since then has climbed its way up to the Top 1400 with 116 births in 2016. It should continue to gain popularity and break into the Top 1000 soon. Amyas is also starting to appear. Courtney - An aristocratic English surname taken from the French place name Courtenay , which came from currents from the Latin curtus meaning "short".  Courtney has always been unisex. Up until the 1960s, it was mostly given to boys, but after that the majority of usage went to the girls, especially i

Are you looking for something slightly different than the norm? Just a little unusual with a touch of classic? Familiar but not weird? Here are some great name ideas for you! Some are more unusual than others, and there is a variety of styles here. Feel free to mix and match or suggest even more great names in the comments! Silas Merrill Truett James Beau Jameson Watson Lucas Ellison Burke Huxley Wyatt Brom Harrison Maxwell Ranger Eli Bennington Harley Reid Fletcher Henry Graham Bennett Merritt Ross Tilden Sumner Hayden Gabriel Zayne Upton Thorne Elijah Jasper Emmett Colton Lemuel Bridger James Branson Reid Archer Daniel Kingston Jack Lincoln Bradley Zane Percival Drake Richmond Thane Oliver Emery York Ryder Ellis Flynn Arrow Nolan Reid Greyson Tobias Landon Monroe Harley Roarke Rollin Foster Griffin Lark Sawyer Quill Emerson Gray Duncan Reid Rafe Archer Blaine Upton Phoenix Rourke Victor Armand Eleazar Forrest Viggo Henrik Milo Konrad

Today we will take a look at one of the interesting boy names from our list of " Baby Names Ending With The Letters -ry ".   Destry is the English form of Destrier, a French surname derived from the Anglo-Norman word destrer meaning "warhorse".  The destrier is the best-known war horse of the medieval era. It carried knights in battles, tournaments, and jousts. Sources of its time called it the "Great Horse" due to its significance. In 1930, "Destry Rides Again" was published by Max Brand. This western novel introduced the name Destry to America, and brought forth films in 1939 and 1954, and a short-lived TV series in 1964.  Interestingly, according to Social Security records in the US, the name Destry was not in use until 1955, the year after that second movie was released. This name's most popular year coincided with that brief TV series in 1964 when 149 boys (and 5 girls) were named Destry. You could label this year as D

This series is finally in the last portion of the alphabet. We've looked at a lot of names ending with -y. Today we continue with -ry names.  Here are some of the best and most interesting options for this particular ending-sound. Which of these names catch your eye? Girls: Aimery Amory Aubry Audry Autry Avery Awtry Bellary Cabery Camry Cary Cathry Century Chandry Channary Cherry Clary Connery Cory Curry Dalary Dorry Dory Eiry Elery Ellery Ellory Embry Emery Emmary Emory Emry Fairy February Flannery Gentry Gerry Glory Hilary Hillary Ivory January Jenifry Jerry Kairy Kamry Kary Keary Kemery Kerry Kimery Kinnery Landry Lowery Mabry Maebry Mallory Malory Margaery Margery Marjory Mary Memory Merry Mindry Perry Rory Rosemary Sabry Saory Shannary Sherry Sonary Story Sury Terry Valery Victory Winry Boys: Alvary Amaury Amery Amory Ary Avery Avory Barry Berry Bravery Calvary Carbry Car

Lately, I've been loving the name Thea. However, when I thought about longer, proper names, I just don't like Theodora or Dorothea enough to consider using those on the birth certificate with Thea as just a nickname. Some people like to skip that middle step and put nicknames or shortened forms directly on the paperwork. It occurred to me that shortening or contracting names could work for those wishing to honor a relative. You love grandma Wilhelmina but don't wish to use her exact name, so you contract it and go with Willa. Easy, right? Are there any names that you can think of that could be shortened to create interesting short forms? Maybe some that are a bit more unexpected than traditional? Sure, there's Thea from Theodora, and Tessa from Theresa. Are there any others that aren't as obvious? Just pick a name, drop a few letters and see what you're left with. Maybe it'll be the next big thing! Here are a few I came up with: Adelaide > Ada, Adla

The baby name Dagny is our featured name, taken from our list of names ending with the letters "-ny". Dagny is an Old Norse name for females. It comes from Dagný, which was derived from the elements dagr meaning "day" and ný meaning "new". If you ask me, "new day" is an adorable meaning, and it would be especially sentimental on a rainbow baby. It is often used in Scandinavian countries, including Iceland, Sweden, Norway and Denmark.  Another form includes the Latvian Dagnija. This name first appeared on record in the US in 1893. It has never had significant popularity and it has never been commonly used. If you're looking for a truly rare name, Dagny is a safe bet.  The most births in a single year that were earned by Dagny is 80 in 2013, which is its highest popularity peak on record. There were only 37 girls named Dagny in 2016. This name has never ranked within the Top 1000 in the US. It did rank in Iceland in 2007 at #75. It

This series explores different names ending with -y. We've already seen quite a few. Today we'll look at the many interesting and unusual names that end with the letters "-ny". Girls: Adrianny Albany Aleny Anny Aubuiny Audny Bethany Betony Bonny Borgny Briony Britany Britny Brittany Brittny Bryony Bunny Christany Dagny Delany Destiny Devany Devony Ebony Elleny Epiphany Estefany Evany Evony Fanny Franny Genny Ginny Giverny Harmony Henny Idony Janny Jenny Jessany Jinny Khyany Kiffany Kilmeny Linny Mahogany Marigny Marny Melany Melony Oddny Penny Peony Rainy Romany Sidony Signy Steffany Stephany Sunny Symphony Tawny Tiffany Tiffiny Tinny Tiny Tiphany Yolany Boys: Anthony Antony Benny Berthony Danny Denny Donny Giovanny Johnny Jonny Jovanny Jovany Kenny Lanny Lemony Lenny Lonny Manny Ronny Sonny Sunny Tony Vinny Are there any names on this list that you would consider usin

Creating a great first and middle name combination takes some practice. Some people have a very hard time with it and others are rather skilled at it! If you’d like to improve your naming skills, I thought I’d provide a few examples to show my step-by-step thought process for pairing two names together. Here is a list of names that work well together. You could either use these as inspiration or actually take and use them for your child. This list of names is based on two specific styles that I like. The first names are all “ancient” names and the middles are more on the traditional, vintage side. I picked out five of my favorites to show you: Amabel Grace Sabrina Ruby Sibyl Josephine Viviana Pearl Francesca Ivy 1. Amabel is a medieval name that has never caught on in modern times. Short form Mabel was popular in the 1880s and early 1900s but it is now considered a vintage name that is beginning to be revived again. Amabel is an obscure choice but it soun

Creating a great first and middle name combination should take some serious thought and a little bit of research. The more effort that goes into it, the better the name will be, usually. I thought I’d provide a few examples to show my step-by-step thought process for pairing two names together. Here are five boy names that flow well together. The first names are of the “ancient” style and the middle names are classic, traditional choices. Atticus William Dante Oliver Apollo James Cyrus Alexander Dominic Theodore 1. Atticus comes from a Roman name that means "from Attica" in Latin, which is a location in Greece. It has a solid background in that area of the world and in history because of a couple philosophers who had the name. Atticus has only been used in the US in the past thirty years or so, breaking into the Top 1000 in 2004. William, on the other hand, also has a very strong history in the form of kings and poets and authors. It has been used i

I occasionally play video games with my husband. We enjoy what's called "massively multiplayer online role-playing games" or MMORPGs. These games connect us with thousands of other players across the country (and sometimes around the world). If you aren't familiar with these kinds of games, that's fine, it isn't super important for the point of this post. Basically, you create a character, design them from their hair and eyes to what sort of armor they wear. You choose what kind of class or profession you want them to have, even what race or species you prefer. Then the best part comes next: choosing an interesting name for them. Some games will even offer guidelines that follow the lore behind the characters to help you decide on an appropriate name for them based on their story. Not everyone follows this, but I always do. Some people don't put any thought into it and come up with random words or phrases (like "Thats Odd") rather than an

If you are searching for a less-than-common name for a boy, this list has plenty of interesting and wearable options. We previously explored similar names from A-M.  The list below continues with the letters N-Z. If you're willing, choose 5 names from this list and pair them with a middle name of your choice to create an interesting sibling set! Post the results in the comment section below. Nash Nemo Nero Nico Niles Noam Noble Nova Nye Oberon Odin Olivander Orion Oslo Otto Ozias Pace Pasqual Pavel Pearce Penn Peregrine Philo Pippin Ptolemy Quade Quarry Quest Quill Quimby Quixley Rafael Ragnar Rasmus Remi Revere Rocco Rockwell Rolf Rune Sanders Sayer Severin Skandar Slater Soren Stark Stellan Sutton Tate Tavish Teague Thanos Thayer Theoden Thorsten Tobias Tomas Tyrion Ulrich Ulysses Upton Urban Usher Uziah Valentin Valor Vance Viggo Vulcan Ward Weston Whittier Wilder Wim Wolfe Wray Xanthus Xerxes

If you're looking for a name for a boy but you want something more unusual than most, try these for inspiration. Here you'll find 90 interesting names that are a bit outside the typical set of popular choices you hear everywhere today. Adler Alvar Andre Aramis Arlo Armin Arno Auden Augustin Axel Basil Bastian Benedict Benno Bram Brom Bruno Calix Casper Caspian Cato Conrad Constantine Corin Cosimo Cyan Cyril Dante Dashiell Diederick Dominic Dorian Eamon Edwin Elian Emery Emmerich Evander Fabian Felix Fergus Fletcher Fox Fritz Gael Gregor Gunnar Guthrie Havel Hawthorn Henning Hugo Indigo Isidor Ivo Iwan Jarlath Jasper Jaziel Jem Jericho Johan Jupiter Justice Kai Kasimir Keane Kennon Kit Knute Kylo Laird Larkin Leif Lemuel Leopold Levin Loic Luca Ludwig Lysander Marco Marius Matteo Maxim Mccoy Merrill Milan Murray Which of these names catch your eye? Choose five and give them interesting

The very first thing that all name-searching parents do when they find a name is say it. Whether it is in their mind or out loud, pronouncing the name always comes first. How does the name sound when you say it? Do you like the sound of the name? Does it easily roll off the tongue or are there pronunciation issues that could cause the child problems in life?  Many of these questions are answered subconsciously as we say and hear the name. And of course, this is going to vary greatly per person. What sounds like a lovely name to one person may not be attractive at all to another. But the question is, are there specific sounds in a name that are more mass-appealing than others? Do we, as a country, tend to gravitate toward certain sounds within a name?  Take for instance the top 5 girl names of 2016. They all end in the letter A: Emma, Olivia, Ava, Sophia, and Isabella.  These are all very vowel-heavy names that easily roll off the tongue. Today’s parents are flocking to these

We took a look at all the names ending with the letters -my in the previous post. Today we'll pull one of those from the list and get to know it better. I chose Jeremy,  which may feel a bit dated to many of you but it still deserves usage today. Jeremy comes from the name Jeremiah, it is the Medieval English version of it. Jeremiah comes from the Hebrew name יִרְמְיָהוּ ( Yirmiyahu ) meaning "YAHWEH has uplifted". Jeremy was occasionally the form used in England in place of Jeremiah since the 13th century. It wasn't until the Protestant Reformation that Jeremiah gained more common usage. Interesting related diminutives include Jez, Jezza, Jem, Jemmy, Jere and Jerry .  Other languages and cultures offer interesting choices such as the Finnish Jorma, Jarkko, and Jarmo; or the Biblical Greek Ieremias , the Biblical Hebrew Yirmiyahu , and the Biblical Latin Hieremias .  The French favor Jérémie and the Spanish use Jeremías . Jeremy itself works internationall

As you may know, the Social Security Administration has released the list of 2016's most popular baby names. It covers the Top 1000 in the site, but more names beyond that are also available for download. Emma has ranked at #1 four times now. The first time was in 2008, and now she's been ruling the chart for 3 years straight (2014-2016). Will Emma continue her reign again next year? If not, which name will steal the crown? I think Olivia will rise to the top in the next year or three. As for the boys, Noah replaced the long-running Jacob in 2013. This is Noah's 4th year in a row being #1. How much longer will it remain at the top? If it dips next year, which name would replace it? My bet is on Liam. What do you think of the top 2? Here's the rest of the Top 20 as well: Source Names on the rise include: One notable thing is that Elijah joined the Top 10 for the first time ever. Other names to watch include Oliver, Charlotte, Amelia and Evelyn.

We're halfway through our collection of names ending with the letter -y. We've seen plenty of common and rare names along the way as we've cruised through the alphabet. Next we will explore the few but interesting names ending with the letters -my. This series doesn't always feature a plethora of name options since these endings are more on the unusual side, but that's the beauty of it. How often have you stopped to think about names ending with these specific letters? Perhaps never. However, if someone is looking for that exact sound or letter combination with a sentimental purpose behind it, this list is sure to help. Take a look at the list below and share your thoughts in the comments. Can you think of any names that could be added? Girls: Aemy Alchemy Amy Bellamy Cammy Emmy Emy Jemmy Jessamy Jessemy Keimy Kimmy Kymmy My Naomy Nomy Remy Romy Stormy Tammy Boys: Barthelemy Bellamy Jeramy Jeremy Jeromy Jimmy Ptolemy Ramy

This name is a fast-rising modern Greek name for girls. It was featured in this week's list of gorgeous Greek names and we will learn more about it here. The usage of the name Penelope dates back to Homers Odyssey. In the story, she was the wife of Odysseus who had to stand strong against suitors while he was in Troy. As far as the origin and meaning go, it was possibly derived from the Greek  πηνελοψ ( penelops ) which refers to a kind of duck. However, it is also possible that Penelope is taken from  πηνη ( pene ) which means "threads" and  ωψ (ops) which means "face" or "eye". With those combined, Penelope is sometimes listed as meaning "weaver". As a name in America, Penelope has been in use since records began in 1880 but it wasn't steadily used until 1909. It ranked well from 1935-1975, but left the Top 1000 until 2001. It was majorly trending upward from then on, hitting the Top 100 in 2013. As of 2015, it ranks as the 34

Last week we took a look at boy names that are either diminutives of ancient Greek names, or have had their spellings more Latinized or modernized over the years.  Now it's time to look at the feminine name choices. Many of these have been in use for a long time whether or not the wearers realize their Greek origins. Greek names tend to be very versatile. They easily cross bridges into several cultures and languages, allowing nearly anyone to use them in one form or another. Here are some of the best Greek names I could find that would work beautifully on modern girls. Which of these do you like best? Althea Anastasia Ariadne Calista Calliope Cassandra Catherine Chloe Cleo Daphne Delphina Diana Dorothy Elaina Ellen Esmeralda Eugenia Eulalia Evadne Helen Helena Hermione Iris Isadora Kyra Lydia Lysandra Melanie Melissa Oceana Odessa Olympia Ophelia Penelope Persephone Phaedra Philippa Phoebe Selene Sophia Sybil Thalia Thea Theodora Th

One of my favorite Greek names is Damian, which comes from the Greek name Δαμιανος ( Damianos ).  This name was listed on the Great Greek Names for Modern Boys list posted earlier this week. Damian is ultimately derived from the  Greek δαμαζω ( damazo ) meaning "to tame".  There was a saint by this name from the 4th century who was martyred with his twin brother Cosmo in Syria. There was also an 11th-century saint named Peter Damian who was a cardinal and theologian from Italy. In the US, Damian was first used on boys in 1912. It also gained a minimal amount of use for girls in 1968. For boys, this name gained momentum in the 1970s, peaking in 1977 before dipping a bit again. By the 1990s, it began an upward trajectory of usage. It actually cracked the Top 100 in 2012-2013 at #98 both years. Even though it has dropped again to #116 in 2015, Damian is a solid name with great usage. There's also a few spelling variations associated with different languages and cu