The Art of Naming

Here are some interesting girl names that originate from Norman French or Old French origins. These have a variety of popularity and usage levels in the US. Amarante - Taken from the Amaranth flower, this is the French form of the name. It comes from the Greek amarantos  meaning "unfading".  This is a very rare name. It has been used a total of 23 times on record for boys, and none for girls, but the most recent year it was used was 1933. This means it is ripe for the picking! It deserved to be renewed as a fresh floral name for girls. Avril - This is the French form of April which possibly comes from the Latin aperire  meaning "to open" referring to the opening of flowers in the springtime month. Avril first gained recorded usage in the US in 1919. It has never been common but began gaining more births per year around 2003, presumably in line with the popularity of singer Avril Lavigne who hit the scene in 2002. Blanche - From a Medieval French nickname me

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

As we reach the end of the month of August, let's take a moment to look at the related Aug-/Ag- names that could be used on a person today. Generally, these names all come from the Latin augere meaning "to increase", but other meanings came to include "great" and "venerable". Augustus was a title that Octavian, the first Roman emperor, was given. He was the adopted son of Julius Caesar. There are many options available for both boys and girls. Some are more popular than others, but these are mostly rather uncommon here in the US.  Are there any that you would use? By Unknown Till Niermann (Own work)  [ GFDL , CC-BY-SA-3.0  or CC BY-SA 2.5 ], via Wikimedia Commons Agostina   (Italian form of Augustinus - feminine - zero births on record for 2015 in US) Agostino   (Italian form of Augustinus - masculine - 5 births on record for 2015) Ágúst (Icelandic form of Augustus - masculine - zero births in 2015) Agust (Swedish form of August - masculi