The Art of Naming

The name Ramsey was originally a surname. It comes from a place name meaning "wild-garlic island" in Old English. I came across this name as the name of a town on the Isle of Man. This month's World Wide Wednesday will focus on Manx names. Ramsey is also spelled as Rhumsaa in Manx. According to Behind the Name , Ramsay is a variant of Ramsey . It is used mostly in Scotland as a surname. According to Nameberry , Ramsay is English and means "low-lying land" but Babynames.com says that Ramsay refers to Raven's Island. Clearly there are some meaning discrepancies around the internet, but despite these two names being so similar, it does appear as though they have different meanings. The Baby Name Wizard says that Ramsay is a variant of Ramsey and that they are both Scottish surnames that originate from several different place-names. I already mentioned the town of Ramsey on the Isle of Man, but it is also said to come from either Hræm's Island, Ram...

This is essentially a game. Just for fun, try to come up with some amazing names for the following four hypothetical children: Boy/Girl Twins: Girl's first name starts with either A, C, E, or G. Girl's middle name is either a botanical name or a quirky and unusual name. Boy's first name starts with either B, D, F or H. Boy's middle name is either an old-fashioned, vintage name or a  literary name. Girl: Her first name starts with either I, K, M, or O. Her middle name is either an ancient name  or something virtuous. Boy: His first name starts with either J, L, N, or P. His middle name is either an occupational surname  or a colonial choice. Feel free to post your names in the comment section below, on our Facebook page or just smile about them to yourself. :) My names: Alice Magnolia Damian Barnaby Isla Melisent Jack Thaddeus Have fun! Thanks for playing!

Leonora is the Italian short form of the name Eleonora or Eleanor. It comes from the Occitan name Aliénor which comes from the Ancient Germanic name Aenor . Its meaning is unknown. Check out the family tree to see which other names are related! With boys names like Leo, Leonard, Leonardo and Leonidas starting to gain more and more popularity, could this feminine "leo" name follow suit? She is not related to these leonine names but she does start with the same three letters. Even if Leo is more of a boy thing, Leonora could go by Leo if she's tomboyish. It could also be spelled Leanora to get the Lea nickname instead. But the adorable nickname Nora is always a great option! With Eleanor making strides, I don't see why Leonora couldn't follow! In line with this week's post about operatic baby names, Leonora is a distinctive choice. She has appeared in three major operas! She was a heroine in both Beethoven's Fidelio and Verdi's Il Trovatore. The...

The Opera. What do you think of when you hear those words? I picture a magnificent stage surrounded by flowing red curtains. Rows and rows of seats and balconies high in the air overlooking the stage. The music and costuming are spectacular. Everything about the opera is high-culture and high-class. That includes the baby names that are most frequently associated with the opera.  In fact, this list contains just that!   With such a wide variety of names to choose from, which is your favorite? Abagaille                         Aida Alcina Altoun Andres Annina Basilio Bello Benoit Betto Bianca Boris Carmen Claudius Despina Drago Elena Elettra Elsa Elvino Ferrando Fiorello Floria Gilda Giovanna Giovanni Gunther Isolde Juliette Katisha Leonora Lolette Lucia Maddalena Manon Marcellina Marcello Marguerite Micaela Mimi Musetta Nardo Nedda Ottavio Pamina Pizarro Rami...

Fletcher is originally a surname that refers to a person who fletches arrows as their occupation. It is a Middle English name meaning "arrow maker" which comes from the Old French flechier . It is a surname but it has a tough, masculine feel to it with a bit of unique quirkiness added in. Following this week's post about names inspired by poetry, there was a poet named Thomas Fletcher (1666-1713) who was also a priest of the Church of England.   John Fletcher was a Jacobean playwright (1579-1625) who took over Shakespeare's role as the house playwright for the King's Men. Click here to view many more famous namesakes including several fictional characters named Fletcher. This name has been in regular use since 1880 in the US. It had a boost in popularity in 1914 that lasted through the early 1950s before it declined again. However it was in the top 1000 names from 1880-1971, and 1985-1986. The year 1998 saw another boost, catapulting the name back into t...

Source There is something about the surname of poets that just happens to be, well, poetic. Not only do they have a way with words, but these poets have also left us some amazing baby name options to choose from!  Whether you studied poetry in school or just secretly love it, these names might just be what you're looking for!  There are also a few words included that are related to poetry. Below this list, I have chosen my Top 5 favorites that I'd love to see on a modern baby and listed out potential sibling names and middle names. If you'd like to share what your favorite names are (or if I've missed any that should be included) please do so in the comment section! Angelou Auden Baird Blake Bly Bogan Bronte Byron Campbell Carew Chaucer Corso Crane Cullen Dante Dickinson              Dove Dryden Dylan Eliot Emerson Fletcher Frost Giovanni Hardy Herrick Hugo Jarrell Keat...

The girl name Cordelia is a lovely, elegant and unique option! With nickname possibilities like Cora, Della and Lia, it is both cute for a baby and beautiful for a woman. The name Cordelia comes from Cordeilla which is a Celtic name with unknown meaning. However, the name is often associated with the Latin word cor or cordis which means "heart". Some sites also say that it means "Daughter of the Sea". So I suppose you can take your pick of meanings! Based on the legendary Queen Cordeilla, she was a character in Shakespeare's play King Lear written in 1606. He altered the spelling from the original Cordeilla to the modern Cordelia. In the play, she was the youngest of King Lear's three daughters and the only one that remained loyal to him. Another literary reference to the name comes from the heroine of Anne of Green Gables  who said "I would love to be called Cordelia. It's such a perfectly elegant name." This name has been in re...