Daphne

Inspired by this week's article featuring The Very Best D Names for Boys and Girls, we will be taking a closer look at the name Daphne, pronounced DAFF-nee. 

This lovely Greek name means "laurel" which is a flower. Laurels are often used in circular wreaths, one of which was worn on top of the head of Apollo in Greek mythology. According to the legend, a beautiful female nymph named Daphne gained the unwanted attention of Apollo and was turned into a laurel tree by her father in order to escape Apollo's advances. Apollo is associated with laurels because of his desire for Daphne.

As a baby name, Daphne has been in use in the US since 1886. While it has never been popular, it had one large spike in usage in 1962. In that year, 1,131 girls were given the name which ranked it at #266. 

Usage declined through the 1980s but suddenly climbed again in 2001. As of 2013, Daphne is on the rise with 770 births and a ranking of #397. This is the best the name has done since the 1970s. 

Beyond the mythology mentioned above, the name Daphne has been well-used in various pop-culture works and worn by many famous people. Despite this, it has managed to remain mostly under the mainstream naming radar which makes Daphne a familiar but underused name. It would be a refreshing choice in the US today. 

What do you think of Daphne? If you are considering it, here are a few sibling and middle name ideas:

Sibling Name Ideas:

Sisters: Audrey, Camilla, Heather, Lorelei, Matilda, Penelope, Violet

Brothers: Anthony, Dante, Forrest, Graham, Lincoln, Oliver, Vaughn

Middle Name Ideas:

Daphne Amelia

Daphne Claire

Daphne Eleanor

Daphne Rosalind

Daphne Seraphina

As a Middle Name:

Ella Daphne

Hazel Daphne

Lydia Daphne

Rebecca Daphne

Veronica Daphne

What would you think of sisters named Daphne and Laurel? Do you think it would be cute or is it just too much? I kind of like it! Share your thoughts in the comments below! 

The Very Best D Names for Boys and Girls

Go ahead and put that baby name book down. Close all of your browser tabs, too. You don't need them anymore!

It's true, you've been hunting for a wonderful name starting with D to honor a few relatives whose names also begin with D, but you haven't found the right one yet. Look no further! This is your list!!

I present to you 50 of the best D names for boys and girls!  These names range from common to unusual but they are all delightful.

Which do you like best? If you had to delete one name from each list, what would you replace them with? Share your thoughts in the comment section below! 

Dagny                        Daisy Dahlia Danae Danica Danielle Daphne Darcy Davina Dawn Deanna Dierdre Delaney Delilah Delphina Demetria Desdemona Desiree Diana Dianthe Dixie Dorothea Dorothy Dulce Dulcinea

Dalton Damian Daniel Dante Darius Darren Dashiell David Dax Dawson Dayton Dean Declan Demetrius Dempsey Derrick Desmond Dexter Diego Diesel Dillon Dominic Donovan Douglas Dylan

See? I told you that you'd find the perfect D name for your little one. Congratulations! 

<-- The Very Best C Names for Boys and Girls ||| The Very Best E Names for Boys and Girls  --> 

Tristan Samuel - (Birth Announcements!)

Birth announcements are always fun to read. This time, I wanted to find a group of names that did not have a single duplicate. Remember, these names come from real babies!! Which do you like best?

For fun, pretend you have triplets to name and you can only use one of the following first/middle combinations as they are. You can choose any gender combination or do all of them. What will you pick? Check out my choices at the bottom of the page. Be sure to share your sibsets in the comments below!

Girls:
Adalynn Skye
Alivia Alessandra
Allison Kate
Angelina Luz
Aria Rose
Arielle Jade
Avery Marie
Avia Isabel
Brielle Immani
Eleanor Elizabeth
Evelyn Lilia
Gabriella Sophia
Gianna Lynn
Hannah Joy
Julianna Violet
Layla Michelle
Lilly Alice
Lucy Ruth
Mary Charlotte
Melody Raine
Michaela Joan
Miranda James
Natalie Ann
Olivia Louise
Paris Alexandria
Penelope Jane
Samantha Abigail
Taylor Grace
Valentina Pearl
Viviana Leigh

Boys:
Alexander Donovan
Anthony Augustine
Beckett Ardell
Brennan William
Bryson Charles
Collin John
Connor Daniel
Christian Scott
Declan Jasper
Dominic Vincent
Edward Clyde
Ford Michael
Jack Robert
Jacob Kenneth
Jonathan Stewart
Jordan Ashton
Kingston Zachary
Kory Thomas
Kyler Russell
Landon Grant
Liam Matthew
Lucas Jameson
Maxwell Julius
Noah Christopher
Oliver Lawrence
Quinlan Jamie
Roman Elias
Ryan Patrick
Tristan Samuel
Wesley Joseph
Wyatt Raymond


My picks for triplets using the above names as they are:
G/G/G: Julianna Violet, Evelyn Lilia, Michaela Joan
G/G/B: Arielle Jade, Lilly Alice, Collin John
G/B/B: Layla Michelle, Brennan William, Wyatt Raymond
B/B/B: Tristan Samuel, Oliver Lawrence, Wesley Joseph

What would you choose?

Conrad

Today's featured name comes from this week's list of The Very Best C Names for Boys and Girls! While there are plenty of great C names, Conrad is the one that caught my eye.

Conrad comes from the Germanic elements kuoni and rad that, when combined, mean "brave counsel".  This moniker comes across as strong and interesting. It is well-known enough to work for a modern boy but it is also rather uncommon which would make it refreshing to hear. As far as Con- names go, it falls into a sweet spot: it is bolder than Connor but not as bold as Constantine.

In history, Conrad is both saintly and regal having been used by a 10th-century saint from Germany as well as several medieval German kings and dukes. England had a bit of love for the name during the Middle Ages but it wasn't common until the 19th century after being reintroduced there by the Germans.

In the US, Conrad has been used consistently every year since at least 1880. It has never been popular though. Its highest peak occurred in 1931 when 585 babies were named Conrad. These days, there were 343 boys born in 2013 with the name for a ranking of #691.

This rad name doesn't have very many nickname options but you could call your Conrad by Con, Connie, or Rad.  If you're interested in this strong and handsome name, perhaps you'll find the following suggestions of sibling names and middle names helpful:

Sibling Name Ideas:

Sisters: Adelaide, Clara, Elsa, Louise, Matilda, Rosalind, Viola

Brothers: Casper, Frederick, George, Henry, Leopold, Robert, Vincent

Middle Name Ideas:

Conrad Alexander

Conrad Gregor

Conrad James

Conrad Miles

Conrad Oliver

Conrad Simon

As a Middle Name: 

Andrew Conrad

Geoffrey Conrad

Leo Conrad

Ryan Conrad

Stephen Conrad

William Conrad

Can you think of any other names that might pair well with Conrad either as a sibling name or a middle name? What do you think of this name? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

The Very Best C Names for Boys and Girls

So you're expecting a baby soon. Congratulations! What name will you choose?

 If you're still a bit stumped in that regard, perhaps you'll enjoy this simplified list of ideas.

In this series of posts, I cut out a lot of the work for you. I'm saving you from hours of browsing through endless lists of thousands of baby names.

Here you'll find fifty of the best names that start with the letter C. That's 25 per gender and there's a little bit of something for everyone.

These mostly follow American ideals but they can also work abroad.

As a fan of C names, you'll surely find one that you love. Go on, take a look:

Cadence                        Caitlin Calista Calliope Camille Cara Caroline Cassandra Catherine Cecelia Celeste Celine Charlotte Cheyenne Christina Claire Claudia Clementine Colette Constance Cordelia Corinne Cosette Courtney Cynthia

Caesar Caius Caleb Calvin Cameron Carlton Casper Caspian Chandler Charles Chase Chester Christopher Cillian Clark Clayton Clint Collin Colton Connor Conrad Constantine Cooper Cosimo Cyrus

Isn't it nice to have the best of the best laid out before you? So, which one have you chosen?  If you're still not entirely sure, maybe C isn't the letter for you.  Remember, there are 25 other letters to explore and I'm covering all of them.

 <-- The Very Best B Names for Boys and Girls ||| The Very Best D Names for Boys and Girls  --> 

Theodore

Today's featured name comes from this week's list of Presidential Baby Names.  It is one of the greatest names that belonged to one of the greatest presidents: Theodore.

The name Theodore comes from the Greek name Θεοδωρος (Theodoros) meaning "gift of god".

In the past, this name has belonged to several saints. There was Theodore of Amasea, a soldier from 4th-century Greece; Theodore of Tarsus, the 7th century archbishop of Canterbury; and a 9th century Byzantine monk named Theodore the Studite. There have also been three Tsars of Russia known as Fyodor, the Russian form of Theodore; and of course our American President Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919).

As a name, Theodore was quite common in Greece because of the aforementioned saints. Christians in particular have been drawn to Theodore because of the name's appealing meaning. However, it was very rare in Britain before the 19th century.  In recent years, it's ranked in England/Wales at #97.

Here in the US, Theodore has always ranked on the Top 1000 chart. In fact, it was in the Top 100 names every year from 1880-1944. It has since then remained in or around the Top 300, currently ranking at #170 for 2013.  Theodore was also given to girls from 1901-1988.

Other international forms of Theodore include Theodoros, Theodorus, Teodor, Todor, Tudor, Toshe, Teo, Theo, Feodor, Fedor and Fedir.  Common nicknames include Theo, Ted and Teddy.

What do you think of Theodore? Which nickname is your favorite?  Here are some ideas for sibling names and middle names:

Sibling Name Ideas:
Sisters: Alexandra, Eleanor, Elizabeth, Josephine, Lillian, Natalie, Olivia
Brothers: Alexander, Benjamin, Henry, Nathaniel, Oliver, Sebastian, William

Middle Name Ideas:
Theodore Adam
Theodore Grant
Theodore Hayes
Theodore Rowan
Theodore Zachary

As a Middle Name:
Asa Theodore
Dominic Theodore
Elliot Theodore
Henry Theodore
Silas Theodore

Know someone with this name? Share your thoughts about Theodore in the comments below!

Presidental Baby Names

Today is President's Day in the US! In honor of this, it's time to take a look at the best (and worst) presidential first and last names. At the very bottom, there's also a list of all the names of the country's first ladies.

Whether you live in the US or not, surely you can appreciate the names on this list! Without discussing politics, share your thoughts in the comments about which baby name you like (or hate) the most. Would you ever use any of these? Have you already?

The following Presidential first names are most usable for a modern baby:

Abraham
Andrew
Benjamin
Franklin
George
Harry
James
John
Martin
Richard
Theodore
Thomas
William
Zachary

These first names aren't as common as the above, but they could still work on the right child:

Barack
Calvin
Chester
Dwight
Gerald
Grover
Herbert
Lyndon
Millard
Ronald
Rutherford
Ulysses
Warren
Woodrow

The following surnames are the most usable as a first name for a modern baby:

Arthur
Carter
Clinton
Ford
Grant
Harrison
Hayes
Jackson
Jefferson
Kennedy
Lincoln
Madison
McKinley
Monroe
Pierce
Reagan
Taylor
Truman
Tyler
Wilson

Names of First Ladies:

Abigail - (Adams, Fillmore)
Angelica - (van Buren)
Anna - (Harrison)
Barbara - (Bush)
Bess - (Elizabeth Truman)
Betty - (Elizabeth Ford)
Caroline - (Harrison)
Claudia - ("Lady Bird" Johnson)
Dolley - (Madison)
Edith - (Roosevelt, Wilson)
Eleanor - (Anna Eleanor Roosevelt)
Eliza - (Johnson)
Ellen - (Wilson)
Elizabeth - (Monroe, Truman, Ford)
Florence - (Harding)
Frances - (Cleveland)
Grace - (Coolidge)
Hannah - (van Buren)
Helen - (Taft)
Hillary - (Clinton)
Ida - (McKinley)
Jacqueline - (Kennedy)
Jane - (Pierce)
Julia - (Tyler, Grant)
Kennedy - (John Kennedy)
Laura - (Bush)
Letitia - (Tyler)
Lou - (Hoover)
Louisa - (Adams)
Lucretia - (Garfield)
Lucy - (Hayes)
Marie - (Marie "Mamie" Eisenhower)
Margaret - (Taylor)
Martha - (Washington, Jefferson)
Mary - (Lincoln, Arthur)
Michelle - (Obama)
Nancy - (Reagan)
Pat - (Thelma "Pat" Nixon)
Rachel - (Jackson)
Rosalynn - (Carter)
Sarah - (Polk)