Wednesday, December 6, 2017

Interesting and Uncommon Boy Name Combinations!

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
Bryant Karter
Landry Merle
Arden Fox
Garrett Maxwell
Dominic Elias
Zephyr Clark
Atlas Hawthorne
Beckett Wilder
Hershel Kai
Julian Maximus
Toby Cordell
Marius Wolf
Cyril Bodhi
Atreyu Stone
Dashiell Todd
Soren Thatcher
Hendrix Hayes
Quill Indigo
Hugo Zaffre
Auden Guthrie
Theo Valor
Leif Emmerich
Kit Henning
Nash Benedict
Caspian Noble
Albin Justice
Rolf Gregor
Alvar Leopold
Fabian Gunnar
Stellan Otto
Dante Revere
Calix Augustin

Which is your favorite?

Thursday, November 16, 2017

Destry

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 Destry's peak in popularity; one that has never been matched since. The year 1965 only brought 50 births with the name, and it continued to decline thereafter. In 2016, only 10 boys were given this name.

In that novel, Destry was used as a surname: Tom Destry was the main character. This name would fit in well with other surname names such as Parker, Bennett, Callahan, Lincoln, Guthrie, Dawson, Wiley, Flynn and more. Destry also works well as a unisex name like Autry, Emery, Finley, Auden, Reese, Avery, Riley, Quinn, and others. Based on the popularity of these two trends, surnames and unisex names, I could imagine Destry catching on and gaining a bit more popularity than just 10 births a year. Alternatively, for parents who wanted to name a girl Destry but

What do you think of Destry? Would you help increase its usage? If so, here are some ideas for middle names and sibling names:

Sibling Name Ideas:

Sisters: Audra, Bailey, Harper, Madisyn, Noelle, Piper, Scarlett

Brothers: Aldin, Campbell, Everett, Forrest, Graham, Parrish, Wade

Middle Name Ideas (boys):

Destry Emerson

Destry Hudson

Destry Lance

Destry Mitchell

Destry Vincent

As a Middle Name (boys):

Austin Destry

Calvin Destry

Jacob Destry

Oliver Destry

Samuel Destry

Middle Name Ideas (girls):

Destry Alana

Destry Charlotte

Destry Jeanne

Destry Olivia

Destry Yvette

As a Middle Name (girls):

Amelia Destry

Celia Destry

Madeline Destry

Nora Destry

Sylvia Destry

These are just ideas. What other name would you pair with Destry?

Wednesday, October 25, 2017

Baby Names Ending With The Letters -ry

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
Cary
Cory
Daughtry
Degory
Derry
Destery
Destry
Diggory
Digory
Dimitry
Dmitry
Ellery
Emery
Emory
Emry
Garry
Gary
Geary
Gentry
Gerry
Gery
Greenberry
Greggory
Gregory
Harry
Henry
Hickory
Hilary
Hillary
Huckleberry
Ivory
Jeffery
Jeffry
Jerry
Jory
Keary
Kendry
Kerry
Kory
Ksawery
Landry
Larry
Maury
Mercury
Montgomery
Murry
Nery
Orry
Parry
Penry
Perry
Ricary
Rory
Terry
Thackery
Thierry
Torry
Tory
Vickery
Zacary
Zachary
Zachery
Zackary
Zackery
Zakary

What are your favorite names on this list?

Tuesday, September 19, 2017

Can You Contract Longer Names to Form Shorter Ones?

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, Adlai, Adele, Aida

Alexandra > Alexa, Andra, Alandra, Axara, Alara
Angelica > Anelia
Arianna > Aria
Aurora > Aura, Ara
Beatrix > Bix
Bianca > Bia
Brianna > Brina
Carolina > Cara, Carla, Calia, Calla
Cassandra > Candra, Casara
Cassidy > Cady
Cecilia > Celia
Dorothea > Dora, Dot
Eleanora > Elora
Elodie > Edie
Emilia > Elia
Esmeralda > Esme, Elda, Esra, Emerald
Estella > Ella, Esta
Evangeline > Evaline, Eline
Galilea > Gala
Georgiana > Gia, Gina, Gera, Giana
Giovanna > Gia, Gina, Gianna
Isabella > Isla, Isela
Juliet > Jet
Julietta > Jetta
Katherine > Karine
Leonora > Lena, Lora, Lea, Leona
Lillian > Lian
Lorraine > Laine
Louisa > Lia, Lisa
Marilyn > Maryn
Margaret > Maret
Margareta > Meta, Mara
Matilda > Mila
Meredith > Merith
Minerva > Mina, Meva
Miranda > Mira, Manda, Mandy, Mindy, Mina
Miriam > Mira
Natalia > Nala
Noelle > Nell
Penelope > Pelle, Penny, Poppy
Rebecca > Reba
Romilly > Romy
Rosalie > Rosie
Rosemary > Romy, Remy, Rory, Roma
Savannah > Sanna
Theodora > Thea, Thora, Theda, Thera, Tora, Téa
Theresa > Tess, Tessa, Téa, Tera, Tressa
Valentina > Vala, Valentia, Vena,
Veronica > Vera, Vona
Victoria > Vita, Vira, Via
Wilhelmina > Willa, Wilma, Wima

What other names can you come up with? Share your thoughts in the comments!

Saturday, July 29, 2017

Dagny

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 isn't always easy to find statistics like this, but I did find an interesting site saying that 2,053 women have Dagny as a main first name in Sweden. It also says a total of 5,185 woman have it as a first name. I'm not sure how they define the difference between a "main first" name and just a "first" name, but you can see the information here yourself.

That site also indicates that the median age for persons named Dagny is 76, so it may be more on the old fashioned side than the modern. However, it could be viewed as an interesting, bold and refreshing choice on a modern American girl. Besides, Norse names are unique enough to be hip. Perhaps Dagny could become trendy in the future. What do you think of it?

Are you a fan of Nordic names? I know that I am. If you'd consider the name Dagny, here are some ideas for sibling names and middle names to complement it:

Sibling Name Ideas:
Sisters: Astrid, Britta, Elsa, Freya, Ingrid, Signe, Thora
Brothers: Ansel, Erik, Leif, Magnus, Ragnar, Soren, Viggo

Middle Name Ideas:
Dagny Anneke
Dagny Erika
Dagny Jeneve
Dagny Karina
Dagny Linnea
Dagny Maren
Dagny Sorena
Dagny Ursula

As a Middle Name:

Bridget Dagny
Elisa Dagny
Hannah Dagny
Kaia Dagny
Kirsten Dagny
Mia Dagny
Ottilia Dagny
Sonia Dagny

What do you think of the Nordic name Dagny? Would you use another Nordic name with it as a middle name or would you use something else like Dagny Rose or Kate Dagny?

Tuesday, July 25, 2017

Looking for a Baby Name Ending with "-ny"?

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 using? Which are your favorites?

Wednesday, July 19, 2017

I Paired Five Ancient Girl Names with Vintage Middle Names

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 sounds similar enough to names like Annabelle and Arabella that it wouldn’t stand out as odd. With its three syllables and unique nature, I chose to pair it with the simple but lovely Grace. Grace is a virtue name and is very common for middle names these days so the popularity contrast provides balance to Amabel. Meaning-wise, Amabel means “loveable” which compliments the idea of grace in an attractive way. Amabel Grace is very balanced in many different ways which makes for a great first and middle name combination!

2. Sabrina dates back to the 12th century based on the Roman name for a river in Wales. It has had 5 popularity spikes since the 1950s so it has been well used but it is currently not high on parents’ radars, ranking at a respectable #370 in 2016. It has three syllables which flows nicely with Ruby’s two syllables. Ruby is another vintage name that was popular about a hundred years ago and has come back into style today. Ruby currently ranks at #71 so they have a bit of a popularity contrast which is nice. If you notice, both names have an R and a B. This is a personal preference. I think Sabrina Ruby as a combination ties together well because of this shared sound.

3. Sibyl can also be spelled Sybil. Both names date back to Greek and Roman legend and they were popular in the Middle Ages too. I like Sibyl for being rather unheard of today. It hasn’t really been used at all in recent years for that spelling. Sybil is a bit more used but still only receives about 100 births per year. It is a lovely, two-syllable name that happens to pair beautifully with a longer traditional middle name. In this instance, I chose Josephine but I also debated using Margaret and Theodora. Josephine is a feminine spin on the classic male name Joseph and it is considered a lovely vintage choice that’s making strides today. Sibyl Josephine as a whole is a strong and interesting girl name that isn’t overly feminine sounding.

4. Viviana dates back to a saint and martyr in the 4th century. The name itself comes from the Late Roman name Vivianus meaning “alive”. It currently ranks at #444. I chose Viviana because of how long, flowy and feminine it is but to balance it out, I paired it with the one-syllable name Pearl. Pearl was well used from the 1880s to the 1940s but fell out of favor since then. Today it is starting to make a comeback, ranking back up at #567 in 2016. This combination of ancient and vintage works well since they’re both gaining popularity again as modern names. Viviana Pearl is a sweet, balanced combination suitable for a girl today.

5. Francesca is the Italian form of the Latin Franciscus. The entire family tree of Franc- names is very internationally used. Because of associations with saints, these names have been well-used since at least the 13th century. Francesca is such a long, traditional choice so I chose to pair it with the short, nature name Ivy. Francesca always gets a similar amount of births per year so it is neither gaining nor losing popularity. Vintage Ivy is actively gaining popularity again, doing even better today than it did in the early 1900s. Together, Francesca Ivy is a beautiful name that flows well and isn’t too popular or too obscure.

What do you think of these five combinations? How do you go about pairing names? Click below to view the article featuring five boy name combinations.

The Art of Naming

Pages

Syllaby