The Art of Naming

Today's featured name is a lovely and truly rare gem in the US: Calliope (Cuh-LIE-oh-pee). The nickname Callie is adorable for this big, strong name.  The meaning of this name is "Beautiful Voice." Straight out of the Greek Myths, Calliope was the name of one of the nine muses, inspiring epic poetry. Since this name is so bold and creative, it would be recommended for artistic parents who enjoy literature, poetry and music. Hopefully your daughter will also enjoy these things and be able to live up to the image that this name portrays, namely, a beautiful artistic muse. In the real world, there is an American actress who wears the name, Calliope "Callie" Thorne.  In the TV world, there's a Dr. Calliope "Callie" Torres on Grey's Anatomy. The original form of this name is actually spelled Kalliope. The meaning "Beautiful Voice" comes directly from the root of the name:  from Greek καλλος (kallos) "beauty" and οψ ...

The Name of the Day for June 1, 2013 is Gideon, a boy name taken straight from the pages of the Old Testament. Biblical Gideon was known as a modest and humble young man of the tribe of Manasseh. With the help of an angel, he was divinely called upon to save the Israelites from Midianite oppression. Before he could do this, he had to be tested to prove himself worthy for battle. God asked Gideon to destroy his father's alter to Baal and to cut down the sacred pole that stood with it. For this reason, the name Gideon means "Destroyer" or "Feller [of trees]" or even "One who cuts down".  It may also mean "Hewer" or "Great Warrior", depending on where you look. Many parents opt for biblical names for their sons, but for those who are tiring of the traditional Benjamin, James or Jacob, Gideon offers a fresh approach to naming. This name has began climbing the charts in recent years. It was always rather popular among the Puri...

by Vera Kratochvil Maybe you've noticed it, maybe you haven't, but there was a naming phenomenon that swept the country for the past decade until now. In 2011, more than 700,000 American baby boys had names that ended with the letter N. Maybe you haven't thought about it, but now you're able to recall all the little Aidens, Masons, Ethans and Jaydens that you know. With all the recent data released for 2012, it looks like the "era of the -n" is finally starting to wind down. The 5 fastest falling boy names last year all ended with N. Boys: 1. Jaden - Dropped by 40 ranks. (It went from #100 in 2011 to #140 in 2012.) 2.  Rylan  -Down by 33 ranks. (#146 in 2011 to #179 in 2012.) 3.  Ashton  -Fell 32 spots (#109 in 2011 to # 141 in 2012.) 4.  Hayden -Moved down 19 spots.  (#90 in 2011 to #109 in 2012.) 5. Justin - After 40+ years of popularity, it finally fell 15 ranks.  (#59 in 2011 to #74 in 2012.) Jaden has embarked on its journey down th...

I chose this name for my very first "Name of the Day!" It is one that I've recently discovered and fell in love with. The name Lavinia ranked on the Top 1000 chart from 1880-1929 and hasn't been seen since then! An old name that dates back to Roman Mythology, Lavinia was considered the mother of the Roman people. She was the wife of the Trojan hero Aeneas and he named the Town of Lavinium, Italy after her. In Literature, Lavinia was the protagonist's daughter in Shakespeare's "Titus Andronicus" which includes the line "She is Lavinia, therefore must be lov'd."  There is also a Lavinia in "The Hunger Games" series, which may have caught the eye of our younger name-enthusiasts! American actress Ava Lavinia Gardner wore the name gracefully during the Old Hollywood days.  Emily Dickinson's younger sister was known as Lavinia "Vinnie" Dickinson. And an Italian painter wore the name from 1552-1614, Lavinia Fo...

by Petr Kratochvil This is old news by now, but I thought I would post the Social Security Administration's Official Top 10 names for boys and girls in 2012. Boys: 1 Jacob 2 Mason 3 Ethan 4 Noah 5 William 6 Liam 7 Jayden 8 Michael 9 Alexander 10 Aiden Jacob has been sitting at the top since 1999. Interestingly, the actual amount of babies being named Jacob has declined over the years despite the name holding steady at the #1 rank. In 1998, roughly 1.8% of boys born were named Jacob, and it was still second to Michael on the charts. In 2011, slightly less than 1% of all baby boys born were named Jacob, and the name still held its top rank. It was higher than 1% in 1990 when the name originally began its ascent to the throne. The reason for this has been described as the "name diversity revolution". More and more names are being used that are not on the top 100 so the "top names" aren't used as frequently as they might have been a couple de...

Thank you for visiting us here at The Art of Naming!  First, let me introduce myself. My name is Kara and I have been a self-proclaimed "name nerd" for many years. While there is always more to learn, my fascination with names has finally led me to do something more than browse naming websites. I decided to start this blog/forum so that I can not only personally share my opinions on names, but also help others find the perfect name for their children.  My goal with this blog is to help broaden the general public's naming horizons. Many people stick to familiar or popular names, and while there is nothing wrong with that, I want to expose others to names that are a bit more unique or underused. Therefore, this blog is dedicated to discussing and analyzing everything having to do with names. I also have a forum section that allows you to post your own questions and thoughts. I believe that community and interaction are important. Sometimes, it truly takes a village! ...