The Art of Naming

This awesome photo was borrowed from this awesome blog. I do not normally recommend place names unless you've personally been to that place and it holds sentimental value for you, or your family hails from there. That being said, here is a long list of places around the world that could work as a first name. Boy and Girl options are mixed together. Please keep in mind that some places are nicer than others and some places have strong history associated with it. Do your research carefully before you commit to using any of these names. Abilene Adelaide Africa Alabama Alamo Albany Andorra Aquitaine Arabia Aragon Argentina Aspen Asia Assisi Atlanta Austin Austria Avalon Baja Berlin Bimini Bolivia Boston Brasilia Brazil Bristol Brooklyn Bronx Cairo Calais Caledonia Camden Carolina Caspian Catalina Cathay Cayman Ceylon Charleston Charlotte Chelsea Cheyenne China Cluny Colombia Corsica Cuba Cyprus Dakota Dallas Danube ...

The Boy Name of the Week has both mythical and celestial associations to it. Orion is the name of a constellation of stars. Most visible to the naked eye is a line of three stars that form Orion's belt. The constellation was named after a legendary Greek hunter who is said to have been killed by a scorpion that was sent by Gaia.  However, here are many different tales about Orion and his origins in mythology. The name Orion does not have a known meaning, but could be related to the Greek ‘οριον' (horion) which means "boundary" or "limit". Orion has ranked in the US since 1880 but it was extremely rare and hardly used until it began gaining a bit of momentum in the 70s. It landed on the top 1000 chart for the first time in 1991 at #995 then fell back off for two years. Starting in 1994, this name has been on an upward trajectory!  In 2012, there were 673 baby boys named Orion which ranked the name at #419. There were also 21 female births in 2012....

Snow? Rose? Winter? Photo taken by me. I previously featured girl names that are inspired by flowers and trees. I thought I would find even more options for both genders that come from nature. Included on this list are baby names that are inspired by flowers, trees, fruit, water, weather, the earth and even animals! There is a great variety here and you're sure to find one that you love! Nature names have increased in popularity lately as parents look for bold, unconventional name options. Which of these cool options is your favorite? Did I miss any? Amber Apple Aqua Arbor Ash Aspen Avis Azalea Basil Bay Beach Berry Birch Blossom Briar Brook Calla Canyon Cedar Cerise Cherry Citron Clay Clementine Cliff Clover Cobalt Coral Crane Cricket Dahlia Daisy Delta Dove Dune Elm Emerald Falcon Feather Fern Field Fjord Flint Flora Forest Fox Frost Gardener Garland Garnet Glen Grove Harbor Hawk Huckleberry Iris Isle I...

In honor of my post featuring "cool girl names," the Girl's Name of the Week is a lovely Greek name that means "prophetess".  With the recent popularity of the TV show Downton Abbey , the name of the Crawley's youngest daughter has been on the minds' of American parents.  Sybil was nearly forgotten until now, but it doesn't appear to be climbing back up the charts just yet. Sybil was not originally a name, but an ancient Greek word for a woman who claimed the ability to foresee that which most people could not. These prophetesses were thought to have divine knowledge and were revered. Despite its origins as a word, the name itself its uniquely beautiful. It can also be spelled Sibyl or Cybill, and there are many international variations such as Sibylla or Sybille.  This spelling, Sybil, has been around since the middle ages where it saw common usage among Christians.  It was later taken to England by the Normans but became extremely rare after...

Finding the perfect name can be a struggle. After all, you want to find something that is pleasing to the ear. Perhaps what you need is to find a "cool name" that would impress your friends and give your child that unique edge. This is a list of "cool names for girls."  Of course, everyone's opinion differs, but you may just find what you're looking for here: Maisie? Sabra? Albany Amabel Ambrosia Annora Anouk Asia Augustina Austen Branwen Caia Celestia Cerys Cicely Clementina Clio Corinne Cornelia Delaney Domenica Electra Eleonora Elspeth Federica Finola Fleur Guinivere Henrietta Honora Ione Isadora Isolde Jacinta Katerina Lark Lenore Leonie Lilou Lola Lucienne Lux Mabel Maisie Mireille November Olive Olympia Ondine Paz Philomena Phoebe Pippa Rafaella Sabra Saffron Sasha Saskia Snow Sybil Tansy Tempest Trudy True Valentine Willa Xaviere Zandra Do you like any of these? Can y...

The Boy's Name of the Week is the bold and playful Felix.  Beyond "Felix the Cat," this is a Latin name that means "happy and fortunate". Felix has been the name of four popes and a whopping 67 saints! A biblical Felix was the governor of Judea who imprisoned Saint Paul.  In Ancient Roman times, General Sulla adopted the name Felix because he felt as though the gods blessed him with luck and fortune. Felix has been all over various literature and films, too many to list. There are also many modern day examples and a couple celebrity babies. If you zoom out and look internationally, the name Felix is very diverse! It works well in Spanish, German, Austrian, Russian and Polish. It is also quite popular in England/Wales, Denmark, France, The Netherlands, Norway and Sweden. Here in the U.S., it is definitely picking up steam! It ranked at #316 in 2012 when 1,025 boys were born. There were even 15 female births, but Felix comes across as an all-boy name to...

If you are in need of a baby name and you don't really know how to narrow down your style and choose something, perhaps what you need is to find a "cool name" that would impress your friends and give your child that unique edge. You're in luck! This is a list of "cool names for boys."  Of course, everyone's opinion differs, but you may just find what you're looking for here: He's definitely an Ace or Cruz Ace August Ash Axel Bay Beau Beckett Blaze Booker Boone Breccan Calix Calloway Cashel Chance Chase Cliff Colt Cormac Crispin Cruz Damian Dash Dashiell Decimus Denim Diesel Donovan Draven Felix Fergus Finn Gunner Gus Guthrie Harley Homer Hudson Humphrey Hunter Inigo Ivo Jackson Jagger Jax Jett Justice King Knute Leonidas Lorcan Maddox Matteo Maximus Neo Nico Orion Ozias Pierce Pilot Ranger Ransom Rowan Ryder Ryker Sargent Sayer Steele Stone Storm Taj Talon West ...