The Art of Naming

Purple Primroses I got this week's featured name from the list of Colonial names that I posted on Tuesday! It was apparently used back then but it sure is rare now! There are many "Rose" names out there. Beyond just Rose, there are Rosa, Rosalie, Rosamund, Roseanne, Roselyn, Rosemary, Rosetta, Rosemarie, etc. I have never been a huge fan of any of these. And then I found Primrose.  It switches the "rose" to the end of the name and is an entirely different flower altogether than a rose, which I like! I'm one of those odd girls that do not like roses just because everyone else does. The primrose is very lovely, though, and comes in many colors!  (Don't let the name fool you! The Primrose flower comes from the family Primulaceae and is not closely related to the rose family Rosaceae.) This name was originally used as a Scottish surname but it ultimately derives from the Latin "prima rosa" which means "first rose". And as it...

The Freake Limner (American Colonial Era Painter, active 1670-c 1680) Mrs Elizabeth Freake and Baby Mary 1674 British Colonial America was a very important time in our history. They are the ones that started it all with a sense of freedom and independence. The ones who made the voyage over were discovering a whole new land and developing their own rules in their own new towns. They also had some interesting names, some of which you don't hear often today, and others that might just be cool enough to actually use again. These names were popular in colonial times, taken straight from the 18th century! Some of these overlap with the Biblical names list, and they seem to be much different than the names popular in England during the Victorian era. If you're looking for some cool, historical choices, perhaps you'll find a name that you like here! Boys:                              Abel Abiel Abijah Ab...

Source Have you ever wondered which beginning letters seem to be most popular when it comes to baby names? I know that I tend to favor a certain few letters and then there are those letters that continuously stump me when searching for a favorite or even one that I can tolerate.  Have you ever tried to pick a single favorite name for each letter of the alphabet? I cannot narrow down my favorites for A or C or E, but when I get to the tail-end of the alphabet, choosing a decent one seems to be an impossible task! It begs the question, why do we prefer these letters and side-step those ones? Does it have to do with the sounds? I see trends that favor soft letters like vowels and L's and M's, (think names like Lila and Emma). Are there letters that just have really, really bad name choices all bunched up together?  For instance, I was reminded of  this article that discusses F names and how there is only ONE in the entire Top 100 in 2012 but there were 9 in 1880. ...

The Name of the Week is my favorite from the list of Bird-Inspired names. I took it from the Peregrine Falcon, but the meaning of Peregrine doesn't actually have anything to do with the bird. This is a name that is rarely used in the US because many have viewed it as an eccentric and extravagant name. However it has been considered elegant and even aristocratic in England. It was historically chosen as the name of the first English child born in America. The child, Peregrine White, was born on the Mayflower at what is known today as the Provincetown Harbor in Massachusetts. Interestingly, he had a brother named Resolved. Peregrine is also the name of several early saints, most notably Saint Peregrine Laziosi, the Patron Saint of Cancer Patients. The name comes from the Late Latin name Peregrinus which means "traveler" and more recently "pilgrim". The Italian form of the name is Pellegrino which you may recognize as a brand of mineral water, San Pellegri...

Source The following is a list of names that are inspired by birds! In some cases, the name may be a color name that describes the color of the bird like Scarlet and Tawny. In other cases, it is the name of the person who either discovered the bird or had the bird named after them like Tristram's Starling and Elliot's Pheasant.  Of course there are the cool, common ones like Falcon and Wren. Take a look at the list and let me know which one of these you would consider using! Both male and female options are mixed together. Adelie (Adelie Penguin) Anna (Anna’s Hummingbird) Argus (Great Argus) Blue (Blue Jay) Blyth (Blyth’s Tragopan) Brent (Brent Goose) Brewer (Brewer's Blackbird) Cara (Caracara) Carolina (Carolina Wren) Cassin (Cassin's Finch) Clark (Clark's Grebe) Cliff (Cliff Swallow) Cooper (Cooper's Hawk) Corella (Little Corella) Cory (Cory's Shearwater) Dunlin Eagle Elliot (Elliot’s Pheasant) Emerald (Emera...

This poll from the sidebar of The Art of Naming blog closed quite a while ago! You voted! Now it is time to find out which of the five options won the poll!  Here are the contenders and the results: Emmeline  17 votes (32%) Ariadne  14 votes (26%) Calliope  8 votes  (15%) Bryony  7 votes (13%) Lavinia  6 votes  (11%) Let's learn more about each of these names!  Which is your favorite? Emmeline is a name that I fear is rising fast! With the popularity of Emma and Emily, as well as -line names like Caroline and Madeline, Emmeline seems like a shoo-in!  It is a French name that comes from German elements that mean "work."  It ranked just outside of the US Top 1000 in 2012 at #1078.  click here to read even more about this lovely choice.  Ariadne is an Ancient Greek name that means "most holy." I first heard it in the move Inception (Ellen Page's character) and I liked it right away for being different b...

The Girl Name of the Week is an African Name keeping in tradition of the past two blog posts. The name is Zola. First of all, this name is also a Literary Surname, taken by famous French-Italian writer Emile Zola  (1840-1902). This form of Zola tends to be feminine despite being a surname originally. However, it is said that this form of Zola does not have a known meaning as it may have been invented as a surname. Emile Zola's father's surname was actually Zolla.  Either way, it has been used occasionally in English-speaking countries since the 19th century. The version of the name that I'm featuring today is typically female when it is used as a first name, but it is sometimes used on African males as well. It is of Southern African or Zulu origin and it means "quiet or tranquil" in Zulu.  The name is on record for having been used in the US since 1880. Zola's biggest year was 1924 when 184 baby girls were born. Usage declined after the 20's but ...