The Art of Naming

The year 1920 was big and booming for many baby names. I thought it would be fun to take a look at a few different categories of names from 1920 and see how they compare to the recent 2013 list. Enduring Classics Names in the Top 100 both in 1920 and 2013: John #1 in 1920 #27 in 2013 William #2 in 1920 #5 in 2013 Robert  #3 in 1920 #62 in 2013 James #4 in 1920 #13 in 2013 Charles #5 in 1920 #57 in 2013 Joseph #7 in 1920 #20 in 2013 Thomas #11 in 1920 #61 in 2013 Henry #17 in 1920 #37 in 2013 Jack #20 in 1920 #40 in 2013 David #25 in 1920 #18 in 2013 Anthony #43 in 1920 #19 in 2013 Samuel  #44 in 1920 #25 in 2013 Andrew #49 in 1920 #22 in 2013 Michael #50 in 1920 #7 in 2013 Daniel #52 in 1920 #10 in 2013 Benjamin #83 in 1920 #14 in 2013 These names just keep hanging in there as the years pass by. Other names have not been so lucky. Faded Memories Names in the Top 100 in 1920 that are no longer in the Top...

If you are expecting a child and dreaming of a name with double letters within it, this is your ultimate resource.  This list contains baby girl names that contain the letter sequences "ee", "ll", "nn", "rr", "ss", and "tt". You're sure to find a great double-lettered name here but keep in mind that this list doesn't feature every possible name out there, just some of the best options available! Which do you like most? Double-E Names:  Aberdeen, Absidee, Adalee, Adlee, Aileen, Aimee, Ainslee, Aleena, Aleesha, Alizee, Amalee, Amberlee, Ameera, Amelee, Analee, Andree, Andreea, Annalee, Anslee, Arleen, Ashlee, Aubree, Audree, Avalee, Aylee, Bailee, Baylee, Beverlee, Brailee, Brandee, Braylee, Bree, Breeanna, Breena, Breezy, Brilee, Brinlee, Brittnee, Brooklee, Brylee, Brynnlee, Cailee, Caitee, Cambree, Carlee, Carolee, Cassadee, Cathleen, Caylee, Ceegan, Charlee, Charleen, Chelsee, Colleen, Coralee, Cree, Creeda, Cydne...

An easy resource for parents in search of a specific name. This post features double-letter names, specifically boy names that contain the repetitive letter sequences "ll",  "nn", "rr", "ss", "tt". If you're trying to fit a sib-set that consists of names with double-letters in them, here are some of the best options: Double-L Boy Names: Achilles, Allen, Allison, Antonello, Apollo, Ardell, Averill, Ballard, Bellamy, Billy, Bramwell, Caldwell, Callahan, Callan, Callaway, Callisto, Callum, Campbell, Cavell, Cillian, Clellan, Collin, Connell, Cullen, Cyrill, Dallas, Dashiell, Darnell, Darrell, Dillion, Donatello, Donnell, Ellery, Elliott, Ellis, Ellison, Farrell, Fitzwilliam, Gallagher, Guillermo, Gulliver, Haskell, Holland, Hollis, Howell, Jarrell, Kellan, Kellen, Keller, Kelly, Kendall, Killian, Llewellyn, Lloyd, Lowell, Lyall, Macallister, Marcell, Marshall, Maximillian, Maxwell, Merrill, Millan, Miller, Mitchell, Neill, Niall, Ol...

Birth announcements can be even more telling of what names are actually being used than even the most official lists of statistics and data. The US Top 1000 chart may show the most popular names, one spelling of that name at at time, but it does not make any mention of middle names. I like to see name combinations: firsts and middles put together. Like I mentioned in last month's birth announcement list, the middle names that many people seem to use are rather common or "filler". I'd like to do another quick tally of the repeated middle names on today's list: Girls:  Ann: 2 Elizabeth: 3 Louise: 2 Lynn: 2 Marie: 3 Rose: 8 Did you see all those Roses? It seems to be a very popular choice! And then there's the adorable and old-fashioned middles like Sue, Joan, and Mae. Which of the following names do you like best? Girls: Aerabella Lee Adley Ann Anastasia Rose Aniyah Rose Aria Rose Aubrey Virginia Brynn Renee Carly Rae Catherin Marceline ...

To round out Italian Week, let's take a look at a lovely Italian girl name: Luciana. This name not only has Italian usage, but also Spanish, Portuguese and Ancient Roman.  It is the feminine form of the Latin Lucianus which is a Roman family name. It is derived from Lucius which comes from the Latin word lux meaning "light" . For girls, names like Lucia, Lucilla, Lucetta, Lucinda, Lucienne and Lucy are all related to Luciana. Male variations include Luciano, Lucianus, Lucius, Lucio and Lucian.  Of these, Lucia is hot in Spain. Luciana has a couple different pronunciations. The Italians say loo-CHAH-nah and the Spanish will say loo-THYAH-nah or loo-SYAH-nah. You'll probably hear the last one most in the US. In the US, Luciana has occasionally been used since 1897. It was very sporadic and with only a handful of births per year until there was a sudden boost from 1974-1977.  1976 was the biggest year with 317 births and a ranking of #546. Luciana has onl...

Family is very important in Italy. So much so that there has been a very strong custom in place for how parents are expected to name their children. The first male is named after his paternal grandfather. The second male is named after his maternal grandfather. The first female is named after her paternal grandmother. The second female is named after her maternal grandmother. Any further children would then be named either for their parents, for a favorite aunt or uncle, for a saint, or for a deceased relative. There are always exceptions to this custom but this is typically the pattern that has been traditionally in use. If there was a child who died at a young age, for instance the first born son Emilio, his name would probably be reused for the next boy that was born in order to honor his paternal grandfather Emilio again. Sometimes if the first born was a girl, they'd use a female variation of the paternal grandfather's name. The pattern wasn't always follo...

Welcome to Italian week! On Wednesday, we'll look at Italian baby naming traditions, and Friday will bring a lovely girls name. Today, we're looking at the Italian boy name Lorenzo. Lorenzo is actually both the Italian and Spanish form of the Latin Laurentius or Laurence . This name means "from Laurentum" which is a city in ancient Italy probably derived the Latin word laurus meaning "laurel".   In history, Lorenzo de Medici was the ruler of Florence during the Renaissance. He was known as the Magnificent and was a patron of the arts. He actually employed great artists such as Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Botticelli and others. Click here to view other namesakes in history. Lorenzo currently ranks #4 in Italy and short-form Enzo ranks at #4 in France.  Renzo is another nickname option or even Leo. This name has always done fairly well in the US too! It is one of those exotic but not too exotic choices that parents love. Since 1880, Lorenzo...