The Art of Naming

The male name Diederick is the Dutch form of the Germanic name Theodoric. Both mean "ruler of the people". Theodoric is completely different than the similar sounding Greek name Theodore which means "gift of God". There was a Theodoric the Great in the 6th-century who became the ruler of Italy. He was also called Theodoricus but the original Gothic version of the name may have been Þiudreiks which is where Diederick comes from. Pronounced DEE-də-rik, this cool and unusual Dutch name has some equally cool counterparts in other languages like Theoderich, Derek, Derrick, Dirk, Thierry, Tiede, Dierk, Dietrich, Thilo, Tielo and Tudor. However, as a baby name in the USA, Diederick is unexplored territory. There are zero births on record since records were first kept in 1880. Since the Social Security Administration does not report births for a name unless there was at least 5 in one year, it's possible that there have been a few boys named Diederick born in ...

Just like last week's post about boy names from 1920, here are some wonderful vintage classics for girls as well as some names that are no longer very fashionable. It is interesting to see how many names remain popular over time and how many have returned to the limelight after a vacation from the Top 1000. Which of these do you like most? Enduring Classics Names that are in the Top 100 for both 1920 and 2013 and have always been within the Top 1000: Elizabeth #8 in 1920 #10 in 2013 Anna #10 in 1920 #35 in 2013 Evelyn #12 in 1920 #20 in 2013 Lillian #18 in 1920 #26 in 2013 Ruby #26 in 1920 #93 in 2013 Grace #37 in 1920 #22 in 2013 Katherine #45 in 1920 #77 in 2013 Emma #46 in 1920 #2 in 2013 Sarah #50 in 1920 #48 in 2013 Julia #55 in 1920 #75 in 2013 Eva #58 in 1920 #88 in 2013 Charlotte #79 in 1920 #11 in 2013 Lucy #94 in 1920 #66 in 2013 Returning Vintage Faves Names that were within the Top 200 in 1920 but fell out of ...

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...