November 6th, 2009
Looking through the birth announcements in the Scottish newspapers of the last few months-a site which also sometimes include the regions just below the Scottish border and the Isle of Man–a couple of prominent trends jump out.
First of all it’s the nickname names, which right now seem to be even more prevalent in Scotland than in England, for both girls and boys, with a plethora of Ellies and Evies, Alfies and Archies. Here is a list of recent ones, with some of the middle names attached to them (separated by slashes):
girls
CHARLEE
CHARLI
ELLIE May
EMMIE
EVIE May/Rose/Elizabeth/Harriet
(Alexa) GEORGIE
GRACIE May
IZZY Henderson
JOSIE Mo
LIBBY May
LOTTIE Aoife (pron. EE-fa) Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: baby name trends, boy baby names, ethnic baby names, girl baby names, middle names, popular baby names, popular names, popular Scottish names, Scottish baby names, Scottish boy names, Scottish girl names, unusual baby names
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Scottish baby names, Uncategorized, baby name popularity, ethnic baby names, exotic baby names, girl names, girls' names, international baby names, name popularity, name trends, nicknames, popular names, trendy baby names, unusual baby names |
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November 5th, 2009

We’ve been scrutinizing your responses to our recent survey, in particular the question that asked what you’d like to see more of on nameberry, with an eye to accommodating your suggestions. Quite a few responders put in requests for more ethnic names— with pronunciations—and a couple took note of our blog on birth announcements in the London Times, interested in seeing similar subjects, which Pam will be updating soon.
So, since we aim to please, this time we are taking a look at announcements in the Irish Times over the past few months–the ethnic and not-so-ethnic names found there–with pronunciations when needed.
The current batch of newborn names in Ireland shows a typical mix of Anglo-Saxon classics (especially for boys), modern Irish standards , and the old Gaelic names that have been revived and become fashionable in recent years, as well as some internationally trendy choices. Below are some of the more interesting, with pronunciations where useful–bearing in mind that they change from region to region (and reference book to reference book).
GIRLS
Among the currently most popular girls’ names are Emily, Lucy, Isabel (and Isabelle, Isabella and Isobel), and Grace, with several appearances of Hazel and Sophia/Sofia , Rose and Ruby. Leading middle names in this sampling appear to be Elizabeth, Grace, Rose, Louise, May and Maeve.
Here, some of the more unusual choices–including some interesting combos:
AMELIE Rose
ANNA Catriona (kat-REE-na) Monica
AOIFE (EE-fa)
ARABELLA Elizabeth
ASHLING Elizabeth
AVA Maeve
BEVIN
BRONA Rose
CAMILLE Ita
CAOIMHE (KEEV-eh) Nadine Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: boys' names, Celic baby names, Celtic, Chloe, Ciara, classic baby names, current baby names, ethnic baby names, Finn, Gaelic baby names. new Irish names, girls' names, Irish baby names, Irish names for boys, Irish names for girls, Isabella, Lily, Maeve, Oscar, popular names, Theo
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November 4th, 2009
First of all, we want to thank all of you who took the time to reply to our survey and for your thoughtful responses. We were gratified by the results in many ways, not least in demonstrating the widespread reach of nameberry—we heard not only from such primarily English-speaking countries as Canada, the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and Tasmania, but also from readers from as far afield as Mexico, Brazil, the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, Norway, Israel, Bulgaria, United Arab Emirates, and Korea.
One thing that was especially gratifying to us was the number of people who answered the question “What else would you like to see on nameberry?” with phrases like ”Nothing–just keep doing what you’re doing” and “It’s perfect as it is” and “Nameberry is by far the best baby-name site out there!” Thanks!
Also heartwarming to us was the fact that the greatest percentage of people checked the option ‘It’s more original and more wide-ranging than any other site” and that the feature rated number one was the blogs. But to those who asked for more of them–as in seven days a week–all we can say is ay-yi-yi!–we’re pedaling as fast as we can as it is!
As for the rest of the suggestions for the site, we’re parsing them carefully with an eye to their feasibility, especially those on the tech side. As might be expected, there were a few contradictory requests –more authors’ opinions vs more strictly objective information, more attention to celebrity babies vs. less, etc. We’ve already begun to add more ethnic names–with pronunciations–to the data base, as per several requests, and taken note of the fact that some felt boys’ names weren’t getting their fair share of attention. For the rest, we’ll continue to sift and sort and accommodate as much as we can. You had tons of good ideas.
A couple of requests we’re afraid we can’t fulfill, however–those from the people who requested “free beer” and “virtual chocolate.” Welll…maybe we can manage the virtual chocolate.
Tags: baby name ideas, baby name pronunciations, baby names, nameberry survey, nameberry survey results
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November 3rd, 2009
Guest blogger Susan Chesney writes about the evocative place and nature names of the California desert.
One of my favorite places is the California desert, because in that silent place there are many secrets. Most people drive through the desert as fast as they can with their windows up, radios blaring, and air conditioners on. They don’t know about the gray-green sagebrush that grows in little clumps away from the highway, and that hidden among the clumps might be a bleached antler, lying in the sand. What if they knew that outside the town of Bishop, there are several hot ditches, natural and soothing hot springs, waiting to be soaked in, free of charge? Or what about this secret: that the desert is unpolluted– there is very little trash and the skies are a deep blue. I love the mirage effect out in the desert. There is a blend of haze and heat that shimmers and is mystical. In the movie “Lawrence of Arabia”, when asked why he loves the desert, Lawrence replies, “Because it’s clean.”
Among the precious secrets of the California desert is the treasure trove of names that dot the landscape along with the cactus, lizards, and Joshua trees. There are little towns, rivers, lakes, hills, plants, animals and even colors in the desert that can provide inspiration for babies’ names. Some of these names are comfy or even popular like Owen and Joshua. Others are vintage, offbeat and quirky such as Aberdeen and Rosamond. So let’s wander out under the cottonwood trees that grow next to the crick (creek), set up some lawn chairs, and talk about California desert names.
Some place names from the California Desert:
ALABAMA – the Alabamas, hills that are older than the High Sierras
ABERDEEN – Aberdeen trailer park
BERNARDINO – San Bernardino County, goes all the way to the Nevada border
BISHOP – biggest town in the Owens valley
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: California desert names, California names, cool baby names, desert names, place names, Susan Chesney, unique baby names, unusual baby names
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November 2nd, 2009
Max, the name of both the child hero and the young actor who plays him in Where The Wild Things Are, is one of the hottest boys’ names these days.
Max can stand on its own or may be a short form of the ancient Roman name Maximus, which means “greatest,” or of Maximilian or Maxwell. It’s one of the down-to-earth cigar-chomping grandpa names last popular a hundred years ago and enjoying a huge revival now. Like brothers Sam and Jake, Max is unpretentious and friendly but also sounds cool.
Celebrities led the way in launching the revival of the name, starting in the late 70s and early 80s. Stars who are the parents of now-grown kids named Max include Dustin Hoffman, Henry Winkler, Steven Spielberg, and Nora Ephron & Carl Bernstein.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: baby name Max, baby names from books, baby names from movies, celebrity baby names, character Max, Max Records, name Max, name Max means, names from songs, names from television, popularity of Max, television character names, Where the Wild Things Are
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