Ever notice how some stylish names are the new versions of other names that got too hot too fast?

Felix, for instance, is the new Oscar, one of those poor names that flamed out almost before anybody noticed it was heating up.  Parents who might have chosen Oscar a couple of years ago are now looking for something more surprising, more distinctive, something like….Felix.

Ironic, because Oscar itself was kind of the new Gus, which was the new Max, which was the new Sam, which took over for such earthy boys’ names as Joe and Jim and Tom.  Emilia is the new Emma, which took over for Emily.

Edison is the new Addison, which a couple of years ago was the new Madison.  And Madison was kind of the new Allison AND the new Madeline.

Arabella is the new Isabella, Ezra the new Elijah, Ada the new Ava.  Jaxon is the new Jackson, which took over for Jack, a substitute for both Jake and Johnny.

Some of the new versions have a long lineage: Kate is the fresher version of Katelyn, which was for quite a while the new Kathleen, which was the new Katherine, which at some point way back when was undoubtedly the new Kate.

It can even be hard to see the connection between the original name and its newer substitute: Helen lies deep within Haley, for example, and Lee in Liam, John in Jonah, Mary in Mariah.

Anybody else see new names rising from the ashes of older favorites?

We made waves recently by writing a piece for The Daily Beast about Hipster Names.  Almost universally, the cry went up: Oh no! I’ve given my baby a hipster name!  “I have a one-year-old named Matilda,” one mom wrote.  “I hate you.”

Ooops, sorry.  We love the name Matilda.  Really!  We’re just a little confused about why hipster has become such a dirty word.

Or not.  I mean, we do get it, in a way.  There’s something sneering, something dismissive about branding someone or something “hipster.”  It connotes the feeling that someone (or something) is trying too hard to be cool, which of course is the definition of uncool.

On the other hand, what are you supposed to do: be deliberately uncool?  Call your kid Jennifer, or Jean, or something that thumbs its nose at the entire planet of style?

Would not caring about style lead you to a transcendentally cool name?  Or a thoroughly uncool one?

Insert deep sigh here.

The real question on many parents’ minds: How do you choose a name that’s genuinely stylish and interesting but that’s neither too hipsterish or too uncool?

Let’s play (and for you Message Board fans, this would make a great Name Game):

Hipster: OSCAR

Uncool: ORIN

Sweet: OZIAS, O’BRIEN, OMAR?

——————————————

Too cool: EVA

Uncool: EILEEN

Sweet: ESTELLE, EMER, EUDORA?

—————————————–

Hipster: ATTICUS

Uncool: JULIUS

Sweet: CAIUS, HORATIO, TARQUIN?

—————————————–

Hipster: JUNE, AUGUST

Uncool: APRIL

Sweet: MAY, MONDAY, EASTER?

—————————————–

Too cool: LENNON

Uncool: STARR

Sweet: GEORGE, PAUL, ROCK?

—————————————–

When it comes to calling the sweet spot, we’re not always that sure of ourselves either — or in agreement.  (After I posted this, Linda emailed me, Estelle?  Really???) We’d love to hear your ideas on which names hit the sweet spot, and why.

Even vampire babies need names, and some name-thirsty nameberryans are only too ready to conjure up some Gothic choices.  Over on our message boards under Name Games, check out the Halloween-appropriate game: Name that Vampire Family.

The game and the names are hilarious….yet also strangely appealing. (Hmmmm, my teeth have been looking a little sharp lately, and I find myself feeling bizarrely most awake around midnight.)

Check the boards for our visitors’ vampire name ideas.  Some Halloween-themed additions of our own, to bestow upon a child at your own peril:

Girls

AMETHYST

ISOLDE

JINX

LENORE

LILITH

LUCRETIA

MERCY

MORDEA

OPHELIA

PERDITA

PHAEDRA

RAVEN

SCARLETT

Boys

ASH

BORIS

BRAM

DAMIAN

LAZARUS

LEOPOLD

MARIUS

NIGHT

PAGAN

SEVERUS

TALON

THORNE