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

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Nameberry intern and guest blogger Danielle Miksza loves all things vampire, including the strange and wonderful world of vampire baby names.  She enlightens us on the options.

Vampires seem to be everywhere these days: in books and movies, on television and the internet, even occasionally living next door.  As a twenty year-old who believes Halloween should be declared a national holiday, I can’t help but be consumed by the vampire craze.

One reason for my vampire obsession is that they are portrayed as dark and lonely creatures nobody quite understands.  As an only child, I was often lonely growing up.  I did odd things such as talk to myself or giggle at absolutely nothing.  People were a bit unnerved by me and kept their distance.  So yes, when I read about a vampire feeling like an outcast from the rest of the world, I have an idea of what that feels like.

More reasons for my vampire fanaticism: I stay up all night; I hate the sunlight, and garlic does not agree with me. Who knows? I could be a bit of a vampire myself.

Once you look past the fangs and blood lust, vampires are actually quite attractive. Who could resist a guy with incredible strength, gorgeous eyes, pointy yet very white teeth, and a handsome name? Stephenie Meyer gave us girls one of the greatest gifts of all in her series Twilight: Edward Cullen. Just the thought of that immortal makes me light-headed. He’s rich. He’s gorgeous. And he’s telepathic. How often do you come across guys like that?

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Journalist and New York City mom Laura Dunphy reports that the pressure is on for Gotham parents to choose baby names that are more creative, more unusual, cooler than those anyone else is using. But no matter how hard you try, you still might not make it.

Ah, New York, New York.  If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere.  And if you can name your baby here without needing therapy or Xanax, then I applaud you.

That’s because like everything else in NYC, baby naming is intense.  If most people think naming children is a pleasant activity, like badminton or a picnic, Manhattanites treat it as a competitive sport, like rugby or bond trading.

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Names from television and movie Westerns sometimes got a lot more adventurous than Josh and Jesse. In fact, Westerns are responsible for reviving scores of antiquated classics that might otherwise have disappeared completely, along with introducing unconventional animal and word names as firsts. Some Western character names from the classic shows and movies of the 50s and 60s that sound fresh and new, if a bit quirky, today:

ABELIA
ABIHU
ALBEN
AMELITA
AMOS
ARTOLA
ASH
AXEL
BARKER
BARN
BEAR
BO
BODIE
BOONE
CICERO
CLAY
CLEM
LAMBERT
LINUS
MOSS
NEWLY
PERCY
QUINT
RUFUS
THAD
WADE
ZEBULON

The newest Western names draw heavily on the place itself, or on Western-themed words. Some choices that have been used in the post-Bonanza world:

Boys

AUSTIN
DALLAS
DENVER
HOUSTON
MAVERICK
RIO
ROPER
RYDER
WEST

Girls

ARIZONA
CHEYENNE
NEVADA
SCOUT
SHILOH
SIERRA

Either

CANYON
DAKOTA
LARAMIE
PHOENIX
RENO

Cowboy names first galloped onto the scene in the 1950s and 1960s, along with the cool Western TV shows and movies of the era.  A lot of these were Old Testament names that had not been heard much since, well, since the real Old West.  Some of the early choices that launched a trend that’s still going strong:

ADAM – - Bonanza

BARNABY — Wagon Train

BART — Maverick

BEAU — Wells Fargo, Maverick

BEN –Bonanza

BRENT — Maverick

BRET — Maverick

CALEB  — Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

CHEYENNE — Cheyenne

EPHRAIM — Seven Brides

FLINT — Wagon Train

GIDEON — Seven Brides

JARROD — Big Valley

JASON — Wanted: Dead or Alive; Here Come the Brides

JEB — Wells Fargo

JED – - Rawhide; How The West Was Won

JEREMY — Here Come the Brides

JOSH — Wanted: Dead or Alive

JOSHUA — Here Come the Brides

LUCAS — Rifleman

LUKE — How the West Was Won

MATT — Gunsmoke

SETH — Wagon Train

SHANE — Shane

SIMON — Rawhide

ZEB — How The West Was Won

Females and their names were in short supply in the Old West, split between hardy pioneer women and dance hall girls. Their names help you tell which was which:

ALICE — Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

BELLE — Wells Fargo

BIDDIE — Here Come the Brides

CANDY –Here Come the Brides

DORCAS — Seven Brides 

EVE — How The West Was Won

JULIE — How The West Was Won

KITTY — Gunsmoke

LIZA — Seven Brides

MARTHA — Seven Brides

MILLY — Seven Brides

SARAH — Seven Brides

Tomorrow: Names for thoroughly modern cowbabies.