Our 10th Anniversary: Bravo for the Berries!
By Emma Waterhouse aka Katinka
Celebrating ten years of the wonderful community YOU helped to create
When Nameberry first started life a decade ago, little did anyone know that it would soon grow to become the biggest (and best, natch) baby name website in the world. Now with nearly 70,000 names in our extensive database — many of them suggested by our very own knowledgeable members — and new lists, articles and discussions created every day, it’s a truly exhilarating project to be a part of.
So what’s the secret to Nameberry’s success? Well, aside from our hard work and winning personality, we firmly believe that a key reason is… YOU!
The term “Berry” was coined very early on in the site’s history, by none other than the Berries themselves: our fantastic community of name aficionados, followers, and friends. And, just like the community, the word quickly expanded to encompass and embrace everyone from Teenberries to Momberries, Britberries to Babyberries.
That openness and inclusivity remains at the heart of the Berry community, and it’s the single, standout aspect of the site that has most surprised (and delighted) all of us in the ten years of Nameberry’s operation. From the very first weeks and months, name-lovers of all ages and from all over the world found each other and formed real and lasting friendships; supporting and sustaining each other through the tough times as well as celebrating the happy ones.
The kindness, compassion, and impressive knowledge that the Berries consistently demonstrate — whether towards long-time members or first-time posters, expectant parents or teenage dreamers — is a real point of pride for Linda and Pam and the rest of us in terms of how the site has evolved over the past decade. To so many members, Nameberry has been about much more than just baby names (though it’s still of course our primary focus) And that’s all due to you: our brilliant Berries.
So bravo for the Berries! A huge and heartfelt thank you to all of you for helping to keep Nameberry ticking, and here’s to the next glorious decade together.
In the spirit of celebration, today we’re highlighting the very best of Berry-created content over the past decade: from fantastic Forums topics, to brilliant baby name lists, to great guest blogs by the Berries themselves. There are far too many to choose from, but here (in no particular order) are ten of our favorites in each category:
10 Riveting Forums Topics
Outhip the Hipsters: Can you get cooler than cool?
Names That Make You Go WOW: You had us at Evangeline Xanthe…(one of the longest-running topics!)
The GP Name Court: Give your weirdest and wildest name crushes a fair trial!
Name Awards: The Oscars for baby names? We could get behind that.
Think/Say: What we’re really thinking.
Lend Us Your Voice: Hear how your favorites sound around the world!
The One About Usernames: How did you come up with yours?
What Were You Almost Named?: The ones that got away…
Alphabetical Family Challenge: Who knew there were so many great U, X and Y names?
Nameberry Memes: Warning: you will lose several hours on here!
10 Amazing User-Created Lists
The Ultimate Color Name List: Ultimate is right! Alizarin and Amaranth to Zinc and Zaffre.
Bohemian Boy: Beautiful boy names with a touch of bravado.
Enchantment Girls: These are the ones they write ballads about.
Punk Rock Names For Cool Kids: Because an Iggy could only be insanely cool.
Not Gender-Neutral… Yet: Some plausible girl-boy crossover candidates?
Celestial Names: Taking to the skies for inspiration.
Names That Start And End With The Same Letter: Peppy possibilities with a pleasing symmetry.
Cowboy/Western: Hipster hillbilly — who knew that would ever be a thing?!
Vintage Girls Mega-List: From the sweetly old-fashioned to the solidly medieval.
Names By Nickname: Every full name for every nickname you could possibly think of — and then some!
10 Superlative Guest Blogs
Secret Identity Nicknames: How about Tim, short for Septimus?
The Four Varieties Of Hipster Names: We’re all a little bit hipster here — which type are you?
Children’s Book Baby Names: From Peter to Pippi to Pollyanna.
Confessions Of A Name Snob: When baby-naming becomes a competitive sport…
Three Cheers For The Teenberries: A fitting tribute to our youngest members.
The 100 Poshest Names In Britain: Leonoras and Tarquins and Bertrams — oh my!
Good-Intention Baby Naming: Because meaning can be so much more than etymology.
What’s In A Nym?: Nameberry goes meta: a fun look at the various names for… well, names.
Fictional Villain Names: Outrageously awesome options outside the Top 1000 (probably for good reason…)
Five Ways To Get Dads Excited About Baby Names: Spread the love!
So much great content, and all thanks to you!
And now, a quick Question of the Week for you: What else would you add? We’d love to hear your own favorite examples from all of the above categories, or even nominations for Berries who you think particularly deserve a shout-out. Tell us in the comments below, and share the Berry love!