Jacquie's French names, ooh la la

My friend Jacquie likes French-inspired names. She has a little boy named Oliver and a fun last name that begins with "La." She asked me to do some research on girls' names as they are mostly set on a boy's name. In my research I learned that one of the major characteristics of French names is that they are often hyphenated and if you are introduced to a Jean-Luc, call him Jean-Luc as Luc is not a middle name. There is a sibset in my playgroup named Anne-Sophie and Juliette and I just love those names. The hyphen is really growing on me, I've always liked names like Mary Kate (who doesn't live the Olsen twins?) and French names roll off the tongue so much easier than English names with all their hard vowels.

My French list, with their ranking according to 2007's Social Security baby names list.

Adele (n/a)
Adrienne (751)
Amelie (758)
Avril (n/a)
Belle (n/a)
Camille (306)
Claire (66)
Charlotte (102)
Collette (n/a)
Coralie (n/a)
Elise (225)
Eloise (n/a)
Elodie (n/a)
Emmaline (n/a)
Estelle (n/a)
Genevieve (344)
Helene (n/a)
Isabelle (79)
Jocelyn (50)
Josephine (224)
Mallory (247)
Margaux (Margo) (n/a)
Mirabelle (n/a)
Mirielle (n/a)
Natalie (17)
Noelle (504)
Penelope (412)
Renee (709)
Sophie (82)
Violette (n/a, but Violet is 231)
Vivienne (n/a, but Vivian is 210)

So it seems that French names are not popular right now. I'll have to keep that in mind, even though we aren't French, I am sure my in-laws would love it if we named a girl Marie-Elise, accent marks included. They still have trouble with Ciaran (Kieran in the English spelling) and Bennett (which is phonetic).

Good luck Jacquie! I hope my list gets your naming juices flowing. Hyphen! Hyphen! ;)

Reworking the top 20 boy names

I took the list from the SSA's site, but it may be a little off as they do not combine multiple spellings--so Caden/Kaden/Kayden are all listed as individual names. So if you like something from the top 20 but are uneasy about your child being Alex S. for the rest of his life, here are some options. I will say that I do have a James (15 in 2007) and I've only met a couple little boys in the last four years that share his name. I know more little boys named Aiden/Aidan/Aden but it is not listed in the top 20. Aiden is 27, Aidan is 54 and Adan/Aydan/Aedan are in the upper hundreds.

And here we go.

1. Jacob
Colby, Jace, Jax
2. Michael
Micah, Malachy
3. Ethan
Ewan, Everett
4. Joshua
Jude, Judah, Elijah
5. Daniel
Dashiell, Dane, Dante
6. Christopher
Christian, Topher, Chase, Christoff
7. Anthony
Anton, Theo, Asher
8. William
Liam, Wills, Wilson
9. Matthew
Mathias, Mattingly, Mateo
10. Andrew
Anderson, Anders, Drew
11. Alexander
Xander, Maxim, Alton
12. David
Davis, Davin, Dayton
13. Joseph
Josiah, Joel, Joaquin
14. Noah
Moses, Thaddeus, Jerimiah
15. James
Jameson, Seamus, Lane
16. Ryan
Orion, Ryder
17. Logan
Finn, Landen, Brogan
18. Jayden
Jordan, Julian, Braylon
19. John
Ian, Sean, Evan
20. Nicholas
Nico, Nixon, Silas

Holy biblical names! Almost every name in the top 20 (minus Ryan, Logan and Jayden) is either a saint's name or from the Bible. I used James and Jude in my kids' names, so obviously I have a penchant for the apostles. If we have another boy some day, chances are we'd go more the Irish-Gaelic route and skip the top 200 if possible.

Camille's baby names

Woot woot! This is my first official email request. Camille said someone posted a link to my blog on a TTC site, that's very exciting to me. That means I am just a little tiny bit famous. However, my snob email is 99.5% spam so I missed her email until now. I just hope she's still pregnant. :)

Her oldest child is named Ethan Jay. If this baby is a boy, his middle name will be Aaron. Her husband likes two syllable names. She likes names that are a little different but classic.

If it's a girl, she wants a beautiful, classic but slightly different name--and something that looks good on a resume. I tried to stay out of the Social Security Administration's top 100 for both.

Her top boy names are Bryce, Cole, Brett and Blake.

Boy names
Zane
Reid
Blaise
Ashton
Beckett
Parker
Hudson
Holden
Dominic
Tucker
Maxwell
Dane
Bennett
Dylan
Weston
Wyatt
Noel
Miles
Samuel
Carter
...but my pick is Everett Aaron S. I think it sounds great with Ethan and it flows well with Aaron.

Girl names
Viviana
Elle
Willow
Cora
Alice
Elise
Lilia
Eleanor
Lola
Violet
Eve
Adele
Cecilia
Ashlinn
Lydia
Lorelei
Alia (ah-lee-uh)
Juliet
Amelie
Ariel

I think the girl names are all very romantical and pretty. Camille likes Ava, Alaina, Leila and Aspen so I worked from those inspirations. I can't pick a favorite of the girl names. Since most of them are two syllable names, I'd use a simple, sweet middle name like Anne, Jane, Rose, Hope, Grey or Grace and voila--we come up with gems like Willow Rose and Violet Anne.

Any winners, Camille?

Twins! Girls! Irish names!

I am a little (super) excited about this post. An old friend of mine is having twin girls (well, his wife is) and they are really into Gaelic/Celtic names. Twin girls. I am so very jealous. I'd love to have twins, let alone girl twins. Oh, to have twin girls--the names, the clothes, the accessories and decor would be 100 times cuter than anything I can scrape up for my boys. I can only put my kids in babylegs so many times before my husband starts to freak out about their 'man tights.'

Scott and Sarah like Kelsey, Riley, Norah, Kate, Lindsey and Claire already. So here are my recommendations, in no particular order.

Evelyn
Keira
Darcy
Fiona
Isla
Meara
Moira (!!)
Ainsley
Rory
Rowan
Ashlinn
Adair
Cara
Nola
Quinn

--Cute twin set names--
Riley and Ainsley
Norah and Quinn
Ashlinn and Ainsley
Evelyn (Evie) and Isla
Darcy and Lindsey
Keira and Norah


Or if you want some random great auntie inspired names, here's the list of my aunties:
Aine
Deira (pronounced dare-uh)
Moira
Clare
Constance
Mary
Rowena
Roberta
Bevin
Frances

The girls are due in the spring, I can't wait to update.

HayesW and Julie B. *update*

They had their babies!

Hayes named her baby Joseph and Julie had a baby boy, named William "Liam" Peter.

Congrats to both! Welcome to this wild world, baby boys.

Julie B's list

Julie has very specific name criteria. This is a surprise baby, we will learn the sex at birth. She would like to use the initials N.S. for a girl but she really likes the names Clara, Claire, Nora and Maeve. Family names include Annie, Mary, Nancy and Sue. Ella may be a middle name option. So here are my girl name suggestions:

Claire Ella
Clara Sue
Clara Mary

Nora Susanna
Nora Sophia
Nora Sloane
Nora Shea (pronounced Shay)

Maeve Ella
Maeve Anne

Lily (Susan means 'lily')/Lillian/Lillia

Natalie Sue
Neva Sophia
Nina Scarlett
Nola Sloane
Nola Suzanne
Nola Sage
Neve Simone

Boy name options right now are William, Noah, Samuel, Caleb and Keegan. Family name options for a middle name are Joseph, Frank, Mack, Peter and George. Julie is open to using Brian to honor a family member as well.

My suggestions for boys are:
William Mack
Noah Peter
Keegan George
Caleb Mack
Samuel Frank (Francis?)

Brendan, Brennan and Bryant are also similar to Brian and are of Irish influence.

Vincent Joseph
Colin Mack
Nolan Peter
Oliver Frank
Conner Joseph
Sawyer George
Anderson Mack
Keaton Joseph
Holden George
Elliott Frank
Grady Joseph

Jaime's Names

My friend Jaime likes unique but not trendy names. She is looking for a name that flows well with her children Gage, Kennedy and Emerson. I am not listing the names by gender because they are pretty neutral and I can easily picture a Murphy as a pigtailed little girl as I can a freckled little boy. I stuck with more English/Irish inspired names for this list. I skipped the names that end in 'son' so it wouldn't be too similar to Emerson. I hope I found a winner for you!

Adair
Adler
Ambrose
Beckett
Bennett
Cohen
Collins
Davis
Donnell
Everly
Greer
Greyer
Harlow
Harris
Harper
Keaton
Kieran
Kingston
Madden
Marlowe
McKinley
Morgan
Murphy
Reese
Reilly
Rowan
Sullivan
Teagen
Quinn
Vaughn

Reworking the top 20--Girls

I am a posting machine today! Rather than clean my house or watch Bravo while my kids nap, I decided to rework the top 20. The Social Security site may be a little off because they do not combine spellings so Aidan/Aiden/Aydan are counted individually. The first name is the most popular, followed by my suggestions. So if you like the idea/sound of some of the most popular names out there but are a little freaked at the idea of your kid being Madison L. for the rest of her life, then here you are. I knew a ton of Katies/Jessicas/Erins/Sarahs growing up and I still call my friend Erin M., it's never just Erin. That's probably why I freak out a little whenever they get married, I just can't process the name change.

1. Emily
Emery, Marie (560 on SS site)
2. Isabella
Isadora, Isolde, Isla
3. Emma
Emme, Ember, Gemma
4. Ava
Avery, Avril
5. Madison
Madina, Madea, Madeleine
6. Sophia (my oldest would have been Sofia if he had been a girl, I thought I was so creative)
Josephine, Pia
7. Olivia
Olive, Odelia, Oralee
8. Abigail
Abra, Ariel, Aria
9. Hannah
Anne (517!), Johannah
10. Elizabeth
use a derivative like Elsa, Isobel, Eliza
11. Addison
Adele, Adara, Adelaide
12. Samantha
Samara, Simone
13. Ashley
Ashlinn (or Aisling if you like the Gaelic spelling), Ellery
14. Alyssa
Alice, Elise
15. Mia
Clea, Pia, Mya
16. Chloe
Cleo, Clarissa
17. Natalie
Noelle, Natasha
18. Sarah
Sasha, Sierra, Shauna/Seanna
19. Alexis
Alexa, Alia
20. Grace
Greta, Graciela, Charis

My wrists are hurting. My darling three-year-old popped off all the keys on my laptop so I have it rigged right now with a regular keyboard, but it's not the most comfortable for typing. I'll have the boys names in the next day or so. :)

Julie's List

This comes from a Michigander with a son named Benjamin Louis. She wants something classic that flows well with Benjamin but nothing trendy. So any surnames (Tucker, Wilson) are out as well as anything that rhymes with maiden. ;)

Her girl name is already picked out but I offered to throw some suggestions out there for fun. The middle name for a girl would be Louisa (love it!) or Louise.

Andrew
Christian
Desmond (I like the nickname Des)
Forrest
Gabriel
Graham
Henry
Jonah
Leo
Miles
Noel
Oliver
Owen
Peter
Quinn
Simon
Theodore (Theo or Teddy are cute nicknames)
Vincent
Xander
Zachariah/Zachery

And some bonus girl names are Jane (I think Louisa Jane is really quaint and cute), Violet, Madeline, Margaret (Maggie Lou!), Jillian, Vivian, Audrey, Claire and Hope.

I tend to like one syllable names as middle names with longer first names--like Louisa Jane. But if the middle name were Louise and only two syllables it's fair game--Jillian Louise has a nice flow.

HayesW baby names

This is for one of my Alabama mom friends. She had very specific criteria--no name beginning with C, L, W, S, I and she'd prefer me not to use N or H. The classics were out--no Michael, Andrew, James, etc. And she'd like something biblical. So here is the list--mostly Hebrew names with a smattering of Latin and English derivatives.

I included the meanings and the origin--so L is for Latin, H is for Hebrew, E is for English, W is for Welsh and G is for Greek.

Abbott (H) father
Abrham (h) father of many nations
Adam (H) man of the red earth
Adiel (H) ennobled by his battles
Alon (H) oak
Alva (H) sublime
Amicus (L) beloved friend
Ari (H) lion of God
Asher (H) blessed, ahppy
August (L) majestic

Balthasar (G) God save the king
Barnabas (G/H/L) son of the missionary
Bartlet (E) version of Bartholomew
Benedict (L)/Bennett (E) blessed
Benson (H) Ben-Zion
Blaze (L/E) flame

Dante (L) enduring
Davis (W) son of David
Dexter (L) dexterious
Dominic (L) belonging to the Lord

Eben (H) rock
Elias (H) Lord is my God
Elliott (E) form of Elijah
Ephraim (H) fruitful
Ezekiel (H) strength of God
Ezra (H) helper

Felix (L) happy

Galileo (H) from Galilee
Gideon (H) tree cutter
Gracien/Gracen (L) posseser of grace

Jared (H) from Jordan
Jedidiah (H) friend of God
Jeremiah (H) God will uplift
Jethro (H) abundant
Joachim/Joaquin (H) raised by Yahweh
Joel (H) God is willing
Jonah (H) dove
Jonas (H) he accomplishes
Josiah (H) fire of the Lord
Jude/Judah (H) praised
Julian (L) youthful

Malachi (H) angel of God
Mathias (H) offered up to God
Micah(H) who is like the Lord?
Moses (H) drawn out of the water

Obidiah (H) servant
Oliver (L) olive tree
Oren (H) pine tree
Ori (H) my light
Orion (G) son of fire

Paul (L) small
Pax (L) peaceful
Philip (G) lover of horses
Porter (L) gatekeeper

Quentin (L) fifth

Rani (H) my sons, my joy
Rocco (Italian) rock
Roman (L) from Rome

Thaddeus (G) courageous
Theodore (G) gift of God
Tobias (G) God is good

Valentine (L) strong
Vincent (L) victorious
Vero (L) truthful

Zaccheus (H) innocent
Zachariah (H) God remembered
Zane (E) form of John
Zebediah (H) God's gift
Zion (H) sign, omen

My favorites of the bunch are Ari, Blaze, Dominic, Ezra, Gideon, Jeremiah, Jude, Mathias, Oren, Pax, Rocco, Thaddeus and Zane.

blocked!

Eeegads! Apparently my blog has some spam something or other and the powers that be need to review it lest it be deleted.

I swear I'm kosher.

Brooke's (hypothetical) baby name list

My friend Brooke has a darling little girl named Cleo. She has decided that her future hypothetical unconceived baby needs a name that is not ranked on the top 1000 of the Social Security baby names list. But she doesn't want anything too wild and it has to flow with Cleo. She doesn't have illiteration issues as their last name begins with a K.

Girls names:
Luisa
Adaline
Rosalie
Gwen
Matilda
Cordelia
Imogen
Zola
Estella
Polly
Willa
Calla
Moira ;)

Boy names:
Harlan
Merrick
Ardan
Keane
Callum
Finnian
Gareth
Kiefer
Bronson
Elton/Alton
Otto

Finding a boy's name that's not in the top 1000 is HARD. I could have found a lot more girl names, but I wanted to keep it even with the boys.

Welcome!

Hi there! I have decided to use my vast knowledge and obsession with names to help mankind. I will name your baby.

All you have to do is give me a little information about the type of name you'd like, and please don't be afraid to be too specific. For example, you could say:
girls' names
prefer letters C, E and T
middle name will be Anne
like Irish names, but nothing in the top 100

And I will get to work! I use 4 baby naming sites for research (I told you, it's an obsession) and several dog eared name books and then I weave them all together to come up with the best name lists EVER. And I do it for free. If you really, really, really want to tip me, maybe I'll install a tip jar on the site later, but for now, I have some time to kill.

We just moved to a new town and I'm waiting until I have residency to go back to graduate school for a MA in either English or History or American Studies, if I can find a school that offers that program. I have two boys (they have great names, of course) that are 3 and 15 mos. My husband has offered to impregnate me again but I'm taking a pass on getting knocked up right now. I want to be Pamela Redmond Satran and Linda Rosenkrantz. They are always getting in the papers for their stinkin' ideas on baby names and trends. So, here we go.