I was at the library looking at the bulletin board full of stars displaying the names of kids who had signed up for the summer reading program. Some interesting names…but the most interesting was Ebeneezer. Yes, someone has named their son “Ebeneezer”…as in, Scrooge? I’m sure these parents love their kids…in their own peculiar way.
The next most interesting name on the board was Townshend, as in Pete Townshend from The Who. Someone loves rock ‘n roll, but maybe not as much as the guy from my old gym who named his kids Axel and Jovi.
But who am I to judge? We gave our daughter an unusual name. We found the name Leilani in a book of new-age baby names. We aren’t Hawaiian, but loved the meaning of the name: “heavenly flower.” The name has received countless compliments, but definitely has made a few people scratch their heads. It’s certainly been a great way to break the ice at play dates.
These days parents want either traditional names or very cool names that make a statement. Now, I am expecting a boy in November, and so baby names are something of a hot topic at my house. We have easily ruled out florid names from our family trees, particularly on my husband’s side: Polycarpio and Florentino come to mind. My husband also has no interest in our son being named after him (our son would have been Horacio the fourth).
It’s tempting to venture out into unknown territory and really get interesting with the name. I’ve always admired mythology, but somehow Neptune, Zeus and Apollo seem a little…self-important. I’m a lover of cinema, so we could go with something like Bogart, Marlon, Orson, Chaplin, Bing, or Astaire. I like Star Wars…maybe Han, Obi-Wan, Boba Fett, or Mace Windu? Darth is not recommended, but Anakin just broke into the top-1000 most popular baby names in America. Star Trek has some pretty interesting names, the most ordinary being Kirk and Scotty, then there’s Spock, Geordi, Jean-Luc…maybe the most die-hard fan would come up with something in Klingon.
Heck, as far as unusual names go, I think Tarzan has a nice ring to it. It would be fun to yodel it in the classic Tarzan yell.
Of course you want to avoid any names that have a negative connotation to you personally: exes, bullies, even names of people who just rubbed you the wrong way. My daughter refuses to let us pick a name already taken by a kid she knows, even if he’s just an acquaintance.
Overall, you just don’t want to pick a name you’ll regret, like poor Mrs. McCave in Dr. Suess’s poem, “Too Many Daves,” who names all 23 of her sons “Dave”:
Often she wishes that, when they were born,
She had named one of them Bodkin Van Horn
And one of them Hoos-Foos. And one of them Snimm.
And one of them Hot-Shot. And one Sunny Jim.
And one of them Shadrack. And one of them Blinkey.
And one of them Stuffy. And one of them Stinkey.
Another one Putt-Putt. Another one Moon Face.
Another one Marvin O’Gravel Balloon Face.
And one of them Ziggy. And one Soggy Muff.
One Buffalo Bill. And one Biffalo Buff.
And one of them Sneepy. And one Weepy Weed.
And one Paris Garters. And one Harris Tweed.
And one of them Sir Michael Carmichael Zutt
And one of them Oliver Boliver Butt
And one of them Zanzibar Buck-Buck McFate …
But she didn’t do it. And now it’s too late.
Want to see how the popularity of a name has changed over time? Check out this site!
Any advice for me on picking a baby name? What are some interesting names that you like? Let me know in the comments section!
Cute!! Congratutulations. Any name you love would be good!
Awesome post!!! Love it. I’m a big fan of Star Wars names. I wanted to name our son Roger Stephen after Captain America’s secret identity of Steve Rogers. I was shot down. I did however get to use Logan (Wolverines name!) as a middle name for our youngest!
Best of luck to you!!!! Hope it’s a safe and smooth delivery!
Andrew recently posted..My Drool-Inducing Trip to Nintendo HQ
Thanks so much, Andrew! The Star Wars names are cool, I have to admit. Roger Stephen is a really nice name for a boy, but Logan is awesome, one of my faves. You are one of my favorite bloggers, so I am highly encouraging my readers to visit your site here: http://www.mommysbusy.com/ I will keep you posted on the name 🙂
Great post and congrats on the new addition to your family. Naming a baby is so awesome. My name is Nakeya, but I wanted something a little more common for my kids. Their names are Bradley and Kendall. I’ve seen both names used as first or last names.
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It’s so hard to pick names! My husband and I used baby books, the bible, and our Korean and French Canadian heritage to name our sons. We used to pick 2-3 and then wait until they were born to pick. Good luck!
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We picked our name because it was a family name 🙂
liz jo @ sundays with sophie
Leilani is so pretty, and I love the name Marlon! What a great post. Someday, I want to name my child either Cora or Everitt.
Elizabeth jahns recently posted..7 Questions People Ask After You Cut Your Hair Short
Oh my goodness, a little baby Chaplin would be SO adorable!!!
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I don’t yet have kids, but luckily my husband and I both like the idea of using family names – with twist! Like Liam short for William (my grandpa) and Max short for Maxine (his grandma’s name, but we’d like it for a boy) or Fia for a girl, short for my maiden name of Fiala.
Best of luck and congrats!
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Thank you, BreAnna! I like your idea of using variations on family names to honor your family. We have definitely thought of doing something similar.
I wanted my kids to have some fun nicknames but I gave them real names they could grow into so I have a Rocky, Bunny, Roby, Rowdy. But they are all derivative of normal names.
I love those names, Lenora! I think nicknames are so much fun for kids and a sweet way to connect the family.
It is hard to pick a name and often you feel obligated to use a family name. For a boy I like Atticus, Noah, Aiden, Nathaniel….For a girl I like Aurora, December, Violet, Eva….
We thought about it and then the names eventually came to us. I’ve always thought Garbanzo would be an interesting name for a boy. Yup, as in the beans. Hee hee.
My husband and I are trying to have kids but aren’t pregnant yet. We have no trouble agreeing on boy names we like but girl names are soooo hard. We have completely opposite taste. Your daughter’s name is great.
For boys, I tend to think something more traditional is better. But that’s just personal taste. Good luck in your search for a name.
I named my daughter Carly after a character in a book. Actually the name was Carlotta but my husband didn’t like that name so we changed it a bit. Then my other daughter wanted to name her son Charlie after Carly.
I love different names. My friend actually named her daughter Leilani. I named my twins Blossom and Bluebelle.
It really does not matter what your name your child. I always waited until they were born and named them according to them and thier personality. My son is Richard and my daughter is Jaime. And they fit thier names to a T.
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are well written. I’m wondering how I might be notified anytime a new post has been made.