Conway

My husband was recently quite unwell. What I at first thought was just a typical bout of “Man Flu” turned out to require a visit to the Doctor – which he hates – so that’s when you know he’s really not well.

But what has this got to do with today’s name? Well, the Doctor we saw had the first name Conway. I took note for a couple of reasons, the first being that it isn’t a name you hear every day. But also that it is the surname of one of my husband’s bosses, and since he only refers to him as Conway I found it slightly amusing that he was seeing a Doctor with the same name as his boss. So it was already stuck in my head when I saw it come up in a recent birth announcement post on Names For Real. I like to think it was a sign that it would be a good time to look a little closer at Conway.

Pronounced KAHN-way, Conway hails from the UK, with various claims stating it is an Irish/ Welsh/ Gaelic/Celtic name.  It’s here that getting an exact meaning gets a little confusing. It seems that Conway means ‘hound of the plain’ to the Irish, coming from similar roots as the much more popular Connor (meaning ‘lover of hounds’). To the Welsh it is a place name, coming from the name of the River Conwy which is thought to mean ‘holy water’ or possibly ‘chief river’.

Indeed, Conway is a place name in many parts of the world. Plenty of places in the U.S are named Conway, as well as a river in New Zealand, a National Park in Australia and a coral reef in Fiji.

But so far this is one surname/place name that hasn’t had the same huge surge in popularity as many other names of this type making the jump to first names.  This could be set to change though.  In the U.S. Conway has experienced rises in popularity for the past 8 years. However the rise has been slow – in 2013 he was still a long way outside the top 1000 at position #2883. And Conway is so far uncharted for girls.

Yes, Conway could be seen as a fresh option for girls. While the few Conways that spring to mind are male – such as American Country musician Conway Twitty, American football player and coach Conway Hayman, Australian musician Conway Savage, British mathematician and scientist Conway Berners-Lee or even the fictional Pokemon trainer – young musician Conway (born Kassia Conway) could help parents see Conway as a viable girls name.

Conway feels like an approachable but somewhat dignified name. I can see it in the same league as Spencer or Thatcher, but with an added dash of roguish swagger. It's also great way to honour a Con (or Con related name) in your family tree. With the popularity of Connor it may be just a matter of time until Conway creeps into the top 1000 (or not) - use it now and you'll be ahead of the pack.

TV Name Quote

In this week's episode of 'Supernatural' titled 'The Things We Left Behind', King of Hell Crowley tells us what he really thinks of his (human) name.

Played by Mark Sheppard, Crowley was born Fergus McLeod in Scotland 1661. Fergus is in fact an old Scottish and Irish name, so quite fitting with his background. It is derived from the the words fear meaning 'man' and 'gus' meaning 'strength', so Fergus is said to have meanings such as 'man strength', 'strong warrior', 'man of force', or 'virility'.

Despite it's strong meaning Fergus is not a popular name. He's been falling in England and Wales in recent years, and has never been anywhere near cracking the top 1000 in the U.S. But he feels like he could be the next big thing for hipster parents. He's slightly old and fusty in a retro-cool name, and comes with the possible nickname Gus, which seems to be getting a lot of attention lately. And couldn't you just imagine little Oscar, Auden or Waldo with a brother named Fergus?

Or maybe you feel the same way Crowley does.

Quill and Gamora

The 'Guardians of the Galaxy' - Drax (Dave Bautista), Gamora (Zoe Saldana),
Quill "Star Man" (Chris Pratt), Groot (Vin Diesel) & Rocket Raccoon (Bradley Cooper)

You may have seen recently the trailer for the upcoming latest Marvel movie adaptation, 'Guardians of the Galaxy'. It looks like it's going to be a very fun and cheeky almost anti-hero superhero movie (although having not read the comics it's based on, I'm not sure how accurate that actually is). When watching the trailer though, like many of us name enthusiasts I found myself oohing and ahhing at the names just as much as the action and special effects.

And there are some great character names in this! Nebula, Rocket, Drax, Ronan, Taneleer, Meredith, Korath, Rhomann and Yondu - such a great mix of different, "spacey" and futuristic sounding names. But the two that struck me the most were Quill and Gamora, which I think are most like to get a small boost in popularity when this movie is released.

Quill is actually the surname of main character Peter Quill, a.k.a. Star Lord, played by Chris Pratt. Quill (pronounced KWIL) is a pretty cool sounding word name. Its a great name if you love writing. I love that it evokes images of an old fashioned time when people wrote with feather quills and inkwells, yet also feels kind of futuristic. That's possibly because Q names aren't very popular - it's a good example of the "scrabble effect".

This is not the only character named Quill to grace our screens in recent years. One of the 'Twilight' werewolves was Quil Ateara, and Quill was an Australian love interest introduced to the 'Luann' comic strip in 2009. These examples are all males, but Quill feels like it could easily be a unisex name like Quinn. It's never charted for either in the U.S.

There's a few different given meanings for Quill, which include:

• It is an English name meaning 'feather'
• It's a diminutive of Irish name Quillan (pronounced KILL-an) meaning 'lion cub';
• It's an anglicised version of Gaelic surname O'Cuill, meaning 'descendant of Coll'
• It's a diminutive of English occupational name for a scribe or writer, Quiller 

On the other hand, there is very little history behind the name Gamora. It has never charted in the U.S, which isn't to say it is never used as a first name, just that it has never been used more than five times in one year. It seems it is more likely you'll see Gamora as a middle or surname.

Gamora's resemblance to the biblical city of Gomorrah pretty much guarantees that this will never be a widely used name. The tale of the fall of Sodom and Gomorrah means it is permanently associated with unbridled sin, and while Gamora is not spelled the same, phonetically it's far too close for comfort.

Which is a real shame. Gamora both looks and sounds pretty enough to be an attractive name. I was convinced I had heard it before as the name of a planet or star, but it seems that it was largely created for this character by Jim Starlin for her first appearance in 'Strange Tales #180' in 1975.

But if anyone can get a name off the ground it's the beautiful Zoe Saldana, who plays Gamora in 'Guardians of the Galaxy'. She's starting to build a solid reputation playing smart, sexy, brave, dangerous and exotic characters, a winning combination. Zoe has put the names Neytiri and Cataleya on the charts in recent years - perhaps her magic touch will work for Gamora too.

Both have great potential - old world yet futuristic sounding, fresh and spunky. And the movie will likley only help with this perception, especially if it's turns out to be as successful as the promoters are hoping (it's not even out for another five months yet!) What do you think - are Quill and Gamora be your picks for breakout names inspired by 'Guardians of the Galaxy'?

Brannon

Photo courtesy of Kristen Privett Photography

"On the fourth day of Christmas my true love sent to me, four colly birds"

Like many other people, I always thought this line of the carol 'The Twelve Days of Christmas' was four calling birds. Don't ask me what I thought calling birds were, maybe I just thought they were particularly loud and vocal birds. Anyway, a colly bird is a European blackbird, which were considered a delicacy in Medieval times. Which helps to make a little more sense of why a king would want four-and-twenty blackbirds baked into a pie in the nursery rhyme 'Sing A Song of Sixpence'.

People usually associate blackbirds such as crows and ravens with Halloween more so than Christmas. For example, Rook was one of the names I profiled just this October. So I thought that since people often think calling birds rather than colly birds, a name that is also not instantly recognisable as a blackbird - such as Brannon - would be fitting.

Brannon (pronounced BRAN-un) is thought to be a variation of the name Brandon, which means 'gorse hill' in Old English or 'sorrow' in Irish. It's also possibly a variant of Bran. There's an old 8th century Irish legend called 'The Voyage of Bran', and since Brannon was the name of Brans son it's thought the name could simply mean 'son of Bran'. Another meaning (Possibly Gaelic or Celtic) given to Bran though is 'raven'. It's also a name from Welsh mythology in the form of Bran the Blessed. It would be this origin that George R.R. Martin had in mind when he named one of the younger Stark sons Bran (Brandon) in his 'Song of Ice and Fire' series (a.k.a. 'Game of Thrones' on television). Without spoiling too much, this Bran has the gift of sight, and is thought to be the foretold three eyed crow. The crow reference makes Bran a very fitting name for the character.

Long form Brannon is one of those names that grows on you the more you say it (well, at least that's true for myself). It's more often heard as a surname - chances are you've never met a Brannon, but they're out there. It's charted in the U.S every year since 1960, just in small numbers. In 2012, it was given to just 35 boys.

One of my favourite things about Brannon is that it is familiar sounding but different, and has a similar feel to some other rising Irish/Gaelic names such as Ronan, Declan, Callan and Cillian. It also has a bit of a tough guy feel to it if you like that in a name, maybe due to its similarity in sound to Cannon. But without the weapon/name word appearance, which is a plus.

Brannon would be a fresh way to honour a Brandon or similar in your family tree, if Brandon feels a little dated for you or you just want to put your own stamp on it. It's also worth considering if you like Bram but want a more substantial name on the certificate - and you're not keen on options such as Bramwell. For that fact, it's a great alternative if you like Bran but want to minimise the cereal references, which tend to make Bran a little undesirable by itself (even though I love the sound of Bran as a name).

A couple of warnings though - be prepared for a Brannon to be mistaken for Brandon. A lot. And while some girls were given this name from the seventies though to the nineties, they do tend to be mistaken for boys when people first hear their name. Probably a lot more so that a Riley or Bailey would, which can be very annoying.

But if these things don't deter you, Brannon has all the makings of a good name. It could even be a way for you to bridge the gap between your love of Halloween and your love of Christmas. Brannon definitely deserves a place on more peoples' short lists.

Tarabella

Name inspirations can come when you least expect it - and this beauty I spotted on a personalised number plate in traffic this morning! There are many things that raced through my mind when I saw this, with the uppermost one being that this is a very pretty name.

Tarabella is a quite rare name. It has never charted in America, meaning it has never been given to more than five girls in any one year. And a quick Facebook search shows that while Tarabella is not used as a first name, it has been used as a surname in Italy. However there is no information on its origin or meaning as a surname.

As a first name, Tarabella immediately strikes one as an unusual smoosh name - a combination of the spunky Tara and the sweetly girly Bella. Bella is popularly recognised to be an Italian name meaning 'beautiful'. In recent years it has followed the extremely popular Isabella up the charts, helped largely due to the (Isa)Bella Swan character from 'Twilight'. It's currently particularly popular in Australia, America and Canada, but deceptively is even more popular than the charts tell us, because it would commonly be sued as a popular nickname for many other Bella related names.

Tara on the other hand has a couple of different origins and meanings. In Hindu mythology Tara was an astral  goddess, and her name means 'star'. There is also a goddess named Tara in Buddhist mythology. Said to be the most popular goddess in the Buddhist pantheon, Tara is considered to be the Goddess of Universal Compassion, and she represents virtuous and enlightened activity.

But perhaps the best known origin of Tara is from Irish Gaelic, where Tara means 'hill' or more elaborately 'hill where kings meet'. Ancient Tara was the site of the 'stone of destiny', on which Irish kings lived. It has been theorised that this reference is what author Margaret Mitchell had in mind when she named the famous home of Scarlett O'Hara 'Tara' in her novel 'Gone With The Wind'.

Tara enjoyed a burst of popularity after 'Gone With The Wind' was released as a movie in 1939, first entering the American charts that year. During the 70's and 80's it was a top 100 name in America. It has dropped in popularity recently (#877 in America in 2011) although you could be forgiven for thinking otherwise judging by the popularity of Tara as a character name in TV shows ranging from 'True Blood' to 'Boston Legal' to 'The United States of Tara'.

Tara also does quite well in many other countries, such as Australia, Croatia, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Norway and Scotland. There are however some pronunciation variations - personally we pronounce it more like Tarr-aah here in Australia, while on American TV it seems to be pronounced Tah-RAH (or even Teh-RAH). Which I guess raises the question of how one would pronounce Tarabella. Would it be Tarr-aah-bell-ah or Tah-rah-bell-ah?

Pronunciation questions aside, I feel like Tarabella would be a great way to honour a Tara and/or Bella relative. Or to honour a combination of Italian/Indian/Irish heritage, or even a belief in Buddhism or Hinduism. And of course there are the two distinct and beautiful (excuse the pun) possible meanings - 'beautiful star' or 'beautiful hill'. 'Beautiful star' in particular is an almost swoon-worthy meaning.

I can definitely see Tarabella catching on. Maybe you're looking for an alternative to Isabella, but Arabella feels too frilly or vintage for you, or you're worried about it's current rising popularity. Tarabella could be a great way to stand out from the crowd.

Ken - not just Barbie's boyfriend

Barbie and Ken making eyes at each other in 'Toy Story 3'

I've recently been referred to a blog by a man named Kenney. At first I was a little confused, as it's not a naming related blog. But then it became a little clearer - you see, Kenney really likes his name. Really, really likes his name. So much that he has devoted several posts to famous Kens and Kennys from all walks of life, such as authors, politicians, actors and singers.

Admittedly, Ken or Kenny is not really a name that I would normally consider. My main associations with the name are Barbie's boyfriend, saxophonist Kenny G (who always seemed a little wimpy to me) and a great uncle Ken (Kenneth) that I barely remember. So to me it felt a little "soft" and dated.

But Kenneys' obvious enthusiasm for his name stuck in my head. Then recently while I was having a look at the list of names I keep for potential upcoming posts, I realised that while I'm not a fan of Ken or Kenny, I actually have my eyes on a few Ken related names. I guess I just prefer a less traditional path to Ken. There are a surprisingly large number of names starting with Ken, such as  Kent, Kendra, Kenzie, Kenlee, Kennedy, Kenzo, Kendrew, Kenway, Kennelly, Kensington and Kenisha. But the next three would have to be my current favourites.

Kenyon - I find myself strangely attracted to Kenyon. It has quite an earthy, spiritual feel to it, maybe because of it's similarity to both the word canyon and the East African country Kenya. While Kenyon may feel like a new, possibly made up name, it actually has roots in Gaelic, and means 'blond' or 'white haired'. Not very exciting, I know. It also has a history of use in the US since 1914 for boys and 1969 for girls. While for boys it has entered the top 1000 a number of times, it spends more time skirting around just outside the top 1000. It's usage is much rarer for girls.

Kendall - not so strange anymore thanks to a younger Kardashian (well, technically Jenner) sister, Kendall is a great example of a  Ken-surname-turned-versatile-unisex-name. Kendall is an Old English name meaning 'of the Kent river valley'. Kendall first entered the US charts for boys in 1906, and has been in the top 1000 since the 1920's. For girls it first charted in 1929, and despite a few appearances in the top 1000 it wasn't a consistent performer until 1980. In 1993 female Kendalls started outnumbering the boys, and in 2011 it was positioned at #123 for girls and #606 for boys.

Kendrick - Kendrick has a definite strong male feel to me, maybe because it contains Ken and Rick, both traditional male names. Obviously, this would be a fantastic choice for anyone wishing to honour both a Ken/Kenny/Kenneth and a Rick or Richard at the same time, while still having a quite "modern" sounding name. The origins of Kendrick are unsure, but it seems to be an English/Scottish name meaning 'royal ruler, champion'. Kendrick first hit the US charts for boys in 1912, and peaked in the 80's around the #320 position. And while I'd probably steer clear of it for girls, it has been given to a handful of girls most years since the 1970's.

It's interesting to note that all three of these variations first appeared in the US charts (for boys) between 1906 and 1914, a fairly narrow window. I thought that maybe Ken was peaking at this time and people were interested in alternatives, but Ken itself was only just appearing at this time too. However it was the more formal Kenneth that was extremely popular at this time. A Gaelic/English name with the romantic meaning 'born of fire, handsome', Kenneth ranked #170 in America in 2011, and was a top 100 name from 1898 to 2001. So I guess that makes it "King of the Kens"!

However you like Ken, there are plenty of alternatives if you just can't get over the Barbie reference. What would be your pick for the "King of the Kens"?

Collins

Lily Collins plays Collins in 'The Blind Side'

They're playing 'The Blind Side' on TV tonight. I remember being so touched when I first saw this movie a couple of years ago, and even more so to know that this is based on a real family. Movies like this renew your faith that there are good, kind, generous people in the world. And Sandra Bullock did such a good job of playing the matriarch of the family, Leigh Anne Tuohy, that she won the best actress Oscar that year.

But I'm not going to gush about the movie too much, just about one of the names spotted in the movie. Early in the movie, there's a scene when Leigh Anne arrives at her daughters volleyball game and shouts encouragement to her. I did a bit of a double take, because I had forgotten that the daughters name is Collins. Thanks to the magic of the Internet, I double checked and yes, that is the name of her daughter.

Since Collins' younger brother Sean was named after their father, I thought that perhaps Collins was Leigh Anne's maiden name perhaps. But no, Leigh Anne's maiden name is Roberts, so there went that theory. Nevertheless, I'm guessing that a Collins can be found in their family tree somewhere, especially as it's not particularly unusual to use family surnames as given names in the Southern US States. And fun fact - in the movie, Collins is played by actress Lily Collins. I guess that would have made things easy on set!

This name caught my attention mainly because it sounds more like a preppy boys name at first, and seeing it on a girls made me do a double take. It would definitely get confused with Colin/Collin a lot. But the instant after that thought, I thought it sounded like a spunky (and still a little preppy, which I like) choice for a girl.

Traditionally a surname, Collins fits right in with current unisex surname trends, but has so far gone largely overlooked. It has been modestly used for boys in the US, and occasionally for girls (which increased a lot after 'The Blind Side' was released), but hasn't cracked the top 1000 for boys since 1909. Or ever for girls.

There's a little confusion as to the origin and meaning of Collins. Different sources say that it's:

• an Irish/Gaelic name meaning 'holly'
• a Scottish variant of Colin, meaning 'young creature' or 'pup'
• a shorter variant of the Greek name Nicolas, meaning 'people of victory'. 

If you're using it to honour a family member though, having one definitive meaning doesn't really matter, as it will be what the original owner meant to you that will define what special meaning the name has for you.

While it's not for everyone, I quite like Collins for a boy or a girl. Admittedly if you're using it for a girl you'd probably want a more traditionally feminine middle name to pair with it. And you probably want to avoid it if your last name starts with an S. But for the right person and the right family, Collins could be a real gem.

Tempany

Five year old Victorian girl Tempany after donating her hair to cancer patients for wigs

Saturday was Australia Day, but because the actual day fell on a weekend we are enjoying our Australia Day Holiday today. So in honour of today being technically-not-Australia-Day, I thought I'd look at a name that is quoted by many sources as being an Australian name, but in all likelihood is a technically-not-Australian-name. It's also a fitting name to look at today while Queensland and New South Wales experience some particularly stormy weather.

The origins of the name Tempany (pronounced TEHM-pah-nee) are very vague. At best guess, it comes from the word Tempest, meaning 'violent storm'. Tempest comes from the Old French "tempeste", and Latin terms "tempesta" and "tempestas". All of these mean 'storm, weather, season' and 'commotion, disturbance'. It is also related to "tempus" meaning 'time, season', hence Tempest came to be known as 'a disturbance in a period of time, season or weather', which led to 'bad weather' or 'storm'. For this reason, Tempany is thought to have Old French and Latin origins.

It's unclear how the name Tempany came about, but it seems that it most likely started as a surname. Maybe it started as a misspelling of a different name, as many surnames we see today started that way, or maybe it was adopted by someone who lived in an area prone to storms, or a child who was born during a storm. No one really knows.

It's thought that the first known Tempany's were from Leinster in Ireland, where the Tempanys held a family seat as Chiefs. The first documented appearance of the surname Tempany in Australia is 1850, when Henry and Elizabeth Tempany arrived in Adelaide, South Australia aboard the ship 'Sultana'. The 1891 England and Wales census shows evidence of some Tempany familes in London, Warwickshire, Essex and Wiltshire, while the 1920 American census shows some in New York and Ohio.

Tempany is usually listed as an Australian name, maybe because it's one of the only (if not the only) country where Tempany is used as a first name. This is mainly thanks to actress Tempany Deckert, who was in one of Australia's longest running soapies 'Home and Away'. Tempany appeared in the show as teenager Selina Roberts Cook from 1994-1998, making her a household name in Australia. One of her besties on the show was played by actress Isla Fisher, who is in the upcoming 'The Great Gatsby'. Melissa George also starred on the show during this time.

Tempany Deckert & Isla Fisher
in their 'Home and Away' days

Isla's name was rarely heard when she was on 'Home and Away' in the 90's, but it has since skyrocketed. In 2011 Isla was the 23rd most popular name in Australia, 15th in England and Wales and #268 in America. A lot of it's popularity is due to Isla Fisher. The same however can not be said of Tempany. Which just goes to show that a little international exposure can go a long, long way.

Tempany  is quite a pretty,with the benefits of  not being an overly frilly or delicate name. It does however sound kind of similar to words such as temporary, timpani (kettledrums) and teriyaki, which could be a little off-putting. If you can look past that, it kind of has the sound of Tiffany, but with the strong, classical but modern feel of Cadence or Temperance.

I love that it sounds like it could be either an unearthed vintage gem, or a modern invented name, as I think the more "faces" a name has the better it's longevity. Plus, if you're looking for a weather related name, Tempany is much prettier and subtle than Storm, Stormy or Tempest. You can pretty much guarantee that your daughter won't come across many other Tempanys in her lifetime.

Inspiring Names - 'Nashville'

The Cast of 'Nashville'

I'm starting to think I have a real thing for these southern shows. The first for me was 'True Blood', sultry, sassy and the supernatural in Louisiana. Then I fell in love with 'Hart of Dixie', loaded with sweet charm and quirkiness and set in a small town called Bluebell in Alabama. And now it's 'Nashville', a portrayal of the drama and politics it takes to rise to the top and stay there in the competitive country music capital, in Tennessee.

'Nashville' didn't pull me in as immediately as the other two, but I'm addicted now none the less. And like any good scripted TV show, there is a multitude of great character names to mull over in this one. My favourites (and I'll admit up front that I may be strongly influenced by how much I also like the characters here) are:

Nash
The title and city gives us the cool cowboy name possibility of Nash. The city was founded and named for Francis Nash, but his surname has now become a hot given name. It entered the American charts for boys in 1910, but not the top 1000 until 1997, when the show 'Nash Bridges' firmly cemented Nash in our minds as a first name possibility. Fast forward to 2011, and Nash is positioned at #519. Ash and Ash names have long been hugely popular. The addition of the N gives it a fresh sound, and fits right in with other current favourites Dash and Cash. Plus short, "manly" names are looking hot for 2013.

Rayna
Rayna Jaymes (played by Connie Britton) is a superstar on the 'Nashville' country music circuit, and one of the leading ladies of the show. Whoever named this character did a good job - in Hebrew Rayna means 'song of the lord' and in Latin or Russian Rayna means 'queen', both of which fit this character. Rayna has been present in the American charts since the 1930's, but only became a regular in the top #1000 in the late 90's. It peaked at #756 in 2008, so is a familiar but not common name. Alternative spelling Raina is only slightly more popular. I feel like the Rayna spelling looks more "namey", whereas Raina looks more like rain and less regal. But then again Rayna could be mistaken for a feminine version of Ray, which might not appeal to some. Either way, I quite like the sound of Rayna, and think the name was well chosen for the show.

Juliette (Hayden Panettiere) and Rayna (Connie Britton)

Juliette
While Rayna is the veteran of the industry, Juliette Barnes (played by Hayden Panettiere) is the new comer to the scene. I think she's meant to have a Taylor Swift-esque career, but with more of a nasty, jaded attitude behind the scenes (and it's great to see Hayden playing a darker character than her cheerleader days). Juliette comes from Juliet, a Latin name meaning 'youthful'. The "ette" makes it feel even younger, as it is generally used to mean 'smaller'. Since one of the main themes of the show is that Juliette's youth makes her both a inexperienced in the industry (and prone to making some unwise career decisions), her youth and quick success is also a threat to Rayna. And just like Shakespeare's Juliet, this Juliette is somewhat of a tragic but vulnerable character, who also flirts with a marriage into a family who deem her "unsuitable" due to her own family background. This makes it another successfully chosen name.

Deacon
Deacon Claybourne (played by Charles Esten) is Rayna's long term guitar player, ex-flame and ex-alcoholic. He is almost as legendary in the country music world as Rayna is. Deacon has Greek origins, and means 'dusty one, servant, messenger'. It's also a title for a church officer or cleric. Again, these things could be said to apply to 'Nashville's Deacon. He's been around a long time, backing up Rayna, and now helps other reformed alcoholics as well as occasionally providing some wise, much needed advice to others in the show. Like Nash, Deacon has that cowboy feel to it, but also feels almost Irish/Scottish, possibly due to it's similarity to names such as Declan and Duncan. Deacon has charted in America since the late 60's/early 70's,  but really started leaping up the charts since the year 2000. In 2011 is was #66, and possibly still rising. I think the cowboy/ honest church official associations makes for a wholesome sounding name with just a touch of bad boy to it.

Scarlett
Scarlett is a name that that has been shooting up the American charts in the past decade, entering the top 100 at position #80 in 2011. Scarlett O'Connor is played by young Aussie actress Clare Bowen, and her wide eyed innocence and modesty makes for a great contrast against the similar age Juliette. Scarlett is Deacon's niece, and her O'Connor surname further hints at an Irish/Scottish connection for this family. Or maybe the writers were just aiming for some similarity to famous southern belle, Scarlett O'Hara. Like O'Hara, this Scarlett is passionate about her man, before realising she is naive. It takes a different man who really believes in her to give her the strength to assert herself and realise there is more potential to her than supporting a man.

While these are my favourites, the show is full of other great names, many or which are currently gaining in popularity. As an aside, looks like "ie"/y endings are quite popular in 'Nashville'!

Boys

Gunnar, played by Brit actor
Sam Palladio

Albert
Avery
Bo
Brock
Bucky
Coleman
Cy
Dominic
Glenn
Gunnar
JT
Kent
Lamar
Liam
Marshall
Mitch
Randy
Sean
Steve
Teddy

Watty

Girls
Audrey
Carmen
Daphne
Deb
Emily
Hailey
Jeanne
Jolene
Maddie
Makena
Marilyn
Peggy
Tandy

Emeralda

For the designers, decorators and artists among you, you may already be aware that Emerald is the Pantone colour of the year for 2013. If you're not sure what that means, basically it means that the colour Emerald will feature strongly in most designs, decorating schemes, soft furnishings, clothing, products and whatever else you can think of this year. Pantone usually pick a colour that they feel connects with the current spirit of society. Or maybe with two 'Wizard of Oz' movies coming out this year, they simply thought that when audiences saw those gorgeous images of the Emerald City they would have a renewed love of all things Emerald.

Of Emerald, Pantone says that it is "Lively. Radiant. Lush. A color of elegance and beauty that enhances our sense of well-being, balance and harmony". And also that "Most often associated with brilliant, precious gemstones, the perception of Emerald is sophisticated and luxurious. Since antiquity, this luminous, magnificent hue has been the color of beauty and new life in many cultures and religions. Also the color of growth, renewal and prosperity, no other color conveys regeneration more than green."

This reminded me of a name I heard a little while back that I had been keeping note of - Emeralda. What I love about Emeralda is that it is so similar to Emerald, the gemstone, but sounds a little more "namey", like Esmeralda. And at the same time it manages to sound just that bit fresher and spunkier than either of those. Esmeralda and Emeralda are in fact different versions of Emerald, which is a Persian word for the gemstone, meaning 'green'.

All three are pretty rarely used. Emerald appeared in the American top 1000 for girls from 1991 to 2001, peaking at #766 in 1994. It has also occasionally been used for boys. Esmeralda has also been used a similar amount of times for boys, but has been more popular than Emerald for the girls. It's been in the top 1000 since the fifties, and in 2011 was #332. By contrast, Emeralda has only shown in the charts in 1991, when it was given to just 5 girls.

 A few other reasons why you might want to choose an Emerald themed name include:

• wanting to honour an Irish background (as in the Emerald Isles)
• for a child born in May, under the sign of cancer, or on a Tuesday or Friday (as the Emerald is the birthstone for these times)
• to honour someone else born at those times
• to honour someone whose favourite gemstone is/was Emerald, or favourite colour is/was green
• to honour someone with an "Em" name, such as Emma or Emory.

Emeralda would be a rare, exotic choice, with the benefits of not sounding too strange. And it's easy to associate all of those great things that people think about Emerald with Emeralda. With so many great reasons to use Emeralda, it would be a very fashionable name to use in 2013.

Tutu dress from Little Dreamers on Etsy

Inspiring Names - 'Sliders'

You may remember a show from the late 90's called 'Sliders'. It was one of Jerry O'Connell's biggest roles at the time - one that brought him attention as an adult actor, not just "that fat kid from 'Stand By Me'".

Rembrandt, Arturo, Wade and Quinn

If you're not familiar with the show, the premise was this - science whiz teen creates a machine that transports you between parallel dimensions. He brings his science professor over to his house to show off his revolutionary machine, but as he is demonstrating it something goes terribly wrong. The teen, his professor, his best friend who is at his house at the time and a lounge singer who happens to be driving past his house are all swept up in a vortex and transported to a parallel world. However, as it was still in it's experimental stages, the science whiz kid and his professor are unable to get them directly back to their own dimension, and hence the foursome have no choice but to "slide" from dimension to dimension until they hopefully arrive back in their original world.

If I haven't lost you yet, it was a great show. But besides the interesting story lines, one of the things I remember loving about this show was the names of the four main characters. The two teens had gender bending names, while the two older characters had very classic sounding but unusual names. I may not necessarily use these, but they have always stuck in my mind.

QUINN

Quinn Mallory was the science whiz kid, the character portrayed by Jerry O'Connell. Until then, I had only heard the name as a girls one, so I was intrigued by the idea of it being used on a male. I realise this seems strange, as in the US Quinn has been far more popular for boys right up until two years ago. In 2009, 'Glee' burst onto our screens, introducing us to the beautiful, complex and popular cheerleader Quinn Fabray. In 2010 girls Quinns outnumbered boys by just 44 children. This increased in 2011, and we'll probably see this trend for a few years yet, if not permanently.

Quinn is an Irish name meaning 'descendant of Conn'. In The US it was the 188th most popular girls name, and 297th most popular boys name in 2011, and it is the favourite Q name for either gender. 

WADE

Wade Welles was Quinn's best friend, played by Sabrina Lloyd. The only female of the original foursome, Wade often helped bring the heart and humanity to situations when Quinn and his professor started to lose sight of anything besides facts and figures. She also was the long time sufferer of a massive crush on Quinn. 

Wade is definitely entrenched in our minds as a boys name, and in 2011 was ranked #549 for boys in the U.S. That's not to say there aren't other female Wade's out there. It's just that there's never been more than 7 girls given this name in a single year. So obviously this show did not boost Wade's popularity as a girl's name while the show aired. 

Wade means "at the river crossing", so is an option for people looking for a different, not too obvious water related name for their child. It may not be everyone's idea of a great girl's name, but it suited this character to a T - tomboyish, spunky, but with a softer side to it.

ARTURO

This is perhaps one of the most interesting names of the show (well, for me at least). Professor Maximilian Arturo was played by John Rhys Davies, a great English actor possibly best remembered for the Indiana Jones movies, and more recently, as Gimli in 'The Lord of the Rings' movies.

The character sometimes tended towards being quite supercilious, and his posh sounding name suited him well. Arturo is an Italian version of Arthur, thought to mean 'bear'. Which I guess also suited this actors appearance, and the characters sometimes grumbly, sometimes roaring nature. I much prefer it to Arthur, personally, which for some reason has a slightly wimpy feel to me.

Arturo was #461 for American boys in 2011. While not a popular name for girls, like Wade it has been given to a handful of girls sporadically over the years. But unlike Wade, I personally have trouble imagining it suiting a girl very well.

REMBRANDT

Rembrandt 'Crying Man' Brown - played by Cleavant Derricks - was unlucky enough to be driving past the house when the vortex swelled out and swallowed him up with the other three. He was most out of his element, being an artist to the scientifically oriented Quinn and Arturo. What I loved about his character is that he was the one that seemed to grow the most over the course of the show. He started as a rather vain, struggling singer, but grew to be a thoughtful, selfless and caring person.

Rembrandt is synonymous with the great Dutch painter and etcher Rembrandt Van Rijn. So I guess they decided to give the singer and artist of the group an artists name. Rembrandt is a Dutch name meaning 'sword advisor', which arguably often became his role in the group. Interestingly, 2011 was the first time it appeared on the US SSA list, after being given to just 5 boys. I think people had been deterred because the artist association was so unavoidable. But perhaps the rise of Matisse as a name has made artist names a little more accepted, and helped put this option back on the table.

Quinn about to slide through a vortex

The show ran for 5 seasons, and over the course of their adventures some of these characters left, to be replaced by the other primary characters. But for me, these four original characters were the core of the show. Was 'Sliders' a favourite of yours? Would you consider any of these names? Or maybe it's a different sci-fi show that introduced some names that have always struck a chord with you. If you want more sci-fi related names I suggest you also check out Geek Baby Names. It's a new blog dedicated to names from science, sci-fi and fantasy, and owner Clare has already looked at some great ones.

Great Sibsets - The Averys

Mother Nicole Avery with her children Moss, Eamonn, Mable, Stirling and Magnus

Today an article in my local paper - The Herald Sun - caught my eye. Not for the story, but for the enchanting names of the children in the family in the accompanying photo. The family's children are named Moss (13), Eamonn (11), Mable (8), Stirling (6) and Magnus (3). Each is a great name in its own right, so let's have a quick look at each of them.

Moss - One of the great nature names that works for boys and girls. Moss has the same “oss” sound as the very popular Forrest, and the very cool Frost, but without the abrupt “t” ending. It’s that little more cutting edge. You just need to get people to think of it in terms of legendary race car driver Stirling Moss, rather than lichen growing on a tree.

Eamonn – Eamonn and Eamon (Eamonn is the original spelling, but Eamon is more popular) have had a bit of a jump in popularity in Australia since swimmer Eamon Sullivan came to our attention after winning a gold medal, a silver medal and breaking a Commonwealth record at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, Australia. Eamonn (or more popular spelling Eamon) is an Irish variation of Edmund. It means ‘rich protector’ and is pronounced AY-mon. Despite it’s similarity to other mega popular favourites Aiden and Ethan, Eamon is yet to appear on the top 100 in Australia or top 1000 in the US, so currently remains a great alternative if you’re looking for a less popular name.

Mable – I have to say that Mable (or Mabel) is a name that is slowly growing on me. As it seems to be with a lot of people, as Mabel has been slowly moving up the US charts in the last few years and should crack the top 1000 in the next year or two if it continues the way it has been. Mabel (pronounced MAY-bel) is an English name derived from the Latin Amabel and means ‘lovable’. And lovable it is. I actually prefer the less popular Mable spelling, maybe because it has the word “able” and looks so similar to Fable, which I also love. As a nature name fan though, I’d probably be more likely to lean towards Maple myself.

Stirling – Is an English name meaning ‘genuine, of high quality’. I personally prefer the original spelling of Sterling for a couple of reasons. 1 - I think it looks nicer. And 2 - Stirling, with Moss, in the same family, is a little much. I wonder if they are fans of the racing driver, or just thought the names sounded good together without realising the connection. At least they are not in order, or even sequential. Apart from that small quibble, I really like the name. It sounds a little bit posh, a little bit tough, and the "ing" ending sets it apart from pretty much all other popular names, male or female.

Magnus – this name is all quiet strength to me. Like his siblings, Magnus is not a hugely popular name now, but is slowly climbing. Magnus is a Latin name meaning ‘greatest’. It’s been a popular name for Scandinavian royalty and is in the top ten in Denmark and Norway. It has appeared in some popular tales such as in Anne Rice’s ‘Vampire Chronicles’, Charles Dickens’s ‘The Pickwick Papers’ and Roald Dahl’s ‘Matilda’. But it could be said that it is also benefiting from ‘The Hunger Games’ phenomenon. Many of the characters in this series have been given Roman/Latin names such as Cato, Flavius and Darius, so this could have sparked a renewed interest in related names such as Magnus.

All five are great names, and I like that while there isn’t really a pattern they seem to have the same vibe. Possibly a little heavy on the M’s, but the effect is diluted by having the M names interspersed with the others, so it’s not overpowering. The result overall is utterly charming. What do you think – have the Avery’s made great choices? Would you have done the same?

Name Lore

Photography by Glow Portraits, crown available at etsy

A couple of weeks ago I met a guy called Lor. Yes, that's his real name, not a nickname. The story behind his name as he tells it is that his "hippy" dad was determined to name him Lord Michael. When he went to get the name registered, he was of course told that you can't give a child the name Lord in Australia. Because Australia is part of the Commonwealth and ruled by the Queen we cannot use names that are official titles. So of course his dad just crossed out the "D" and triumphantly handed back the paperwork. And just like that, a baby boy was given the unusual name of Lor Michael. 

This has gotten me to thinking about Lor names in general. I quite like the sound, and one of my first thoughts was that Lore would actually be quite a cool name. It would fit in well with some of the other bookish names such as Story, Fable, Saga and Legend.

But if you like a bit more "substance" (i.e. length) to your names, I'd have to say that my top boys pick is Lorcan and my top girls pick is Lorelei.

Lorcan (pronounced LOHR-can) is an Irish/Gaelic name meaning 'little fierce one'. I think it sounds as if it stepped off the pages of a fantasy novel, and could end up giving Aidan a run for his money if given a chance and the right attention. One of the two most recognised Lorcans is Lorcan Ua Tuathail, an Irish saint who lived from 1128 to 1180. He is the patron saint of Dublin, and was also known as St Laurence O'Toole. The other well known Lorcan is actor Peter O'Toole's son, Lorcan O'Toole (also an actor). Apparently he was going to be given the name Luke, until his father had a dream in which he was told his name should be Lorcan. Lorcan is also dad Peter's second middle name.

Like many other girls (I suspect) I fell in love with the name Lorelei when watching 'The Gilmore Girls'. Before then Lorelei had always seemed like a much to fanciful name, especially considering it's origins. Lorelei (pronounced LOH-re-liy) is derived from the German name Lurlei which is a combination of the words luren (to watch) and lei (a cliff or rock). There is a legend that Lorelei was a beautiful siren who sat upon the rocks and lured sailors to their death, much like the sirens encountered by Odysseus in his journey. Hence the variation Lorelei is said to mean 'alluring temptress'.

While this may have been true of the Lorelei played by Marilyn Monroe in 'Gentlemen Prefer Blondes', Lorelei Gilmore and her daughter Lorelei "Rory" made the name seem much warmer, friendlier and down to earth. And infinitely more usable.

Here are a few more names starting with or containing Lor that you might like.

         GIRLS               BOYS        

Annelore                                Bachelor

  Clorinda                               Chancelor

 Clorissa                                 Colorado

  Delora                                   Explorer

Elora                                     Florean

Flora                                     Florent

 Florence                                Florentino

Florinda                                    Florian

Glory                                    Halloran

Lorena                                     Lorand 

Loretta                                    Lorant

   Lori                                      Loretto

Lorice                                        Loric

Lorikeet                                  Lorimer

Lorinda                                    Lorin

  Lorna                                      Loring

Lorraine                                     Lorne

Mallory                                    Lorren

 Melora                                    Lorenzo

Sailor                                      Lorrenz

Saylor                                      Naylor

Taylor                                       Tylor

Valora                                       Valor

Then there are also those that have the Lor sound, such as Laura and Laurence, but that would mean I'd be here all night :) What would be your top Lor names?