Merry Christmas 2012

Hi everyone!

Just a quick post to let you know that I'm heading off for a short Christmas holiday tomorrow, so I'll be taking a short break from blogging for the next week and a half. But I expect I'll be brimming with plenty of new inspirations and names for you when I'm back :)

In the meantime, if you're looking for more reading I recommend any of the other great baby name blogs I have listed on the right side of the page. I was almost tempted to suggest my favourites, but then realised that that would be half of the list anyway!

Also, if you haven't already been there make sure you check out Matilda Magazine, for three reasons:

1 - I've been doing weekly nature name guest posts on their blog, so check out the blog

2 - Their first magazine was full of great articles. I'm really looking forward to the next issue, which should be out soon.

3 - They have been running some fantastic  polls on the most outrageous names of 2012. All are real names that have been seen in birth announcements, and many are truly outrageous. If you haven't voted yet, head over there and vote now!

In the meantime I hope that all of my readers and their loved ones enjoy a fantastic Christmas!! Thank you so much for stopping by Baby Name Pondering, and for your comments. It's been extremely encouraging and helped to turn what started out as a bit of a fun side hobby into a real passion!

Titanium

The Barden Bellas of 'Pitch Perfect'

This one is another little flight of fancy of mine. Recently I watched the new movie 'Pitch Perfect', starring Anna Kendrick and Rebel Wilson. One of the songs featured in the movie is David Guetta's 'Titanium', which was written by and features the vocals of Australian recording artist Sia Furler. As I found myself singing the song in the shower yesterday morning, I wondered, would this be usable as a name?    

Titanium has never been used as a name in the US - or at least, it has never been given to more than five boys or girls in the same year. But there are several already established names that are extremely close to Titanium, making it seem like not too much of a stretch for parents to consider it.

Titan - Greek boy's name, after the race of deities that were the precursor of the Olympians (Zeus, Hera etc). Also the largest moon of Saturn.

Titania - Greek girl's name meaning 'great, giant one', best known as the name of the Queen of the Fairies in Shakespeare's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'. Also one of the moons of Uranus.

Titana - Latin girl's name meaning 'medal of honour'

Titus - Latin boy's name thought to mean 'defender', ranked #365 in America in 2011. An old Roman, new testament and Shakespearean name that is currently at the height of it's popularity. Titus Pullo was one of the central characters in the 2005 TV show 'Rome', and one of the few likable ones at that.

For girls, it may be hard to live down the "tit" beginning. But it seems this is not the case for boys. Titus has been steadily climbing for boys for the past ten years. Titanium could possibly be seen as a similar 'strong' name, but with a more modern feel.

Titanium is a metal with many uses, including jewellery, dentistry, sunscreens, paint, jet engines and spacecraft. This has contributed to it's reputation as a "space age metal". In relation to the song, just as the metal is a strong metal, the song is thought to be about inner strength, featuring lines such as:

"I'm bulletproof, nothin' to lose, 

Fire away, fire away, 

Ricochet, you take your aim, 

Fire away, fire away, 

You shoot me down, but I won't fall, 

I am titanium."

In a world where we name our children after plants, food, alcohol, gemstones, words and concepts, Titanium is a name that would convey strength, and isn't such a stretch from some long used classical names. With the success of this song, I don't think it's unreasonable to think we may see a few children named Titanium in years to come.

League of Legends - The Gents

'League of Legends' Champion Tryndamere - The Barbarian King

Okay, so I'm not sure how many of these would fall into the "gentlemen" category, but it sounds better that "all those other characters that aren't females". This is the follow up the the post I did a couple of weeks ago ago on the ladies of the video game 'League of Legends', and includes the guys and the creatures of what I like to call indeterminate gender. Again, I've profiled my three top picks first, but included the total list for you to choose your own.

Viktor – The Machine Herald 
Many would think of this spelled Victor, but ever since Viktor Krum made an appearance in 'Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire' I much prefer this spelling. It just seems a little tougher and swarthier than Victor, which seems a bit stuffy and boring to me. Which may seem silly considering it is just one letter different. But it's something most of us have felt at some time or another, as evidenced by the rise in alternate spellings of names.

Viktor does in fact come from the Latin Victor, meaning 'champion'. Interestingly, it is a top 5 name in Iceland, a top 20 name in Sweden, and a top 100 name in the Czech Republic and Hungary. In the US it is still far from popular, despite rising quite a bit since the Harry Potter phenomenon started. In 2011 it ranked #1173, while the Victor spelling ranked #142. And was so popular it was given to 5 girls.

Draven – The Glorious Executioner 
I have to admit to forgetting that this name came from 'The Crow', and thinking it was a spin on Raven created for the game. Which was probably how it came to appear in 'The Crow'. As an invented name, it doesn't really have an accepted meaning. Draven is most commonly thought of as a "Gothic" name - somewhat dark and mysterious. I'd also add enigmatic, sophisticated and strong to this name. It's the kind of name I could imagine on a vampire.

The movie 'The Crow' came out in 1994, and that is the first year it started appearing on American children - boys and girls. However it is a top 1000 name for boys - at position #729 in 2011 - while only 8 girls were given this name in the same year. A different but not too unusual name that even people who know nothing about the movie will think is cool.

Ryze – The Rogue Mage 
Some will hate this, because it so obviously looks made up. I like to think of Ryze as a virtuous name for the space age though. The Y and Z make it look as if it is straight out of a futuristic post apocalyptic setting. But said aloud it sounds just like the common word "rise". To "rise above something" could be thought to be just as virtuous as traditional virtue names Clemence, Patience and Temperance, and modern virtue names such as Brave, Honor or True. Maybe Rise or Ryze will be found in a future wave of virtue names.

The Others:

*Aatrox - The Darkin Blade
Alistar – The Minotaur

Amumu – The Sad Mummy

Anivia – The Cryophoenix
*Azir - The Emperor of the Sands

Blitzcrank – The Great Steam Golem

Brand – The Burning Vengeance
*Braum - The Heart of the Freljord

Cho’Gath – The Terror of the Void

Corki – The Daring Bombadier

'League of Legends' Champion
Maokai - The Twisted Treant

Darius – The Hand of Noxus 

Dr Mundo – The Madman of Zaun 

Ezreal – The Prodigal Explorer 

Fiddlesticks – The Harbinger of Doom 

Fizz – The Tidal Trickster

Galio – The Sentinel's Sorrow 

Gangplank – The Saltwater Scourge 

Garen – The Might of Demacia
*Gnar - The Missing Link

Gragas – The Rabble Rouser

Graves – The Outlaw 

Hecarim – The Shadow of War 

Heimerdinger – The Revered Inventor 

Jarvan IV – The Exemplar of Demacia 

Jax – Grandmaster at Arms 

Jayce – The Defender of Tomorrow 

Karthus – The Deathsinger 

Kassadin – The Void Walker 

Kennen – The Heart of the Tempest

Kha’Zix – The Void Reaver

Kog’Maw – The Mouth of the Abyss

Lee Sin – The Blind Monk
*Lucian - The Purifier

Malphite – Shard of the Monolith 

Malzahar – The Prophet of the Void 

Maokai – The Twisted Treant

Master Yi – The Wuju Bladesman 

Mordekaiser – The Master of Metal 

Nasus – The Curator of the Sands 

Nautilus – The Titan of the Depths 

Nocturne – The Eternal Nightmare 

Nunu – The Yeti Rider 

Olaf – The Berserker 

Pantheon – The Artisan of War 

Rammus – The Armordillo

Renekton – The Butcher of the Sands

'League of Legends' Champion
Teemo - The Swift Scout

Rengar – The Pridestalker

Rumble – The Mechanized Menace

Shaco – The Demon Jester 

Shen – Eye of Twilight 

Singed – Mad Chemist 

Sion – The Undead Champion 

Skarner – The Crystal Vanguard

Swain – The Master Tactician 

Talon – The Blade's Shadow 

Taric – The Gem Knight 

Teemo – The Swift Scout
*Thresh - The Chain Warden

Trundle – The Cursed Troll 

Tryndamere – The Barbarian King 

Twisted Fate – The Card Master 

Twitch – The Plague Rat 

Udyr – The Animal Spirit 

Urgot – The Headsman's Pride

Varus – The Arrow of Retribution 

Veigar – The Tiny Master of Evil
*Vel'Koz - The Eye of the Void

Vladimir – The Crimson Reaper 

Volibear – The Thunder's Roar 

Warwick – The Blood Hunter 

Wukong – The Monkey King 

Xerath – The Magus Ascendant

Xin Zhao – The Seneschal of Demacia
*Yasuo - The Unforgiven

Yorick – The Grave Digger
*Zac - The Secret Weapon
*Zed - The Master of Shadows

Ziggs – The Hexplosives Expert 

Zilean – Chronokeeper

*Added 15th Feb 2015