Tag Archives: Ancient Germanic names

German Names For Boys

30 Sunday Aug 2015

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Wolf_Howling

Andreas
Latinised form of the Greek form of Andrew, meaning “manly”. Saint Andreas of Alexandria was an early martyr. The name has been used in Germany since the Middle Ages; a famous medieval namesake is Andreas Osiander, a Lutheran mystic and theologian, while a contemporary one is the German opera singer Andreas Scholl. The name Andreas was used in Britain too, although probably the name was still pronounced the same way as Andrew in everyday life. There is an Old English poem called Andreas about Saint Andrew, which turns him into an Old English warrior, battling the forces of evil. Another English literary connection is the 12th century author Andreas Capellanus (Andrew the Chaplain), who wrote a satirical treatise on the courtly love. Just outside the Top 100 in Germany, Andreas is a popular name in Austria and Scandinavia. It’s not often seen here, perhaps because of fears it will be be confused with its feminine counterpart, Andrea. Pronounced something like ahn-DRAY-ahs in Germany, this German classic seems like a fresh update to flagging Andrew, and has recently had some publicity from the disaster movie San Andreas.

Anton
The equivalent of Antony, used throughout Europe since the Middle Ages, and a traditional name amongst European nobility and royalty. Famous namesakes include the Austrian composer Anton Bruckner, and Russian writer Anton Chekhov. A famous Australian namesake is SBS journalist and anchorman Anton Enus, who was born in South Africa. Antons in fiction tend to be baddies, which isn’t a help to the name’s image. One exception is the American children’s book Summer of My German Soldier, where Anton is an escaped German POW who befriends a little Jewish girl. Anton is a popular name in Germany, and around the 400s here. A suave multicultural choice – and even the many villainous Antons in fiction give it a bit of an edge.

Florian
From from the Roman name Florianus, derived from Florus, which is from the Latin for “flower”. Florianus, or Florian, was one of the Roman emperors, and the noble von Blumenthal family from Brandenburg claimed descent from him via an imaginative legend whereby his sons fled to northern Germany, and taught everyone how to make wine. Saint Florian was a Roman soldier whose duties included organising fire brigades; he was martyred by drowning in a river which is now in Austria, and he is a favourite saint in central Europe. Saint Florian is the patron of Poland, and the city of Linz in Austria, and in Austria and Germany, Florian is used as a call sign for fire engines and stations. With such imperial, noble, saintly, patriotic, and rather butch firefighting associations, it’s little wonder Florian is a common name in Germany, and still on the Top 100. It’s rare here, but the rise of Florence in some ways gives it more familiarity, and I have seen an Australian baby named Florian. It seems hip and elegant.

Johannes
Latin form of Ioannes, the Greek form of the Hebrew name Yochanan, which in English is John. Famous German namesakes are seriously heavy duty achievers. Johannes Gutenberg, who introduced the printing press to 15th century Europe – it began a cultural revolution which changed the world and is largely responsible for most of us being able to read. Astronomer Johannes Kepler, a key figure in the 17th century scientific revolution whose works provided the foundations for the theory of gravitational force. Johannes Brahms, one of the great composers of the 19th century, honoured in the German hall of fame. A famous Australian namesakes is former Queensland premier Sir Johannes “Joh” Bjelke-Petersen, husband to Florence, and a force in conservative politics; he was of Danish descent. Popular in central Europe and Scandinavia, Johannes is #56 in Germany. It doesn’t chart here, but I do see it sometimes in birth notices. In Germany it’s pronounced yo-HAHN-nes, while here it may be pronounced in order to give the nickname Joe. A strong, handsome, intelligent classic.

Justus
Latin name meaning “just”. A Christian named Jesus Justus is mentioned by St Paul in the New Testament, while Joseph Justus is a disciple of Christ considered as a possibility to become an Apostle to replace Judas – he is venerated as St Justus of Eleutheropolis. There are quite a number of saints named Justus, including a Pope and an Archbishop of Canterbury. One of the most influential is a legendary one named Justus of Beauvais, who was beheaded as a child and went for a stroll holding his head: one of those fashionable saintly miracles which sent you straight to the top of the medieval pops for some reason. A famous German namesake is Justus Perthes, an 18th century publisher who founded the Almanach de Gotha, a directory of European royalty and nobility. An Australian namesake is Justus Jorgensen, who founded an artist’s colony in Melbourne called Montsalvat which is still open. Justus is #99 in Germany, and is on the US Top 1000. It seems like a solid alternative to the English virtue name Justice, although pronounced quite differently in Germany.

Karsten
German form of Christian. It is more common as a surname than a first name in Germany, and is rare here as well, but I do see it occasionally in birth notices, and one of the athletes we sent to the 2012 Olympics was named Karsten. That makes it seem unusual but normal, and it’s very much like familiar names such as Carson and Carter.

Klaus
Short form of Nikolaus, a German form of Nicholas. The patron saint of Switzerland is Saint Nicholas of Flüe, affectionately known as Brother Klaus. There are many famous German people with this name, including Klaus Neumann, Luftwaffe flying ace, artist and musician Klaus Voormann, who designed album covers for bands like The Beatles, Klaus Badelt, who composed the film score to the 2003 version of Ned Kelly, singer Klaus Meine from The Scorpions, and actor Klaus Kinski, father to Natassja Kinski. There are famous fictional characters with this name too, such as teen bookworm Klaus Bauldelaire from A Series of Unfortunate Events, vampire-werewolf hybrid Klaus Mikaelson from The Vampire Diaries, and Olympian athlete-cum-goldfish Klaus Heissler from American Dad. Slightly dated in Germany, this charming name is very rare in English-speaking countries, probably because it reminds people of Santa Claus. Klaus is said to rhyme with house though.

Otto
Modern form of the ancient Germanic name Audo or Odo, originally short forms of names beginning with aud-, meaning “wealth, riches, fortune”. A name in common use by German royalty and nobility, there have been four Holy Roman Emperors named Otto. Otto I, or Otto the Great, was the son of Saint Matilda, and married an English princess. Otto IV was the son of Matilda of England, the daughter of Henry II. Two famous writers had dads named Otto: Anne Frank and Sylvia Plath. The name might also remind you of statesman Otto von Bismarck or film director Otto Preminger. In fiction, Otto has often been used as a comedic or joke name, but “Big Otto” Delaney from Sons of Anarchy is an example of it being both serious and powerful. Currently #320 in Germany, Otto is popular in Scandinavia and gaining popularity in both the US and UK. It’s around the 200s here, and seems hip and rather quirky.

Rudolf
Modern form of the ancient Germanic name Hrodulf, translated as “famous wolf”. It was commonly used by German royalty and nobility, and Rudolf II was a Holy Roman Emperor. Although not generally considered a successful ruler, his patronage of the arts made him a key player in the Renaissance, while his interest in the occult and alchemy helped bring about the scientific revolution – there would be no chemists without alchemists! A famous namesake of modern times is the great ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev, who partnered Margot Fonteyn. Another is the Austrian philosopher Rudolf Steiner, who sought to find a system of thought which would be both scientific and spiritual in nature. Anthony Hope’s novel, The Prisoner of Zenda, is about two men named Rudolf – one a European king, the other his distant cousin visiting from England who must impersonate him. Despite all these interesting Rudolfs, the name is rarely used here as it reminds people of the Christmas song, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. Rather a shame, as this name is strong and rather charismatic. I do know someone named Rudolf who has never been bothered by the song though.

Wolf
Short form of names such as Wolfgang (“wolf path) and Wolfram (“wolf raven”), sometimes used as an independent name. A famous Australian namesake is Wolf Blass, a German immigrant who founded the famous winery in South Australia; his name was short for Wolfgang. The word wolf is the same in English and German (although pronounced differently), and you can also see this as a vocabulary name referring to the animal. Humans have always been fascinated by wolves, and in various mythologies they can be symbols of both danger (such as in the fairy tale Red Riding Hood) and nurturing (like the wolf mother who suckled the twins Romulus and Remus). A common thread in many legends from around the world is that of humans descended from wolves, or humans in wolf form, including werewolves. The power of the wolf makes this an attractive name, and it’s right on trend along with other animal names.

POLL RESULTS
People’s favourite names were Otto, Wolf and Anton, and their least favourite were Justus, Johannes and Rudolf.

Names of Australian Birds for Girls

30 Sunday Mar 2014

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Eastern Rosella #40I seem to have covered several bird names on the blog recently, and that might be because our family was watching light-hearted bird documentary series, Hello Birdy, on the ABC, or maybe just because I love birds. Australia is lucky enough to have a staggering array of birds, many of them colourful, beautiful, intelligent, or unusual, and sadly, often under-appreciated. Here are some names that bring to mind a few of our feathered friends. Click on a likely link, and you will be taken to a YouTube video of each bird – there’s at least one for every entry.

Brahminy
The Brahminy Kite is a bird of prey and scavenger native to Australasia and Asia; in Australia they are found in coastal regions in the north. They are chestnut brown with a white head, breast, and tail tip, and typically nest in trees in mangrove swamps. The name Brahminy is due to their being found in India; it alludes to the Hindu Brahmin priestly caste, and is said BRAH-min-ee. The Brahminy Kite is the official mascot of Jakarta, in Indonesia, and in India is regarded as a representation of Garuda, the sacred bird of the supreme god Vishnu. I would not have considered this as a person’s name if I hadn’t seen a baby girl named Brahminy. It’s a bold choice, and its connection with a sacred bird is fascinating.

Corella
The Corella is a small, white cockatoo with a pink blush to its plumage. They are found from the central deserts to the eastern coastal plains, and are a familiar sight on farms and in cities. In some areas, Corellas have become so numerous they are considered a pest, being particularly destructive to trees and cereal crops. They congregate in large flocks, even up to several thousand, and make a high-pitched screeching noise which is ear-piercing when a flock all calls together, and can be heard for miles. Although they are noisy birds, they are very playful and have the joie de vivre that all parrots are blessed with. They are popular as pets, because they are good talkers, and excellent mimics. The word corella comes from the Wiradjuri language of central New South Wales. Corella has been used as a girl’s name since the 18th century, and is probably part of the Cor- group which is based on the Greek Kore, meaning “maiden”. The bird gives it a uniquely Australian flavour.

Dove
Here’s the dirty little secret about Doves: they’re just pigeons! Not only that, it’s unclear what makes some species of pigeons “doves”, because while we generally call smaller pigeons doves, that isn’t always the case. The confusion arises because the word pigeon is from Latin, and dove from Ancient Germanic, so they are two different words for the same thing (like autumn and fall). Nonetheless, their images are completely different: doves are symbols of peace, while pigeons are seen as disease-ridden pests (in fact, pigeons are no more disease-ridden than any other animal and pose no general health risk). Australia has a number of species identified as doves, and although we often think of doves as modest and grey, the Emerald Dove has striking green colouring, and the many varieties of Fruit Dove are likewise very colourful. There are also introduced species of dove, including those kept as pets. Dove has been used as a first name since the 17th century, and has been far more common for girls; a contemporary example is Disney actress Dove Cameron. Dove not only rhymes with love, but doves are used as symbols of love, since pigeons mate for life; the word dove can mean “sweetheart”. Perhaps because of this, doves were considered sacred to goddesses such as Venus. Another religious connection is that in Christian iconography, the Holy Spirit is often depicted as a dove.

Halcyon
Halcyon is the Latin name for the Tree Kingfishers, a large genus of birds found in Africa, Asia and Australasia, with Australasia having the most species. They are recognisable by their large heads and long pointed bills, and many are brightly coloured, often in iridescent blues and greens. The Laughing Kookaburra is a type of tree kingfisher, an iconic Australian bird with a raucous cackle that seems to epitomise the spirit of the bush. Halcyon is from the Greek for “kingfisher”, and is connected to a character from Greek mythology named Alcyone; the daughter of the winds, she married Ceyx, the son of the morning star. The pair were very much in love, and after Ceyx was lost at sea in a terrible storm, the unhappy Alcyone threw herself into the waves to end her life. The gods took pity on them, and changed both into kingfishers. According to legend, the “halcyon days” of midwinter, when storms cease, was when Alcyone laid her eggs, and her father restrained the winds so that she could do so safely. Because of this, the word halcyon (pronounced HAL-see-uhn) has come to mean “calm, serene, peaceful”, with our halcyon days those happy times we look back on with nostalgia. Halcyon has been used as a girl’s name since the 19th century: pretty and unusual, it gives Hallie as the nickname.

Lalage
Lalage is the scientific name for the Trillers, native to Asia and Australasia; they are small birds, usually coloured black, white and grey. They are called Trillers because during the breeding season, the males make a cheerful, almost continuous, trilling call. Lalage is derived from Greek, and means “to babble, to prattle”, or, in the case of birds, “to chirp”. The name became known from an ode by Roman poet Horace, where he speaks of his love for a young girl, his “sweetly laughing, sweet talking Lalage”. It has been used a few times since as a literary name, most notably in Kipling’s Rimini. Lalage has had occasional use, and in Britain seems to have a fairly upper-class image: contemporary examples are photjournalist Lalage Snow, and fashion designer Lalage Beaumont. In English, this name is usually pronounced LAL-a-gee or LA-la-ghee – just remember it’s three syllables, emphasis on the first, hard g like girl, not soft like germ. This fascinating name fits in with L-L names like Lillian, and as Lalage was a very young courtesan, almost seems like a posh version of Lolita! Lallie, Lollie, and Lala could be nicknames.

Lark
Larks are plain brown birds to look at, but their great beauty is in their voices, for they are famous for their melodious singing. This has made them a favourite subject for poets, such as Percy Bysshe Shelley’s, To a Skylark, and to say someone sings “like a lark” is a great compliment to the range and joyousness of their notes. Traditionally, larks are a symbol for dawn and daybreak, as in “getting up with the lark”, and this has given them religious overtones, for just as dawn is the passage between night and day, it can also be seen as that between heaven and earth. In Renaissance paintings, larks were sometimes used as a symbol of Christ. Although Australia has many birds with lark as part of their name, our only true lark is Horsfield’s Bushlark, widely found in grasslands and open woodlands. It is much smaller than larks in the northern hemisphere, and doesn’t have quite such an impressive voice, although its songs are still rich and varied, and it is a good mimic as well. The Eurasian Skylark which features in Shelley’s verse has been introduced here. Lark has been used as a name since the 18th century, and is historically more common for boys, but is often now thought of as more feminine than masculine. It’s a simple, non-frilly nature name laden with symbolism, and is more often found in the middle.

Maggie
Maggie is the affectionate name for the Australian Magpie. Although they look similar, it isn’t closely related to the European Magpie. Easily recognisable from their black and white plumage, magpies are very familiar in suburban life. Magpies are one of Australia’s favourite songbirds, because they have a complex, melodious warble, and will carol in chorus at dusk and dawn. They can also mimic other birds and animals, including human speech. Bold and sturdy, they are not typically wary of humans, and will happily accept (demand!) free food from us. They become unpopular in spring, as males can be so aggressive during breeding season that they swoop or even attack humans to warn them away. This is when feeding them pays off, as they can tell individual people apart, and won’t scare their buddies. The Magpie was a totem animal for the Indigenous people of the Illawarra, and is an official emblem of South Australia, appearing on the state flag. Magpies is a common name for sporting teams, and the cocky attitude of the Magpie is seen as indicative of the national character. Maggie is also a short form of Margaret. It was #174 in the 1900s, and was off the charts by the 1940s, returning in the 1970s. It has climbed steadily, and is currently in the 100s.

Oriole
Orioles are a large family of birds found throughout the world, which come in a variety of colours. Australian Orioles are green, perfect for blending in with the trees. They are fruit-eating birds, and the Figbird is one of the Orioles, although it doesn’t only eat figs. Orioles and Figbirds are attracted to backyards with small fruit trees and bushes, and which have native trees such as eucalypti and wattle; they are a fairly common sight in suburbia. The word oriole is derived from the Latin for “gold”, because the Eurasian Golden Oriole is a bright yellow. Oriole is related to names like Aurelia and Auriol, which are from the same derivation, and looks a lot like Oriel, which may be seen as a variant of Auriol, but also has Irish and Germanic origins. Oriole seems like a way to retain the golden meaning, while also referencing the bird.

Rainbird
The Rainbird is the colloquial name for the Pacific Koel, a species of migratory cuckoo which arrives here in spring from Papua New Guinea and Indonesia, and is found in north and eastern Australia. It’s called a Rainbird because of the belief that its rather mournful “whooping” call is a harbinger of wet weather. Males call for a mate during their breeding season, which coincides with the spring rains and the summer “wet season”, and are so loud they can be considered a nuisance. Like all cuckoos, Rainbirds lay their eggs in the nests of other species so that they can be raised by the unsuspecting hosts; however, unlike most other cuckoos, the baby Rainbird doesn’t kill the host chicks. Rainbirds are rather goofy-looking birds; the males have glossy black plumage and bright red eyes. I have seen Rainbird used as a girl’s middle name, and think it makes a wonderful name for a spring or summer baby. It would work equally well for boys.

Rosella
Rosellas are colourful parrots which are very familiar in suburbia. I think we might take them for granted, because they really are pretty, with a more pleasing range of calls than most parrots. Rosellas will be attracted to any garden that provides them with water, seeds and fruit, and can become so tame that they will eat out of your hand. This has led them to become common as pets, but in captivity they can become bored and aggressive, so I think it’s nicer to have them as backyard visitors. European settlers first saw Eastern Rosellas at Rose Hill (now called Parramatta), and called them Rosehill Parakeets; this evolved into Rosehillers, and eventually became Rosella. The Sydney suburb of Rozelle is named after them. Rosella is also a popular brand of tomato sauce, which sports an Eastern Rosella as its logo. By coincidence, Rosella is also an Italian name, an elaboration of Rosa, and looks like a combination of popular Rose and Ella.

POLL RESULTS
The public’s favourite names were Lark, Maggie and Rosella, and their least favourite were Brahminy, Oriole and Lalage.

(Photo shows an Eastern Rosella)

Famous Name: North West

28 Wednesday Aug 2013

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The Hills Shire is in the north-west region of Sydney. Big news in The Hills at the moment is the North West Rail Link, which will connect Rouse Hill to Epping, and involve the construction of eight new railway stations. To assist with the necessary disruptions, The Hills Shire council has put out a pamphlet: Is your business north-west rail ready? The pamphlet suggests you may want to stagger your work times, or work from home until the North West Rail Link is complete.

The North West Rail Link is the “baby” of the Hills Shire council, and as often happens, their baby name was “stolen” when Kanye West and Kim Kardashian called their daughter North West. However, in this case New South Wales has precedence, because they came up with the name North West in 1998. Why it takes 15 years between the proposal and sending out pamphlets is a question only local government can explain. (If you’re really curious, Wiki it). There is no date set for ending the project, which may not occur until 2020. Hope you’re north-west rail ready!

North is one of the four major compass points, and in Western culture, it is considered the primary direction, and the one from which all other directions are taken. By convention, north is placed at the top of globes and maps, although the word comes from an ancient Germanic root which means “down, under”. This may come from an ancient root meaning “left, below”, because north is to the left when you face the rising sun.

For people in the northern hemisphere, north is the direction towards the Arctic, and when they think of “northern lands”, they probably envisage ice and snow, or at least cooler temperatures. In many fantasy tales, dangerous or evil creatures come out of the north, such as Hans Anderson’s Snow Queen, and the dragon in Tolkien’s The Hobbit. However, the ancient Greeks believed that in the far north lay the country of the happy Hypoboreans, who lived in a land of eternal sunshine (kind of on the right track due to the Midnight Sun).

In the southern hemisphere, north is the direction of the Equator, and we may think of northern places as hot and dry, or steamy and tropical. In Australia, the northern part of the country Australia has a certain mystique as vast, hot, empty of people, and rich in natural resources.

North is also an English surname. The aristocratic North family hold the title of Earls of Guildford, and Frederick North, the second Earl, was Prime Minister of Great Britain during the American War of Independence. Frederic Dudley North, descended from the British Prime Minister, emigrated to Western Australia in the 19th century and undertook several important posts, including representing the state during Queen Victoria’s Jubilee.

The origin of the surname is unclear – it could refer to someone who lived to the north of a particular town, or possibly someone with Norse ancestry, or who looked as if they might have.

West is another major compass point, conventionally placed on the left side of maps, and lying in the direction of the setting sun. It seems to be from an ancient root which means “downward”, referring to sundown, and is closely related to the word evening.

Because the west points toward the sunset, in many cultures it represents death (to go west, means “to die”). The ancient Celts imagined the Otherworld could be found far out in the western sea, while the ancient Greeks believed the paradisaical Fortunate Isles were located in the western ocean. The island of Atlantis was also thought of as being to the west, far out in the Atlantic.

In Britain, the West End is the posh part of London, while Westminster is the seat of power, and the West Country the land of legends and fairy tales. Westward Ho!, by Charles Kingsley, is set in the West Country and deals with adventures in the West Indies. Its title is the same as a Jacobean satire by Dekker and Webster on west London, taken from the call of Thames watermen. The playwrights later wrote Northward Ho!, set in north London.

In the United States, the western frontier lands in the 19th century symbolised freedom, adventure, opportunity and progress, as in the famous phrase, Go west young man. The Old West is not so much a time and a place as part of the American psyche, and the American West helped inspire imaginative works as diverse as Little House on the Prairie, Star Wars, The Great Gatsby, On The Road, Breaking Bad, and The Wizard of Oz (which has a Wicked Witch of the West).

The iconic Wild West played a major role in the development of the Australian myth of The Bush, and there is much we can identify with, as we have our own frontier country, the Outback. Here the west is Western Australia, the largest state, and the most geologically ancient part of the country, at over 4 billion years old. The oldest life forms on Earth, the stromatolites, can be found in Shark Bay, and the world’s oldest fossil, 3.4 billion year old bacteria, was discovered in Port Hedland.

The West also refers to Western civilisation, an idea which goes back to the ancient Greeks. Today it has political connotations, with people believing that “the West” stands for any number of values they might like or dislike. It is political rather than geographic, because “western” countries are all over the world.

The English surname West denotes someone who lived to the west of a town, or someone who had moved to the area from the west. It turns up early on in Essex, the most easterly part of England. This is another aristocratic surname, for the Wests were an old family originally from Devon, in the West Country.

North and West have both been used as personal names since at least the 16th century, with West much more common overall. Most Norths and Wests have been male, although the first North I can find in the records was a girl, and there are many female examples of both names. A larger proportion of Wests have been female, compared to Norths. There are thousands of Norths and Wests of both sexes in Australian records, although most of these are middle names.

North and West are names which sound a little out of the ordinary, and yet are straightforward and instantly recognisable. Everyone can spell and pronounce them, and they’re easy to explain: “North, like the North Pole”, “West, like the Wild West”.

They seem modern, but have surprisingly long histories, and layers of meanings, of which you are free to choose the ones which appeal to you the most. Kanye and Kim reportedly chose North because they saw it as meaning “the furthest up”, and therefore the pinnacle of their relationship, which strikes me as very northern-centric, and making a second child’s name problematic. If the first child’s name marks the pinnacle of your relationship, what’s left for Number 2?

POLL RESULTS: North received an approval rating of 40%, and West a rating of 35%. Most people preferred the names North and West on a boy rather than a girl. 98% of people thought the name North West was more suitable for a railway than a human.

(Picture shows an artist’s impression of a station on the North West Rail Link)

Boys Names of Australian Aboriginal Origin – Part 2

04 Sunday Aug 2013

Posted by in Name Themes and Lists

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mh1

Bambam

Bambam as a person’s name might seem like an oddball suggestion, but although it would definitely be an unusual choice, I don’t think it’s an unfamiliar one either. For a start, there is Bamm Bamm Rubble from The Flintstones, first introduced as a cute blonde baby with superhuman strength. His name came from the fact that he would say Bamm bamm, and swing his club, to the general destruction of everything around him. Bam Bam is used as a man’s nickname, from American wrestler Bam Bam Bigelow to British DJ Bam Bam. There’s also skater Bam Margera, who gained his nickname from constantly running into walls as a toddler. I have seen a baby boy called Bambam – although that may have been a nickname. In English, bam bam is an onomatopoeic interjection, suggesting one thing repeatedly hitting or banging into another. In much the same way, in Nyungar (from south-west Western Australia), bam means “to hit”, and in Bundjalung (from northern New South Wales), bambam means “bruise, swelling”. However, in the Meriam language from the eastern Torres Strait Islands, bambam means “yellow”; in Indigenous art, yellow ochre is often used to represent the earth. It’s quirky, but Bambam is a rather lovable name.

Daku

Daku means “sand hill” in the extinct Diyari language; the Diyari people are from the South Australian desert, and thus very familiar with sand. Despite being generally used as a boys name in Australia, Daku is also a unisex name in India, and in Hindi it means “bandit”. Someone wrote in to the blog considering the name Daku for their son, but they never got back to me, so I don’t know whether they overcame family opposition to the name or not. This name reminds me a bit of Dakota, and it has the fashionable OO sound, such as Reuben and Jude; the name is pronounced (I think) DAK-oo. It would be a bold choice though, and I haven’t seen many boys with this name, although it can be found a few times in historical records.

Jardi

Jardi means “front” in the Ngadjumaja language; the Ngadjumaja people are from the Nullarbor Coast area of south-east Western Australia. I remember reading in the papers last year about a baby boy from Mudgee who has named Jardii, and his mother explained that his name was from the Wiradjuri language and means “first born son”. I wasn’t able to find that information for myself, but it occurred to me that “front” and “first” are similar in meaning, so Jardi also seemed like a good name for an eldest son. In the Jaminjung language from the Victoria River region of the Northern Territory, jardi means “to keep”, which also seems very positive. I found quite a few Indigenous boys and young men named either Jardi or Jardii, and I think it’s really attractive, with a similar sound to Jordie, the short form of Jordan.

Jiemba

Jiemba means “laughing star” in the language of the Wiradjuri people of central New South Wales. It refers to the morning star, or the planet Venus. (In some other Aboriginal languages, djimba simply means “star”). Astronomy was very important to the Wiradjuri, as with other Aboriginal societies, because stars and planets were used to tell the times and seasons, and this information was first given in early childhood. It is recorded that in the Wiradjuri in the 19th century, the elders would teach the children the stories behind the stars (the constellations), while the old women would teach children to count stars, which they could do into the thousands using a particular system. This information comes from radical poet and journalist Mary Gilmore, who grew up in Wagga Wagga, and was given the name Jiemba by the Wiradjuri people. Despite it being given to a little girl, I have only seen Jiemba given to boys – most likely because it is said JIM-ba, and thus shortens to Jim or Jimmy. One of the Aboriginal men from the Sydney area first encountered by Europeans was named Jimbah, so it sounds quite masculine (this Jimbah may also have been Colebee).

Lue

Lue is a small village in the Central Tablelands region of New South Wales. Its name means “chain of waterholes” in the local Dabee language – the Dabee are part of the Wiradjuri group. The village’s name is pronounced LOO-wee, which makes me think that this could be an Australian alternative to Louis or Louie. There are quite a number of people named Lue in Australian historical records – many of them are of Chinese ancestry, but there are some from the Lue area, suggesting that at least a few of them were named after the village.

Nullah

A nulla nulla, also known as a nullah or waddy, is an Aboriginal war club or hunting stick; the word comes from the extinct Darug language from the Port Jackson area of Sydney. A nullah is a heavy club which could be used in hand to hand combat, or used to stun prey; sometimes they were used to punish lawbreakers. In addition, these useful tools could be used to make fires, and grind ochre. This name is frequently Googled, because Nullah is the name of the young Aboriginal boy in Baz Luhrman’s 2008 epic, Australia, played by Brandon Walters. The film is set in the Northern territory, so the choice of Nullah for the character’s name is not meant to be authentic; I wonder if they chose it partly because it suggests the name of the Nullarbor Plain (Latin for “no trees”). Nullah is also a Hindi word for a narrow, steep-sided valley; in dry countries like Australia, these nullahs are commonly filled with brushwood, and when it rains heavily, they temporarily become streams. This could be another inspiration for the character’s name.

Omeo

Omeo is a town in Victoria which is in the East Gippsland, set high in the Great Dividing Range. Its name means “mountains, hills” in the local Gunaikurnai language, or one of its dialects, because it is set on a treeless plain on the fringes of the Snowy Mountains. There is evidence of human occupation of this region dating back around 20 000 years, and the first reported sighting by a European of Omeo was in 1832, by a naturalist on the slopes of the southern alps. It was his reports of fine grazing land which soon attracted pastoralists and squatters to the region. Gold was discovered in the 1850s, but Omeo’s isolation meant that it did not experience the massive boom of many goldfields towns – it did however, have the dubious distinction of being the roughest and most unruly place on the goldfields. Its first magistrate was Judge Browne, better known as author Rolf Boldrewood, who wrote of the area’s lawlessness in his novel, Robbery Under Arms. This name looks and sounds like Romeo without the R, which gives it recognisability as a name, although it also reminds me of Omo washing powder. Its goldfields history gives it a bit of a “wild west” feel; it seems a bit more bad boy than romantic Romeo. Omeo has had some use as a boy’s name in Australia, especially amongst people from Omeo itself, and was more often found in the middle.

Tanami

The Tanami Desert is in the Northern Territory, and is Australia’s most northerly desert. In the wet season, it rains heavily and even floods, but the high temperatures mean that most of it evaporates. Some parts of the Tanami do have wetlands though, and there is even a lake which has permanent water in it, so as deserts go, it’s on the slightly moist side. It is a refuge for several rare and endangered species of flora and fauna, making it a biologically important area. You can cross the desert on the Tanami Track, which is more than 1000 km long, and goes from Alice Springs to Halls Creek, in the Kimberly region of Western Australia. Tanami is a corruption of the local Walpiri name for the area, Chanamee, meaning “never die”, because the rock holes in a particular gully were said to never run dry of water, even in drought. When white people came here in the early twentieth century, they found to their dismay that this was not the case, so either the name was optimistic in nature, or the Indigenous people had a superior knowledge of obtaining water from the rock holes. I have seen Tanami occasionally on girls, but after seeing it given to a boy, I really like it as a male name. The pronunciation is TAN-uh-my, but the Aboriginal pronunciation would be more like TAN-uh-mee, so you could take your pick on how to say it.

Woden

Woden Valley is a district of the capital city of Canberra. The area is named after a homestead owned by Dr James Murray, which was built in 1837. In Aboriginal Place Names, Harold Koch suggests that the name of Dr Murray’s homestead may have been influenced by the word wadyan or wadhan, which means “possum” in several Indigenous languages, in an area stretching from the Monaro region right down to Omeo in Victoria. If so, then the spelling was altered to make it look like the name of the Anglo-Saxon and Germanic god Woden, whose name means “inspiration”; Dr Murray saw him as a god of wisdom. Woden was the chief god of the Germanic peoples, and is their equivalent of Odin. Anglo-Saxon royalty claimed that Woden was their ancestor, and he survives in English folklore as leader of the Wild Hunt, and perhaps even as Father Christmas. Of course, we unconsciously celebrate his special day once a week, on Wednesday (Woden’s day). With Odin being a rather hip name at present, Woden really doesn’t seem too strange, and this could be a way of celebrating Australian and English heritage together. There are a couple of men named Woden in Australian historical records, although it is more common as a middle name.

Yarramundi

Yarramundi is an outer suburb of Sydney which is a semi-rural area in the City of Hawkesbury. It is named after a famous Indigenous leader who was a member of the Boorooberongal clan of the Darug people, and a garadyi, or shaman – a healer, a man of great spiritual knowledge and power, and an enforcer of tribal law. Yarramundi’s son Colebee was the first Aboriginal person to receive a land grant, and his daughter Maria was the first Aboriginal child to be enrolled in a school for the education of Indigenous children; her marriage in 1824 was the first legally recognised union between an Aboriginal woman and a convict. Maria ended up being a successful land owner in Liverpool and Blacktown, and dozens of families in the area trace their ancestry back to Yarramundi. Yarramundi means “deep water”, and I saw a newspaper story about a baby boy named Yarramundi after this inspiring namesake.

POLL RESULT: People’s favourite names were Jardi, Lue, and Nullah, and their least favourite were Yarramundi, Omeo, and Bambam.

(Picture shows the Tanami Desert in northern Australia)

Famous Name: Thor

17 Wednesday Apr 2013

Posted by in Famous Names

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kinopoisk.ruThe Hollywood movie Thor came out a couple of years ago; last year it was followed by The Avengers, and a sequel will be coming out at the end of this year. The movie character is based on the Marvel Comics superhero, created by the famous Stan Lee, and the films place ancient gods in the modern world, interacting with humans and having spectacular magic vs science showdowns.

The Australian connection to this story is that Thor is played by Chris Hemsworth, who appeared on the blog as a celebrity dad last year, after welcoming daughter India Rose with his lovely wife Elsa. Thor‘s world premiere was held in Sydney.

In Norse mythology, Thor is the god of thunder, lightning, storms, oak trees, strength, healing and fertility. He is a protector of humanity, and the god who makes things holy. He is generally depicted as a large, muscular, red-haired and red-bearded man with fierce eyes, wielding a hammer that can pretty much smash through, well, everything.

Medieval epics describe Thor’s exploits in battle, and his fearsome wrath with anyone who crosses him. He is no steroidal oaf though, and capable of outwitting others and being clever with words; he sits as a judge at the foot of the World Tree. It is foretold that at the world’s destruction, Thor will do battle with his arch-enemy The Great Serpent and slay it, but will succumb to its venom and meet his end.

I think it’s too tempting for us moderns to imagine Thor as some sort of beefcake with anger management problems, but to his worshippers he was a source of strength and protection for their homes and possessions, giving security to family and community, and warding off plague and famine.

As the product of a divine marriage between the sky god Odin, and the earth mother Fjörgyn, he was a potent fertility symbol, and like lightning, he was a conduit between the heavens and the earth. The storms he brought with him watered the fields and made life grow.

Thor was worshipped by Germanic peoples, including those in Anglo-Saxon England, and the Vikings of Scandinavia, but it is from Norse mythology that most of our information about him is gained. His name is derived from an Ancient Germanic word for “thunder”; the Old English form of Thor is Thunor (pronounced THOO-nor), which makes the connection even more obvious.

It is a testament to his vast popularity how many names used in Britain there were that derived from Thor. A few that have survived into modern times, although rare, are Thora, a feminised form of Thor; Thurstan, meaning “Thor’s stone”; and Torquil, meaning “Thor’s cauldron”. His name is also in Thursday, meaning “Thor’s day”.

In Scandinavia the name Thor isn’t uncommon, and is pronounced TOR. Some famous Thors you may have heard of are Norwegian ethnographer Thor Heyerdahl (who crossed the Pacific on a raft named Kon-Tiki), Norwegian cyclist Thor Hushovd, Danish poker player Thor Hansen, Venezuelan human rights activist Thor Halvorssen, and Belgian singer Thor Salden.

Although the name Thor continued to be occasionally used in Britain, it is much more common in the United States, which has had significant migration from Scandinavia. Quite a few people named Thor can be found in Australian records, and most of them have Scandinavian surnames, or emigrated here from Scandinavia.

I recently saw a birth announcement for a baby boy named Thor, born in Tasmania; remarkably there was a Loki announced that same week, and an Odyn the following week.

Not long ago, Nameberry announced Thor was shaping up as one of the hot names of 2013 (along with other mythological names), and at the end of last year, told us that Scandinavian would be the ethnic name group most likely to rise in popularity. Meanwhile Abby’s Nameberry Nine this week pointed out that boy’s names are getting cooler all the time – even her little girl has noticed.

If you are considering the name Thor for your son, it is not only strong and interesting, with an ancient history that plugs in to European culture, but also right on trend.

With the Chris Hemsworth movies in the public consciousness, Thor is a name we’re all more familiar with, and for dads who hanker after a tough cool baby name, they might find it easier to persuade their partners if they have been smitten by Hemsworth’s hunkiness.

POLL RESULT: Thor received an approval rating of 59%. People were divided on the name Thor, with 16% thinking it was unusual, but something we’ve all heard of, while the same percentage thought it was over the top. 11% thought the god Thor gave the name greater substance and dignity, while 8% thought the god made the name seen heavy and oppressive. 7% considered that the movie made the name seem more accessible, while 5% saw the movie as making the name geekier.