Tag Archives: baby name websites

Interview with Kara from The Art of Naming

10 Sunday Aug 2014

Posted by in Blog Reviews

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Kara is the bubbly, friendly blogger at The Art of Naming, which she has been regularly maintaining, along with a host of social media, for a year now. Kara genuinely loves helping parents find the perfect name, and as well as personal assistance, she provides name lists, birth announcements, and featured names which includes possible name combinations and sibsets. As you can tell from her photo, Kara is expecting a baby in the near future, and if you read this interview very carefully, you will find out what her name will be.

What is your name?

Kara Yvonne.

Have you ever wished you had a different name?

Yes! I’ve always wanted a different name but I’ve never been able to pinpoint which name would better suit me. Kara fits just fine, I’ve just never liked it or Yvonne. Sorry mom! I would consider changing it if I could find the perfect replacement.

How did you become interested in names?

I was into playing The Sims as a teen, so I began browsing naming sites to choose names for the characters. By seventeen, I was making long name lists for future children (or Sims), and it snowballed from there.

What inspired you to begin a name blog?

Once I discovered that I was somewhat good at forming first and middle name combinations, (or I at least really liked doing so), I began frequenting forums to help parents find the perfect name. Then I decided to focus all of that into one place and help people on my own turf. It’s been over a year since I started the blog and I’ve helped many people, which is why I started it to begin with.

Do you have a favourite post on The Art of Naming?

The only one that comes to mind recently was about the popularity of names and I included my own little confession in there regarding my daughter’s name. I spent a few hours compiling the data for the chart there and the hard work felt worth the time when I finished. I’m a sucker for data and number crunching.

Do you have any other blogs?

I’ve got social media everywhere! Even a secondary blog where I answer questions, just don’t ask how I find the time to keep up with all of them.
Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest, Instagram.

Do you have a pet peeve in regard to names?

I really dislike a misspelled name. I like names with standard spellings (with a few exceptions) and I like names to have some solid history behind them, and a good meaning. So I guess my pet peeve is made-up names, or those that you have to think about for a few minutes before you attempt to pronounce them.

What are some of your favourite names?

Some of my favourites that I won’t be using include girly names like Magnolia, Freya, Coraline, Esme, Lavinia, Aveline, and Amara. For boys, I like August/Augustus, Benedict, Caspian, Constantine, Dante, Jack, Rafferty, and Silas. I can’t help but love unexpected middle names like Essence, Wintress, Frost, or Marvel.

What names do you dislike?

I really can’t stand some of the more trendy names. The whole –aiden trend, for example. Any name with an unnecessary Y or H inserted in there is a no-no. I also dislike the majority of K names, except for Irish ones like Killian. I think that stems from the dislike of my own name, plus recent trends in pop-culture, like the influx of Kardashians. Don’t get me started on names like Nevaeh. I also am not a huge fan of unisex names.

Are there any names you love, but could never use?

There aren’t any names that I can think of that I could never use, there are only names I was never able to use. I like to believe that in another dimension, I totally used all the names on my guilty pleasure list. The weirder the better! I think we’re stopping at two kids for now so my actual naming days are quite possibly over. Maybe I’ll get some fish.

What are your favourite names in the US Top 100?

Girls: A secret! But third and fourth are Emma and Caroline.
Boys: James… no, Henry.. no, Jack!

What are your favourite names in the rest of the US Top 1000?

Girls: Juliet ….
Boys: Maximus and Vincent.

What are your favourite names that have never charted in the US?

Girls: Amabel.
Boys: Caius?

What is your son’s name?

Maximus Alexander. We chose it for a number of reasons but we also really loved the meaning: ”greatest defender of the people”. We’ve already tasked him with protecting his baby sister and he seems to like the idea, but then again he’s only two.

You’re currently expecting another child – are we allowed to know her name?

She will have a first name and two middle names. The first name is one that we mutually fell in love with and decided on when we first saw an ultrasound picture of her cute little face. The second name is Juliet. And the third name is after my husband’s sister, even though it is extremely popular. I’m sure I’ll reveal it on my page in the next week or two.

What is one thing we don’t know about you?

I am currently in the process of writing a name book. I just need to try a little harder to focus on finishing it. Writer’s block is killer when combined with pregnancy hormones, but I hope to be able to release it in the not-too-distant future! Stay tuned!

What advice would you give someone who was choosing a baby name?

I always encourage people to go with their instincts. If they really love a particular name and can’t get it out of their head, that’s the one. Do not let family or friends influence you. Do not share your names in advance if you can help it so that you can keep them safe: name theft is real! Compromise is difficult between partners but it is totally achievable. Keep your mind open to new name ideas but cling to those you love the most. Sentimental value is always most important; if you have a wonderful reason for loving your name choice, it doesn’t matter at all how popular it is or if someone else has used it. Go for it anyway!

(Picture is a recent photo of Kara, supplied by interviewee)

Can You Help This Mum Find Some Baby Name Inspiration?

03 Saturday May 2014

Posted by in Naming Assistance

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Elizabeth and Thomas are expecting their second child later this month, but are yet to seriously discuss names. They already have a little boy named Xavier, but Elizabeth isn’t too fussed about “sibset flow” – she just wants the children to have names they like.

What they would like in a name

  • Not extremely popular
  • Not very uncommon
  • No unusual spellings
  • A name that can stand the test of time, and suit an adult as well as a child
  • Elizabeth would most like a classic or traditional name, combined with a more modern or contemporary middle, such as Zali or Eden

Names currently being considered
Girls: Grace or Kate, with Olive or Victoria as the middle name. Elizabeth loves the name Zara, but Thomas isn’t convinced.
Boys: Elizabeth really likes the name Jack, but believes it is too popular. She likes Ned, Ted, and Sam, but isn’t 100% sold on them. They earlier considered the name Lenny, but weren’t sure they could love it forever as much as they did initially. They may use the family name Geoffrey as the middle name.

Names that have been crossed off the list
Girls: Maggie
Boys: Elizabeth has crossed off Harry and Charlie, and Thomas has crossed off Ben, Benjamin, Clancy and Chas. Noah and Joe are also off the list.

The family surname begins with M and ends with R with an L sound in it eg Marler. Because of this, they have eliminated Amelia as a possibility, and any two-syllable name ending with -la, such as Ella or Layla. Elizabeth loves alliterative names, and would be happy with a name starting with M.

Elizabeth is feeling quite stuck in regard to name inspiration, and is hoping blog readers can help her out with some ideas. She wishes she could just have a list of names in front of her, so she could tick or cross off ones she likes or doesn’t.

* * * * * * * * * *

Elizabeth, when you said you would like a list of names that you could either say Yes or No to, that reminded me of the Nymbler website, run by Laura Wattenberg of the Baby Name Wizard.

To use it, you choose up to six names you like as your name inspirations, and then press Find Names – you can also select boy or girl names, or both. Once you receive your list of names, you can either save the names you like by pressing the heart symbol, or you can block the ones you dislike so you won’t see them again. I find the longer you go on from the same set of names, the more crazy and random the name suggestions get.

Another online tool that is a bit more focused is the Baby Name Expert on Behind the Name. You have to register to use the site (it’s free), and then you will find it under the Tools menu. You select a gender, and the country you are from (Australia is included), and then it starts suggesting names at random.

At this point, you can tell the BNE that you love the name, and save it to your list. Or you can tell it that the name is okay, and the reasons that you don’t mind it. Or you can give it the flick, and explain why this name is completely wrong for you.

Each time you either save, okay, or ditch a name, you will receive suggestions based on your preferences. Unlike Nymbler, the longer you use this app, the more focused and sensible the suggestions tend to get, and it’s very fast to move from one name to the next.

Anyway, that’s two methods of getting a long list of names that you can tick or cross off. It might be fun to do this with Thomas, so you can choose names together, and discuss your preferences. Or if he finds this kind of thing boring or stressful, it’s a way to immediately get a list of names you like that he can either agree to or nix in his own time.

I can’t give you hundreds of name ideas, but I did notice that all the names you chose were short and simple. You seem to like sensible, wholesome names for girls, like Grace and Kate, with maybe something more elaborate, trendy, retro, or modern in the middle. For boys, you seem to like cute, nicknamey names like Jack, Ned, Ted, Sam, or Lenny.

Girls names that reminded me a bit of Grace and Kate include

  • Alice
  • April
  • Audrey
  • Bonnie
  • Claire
  • Daisy
  • Hope
  • Ivy
  • Lucy
  • Maisie
  • Rose
  • Zoe

Possible middle names could be

  • Aria
  • Clementine
  • Eleanor
  • Eloise
  • June
  • Pearl
  • Penelope
  • Tess
  • Sadie
  • Scarlett
  • Susannah
  • Vivienne

Cute boys names could be names like

  • Alfie
  • Digby
  • Finn
  • Freddie
  • Gus
  • Jed
  • Jem
  • Kit
  • Mack
  • Nico
  • Rafe
  • Roy
  • Sid
  • Sonny
  • Toby
  • Vince

It seems as if you have already picked out nice names though – Grace and Kate are perfect, and Grace Victoria or Kate Victoria is quite regal.

There are several boy’s names you like, but you don’t seem ready to commit to any of them yet. I wonder whether you just need more time, or need to meet your baby first before you decide? Or maybe you’d prefer choosing a formal name for the birth certificate, with a nickname for everyday use, like Edward nn “Ned”, or Theodore nn “Ted”, or Lennox nn “Lenny”.

I know you are getting close to your due date, but don’t let that panic you. Take some time to get a list of names that you and Thomas like – names that you can imagine calling your child, and that fits in with your lifestyle. You don’t need to decide on one until after the baby is born, and if you still don’t have a name, you have weeks after the birth to choose one.

Good luck Elizabeth – for some reason I feel as if you are closer to finding a baby name than you think, even if you end up with something completely different than the names you are considering. Do let us know what name you choose for your baby once she or he arrives!

NAME UPDATE: The baby’s name is Patrick!

Is the Name Macalla of Indigenous Origin?

15 Saturday Dec 2012

Posted by in Naming Assistance

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image_previewA reader named Beni wrote in some time ago to ask if I could verify that the name Macalla was from an Australian Aboriginal language, and had the meaning “full moon”.

If you do a quick Google search, this interpretation does pop up on a few baby name sites, but they do not explain which language it is from. They also offer Mikayla or Makayla as being “derived” from this name, when we know that is not the case at all, so it starts to look rather unconvincing.

Even before searching these dubious baby name sites, I was already suspicious, because there is no letter c in the orthography of Australian Indigenous languages – a hard c sound, such as in the word carrot, is always shown as a k.

Feeling unsure of where to look next, I replaced the c with a k and tried searching for Makalla instead. In the National Library records, I found an album by a Western Australian musician and performer named Mervyn Mulardy; it was called Yatangal, and one of the tracks was Makalla.

I wrote to a music store named Chunes of Broome, and a helpful staff member named Andrew gave me Mr Mulardy’s phone number so that I could ask him about the song title.

Mr Mulardy was kind enough to take time out of his recording schedule to talk to me, and he explained that makalla is a word from the Karajarri language of the Kimberley, in Western Australia’s north-west. It describes the long grey clouds which roll in across the sky like waves, and which bring rain.

I don’t feel at all confident in reproducing Mr Mulardy’s pronunciation (especially as heard over the phone), but it sounded rather like MAHK-uh-lah, and the l in the word almost seemed to be a soft r sound.

I asked if Makalla is ever used as a name, and Mr Mulardy said he hadn’t heard of it being used so, but thought it very well could have been. I asked if it would cause any offence or be culturally inappropriate for non-Karajarri or non-Indigenous people to use Makalla as a name. Mr Mulardy seemed to think for a moment, and then said he didn’t believe so – in fact, he thought it would make a very good name.

As far as Macalla being an Indigenous name, that’s all I was able to find, and as you see, nothing about a full moon.

There is a Hawaiian girl’s name Makala, and this can be translated as “set free” or “myrtle” (depending upon pronunciation) – although other sources suggest that it can be used as a Hawaiian feminine form of Michael, which seems to bring us back to Mikayla again.

Another baby name site simply says that Macalla is a spelling variant of Mikayla, and this seems like the most likely explanation to me.

When it comes to spelling variants of common and popular names, baby name websites sometimes seek to make them seem more like “real names” with their own etymologies, origins and histories, and this can sometimes lead to overly imaginative interpretations of re-spelled names.

So Beni, I’m afraid I wasn’t able to verify that Macalla is an authentic Indigenous name, or even a genuine name in its own right.

But there are similar words and names that you could use, such as Makala and Makalla, and of course there is always Michaela, which could very well be the true source.

It’s interesting that while Mikayla is a Top 100 name, Michaela is only in the 400s, so the original (and some would say, the “correct”) spelling of the name actually makes a less common and more distinguished alternative.

If anyone has further information or insights on the name Macalla, please feel free to send them in to the blog. And which name would you prefer to use – Macalla, Makalla, Makala, Mikayla, Makayla or Michaela?

Much gratitude to Andrew at Chunes of Broome and Mervyn Mulardy for all their help.

(Photo shows a full moon over Lake Mungo)