Tag Archives: famous namesakes

Underused Names for Boys

10 Sunday Feb 2013

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Time-For-Bed-Said-ZebedeeThis follows on from last week’s Underused Names for Girls; to briefly recap, they are names which aren’t common here (used less than six times in the 2012 Victorian data, have never charted in Australia), but still have a history of use in Australia (can be found in historical records).

Alaric

Alaric is from the Gothic name Alareiks, meaning “ruler over all”. Alaric I was the king of the Visigoths who sacked Rome in 410, and his great-grandson, Alaric II, was ruler of the Visigothic kingdom, covering most of Spain and the south of France. Another Alaric was a legendary king of Sweden, skilled in battle and sport, and a masterful horseman. He had a brother Eric, and for some unknown reason, the pair of them killed each other with their horses’ bridles, which seems an awfully strange choice of weapon. The name Alaric is far commoner in fiction than in real life, where it tends to be either chosen for comedies, in the belief that the name Alaric sounds amusingly high-faluting, or science-fiction/fantasy, in the belief that it sounds geekily exotic. In the TV series, The Vampire Diaries, there is a character named Alaric; he says his name uh-LAHR-ik, although most sources say the name is pronounced AL-uh-rik. Powerful and commanding, this is unusual, but sounds similar to familiar names like Alan and Eric.

Blaise

In Arthurian legend, Blaise was the priest who baptised the wizard Merlin, became his tutor and friend, then took the trouble to write down all Merlin’s deeds for posterity. There is a Saint Blaise, who is a saint of healing, as he cures sore throats (the saint was a doctor as well as a bishop). He seems to have been quite popular in England, perhaps because his feast day of February 3 is right after the Celtic festival of Imbolc and the Christian feast of Candlemas, and often marked by bonfires. Blaise sounds like the word blaze, so a pleasing coincidence for fire-lovers. The most famous namesake is Blaise Pascal, the French theologian and philosopher. The meaning could be from either Latin or Greek. If Latin, it means “stuttering, lisping”; if Greek it means “bow-legged”, so either way it’s not flattering. Saint Blaise was Greek, but the Blaise of Arthurian legend is probably meant to be Roman or Romanised, so you can take your pick. It’s a name loved for its sound, namesakes and associations rather than its meaning.

Corin

Corin is a French surname derived from Quirinus; Saint Quirinus was part of a Roman missionary group sent to convert Gaul, and legend has attached to this popular saint all the standard saintly stories, such as killing a dragon and going for a stroll after getting his head chopped off. The original Quirinus was an early Roman god, probably a Sabine war deity. The Sabines had an altar to Quirinus on the Quirinal Hill, one of the Seven Hills of Rome. The Romans considered him to be a deified Romulus, and in the early days he was a major god, although they gradually lost interest in worshipping him. However, even after the fall of Rome, the Quirinal Hill remained a place of power, so that it was chosen as the seat of royalty, and later the residence of the Presidents of the Italian Republic. The name is linked to the name of the Sabine town Cures, and may come from the Sabine word for “spear”. There is a shepherd named Corin in Shakespeare’s As You Like It, and a Prince Corin in C.S. Lewis’ The Horse and His Boy. You can also see this name from another perspective, for in British legend, Corineus was a great warrior and giant-killer who founded Cornwall; his name may be an echo of Cernunnos, the Celtic god, whose name is usually translated as “horn”, or “horned one”. There are several place names in Cornwall apparently derived from Cernunnos (including Cornwall itself), and the name Corin enjoyed early popularity in Cornwall and Devon – so you can see this as a British name just as much as a French one. This packs a double mythological punch, and doesn’t seem much different than names such as Corey or Colin.

Edgar

Edgar is an Old English name meaning “rich spear”. Saint Edgar the Peaceful was a king of England; a Scottish King Edgar was a son of Saint Margaret. The name became rare after the Norman Conquest, but had a revival in the 19th century, after Sir Walter Scott’s historical novel, The Bride of Lammermoor, told the story of tragic lovers Lucy and Edgar – a tale which ends in madness, murder and quicksand. Edgar is also a character in William Shakespeare’s King Lear; disinherited by his father, he wanders the heath disguised as a babbling madman. Noble and clever, he is also enigmatic with a touch of darkness; he enjoys playing the crazy beggar just a little too much. The most famous person named Edgar is probably the American writer, Edgar Allen Poe, said to have been named after Shakespeare’s character. Poe’s works are also quite dark and enigmatic, dealing with topics such as grief, guilt, mystery, murder, madness, doom, death, drugs, and being buried alive. Edgar is related to the other Ed- names, such as Edward and Edwin, but seems more vintage, a bit edgier, and a touch more Gothic. This name might be uncommon, but it’s also traditional and comes with all the usual Ed and Eddie nicknames.

Giles

This is based on the Latin name Aegidius, derived from the Greek for “young goat”. Aegidius was a 7th century hermit from Athens who lived in the south of France with a tame deer; in Old French his name became Gidie, then Gide, and finally Gilles; when the Normans took his name to Britain, it became Giles. A noted miracle worker, Saint Giles was very popular in the Middle Ages, and his name became common; it was also given quietly but steadily to girls (even into the 20th century). Although we often think of Giles as a terribly “English” name, Saint Giles is the patron saint of Edinburgh, and the name Giles is traditional in Scotland; many Gileses in Australian records have Scottish surnames. The English haven’t done this name many favours, as it’s a favourite in English books and TV shows for good-natured upper class twits. However, this doesn’t reflect the reality of the name, or the Australian experience of it, and I think it’s possible to see Giles in quite a different light. I can see Giles as a solid country-style name, a brother to Archie and Will, or slightly hipster, a brother to Hugo and Barnaby. If you crossed Gus with Miles, you might end up with something that looks a little like Giles …

Huxley

Huxley is an English surname. The Huxley family were Normans who came to Britain after the Conquest and settled in Cheshire, taking their name from a village near Chester, which was originally named Holdesieia, and corrupted into Huxley. The original name may be from the Anglo-Saxon for “sloping land”, and Huxley is believed to mean’s “Hucc’s wood”, with Hucc being an Anglo-Saxon nickname meaning “insult, taunt”. Huxley has been used as a personal name since the 18th century, and early examples are from the Cheshire area, suggesting they may have been named directly after the village. The Huxley family have produced an astonishing number of brilliant thinkers, from the biologist T.H. Huxley, supporter of Charles Darwin, to the author Aldous Huxley, who wrote Brave New World. T.H. Huxley came to Australia as a young man, and did such excellent work in natural history that he was made an immediate Fellow of the Royal Society on his return (Mount Huxley in Tasmania is named in his honour). T.H. Huxley’s distant cousin, Sir Leonard Huxley, migrated to Australia in childhood, and became one of our most distinguished physicists. With its fashionable X and intellectual pedigree, this name seems very hip, and comes with the nicknames Huck or Hux.

Jethro

Jethro is translated as “excellence, abundance” in Hebrew, and in the Old Testament, Jethro is the father-in-law of Moses, and a priest (it is never made clear in what religion he was a priest, but by the end he accepted Yahweh as his God). Jethro is revered as a prophet in Islam, and is held in the highest regard by the Druzes. The most famous person with this name is Jethro Tull, an English agricultural pioneer who helped bring about the British Agricultural Revolution which formed the basis of modern farming practices. The rock band Jethro Tull is named after him. You may also remember the dull-witted Jethro Bodine from The Beverly Hillbillies. Jethro is a little bit hick and a whole lot hip – it’s hickster.

Rufus

Rufus started life as a Roman nickname, but afterwards became a family name; it’s from the Latin for “red haired”. There are many famous men with the surname Rufus, including the Stoic philosopher Gaius Musonius Rufus. His views on philosophy were moderate and practical, encouraging all men and women to follow a philosophical life, and giving advice on all manner of topics, including diet (vegetarian, raw) and hairstyles (long, beardy). He was so highly-regarded that when all other philosophers were expelled from Rome by the Emperor Vespasian, Rufus was allowed to stay. There are at least ten saints named Rufus, one of whom is mentioned in the New Testament as a disciple of St. Paul; his father was the man who carried the cross for Jesus on the way to Calvary. There is also the Gaelic saint Mael Ruba, whose name is Anglicised as either Maree or Rufus. King William II of England was nicknamed “Rufus” for his ruddy complexion. Famous people named Rufus include the Canadian-American singer Rufus Wainwright, and the British actor Rufus Sewell; Roger Taylor from Queen has a son named Rufus Tiger. With names ending in -us becoming fashionable, Rufus looks set to become the new Atticus.

Wolfgang

Wolfgang is a German name meaning “wolf path, wolf journey”, and interpreted by folklorist Jakob Grimm as being the name of a hero who follows in the wake of the “wolf of victory”. It has two heavy-duty namesakes: composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe; there is also a Saint Wolfgang, one of the patrons of Germany. Eddie Van Halen chose this name for his son. Nearly all Wolfgangs in Australian records have German surnames, and although this would make a striking heritage choice, it could work even if you don’t have a scrap of German ancestry. Wolfgang is one of those names that people seem to either love or loathe, so it attracts some extreme reactions. The usual nicknames are Wolf or Wolfie.

Zebedee

In the New Testament, Zebedee was a fisherman, and the father of the Apostles John and James. He is mentioned as being left behind in the boat when Jesus called the brothers to “become fishers of men”; we never learn whether he was supportive of his sons’ career change, or thought they should have remained fishers of fish. Zebedee’s wife was one of the women present at the crucifixion. The name Zebedee is the Greek form of the Hebrew name Zebadiah, meaning “Yahweh has bestowed”, and nearly always interpreted as “gift of God”. There is an English painter named Zebedee Jones and an English newsreader named Zebedee Soanes; both these Zebedees were born in the 1970s, when the cult children’s show, The Magic Roundabout, was first on television. In the show, Zebedee was a jack-in-the-box who is popularly recalled as ended the show by bouncing down out of nowhere and intoning, “Time for bed, children” (although I’m not sure how often this occurred). With Old Testament names for boys becoming a bit old hat, it could be time to consider some of the more unusual New Testament names. This one is full of zest, and the nickname Zeb is as cowboy cool as Zeke and Jed.

POLL RESULT: People’s favourite names were Huxley, Alaric, and Corin, and their least favourite were Wolfgang, Zebedee, and Giles.

(Picture shows Zebedee from The Magic Roundabout)

Famous Name: Miriam

06 Wednesday Feb 2013

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4485672-3x2-940x627On Australia Day this year, more than 17 000 people from 145 countries took the pledge and became Australian citizens. Prime Minister Julia Gillard, presiding over a ceremony in Canberra, told the crowd that the first citizenship ceremony was in 1949, and since then more than 4 million people had sworn loyalty to Australia. In fact, Ms Gillard was one of them – she was born in Wales and moved to South Australia as a child.

Amongst the 17 000-odd people becoming Australian citizens was British-born actress, Miriam Margolyes. Miriam has long been a mainstay in film, television and theatre, delighting audiences in such favourites as Blackadder, Little Dorrit, Babe, the Harry Potter films (she played Professor Sprout), and Wicked. A massive Charles Dickens tragic, Miriam has taken her one-woman show, Dickens’ Women, all over the world.

Miriam apparently got a bit of a crush on Australia when she was only a child, and kept on meeting wonderful Australian people, until at last, in 1968, she met her Australian partner Heather, which cemented the deal for good and all. She bought a house in the southern highlands of New South Wales around the time she was in Babe, and for many years now has been based in Australia.

Miriam promised that she hasn’t become Australian just for the beach and barbies, she wants to make a contribution to Australian society. Although she loves her country, she plans to use her democratic right to protest and speak out against things that need to change, and also wants to learn more about disadvantaged Australians. In other words, she will be a fantastic Aussie citizen.

Miriam is the original name on which the familiar Mary is based. In the Old Testament, Miriam is the older sister of Moses, and it is she who came up with the clever plan to save her baby brother’s life. Because Pharoah had decreed that newborn Hebrew boys were to be killed, she took Moses and hid him by the side of a river. She secretly watched as Pharoah’s daughter found and adopted him, then suggested that the princess use Miriam’s mother as a wet nurse, so that Moses was cared for in his infancy by his own family.

The Old Testament depicts Miriam as a strong, outspoken woman, and a leader amongst the Hebrews. One of the oldest parts of the Bible tells how she led the women in triumphant song and dance after the crossing of the Red Sea, the female chorus echoing the men, who were led by Moses. She was a prophetess, with the Bible implying that God spoke to her through dreams; the Bible speaks of the prophets Moses, Aaron and Miriam as if all three of them played vital roles in the Hebrews’ escape from Egypt.

According to Jewish tradition, the Hebrews were blessed by a well which followed them through the desert due to Miriam’s righteousness. When she died and was buried (in present-day Syria), God caused a spring of abundant fresh water to open up for the people. The spring was called Meribah, which means “quarrelling”, as everyone was grumpy from thirst. This story is very similar to another where the Hebrews were suffering from severe water shortage, only to find a well filled with bitter water. Moses turned the brackish water sweet with a particular tree, but the well was still called Marah – “bitterness”.

These two stories probably help to explain two suggested Hebrew etymologies for the name Miriam – “rebellious”, and “bitterness”. These are generally thought to be unpleasant meanings for a girl’s name, but as you can see, the stories were positive ones, although they don’t actually have anything to do with Miriam. In fact, it’s unlikely that Miriam’s name was Hebrew at all – she was born and raised in Egypt, and it is believed that both her brothers’ names were of Egyptian origin.

Miriam may be derived from the Ancient Egyptian word for “love” or “beloved”, or it could be a form of the Ancient Egyptian name Meritamen which means “beloved of Amun” – Amun was the chief god of the Ancient Egyptians, and his name means “hidden”. For this reason you will sometimes see Miriam and Mary translated as “beloved by God”, even though it doesn’t mean the God of the Abrahamic religions.

Miriam has never disappeared from the charts, but never been in the Top 100. It was #133 in the 1900s, which is the highest point it ever reached; its current rank of #458 is the lowest it has ever reached. After climbing steeply in 2009, the name Miriam fell dramatically in 2011 – although in real terms, that equates to just ten fewer babies called Miriam than there were in 2009.

I think the name Miriam has much to recommend it. It’s an underused classic, which means it’s familiar to everyone, yet rarely encountered. It is feminine, strong, sounds quite intellectual, and suits any age. In Jewish tradition Miriam was associated with water, and I do think Miriam has a liquid feel to it – cool and deep. It has a range of possible nicknames, including Mim, Mimi, Mima, Minnie, Mirri, Mirra, Mira, Mia, Mitzi and Remi.

Even a murderous Norah Jones sang that Miriam was “such a pretty name“. When your most vengeful enemy admits you’ve got a nice name, that takes some beating.

POLL RESULT: Miriam received an astounding 91% approval rating, making it one of the highest-rated names of the year. Miriam was praised for being strong and intelligent (45%), pretty and feminine (23%), having great nickname options (15%), and a desirable level of popularity (8%). However, 8% thought the name was too old-fashioned. Nobody thought that the name Miriam was “too Jewish”.

(Photo shows Miriam Margolyes receiving her citizenship certificate from Prime Minister Gillard)

Underused Names for Girls

03 Sunday Feb 2013

Posted by in Name Themes and Lists

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sabine women detailLast week we had names from Victoria which were used less than ten times in 2012. Those names are uncommon – but what if you wanted something even rarer? These are names which don’t appear even once in the Victorian data from last year, and have never charted in Australia. However, they are not strange or obscure, and all of them can be found in Australian historical records.

Angharad

Angharad is an Old Welsh name meaning “greatly loved”. It was reasonably common in medieval times, and there are several Angharads in Welsh history. In Welsh mythology, Angharad Golden-Hand is the lover of Peredur, one of King Arthur’s knights. Angharad Morgan is a main character in How Green Was My Valley, and in the film version was played by Maureen O’Hara. Actress Angharad Rees became well known in the 1970s for playing the role of Demelza in the TV series Poldark. Lots of famous Angharads, yet I could find only one woman named Angharad in Australian records. The pronunciation, ang-HAH-rad, may have caused some concern. This is a strong and unusual name with a lovely meaning. It would definitely stand out.

Beatrix

Beatrix is based on the name Viatrix, the feminine form of the Latin name Viator, meaning “voyager, traveller”. Early on, the spelling was altered to associate it with the Latin word beatus, meaning “blessed”, and it was common amongst early Christians. Some baby name books sandwich these two meanings together and interpret it as “blessed traveller”. Saint Beatrix was an early Roman martyr; according to legend, she was strangled by her servants. The name became less common in England after the Middle Ages, but was revived in the 19th century. One of the most famous people with this name is Beatrix Potter, the children’s writer and illustrator, who gave us such delightful characters as Peter Rabbit, Jemima Puddleduck, Squirrel Nutkin and Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle. As well as these talents, she was also a scientific researcher, conservationist, farmer, and sheep breeder. Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands helps give this name a royal touch, and a famous literary character is Beatrix “Trixie” Belden, girl detective. To me, this charming name seems spunkier and more eccentric than her sister Beatrice.

Cressida

In Greek mythology, Chryseis was the daughter of a Trojan priest named Chryses, and she was captured by the Greek champion Agamemnon as part of the spoils of war; he refused to give her back even after being asked nicely. Chryseis’ dad prayed like blazes to the god Apollo, who obligingly sent a plague through the Greek soldiers until Chryseis was returned. A later legend says that she bore Agamemnon a son. Her name given in the Iliad simply means “daughter of Chryses”; appropriately for a priest of Apollo, Chryses’ name means “golden”, perhaps in reference to sunlight. Some writers say Chryseis’ real name was Astynome, meaning “possessor of the city”. When medieval authors retold the tale of the Trojan War, this story had a complete rewrite. Chryseis became Cressida (KRES-ih-duh), and one corner of a tragic love triangle; she is made the epitome of the false woman and the whore. Some authors were sympathetic to Cressida’s plight, and in Shakespeare’s version, Cressida is complex, highly intelligent and witty. A famous Australian with this name is the artist Cressida Campbell. I find this literary name quite bewitching.

Emmeline

Emmeline is the Old French form of the Germanic name Amelina, based on the word for “work”; it is therefore related to the name Amelia, and not to Emily. The name was introduced to Britain by the Normans, and many people prefer to give it a slightly French pronunciation as EM-uh-leen, while others seek to Anglicise the way it is said as EM-uh-line (like Caroline). My experience is that the British tend to say leen, Americans tend to say line, and Australians have a bob each way and can usually cope with either. There were several prominent suffragists named Emmeline, including Emmeline Pankhurst, Emmeline Pethick-Lawrence and Emmeline Wells. Australia mountaineer Emmeline Du Faur was the first woman to climb Mount Cook (in record time), and the first person to climb several peaks – always dressed in a skirt. Emmeline Pethick-Lawrence was a keen hiker and woodcrafter, and to me the name Emmeline sounds vigorous, healthy, and practical. Emmeline has a solid history of use in Australia, being commonly found in old records, and today its nickname Emmie means it fits in with popular names such as Emily, Emma and Emmerson.

Isadora

Isadora is a variant of the name Isidora, the feminine form of Isidore, from the Greek for “gift of Isis”; the Egyptian goddess Isis was worshipped widely in the ancient world, and she was also important to the Greeks and Romans. Saint Isidora was a 4th century Egyptian nun, considered to be a “holy fool”, and treated with contempt by the other nuns for her eccentric ways, such as wearing a dirty dishrag on her head instead of a veil, and eating only leftovers instead of proper meals. When a visiting saint came to the nunnery, he immediately picked out Isidora as the only person holier than himself; upset by the praise and attention, Isidora ran away into the desert to be a hermit, and nothing more is known of her. The most famous Isadora is the American dancer Isadora Duncan, who developed her own unique style of dance, based on the natural movements of the human body. Like the saint, she was considered eccentric and radical, and danced to the beat of her own drum. Isadora is a beautiful, glamorous and individualistic name!

Lavender

Lavender has been used as a personal name since the 17th century, and was given to both sexes. It may have originally been derived from the surname, which is Norman-French and based on the word lavandier, referring to a worker in the wool industry who washed the raw wool (this is an occupation that both men and women had). Even in the middle of the 20th century, you can still find boys named Lavender. By now, however, it is almost entirely thought of as a girl’s name, and considered to be from the flower. The flower name comes from the Old French lavendre, possibly from the Latin for “blue-coloured”, lividius, but also influenced by lavare, meaning “wash”, because lavender was used in washing clothes. Lavender is often used to scent soaps and beauty products, and has been used as a relaxation aid for thousands of years. The colour lavender is associated with sensuality and decadence, and at one time, was considered symbolic of homosexuality. Like Rose, this is a pretty old-fashioned flower name that is more complex that it first appears.

Sabine

Sabine is a French and German form of Sabina, the feminine form of the Latin name Sabinus, meaning “Sabine”. The Sabines were an Italian tribe who inhabited the region where the city of Rome stands today, and some of them fought against Rome for their independence. According to legend, the Romans abducted Sabine women to populate the city of Rome; the war between the Romans and Sabines ended when the women threw themselves and their children between the armies of their fathers and those of their husbands. The history behind the legend is that the conquered Sabines assimilated with the Romans, beginning a new line of inheritance. Many of the noble Roman families traced their ancestry to Sabine origins, and at least some of the deities and rituals of Rome came from the Sabines. The Sabines were said to have taken their name from the hero Sabus, who was worshipped as a deity. Although it is too long ago to be sure, one theory is that the tribal name Sabine meant “us, ourselves, our own people”. You can either say this name the French way, sa-BEEN, or the German way, za-BEE-nuh; most English-speakers use the French pronunciation. There is at least one famous man named Sabine – the writer Sabine Baring-Gould, whose name was after the surname (derived from the personal name). You can find both men and women named Sabine in Australian records. Sabine is smooth and sophisticated, but comes with a cute nickname – Bean.

Theodora

Theodora is the feminine form of the Greek name Theodoros, meaning “gift of God”. The name pre-dates Christianity, but its meaning appealed to early Christians, and there are a few saints with this name. One of them was Saint Theodora, who as punishment for her pious celibacy, was dragged into a brothel. Her first “customer” was a Christian man, who had came to save her; they were both martyred, but their virtue remained intact. This story is probably fictional, and may have been inspired by sacred prostitution, of which Christians obviously disapproved. An Eastern Orthodox Saint Theodora disguised herself as a man and joined a monastery. Her identity as a woman was only discovered after her death. The name was a very popular one for Byzantine empresses, and Theodora I is also regarded as a saint. A Roman Theodora was a senator, and supposedly the lover of one of the early popes. She was harshly condemned for daring to “exercise power like a man”. The hussy! The image you get from these historical Theodoras is of very strong, independent, determined women – which might explain why Disney has chosen this name for the Wicked Witch of the West in Oz: The Great and Powerful. Pop star Robbie William welcomed a daughter named Theodora Rose last year, called Teddy; he wanted a dignified full name for the cuddly nickname, and Theodora fit the bill perfectly.

Verity

Verity is an English word meaning “truth”, especially in regard to religious truth or doctrine. It has been used as a personal name since the 17th century, and would have been given as a virtue name by the Puritans. However, it was most likely also given in honour of the surname, for births of Veritys in Yorkshire are suggestive, given that the Verity family is a prominent one in that county. The surname is Anglo-Norman, and has the same meaning as the personal name. Originally, Verity was a unisex name, and in early records is given equally to boys and girls. The first Verity I can find born in the United States was a boy, and his family were Puritans in Massachusetts. You can find the name Verity given to both sexes in Australian records, but only as a middle name for boys, and it has never been very common here. Famous Australian women named Verity include the politicians Verity Barton and Verity Firth, the ABC presenter Verity James, and the actress Verity Hunt-Ballard, who played Mary Poppins in the Australian version of the musical. This is a crisp, clean name which sounds intelligent and upper-class to me.

Zia

Zia is a variant of the Arabic name Ziya, meaning “light, shine, splendour” – more specifically, it refers to light which shines by its own illumination, and is connected to the sun and sunlight. Traditionally, Zia is a male name, but Arabic baby name sites usually list it as female, and the name charts in France only for girls. There are quite a few people called Zia in Australian records, and they are not all Arabic men. There are women called Zia from different cultures, including Italian, where Zia may be short for a name such as Annunzia (zia means “aunt” in Italian, but this doesn’t seem to have been a hindrance to its use by Italians). Most women called Zia in the records seem to be of British descent, and I’m guessing either it was seen as a short form of other names, or parents just liked the sound of it. I can imagine parents today also liking the sound of it, because it is so similar to popular names such as Zara and Mia – indeed, it almost seems like a cross between these names. This is a zippy name which sounds a bit different, but won’t seem out of place in the playground.

POLL RESULT: People’s favourite names were Beatrix, Emmeline, and Isadora, and their least favourite were Lavender, Zia, and Angharad.

(Picture shows a detail from The Intervention of the Sabine Women (1799) by Jacques-Louis David)

She’s Having Last Minute Doubts About Their Baby Name

02 Saturday Feb 2013

Posted by in Naming Assistance

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Just before deadlineSarah and Rupert are expecting a baby girl, due in only a few days. They always agreed that their first daughter would be named Isabella, which is a traditional name in Sarah’s family. However, as time went on, the name Isabella became extremely popular, and also associated with the Twilight phenomenon, so Sarah grew less enthusiastic about using it.

Sarah’s solution was to use the name Isabel, which is traditional on the other side of her family. She and Rupert like its simplicity, and they plan to use another family name in the middle position.

However, with just a few days to go, Sarah is wondering if they have chosen the right name for their daughter. Although Isabel is towards the bottom of the Top 100, if you add up all the Isabellas and Isabelles, that makes quite a few girls called Issy or Bel. Sarah wonders if the name Isabel is really distinctive enough.

Sarah likes names in the style of Sibella, Arabella and Violet; Rupert prefers names like Molly, Ebony and Lila. As such, they haven’t really agreed on many names. The only other names Sarah and Rupert have agreed on are Camilla and Clementine. The Duchess of Cornwall puts Sarah off using Camilla, and for some indefinable reason, she can’t quite commit to Clementine.

Sarah wonders whether a personal meaning or family association is more important than popularity, and whether they should just stop discussing it and go with Isabel. She wants something classic and unique, yet can’t quite find it … and if she started meeting lots and lots of little Isabels she wouldn’t be happy about it.

Sarah has a very popular name, and it never bothered her, and Rupert loves his unusual name, so they know that children can be content with their name whether its common or rare. Sarah and Rupert have a nice solid one-syllable surname, such as Mack or Holt.

Sarah’s sisters, who have children already, tell her that once the baby arrives, she won’t give a thought to any of these worries, but right now they feel like genuine concerns!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The last few days before a baby arrives can be quite frustrating, and there’s so many “What ifs …?” involved. Some of us worry that the car will break down and we won’t be able to get to the hospital; some of us worry that we’ve packed completely useless things in our little bag; and some of us worry that we’ve picked the wrong baby name. I expect all these little worries are a coping mechanism to keep our minds off the really big worries that we could be having instead!

I think that you might just be having last-minute jitters. Like someone getting nervous before their wedding, you may be slightly anxious about committing to the name Isabel for life. You wonder if you’ve made the right choice – what if things don’t work out the way you hoped? And could there be a better name out there that you haven’t thought of yet?

The good news is that you are in a much better position than someone having doubts about their wedding. Unlike a wedding, you get to have the baby first and then decide if the name seems right. You don’t have to make any commitment until the baby arrives, and you get a good long time to make your mind up after the birth. Most importantly, the name Isabel won’t be heartbroken if you decide to go with another name instead.

At this stage, I believe it’s too late to be actively searching for, and arguing about, a different baby name. I think Isabel [Middle Name] [Surname] is a really delightful combination: one that’s a nice balance between pretty and feminine, and neat and sensible, and could belong to a wide variety of girls. It doesn’t sound like a name that someone has to live up to, or pull off, or get used to. To me it seems like a name that isn’t boring, but would be easy to live with.

Let’s take a good look at Isabel:

  • Isabel is a name both you and Rupert like You’ve only managed to agree on three girl’s names in the past nine months, so let’s face it – your chances of finding another name you both like in the next couple of days aren’t that high.
  • You haven’t come up with anything better The only other names you could use just don’t seem quite right. It’s not impossible you’ll change your mind once the baby is born, but for now they don’t seem like viable options.
  • Isabel fits both your requirements You like pretty, feminine names for girls like Arabella and Violet; Rupert prefers simple fuss-free names like Molly and Lila. Isabel seems like a perfect fit – as elegant as Arabella, with the clean lines of Lila.
  • Isabel honours your family heritage Isabel is a name from one side of your family, while also providing a distant nod to the Isabellas on the other side. As you don’t want to use Isabella any more (and it doesn’t seem possible to have both), Isabel appears to be a great solution to your dilemma.
  • Isabel is a classic that has never been common There is no such thing as a name which is both classic and unique, so I’m not surprised you haven’t managed to find one! The closest you could get would be an underused classic – one that has never left the charts, but never been popular. Isabel fits reasonably well, because it’s a classic, but never got any higher in popularity than the bottom quarter of the Top 100.
  • Isabel is falling in popularity That makes the chances of you running into lots of little Isabels in the future less likely. And as you can’t control what other parents name their children anyway, I wouldn’t give it another thought.
  • Popularity isn’t that big a deal anyway I do think that personal meaning and family associations are more important than popularity. You’ve eliminated Isabella for being too well known, which is fair enough, and Isabel seems like an excellent replacement. You know from having a popular name yourself that it doesn’t necessarily cause a child any problems – and your name is much more popular than Isabel.
  • If Isabel is not distinctive enough, what is? If you look at names for girls, there are certain family resemblances between them. Once a certain sound becomes popular, you tend to see it in other names too. I think you’d have trouble choosing something which sounded nothing like any other baby name being used – and still like it.
  • Isabel does not have to be an Issy or a Bel You could make her name distinctive by giving her a different nickname. There are old-fashioned nicknames for Isabel such as Isa, Ibby or Tibby, and more unexpected choices like Sabel, Tizzy, Whizz, Zibby or Zsa Zsa. Or you could not use any nickname at all.

My advice would be not to think any more about the name. Wait until the baby is born and then see how you feel about calling her Isabel. Once you have a baby to hold in your arms, it all becomes a lot more real. I truly believe that if Isabel is not the right name for your daughter, the perfect name will come to you by the time she arrives.

NAME UPDATE: The baby’s name is Isabel!

POLL RESULT: Most respondents thought Sarah should stick with the name Isabel, with 60% giving this as their answer. Another 33% thought that Sarah should wait until the baby’s birth before deciding. The rest thought that Sarah should keep looking for another baby name, or consider their suggestions.

Famous Name: Greta

30 Wednesday Jan 2013

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11/11/2011 NEWS: Greta. Ned Kelly Burial.On January 20 this year, the story of bushranger Ned Kelly reached a conclusion, with his dying wish fulfilled, and his remains buried in the cemetery at Greta, in Victoria’s north-east. As a convicted murderer, Kelly was denied burial in consecrated ground after his execution in November 1880. His headless body was dumped in a pit and covered in lime.

A Requiem Mass was held at St Patrick’s in Wangaratta the preceding Friday; there are about 450 descendants of Ned Kelly, and many of them attended the church. During the homily, Monsignor John White said that some people had written to object to Ned Kelly receiving a public liturgy, but that the service was not to make judgement, but to bring closure. The service ended with In the Sweet By-and-By, the hymn Kelly is said to have sung in his cell the night before he was hanged.

Under a marquee, Ned Kelly was privately buried next to the unmarked gravesite of his mother Ellen; his brother Dan, and Steve Hart, one of his gang-members, also lie in unmarked graves in Greta cemetery. Ned’s coffin was adorned with a wreath of native Australian flowers and the green sash he was awarded in his youth for saving a boy from drowning. The coffin was buried deep, and surrounded by concrete to prevent looting. There are also five mounds of earth instead of one, to deter grave robbers.

The district of Greta is deep in “Kelly country“, the region of rural Victoria where Ned Kelly was born, grew up, and fought. His famous last stand at Glenrowan was less than 10 miles from Greta. Many of the Kelly family still live in the area, and the Ned Kelly legend remains compelling, with almost every local having their own Kelly-related tale to tell.

The district is thought to be named after the River Greta in Cumbria, England, part of the background to Rokeby, a poem by Sir Walter Scott which was popular at the time. The river’s name is Old Norse, and means “rocky river”. It is pronounced GREE-ta.

This is somewhat embarrassing to admit, but for a long time I thought the girl’s name Greta was also said GREE-ta. I knew it was short for the German name Margareta, and assumed it was said to rhyme with Rita, which is short for the Latinate name Margarita (both names of course are relatives of the name Margaret).

I was in my early twenties before I met someone named Greta, and discovered the name is (as I’m sure you all know) said GRET-uh. As the Greta I met happened to be in the public eye, the fact that I was ignorant how her name was pronounced seemed even more embarrassing.

One of the most famous women with this name was the Swedish-born Hollywood star Greta Garbo, famed for her austere beauty and luminous screen presence. Mysterious and reclusive, she shunned publicity and lived a very private life. Here we also know the Italian-born Australian actress Greta Scacchi, who grew up in Perth, but has lived and worked in England for many years – although she visits Australia from time to time.

As you see, this is a name at home in several countries, and Greta is a Top 100 name in Sweden, Hungary and Italy. In the United States it is #684 and fairly stable, and in the UK it is #586 and climbing.

In Australia, Greta was in rare use in the 1900s, and has enjoyed a very uneven career. The highest it ever got was #206 in the 1930s (at the apex of Ms Garbo’s success), and it disappeared altogether in the 1950s and 1960s. It has also hit lesser peaks in the 1910s, the 1970s and the 1990s. The name hasn’t charted since 2009 – but given the way it has jumped up and down the charts, you can expect to see it again before too long (but not too much of it).

In other words, this is a name with plenty of history in Australia, but not tons of use, and has never come anywhere close to being popular. As such, it retains something of the mystique that Greta Garbo radiated – cool, reserved, exclusive; a name selected by discerning parents. Make no mistake, Greta is a very hip choice.

Greta is the cosseted darling of name nerds, who believe it to be beautiful, dignified and sadly neglected by those who fail to appreciate her (these are the same name nerds who would drop Greta like a hot potato if masses of parents actually took their advice and called their daughters Greta, so it became Top Ten. Then Greta would be “Such a nice name – but simply ruined by everyone using it”).

So here’s another embarrassing admission. I’m not a huge fan of the name Greta, which to me has a rather harsh sound, reminding me of words such as grim, grisly, groan, gritty, grizzle, gross, grotty, granite, grumpy, grouch, grate, grasp, growl, grovel, grubby, gruff, gruesome, grumble, grump, grunt and regret. Somehow it never seems to remind me of graceful, gratitude, greetings, grand, great, groovy and egret! Which is manifestly unfair.

Perhaps if I could play psychoanalyst to myself, I might theorise that the real reason I don’t care for Greta is that it is inextricably linked in my subconscious to the embarrassment of not knowing how to pronounce a celebrity’s name when meeting them – and that even the Greta I met being very beautiful and extremely charming could not wipe out my feelings of shame. Indeed, perhaps that made them worse.

In other words, don’t pay any attention to my opinions about this name. It’s not Greta, it’s me.

POLL RESULT: Greta received a very creditable 76% approval rating. The name Greta was seen as beautiful and dignified (32%), and cool and European (18%), although 16% thought it was frumpy and harsh. 8% thought the name Greta was neglected and needed to be used more, while 6% noted that if it was used more, it would no longer be hip. A besotted 3% insisted they would still use Greta even if it was the #1 name. Only one person preferred the pronunciation GREE-ta.

(Picture shows Greta cemetery in Victoria)

Celebrity Baby News: NRL Babies

29 Tuesday Jan 2013

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555992-brett-white-cassie-adland-melbourne-storm-wedddingBrett White from the Canberra Raiders, and his wife Cassie, welcomed their fourth child on January 17, and have named their son Joey Brett. Joey White was born at 4.45 pm, and joins older siblings Georgia, Jake and Colt.

Gerard Beale from the St George Illawarra Dragons, and his fiancee Roimata Ransfield, welcomed their son Nixon six weeks ago. Gerard notes that he is often asked (perhaps teasingly?) whether Nixon’s name has any reference to disgraced former US president Richard “Tricky Dicky” Nixon, but says he and Roimata just chose the name because they liked it. The name Nixon seems set to become another celebrity favourite.

(Picture shows Brett and Cassie White with their two eldest children)

Famous Name: Jackson

23 Wednesday Jan 2013

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Sydney_Harbour_Bridge_from_the_airOn Saturday January 26 it will be Australia Day, so we are looking forward to the long weekend. In Sydney, there will be many events in and around the harbour, with one of the most popular the Ferrython, where the Sydney ferries race against each other. Chartering a boat to spend Australia Day on the harbour, basking in sunshine under blue skies, must be one of the most perfect ways to spend Australia Day in Sydney.

It’s also very appropriate, because the early history of Sydney is centred on its harbour. The size of Port Jackson, in which Sydney Harbour is located, was one of the main things which convinced the British to set up base in this area. You may recall that Captain Arthur Phillip rated Port Jackson as “the finest harbour in the world”.

I was always taught that Port Jackson was the largest natural harbour in the world, but it turns out that this is a matter of disagreement. In fact, what with the difficulties in deciding what is classed as a harbour, and whether you count size by square kilometres, length of coastline, or water volume, it doesn’t seem possible to declare any natural harbour the largest in the world – although Port Jackson must be one of the world’s largest, at least.

Sydneysiders still firmly believe that Port Jackson is the finest natural harbour in the world, and many that it is the world’s most beautiful – and as beauty is very much in the eye of the beholder, this claim at least is difficult to dispute. I expect other cities feel the same way about their own harbours.

The first known European to come here was James Cook in 1770. Not being of a gushing nature, there is nothing in his ship’s log to indicate that he thought the harbour fine or beautiful, only recording that it “appeared to be a safe anchorage”.

He named it after Sir George Jackson, a fellow Yorkshireman, and Cook’s friend and patron. Jackson later got married and changed his surname to his wife’s, becoming Sir George Duckett. I can’t help but be thankful that this happened after the naming of Port Jackson, as Port Duckett doesn’t have quite the same ring to it – although like the island of Nantucket, it would no doubt be a boon to the authors of limericks.

Jackson is an English and Scottish surname meaning “son of Jack“, which must be one of the most straightforward name meanings. The surname Jackson can be found from the 14th century onwards, and was historically most common in the north of England.

Jackson was first used as a personal name in the early 17th century, and in the United States, may sometimes have been given in honour of the seventh president, Andrew “Stonewall” Jackson – before he was president, he was a national hero for defending New Orleans from the British. He had such a reputation for toughness  that his nickname was “Old Hickory”.

Although there are many examples of men named Jackson in Australian records, the name did not begin charting in Australia until the 1970s – around the time American teen idols, The Jackson 5, became a big hit. Jackson climbed steeply to make the Top 100 by the 1990s, and peaked in the early 2000s at #29. Since then it has gently declined in popularity, and was #40 in NSW for 2011.

Early results from 2012 name data in the ACT and Victoria suggest that Jackson is falling as the variant spelling Jaxon takes off. This spelling (also a legitimate surname), takes advantage of the fashionable X, while suggesting Jax as the nickname, rather than Jack.

While Jackson may not be quite as popular as it once was, this name makes a great one for a boy born on Australia Day, and is much more subtle than last year’s suggestion.

POLL RESULT: Jackson received an approval rating of 62%. More than half of people (56%) said the name Jackson was fine and handsome, although 22% believed it was too popular, and 17% saw it as boring. Nobody preferred the spelling Jaxon, or thought of Jackson as a patriotic name.

Their Rare Baby Name Isn’t Rare Enough!

19 Saturday Jan 2013

Posted by in Naming Assistance

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gulgong-35961Elise and Alex are expecting their third child, and had already decided that if it was a boy, his name would be Digby. Digby is a rare name; unfortunately, it has been used often enough amongst Elise and Alex’s circle that they no longer feel as enthusiastic about using it.

They are now looking for a new boy’s name, and would ideally like something which is uncommon without being particularly unusual, and would sound at home in a country community. They like surname names for boys, and don’t mind if the name they choose becomes popular later, just as long as it isn’t popular now.

They would like it to match with their son’s name, Law$on, and as their daughter’s name also starts with L, they don’t want another name starting with that letter. Elise and Alex’s surname starts with M and ends in S eg Matthews.

Names on their short list so far:

  • Banjo
  • Baxter
  • Fred

Names they’ve crossed off or can’t use for some reason:

Abraham, Angus/Gus, Benjamin/Ben, Cameron, Charles/Charlie, Elliot, Eustie, Fletcher, George, Guy, Hamish, Henry/Harry, Hugo, Jack, Jed, Luke, Remington, Samuel/Sam, Sawyer, Spencer, Stirling, Sullivan, Thomas/Tom, Wilbur, Wilhelm, William/Will, Winston

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I felt quite distraught on first reading your e-mail, because Digby is one of my favourite names too, and it’s so uncommon that it doesn’t seem fair that it’s become overly used in your corner of the world. Unfortunately, there’s no guarantee that choosing a name not on the Top 100, or even not ranked at all, ever, means you will be the only parents who like it. Underused doesn’t mean unused.

I grew up in a small town, so I understand why you want a name that nobody else is currently using. When you live in a small community, you see each so often on a daily basis that it almost feels like you’re one big family. Nobody really wants 8 Uncle Jacks and 13 cousins named Mia – not to mention all your brothers being named Sam.

You’ve already discovered that rare names can prove disconcertingly popular in pockets – the good news is that quite common names may be almost unheard of in your community. When I was born, my name was in the Top 50, and yet I was the only one, of any age, called Anna in our little town, or in all the towns surrounding us. It was only when I went to the city for holidays that I met other Annas – it just didn’t seem to be used in my region.

If you are concerned about too many other people choosing the same name, I wouldn’t worry too much about the overall popularity charts, but more about what’s popular and unpopular on a local level. Keep an eye on birth notices in your local paper, and also watch out for regional popularity lists (I have been putting these on Twitter as they come out).

The perfect name is probably one which your friends and neighbours think sounds “a bit different” the first time they hear it, but are used to within two days, and in two weeks time, are starting to really like it. That means you might want to consider a few names that you think sound a bit different at first!

It’s also a good idea to have several names on your list, in case someone else uses one you’ve picked out while you’re still pregnant. Luckily, you have plenty of time left to thoroughly explore your options.

YOUR SHORT LIST

Banjo

This is such a cool name, but for me, Banjo and Law$on are a little too much as brothers. Also, if your daughter’s name isn’t super-Aussie, I wonder if she might be a little left out of the theme?

Baxter

I think Baxter is a definite keeper. It’s got that perfect balance of being uncommon, yet sounding completely normal, and the nickname Bax fits in with familiar names like Max and Jax.

Fred

You’ve absolutely got me over a barrel on this one, because Fred is my dad’s name. To me Fred sounds kind and funny and sweet, just like my dad. Yes, I’m very biased. But being non-biased, I do think Fred sounds brilliant with your surname.

SUGGESTIONS

Archie

To me, Archie is very much like Digby – it’s cute and boyish, yet also sounds grown-up and dignified. Unfortunately, Archie is popular, increasing in popularity, and seems to be used more in the country than the city. However, I’m suggesting it because I love the way this sounds with your surname – it seems really happy and I just can’t help smiling when I hear it.

Arthur “Artie”

Arthur is one of those useful classic names which have been stable for decades (a “normal name”), yet also underused (“uncommon”). It’s very slowly increasing in popularity, but in no way trendy. The nickname Artie makes it seem like a replacement for Archie, for people worried about popularity. This is another name I think suits your surname

Dexter

Dexter is really similar in sound to Baxter, and has a similar level of popularity. I like this better with your surname, but I think Baxter makes a better sibset with your son’s name.

Huxley

Huxley reminds me both of Baxter and Digby – I feel as if someone who likes both these names might appreciate Huxley. And like Banjo, it has an Australian connection, because the naturalist T.H. Huxley travelled to Australia, which is where his scientific career began (he has a mountain named after him here). Huxley’s descendant Sir Leonard Huxley became a famous Australian physicist. You get the nickname Huck from Huxley, which somehow seems to tie in with Sawyer.

Beckett

Beckett is another name which reminds me of Baxter. It does have an Australian literary connection, because Beckett’s Budget was a famous men’s magazine of the 1920s and ’30s which combined hard journalism with saucy pictures (tame by today’s standards). Not quite as idealistic as Banjo, I admit!

Jasper

Jasper is another name which reminds me, in sound, of Baxter, yet somehow also has a little of Digby’s image. It might seem mad to consider this when it’s a Top 100 name, but when I thought about it, I couldn’t recall often seeing this name in birth announcements from rural areas. Could this be one of those names which are popular overall, but underused where you live?

Camden

I really like the sound of this surname, which as a place name, has played an important role in Australia’s colonial history. You’ve crossed Cameron off your list, so I wondered if Camden might appeal instead? This name, growing in popularity in the US, is extremely rare in Australia.

Theodore “Ted”

Like Arthur, Theodore is a classic, but rapidly growing in popularity, while still not a common name. I mostly thought of it because Ted is very much like Fred, and to me it sounds “country” but also quite patrician – Ted is  the gentleman farmer, while Fred is his trusty right-hand-man!

My favourites from your list are Baxter and Fred, and from my suggestions, I feel as if Huxley fits your criteria better than any other.

If you still feel unsure about your name list in 6-8 weeks time, write in to the blog again, and we’ll take another look at it. In the meantime, happy name hunting!

UPDATE: Elise and Alex decided to stick with Digby.

POLL RESULTS: The most popular choices for a new baby name were Fred, Archie, Arthur and Beckett, which each got around 10% of the vote.

(Photo is of Gulgong in New South Wales, the childhood home of Henry Lawson; in no way is this meant to identify where Elise and Alex live)

Waltzing with … Sullivan

13 Sunday Jan 2013

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thesullivansfamilynewWe are now about halfway through the summer holidays. Despite your best intentions that every day of the holidays will be productive, rewarding, and jam-packed with memorably fun activities, there always seems to come at least one day where you find yourselves slumped in front of the air conditioner watching non-ratings season re-runs on TV. Perhaps this is what has inspired me to cover a name from Australian television.

The Sullivans is one of Australia’s most successful soap operas. First aired in 1976, it centred on an ordinary middle-class Melbourne family, and the effects that World War II had on it. The war gave endless opportunities for dramatic plot-lines; various members of the Sullivan family, and their friends and neighbours, went off to battle, worked as nurses, opposed the war, developed psychological problems, married people from different countries, got divorced, committed suicide, were lost at sea, ran the black market, went to prison, were interned as enemy aliens, shot by the Nazis, killed by bombs during the London Blitz, and had to adapt to peace-time conditions.

The show’s producers went to great lengths to ensure historical and cultural accuracy. Not only did the sets use authentic period furniture, but even the weather in the show mirrored that which actually occurred on each day during the war. This attention to detail and high production standards, not to mention a new nostalgia for the recent past, made the show a success.

A consistent ratings winner which gained the acclaim of the critics, it won five Logie Awards in 1978 and was the first Australian drama series to be sold overseas; more than 45 countries broadcast The Sullivans, where it was most popular in the United Kingdom. It made a star of Lorraine Bayly, who played dignified matriarch Grace Sullivan, and employed dozens of Australasian actors in supporting roles. Like all good soaps, it provided a testing ground for young actors, and it was on the set of The Sullivans that later big names such as Mel Gibson, Kerry Armstrong, Kylie and Dannii Minogue, Sam Neill, Gary Sweet and Sigrid Thornton gained early experience.

Ratings for the show suffered after fan favourite Grace Sullivan was killed off, and as time went on, the war finished and most of the main characters were dead or had otherwise been written out. There was some talk of continuing the story into the 1950s and showing how Australia changed in the post-war era, but it was decided to let it come to an end in 1983.

Sullivan is an Anglicisation of the Irish surname O’Sullivan, which means “grandson of Súilleabhán”. The meaning of Súilleabhán is disputed, but one theory is that it means “dark eyed”. There are also Sullivans whose family name is derived from Súileacháin, meaning “quick eyed”.

The O’Sullivans originated in County Tipperary, and the original Súilleabhán was a direct descendant of one of the kings of Munster, so his dynasty is of royal blood. The O’Sullivans also claim descent from the first Celts to colonise Ireland, migrating there from northern Spain in 800 BC.

Although this story is mythological, it does have some truth to it, for DNA studies show that the Celts of Britain and Ireland (all Celts, not just the O’Sullivans!) are descended from a tribe of Iberian fisherfolk who migrated there about 6000 years ago, and formed what is considered to be the indigenous population of the British Isles. In fact, nearly everyone in Britain is descended from them, and any of us who have British and Irish ancestry are too.

Famous Australians Sullivans include Pat Sullivan, who helped create Felix the cat; Victoria Cross recipient Arthur Sullivan; Olympic swimmer Eamon Sullivan; and Paralympic athlete Tim Sullivan. Actor Sullivan Stapleton, who starred in Animal Kingdom, is a rare example of it as a first name.

Sullivan has never charted in Australia, and only a few with the name can be found in old records, although it is reasonably common as a middle name. In 2012, there were 16 baby boys given the name Sullivan in Victoria. In the US, it is #524 and rising briskly up the rankings; in England/Wales, it is #970, and also trending upward.

Last year country music singer Melinda Schneider welcomed a son named Sullivan James Gable, and this may help raise the name’s profile in Australia.

Sullivan is a name from Australian popular culture, and more specifically, it is one from Melbourne, where The Sullivans was set and filmed. It feels modern, yet at the same time rather nostalgic, looking back to the 1970s and ’80s – who in turn were looking back with nostalgia at the 1940s.

Irish-surnames-as-first names are a great favourite in Australia, as in other countries where a significant proportion of the population claim Irish heritage. For those wanting something more unexpected than old favourites like Ryan or Darcy, I think Sullivan fits the bill of being something that’s recognised as a “real name”, while still underused. Sully or Van could be used as nicknames.

Name Combinations for Sullivan

Sullivan James, Sullivan Kelly, Sullivan Lucas, Sullivan Maddox, Sullivan Patrick, Sullivan Thomas

Brothers for Sullivan

Beckett, Cooper, Finlay, Oscar, Ronan, Toby

Sisters for Sullivan

Aisling, Emerson, Isla, Kenzie, Maeve, Violet

Note: Middle names and sibling names partially based on real life examples

POLL RESULT: Sullivan received an approval rating of 96% – the highest-rated featured boys name of 2013, and the highest-rated overall. 40% of people thought it was okay, and nobody disliked it.

(Picture is a publicity shot from The Sullivans; photo from fan site)

2012 Name Trends in Victoria – Boys

12 Saturday Jan 2013

Posted by in Name Data

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Biggest Movers Up

  1. Jaxon +37
  2. Braxton and Hudson +20 (Braxton at least this amount)
  3. Flynn +17
  4. Tyson +15 at least
  5. Nate +12
  6. Alex, Logan, Patrick and Spencer +11 (Spencer at least this amount)
  7. Archer and Hugo +10
  8. Declan, Dylan, Hunter and Isaac +9
  9. Alexander, Anthony and Lincoln +8 (Lincoln at least this amount)
  10. Archie, Edward and Toby +7 (Toby at least this amount)

Although Jackson went down slightly, Jaxon boomed – everything seems better when you spell it with an X; new boy Braxton provides a spin on this idea. Celebrity babies Hudson Sebastian and Flynn Bloom seem to have been influential, and new-to-the-charts Spencer almost seems like another royal name (one that has been repeatedly suggested by the public for the royal baby, I might add). Alexander and his short form Alex both did well, and so did Archer and Archie. The Cool Celtics for 2012 were Patrick, Declan and Dylan; the Elegant English were Anthony, Edward, Hugo and Toby. Back on the charts were Lincoln, much in the movies, and Tyson – Mike Tyson made a promotional visit to Australia in 2012. Isaac seems to be the only Old Testament name still gaining ground.

Biggest Movers Down

  1. Jake and Zac -22
  2. Darcy -20
  3. Aaron and Gabriel -17
  4. Nathan -16
  5. Nicholas -14
  6. Adam and Eli -12
  7. Hamish and Luke -11
  8. Aiden and Connor -9
  9. Ashton -7
  10. Jordan -6

Biggest losers were short forms Jake and Zac; while Jacob held steady, Zachary also fell. Old Testament names Aaron, Gabriel, Nathan and Eli fell – so did Adam, even as Eve rose. The River Jordan means “flowing down”, which is exactly what happened. The Celtic names that dropped were Darcy, Hamish, Connor and Aiden; likewise to the ACT, Aidan also fell, contrariwise, Jayden fell, Hayden rose.

No Change in Position

  • Jack (1)
  • William (2)
  • Oliver (3)
  • Ethan (4)
  • James (7)
  • Lucas (8)
  • Cooper (11)
  • Xavier (13)
  • Max (14)
  • Samuel (16)
  • Jacob (21)
  • Ryan (24)
  • Blake (37)
  • Angus (41)
  • Marcus (63)
  • Caleb (77)
  • Kai (78)

Sixty percent of the Top Ten names were unchanged, and so many boys names remained at the same position that I checked to see if I’d opened the 2011 list by mistake.

Back on the List

  • Tyson (86)
  • Lincoln (93)
  • Toby (94)
  • Christopher (99)

New to the List

  • Braxton (81)
  • Spencer (90)
  • Felix (96)