I'm finally done with school, so expect a blizzard of posts today. (Well, this will probably be #2. I guess two snowflakes wouldn't count as a blizzard. Sue me.)
So, a few weeks ago, I saw the top 2007 baby names--I am, perhaps not surprisingly, related to three guys who bear Top 10 names--Jacob (#1 since 1999), Michael (still #2), and Matthew. Way to be popular, guys! Shockingly, I only know one girl with a Top 10 name (Hannah is, I think, #7), but Elizabeth is rounding out the Top 10, and I know multiple ladies with that lovely name for a middle name.
I have always thought about names a lot, in the stories I write, and as I prepare for having the great responsibility of naming my children (great power=great responsibility). When I was younger, I planned to name a daughter Caledonia or Rhiannon (yes, I liked Fleetwood Mac), and a son James Matthew (Anne of Green Gables named her first son that in Anne's House of Dreams). I've moved past those names, and many have been permanently ruined for me by students. (So long Josh, Justin, Jeremy, Shelby, Cala, Paul, Tyler . . .) Next year I'll apparently have a girl named Diamond and a girl named Magic. I just hope they are in the same class.
Mr. Cool and I have agreed on a set of four names--two for girls, two for boys. We're not planning to have four kids, we just like to be prepared for any possible set of two. As our second string boy's name is Strider Alexander, I felt this was written for me.
Any name thoughts, readers? Names ruined for you, wacky names you'd love to give your kids, etcetera, etcetera?
2 comments:
I am still a big fan of our boy, Campbell Kelly Gaw. I am pulling for Seamus or Adik (Эдик in cyrillic) on our second. Sarah would go with Shea but we haven't really talked about it. A friend Ryan has a boy named Lincoln Cash... which is awesome.
Girls names are hard for me. I think most creative ones sound silly for girls but I am open to options. With a short, bland last name I am always open to something pleasantly different.
If you haven't read the Freakonomics chapter on baby names, you should. They say that the most popular names for upper-middle class families become the most popular for lower-class (economically) babies 10 years later. They also said that 40% of all African-American babies born in 2000 (I think) had a name completely unique to the state in that year. That is some serious creativity!
Ooh, I haven't read that chapter, but I will chase it down. I like your boy's name too--I've never taught a bad Campbell! Seamus is a neat name as well. I can understand girl names being tougher, but I have more of those I love. Our top girl names are Fiona Jane and Jesse Abigail.
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