Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Name Quiz: Identify Your Naming Style for Girls!






Recently, I put together some popular name games over on my Facebook Nifty Names page. The object was to pick your favorite out of the four listed names, all beginning with the same letter. Once you'd chosen the name from each of the ten lines that appealed to you most, you could then see your chosen names' style categories. For boys, I created these categories: Preppy and Sophisticated, Classic and Traditional, Stylish/Trendy Upcoming-Favorites, and Name-Nerdy/ Vintage. For girls: Name-Nerd Chic/Vintage-Lover, Short, Sweet and Sassy, Exotic Lite, and Stylish and Modern. Since I had so much fun making up those name lists, I decided to make up some longer versions of the lists for this blog post! And, in case you missed the game over on Facebook, here they are again. Once you figure out your style, check out some more names that belong in those categories! Since the extended lists are so long, I'm going to put the boys' extended lists and style diagnosis in a separate post. 

Pick your favorite out of each line of four!


Matilda, Madeleine, Maggie, Maura
Lorelei, Lyla, Lucy, Lucia
Georgina, Georgia, Gigi, Giada
Annika, Annabelle, Annie, Annelise 
Imogen, Isla, Ivy, Ingrid
Juliet, Jayden, Jovie, Juliana
Romilly, Raleigh, Romy, Ramona
Cordelia, Charlotte, Chloe, Carolina
Helena, Hayden, Hadley, Eleni
Winifred, Willow, Willa, Wilhelmina


If you picked: 

Nerd Nerd Chic/ Vintage-Lover

Matilda
Lucy
Georgina/Georgia
Annika
Imogen
Juliet
Romilly
Cordelia
Helena
Winifred/Willa/Wilhelmina

Stylish and Modern

Madeleine
Lyla
Georgia
Annabelle
Isla
Jayden
Raleigh
Hayden
Willow

Short, Sweet, and Sassy

Maggie
Lucy
Gigi
Annie
Ivy
Jovie
Romy
Chloe
Hadley
Willa

Exotic Lite 

Maura
Lucia
Giada
Annelise/Annika
Ingrid
Juliana
Ramona
Carolina
Eleni
Wilhelmina


So, here are the extended lists! 

If your girls' style is Exotic Lite, you may love:

Maura
Lucia
Giada
Annelise/Annika
Ingrid
Juliana
Ramona
Carolina
Eleni
Wilhelmina
Sanne
Saskia
Evelia
Veronique
Elodie
Samira
Sigrid
Dagny
Signe
Toril
Mariska
Priya
Tanaquil
Tamar
Xanthe
Zara
Nilsa
Anisa
Leandra
Viveca
Nina
Tatiana
Leilani
Midori
Sakura
Bronwen
Rhiannon
Olwen
Anwen
Carys/Cerys
Severine
Sabina
Simone
Kerensa
Iliana
Ivana
Oriana
Osanna
Helena
Minerva
Esperanza

If your style is Name-Nerd Chic/Vintage-Lover, you may love:

Edith
Sibyl
Matilda
Ivy
Alma
Eva
Georgia
Helen
Beatrice
Winifred
Wilhelmina
Violet
Vivienne
Eleanor
Arabella
Araminta
Theodora
Dorothy
Dorothea
Myrtle
Evangeline
Vera
Rosamond
Rosalind
Opal
Mabel
Lucille
Jane
Eliza
Loretta
Tabitha
Gertrude
Gladys
Ethel
Thelma
Leona
Marguerite
Blanche
Verna
Lorraine
Shirley
Marcella
Fern
Cleo
Cordelia
Cora
Hazel
Louise
Luella
Ophelia
Ottoline
Ottilie
Susannah
Annabelle
Eulalie
Eugenia
Evelina
Mary
Alice
Enid
Rosemary
Henrietta
Harriet
Bonnie
Garland
Beatrix
Clementine
Phoebe
Letitia

If Your Style is Short, Sweet, and Sassy, you may love:



Maggie
Lucy
Gigi
Annie
Ivy
Jovie
Romy
Chloe
Hadley
Willa
Ruby
Lola
Hattie
Sadie
Sally
Ellie
Phoebe
May
Evie
Noa
Nola
Nova
Nora
Cora
Wren
Niamh/Neve
Mae
Maeve
Quinn
Reeve
Reese
Blythe
Paige
Clare
Brooke
Sara
Faye
Elle
June
Joan
Jane
Gray
Paisley
Holly
Haidee
Heidi
Minnie
Molly
Polly
Rory
Nina
Dolly
Dottie
Daisy
Dinah
Dana

If Your Style is Stylish and Modern, you may love:



Madeleine
Lyla
Georgia
Annabelle
Isla
Jayden
Raleigh
Hayden
Willow
Sophia
Isabella
Olivia
Camden
Reese
Eva
Mira
Amelia
Mia
Hadley
Ivy
Violet
Coraline
Ramona
Eloise
Ellie
Lucy
Charlotte
Camryn
Anniston
Emerson
Juliette/Juliet
Payton/Peyton
Ruby
Emma
Julia
Emmeline
Elena
Genevieve
Lillian
Lily
Milena
Bryn
Serena
Sabrina
Veronica
Noelle
Avery
Camille
Bridget
Natalie
Isabelle
Piper
Harper
Gracen/Graysen
Avonlea
Bella
Seraphina
Savannah
Charlie
Matilda
Tamsin
Freya


Monday, August 19, 2013

Country Names: From Dolly and Dierks to Randy and Miranda

Is it me, or has country music been having a real moment lately? I never used to pay attention to it, but with artists like Carrie Underwood and Taylor Swift played on both country and mainstream music stations, country has reinvented itself into something less marginalized. Now, the genre seems more accessible and relatable than ever before, as do the names of the artists themselves. Here, I've put together a list of some of the best country names--names which, in the style of contemporary country music, can please a wide variety of parents.

Some trends I noticed:

1. To "countrify" a girls' name, take a nickname name and add a short, one-syllable name to the end to create a double-barrelled first name. Examples: Sally Mae, Winnie Lou, Laura Bell, etc.

2. To "countrify" a boys' name,  use a one-syllable, tough-sounding name like Beau or Clay, or simple, down-homey nicknames like Billy and Randy.

THE COUNTRY GIRLS:

ALABAMA

CAROLINA Rain

CARRIE Underwood

DIXIE Chicks

DOLLY Parton

EMMA MAE Jacobs

EMMYLOU Harris

FAITH Hill

GLORIANA

HEIDI Newfield

HOLLY Williams

JENNETTE McCurdy

JESSI Alexander

JESSICA Andrews, Harp, Simpson

JOANNA Smith

KATRINA Elam

KRISTA MARIE

LAURA BELL Bundy

LeANN/LEE ANN Rimes, Womack

LORETTA LYNN

MAGGIE ROSE

MARLEE Scott

MINDY MacCready

MIRANDA Lambert

REBA McEntire

SAWYER Brown

SHEA Fisher

SIERRA Hull

SUNNY Sweeney

SUZY Burgess

VERONICA Ballestrini

WYNONNA Judd


THE COUNTRY BOYS:


AARON Lewis, Tippin

ASH Bowers

ASHTON Shepherd

BEAU Davidson

BILLY Currington, Dean, Shaver, Cyrus

BLAKE Shelton, Wise

BLAINE Larsen

BRAD Paisley

BRADY Seals

BRANTLEY Gilbert

BRETT Eldredge

BROOKS & Dunn

BUDDY Jewell, Miller

CHASE Rice

CHUCK Wicks

CHRIS (many)

CLAY Walker

CLINT Black

COLE Deggs & The Lonesome

COLT Ford

CORB Lund

CRAIG Campbell, Morgan

DARIUS Rucker

DEAN Brody

DIERKS Bentley

EASTON Corbin

FRANKIE Ballard

GARTH Brooks

GEORGE Jones, Strait

GLEN Campbell, Templeton

HAL Ketchum

HANK Williams

HUNTER Hayes

JACE Everett

JACK (many)

JASON (many)

JOSH (many)

KEITH Anderson, Urban

KENNY Chesney, Rogers, Vaughn

KIP Moore

LEE Brice, Greenwood

LUKE Bryan

NEAL McCoy

RANDY (many)

RAY Charles, Scott

RHETT Akins

RODNEY Atkins, Carrington, Crowell

SHOOTER Jennings

SONNY Burgess

TOBY Keith

TRACE Atkins

VINCE Gill

WADE Hayes

WAYLON Jennings









Friday, August 2, 2013

Super-Popular Baby Names: Lesser-Used Substitutes for the Top 20 Names


Now, before we get started, let me say that there's nothing wrong with giving your child a popular name. Popular names become popular for a reason. They're often likable, beautiful, handsome, friendly-sounding--they appeal to a wide variety of people. So if you've always loved the name Sophia, don't hesitate to name your daughter Sophia, just because it's recently shot to the top of the charts. But if you would prefer a less-popular option, that still encompasses many of your favorite name's "top-of-the-charts" qualities, I've got some ideas for you!

On the-left hand side, you will find the Top 20 Baby Names, according to the Social Security Administration's data. On the right-hand side, you will see my suggestions for less-common names that still possess many of their star counterparts' qualities, sounds, and/or vibes.


Girls:


Sophia-  Louisa, Corinna, Sophronia

Emma- Elsa, Etta, Alma

Isabella- Isabeau, Isabeli, Isadora

Olivia- Olive, Lydia, Lavinia

Ava- Nora, Eva, Avis

Emily- Emmeline, Romilly, Amelie

Abigail- Aberdeen, Abilene, Adelaide

Mia- Gia, Lia, Maya

Madison- Madigan, Grayson, Weston

Elizabeth- Elspeth, Eliza, Elisabetta

Chloe- Cleo, Clea, Phoebe

Ella- Fiorella, Elva, Eleanor

Avery- Amory, Ellery, Everly

Addison- Alison (the only 'son' name I enjoy for girls), Gracen/Grayson, Payton/Peyton

Aubrey- Audrey, Lucy, Audra

Lily- Millie, Tillie, Sadie

Natalie- Natalia, Thessaly, Kirrily (a great Australian option!)

Sofia- Lucia, Alicia (the Alee-see-uh pronunciation!), Josefina

Charlotte (note: I LOVE Charlotte. But it is quite popular, so here are the substitutes)- Scarlett, Charmian (Charm-ee-in, a Shakespearean name), Lieselotte (Lee-za-lot-tuh)

Zoey- Zora, Zia, ZuZu (a nickname used in It's A Wonderful Life for daughter Susan)




Boys:


Jacob- Jachin (Jake-in), Jabez, Caleb

Mason- Macon, Mercer, Orson

Ethan- Egan, Eli, Nathan

Noah- Jonah, Beau, Ezra

William- Wilbur, Wilfred, Abram

Liam- Adam, Leland, Leon

Jayden- Eamon, Jabez, Jachin (I recommend Jabez and Jachin often, because I think they're fabulous and under-utilized options, that fit many of today's current trends)

Michael- Micah, Lionel, Lemuel

Alexander- Alistair, Xavier, Leander

Aiden- Eamon, Amos, Damon

Daniel- Lemuel, Lionel, Amiel

Matthew- Matthias, Bartholomew, Ewan

Elijah- Elias, Abijah, Levi

James- Seamus, Amos, Jones

Anthony- Antony (just drop the H like the Brits do, instant new name), Antonio, Timothy

Benjamin- Benajah/Benaiah, Benno, Tarquin

Joshua- Jonathan, Jory (Cornish form of George), Jonah

Andrew- Drew, Elihu (antique Biblical name rarely used these days, Eli-yoo), Anderson

David- Davis, Damien, Dane

Joseph- Jonas, Joachim, Owen