Nancy's Baby NamesNancy's Baby NamesThe best little baby name site in cyberspace. Includes trends, lists, opinion, celebrity baby names, and more. Articles
California Couple with 20 kids
2012-02-10 12:00:00 In late 1966, Jim and Eldora Parnell of Bakersfield, California, welcomed their 20th child. Here are the names of all twenty kids, plus their 1966-ages: Robert, 26 James, 24 Edwina, 21 Marie (nn Baby Doll, “because we were sure she’d … Continue reading → More About: Couple
Know Anything About the Name Nixzaliz?
2012-02-10 11:00:00 A few years ago, the Language Log asked readers for information on Nixzaliz, a personal name used in Puerto Rico. Several commenters mentioned that “liz,” which we also see in names like Idaliz and Marializ, comes from Elizabeth (or a … Continue reading →
Baby Named After Rugby Game
2012-02-09 12:00:00 In 1994, the Welsh rugby team traveled to the South Pacific, competed against Manu Samoa, and lost. According to the BBC, “[T]he men in red simply could not deal with the power and pace of the islanders, nor the stifling … Continue reading → More About: Sports , Game
Two More People Named for Horses
2012-02-09 11:00:00 In her autobiography, fashion editor Diana Vreeland mentioned two people named for horses: [Hugh Grosvenor, 2nd Duke of Westminster] was named after a horse–Bendor, who won the Derby. Lots of people were named after horses. One of my great friends … Continue reading → More About: Horses
The Baby Name Atari
2012-02-08 11:00:00 Pac-Man, Space Invaders, Astroids…if you grew up in the 1980s, you know all about the once-popular Atari. But you might not realize that, at the height of the video game console’s popularity, dozens of U.S. babies were actually named Atari: … Continue reading → More About: Television , Sports
Names in the Tollemache-Tollemache Family
2012-02-07 11:00:00 The Rev. Ralph William Lyonel Tollemache-Tollemache (1826-1895), a clergyman in the Church of England, gave his children some bizarre names. Children from his first marriage: Lyonel Felix Carteret Eugene (b. 1854) Florence Caroline Artemisia Hume (b. 1855) Evelyne Clementina Wentworth … Continue reading →
Cavewoman Baby Names ? Evolet and Ayla
2012-02-06 11:00:00 Believe it or not, both these baby names were given a boost by cavewomen. (Fictional ones, of course!) Evolet The name Evolet appeared on the Social Security Administration’s baby name list for the very first time in 2008, thanks to … Continue reading → More About: Movies
New Jersey Family with 12 Children, All Girls
2012-02-03 12:00:00 In 1957, Mrs. William Beston of Morristown, New Jersey , had gave birth to her twelfth daughter. What are the odds of having 12 daughters and no sons? If the probability of having a girl is 1/2, then the probably of … Continue reading → More About: Family , Children , Girls
Baby Named Mohammed Refused Baptism
2012-02-03 11:00:00 A bizarre (and possibly offensive) baby name story out of 19th-century Toronto: Two months ago a woman brought a child to one of the Anglican clergy in this city and asked him to christen it Mohammed . He refused on the … Continue reading → More About: Baby
Baby Named After Turkey
2012-02-02 12:00:00 The country, not the bird. :) In late 2011, after a visit from Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Muse family of Somalia — living in a tent city at the time — named their baby boy Turkiye Abdurrahman … Continue reading → More About: Baby , Turkey , Location
Baby Named for Gameshow Host
2012-02-02 11:00:00 Earlier this year, Richard Humphrey of Cannock, Staffordshire, missed the birth of his first child. Why? Because he decided to be a contestant on British gameshow Ant & Dec’s Push the Button instead. Richard’s girlfriend, Stacey Richards, gave birth to … Continue reading → More About: Baby , Host
Most Popular Baby Names in Russia, 2011
2012-02-01 11:00:00 What’s the latest on baby names in Russia ? In 2011, the top three baby girl names in Russia were Anastasia, Maria and Darya The top three baby boy names were Alexander, Maxim and Dmitry. Non-Russian names have gained a foothold: … Continue reading → More About: Baby , Popular
For Baby Name Persuasion, Try Repetition
2012-01-31 11:00:00 Repeating a message makes the message seem familiar, familiarity makes it seem true (thanks to cognitive fluency), and truthfulness — even just the illusion of truthfulness — increases persuasiveness. It seems too simplistic that just repeating a persuasive message should … Continue reading → More About: Baby , Persuasion
Simple Baby Names and Cognitive Fluency
2012-01-30 12:00:00 A few years ago I wrote that complex baby names are perceived as more dangerous than simple names. One reason for this is cognitive fluency. Simple names are easy to spell and say, so they’re easy for our minds to … Continue reading → More About: Baby
Baby Named Princess, Take 2
2012-01-30 11:10:00 In July of 1986, a baby girl was born to Isle of Skye residents Hugh and Audrey Manwaring-Spencer. She was named Princess Dulcima Rosetta. So the birth certificate was filled out, the necessary paperwork was sent to the General Register … Continue reading → More About: Baby
Baby Named Princess, Take 1
2012-01-30 11:00:00 In 1961, Patricia Huckett of London decided to name her daughter Princess . Officials tried to dissuade her, telling her that “Princess” was a title, not a name. But they could find no law against it, and she insisted, so the … Continue reading → More About: Baby
Armenian Baby Named for French President
2012-01-27 20:00:00 Mr. and Mrs. Karapet Avetisian of Gyumri, Armenia, had a their first child, a baby boy, several days ago. They named him Sarkozy Avetisian in honor of French President Nicolas Sarkozy. Why? As a thank-you to the French Senate for … Continue reading → More About: Politics , Baby , Armenian
1 Baby, 26 Alphabetical Names
2012-01-27 12:00:00 I’ve found long names, and alphabetical sibling names, but this could be the first alphabetical single name I’ve seen. A baby girl born on December 19, 1882, in West Derby, Liverpool, to Arthur and Sarah Pepper was named Ann Bertha … Continue reading → More About: Baby
What?s in a Name? (poem)
2012-01-27 11:00:00 By the Ogden Nash-like Richard Armour: What shall we name the baby? What name if a boy, if a girl? If a girl, maybe Molly or Merla, If a boy, maybe Erik or Earl. Name if after a wealthy uncle, … Continue reading → More About: Poem
Unusual Noun-Names
2012-01-26 11:00:00 In 1971, the editors of American Heritage asked readers to tell them about people who were “named after places, institutions, and events.” They offered examples like Wilmot Proviso Ragsdale, Legal Tender Coxey, Monongahela de Beaujeau and Illinois Central Wilson. In … Continue reading → More About: Politics
The Katina Spike ? Caused by a Soap Opera?
2012-01-25 11:00:00 The baby name Cotina was a top debut name in 1972, coming out of nowhere to be given to an impressive 109 baby girls that year: 1970 – x (fewer than 5 baby girls named Cotina) 1971 – x 1972 … Continue reading → More About: Opera , Spike
Avoiding Low-Status Baby Names
2012-01-24 12:00:00 Name researcher David Figlio says that adults of low socio-economic status tend to give their babies low-status names, and that low-status names put children at a disadvantage in school. How do you spot a “low status” name? One way is … Continue reading → More About: Baby , Status
Do D-Names = an Early Death?
2012-01-24 11:00:00 Did you know that there’s a scholarly journal called Death Studies ? Uplifting, no? Anywho, several years ago Death Studies published a paper about the relationship between initials and longevity. It looked at the first initials and the lifespans of people … Continue reading → More About: Early
Japanese Names Getting Harder to Read
2012-01-23 12:00:00 Yesterday I read an informative article about Japanese name trends called What to call baby? by Tomoko Otake. The part I found most interesting was… [A] further headache awaiting many babies as they grow up is that an increasing number … Continue reading → More About: Read
Arbutus, the Flower Name You?ve Never Heard Of
2012-01-23 11:00:00 Lily, Daisy, Jasmine, Rose…Arbutus? When I first saw Arbutus on the SSA’s baby name list, I’ll admit I had no idea what I was looking at. A myth name? A misspelling? Turns out it’s a flower name. “Arbutus,” the Latin … Continue reading → More About: Flower
Baby Name Surveys: Decision-Making, Persuasion
2012-01-22 02:00:00 I’ve been writing about baby name decision-making and baby name persuasion for a while now, but I’ve neglected to any collect input on these topics from the thousands of many baby-namers who visit this site every day. To rectify this, … Continue reading → More About: Baby , Surveys , Decision , Decision-Making , Persuasion
Baby Name Battle ? Margaret vs. Marjorie
2012-01-20 12:00:00 If you were having a daughter, and you had to name her either Margaret or Marjorie, which would it be? More About: Baby
15th Baby Named Amen
2012-01-20 11:00:00 In 1953, Margaret and Alexander Bow of Ypsilanti, Michigan, welcomed their 15th child, a baby boy. He was given the name Amen — from amen, the word used to end Judeo-Christian prayers — even though the couple expected to have … Continue reading → More About: Baby
Baby Born in Portable Toilet, Named John
2012-01-19 12:00:00 In mid-1995, Staci Medlar — who didn’t know she was pregnant — gave birth to a baby boy in a portable toilet while at an antique tractor show in Ankeny, Iowa. She and her fiancé named the baby John . Source: … Continue reading → More About: Baby , Portable , Location , Toilet
A Town Named After a Baby
More articles from this author:2012-01-19 11:00:00 I’ve blogged about babies named after locations before, so here’s something different: a location named after a baby. The town of Wainwright in Alberta, Canada, was named for Wainwright Marguerite Forster, “the first baby born in the community of 30 … Continue reading → More About: Baby , Town 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 |
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