Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Naming your baby
Newsday ^ | 6/26/06 | Pat Burson

Posted on 06/27/2006 10:33:31 AM PDT by qam1

Many parents, especially celebrities, are choosing distinctive names or spellings to make their children stand out

Choosing a name for your newborn requires a certain level of sober reflection, contemplation and introspection.

Expectant parents consult relatives and friends, leaf through scores of books and scour the Internet for just the right handle to reflect their little cherub's shining personality, obvious brilliance and unquestionable character.

So it makes you wonder what the recent spate of Hollywood celebrity parents were thinking - or drinking - when they chose such distinctive names, to put it kindly, for their high-profile offspring. That goes for Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, who named their daughter Shiloh, and Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, who named their girl Suri.

Sure, we've had a chuckle at some and scratched our heads over others, but before you go calling your sons Dilbert after your favorite cartoon character or christening your daughters Brangelina because you adore Couple-of-the-Moment Pitt and Jolie, give it some thought, baby and parenting experts say.

Like all parents, celebrities see their children as extensions of themselves and choose names that reflect their tastes and values, says Babytalk magazine senior editor Christina Vercelletto.

"What's driving this is this whole sort of Gen-X competitive parenting trend," Vercelletto says. "Parents who are now in their 30s, they have their children, and they feel that from birth it's practically a competition. You want your child to stand out. We live in a competitive society, and you don't want your child to blend into the woodwork."

"Names are really brands," says Rachel Weingarten, a branding and trends expert and the president of GTK Marketing Group in Brooklyn.

Take Brangelina's baby, Shiloh. "You're saying we have turned this into a money-maker from birth,"

"It's this whole, 'Look at me' kind of thing."

(Excerpt) Read more at newsday.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Extended News; Miscellaneous
KEYWORDS: genx; lemonjello; orangejello; stupidbabynames
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20 ... 341-360361-380381-400401-419 last
To: stands2reason

When I was deciding what to name my daughter, my grandmother suggested names of a couple of her cousins. Preeble & Kreeble (twins)- she said the names were of German origin. I tried to be polite, but I definitely did not name my child that!


401 posted on 06/28/2006 10:58:20 AM PDT by texgal (end no-fault divorce laws return DUE PROCESS & EQUAL PROTECTION to ALL citizens))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 373 | View Replies]

To: Allegra
I caught a lizard and kept him as a pet for a couple of days when I was about nine years old.

I named him Roy. I just thought it was a cool name for a cool lizard.

That IS a cool name for a lizard.

402 posted on 06/28/2006 12:13:50 PM PDT by brewcrew
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 397 | View Replies]

To: doberville

Ap Richard begat the name Pritchard.

Ap Howell = Powell

Ap Rhys = Price

My idea was using patronyms as first names. Thought it was clever.


403 posted on 06/28/2006 2:26:34 PM PDT by stands2reason (ANAGRAM for the day: Socialist twaddle == Tact is disallowed)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 383 | View Replies]

To: texgal
Preeble & Kreeble

Sound like names you'd expect of cookie-making tree-elves!

404 posted on 06/28/2006 2:31:04 PM PDT by stands2reason (ANAGRAM for the day: Socialist twaddle == Tact is disallowed)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 401 | View Replies]

To: wtc911; qam1
Right, like some wacky Boomers didn't stick their kids with names like Space Moonbeam...

Who did that?

Right, you're completely unaware that wacky Boomers DID stick their kids with names like Space Moonbeam? Just on the celebrity front alone,

Phoenix's Irish-Spanish father, John Bottom (b 1947), and Bronx-born Jewish mother, Arlyn Sharon Dunetz (b 1944), joined the Children of God cult in the late 1960s and became missionaries, traveling throughout South America. They named their kids River Jude, Rain Joan of Arc, and Joaquin Rafael, among others. The latter two changed their names to 'Rainbow' and 'Leaf,' though Joaquin (big role, Commodus in Gladiator) has since taken his original name back...with the exception of his last name, which his parents changed to Phoenix.

Soleil Moon Frye (big role, Punky Brewster) was born on Aug. 6, 1976 and raised in L.A. with two brothers, Meeno Peluce and Sean Frye.

Or perhaps you're looking for normal non-celebrity types like Moonbeam or Sunshine, or maybe Sundancer Wintermoon Sweetpea, Panda Kroll, or Superman The Aquarian, or Beauty Israel. Is that enough for you?

405 posted on 06/28/2006 5:37:52 PM PDT by LibertarianInExile ('Is' and 'amnesty' both have clear, plain meanings. Are Billy Jeff, Pence, McQueeg & Bush related?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 382 | View Replies]

To: Conservative4Ever
...younger sister to Maybelline...:)

LOL, finally catching up on my pings. Very good!

406 posted on 06/28/2006 7:06:21 PM PDT by McLynnan
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 349 | View Replies]

To: Alouette

What beautiful names, they bring tears to my eyes :) I wanted Israel for little Isaiah, but my son won out. I wanted Matthew for his middle name, but since his father had recently passed, my son felt he needed to give the baby his father's name, but he gave it as a middle name. Roger doesn't go with Isaiah :)

My Mother's name is Rachel, and I had planned to give my daughter that name, but never had one.

Prayers for you and your precious ones! I only have one son, so not sure if I'll make 15! I keep telling them they must keep going until they get a girl. But I love all these little boys!


407 posted on 06/28/2006 7:21:55 PM PDT by tinacart ((I still hate Hitlery!))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 366 | View Replies]

To: stands2reason

Floyd and Myrtle! Eeeew!

My rules are easy. For girls: no flowers, jewels, months, or seasons.

For boys: no -iahs and must be more than one syllable. (I reserve special condemnation for Wade, Clay, and Josh, all of which I find utterly ugly.)


408 posted on 06/28/2006 7:24:12 PM PDT by Xenalyte (Anything is possible when you don't understand how anything happens.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 373 | View Replies]

To: VegasCowboy; r9etb
Count it as three "Talons" unless we are neighbors.

Our son plays competitive soccer and we hear all sorts of interesting names being yelled from the sidelines...

My husband works in the ER and, well...you can just imagine.

I, too, have occasion to see many children's' names in the course of my work. My recent personal favorite is "Deviant". I'm assuming it is pronounced Dee-vee-an-tay. But, who knows?

Purposeful misspellings are a ton of fun as well!
409 posted on 06/28/2006 7:40:15 PM PDT by GatorGirl
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 140 | View Replies]

To: hispanarepublicana
I have a friend who is of Lithuanian descent, his wife who is of Scots extraction named one of their boys Ian, the other Demott the kids hate it. Ian told me, I am Polock, Lit, Ukrainian and Scots, Casmir would have been more approprate.

My own kids have the above mix but reversed and Yankee rather than Scot, I vetoed any name I couldn't spell when drunk.

410 posted on 06/28/2006 7:46:22 PM PDT by Little Bill (A 37%'r, a Red Spot on a Blue State, rats are evil.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 37 | View Replies]

To: Little Bill

LOL. Reminds me of the Greek American dad trying to say "Ian" in My Big Fat Greek Wedding.


411 posted on 06/28/2006 7:49:24 PM PDT by hispanarepublicana (Don't fall for the soft bigotry of assuming all Hispanics are pro-amnesty. www.dontspeakforme.org)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 410 | View Replies]

To: bannie

William is a mandatory first or middle name in my family for over 600 years, why, I don't have a clue, my last name as my screen name is little will(iam), it could be worse my grand mothers family went through 300 years of Abraham's.


412 posted on 06/28/2006 8:33:22 PM PDT by Little Bill (A 37%'r, a Red Spot on a Blue State, rats are evil.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 289 | View Replies]

To: hispanarepublicana
We have some Greeks in the Family, a strange lot, but some of the nicest people you ever met once they realize you are family. I used to keep a couple of Gallons of Metaxa, Ouzo, and retzina around to grease the skids.

The Mater Familaris Sophia, who never told the truth, with dyed red hair, cast her basilisk eye on the whole proceedings.

413 posted on 06/28/2006 9:10:39 PM PDT by Little Bill (A 37%'r, a Red Spot on a Blue State, rats are evil.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 411 | View Replies]

To: LibertarianInExile

exactly, there were so few you can pratcically name them all.


414 posted on 06/29/2006 5:53:04 AM PDT by wtc911 (You can't get there from here)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 405 | View Replies]

To: wtc911; qam1

"exactly, there were so few you can pratcically name them all."

As you recall, you asked "who did that?" I demonstrated that some did, which is all I needed to do to prove invalid your implication that none did. Now, your bruised ego forces you to posthumously reframe the argument, as if the contentious issue somehow was ever that it was done by the millions. I never asserted that at all, only that there were plenty of wacky Boomers, too.

Nevertheless, you must keep with your personal rule, insist people pretend that you're right, when as usual, you are not. With Boomers like you around, it's no small wonder people generalize your entire cohort as they do.


415 posted on 06/29/2006 10:46:46 PM PDT by LibertarianInExile ('Is' and 'amnesty' both have clear, plain meanings. Are Billy Jeff, Pence, McQueeg & Bush related?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 414 | View Replies]

To: qam1
The newest Freeper on the block is my son, Adam Michael, who was born this morning at 08:34, 8lbs, 2oz.

His older brothers, John (16) and Steve (11) can attest to the fact that life without a stupid name is an asset.

416 posted on 06/29/2006 10:54:01 PM PDT by Washi
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: agooga


LEMONJELLO and ORANGELLO

Urban myth.


417 posted on 06/30/2006 9:18:26 AM PDT by Atlas Sneezed (Your FRiendly FReeper Patent Attorney)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: Sloth
There is a girl named Hillary who has played on an opposing basketball team of my daughter for years.

Every time I hear her name I can't help but think of the Beast and I cringe.

I keep telling myself its just a name, but it doesn't help.

It also doesn't help that the girl was born in early 90's and her parents look like white-trash grifters that I can easily picture jumping into the $250 "buy here, pay here" vehicle to go pull the voting lever for the Toon.

418 posted on 06/30/2006 10:23:43 AM PDT by libs_kma (USA: The land of the Free....Because of the Brave!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 113 | View Replies]

To: imskylark
My daughter's name is Rachel Erin. I was completely shocked when our pastor, during Rachel's dedication ceremony, called her Rachel 'Urine'.

Horrible! My 6 month old is named Erin. Someone actually asked me how I spelled it once@@

419 posted on 07/10/2006 1:27:11 AM PDT by RepubMommy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 392 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20 ... 341-360361-380381-400401-419 last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson