The Babe remains Nameless. She is blissfully nameless, but her parents slightly less blissful. I have struggled with a baby naming addiction for three years now, spending hours and hours and hours researching names and thinking about names. In the past I have explained and justified this habit by connecting my name obsession with my interest in language (the necessary precision and suggestive mystery of words). Poetry attempts to name reality, the world that we interact with/move through/leave behind—when we name our children we presume to name another en-souled body, another person. How strange! What a privilege! What a frightening responsibility!
Apparently we are failing in this responsibility. It - is - so – hard! This is the post where I ask your help.
My name must be perfect and possess these qualities:
1. 1. Significance (especially religious, though not limited to)
2. 2. Family Connection (Most of our rejects did not fill this category…)
3. 3. Beauty (and that doesn’t mean sibilant, vowel-y frillies like Isabella, Eleanora, Olivia, etc. We are very much attracted to the more Germanic sounding consonant-heavy monikers as well.)
4. 4. Rarity (I have the social security list of top 1000 names practically memorized. My first name was one of those *very* popular choices back in the 80s, and I disliked being one of many mes in any group. Thankfully, my name was a popular CLASSIC which I love. Still, T.M. and I tend to gravitate toward those names which do not appear on the popularity chart at all, or are ranked no higher than 200…This excludes many nice names such as Sophia, Emma, Audrey and Charlotte.)
A name that fulfills each of these requirements...This isn’t so much to ask—right? WRONG. Though I have a list of hundreds of names we like—nothing has blossomed, nothing sparks joy when I refer to my Inside Baby as Miss X or Little Y. SO, I appeal to you, gentle readers, for help. Below I list a few names from our list—names that have been rejected over the past months. This will give you a feel for our taste. Are any of these old favorites worth saving? Have we missed something similar or related? Your suggestions!!
Iris. I love the sound of Iris—striking, clean, easily recognizable and pronounceable. Though it has no direct family or religious connection, Iris has remained high on our list…till last week when we attempted to call the Small One Iris for a whole day. Something (??) didn’t feel right. Maybe too striking? Cold?
Imogen. I love Imogen. T.M. does not. Imogen is very popular here in the UK as well as Australia. Why haven’t parents Stateside caught on? Easily pronounced (Imma-gen) and bearing similarities to such perennial favorites like Emma and Jennifer. Imogen is the heroine in Willy S’s Cymbeline, virtuous and beautiful. What is the problem here?
Georgia. A feminization of George with the very cute nick-name of Georgie. I am an anglophile. I love St George. I love the sound of this name. But--the State. “Georgia Winter” sounds like the title of a song. Stink.
Lucy. Once again, we’ve got our saint—a virgin martyr no less! And an appealing meaning—light. Adorable sound. Everyone loves the name Lucy. And everyone naming babies loves the name Lucy, which ranked 112 in 2008 (and is still rising). Not going to happen.
Audrey: Same problem as above. Ranked 51 in 2008 and rising.
Beatrice: I like Beatrice a lot, but she sounds cold and too formal for me. I don’t like the nicknames “Bea” or “Trixie.”
Jane: A feminization of John. I love the apostle St John and so have always been attracted to Jane, which I find elegant and simple. But—Jane is plain. Too plain.
Isadora: A feminization of Isadore, and a saints name! Easily pronounceable though very rare. I like the idea of calling her Ida. However: she sounds very close to the white-hot Isabella. AND Isadora Winter sounds like a sentence: “Is a door a winter?”
Consuelo: Spanish name meaning Consolation (especially Our Lady of Consolation). I love the sound. However, I worry that my perhaps-blond daughter might not be able to wear such an exotic moniker. Besides the fact that we are moving back to the boring Midwest where names like “Sophie” and “Charlotte” are considered bold and inventive.
Paloma: I – love – Paloma. Paloma means “dove” in Spanish, which symbolizes the Holy Spirit as well as peace. I love the sound of Paloma. It is beautiful and easy to pronounce even for Mid-west Anglo Americans. If no one else in the world existed, Paloma would be a constant contender for first place. But—once again—whitey white Midwesterners, blond baby, and our own fears about our family’s reaction, keeps Paloma off the table…or safely in the middle spot on the birth certificate.
Jemima: Jemima is our true love. Jemima trumps every name on our list—including Paloma and all the real possibilities we are still keeping secret. We both love Jemima with our whole hearts. The biblical Jemima was the daughter of Job—born after he was restored. A blessing and a renewal. Like Paloma, Jemima means “dove.” Have I mentioned? I love this name. BUT. Jemima, as I have been told time and again, has pancake issues. And worse—carries all sorts of racist baggage, since “Aunt Jemima” brand depicts a stereotyped “mammie” figure on all its boxes. I cry for Jemima, which has none of these problems here in the UK. Here she remains Job's daughter, or the adorable child from Chittie Chittie Bang Bang or Beatrix Potter’s Jemima Puddleduck. Rawrg!
So, here is our reject pile, which sadly includes our Best Beloveds. Any thoughts? Are there any we can pull out and use after all? Can you think of any other names we might have missed???
Thank you!!!
