Names

[maderr]

So a friend yesterday got her name off parenting.com. Amused by the rather snotty definition with lots of opinions given, I looked up mine.

MEGAN. Surely one of the most popular Welsh names to come to these shores in recent years (if we don’t count Jennifer), Megan caught on like wildfire in the early eighties with parents who liked its "Irish" sound and spirit. And although it has been so widely used — it’s still in the Top 20 — Megan retains some degree of spunk. The short form MEG is more closely tied to the original Margaret, and carries with it the charm of all the Little Women characters. Keeping it in the contemporary spotlight is actress Meg Ryan. For some reason parents are often tempted to vary Megan with"creative" spellings, but we warn against deviating so much that people aren’t sure whether the name is mee-gan or mayg-han or what, exactly.The best, clearest, easiest-to-understand spelling is the original one:Megan.

And that just strickes me as rather stupid, in the end.

Irony of ironies, my mother named for a character in a book, about a girl who liked to read. I think it was a bodice-ripper, but do not recall for certain.

So what was everyone else named for? Any reason at all?

Comments

[mcartel.livejournal.com]

XDDD My name, Cory, came from the first female president of our country. (I'm flattered, really. ^_^) It became kinda a joke in our family since my cousin, who's older than me by 5 years maybe more, was nicknamed after her husband, Ninoy. Though his real name is actually Laudemer. How Ninoy became his nickname is just one of those mysteries in life I'll never solve... *lol*

Names...

[liz919.livejournal.com]

I'm Elizabeth Ashmore...named after my great-great-grandma Ashmore Elizabeth. Ashmore's a family name that was apparently at one point in time an estate somewhere in England or something.

My daughter is Ariana Rebecca. I don't remember exactly why we named her Ariana...but it's the daughter of a character in one of my favorite books (very minor character) and the idea got started after seeing Ariana Huffington on Real Time with Bill Maher one night while I was pregnant. She's beautiful, liberal, well spoken, and has the most gorgeous accent imaginable. Rebecca was my great-grandmother's name...and that woman was what all women should try to be. A true paragon of all the good things about humanity. She was a force to be reckoned with.

[mcartel.livejournal.com]

Btw I tried the site and there was no description of my name... Aaaaww... too bad. XD

cory=corazon

[dyoklako.livejournal.com]

corazon = heart in spanish.

simply means you're loved. ^_~

[alice_montrose]

My mother wanted to name me Alexandra, after my grandmother. My father wanted to name me Rada, after... well, himself (his name is Radu) ^^;;; Finally, my aunt stepped in and named me Adriana, after Emperor Hadrian. I later gave myself my pen name, Alice Montrose, for various reasons. Curiously enough, I will answer if people call me Alice, too. *sweatdrops*

[zeffy-amethyst.livejournal.com]

I always wondered if Alice was your name. ^_^

[cynbaby.livejournal.com]

My mother's good friend in high school was named Cyndi.
I guess she just liked the name.
I hated it growing up because I was the only Cyndi in the school. I wanted a cool name like Tiffany or Jessica.

Now that I'm older I like my name.

[tsaiko.livejournal.com]

I'm named after both grandmothers. I got the Susan from one grandmother (Susan Mary) and the Lee from the other (Sarah Lee). My sister was named after my grandmother and an Aunt (Mary and Elizabeth).

Most amusement I get is that Susan means lily. Lily in Japanese is "Yuri." I think most everyone else can finish this joke.

[mechante-fille.livejournal.com]

Ahahahaha!!! That's awesome.

My pretend work boyfriend has a friend named Yuri. She is Japanese. I didn't even crack when we were introduced. I'm so smooth. ;p

[lady-oneiros.livejournal.com]

My first name, Allison, isn't really anything that special. All I know is that my mom almost named me Amy but decided on Allison instead. My middle name, however, Syrene, was the middle name of my great-grandmother, my grandmother's middle name, was my mom's middle name, and now it's mine. If I have any children, my first-born daughter's middle name will also be Syrene. It's a Swedish name, but for the life of me, I can't remember what it means.

[zeffy-amethyst.livejournal.com]

My whole name means something like....'golden river of wisdom'. It's an asian name so my parents chose three different names and melded them together to get it. No last name either which makes life so much fun when trying to explain it to other people, namely government officials.

[zeffy-amethyst.livejournal.com]

AHA! Found it. Mai means either, golden in Burmese or Bright/Coyote in Japanese.

My chosen name Su is a derivative of Suzanne, therefore means Lily. I don't think I like the meaning of either of my names. O.o

[lokiloo.livejournal.com]

I am named Riana, wich is Arabic for 'Sweet Basil', since nameing me Durka-Durka Muhamed Jihad would get my parents under CIA and Homeland watch. Basicly, I'm a salad. :3

[tsaiko.livejournal.com]

since nameing me Durka-Durka Muhamed Jihad would get my parents under CIA and Homeland watch.

I just snorted by apple juice reading that and I'm still laughing.

[dyoklako.livejournal.com]

my first name Lora was taken from my mother's first name, Lorna (which also happens to be my elder sis's first name) and my second name, Lynn, was taken from the name Linda. yeah, not much imagination there... > . >

funny thing is, no one can spell my name right even after i dictated to them how to spell it more than once! especially the first name as it kept being spelled as "Laura" (i guess it's the way it is pronounced so i had to pronounce it as it is spelled (Loh-Rah not Lawh-rah) ^^"

[pineapplechild.livejournal.com]

Heh. I was named Katherine for a charater in a book who my mom liked. I forget the book. But I went to a roman catholic grade school, and they all would say "oh, you must have been named for St.Kate." EVERY YEAR.

[maderr.livejournal.com]

I think I would have killed some people by the end.

[yukon-jack.livejournal.com]

Richard is my maternal Grandfather's name, a hard-drinking, storytelling, womanizer who works too much (he's mostly retired but he repaved his own driveway last year at the age of 79). So clearly I see *no* resemblance between that and the way I turned out...

My middle name, Thomas, has no familial precedent so I've always had the sneaking suspicion that my Mom named me after Richard Thomas who played John Boy on the Waltons. She refuses to confirm this.

[stoplightgodess.livejournal.com]

I'm named for my mom's mentor in England and my great grandma. Ironically, both names suit me. Patricia menas aristocratic and I'm a little snob, and Boke means one with honey in my native lang,and I am just about always on a sugar high from too much chocolate/ sweets of some kind.

[sagesae.livejournal.com]

My mother swears she has no idea where she got the idea for my first name, Courtney, only that she wanted something that wasn't popular. Considering my siblings are named for the same reason (Sarah, Jordan, and Conor respectively) I think I win.

My middle name, however, was my dad's pick. He named me Lynn after his best friend growing up, who is a guy. Oddly enough the only Lynn's and Courtney's I knew growing up were guys so I thought my parents were telling me they'd secretly wanted a boy. Since growing up, I've only known girl Courtney's but I went by my middle name for a long time because it seemed more girly to me.

At least I wasn't named after a cabbage patch doll like my sister, my mom saw one named Sarah Jessica and thought it was cute. Or Michael Jordan. That one, I admit, was my fault. I told my mom it would be neat if I had a brother named Jordan or Michael because Michael Jordan was so cool. (I was six. What did I know?) And for some reason, she listened to me. My mom's last effort was her best, I think. My youngest brother is named Conor after Conor McCloud, the highlander. Obviously, she watches too much television.

[maderr.livejournal.com]

Your mother makes me giggle ^___^

[mechante-fille.livejournal.com]

MICHELLE, MICHELE. It was the Beatles song that did it, of that we have no doubt. The tender sound, the loving half-French lyrics "ma belle." The name had certainly been heard before 1966, in fact it was already number twenty in 1960, but we’re sure that the soft, sentimental ballad was the key factor in propelling it up to the Top 5. And although it is still widely used, it is definitely, after an unusually long run, on its way out of favor, although Michelles Pfeiffer and Phillips still keep it in the public eye.

Yuck. I was not named after a Beatles song. And I don't buy that it was the #4 name in the 70's, either. Everywhere I lived I was the only Michelle in the school. *shrugs*

Anyway, I was supposed to be Katherine Marie to have my first name be Irish to match my last name, but then I was born and my mother says she just liked the name Michelle. And she wasn't a Beatles fan, either. Or Guns'N'Roses, for that matter...

Also, I resent them saying that I'm out of favor. Hmph!

^____^

[maderr.livejournal.com]

Dude, there are like three Michelle's where I work, all of varying ages. The name is not out of favor. And none of the ones I know were named after the freakin' Beatles. Honestly, that website is cracked out in a bad way.

[skylark97.livejournal.com]

RACHEL, RACHAEL. It is probably the delicacy and softness of the name — it does mean "little lamb" in Hebrew — that has made Rachel one of the most consistently popular biblical girls’ names since the late 1960s, when parents started to turn back to basic sources like the Bible. At a much earlier time Rachel was considered characteristically Jewish — it wasn’t used as a Christian name until after the Reformation — but the fact that it is now the thirteenth most common name given to baby girls in America demonstrates that it has been widely embraced by all ethnic groups. In the Old Testament, Rachel was the beautiful and cherished wife of Jacob, and mother of Joseph and Benjamin. Celebrities who have chosen the name for their kids include Jane Pauley and Garry Trudeau and Kathleen Turner. Among the variants are the 17th century RACHAEL, the 20th century RACHELLE and the Spanish RAQUEL, Raquel Welch being half Bolivian. The diminutive RAE is also used independently, more often than not as a middle name.

Sadly, the bible is exactly where my parents got my name as well. (Personally, I think it goes more like Rachel: forever plagued by sheep...)

Although, I was teasing my mom the other day. She said that if I'd been a boy, they were going to name me Luke. Then in the next breath she told me that if my next youngest brother had been a girl they'd have named him Leia. So I was like, 'had a thing for Star Wars much?' You should have seen her try to backpedal out of that one. "No, Leah like the bible. Luke and Leah from the bible!" *snickers* Yeah right. XD

[mechante-fille.livejournal.com]

Ahaha, Luke and Leia!!! I do like the name Leah, though. And Rachel. It's a favorite. ^_^

I love talking about names.

[flamebyrd]

Especially when shortened to LIZZIE, Elizabeth has been one of the quintessentially Yuppie names.

I always hated Lizzie. >.<

Elizabeth is my mother's middle name. I think my parents just liked it. They were always very insistent that it was "Elizabeth", though - not liz, lizzie, betsy or anything.

I used to insist on it until high school when it just became too hard to argue. I still insist on being Elizabeth in writing wherever possible and I get annoyed when people assume my initial is L, although I sign off on the internet as Liz (Elizabeth just looked too snobby. I'm not sure why).

Re: I love talking about names.

[alixkat.livejournal.com]

My name is Alexandra and I got the yuppie crap, too. My parents refuse to call me anything but Alexandra, but I use "Alix" because I was named for Queen Alexandra of England, and she went by "Alix" amongst her intimate family.

But still... I hate when people shorten my name to "Lexi" or "Alexis" or the worst is when they can't bloody pronounce it at all and insist on calling me "Alexander" or "Alexandria." maderr calls me Allie, cos she's my college pal. :)

I always use Alexandra now and I use it with everyone I meet after college because it's my name and I think it's quite beautiful and thus I want to use it. I think it's good that you use your full name, because it's a beautiful name and if you shouldn't feel like it looks snobby!!! (But I know what you mean.)

oh, parenting.com

[shinshan.livejournal.com]

ERIN. Erin and cousins like Shannon and Tara were the successors to older Irish-American favorites like Kathleen and Colleen, but now they too are moving aside to make room for a new wave of more genuine Irish names: girls' names like Maeve, Siobhan, and Grania, and androgynous choices such as Cassidy, Kennedy, and Flannery. Parents in search of an Irish name should know, in any case, that ERIN, which is the Gaelic word for Ireland, is not used as a name in Ireland at all.

OUCH. Wow, parenting.com, what's with the hate? I don't know why my parents chose the name, but it wasn't because they were trying to connect with our (very distant) Scots-Irish background. We're more German, anyway. I also don't know the reasoning behind my middle name, Allison--which I don't particularly like. However, it is the COOLEST THING EVER, especially when you're a kid, to hear people you don't even know say "Erin go bragh!"

As far as name stories go, though, my father's middle name comes from a bootlegging, rum-running relative who, in his old age, was rumored to bury his fortune in his yard. Also, according to my grandmother, he dressed kind of like a pimp.

Re: oh, parenting.com

[skylark97.livejournal.com]

Who names their child Flannery? O_o;; "Flannery! You forgot to take out the trash!" It seems like something you should name the hamster. Or the cat. Or the bushes that grow by the front door.

Erin's a pretty name. I think it's gone down in popularity in the last couple years which is always a plus. ;3 (I'm of the opinion that not popular = good. Makes it harder for people to mistake you with someone else of the same name.)

[alixkat.livejournal.com]

WAY TO BE! Now how the fuck did you get a nice write-up from Parenting.com and everyone with a long name that someone in royalty happens to share got totally dissed!!?!?! That's bullshittery, my friend!!!

My Mom used to complain about all the different spellings of Megan. I knew a Megan and a Meghan in high school. My Mom had a Megan, a Meghan, and a Maeghan... and probably a few others that I've forgotten.

All the names in the Top 20 got kudos. Stupid Parenting.com. *kick*

[skylark97.livejournal.com]

Irony of ironies, my mother named for a character in a book, about a girl who liked to read. I think it was a bodice-ripper, but do not recall for certain.

XD *hearts* Your mom rocks.

What I want to know though, is how you get Meg out of Margaret. It's like getting Bill out of William. If you're going to get a nickname from Margaret it should be Maggie. Will for William. I am in no way absolutely linear in my thinking, why do you ask...

[mechante-fille.livejournal.com]

How about Peggy? Or Dick. That one is just stupid all around, in my opinion.

Margie is even more linear. Or Ret. Ret would be cool. Or no nickname at all. ^_^

[linchan.livejournal.com]

Oh, names are interesting. :P I couldn't find my name from the site but not overly suprised.

My name is Sini and it comes from Finnish word "sininen" meaning blue. My parents had, as the story tells, a huge fight over my name so my godmother finally got enough and told that the baby's name will be "Sini" and that's it. ^^

Personally when I was a child I hated the name... I wanted something original but I never figured out what it would actually be... ^^;

*lurks away*

[melayneseahawk.livejournal.com]

Ha, site doesn't even have mine, and it relates it to Elaine. Wrong!

ELAINE. Being featured on a hot TV show — Seinfeld — did nothing to heat up the image of this dated name, which was at its most recent heyday in the World War II period. Originally an Old French form of Helen, Elaine, "the lily maid of Astolat," was one of the shining heroines of the Arthurian legends, the princess who fell in love with Sir Lancelot and became the mother of Sir Galahad. Nowadays, the more stylish spins on this name are ELENA, the Spanish and Italian form that's pronounced as ELAINA, and the Hebrew ELANA, which means "tree" and may also be spelled ILANA. ELIANA is another very pretty Hebrew name close to the name ELIAS or ELIHU and also spelled ELIANE or ELIANNA.

Ilana came first, assholes.

But yeah, am named after paternal grand'rents (Irving -> Israel -> Israela -> Ilana) (Dorothy -> Devorah -> Deborah). Jewish tradition is fun (which is also how I have two sets of names, depending on what language we're in, but that's summat else)!

[melayneseahawk.livejournal.com]

Dude, LJ doesn't like me today.

[lisiche.livejournal.com]

My sister got to name me, because there's 22 years between us and I guess my parents owed her or something. XD She chose 'Courtney', and I secretly think it's because she hates her own name so she wanted her new sister to hate her own name as well.

Mom wanted to call me Mercedes. Wouldn't have fit at ALL, but I'd so have taken it.

[doro-chan.livejournal.com]

DOROTHEA, DOROTHY. Dorothy has left Kansas and Oz and become a Golden Girl, living in retirement with friends Blanche and Rose in Miami. It did have a good run, though — it was the sixth most popular girl-baby name in America in 1900, third in 1925, and still in the Top 25 in 1940. Today it is the more flowing, romantic Victorian-sounding Dorothea — and its inverse Theodora — that are being embraced. Dorothea has had a long literary tradition, prominent most recently as the idealistic heroine Dorothea Brooke in the Masterpiece Theater production of George Eliot's Middlemarch. The revival of Dorothea (and Theodora) is sure to breathe new life into some old nicknames: THEA, for one, as well as DORRIE or DORY. DORIA, DORA, and even the originally male DORIAN (seen in female guise on One Life to Live since 1979) may get some attention, and the Hebrew name DORIT is very popular in Israel. Forms of the name nearly certain to remain on the shelf: DOT and DOTTY, DORINDA, DOREEN, and especially DODIE and DODO

If anyone dares to use any of these names on me again, I'll kill him or her. Seriously. And my name is not Victorian, at least not where I live. It's just terribly old-fashioned. But for some reason, it's popular in my family. It's my mother's third name, and aunts second name and I think I have a distant cousin somewhere that's named Dorota (the Polish version). Oh, and my father quite liked it, but I guess that's because of it's meaning, not because of some fictional character.

[sixpence1323.livejournal.com]

My name is a family heirloom - Anyone named Ana Maria gets the family jewels.

(shrugs)

I like my name. I have no middle name. Ana Maria is indeed one name. Most latins don't give middle names because the middle name is actually the last name of the 7 or so generations before hand on both sides of the family or, in my case, my mom's side with both the women and men. It's... complicated.

I'm Ana Maria III, I think. Or IV. Whatever. I don't keep track.

I just know I get lots of shiny, pretty treasures and things! And all the family paintings and rugs and -

TREASURE! (I feel like a dragon...)