Sevilla

Seville, Spain

Sevilla is an intriguing choice, listed as the Spanish variant of Sibyl, meaning "prophetess, oracle." Very mysterious and alluring. It also happens to be the name of the ancient Spanish city of Seville, where Diego Velazquez was born, and the setting of the opera "Carmen." In myth, the Andalusian city was founded by Hercules. In this respect, the name can also mean "from Seville."

You might have to constantly explain how this name was chosen, but isn't it worth it? The nickname Villa is exotic, yet very place-name. In Spanish the pronunciation is seh-VEE-ya, but the English way is seh-VIL-uh. In 2011 there were only 7 baby girls named Sevilla.

Orlando

I had to do this name because my husband could easily be a stunt double for Orlando Bloom ( ^.^ ), the most famous namesake at the moment, who is married to Victoria's Secret model Miranda Kerr and named their son Flynn. Several athletes bear the name as well. Worldwide, the most easily recognizable place name is Orlando, Florida, home of Disney World, Sea World and Universal Studios. Orlando is an Italian and Spanish variant of the Old German name Roland, meaning "renowned/famous land." Roland was a famous and loved literary medieval knight (read Le Chanson de Roland for more info). It is possible Orlando and/or Roland originated as a place name.

Orlando is a literary name used a lot in the 19th century, which even Virginia Woolfe used as the title of one of her novels, and Shakespeare used it for one of his characters in "As You Like It." There was also a Saint Orlando. Orly and Lando are common nicknames, but Orrie or Andy can work well. Orlando currently ranks at #482, it's lowest ranking this decade, with 543 baby boys given the name in 2011. Only a handful of O names for boys actually ranked - Oliver, Oscar, Owen, Orion and Omar were the only names ahead of Orlando.

Andromeda

Perseus and Andromeda by Anton Raphael Mengs

Andromeda is a name that most people admire, but find too unusual or extreme to use in real life, therefore they put it away on their "guilty pleasures" list of names they're not brave enough to use. Which is a shame, really, since it's such a gorgeous mythological gem. But I do agree, it does come on strong, which is why it's on my own GP list. I have thought an easy and accessible nickname would make it more useable, though.

Nickname possibilities: Andie, Anna, Anne, Annie, Andra, Andrea, Dru, Dre, Drama, Mei/Mae, Meda

There were 31 baby girls given the name Andromeda in 2011 (only 5 were given the name of her mother, Cassiopeia) and only 20 named Andromeda in 2010.

The Rock of Doom by Edward Burne-Jones

So many are familiar with Andromeda's tale: her mother, Queen Cassiopeia (another great name, meaning "she whose words excel"), was arrogantly proud of her daughter's beauty and boasted that she and Andromeda were both more beautiful than the Nereids. Poseidon, god of the sea, demanded King Cepheus and Queen Cassiopeia sacrifice their daughter to a sea monster named Cetus as punishment for Cassiopeia's vanity and arrogance, or else he would destroy their country, Aethiopia (Ethiopia). After hesitating and visiting the Oracle, they eventually tied Andromeda to a rock at the seashore, awaiting her demise to save the country. Perseus, who had just finished killing Medusa, was riding home on his horse Pegasus when he came upon Andromeda chained to the rock. He figured out what was going on and rescued Andromeda by killing the sea monster, supposedly in disguise. Then Perseus married Andromeda, which was the second great thing to happen after he saved her, since she was promised in marriage to her uncle Phineus. In fact, Phineus was so angry about this that he came to the wedding, and as an end result, he was turned to stone by the gorgon Medusa's head (which Perseus either just had lying around or became part of his shield as depicted in the art). They traveled around, Perseus saved more people, and they had seven sons and two daughters, none with names worth mentioning. (Sorry.) They say Perseus is the ancestor of the Persians, since his children (the family of the Perseidae) kept rule over Mycenae for such a long time. As for Andromeda, when she died, Athena turned her into a constellation in the northern sky, next to her mother and husband. Other characters turned constellations include the sea monster Cetus, her father King Cepheus, the winged horse Pegasus, and even the mother of Perseus, Danae.

Perseus and Andromeda by Gustave Moreau

They say there is a place in Jaffa, Tel Aviv where Andromeda was really chained to the rocks. Her story is still the subject of great art to this day, including movies. I also want to comment on the fact that she had a good relationship with her mother despite the horrible outcome of her mother's actions. Cassiopeia was not a bad person, just proud. However, Poseidon made her into a constellation with the specific torment of being tied to a chair, upside down half the time.

Perseus and Andromeda by Joachim Wtewael

Topanga

For a fun read elsewhere, read this post on the name Topanga. Someone, please, be brave enough to use it! It's so loud, spunky, quirky and refreshing. As an update, there were 18 baby girls named Topanga in 2011 and 15 in 2010.

Name Interview with Ren (Lauren)

Laurel by Alphonse Mucha

What is your name? (Include middle if you like) Lauren Ashley but I go by Ren online

What decade were you born in? mid 90’s

How did you get your name? My parents just liked it

How did you feel about your name growing up? I liked it but I always wanted a nickname (I didn’t start using Ren until I was in 9^th grade but I don’t use it in real life.)

How do you feel about your name now? I really like it. I think it is a pretty name.

If you have any kids, how did you choose their name(s)? I don’t have any kids but my top names are Athena Love and Theodore Landon. I chose them because I liked them. I will be honoring my grandma, whose name is Anastasia, some way when I have a girl.

What is the name of your best friend? Her name is Rebecca but she uses the nickname Becky. I just call her Beck though.

What are some common names for your age group? I know a lot of Ashleys, Jessicas,  Brittanys and a few more I can’t think of.

If you had to give yourself a new first name, what would it be? I don’t know. Maybe something with a nickname. If I had to pick it would maybe be Callianna with the nickname Callie/Cal.

Of the kids you've met most recently, which are your favorites and least favorites? I meet a little boy named Julius and really liked his name. I was also watching a show where one of the little kid’s name was Chancellor and I love it. My least favorite name is Jewana (I am guessing on the spelling). It is the name one girl in my class is thinking of naming her baby if it is a girl.

What are your favorite names at the moment? Right now my favorite girl name combo is Athena Love and the other girl names that are in my top 5 are Olivette, Philomena, Violetta, and Juniper. For boys my favorite combo is Theodore Landon and the other names in my top 7 (I only really like 7 names for boys. An odd number I know lol) are Amadeus, Vincenzo, Lorenzo, Thaddeus, Harrison, and Ignatius.  

What advice would you give expecting parents hunting for the perfect name? I would tell them that when they pick a name not to let anyone change their minds, especially their parents. Their parents already got to name their babies. I would also tell them that there are plenty of people who are more than willing to help them find a name they love, who don’t know them at all and won’t judge them. All they need to do is come over to formspring :).

a water lily

{Ren likes some great names. =) I personally love Violetta with the nickname Letty.}

Lauren ranked at #62 with 4,076 baby girls given this name in 2011. Lauren means "laurel," (bay laurel) a subtle botanical name. Laurel wreaths have always been a popular motif through art of all kinds. Laurel ranked at #927 after disappearing in 2009 and 2010. A similar name, Laura, ranked slightly lower at #273. Ren, on the other hand (which in Japanese means "water lily" and "lotus"). It is used for both boys and girls in Japan, yet there were 21 baby girls given the name Ren in 2011, which did not rank. Other three letter R names for girls include Rio, Ria, Ray/Rae/Rei, Rue, Roz and Rea. Ren can also be a nickname for the Italian name Renata, which just appeared on the top 1000.

Visit Ren's blog here.

Nolan

Nolan is an Irish Gaelic name meaning "champion," (not "champion of the people," not "famous noble champion") from the name Nuallan, and it can also be heard as a surname. There are at least two famous namesakes, baseball player Nolan Ryan, inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1999, and movie director Christopher Nolan.

The name Nolan has made regular appearances in the U.S. top 1000 since 1899 at varying spots, and has now jumped to #93 in 2011 and a total of 4,140 baby boys born with the name last year. It was the 5th name starting with the letter N for boys in the top 1000, with no stopping soon. It is popular in other countries as well, even ranking at #29 in France. Nolan comes with the compact and straight-to-the-point nickname Nol, one syllable.

Judgement & Classy Names

I was recently told the name of a new baby in my family's circle, and having seen a lot of names, it didn't really affect me at first, since it wasn't tacky, which is what I'm getting used to. My parents were quite confused by this unusual and trendy name, and upon further thought, I realized I did have an impression - but it wasn't an impression of the child, it was for the parents. Other than being pleasantly surprised by how unusual the name was (and my relatives/friends close enough to call relatives do have amazing taste in names) I recalled the age of the parents and thought, "This seems like they were trying way too hard to be "young and hip." In my line of work I also meet many kids with unusual names and sometimes find it hard not to think something [mostly harsh] of the parents for choosing that name, especially when the name is conventionally said one way, but the child corrects you and gives you a completely out-of-nowhere pronunciation. Spelling is a whole different story, as I see no reason to spell Darien as Daryon, or Katherine as Kathyrine. (To be blunt, shame on you for thinking that spelling is a blessing for your child, and see my previous post.)

Your kid's name really tells the world more about you than your kid. After all, you're the one that picked it - your kid probably would have picked something that told the world more about them.

I love to know other's reactions to names, and find it hard to stay away from the message boards to get opinions and first impressions. I also love commenting on names, and it's hard to be positive when you see a name you dislike. Hopefully by the time I have my own child I can fly past all the creative spellings and trendy names I might regret, I won't get stuck with just the options listed on the top 1000, but I'll know enough to assume a completely, undeniably rare name that is foreign to my society might get a lot of negative reactions. I'll feel confident in choosing a name that my child won't have to share, but also won't have to constantly correct people with it's spelling or pronunciation. It depends on what kind of rare name I pick. I know they might not enjoy something like Fanchette, but they might like something easily understandable like Coral, which is a bit unusual, vintage and not often heard.

All children, at some point, will have judgement passed on their name. But parents will also have judgement passed on them for choosing that name. (Not often enough do we stress the fact that you are choosing a name for a future adult!) Is there any way to avoid negative reactions (even if they're not spoken out loud)? I believe the only way is to find a name with a happy medium of popularity, which for me is not in the top 1000, but sounds familiar or is easy to understand. For others, it is something not in the top 100. A few good examples are Rosalind, Faye, Guinevere and Lavinia. None in the top 1000, but everyone is familiar with them (in a good way - Anakin ranks among them but is not exactly credible). They're classy. And classy names not often heard almost always get pleasant reactions. Lydia, Caroline, Elena, and even more unusual names like Obelia and Sevilla, have a classy feel to them, and you probably don't know more than one or two. In which case, it's really up to the namesake to make the reaction unpleasant. However, names that are so popular that everyone in the country has heard them before, not necessarily in person, go from being classy to trendy.