Once Upon a Time Baby Names

Owain Departs from Landine by Sir Edward Burne-Jones Laudine (LAW-deen) is an Arthurian baby name from the tales of Owain (sometimes Yvain), The Knight with the Lion and The Lady of the Fountain . This name does seem familiar, either like a word just on the tip of your tongue, or perhaps because it’s just one letter short of becoming Claudine. Ultimately this name might be traceable back to Nodens, a Celtic god, whose name meant “to acquire.” The name is cognate with Lludd, son of Beli Mawr, and also with the name Nuada, who was seen in Irish myth. Laudine is connected by way of the land she resides on, as the Lady of Landuc - Landuc being identified with Lothien and Lothien with Lludd. Sometimes Laudine has been connected to the name Lauda, meaning “praise,” because they look so similar, but Laudine was around well before this name came into use. I will not spoil the events of the story, as one should always be familiar with the works of literature or media they’re ta...

This girl's baby name is Welsh in origin, and it derives from Arianrhod, meaning "silver circle." Arianrhod was a Celtic goddess associated with the moon. Pronounced arh-ee-AHN-wen, it means "blessed silver."  Arianell  is a related name meaning "shining silver." Arianwen verch Brychan was the daughter of legendary 5th century Welsh chieftan Brychan Brycheiniog, and in more recent times we can find the name on celebrity Arianwen Parkes-Lockwood, and even in the book series The Magician Trilogy by Jenny Nimmo as the character of the Snow Spider. Arianwen had no U.S. data, nor does Arianell or Arianrhod.

Morgan le Fay by Frederik Sandys Morgana is one of those names a good majority of people have heard of, yet rarely, if ever, see on a real person. It might really be the perfect “beautiful-dark” name, as it conjures the same imagery of sorcery, a dark haired maiden, and ancient magic in almost everyone’s mind, seeing how the most well known namesake was the legendary Morgan le Fay of Arthurian tales. She’s seen many variants over time, including Morganna, Morgen, Morgaine, Argante, Feimurgen, and her sister is similar-sounding Morgause. Morgana, half-sister of King Arthur, is a sorceress who shows signs of being both good and evil (here’s a nod to feminine duality in literature) and she undeniably has healing abilities along with several other magical abilities. In early versions of Arthurian legend, Morgana was called Queen of Avalon. Morgana is an Old Welsh name meaning “sea-born,” the earliest form being Morgen. The male version is Morien in Old Welsh. The name Morgen is ...

Tacita : this Latin name means “silent, secret,” and was given to the nymph Lara after Jupiter was cruel and cut out her tongue. Tacitus is the masculine, used as a Roman cognomen, and found on the Roman historian Cornelius Tacitus. The names are pronounced TASS-ih-tuh and TASS-it-uss. The names Tacy and Tace derive from the root word taceo as well, and could make fitting nicknames. Talarican (tah-LAR-ih-kan), Tarkin (TAR-kin), and Tarquin (TAR-kwin): while Talarican stands out as the name of a Pictish bishop and saint, Tarquin is the English variant of Latin masculine name Tarquinius, which was a famous Roman gens used by the kings of Rome. The etymology is unknown.  Tarquin is the only spelling that has been used in the U.S., since 1987, and only rarely.  Uriana : this may be a female form of Urian, meaning “privileged birth,” from Welsh masculine name Urien.  Urien was a legendary Welsh figure who featured in Arthurian Romances. Uriana has only been used ...

Magali : this girl name is probably a Provence diminutive of Margaret, meaning “pearl,” or according to French sites it derives from Magdalene, meaning “tower.” Magaly and Magalie have been seen as alternate spelling options. Magali has been used in the U.S. since 1950 and was given to 53 girls in 2017. (Mah-gah-LEE and MAH-gah-lee seem to be both accurate pronunciations.) Marduk : a god of healing in ancient Babylon whose name means “bull calf of the sun god Utu.” A simpler meaning is “solar calf.” He could use magic and was given some of his power by an older god, Ea. Marduk has not been used in the U.S. Nigella : usually said to be the female variant of Nigel, Nigella actually comes from the Late Latin word nigellus , meaning “blackish.” And although most of the world is familiar with chef Nigella Lawson, the name still is not used in the U.S. Nicander : from Greek Nikandros, meaning “victorious man.” One of the first people with this name was a 2nd century BCE scholar. Being so...

Iskra : a Croatian, Russian and Polish girl name meaning “spark,” it is seeing the light of day in the U.S. thanks to body-positive model Iskra Lawrence. It was also the name of a newspaper founded by Lenin in 1900. The name is still not listed in U.S. statistics. Ingram : this name came to England from the Normans, and it likely means “Ing’s raven” or comes from the ancient Germanic tribe known as the Angles, combined with hraben , meaning “raven.” Listed in the U.S. starting in 1883, it has always been extremely rare, and was only given to 10 boys in 2017. Gram could make an easy nickname. Jacoba : everyone seems to love Jacob, but not as much love is given to Jacoba and Jacobina. Jacoba, always rare in the U.S., was used since 1900 and given to 5 girls in 2017. Jacobia was used only in 1991 and 1992, 5 times each, and Jacobina seems to have not been used at all. Jackdaw : this is a bird name, and one not usually seen among other bird name lists. It is one of few birds able to im...

Elbereth : this name has not been used in the U.S. it is a Lord of the Rings name meaning “star-queen.” Elynas : this name has not been used in the U.S. you may remember this as the name of the King of Albany (Scotland) from the story of  Melusine . Traditional searches for this name’s meaning turned up nothing until I found his supposed real name - Gille Sidhean, which might mean “steward of the fey,” or Elinas d’Albha. He is connected to the Vere and Anjou lines and said to be born circa 704, but with names this old sometimes there is more speculation than fact, although it becomes very interesting when the lines blur (like, some would say, King Arthur). At the end of  this  speculation there is a bit more of his ancestry connecting him to the Ulsters. Unfortunately I have yet to find the name’s meaning, but Helinus looks promising. Fruzsina : the Hungarian form of Euphrosyne, meaning “mirth.” It is pronounced fruuz-EE-nah. Eufrozina and Frosina are other variants. ...

This week I will cover 26 boys and 26 girls that are considered rare. Ashwin : a Sanskrit name meaning “light,” and possibly Anglo-Saxon meaning “spear.” As a given name it has been used since 1977 in the U.S. always rare, it was given to 56 boys in 2017. Amellina : a Spanish and Italian variant of Amelia meaning “rival.” This name is very rare, with no statistics. Brynja : a Norse name meaning “armor.” Pronounced BRIN-yah, this name has been used since 1993 in the U.S. but is very rare, given to only 7 girls in 2017. Bedivere : a Knight of the Round Table, his name means “birch man.” This name has not been used in the U.S. despite its chivalrous vibe, along with the possible unusual nicknames Bev, Bear, or Biv. Csilla : a Hungarian name meaning “morning star.” It was created by the Hungarian author Andras Dugonics in 1803. Pronounced tCHEE-luh. This name was only used 5 times, in 1961. Cain : a Bible name with a negative story, this Hebrew name meaning “acquired” was liked en...

Locryn (LOK-rin) is the masculine Cornish variant of Locrinus, a Welsh name meaning “England.” Locrinus may seem familiar because it was the name of a legendary king of Britain whom Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote about, and in his writing, the place Locrinus was from in southeastern Britain was called Loegria. Locrinus was a descendant of Brutus and Aeneas, and his two brothers were named Albanactus, meaning “Scotland,” and Kamber, meaning “Wales.” The name may also seem familiar because Locrinus married Gwendolen, the daughter of the supposed founder of Cornwall, but Locrinus kept a lover - Estrildis, who gave birth to a daughter named Habren. this is where the story behind the name Sabrina  comes from. Gwendolen drowned her in the river Severn, which was Latinized in the 2nd century as Sabrina. Locryn ranks  mid-level in Cornwall as far as anyone can tell, but the data is from a few years ago and it’s not a top 100 name there. It is exceedingly rare in the U.S. with no data so...

Desdemona by Theodore Chasseriau Desdemona (dez-deh-MOH-nah) is an English literary name meaning "ill-fated." William Shakespeare used the name in Othello, but the play was based on the story Un Capitano Moro which was in Giovanni Battista Giraldi's Gli Hecatommithi, where the name was spelled Disdemona, from the Greek word dysdaimonia . It has never been a terribly popular name because of the character, who is murdered by her husband, and the name's meaning. However, Desdemona has been a character name in several other works of fiction since, including the Midnighters trilogy by Scott Westerfeld, the book Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides, and Jimmy Buffet's Where is Joe Merchant? Desdemona also features in two other plays - Toni Morrison's Desdemona , and Paula Vogel's Desdemona: A Play about a Handkerchief . It's also been used for four songs, is a moon of Uranus, and an asteroid demonically named 666 Desdemona. Desdemona Mazza was an Italian s...

www.culturespotmc.com Ruslan (ROOS-lahn) is a Slavic masculine name, and Ruslana is the feminine form. It is said this is the Russian form of the Turkic word arslan (and the Turkish name Aslan), meaning "lion." That may be true but there is also a possibility it comes from the Kievan Rus, called Rus, the Rusichan or Ruthenians, who came before Russia as we know it. If this is the case, Ruslan likely means "to row/rower," and shares an etymological root with Russia itself. Some of you may recognize Aslan as the name of the lion in the Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis. This is used in Russia and the surrounding area, and it's also a Circassian name. Eruslan, Yeruslan and Uruslan have been seen as variants. One of the oldest uses of the name is of a legendary hero from the Pushkin poem/epic fairytale  Ruslan and Ludmila  published in 1820. The majority of namesakes are from the 1900's and includes plenty of footballers, other athletes, and politicia...

Caprice is derived from the Italian musical word capriccio (kah-PREE-chee-oh), "on a whim," which can also be translated as "a sudden motion," and "a fantastical thing." However, the etymology of the word is  capo riccio , "curly head," and it was influenced by capra , "goat." When it applies to the given name, meanings such as "fanciful," "whimsical," and "curly hair" are acceptable. Caprice is the French take on the Italian word. It is where the English word capricious comes from, which means "impulsive, unpredictable." Capricia (kah-PREE-shuh) has been found as a variant. Caprice is one of only a few ways to get Capri as a nickname. While the Italian island Capri is pronounced KAH-pree, as a nickname for Caprice it can be pronounced kuh-PREE. Caprice was a 1913 film, Caprices a 1942 French film, the 1967 film Caprice , 2013 independent film Blue Caprice , 2015 French film Caprice , as w...

Caterina Sforza Caterina/Catarina is a stunning, classy name that is surprisingly rare. It seems like Katherine/Catherine has won the hearts of most parents, leaving this gem to be found by those looking for something beautiful and underused. Caterina was given to 43 girls in 2016, with data since at least 1904 (with 5 births that year). Catarina was given a bit more in 2016 with 60 births. Also, Catherina and Catharina were each given a mere 5 times in 2016. This name definitely falls into the "familiar but rare" category. Caterina is an Italian and Catalan variant of the Greek name Katherine, which is generally accepted to mean "pure," from the word katharos . However, that meaning was largely a Christian take-over of sorts, and it could just as easily be from hekateros , "each of the two," or, slightly less likely, from the goddess Hecate, meaning "far off." For famous namesakes, there's Italian noblewoman Caterina Sforza, born in...

Saint Sunniva via http://bergen.katolsk.no/?p=5824 Sunniva (SOON-ee-vah) has a beautiful meaning, "sun gift," from its Anglo-Saxon form Sunngifu. It can be found recorded as the variant forms Suniva, Sunneva, Sunnifa, Sunnefa, Syneva, Synna, Synne (which became very popular), Synnev, Synneva, Synneve, Synnevi, Synniva, Synva, and more. The earliest recorded use was Sweden in 1353 but the name is attested to Saint Sunniva from the 10th century, who was an Irish princess. Unfortunately she died from a cave collapsing in Norway after fleeing an invading king who wanted to marry her. Miracles were reported on the little island she escaped to, Selja, with her followers. Her brother became Saint Alban. Their tales were written about in Latin and Icelandic. This Scandinavian name has been used in Norway (most usage, rank #66 in 2015, also common there in Middle Ages), Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, the Faroe Islands and Finland, hitting the U.S. charts in 2005 with only 5 births....

Tyr (TEER, alternatively TER in some other countries) is an Old Norse boy's name and the god from which Tuesday was named (perfect for a baby born on a Tuesday). He was likely the son of Odin and Thor's brother.  In Old Norse  Týr  literally means "god," and he was the god of law, justice, war and heroic glory. He was known as the one-handed god because he had his hand chewed off by the wolf god Fenrir. He was also thought to be the bravest god in the Norse pantheon. His tales were told in the Prose Edda and Poetic Edda , and there is enough historical data to prove he was a very important god in ancient times. In the U.S. this is a rare baby name, given to only 10 boys in 2016 and only used since 2002. The recent Thor movies did not impact this name, but I thought parents would've been inclined to research other Norse mythology names. Odin and Thor are doing well on the charts, though, and Loki is being used a bit more but would still be considered rare.

Sibylla Palmifera by Dante Gabriel Rossetti Sibyl, from Greek sibylla , meaning "prophetess," was originally a word referring to one of the ten female oracles, and they were so mystically respected that even in early Christian theology their gifts were highly regarded, or at least intriguing, and Sibyl began being used as a given name in the Middle Ages. Sibyl also comes with a delightful list of variants, each quite beautiful. The spelling Cybil/Cybill has been used, as well as English Sybella and sometimes versions starting with a Z, such as Zibylla. Both Sibylle and Sybille have been used in France, Sibylla in Sweden, Sybille and Sibylle in German, Sibylla in Greek, Sibilla in Italian, Sybill a in Late Roman, Sébire   in Norman, and my favorite - Sibyllina, as in Blessed Sibyllina Biscossi (although she may have been known as Sibila, Sibilina or Sybil). This name has not ranked in the U.S. since 1929. In 2016 it was only given to 19 baby girls. Sybella was give...

Beryl (BEHR-ill) is a girl's baby name that is also a mineral gemstone, and it has been used since the 19th century. The etymology of Beryl can be traced from 12th century Old French beryl , from Latin beryllus / Greek beryllos , to Prakrit veruliya and Sanskrit vaidurya. It may ultimately come from the city Velur in India. The Greek meaning was considered "precious blue-green, color-of-seawater stone." There are seven varieties of Beryl that often get overlooked, especially as baby name potential: morganite, emerald, aquamarine, maxixe, goshenite, and heliodor or golden beryl, and red beryl (formerly known as bixbite). While Morgan and Morgana are still used as baby names, Emerald is unusual but familiar, and Heliodor, Heliodoro, and even Heliodorus had their day in the sun, Aquamarine is usually reserved for fantasy characters and movie titles, and Maxixe is unheard of. Goshenite comes from the name of Goshen, Massachusetts. Beryl last ranked for girls in t...

Greek, meaning "lover of flowers." This is also a moth in the genus Cosmopterigidae family, and the name was used in a novel by Eilis O'Neal titled The False Princess . As a given name it has been used every now and then. Philanthea is an alternate option. Nicknames for Philantha could include Fanny/Phanny, Filly/Philly, Fanna/Phanna, Lanthy or Anthy.

Tana River, Kenya  (source) Tana can be pronounced TAH-nah or TAN-uh, whichever you prefer. It can be a short form of Tanya or Tatiana in Russian, which comes from the Roman cognomen Tatius and is assumed to mean "from the house of Tatius," however  could mean  "I arrange" or "founder." It is also an Anglicized spelling of Arabic Thana, meaning "praise." It can even be a nickname for Tiziana, from Titus, Latin meaning "honored." In the arts Tana is a character in The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black, a reporter in the Superboy comics, and a video game character in Fire Emblem . In real life there is Cayetana "Tana" Ramsey, wife of Gordon Ramsey, Czech actress Tana Ficherova, Thai footballers Tana Sripandum and Tana Chanabut, children's book author Tana Hoban, and Irish novelist Tana French. There's also a Gujarati (Indian) legend about twins Tana and Riri, born around 1564, who commited suicide in refus...

Some might expect that the popularity of Elvis would've died down decades after 'The King' made it a household name, but it's still ranking on the top 1000 (although it will only be a year or two before it falls off). That means some parents are still looking for something similar but not as common, and that's where Alvis (AL-viss) comes in. This Scandinavian boy's name meaning "all wise" from the word alwiss is a truer form of Elvis, both likely coming from the same origin. Alviss was the dwarf who courted Thor's daughter, but Thor was not happy with the arrangement and put a sad end to it. Alvis Darby was an American football player. Alvis Edgar Owens Jr. was the birth name of musician Buck Owens. Hayes Alvis was a jazz musician. Max Alvis was a Major League baseball player. It's also been used in two video games and an anime. Alvis is really only used in Sweden, Norway and Denmark, where it is not common. While the spelling Alviss ha...