Once Upon a Time Baby Names

  What a beautiful holiday plant to name your baby girl after. We all know someone with a Christmas related name, but not this rare gem. Pronounced POYN-setta, although some do say poin-SET-ee-ah or POINT-set-ah, you can create a wide range of nicknames such as Pippa, Settia, or just Tia. In 2010 and 2011 there were no babies named Poinsettia. The poinsettia was named for Joel Poinsett, the U.S. Ambassador to Mexico. It is said he is the one who brought attention to this plant for botanists to study. It's hard to believe this Christmas plant is actually tropical. The Aztecs used this plant to produce red dye, and today Mexicans and Guatemalans call it "Noche Buena," Christmas Eve, although in Spain it is called the Easter flower. The poinsettia's Christmas origin began in Mexico, where a young girl's gift of weeds to Jesus's altar at church blossomed into poinsettias. A century later, Franciscan friars in Mexico used this plant in their Christmas celebrations ...

Think of Judy Garland (real name Frances Gumm), Hollywood starlet, or musician Garland Jeffries when considering Garland, unisex, as a baby name. Transfer this traditional surname into a modern holiday name, and suddenly Christmas garlands will be special to them. Garland is from Old English and Old French origins, meaning "land of the spear," " wreath ," or "prize." Garland ranked until 1984 on the Social Security Administration's list of the top 1000 baby names, albeit low on the list. Nameberry says Garland is "fragrant and celebratory." For a boy, nicknames include Garry or Lando (as in Orlando), and for a girl, Laney or Galla, perhaps. In 2010 there were 14 baby boys named Garland but no baby girls named Garland. In 2011 there were 21 baby boys named Garland (also in 2015) and 6 girls named Garland.

We have multiple choices for star names, from the obvious, Star, to the not so obvious, Estreya. Star Starlight Starling Starla Starry Stella Estelle Estella Estreya Estrella Estelita Estrellita Estee Esther Danica Hester Maria, Mary and their variants mean "star of the sea" Vesper & Vespera Nana Nova Sidra Siria Tara Twila Twyla Asta Astra Astera Asteria Asterina Astraea Astrea Astri Astria Actual stars: Altair (Altaira) Capella Arcturus Sirius Aludra Nashira Avior The Garnet Star (Garnet, January's birth stone) Mira Mimosa Gemma Rana Vega Bellatrix Mintaka Meissa Alcyone Atlas Electra Maia Tania Alula Polaris Spica Zaniah Constellations and galaxies: Draco Andromeda Aquila Ara Carina Cassiopeia Columba Delphinus (from which we get the lovely name Delphina) Leo Lyra Norma Orion Pegasus Perseus Phoenix Taurus (from which we get the lovely name Tauria) Ursa (Ursula is acceptable as a full name, Ursa the nickname) Vela

There are three different kinds of Carols. One, the surname Carroll, as in Lewis Carroll (born Charles) of Alice in Wonderland fame. There were 7 baby boys given Carroll as a first name in 2011. Two, the girl's name Carol, feminine variant of Charles. Three, Carol in the winter kind of way, as in Christmas caroling (my favorite kind of Carol). Carol last ranked in 2006 at #972 Carroll is suitable for a boy, but upon hearing the name many might be confused on the gender. Carol was originally a male anglicized form of Carolus, meaning "free man." As a female name it probably started as a short form of Caroline. Charles comes from the same root. Carola, Carly, Charlotte, Carla, Carlene, Charla and Carolina are all feminine variants of the same meaning. Charlemagne, Carl, Carlo, Carlos, and Chuck are all male variants of the same meaning. Chip, Chaz and Chad have been used as nicknames. Carol can also be given as a reference to caroling, carol from the English word for "...

Everyone knows how stressful the holidays can be, but everyone also knows how peaceful those silent nights can be. Here is my holiday list of names that are peaceful... Dove, the universal symbol of peace. Columba, pn. co-LUM-ba, meaning "dove." There is a St. Columba. Paloma, Spanish, also meaning "dove." In 2010 Paloma ranked at #698. Aloma is the shorter form of Paloma, meaning "dove." Callum, from Scottish Gaelic Calum, a variant of Columba, meaning "dove." Calumina is the female variant. Culver is Old English from the same root as Callum, meaning "dove." Jemima, Hebrew, meaning "dove." Yonina is also Hebrew, meaning "dove." Paz, Spanish, in reference to Our Lady of Peace, means "peace." Paxton (male) is from Latin and Old English, meaning "peace town." Concordia, meaning "harmony," the goddess of peace after a battle. Olivia, meaning "olive tree." Extending (giving) an oli...

Traditionally, if you're a Capricorn you should be wearing a ruby, although turquoise is considered December's modern stone. It is not uncommon for a month to have more than one stone. So, since Ruby currently ranks #113, I will cover Turquoise, and it's Turkish gem-turned-baby-name, Fairuza. Turquoise would make a fine middle name in my opinion, because it's not as feminine and frilly as Ruby, Amethyst, Coral, etc. Fairuza, on the other hand, has first name potential. Fairuza is Turkish, meaning "turquoise." Pronounced fy-RO-zah, fair-OO-zah, or FY-ru-zah, you might be more inclined to ask actress Fairuza Balk (of The Craft and Waterboy fame) how she pronounces her name. A suitable nickname for Fairuza is Fay. It was originally spelled Firouza, which is where the fy-RO-zah pronunciations come from. It can also mean "happiness," "luck," "precious one" and "victory." I believe the word fairuz means "turquoise...

Today's name : North (male) Potential nicknames : Nor Origin : Old English, from nord . This is where "Norse" and "Nordic" come from. Popularity : North has long been used as a surname, including variants such as Northman, and occasionally used as a given name. In 2010 there were 19 baby boys named North, and in 2011 there were 20. Fun fact : North hosts a ton of different impressions: snow, "up north," winter, Christmas time, cardinal north, etc. It has also been the hereditary surname of the Earls of Guildford.

Today's name : Winter, a favorite among message boards Pronunciation : WIN-ter Potential nicknames : Win, Winnie, Terrie Origin : The Old English season name for the coldest months of the year. Popularity : Winter only ranked twice since 1880 - it was #1000 in 1978 and #705 in 1979, both times for girls. In 2010 there were 217 baby girls named Winter and 12 baby boys named Winter, making this a unisex name. In 2011 there were 13 baby boys named Winter and 10 Wynter, and 237 baby girls named Winter, 145 spelled Wynter. Fun fact : (1) Harlow Winter Kate Madden, daughter of Nicole Richie and Joel Madden. Their son is named Sparrow James Midnight. (2) Winter Ave Zoli is an actress. (3) Gretchen Mol's daughter Winter.

Today's name: Cardinal You know, the red bird most visible in winter against the white backdrop of snow. And although I see no reason why this name should be limited to males, know that the male bird is the brightly colored red, and females are a brown. However, you could also be talking about cardinal north or the senior ecclesiastical official in Catholicism or cardinal numbers, among a few other possibilities. Pronunciation: CAR-din-al Potential nicknames: Card, Cardy Origin: The word cardinal comes from the Latin cardinalis , meaning "chief, principal, pivotal." The bird was named for its resemblance to the cardinal's robes. Popularity: Although there were 21 baby boys named Cardin (a variant of Carden, meaning "wood carder") in 2010, and 17 in 2011, there were none or less than five named Cardinal both years. I'm surprised there aren't any babies named for the St. Louis Cardinals.

Today's name : Evangeline Or try Evangelina, Evangela, or Evangelista The male form in Greece is Evangelos Pronunciation : ee-VAN-jel-een, ev-AN-jel-een, and occasionally ev-AN-jel-ine (as in Caroline) Although emphasis can be stressed on the "gel" syllable instead, and even the "line" syllable Potential nicknames : Evie, Eva, Evan, Vana, Lina, Angie, Angel, Gilly Origin : Greek (and Cajun/Acadian), meaning "bearer of good news." It was invented by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow for his Acadian epic poem, "Evangeline," although the events of the poem really happened in reality during the Acadian Expulsion. Evangeline derives from the Greek word euangelion, evangel , the term for the gospels, and Latin evangelium . Popularity : In 2010 there were 20 baby girls named Evangaline, 12 Evangelene, 30 Evangelia, 9 Evangelin, 188 Evangelina, 953 Evangelin,28 Evangelyn, 8 Evangelynn and 953 Evangeline, ranking at #333, her highest ever until 2011, rising...

Working with name associations... Sometimes you can't let cultural (or any other kind of) associations hold you back from choosing a name that you love. Here are some examples of how to deal with common associations…   #1 Names from books, TV, movies and history. You love the name Dexter, but everyone now associates that name with Dexter the serial killer, from the TV show with the same name. You don’t want people to think your son will grow up to be a killer, but you love the name to death (no pun intended). Assert the fact, to everyone that mentions the TV show, that there were Dexter’s before the TV show, and there will be Dexter’s after it. (This happened to poor Ursula, meaning “little [female] bear,” when it was used for the octopus witch in The Little Mermaid.) Other examples: You want to name your little girl Matilda, but everyone associates that name with the little witch. Just tell them, “That character was very inspirational to little girls.” Or maybe you love Xena...

Today's name : Shepherd Pronunciation : SHEP-urd Potential nicknames : Shep, Sheppy, Harry, Perry Origin : Old English, occupational word name meaning, "sheep herder." Mainly used in the 19th century. Sheep herding is one of the oldest known professions, and the shepherd Endymion from Greek mythology is also credited as being the first astrologer since being outside in open pastures took up a lot of a herder's time. Popularity : This name last appeared on the SSA charts in 1887 at #906, never to be seen again. In 2010 there were 64 baby boys named Shepard, 100 Shepherd, and 10 Sheppard. In 2011 there were 101 named Shepherd, 57 Shepard, and 9 Sheppard. By 2015 there was a modest increase of use: Shepherd saw 173 births, ranking at #1108. Fun fact : (1) As a surname, the most famous namesake may be Earnest Shepard, illustrator of Winnie the Pooh . (2) Jerry Seinfeld chose this name for his son. (3) This name is religious to those who chose to see it that way,...