Baby Names

Seems babies are everywhere in Hollywood at the moment. Halle Berry and her boyfriend Gabriel Aubry have a new daughter called Nahla Ariela Aubry. With parents like these, this baby has won first prize in the gene pools so I doubt whether an unusual name will cause her too much angst.

It got me thinking about just how creative some people are in naming their precious offspring. It's good to be unique and different and stand out from the crowd.....sometimes. I am not sure children always appreciate the choices we parents make on their behalf but hey that's the choice none of us gets to make. Besides, its amazing how the strangest names grow on you when little personalities shine through.

I was no different. When I was 17 I watched the Great Gatsby with Robert Redford and Mia Farrow. There was a female character in it called Jordan Baker. I loved the name Jordan. So when I had a daughter, guess what she was called? It caused some confusion all those years ago although today its quite a common name for females. I remember when she was born my father was asked what her name was and he said, "Oh I can't quite remember, she's named after a river, it's Nile or something like that". He soon got the hang of it and called her Jordie from then on in. I am not sure he has ever called her by her full name.

I know my daughter has had many comments about her name over the years, more in the context of, "that's a boys name" or people assume she is a male as opposed a female when writing to her. I still love the name and I love and admire the independent, beautiful person she has become, all these years later.

Of course, on the whole, new parents are rather conservative in naming their children. The most popular boys names where I come from are Jack, Thomas and Oliver and the most popular girls names are Grace, Ruby, Olivia. Universally these names could be Guadalupe, Imani and Bridget. The popularity of names depends hugely on geographic, ethnic and religious demographics.

However, with all these Hollywood stars giving birth this year I have to say that even I think there have been some questionable baby name choices. Gwyneth's Apple is now a conservative choice it seems compared to some of the latest names

Story was actress Jenna Elfmann's choice for her baby boy. I bet there is a story waiting to be told how she came to name him this. Ever is the name of Milla Jovovich's new son. Never Ever? It's going to get confusing when actress Milla tells the child, "Ever, never do that again!"

Heaven Rain is Brooke Burke's newest daughter's name. She already has two daughters called Neriah and Sierra Sky so I guess she has already set the scene. Heaven is one lofty title to place on a child though. Then there is Alabama. The trend of naming babies after locations obviously appealed to actress Drea De Matteo. Soon we will see tiny New Yorks, Birminghams and Queenslands hitting the birth columns if the trend continues.

However, my favourite is Princess. Every little girl is their parents' little princess, we get that. However its kind of a nickname right? It's also a name for lots of white fluffy cats I know. Katie Price (aka Jordan) named her new daughter Princess. I guess it will be easier for her if she marries into royalty one day. Katie is an excellent businesswoman so she has probably read the Secret and is doing some long range planning. Don't get me started on Tiaamii, the baby's middle name.....that's a dessert or a natural disaster....right?

And finally, what about this one. A New Zealand couple called their baby Superman. The parents' first choice was 4Real (as in, "when we saw him on the ultrasound, we realized he was for real"), but government officials didn't go for it. The parents settled on Superman but insist they'll still refer to him as 4Real. Oh dear.

So do you have an unusual name or did you give your children an unusual name?