According to my mother, I exhibited a fascination for names as soon as I could talk. I named my first doll ‘Flora’ when I was just under two, and my first dog, a poodle, was proudly named ‘Francois’ when I was about three. Mom said that I would point to strangers on the subway and tell her, ‘That man’s name is Ralph’, or ‘That lady’s name is Lucy.’ I sort of remember that, and I think that I was convinced of their ‘names’ because they sure as heck looked like a Ralph and Lucy to me. Back then, the sound of a name and the visual image it created were the foundations of my fledgling interest in names.
Now that I sit here as a 40-year-old mom of two, I can say that my little love of names has morphed into a full-blown passion. Born in New York City, I had one set of grandparents from Ireland and one set of grandparents from Honduras. Growing up in a Spanish-speaking home with an Irish name generated an interest in the effect culture has on names, and how names affect culture. I can also recall creating lists upon lists of names, comprising of mixing name combinations from my own family tree, other names I would have liked for myself, and names of my future children. These days I have extended my naming interests into following trends in pop culture (particularly sports and 80’s), and modern twists to traditional names.
My naming philosophy is pretty straightforward. I believe a name should have an important meaning or be attached to some type of family history or event. A name is a beautiful gift, and should be something that can grow with the child, make them proud, and remind them that they are loved. I abhor cutesy names or overused, popular names that are bestowed for the sake of being trendy. That said, yes, I have an Aidan…but there is some family history behind it, so it’s OK! My mom’s name is Aida, and as I mentioned, I am also Irish, so…Aidan was just perfect. I had a much more difficult time naming my daughter, but I had set criteria, based on what was meaningful to myself and my family. I wanted a variant of Mary, since the Blessed Mother is very dear to my heart. After going through all the naming books at the library, I discovered the girls’ name board at Baby Center. There, I met this incredible group of women who also shared my passion, and I officially became a Fredder. My daughter’s name is Mariella, by the way, which made my Italian in-laws very happy.
I often wonder if my naming tastes would have been broader if I had grown up in a more diverse community than small, white town USA. Interesting to see how environment affects naming.
Comment by Philomena — August 1, 2008 @ 2:32 pm |