Month: June 2020

Spotlight on: Quinn

sanctanomina Spotlight , , , , , ,

Happy Tuesday everybody! I’ve done a bunch of private consultations recently (which is totally fine and wonderful! There’s absolutely no requirement or pressure to have your consultation posted here for reader feedback!), so I don’t know when my next Monday consultation post will be — I just wanted to let you know, because I can see from my traffic stats (generally, and specifically yesterday) that a lot of people pop in on Mondays to see them!

I’ve been wanting to do a spotlight on Quinn for a while, ever since I posted this baby name consultation back in January, where I stated confidently: “Quinn: not in top 1000 for girls; no. 384 for boys” and reader VEL gently pointed out in the comments: “I’m pretty sure Quinn ranked #84 for girls for 2018:)”. She was right, of course — I have no idea how I got that wrong, since I looked up Quinn for both girls and boys in the SSA data — could I have spelled it wrong? Who knows, but the point remains that I was 100% completely wrong and that Quinn is currently a top 100 name for girls, and it’s got a great faith connection that lots of parents of have been loving: Ven. Edel Quinn.

I’ve written about the Irish Ven. Edel before, including my encounter with an actual real-life Edel in Ireland, in several baby name consultations (including the one mentioned above), and these Sancta Nomina babies who were named after her: Kyteria Quinn and Harper Edel. She’s pretty amazing! And totally my go-to for a holy patron for a Quinn, girl or boy. I don’t know of any other Ven./Bl./St. with the name Quinn, but I’ve also seen Quinn suggested as a nickname for Aquinas for a boy, which is pretty awesome, and there’s also the girl name Aquinnah (like one of Michael J. Fox’s daughters), which can take Quinn as a nickname and St. Thomas Aquinas as a patron. The spelling Quin might feel more natural as a nickname for Aquinas and Quintus, and doing so moves it a bit away from the Irish surname feel, which some parents might prefer.

Here on the blog, I’ve seen Quinn suggested for a fifth baby because of its similarity in sound to “quint,” as a namesake for St. Quentin, and in honor of Our Lady because of its similarity in sound to “queen.” I totally think they work! (Though Quinn has no etymological connection to any of these, being instead from the anglicization of an Irish surname meaning “descendant of Conn,” where Conn means “head” or “chief.” So then maybe using it to mean “queen” is pretty accurate after all!)

As a given name, I first heard it on a little boy years ago, before I was married, and I thought it was so cool. These days, I mostly hear it on girls (even though I claimed in that consultation I mentioned above that it wasn’t nearly as popular for girls as for boys, I really just don’t know where my head was). We have a little friend who’s just a couple months older than Luke named Quinn, and her family calls her Quinnie and so does my 6yo, and it’s the cutest thing ever. I will also say that with at least one of the little Quinns I know, I spent months thinking her name was Gwen before realizing it’s actually Quinn (and I try to be really careful about names!). But I don’t think that’s a big deal at all — both Quinn and Gwen are beautiful!

What do you all think of Quinn? Do you like it better for a boy or a girl? Would you ever consider the name Quinn for your son or daughter, or have you? If not as a given name, maybe Quinn or Quin as a nickname for something else? Do you know any Quinns? Do they like their name?

My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

 

Names to honor the Sacred Heart of Jesus

sanctanomina Holy Name of Jesus ,

Today is the solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which is celebrated every year on the Friday after the octave of Corpus Christi, nineteen days after Pentecost. As a result, its date changes every year. It doesn’t feel like a coincidence to me that it falls on the same day as Juneteenth this year, of all years. What a lovely and specific reminder of Jesus’ love when so many are hurting, especially since, as CatholicSaints.info noted, “Love, consecration, and reparation are the characteristic acts of this devotion” to the Sacred Heart. I also read this article at the National Catholic Register today: Did You Know the Sacred Heart Devotion Was Established As a Plague Raged? As Covid-19 numbers are going up again for many parts of the country, knowing of the specific connection of the devotion to the Sacred Heart to the end of the bubonic plague in the city of Marseille is especially comforting:

“The story of a Visitation sister, Venerable Anne-Madeleine Remuzat, and her continuation of work begun in the previous century to promote devotion and reparation to the Sacred Heart, together with Bishop Henri de Belsunce’s zealous care for the Catholics of Marseille during a terrible contagion, is inspiring as Catholics worldwide now implore God to end the current pandemic.”

Yesterday, Maria from Molin & Co. asked in her Instagram stories for ideas of boy names to honor the Sacred Heart, and I was sitting in the car at the orthodontist waiting for my boys to be done with their appointments, so I was able to jump right on that! I gave her some ideas I thought of right away, but then researched a bit more later and came up with some additional ideas. They break down into four categories (all name meanings come from Behind the Name):

Names that refer to “heart”

Girl
Cora: Cor is “heart” in Latin; this name is often given in honor of the Immaculate Heart of Mary for the same reason

Cordula: While Cora doesn’t technically (etymologically) come from the Latin cor, Behind the Name says that Cordula actually does!

Ruby: For the redness of the Sacred Heart; see my spotlight on Ruby

Boy
Caleb: One theory (not the dominant one, unfortunately, but still possible) is that Caleb may come from the Hebrew for “whole, all of” plus “heart”

Hugh, Hugo: They mean “heart, mind, spirit” (because of the “spirit” meaning, I included them in a listing of names for the Holy Spirit)

Thaddeus: One theory is that it means “heart”

Names that mean “holy”

Girl
Ariadne: Means “most holy” in Greek

Glenys: From the Welsh for “pure, clean, holy”

Naomh: Means “holy, saint” in Irish; I spotlighted it here

Sancha/Sence/Sens: These names all mean “holy”

Boy
Jerome: This literally means “holy name” (maybe I should have named the blog “Jeromes”? 😂)

Sancho/Santius/Sanz: See Sancha et al. above; this is the masculine variant (Sancho Panza from Don Quixote is a famous literary bearer of the name, and his daughter was variously referred to as María Sancha, Marisancha, Marica, María, Sancha and Sanchica — all references to Holy Mary)

Names for Jesus

Girl
Christina, Christine, Christiane, Christa, etc. (and their K- spellings): All referring to Christ. Christi is Latin for “of/belonging to Christ” (e.g. Mater Christi: “Mother of Christ”)

Emmanuelle, Emmanuela: Referring to Jesus

Boy
Christopher, Christian, etc.: Referring to Christ

Emmanuel: Ditto

Joshua: The name Jesus comes from a Greek translation of the Aramaic Yeshua (Joshua)

Names of saints who had a special devotion to the Sacred Heart

This article on the Saints of the Sacred Heart is great — it gives a little explanation of why each person is included in the list. It includes some lay people as well, but these are the Servants of God (SOGs)/Venerables/Blesseds/Saints it includes:

Bl. Anna Magdalena Rémuzat (the same Anne-Madeleine Remuzat mentioned above)
St. Louis Grignion de Montfort
St. Veronica Giuliani
St. Alphonsus Liguori
Bl. Bernardo de Hoyos
SOG Pierre Picot de Clorivière
Ven. Pio Bruno Lanteri
St. Madeleine Sophie Barat
St. Michael Garicoïts
St. Peter Julian Eymard
St. John Bosco
Bl. Catherine Volpicelli
St. Frances Cabrini
Bl. Benigna Consolata Ferrero
St. Maximilian Kolbe
St. Faustina Kowalska

Others I’ve come across include:

SOG Julia Greeley (I shared more about her earlier this week)
Bl. Solanus Casey (I just posted about his family’s names yesterday)
Bl. Karl, Emperor of Austria, and his wife, SOG Zita, Empress (read this beautiful story for more info)
St. Gertrude (one of the others who shared name ideas in response to Maria’s request noted that St. Gertrude’s devotion to the Sacred Heart pre-dated that of the most famous Sacred Heart saint, Margaret Mary Alacoque; read more here and here)

Others from the stories

Other followers of Maria’s offered some ideas for boys that I thought were inspired! They include:

Amory (because of amor meaning “love”)

Claude (for St. Claude de Columbiere, who spread devotion to the Sacred Heart and was also the spiritual director of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque)

Corey, Corman, and Cormoran (because of the cor connection, which make me also think of Cormac)

Gary (for St. Gertrude — the “Gar” in Gary and the “Ger” in Gertrude come from the same Germanic element! Gerard and Gerald share that as well)

Graceson (because of the “grace” connection)

John/Jack (after St. John Eudes, who spread devotion to the Sacred Heart and is represented with the hearts of Jesus and Mary)

Leo (after Pope Leo XIII, who wrote the encyclical Annum Sacrum, on the consecration of the whole world to the Sacred Heart)

Pio (Pius IX established the feast of the Sacred Heart; Pius XII wrote the encyclical Haurietis Aquas “On Devotion to the Sacred Heart”)

Richard (for the Lionheart! So clever!)

Rory (for the red of the heart — Rory means “red king,” which adds an extra layer of significance in regards to the Sacred Heart!)

Zacharias (“someone the Lord thought of and favored”)

Can you think of any other names you’d add to this list of names to honor the Sacred Heart of Jesus? Have you named any of your children in honor of His Heart, or do you know anyone who has? Have a great weekend!

My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Irish family names from a certain era

sanctanomina Naming nitty gritty, On my bookshelf ,

I’ve been reading a biography of Bl. Solanus Casey to my older boys, and loved some of the namey things I discovered — I know you will too!

Father:
Bernard James (Barney) (born 1840, Castleblaney, Co. Monaghan); sister Ellen and brother Terrence

Mother:
Ellen Elizabeth (née Murphy) (born 1844, Camlough, Co. Armagh); mother Brigid (née Shields), sister Mary Ann and brothers Patrick, Owen, and Maurice

Barney and Ellen came to this country, separately, around the time of the potato famine (in fact, Ellen’s father died during it), which was from 1845-1850. They met here.

Children (Fr. Solanus and siblings) (middle names weren’t included in the book — I found them via a google search):

1. Ellen Bridget (referred to as Ellie at least once in the book)
2. James Michael (Jim)
3. Mary Ann (died at age 12 of “black diphtheria”*)
4. Maurice Emmett (would become Fr. Maurice Joachim! Sometimes called “Fr. Maurice J” ❤ )
5. John Terrance/Terrence
6. Bernard Francis (Barney, referred to as Barney Jr. in the book, born 1870) (would become Fr. Francis Solanus Casey, OFM Cap. [Order of Friars Minor, Capuchin — the OFMs are the Franciscans; the Capuchins are a branch of Franciscans], after St. Francis Solano)
7. Patrick Henry (Pat)
8. Thomas Joseph (Tom)
9. Martha Elizabeth (died at age 3 of black diphtheria, just a few days after Mary Ann) 10. Augustine Peter (Gus)
11. Leo McHale
12. Edward Francis (Ed, would become Msgr. Edward Casey)
13. Owen Bonaventure
14. Margaret Theresa Cecilia
15. Grace Agatha
16. Mary Genevieve (Genevieve)

These are pretty amazing names (you know how heart eyes I was over discovering Maurice’s religious name was Fr. Maurice Joachim! Augustine Peter and Owen Bonaventure particularly jumped out at me as somewhat surprising, given what I know of Irish naming at that time), but one of the things I was amazed by was how much overlap there was with both sides of my Irish ancestry (my paternal grandmother’s line and my maternal grandfather’s line). Check this out:

My paternal grandmother’s line (came here from Ireland mid-nineteenth century, specific place unknown but we think they sailed from Waterford):

James and Mary–> Patrick and Anne–> Patrick Francis and Mary Cecelia (nee Ward)–> Leo Ward and Mary Agnes (nee Sweeny) (her mother was Bridget Casey! Same last name as Bl. Solanus!) –> Mary Loretta (my grandmother, born 1920)

My maternal grandfather’s line (he and his siblings were all born in Ireland — Cobh [then called Queenstown], Co. Cork):

Francis (Frank) and Anne (Annie) (nee Lawless)–>
1. Francis (Frank)
2. Mary (my mom always refers to her as Aunt Mae)
3. Ellen (my mom always refers to her as Aunt Eileen)
4. William (Will)
5. John
6. Michael
7. David Xavier (my grandfather, born 1904 and worked his way to American on a ship in 1920)
8. Maurice (said mo-REECE, though I know MO-ris [like Morris] is a common Irish pronunciation, and the way I said it when I read Bl. Solanus’ brother’s name, because I think it sounds better with Joachim)

All three families (Bl. Solanus’ family, and my grandparents’ two families) can be roughly placed in the same time period (latter half of the nineteenth century and the early part of the twentieth century), and all three were Irish (Fr. Solanus’ parents were both from Ireland; my paternal grandmother’s family came here from Ireland in the mid-nineteenth century; my maternal grandfather and his siblings were all born in Ireland, and came over here after WWI). Names in common include:

Ellen
James
Mary
Patrick
Francis
Maurice
Patrick
Leo
Anne
John
Brigid/Bridget

I know they’re not crazy-out-there names, but I was kind of amazed by how much overlap there was! Especially with names like Maurice and Leo — I don’t think they’re names that people typically think of as having a lot of usage in Irish families? But if these three families are decent representatives of the naming patterns at that time (especially since they were from all over Ireland and not concentrated in one area), Maurice and Leo aren’t unusual at all!

Another thing I loved seeing was how the family names got passed down (grandparents and aunts and uncles showed up in the names of the grandchildren and nieces and nephews) and *how* they got passed down (both first and middle names were made use of, and maiden names were given to sons).

What are your reactions to reading this? Are you are fascinated by this overlap as I am, or do you think I’m making a lot of not much?

I have more info to share (this book is a treasure trove of beautiful names of our faith!), but it will have to wait for another post!

* The description of “black diphtheria” was eerily similar to what I’ve heard of the respiratory symptoms of Covid-19:

“A highly contagious disease seen often in this era, diphtheria was common in the United States and Western Europe. The upper respiratory system was typically affected, with a thick membrane forming up and down the air passages. Victims — usually children — ran high fevers, had sore throats, and sometimes died when the deadly membrane literally shut down their ability to breathe.”

My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Beloved children of God

sanctanomina Famous Catholics, Powerful patrons, Resources and recommendations ,

Did you all see the amazing thing BabyNames.com did? I saw it on CNN.com! Here’s a screenshot:

babynamesdotcom-06.15.2020

“Each one of these names was somebody’s baby.” I love that. I’ve written before about how knowing a person’s name pulls them out of the masses into clear focus. Motherhood has really helped deepen the impact for me of remembering that all other people were other mothers’ babies, and of course we are all — every single one of us — beloved children of God.

Here are some other names to remember and to whom to pray for intercession, as shared in this post from Avera Maria Santo:

“My dear brothers and sisters, we really need you now… 💔💔💔
—
To my dear friends,
My fellow African Americans now in Heaven with Jesus,
Pray for all of us who remain,
Pray for us who remain in the midst of those who may hate us,
Pray for us that we may love as you did, even in the midst of great hatred.
—
Pierre Toussaint,
Mother Mary Elizabeth Lange,
Henriette DeLille,
Julia Greeley,
Fr. Augustus Tolton,
And my dear friend Thea Bowman,
Please, pray for us!
—
💔💙💛”

Venerable Pierre Toussaint was born into slavery; “He is credited by many with being the father of Catholic Charities in New York. Pierre was instrumental in raising funds for the first Catholic orphanage and began the city’s first school for black children. He also helped to provide funds for the Oblate Sisters of Providence, a religious community of black nuns founded in Baltimore and played a vital role in providing resources to erect Old Saint Patrick’s Cathedral in Lower Manhattan. During a Yellow Fever epidemic when many of the city’s political leaders fled the city in search of healthier rural climates, Pierre Toussaint cared for the sick and the dying. He was a successful entrepreneur, who did not hesitate to share the fruits of his labor with others.”

Servant of God Mother Mary Elizabeth Lange came to America in the 18th century as a refugee from Haiti; “Despite discouragement, racism and a lack of funds, Mother Lange continued to educate children and meet the total needs of the Black Catholic community.”

Venerable Henriette DeLille was the daughter of  biracial couple; she founded the order of the Sisters of the Holy Family “for the purpose of nursing the sick, caring for the poor, and instructing the ignorant … [she] devoted herself untiringly for many years, without reserve, to the religious instruction of the people of New Orleans, principally of slaves … The last line of her obituary reads, ‘… for the love of Jesus Christ she had become the humble and devout servant of the slaves.'”

Servant of God Julia Greeley was born into slavery; she was known as “Denver’s Angel of Charity” and “a one-person St. Vincent de Paul Society” for the help she gave to poor families in her neighborhood, and “The Jesuits who ran the parish considered her the most enthusiastic promoter of devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus they had ever seen.”

Venerable Augustus Tolton was born into slavery; he “became the first Black American priest in the United States of America … He gave service by helping the poor and sick, feeding the hungry and winning souls for God. His endless, tireless and devoted work led many to the Faith … [he was] lovingly known as ‘Good Father Gus.'”

Servant of God Sr. Thea Bowman was “exposed to the richness of her African-American culture and spirituality” at an early age; she was a Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration and “became a highly acclaimed evangelizer, teacher, writer, and singer sharing the joy of the Gospel and her rich cultural heritage throughout the nation … She explained what it meant to be African-American and Catholic. She enlightened the bishops on African-American history and spirituality. Sister Thea urged the bishops to continue to evangelize the African-American community, to promote inclusivity and full participation of African-Americans within Church leadership, and to understand the necessity and value of Catholic schools in the African-American community.”

Back to the naming community, Abby at Appellation Mountain, in her usual thoughtful way, has stated a commitment to highlighting more non-Western names. She also shared the article What’s up with black names, anyway? from Salon. Pam at Nameberry shared a few other namey articles, including:

A brief history of black names, from Perlie to Latasha from The Conversation

A depressing study of how people respond to stereotypically black and white names from Vox (see also this article I shared a while ago about the experiences of a white man named Jamaal)

Are Black Names ‘Weird,’ or Are You Just Racist? at the Daily Beast

And this fascinating piece by Laura Wattenberg: Implicit Bias in Names: An Unintentional Case Study.

I keep thinking about that old saying, “A mother is only as happy as her saddest child.” So many of us are full of grief and anger; many of our brothers and sisters are terrified, either for themselves or their children (or both). I previously shared this Prayer for Racial Justice, and this 19-day novena (currently ongoing — it ends this Friday, which is both the feast of the Sacred Heart and Juneteenth) as an act of reparation to God for the sin of racism in all of its forms — they are powerful prayers. Our Mother of Sorrows, St. Michael the Archangel, and the holy men and women mentioned here: please pray for us.

My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Birth announcement: Arthur Paul!

sanctanomina Birth announcement , ,

The consultation I did for Julia (longtime readers will recognize her handle: ethelfritha) and her husband almost four years ago was so fun to work on and one that I frequently refer to in my consultations for other families, and the subsequent birth announcement was so satisfying. Catholic geek names are so fun! I’m thrilled to share that Julia’s let me know she’s had another baby — a handsome little boy she and her hubby gave the fantastic name … Arthur Paul!

Julia writes,

“We recently had our 4th geek baby and I thought you might be interested in his name: Arthur Paul.

Unlike all our other babies (Petra Jeanne, Corwin Matthias, and Theo Peregrin), this one was Arthur basically from the minute we found out he was a boy. And yes–he is absolutely named after King Arthur! 😁😁

It took us a long time to come up with a middle name. We even tossed around pretty extra names like “Arthur Ulysses” and “Arthur Aurelius.” But we kept coming back to Paul, a name which was on my husband’s radar because of the new Dune movie coming out (the main character is named Paul). When Arthur was born we took one look and said “he’s an Arthur Paul.” And what a great patron saint, too!

One extra fun saintly thing is that he was born at 5:45 PM on the vigil of St. Joan of Arc — our family patroness! She is always watching out for us!“

Ahhh I love this!! The “pretty extra names” part made me laugh! I love how peaceful and happy these parents were with their first name choice from the beginning, and how perfect the middle name fell into place once he was born. Fantastic job!

Congratulations to Julia and her husband and big sibs Petra, Corwin, and Theo, and happy birthday Baby Arthur!!

IMG_20200608_111541_01

Arthur Paul

My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Birth announcement: Magdalene Anne!

sanctanomina Birth announcement , ,

I did a private consultation for Natalie and her husband back in December, and I’m excited that Natalie’s let me know the baby has arrived and been given the gorgeous name … Magdalene Anne!

She writes,

“I wanted to update you with our newest baby, a girl! Magdalene Anne was born 13 days late! At 9 pounds 3 ounces, she’s our biggest baby. It was a very smooth, easy labor until delivery. Being a big baby, it was hard enough, but then she got stuck, shoulder dystocia, and it was awful. Scary, painful, all around awful. After she arrived, I hemorrhaged as well, more awful, and while we’re both fine now, it’s been a lot of recovering for both of us. She’s a great addition to our family though and is much loved by her older brothers and sister.

As for her name, up until her due date, we were sold on Clara from your suggestions. But then I read another one of your posts about Easter names for babies born in the Easter season and I loved that idea. Especially because Magdalene had been on our short list, because of it being a family name, and everyone, including myself, thought she would come on Easter. My husband still wasn’t convinced of the name, until he realized that her initials would be MAE (Anne, after my mom) and he loved the idea of calling her Mae, after one of his aunts. We FINALLY agreed and now we feel as if St. Mary Magdalene has been a powerful intercessor in her somewhat traumatic life thus far and confident that this was the name for her.

As for nicknames, none have “stuck” yet. My husband will try Mae here and there, and I am leading towards Meg, but so far, she’s just Magdalene. Judging how Evie never stuck for Genevieve, Magdalene might not get shortened either!“

I love hearing how Natalie and her hubby arrived at the name — first having decided on one name, then considering another but not having it feel quite right until a great nickname option made a particular family connection, and finally feeling like St. Mary Magdalene was interceding for their little one all along. And such a beautiful name! Natalie said that she and the baby are both fine now, but maybe you could say a little prayer for them both anyway — difficult births can be so traumatic!

Congratulations to Natalie and her husband and big sibs Samuel, Jonathan, Elijah, and Genevieve, and happy birthday Baby Magdalene!!

00100lrPORTRAIT_00100_BURST20200426111418537_COVER

Magdalene Anne

My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Birth announcement: Sojourn Hyssop Arise!

sanctanomina Birth announcement , ,

I’m so excited to share that Katheryn — whose experience with adoption and naming I spotlighted here, and whose last two babies’ birth announcements I posted here and here — has welcomed another baby girl! She and her hubby have given her the ah-MAZ-ing name … Sojourn Hyssop Arise!

Katheryn wrote on Instagram (and gave me permission to share here):

“SOJOURN “a temporary stay in a place.” To us the name Sojourn evokes a sense of waiting on God and trusting Him in the unknown, and the refocusing of our hearts completely on Him, our true home. The Bible is full of times (40 years wandering in the desert, Abraham, etc.) where God calls His people out to sojourn for a time and learn to wait on Him. It’s usually a time that He uses to bring them to a greater trust in and reliance on Him. She is named after the sojourn of the Holy Family in Egypt and after St. Peregrine. (Peregrine means “sojourn”)

HYSSOP is my great-grandma’s maiden name. Hyssop is the plant used for purification ceremonies in the Bible. It was what the sponge was put on to lift it to Jesus’ mouth on the cross. It is also what was used in Exodus to paint the lamb’s blood over the door posts for the angel to pass over them. All of our girls have one botanical name.

ARISE is from “Talitha Koum” when Jesus brought the little girl back to life and from the book of Ezekiel when God told him that nothing was impossible with God and to prove it he told him to tell the dry bones to arise and He made them into an army. “Arise” reflects the healing power of God and is a testimony that nothing is impossible with Him. It is also after her birth mom since her name means “rising.”“

I mean really. !! I’m always blown away by the thought and meaning that Katheryn and her hubby have put into the beautiful, always unexpected names that they’ve chosen for their babies — each one is such a testament to their love for their little ones! I’ve always admired, too, how they’ve made a point to work a connection to their birth families in, each time. ❤

Congratulations to Katheryn and her husband and big siblings:

Verity Majella Judea Hawthorne
Gethsemane Juniper Anne
Bosco Willis Yard
Hyacinth Clemency Veil
à Kempis Exodus Praise (“Exodus”)
Zephyr Wisdom Clove

And happy birthday Baby Sojourn!!

sojourn-06.03.2020

Sojourn Hyssop Arise

My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Baby name consultation: “Short and cute” vs. “flowery” for a girl, surname-style for a boy

sanctanomina Baby name consultant , , , , ,

Happy feast of Mary, Mother of the Church! And at the same time, in sorrow I share this Prayer for Racial Justice, and the call to participate in this 19-day period of prayer and fasting (from today to the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus) as an act of reparation to God for the sin of racism in all its forms. Our Lady of Sorrows, pray for us. St. Michael, pray for us. Sacred Heart of Jesus, bless us and keep us close to You.

Trish and her husband are expecting their fourth baby — a little green bean! He or she joins big siblings:

Donovan Kolbe (“we liked last names that were first names for boys and Kolbe had special significance since my husbands grandfather escaped from the Warsaw ghetto as a boy“)

Genevieve Louise (“I love very feminine names for girls, while my husband likes short and cute. I sold it to him by saying we could call her Evie, which we did for a few years but she is now asking to be called Genevieve (YAY). Louise was after my husbands grandmother“)

Veronica Caeli (“we call her Caeli … we knew we wanted a Caeli, but didn’t want her to forever be spelling it … so made it a middle name so she can choose“)

Are you as swoony as I am over these names?! 😍😍😍

Trish writes,

“My husband and I have different tastes and had a VERY difficult time coming up with our son’s name … I have a list of names for this baby but my husband pretty much doesn’t like any of them because they are “too flowery.” He would like Emma or Claire but they’re too common for me. I think Gemma is a good compromise and he likes it, but is Gemma a different name than Genevieve? I really don’t like super common names. Even Mary! Sorry to Our Lady but every other family has a Mary and I just can’t.”

(“and I just can’t” — haha!)

Names Trish and her hubby have discussed include:

Xavier
Leo
Oliver
Jerome
Gemma
Eloise Grace (“but can we do an Eloise with an Evie Louise??“)
Emmeline
Annalise
Seraphina

And Trish specifically said, “I hope you can bridge the gap!!!” which, as I told her, is one of my very favorite things to do! (In fact, my very first CatholicMom.com column [five years ago!] was about this exact issue!)

First off, I’ll say that I really love that they both like Gemma, and normally I’d think it would be a perfect compromise, but for Genevieve! I mean, Genevieve starts with the sound *jenna*, and Gemma is *jemma* — they’re SO close! If they always called Genevieve “Evie,” then perhaps it wouldn’t be too problematic, at least on an everyday basis. Of course, that said, if Trish and her hubby just really love Gemma and the similarity between Gemma and Genevieve doesn’t bother them, then it’s certainly not the end of the world to choose Gemma!

I’m interested in the divide between Trish and her husband over girl names — he likes feminine, shorter names (Evie, Caeli, Emma, Claire), while Trish has feminine, longer names on her list (Emmeline, Annalise, and Seraphina). I see a lot of potential here!

I actually think Emmeline is a perfect compromise name here — it’s got Emma in it, from Trish’s hubby’s list, and a little Emmeline could easily and naturally go by Emma and/or Emmy. Annalise and Seraphina are similarly good I think, because Anna/Annie and Sera are less “flowery” names and I think they would qualify as “short and cute,” as Trish described her husband’s taste (I also think Sophie could work as a nickname for Seraphina, which I also suspect Trish’s husband might like). Another name that might also be a good compromise is Clairvaux. It’s pronounced clair-VO, like St. Bernard of Clairvaux, and having the Clair- at the beginning means a little Clairvaux can go by Claire with no problem. Two of my readers have daughters named Clairvaux! I definitely think Trish should check them out (here and here) as both families have name taste similar to hers, I think.

As for Eloise Grace, I wouldn’t think it would be a problem unless they regularly tack Louise onto whatever they’re calling Genevieve. That is, do they regularly call her Evie Louise? Or even the full Genevieve Louise? If so, I do feel like Eloise might be too similar. But if Louise rarely shows up when they’re referring to Genevieve, then I think it’s fine. It also reminds me of a friend of mine who gave both her first and second daughters the middle name Catherine, but the older daughter’s middle name was for her grandmother Catherine, and the second daughter’s middle name was for St. Catherine of Siena. And I know more than one family who used a certain name as a middle name for one child, and liked that name so much they used it as the first name for a subsequent child. I say all this to say, even if Trish and her hubby use Louise with some regularity and still want to use Eloise for their next daughter, other families have done similar and even crazier things and the world didn’t fall apart. They can easily say for those who wonder that Louise was for Hubby’s grandmother and Eloise is just because they like it, or whatever. And actually, Louise and Eloise aren’t linguistically related! Louise is a feminine form of Louis, while Eloise is a variant of Heloise.

Another name that I thought they might like to consider is Elise — very similar to Eloise but even more different from Louise than Eloise is. It’s a short French form of Elizabeth, which opens up lots of great patron saints. Or Elisa, which flows better with Grace than Elise, I think. Or Elodie? That’s also a really pretty name.

There’s no problem at all about not liking the name Mary! Many Catholic families feel similarly, both because of name fatigue from all those years of Mary as the Number One Girl’s Name as well as a preference for more unexpected names (and not at all because of any disrespect toward Our Lady), which is in large part why I wrote my book of Marian baby names! There are so many gorgeous, legitimately Marian names that aren’t Mary — names that fit all different tastes in names! I included some in my list of suggestions below.

As for boy names, I think they’ve got a great list! I’m surprised there aren’t more surname-type names on there, since Trish had said that she and her hubs like last names that are first names for boys. Xavier is the only name on their list that fits that criteria, though it’s been used as a first name for so long that many people don’t know that it started as a last name. Leo and Oliver are great, and I regularly see them on lists of names considered by parents I do consultations for, but I rarely see Jerome! I admit though, when I was looking for boy names for this baby, I focused mostly on finding last name type names.

Okay, on to my suggestions! You all know that I start each consultation by looking up in the Baby Name Wizard the names the parents have used and those they like/are considering as it lists, for each entry, boy and girl names that are similar in terms of style/feel/popularity. I also looked through my book of Marian names for ideas for both boys and girls. These are what I came up with (a few extra for girls, given that girl names are particularly problematic for this couple):

Girl
(1) Ave
I feel like Ava is the kind of name Trish’s hubby would like — “short and cute” — but changing it slightly to Ave makes it both much more uncommon and more obviously faithy. It’s said like AH-vay, like in Ave Maria. I’d love to see such a short first name paired with a longer middle — because Ave means “Hail” (Ave Maria=Hail Mary), it might be weird to put it with a non-Marian middle, so maybe something like Ave Immaculata? That strikes me as a combo Trish might really like, and I think Ave might be the kind of name her husband would be okay with. I could also see putting Ave and Maria together as Avemaria, that would be amazing.

(2) Isla
I was actually inspired to add Isla by one of the Clairvaux families I linked to above — they have another daughter named Isla, and Isla’s an entry in my book for the Marian title Our Lady of the Isles. It’s “short and cute,” and so pretty!

(3) Pia
This is another name in my book, it’s the feminine form of Pius/Pio, and in the Salve Regina Our Lady is specifically referred to as pia, which is translated in the English version as “loving,” though it’s technical translation is more along the lines of “pious, devout, dutiful.” Actor David Henrie (of Wizards of Waverly Place fame, which I never watched but he’s got loads of followers), who’s actually a devout Catholic, recently named his daughter Pia, and I love seeing her sweet face and name in my Instagram feed! If Trish could convince her husband to use a longer name, I think Pia could also work as a nickname for Seraphina and Philomena and Phillippa.

(4) Liesse
This is yet another name in my book — it’s French for “joy” and refers to Notre Dame de Liesse (Our Lady of Joy). Isn’t it such a pretty name? It can definitely be used on its own, and if Trish wanted to lengthen it, Marie-Liesse isn’t uncommon (especially in France).

(5) Maristella
I know Trish said she doesn’t care for Mary, but what about something like Maristella? It reminds me of Genevieve and Veronica (and Emmeline, Annalise, and Seraphina) because of its length and femininity (which probably means her hubby won’t care for it, oh dear), but both Maris and Stella can be nicknames for it, as well as some other creative options like Mia, Mari, Molly, Missy, Milla and Mella (I could see Trish’s husband particularly liking Mia and Molly). Maristella is a reversal of the Marian title Stella Maris (Star of the Sea). Two Sancta Nomina readers have daughters named Maristella: here and here.

(6) Mercedes
I know Trish’s husband is freaking out at this point that I’m including all these ideas he won’t like! So sorry! I just really love the idea of compromising by using a longer, less familiar name like Trish likes with a familiar, “short and cute” nickname more like her husband’s taste. Mercedes is in my book — it means “mercies,” and is for Our Lady of Mercy or Our Lady of Mercies. It’s a Spanish name with quite an interesting (and very Catholic!) history — I posted more about it here. During the Jubilee Year of Mercy, quite a few of my readers chose names related to Mercy for their children, and not only did Mercedes get some usage, but so did Mercy itself. I thought maybe Trish’s husband might like Mercy? It can stand on its own, or it can be a nickname for Mercedes. Sadie can also be a nickname for Mercedes, which I also thought her hubby might like. Lots of options!

(7) Tessa
Again, Tessa seems to me like the kind of name Trish’s husband would like — I would definitely call it “short and cute.” I actually thought Trish might like it too! Or maybe this could be another possible compromise, where they could use the given name Therese or Teresa and call her Tess or Tessa. I mentioned Marie-Liesse above, which makes me also think of Marie-Therese — I just love how the French do that! And I think doing a double first name (with or without the hyphen) automatically gives the name a more unusual character, which Trish prefers. So maybe Marie-Therese plus a middle name, called Tess or Tessa?

(8) Zara
Finally, Zara: in my research for this family in the Baby Name Wizard, I actually didn’t find a whole lot of ideas that I thought would work for them. But Zara is a style match for both Gemma and Xavier, and it’s short and cute while also being uncommon, so I thought I should definitely include it in my suggestions. I actually did a spotlight post on it a while ago, as I’d discovered that it’s a feminine short form of Zechariah — I loved finding that connection! Zechariah is a name I’ve often thought would be great for a boy as a sort-of nod to the Visitation, since he was Elizabeth’s husband and John the Baptist’s father; a little Zara could claim that same connection.

Boy
(1) Tiber
Okay, moving on to boy ideas. So I totally latched onto the fact that Trish said she and her husband like last-names-as-first-names for boys, and I always include place names in that category (especially since so many last names started as place names, and so many saintly place names have a last name feel, like St. Catherine of Siena, St. Bernard of Clairvaux, etc.). And any time I know one of the parents is a convert, I immediately think of Tiber! Tiber is for the Tiber River in Rome, and many of you know that when someone converts to Catholicism a fun thing to say is that they “crossed the Tiber.” (There are even t-shirts that say “Tiber Swim Team” with the year the person entered the Church, like these.) Anyway, two of my readers have used Tiber for their boys and I love it! I think it’s so cool and so meaningful, but in kind of a stealthy way! Check them out here and here.

(2) Fulton
Another name that came right to mind when seeing Donovan Kolbe’s name is Fulton! Fulton was actually Fulton Sheen’s mom’s maiden name, so a legit last name, even thought it’s so tied to him as a first name.

(3) Owen
A name that did well for this family in my research was Owen, which I love because of course it’s a first name, but it’s also St. Nicholas Owen’s last name (he’s amazing)! So it reminds me a lot of Donovan in that they both have good usage as first names.

(4) Elliott
Elliott’s another one that did quite well for them in my research, and like Donovan and Owen, I love that it has usage as a last name (poet T.S. Eliot is one example) while still being a familiar but not too common first name. It’s actually a variant of Elijah, which gives it both a faith connection and a specifically Marian connection (via Elijah’s connection to Our Lady of Mount Carmel, which I discuss in my book).

(5) Campion
Camden was listed as a style match for Donovan, which made me think of the similar and saintly Campion, for St. Edmund Campion. Isn’t Campion a cool name? I’ve always had a soft spot for the nickname Cam, and I love St. Edmund Campion, and I love how brothers Donovan and Campion sound!

I also encourage Trish and her hubby to check out my posts on saintly surnames — there are so many great options for those who love the surname style!

And those are all my ideas! What do you all think? What names would you suggest for the little sister or brother of Donovan, Genevieve (sometimes nicknamed Evie), and Veronica Caeli (called Caeli)?

My book, Catholic Baby Names for Girls and Boys: Over 250 Ways to Honor Our Lady (Marian Press, 2018), is available to order from ShopMercy.org and Amazon — perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!