Baby name consultation: Unexpected middle name for Mary

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Maria and her husband are expecting their fourth baby — their third girl! This little lady joins big sibs:

Samuel Albert (Sam) “Samuel was born a few months after my husband became Catholic, and about nine months later I converted as well. We landed on his name quite easily. We knew we wanted a name that had spiritual significance for us and connected to our faith tradition. At the time that was biblical names. We loved the meaning of Samuel ‘God hears’. As a bonus, we  loved the literary connection of of Samwise from Lord of the Rings and that character’s loyalty and friendship.

Albert is a family name on my husband’s side. It is both my husband’s middle name, and his father’s middle name, and was his grandfather’s first name. In naming our first child, we realized connecting our children’s names to those that came before them was significant to us.”

Phoebe Grace “Phoebe checked all the previous boxes for us: faith connection with being a New Testament biblical name and not overly popular, unique but not unheard of. We loved the meaning “bright, or radiant” and the poetic connection to the moon, something that reflects light in the dark. (What a metaphor for Christian life, the moon reflecting the light of the sun.) Phoebe seemed like a bit of a risk. I thought people’s feelings would probably be polarizing, but I loved it and I thought it was charming and we went for it!

Grace is my mother’s name, and it was such a privilege to honour her when naming my first daughter.”

Anna Frances “Anna was named because of the biblical connection to the Prophetess Anna, who was one of the first people to recognize Jesus as the Saviour. How nice that it means, ‘Grace’ which gave her a connection to her sister’s name and my mother’s name again. We loved it because it was timeless and not overly popular. My husband’s mother’s middle name is Ann, so it was also a nice way to honour her. I’m also a huge Anne of Green Gables fan, so I liked the little connection to that name as well. 

Frances was chosen mostly because my husband wanted to honour St. Francis de Sales, and I also liked the connection to Pope Francis and St. Francis of Assisi. Also quite conveniently, Frances is a family name on my mother’s side of the family for many generations, and so it fits quite perfectly into place.”

Such wonderful names!! I love them all!!

Maria writes,

“For all our children we wanted to steer clear of names that were very popular or trendy, but wanted names that were both somewhat unique and had a ‘timeless’ quality. I definitely consulted Baby Name Wizard’s 100 year rule. 

We have landed on a first name for our baby girl: Her first name will be Mary. (Considering nicknames like Mae or Mair).

My husband has wanted to use the name Mary for awhile, and it has certainly grown on me as my connection to Mary has grown after my conversion from a Protestant to a Catholic. Although the name is, of course, very common in Catholic circles we are the only Catholics in our family and it’s not extremely popular overall on the charts so that works for us! Having done three biblical names so far, it is nice to do one for the fourth although that wasn’t a deal breaker for us. 

Also given my name is Maria, It is a nice connection to my third daughter in that way. I was also accidently named after my paternal grandmother.  Her name is Mary but she always went by a nickname so my Dad didn’t actually know this till after I was born and named! That is the one side of the family we’ve not honoured yet in our baby naming, so how perfect is that! My grandmother is in her 90s, and I recently traveled across the country to see her and attend my grandfather’s funeral. I told her that we were naming the baby Mary at that time, which was special.”

I don’t usually get consultation requests from parents who have already chosen a first name! But Maria’s “dilemma” is right up my alley! She continues,

“We are stumped for a middle name! 

Here’s a few of our thoughts:

– We checked all our boxes on the first name, and things are wide open! Mary has the faith connection and the family connection all in one. That being said, I love for a name (even a middle name) to have some significance and meaning behind it. A good ‘story’. 

– Because Mary is extremely traditional, I really wanted to find a middle name that was a bit unexpected and ‘fresh’ feeling. My husband liked names like Elizabeth and Catherine, but I really want to avoid anything that feels like it normally ‘goes with’ Mary or has that traditional double name feel. Rather uncharacteristically I had names like, ‘Wilder’, ‘Lark’, and ‘Gray’ on my ‘there’s no bad ideas in brainstorming’ long list. 

– I’m not sure how I feel about names that end in the same sound as Mary. Lucy was on our short list before for both girls, but I *think* I’m drawn to names that end in other sounds. 

Names that got to the short list: 

– A name with an ‘Elizabeth’ connection. My name is made of names derived from both Mary and Elizabeth (Maria Elyse). If her first name is Mary, I thought a version of Elizabeth might be a nice connection. It’s like having ‘the visitation’ captured in a name. I also love Pride and Prejudice and am secretly hunting for a ‘literary’ connection for this babe. The closest I got was: Elle, Ella, Isabel, Lise. None have so far really settled into being ‘the one’. 

– A name with an ‘Eve’ connection. I love the idea of Mary being the new Eve, and the connections between Mary and Eve. Ideas were: Eve, Eva, Ava, and maybe Evelyn (although I don’t think Evelyn is actually technically related to the name Eve…)

– Aveline – In my search for a more unusual middle name I stumbled across Aveline. Connection to the city of Avila, and therefore St. Theresa of Avila. I like that it is unusual and unexpected, and I think it sounds lovely with Mary. 

– I am drawn to some alliterative middle names – contenders were Mae, and Magnolia. These were the first ones that really made me feel excited like I did with our previous children’s names.  I think Mae is really a short form of Mary, so wasn’t sure that would fly. I thought maybe Magnolia could honour Mary Magdalene. Also worried it’s a little too quirky.  I’m not sure! Our other kids names have quite a depth of meaning, and I’m just not sure this fits the bill in the same way.

– Other names we’ve considered but didn’t quite sparkle for us: Charlotte, Lucia, Cecelia. 

Names we can’t use due to pets: Penelope, Eloise, Pia.”

I love that Maria and her husband have chosen Mary for the first name for their new baby!! It’s such a simply beautiful name. I love, too, that Maria and her baby will share a variant of Mary as first names! And that story about Maria’s paternal grandmother being Mary but her Dad not knowing is amazing. Wow!! Maria mentioned Mae and Mair as nicknames they’re considering; I also wanted to offer that Molly and Polly are both traditional nicknames for it.

One of the things Maria said is exactly what I would think as well: that since they “checked all [their] boxes on the first name … things are wide open” for the middle! And also, I would totally do what they’re thinking of in terms of finding an unexpected middle name. I’ve often said that Mary as a first name makes any first+middle combo sound Catholicky Catholic, and I myself would be leaning toward Wilder/Lark/Gray-type names instead of the beautiful but well used Elizabeth and Catherine. This is such a fun challenge!

Before I get on to new ideas, I thought I’d offer my thoughts on the names they’re already considering, in case they’re helpful:

  • A name with an “Elizabeth” connection: I absolutely love this idea for all the reasons Maria mentioned — finding an Elizabeth connection was one of my first priorities when I was trying to come up with ideas!
  • A name with an “Eve” connection: This is also a great idea, but I admit it pales in comparison to an Elizabeth name in my mind — I just love the Elizabeth idea! But it did inspire some of my ideas below!
  • Aveline: This, too, is beautiful, and Mary Aveline is stunning. Funny enough, Maria mentioned Evelyn in the “Eve” section, noting that it’s not actually etymologically related to Eve — but it is to Aveline! It was derived from Aveline! I’m not sure how that helps this family in any way, but it’s a fun thing to know!
  • Alliterative middle names: I, too, love alliterative combos! Maria’s right about Mae being a short form of Mary … I can also see what she means about Magnolia maybe being too quirky … it made me think of Marigold right away, but Mary Marigold wouldn’t work … I absolutely don’t want to steer them away from Mary as a first name, but I did wonder if Marigold as a first name might appeal to them? Mary/Mari could be her nickname, and I have a few readers (here, here, here) who named their babies Marigold with Our Lady, Queen as patron and the feast day of the Queenship of Mary (August 22 — same month as Maria’s due date!) as her name day. Even though Marigold and Magnolia are similar, I kind of feel like Marigold is the tiniest bit more grounded? Probably because of knowing a few little ones named Marigold, and Edith on “Downton Abbey” named her baby Marigold. All that said, I think Mary as a first name is the absolute perfect first name for an unexpected and even bold middle name, so I wouldn’t cross Mary Magnolia off their list! If they intend to call the baby Mary plus a nickname of her middle, then the full middle name can be as crazy as they want because very few people will ever really know what it is. Mary Mae is a fine nickname for Mary Magnolia; they could also do something like Mary Nola or Mary Lia as nicknames. I like Maria’s thought that Magnolia could honor St. Mary Magdalene; if she’s special to her, maybe a variant of her name might also appeal? Madeline/Madeleine and Magdalen(e)/Magdalyn/Magdalena would be lovely with Mary.
  • Names that end in the same sound as Mary: With Mary as the first name, I agree that I would lean away from a middle name that ends in the same sound — Mary Lucy sounds almost comical (though I know someone with a double name similar to Mary Lucy and it’s been fine for her. Anything can work if you want it to!). Maria said they’ve considered Lucia and didn’t care for it; I wonder if a different variant like Luz/Luce, Lucille, Lucinda, or Lux might work? Mary Luz and Mary Lux might especially touch on the Wilder/Lark/Gray feel that Maria was thinking of.

Okay! On to new ideas! They range from more “normal” to very bold, so hopefully something here will excite Maria and her husband! I normally look up the names the parents have already used and like in the Baby Name Wizard but in this case, since they’ve already chosen a first name, I focused instead on going through the M section of the BNW to see if there were any other alliterative options that jumped out at me, going through my own book of Marian names with the same goal in mind and to look for others that might appeal to Maria and her hubby, and jotting down ideas I had as I went about my day with their dilemma in mind. Based on all that, these are my ideas:

(1) Mary Bennet(t)

This is my favorite idea! I think it checks almost all Maria’s boxes if she’s open to thinking that it does. It has a connection to the Visitation in that Bennett is a medieval diminutive of Benedict, which is the word that’s used to translate Elizabeth’s words to Mary into Latin (“blessed are you among women” is benedicta tu in mulieribus in Latin). That also gives it a connection to Elizabeth (not as explicit as using a variant of Elizabeth, but still a connection if she wants it to be). And it has a literary reference, specifically to Pride and Prejudice! They spell it Bennet, of course, but it’s all the same name. And the fact that it’s predominantly a masculine first name and a surname gives it that unexpected/bold quality that Maria might be looking for.

(2) Mary Eliot/Elliot/Elliott/Eliette

Another name that might be perfect is Elliott (in whatever spelling!). Like Bennett is derived from Benedict, Elliott is derived from Elijah, giving it a nice faith connection (I included Elijah and its variants in my book of Marian names because of Elijah’s connection to Our Lady of Mount Carmel). Spelled Eliot, it can have a literary connection to T.S. Eliot. One of my readers has a daughter named Eliette, which is a feminine variant derived from Elijah. And Maria can think of it as having a connection to her name as well in that Eli- are the first three letters of Elizabeth.

(3) Mary Bessette

Bessette isn’t actually related to Elizabeth — it’s a surname derived from a French word “designating a small wood of birches” — but Bess is a traditional nickname for Elizabeth, so I don’t think it’s crazy that Maria and her husband could choose it based on the idea of “little Bess/little Elizabeth.” It comes with a saintly connection, too, in St. Andre Bessette — he’s great!

(4) Mary Evett(e)

My first few ideas were inspired by Maria’s desire for an Elizabeth connection; this one is inspired by her love of an Eve connection. Evett is a medieval diminutive of Eve that I included in the boy section of my Mary names book because it’s a surname and it reminded me so much of Evan and Everett, but it can also be feminine, as is probably most obviously seen in its variant spelling Evette (like Yvette, but Yvette derives from a different name). Other spellings/variants of the surname are Evatt, Evatts, Evetts, Evitt, and Evitts.

(5) Mary Majella/Maiella

I wanted to offer some alliterative options that Maria might like. The first is Mary Majella — Majella is the surname of St. Gerard Majella, patron of expectant mothers and a name that has some decent usage among Catholic girls especially of the older generations. I like the ending of “ella” could be considered a nod to Elizabeth. Majella is how St. Gerard is traditionally know, but that’s the English spelling and pronunciation — in Italian he’s St. Gerardo Maiella, and Maiella is a viable option too and so pretty! It’s said may-EL-la or my-EL-la as opposed to Majella’s ma-JEL-la.

(6) Mary Margo(t)

I thought Mary Margaret was too traditional for Maria, similar to Mary Catherine and Mary Elizabeth, but maybe a less common variant of Margaret would work? I like Margo/Margot — Mary Margo(t) is a cool combo.

(7) Mary Maeve

Since Maria was drawn to Mary Mae but knows that wouldn’t quite work since they’re the same name, what about Mary Maeve? Maeve is an Irish name said the same way as Mae but ending with the “v” sound (MAYV). If either Maria or her husband have Irish heritage, this could be really nice! A lot of people are intimidated by Irish names, but since Maeve is said just like it looks and it’s also currently no. 104, it’s one of the easiest Irish names to work with.

(8) Mary Amata

Finally, I’m including Amata simply because I love how it sounds with Mary. It’s in my book because it means “beloved,” which is such a great meaning, and Mary is called Mater amata (“beloved Mother”) in the hymn O Sanctissima.

Other names I thought about for Maria include Liesse, Quinn, Peyton, Cruz, Campion, Fulton, and Kolbe.

And those are all my ideas! What do you all think? What name(s) would you suggest as pairing well with the first name Mary?

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation from either Theresa or myself here.

For help with Marian names, 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 (not affiliate links). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

“Official forms” and multiple middle names

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A mama whose little one has two middle names asked me about how to handle the “middle initial” field on official forms, which is a question I’ve gotten with some frequency and have always answered with what I *think*, based on having a brother and two sisters with two middle names and hearing my mom’s frustration that the second middle was often ignored because there was no room for a second initial.

Today I did some research and found a more reliable source than myself: it took quite a few minutes of searching before I could find anything official (a lot of discussion posts though! A lot of people have this question!), but I did finally find this Employment Eligibility Form that explained what I think is the general practice on official forms in the U.S.:

“Your middle initial is the first letter of your second given name, or the first letter of your middle name, if any. If you have more than one middle name, enter the first letter of your first middle name. If you do not have a middle name, enter N/A in this field.”

I was also asked about a second middle name whose last letter was missing when the parents received the baby’s Social Security card in the mail — the mama wondered if there’s a character limit? Turns out there is! This article related the story of a woman who had a hard time getting all her names on her Social Security card, and someone from Social Security explained: 

“The first and middle name fields allow 16 characters each and the last name allows 21 characters.”

A space is considered a character, so the number of letters in the first middle name + the space + the number of letters in the second middle name all have to equal sixteen or less in order to fully appear on the Social Security card.

The article also said:

“… for the [Social Security] agency’s purposes a legal name consists of a first and last name only.”

So at least for Social Security, it shouldn’t matter that the second middle isn’t complete. For a passport, though, this site explains:

“The passport is a federally issued identification document so be sure to use your full legal name.

Middle names can be tricky when filling out your passport application, but don’t let that be the one factor that holds you back. A middle initial is acceptable on your passport instead of providing the full middle name. However, as a general rule of thumb, you should always enter your name as it appears on the documentation you present to prove your citizenship. This may include your social security number, drivers license, naturalization paperwork, and birth certificates.”

I would think, then, that someone who’s missing a letter on their Social Security card should present a birth certificate instead when getting forms of identification. Kind of crazy though, right?

** Please keep in mind that I am not a legal expert — if you have a situation like those mentioned here, consult someone who really knows! (Lawyer, Social Security rep, etc.) **

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation from either Theresa or myself here.

For help with Marian names, 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 (not affiliate links). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Birth announcement: James Rafael!

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Good Tuesday morning! Here is another in my quest to get caught up on the births of Sancta Nomina babies!

Sylvia is a longtime member of the Sancta Nomina community — I posted a consultation and birth announcement for her fourth baby, and a name reveal and request for prayers and updated name reveal and request for prayers for her fifth baby, and a birth announcement for her sixth baby (the first boy after five girls!), and today I have the great pleasure of sharing that Sylvia and her husband welcomed another little boy! And gave him the fantastic name … James Rafael!

Sylvia writes,

“His name is James Rafael. James is a family name on Scott’s side as well as he is named for the Apostle James (the Great). Rafael is after the Archangel Rafael (he goes by Rafa). Rafael means ‘God heals,’ which felt fitting since God healed my womb enough for him to be my seventh uneventful C section. We spelled it the Spanish way as a nod to my Cuban heritage. There was a beautiful street in Havana where my Abuela lived called San Rafael.”

Isn’t that great?! So handsome! All of Sylvia’s children have a middle name that starts with the R sound, and they all go by their middle names, so James Rafael goes by Rafael or, as Sylvia noted, Rafa (so sweet!). Such a fun naming style!

Congratulations to Sylvia and her husband and big sibs Ruth, Rose, Wren, Rhea, Regina, and Rex, and happy belated birthday Rafael!!

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation from either Theresa or myself here.

For help with Marian names, 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 (not affiliate links). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Birth announcement: Felix Isidore!

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Happy Memorial Day everyone! Hallow has a great article for today, which includes “Catholic Blessings and Prayers for Memorial Day Remembrance.” I will keep all of your loved ones who died while serving in the military in my prayers today!

In my relative quiet over the past couple of years blog-wise, I missed a lot of birth announcements I absolutely would have wanted to share with all of you! I’m determined to get caught up this summer! Today is a belated birth announcement for Grace Patton’s youngest: her ninth baby on earth, the handsomely named … Felix Isidore!

His Instagram birth post is here, his baptism post is here (he was baptized on the feast of St. Isidore the Farmer! So awesome!!), and he recently celebrated his first birthday (here)!

Congratulations, as always, to Grace and Simon and big sibs Grace, Sebastian, Theodore, Phoebe, Bosco, Abraham, Clement, and Iris (birth announcements linked — I’ve been a Camp Patton fan for a long time!), and happy belated birthday Felix!!

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation from either Theresa or myself here.

For help with Marian names, 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 (not affiliate links). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Fun Friday Question: Do you choose your child(ren)’s Confirmation name?

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Happy Friday everyone! Appropriately, today is the feast of the Saint of joy, Philip Neri! Read more about him here and here.

I read a question online the other day from a Catholic mama wondering how other mothers chose their children’s Confirmation names. I found it to be such a startling question! While I do know that parents would choose a Confirmation name for a very young child who can’t do so him/herself, as this reader and her husband did for their baby who would be very sick at birth (for those who remember me sharing about Meagan [here, here], and posting her little sister’s consultation and birth announcement, you’ll love to know that she has two more younger sisters!), and another friend did so for her very little ones who were Chrismated (the Eastern equivalent of our Confirmation), I’m more familiar with the practice of confirmands choosing their own Confirmation names as teens (or adults, for those who are confirmed later). I never considered choosing my boys’ Confirmation names, and indeed have delighted in witnessing their process of identifying the Saints they feel closest to and choosing their names. I definitely like to bring up the subject with them, and maybe make suggestions, but I’ve never thought of taking over that decision. I chose my own without my parents’ help as well, and so did my friends, but maybe our experience isn’t the norm? Maybe there are regional differences?

And speaking of regional differences (and my second mention of German naming practices this week!), I have friends in Germany whose son was just confirmed and when I asked if he took a Confirmation name she said that that’s not really a thing there. Do you know other places where it’s not common to take a Confirmation name? (Here is the article I wrote for CatholicMom on Confirmation names a few years ago, which might be helpful for anyone choosing a Confirmation name [parents or confirmands].)

I hope you all have a great weekend!

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation from either Theresa or myself here.

For help with Marian names, 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 (not affiliate links). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

German naming rules

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Happy Monday, everyone! Today is the feast of St. Rita, one of my very favorites — I turned to her for intercession for some of the most *impossible* things in my life, after hearing of her powerful intercession from a friend who had an *impossible* thing happen after asking St. Rita for help — God has worked through her in amazing ways! I wrote more about St. Rita here and how to honor her in baby naming here. St. Rita, pray for us!

Did you all see Swistle’s lastest post about finding a name that works in Germany and the United States? I was fascinated by what the letter writer (an American) wrote about the restrictions she feels in naming her baby, who will spend significant time in Germany while growing up. Specifically:

“For some background on German names: there are a lot more unspoken rules around naming a child. If you look up ‘kevinism’ you will see just some of the rules linked to Germany. These include not giving your child a super ‘american/british’ name, not doing a super american/french name with a german last name, place/thing names are not acceptable, and names that are of german/latin/hebrew (biblical) descent are seen the most proper and correct. Scandinavian names are also popular in Germany. There are some exceptions to these rules, but generally these rules apply. While some younger germans are pushing away from these rules, they are still very much followed by many.“

Kevinism! A new word to me! I looked it up and found the article “The Strange German Disease Called ‘Kevinism’: Can a Lame Name Mess Up Your Life?” in Discover magazine (links in the quote were in the article; I didn’t add them):

“Another day, another crazy German noun: Kevinismus, which basically means, ‘You’re named Kevin? Sucks to be you.’ According to a study of interactions on the German dating site eDarling, online daters don’t even bother to click on the profiles of users with names that seem foreign and gauche to German ears, like Kevin. The authors suggest that this online neglect due to their unpopular names mirrors lifelong social neglect, which is also responsible for making Kevins smoke more, get less education, and have lower self-esteem. …

An article on Kevinism [note: this article contains a lot of German] in Die Welt quotes sociologist Jürgen Gerhards, who asserts that Anglo-American names (Mandy, Justin, Angelina to name a few more) are a lower-class phenomenon. It seems that no one has actually crunched the numbers to prove that, but jokes like ‘Only druggies and Easterners are named Kevin‘ suggest he’s on to something.”

Had you heard of this??

The mom gave a list of some of the names that she said won’t work, including:

“Lucy- the name we both love, but cannot use because it is seen as an English name and not a proper name in Germany. Plus, the older generations in Germany who do not speak English pronounce it like ‘lutzie’ which is not a dealbreaker, but we want a name that everyone feels comfortable with. …

Claire- we are both ‘okay’ with this name. Germans would prefer it to be Clara, but we can get away with Claire …

Kaia- a name I like, it would work in Germany b/c of its scandinavian origins …

Maren- another name that we’ve thrown around. Also diverts from my typical leanings for more classic names, but it is shorter. I like the meaning ‘of the sea.’ It is a German/Danish name, but older name in Germany and I think it is rising in America. …

Lily- the only ‘flower/thing’ name that Germans find acceptable, because they do not consider this name to be a flower. In Germany, the name is spelled ‘Lilly’ and comes from the full name Elizabeth. …”

Fascinating! It reminds me of the story Jenny Uebbing related about her Joseph Kolbe:

“… while traveling in Italy (the first time) we chatted up a capuchin Franciscan from Poland in a restaurant in Assisi of all places, and as he bounced 7-month-old Joey on his knee, we proudly told him that his middle name was Kolbe ‘for Father Max.’ The happy friar shot us a look of horror and asked in disbelief You took his family name?! So I guess the American trend of assuming surnames is not kosher the world over.”

Anyway, back to Kevinism — some more info from Swistle’s readers:

“I am German and have named two children in the last four years in the knowledge that a move to the UK in the next years is quietly likely. Swistle has excellent advice, but I would like to add the following: ‘Kevinism’ is a thing BUT if you know that one parent of the child is from an English speaking country people will be a lot more understanding.”

And:

“Another German Mom (and teacher) here.

Please don’t worry too much about kevinism. It’s on the way out and only pertains to some American names.

Essentially, it’s the same as in the US: if you want to avoid scorn, avoid ‘made-up’ spellings, lots of y’s and celebrity names

Rose (pronounced Rosuh) is actually a fairly traditional given name in Germany. It’s often but not always short for Rosemarie and it is quite dated (a grandma name), but it does exist. And Rosa is considered quite modern. …

Please don’t let the Internet scare you so much. I promise we are not that conservative!!! And just as in the US, we have so many new immigrants coming in, that our children’s generation will see this very differently.”

And there were several other comments that were helpful and enlightening; some gave some great name suggestions, and some pointed out which names are considered “dated” in Germany. I loved reading all of it!

Finally, this comment is kind of amazing!:

“So! I wrote in a long, long time ago about my (now deservedly ex-) boyfriend who hated noun names with a passion, but wouldn’t explain why. I remember you wondering, Swistle, why he hated them so much.

This genuinely answers that: he was German! I didn’t realise that was a German thing! The resolution I never knew I needed.”

Wow! So many things to learn in that post! Do any of you have experience with German naming? Do you agree with the conversation going on in this Swistle post between what the letter writer feels are her limitations and what the commenters are saying?

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation from either Theresa or myself here.

For help with Marian names, 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 (not affiliate links). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Fun Friday Question: Surprisingly biblical and non-biblical-biblical names?

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What a weird post title, right?

In considering the name Veronica for this family’s consultation, I argued that it would be a great bridge name between their sons’ biblical names and their daughter’s non-biblical name because of the fact that it’s *not* biblical, because it doesn’t appear in the bible, but at the same time it *is*, in a certain sense, biblical, because the person it refers to is in the bible. A non-biblical biblical name! Or Bible-adjacent?

It got me thinking about others, because there are others! Other names that don’t appear in the bible but the people they refer to do, just like Veronica. Like:

Caspar/Casper/Gaspar/Jasper, Melchior, and Balthazar (names traditionally given to the Three Wise Men)

That got me thinking about names that don’t sound biblical (in the sense that their non-biblical associations are so overpowering that their biblical-ness might even be a surprising discovery):

Alexander (Mark 15:21, Acts 4:6, Acts 19:33, 1 Timothy 1:20, 2 Timothy 4:14)

Julia (Romans 16:15)

Nicholas (Acts 6:5)

Do you agree that Alexander, Julia, and Nicholas don’t come across as biblical? Can you think of other names like Veronica and those of the Magi that refer to people in the bible but who aren’t actually named in the bible?

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation from either Theresa or myself here.

For help with Marian names, 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 (not affiliate links). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Birth announcement: Georgia Katherine!

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I posted a consultation for Zoey’s little green bean back in March and I’m thrilled to share that her baby GIRL has arrived and been given the absolutely perfect name … Georgia Katherine!

Zoey writes,

“Our baby girl finally decided to join us on Sunday (5 days late!) and we are completely overjoyed, and totally surprised to have a daughter! We named her Georgia Katherine 😊

I broke my own ‘rules’ since I originally said no K/Catherine but it turns out that name really grew on me! Katherine was also my husband’s grandmother’s name and I love being able to use the short form Kate to give her a real southern sounding double barrel name — Georgia Kate! 

Also, my husband was insisting on a Italian name, remember his family is super Italian, so we have also been calling her Gia! I don’t know how we did it but we found the perfect name, and oh it suits her so well! She’s also already gotten other cutesy names like Princess Peach 😆

On an even more interesting note, my nana did end up passing about two weeks before Georgia was born, I had already totally fallen in love with the name and just could not get on board with using one of my nana’s name(s). I started kind of feeling guilty but knew she would love having another great grand no matter the name. Well while my dad was going through some of her things, he found an obituary from 1902, which belonged to my nana’s great-great-grandfather and within it his wife was mentioned — Georgiana Maria. So she got a family name from my nana after all!! It totally feels meant to be, like God gave me this name knowing it was for our little girl. My dad found this the day after she was born. 

Thank you so much for all your help in the naming process!“

Isn’t this amazing?? When I read that Zoey had written, “I don’t know how we did it but we found the perfect name,” I thought yes! Exactly! This is the perfect name for this baby! It’s such a perfect fit with her big brothers’ names, and the family connection totally gave me goosebumps (my mom calls them “holy bumps”!)!

Congratulations to Zoey and her husband and big brothers Austin and Elijah, and happy birthday Baby Georgia!!

Georgia Katherine

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation from either Theresa or myself here.

For help with Marian names, 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 (not affiliate links). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Baby name consultation: Unexpected eponym for baby no. 5 (and name reveal for baby no. 4!)

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I posted a consultation Theresa did for Kathryn and her hubby for their fourth baby, and it’s exciting to both share the name they chose and post this new consultation for their fifth baby!! This little one joins big sibs:

James Elijah

John Isaiah

Samuel Robert

And …

“We ended up naming [baby no. 4] Emilia Gianna (after JP2’s mom and my confirmation Saint, Gianna Molla) and love her name so much!!!“

Isn’t Emilia Gianna so beautiful?! Emilia was one of Theresa’s suggestions, so perfect! James, John, Samuel, and Emilia are such an attractive, solid, saintly group! I love their middle names too, each combo is so great!

Kathryn writes,

“We are needing help with a name for baby #5! We don’t know gender. … For this baby, I just have to incorporate Scott as either a first or middle name if it’s a boy. I am a convert, and Scott Hahn’s books/CDs/podcasts are truly the reason why I am Catholic, why I love being Catholic, and why I have learned to defend the Catholic faith to protestant friends so well! That said, my husband and I are having a difference of opinion on whether Scott should be the first or middle name! If we use Scott as a first name, we need a STRONG saintly or Biblical middle name, such as Scott Augustine or Scott Joseph. My husband is pretty set on naming a boy Peter Scott, but I worry because we already have a James and a John that if we named our 4th son Peter, our 3rd son Samuel might feel left out as not being one of the ‘super apostle’ names! Maybe this concern is silly though. Please help me! Any other awesome suggestions on the way we can use Scott??

For a girl, Hubby and I are both pretty in love with the name Anna (from the Gospel of Luke, and also a nod to Saint Anne). It goes so well with her sister Emilia, but we’re really struggling to find the perfect middle name! 

Some ideas we love but don’t feel like are ‘the one’:

  • Anna Catherine 
  • Anna Clare
  • Anna Maria/Marie
  • Anna Therese
  • Anna Grace

Veronica was also one of the girl name suggestions Theresa gave me for Emilia, and I LOVE the name Veronica (but [there are some issues with the nickname Ronnie and their last name] which was why we ended up naming our 1st daughter Emilia…Vera is cute though…any other good nicknames for Veronica?!)

That said, Veronica Anne is definitely on the table provided we could find a better nickname option for Veronica! 

Open to other options with Anna or Anne as a middle name, as well, just want to incorporate that name somewhere!“

This was so fun! In all my years of doing these consultations and in all the conversations I’ve had with Sancta Nomina families, this is the first time I’ve encountered a desire to nod to Dr. Hahn, despite the fact that many, many people have come to the Church through his writings! My own husband is a convert, and I asked him to read Rome Sweet Home (affiliate link) when we were first dating; so many of Dr. Hahn’s other books played a role in his ultimate conversion ten years later as well.

*** Name fact of the day: “namesake” is used to refer a person named after someone (e.g., my oldest son is named after my father-in-law, so he is my FIL’s namesake). “Eponym” is the person after whom someone is named (so my FIL is my son’s eponym). I wanted a name for an eponym for years, not knowing until somewhat recently that the word “eponym” exists! So perfect! ***

I love Kathryn’s thought that Scott as a first name needs a “STRONG saintly or Biblical middle name”! Scott Augustine and Scott Joseph are both really handsome. Peter Scott is also very handsome! I do understand her concerns though about Samuel not being one of the “super apostle” names — her concerns aren’t silly at all, those concerns are part of wanting to give one’s baby the best name possible, and concerns like those are important to people who care about these things! I’d worry about it too! And I’m hoping I can help come up with an idea that both Kathryn and her husband feel peaceful about (even if it’s just reassuring them about ideas that they’ve already discussed).

That said, I can almost guarantee that their Samuel will likely not ever give it even two thoughts (unless they make a big thing out of it, which I’m sure they wouldn’t), nor will anyone else (except maybe the odd crazy-namer, like me, and only if they were to actively sit and think about all their kids’ names, which is unlikely). So funny, right? These concerns seem SO IMPORTANT when naming our babies, and later on they don’t seem very important at all (at least in my experience). My personal example is that six of my boys have a biblical name as either a first name or a middle name, and I *agonized* over the fact that one of them doesn’t have a biblical name in either spot! But when it came time to name him, saintly and family concerns overrode my desire to keep the loose biblical theme going, and no one has ever mentioned it! None of my boys have ever noticed, including the one without a biblical name! Peter Scott would be a fine addition to this family if Kathryn and her hubby came to an agreement on it, and maybe they will! But I would love to see them decide on a name they both equally love. I included new ideas on how to incorporate Scott below in my list of “official” suggestions.

First though, I want to say that I love both Scott Augustine and Scott Joseph! I actually quite like the idea of James, John, Samuel, and Scott as brothers — the J/J/S/S pattern is very pleasing and makes Scott seem a natural part of the set. That said, Scott is a different style than the others, and not because of biblical vs. non-biblical (though of course there is that), but because it doesn’t have that obvious faith connection. I mean, WE know it does because of Dr. Hahn, and there are some holy people that can be used as patron for a little Scott, like Bl. Maurus (William) Scott (who is actually great in light of Dr. Hahn’s role here, because he “was converted to the truths of Catholicism by reading Catholic literature”) and any of the Scottish Saints (since the name Scott in origin refers to a person from Scotland or one who speaks Scottish Gaelic), but your regular person that you run into out in the world won’t know that. Does it even matter though? It’s up to Kathryn and her hubby to decide! For that reason, I’d probably lean more towards the idea of using it as a middle name. I love Joseph for them, even though it would make this baby their third J-named son; because this baby is separated from James and John by two non-J-named children, I think it would be fine.

I also did some research into Dr. Hahn to see if anything showed itself as a possibility and discovered that his given name is Scott Walker Hahn. Walker made me think of Walsingham, which is a place in England and part of a Marian title: Our Lady of Walsingham. Would Scott Walsingham appeal? (I actually tried to convince my husband of Walsingham as a first name for our youngest son with the nickname Walt!) (He was not convinced. Haha!)

I, too, love Anna!! For all of our boys, the girl name we’d decided on was Susanna and we intended to use Anna as her nickname. It’s one of my very favorites! I love the list of ideas Kathryn and her hubs came up with for a middle name — they all sound lovely with Anna! One thought on Therese is that in the research I did on Scott Hahn, I read in this article that “one of the saints who [has] helped him the most in his everyday life” is St. Therese. If they were open to using this baby’s name as a nod to Scott Hahn regardless of gender, that could be a good way to do it! (Or Anna Scott, for that matter! Maybe that’s too far outside their comfort zone? I would totally understand if so! Hmmm … this makes me think of another idea that might be too crazy for them, but could also be awesome: a family I did a consultation for recently was thinking of Scarlett with the nickname Scottie, which I thought was adorable … I think Scarlett could be a legit way to honor a Scott in a daughter’s name because of the beginning S, ending -tt, and the “a” within … I offered possible faith connections to the name Ruby in this post because of its meaning of “red,” like a nod to the Precious Blood, the Wounds of Crucifixion, and the Sacred Heart of Jesus, all of which could totally work for Scarlett … with those beautiful meanings in mind and also the possibility of Scarlett nodding to Scott, maybe they’d like to consider Anna Scarlett? If they love it, I think it could be stunning! If they don’t, I totally get it, it’s a more adventurous idea.)

I also noted from the consultation Theresa did that Kathryn liked Rachel and Victoria, which I like with Anna: Anna Rachel and Anna Victoria are both quite nice. Anna Victoria seems particularly well-matched with sister Emilia Gianna because of having a similar rhythm. And really, I love all of their middle name ideas for a first name as well, since Kathryn said they’re open to other options with Anna or Anne as a middle name! Catherine Anne, Clare Anna, Maria Anna or Marianna or Annamaria, Therese Anna, and Grace Anna are all lovely. I have other ideas below …

I love Veronica too! It’s a fantastic “bridge” name for this family because of the boys all having biblical names (so far) and Emilia not having one — Veronica *isn’t* biblical, in the sense that the name doesn’t appear in the bible, but it *is* biblical because the person that we call Veronica is in the bible. A non-biblical biblical name! It can bridge their biblical names (James, John, Samuel, Peter, Anna) with their non-biblical names (Emilia and Scott). Fantastic! I wouldn’t worry about anyone calling her Ronnie unless they decide to call her Ronnie — as long as they choose another nickname and are firm and consistent about it, that will be what everyone calls her! If they like Vera, awesome! Others are Nica, Nicky/Nikki, Via, Vivi, and Vicky.

Okay! Now on to new suggestions! In addition to the Scott Hahn research I did, I also looked up the names they’ve already used and those they like/are considering in the Baby Name Wizard (affiliate link) as it lists, for each entry, boy and girl names that are similar in terms of style/feel/popularity. For girls, I was mainly looking for middle names for Anna; for boys, I was looking for heavy-hitting Catholicky Catholic names that would be a good balance to Scott’s more secular feel:

Girl

(1) Karoline/Caroline

While Anna as a first name paired with a middle name that ends in A has that really gorgeous, ultra-feminine feel that goes so nicely with sister Emilia Gianna, I also really like the rhythm of a combo like Anna Catherine. I immediately thought of Karoline when reading Kathryn’s list, and was pleased to see that Caroline is a style match for Amelia (standing in for Emilia, as Emilia doesn’t have its own entry). The Karoline spelling is obviously a nod to St. John Paul II to anyone who knows, as his birth name was Karol (the Polish form of Charles); the Caroline spelling can also nod to him if they’d like it to, and is just as lovely and classic as Catherine (I did a post on patron Saints for Caroline et al. here).

(2) Lillian

Elizabeth is a style match for basically all the names Kathryn and her husband have used and like, and Anna Elizabeth *can* work, but (1) Anna ending in A and Elizabeth starting with the same sound isn’t everyone’s favorite transition (maybe they don’t mind it though?) and (2) because it’s such a style match, maybe they’d like to save Elizabeth for the future? So I thought an Elizabeth variant might be nice, especially if it’s not an obvious Elizabeth variant, and Lillian seemed perfect! Behind the Name says Lillian likely originated as a diminutive of Elizabeth, and I love how it sounds with Anna. Our Lady’s Mom and her cousin in one name!

(3) Juliet(te)

Julia is also a huge style match for this family, but I don’t really see them considering it for the future for some reason, and I felt like Anna Julia is a little too sing-songy (if they disagree and love it, awesome!), but I love how Anna Juliet/Juliette sounds! I did a post on saintly connections for Juliet(te) here (also, Julia is biblical, so Juliet(te) is a diminutive of a biblical name).

(4) Colette

I was trying to think of other names that I thought went well with Anna that have a nice saintly connection, and I thought of a friend of mine who named her daughter Maria Colette — I have always loved that combo, and I thought Anna Colette sounds equally as gorgeous! St. Colette is a patron of expectant mothers, which I love.

(5) Seraphina/Serafina

Like with Julia, Sarah is a huge match for Kathryn and her hubby’s style, but also like with Julia I don’t really see them wanting to use it in the future, so I thought maybe a spin on it would be nice with Anna. Seraphina/Serafina refers to the angels, specifically the seraphim, and is such a beautiful name. Anna Seraphina is so pretty!

Boy

(1) Karol or Charles

As noted, for boys, I tried to think of other examples of “STRONG saintly or Biblical” names to go with Scott, and Karol came to mind first because of JP2. Karol is a variant of Charles, which could also be nice. Scott Karol and Charles Scott are both great.

(2) Benedict or Benjamin

In my Scott Hahn research, I also consulted this page of authors that were instrumental in his own conversion, one of whom was Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (Pope Benedict). Benedict is definitely one of those heavy-hitting names! Benedict Scott and Scott Benedict sound great together.

Benedict made me think of Benjamin, which could also be great for this family! It’s Old Testament like Samuel (so there wouldn’t be any possibility of Samuel feeling left out!), and I really love how Benjamin Scott sounds.

(3) Maximilian

In that first web site that I consulted, Dr. Hahn included St. Maximilian Kolbe as one of the Saints that have been most helpful to him — Maximilian absolutely belongs on this list of obviously holy names!

(4) Gregory

Most of the boy name style matches in my research were ones that I’m sure they’ve already considered like Thomas, William, and Paul. Great names, all! But Gregory jumped out to me as possibly being more like what they’re looking for — it has always struck me as a really Catholic name because of the big-deal Gregorys like Pope St. Gregory the Great, St. Gregory of Nazianzen, and others.

(5) Francis

In the article about Scott Hahn’s book of Saints and Angels, he tells the story of a time when his son was close to death and he felt very clearly the presence of St. Francis of Assisi, St. Clare, and Mother Mary. Francis Scott sounded so great to me and it took me a minute to realize it’s because of Francis Scott Key! Regardless, I still think Francis Scott would be really nice, and Scott Francis as well.

(6) Josemaria, Irenaeus

These last two are names of Saints that Dr. Hahn has been particularly affected by, and their names are so over-the-top amazing and saintly that Scott would be very nicely balanced out. I totally understand if they’re way too far outside of this family’s comfort zone! And I definitely think they’d go best in the middle name spot. Scott Josemaria and Scott Irenaeus are pretty amazing, and of the two, I think Scott Irenaeus has the best flow.

And those are all my ideas! What do you all think? What middle name would you suggest for Anna and what name would you pair with Scott for the little brother or sister of James, John, Samuel, and Emilia?

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation from either Theresa or myself here.

For help with Marian names, 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 (not affiliate links). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!

Birth announcement: Joseph Mark Clement!

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I posted a consultation for Sara and her husband back in March, and Sara has let me know that their baby boy has arrived and been given the tremendous name … Joseph Mark Clement!

Sara writes,

“Baby boy arrived a bit early on Holy Saturday! We ended up picking Joseph Mark Clement. Thank you for giving us the confidence to pick Joseph! Victor was a close contender as well. Many of our friends and family have asked or commented about how much they like the name, and especially ask about Clement. It’s a great way to introduce the idea of Divine Mercy … We love the meaning and people and saints wrapped up in this name. The bigger kids have really latched onto JoJo, so I think that will be his day to day name for now. (When he is sad Dad sings to him about how little bro JoJo has woes and must be rocked to and fro.) Thank you again for all your help and encouragement!“

I absolutely love hearing the joy in the “voice” of parents letting me know about the name they ended up choosing for their baby — it’s such an amazing thing to give such special and meaningful names to their little one! Joseph Mark Clement is so great!!

Congratulations to Sara and her hubby and big sibs Adelaide, Francis (in heaven), and Benedict, and happy birthday Baby Joseph!!

Joseph Mark Clement

Read all about how to get your own baby name consultation from either Theresa or myself here.

For help with Marian names, 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 (not affiliate links). It’s perfect for expectant parents, name enthusiasts, and lovers of Our Lady!