The Name Game

Somewhere in between Bronx and Bob, there are a whole host of celebrity baby names that live on the fringe between “out there” and “traditional.” According to nameberry.com co-founder Pamela Redmond-Satran, these so-called “outlier” names have the added benefit of being “truly original” while remaining recognizable as established, tried-and-true names.

Among Pamela’s favorites are Paulina, as recently chosen by former baseball star Mike Piazza. “Her middle name Sophia might be a trendy top ten favorite,” Pamela notes, “but Paulina, which has that same feminine exoticism, is a fresher choice that could launch a new trend.” Bronwyn, as chosen by Angela Bassett and Courtney B. Vance, is “lovely and vastly underused,” according to Pamela, who also singles out Helena, as chosen by Kelly Rutherford. Of the latter, she says the name is “classic, original, yet outside the expected fashion choices.”

Parents keen on selecting a virtue name can bypass the more common Hope or Faith by going with the outlier name Honor, as chosen by Jessica Alba. Madonna’s daughter Mercy also fits the bill. Sarah Jessica Parker’s twin daughters both have outlier names, Pamela notes, with Sarah Jessica’s 7-year-old son James Wilkie responsible for selecting Marion, who goes by her middle name of Loretta. “Both names were last fashionable in the 1940s, and are definitely off the beaten track now,” Pamela explains, “and the biblical Tabitha is much fresher than biblical sisters Leah or Deborah.”

Helena Giersch, Frank & Dexter Costello, Callum MacLachlan; Astrid Stawiarz/Getty; WENN; Splash News Online

As for the boys, solid outlier names include Madonna’s choice of Rocco and Karolína Kurková’s choice of Tobin, a surname derived from Tobias. Also earning high marks is Callum, son of Kyle MacLachlan. Popular in Great Britain, Callum is rarely heard in the United States and represents “a more original choice than cousins Connor or Colin,” Pamela adds.

Some celebrity parents have split the difference with outlier names. Diana Krall and Elvis Costello did as much with twins Frank and Dexter, with the former qualifying as an outlier and the latter being “more in the hipster fashion mold,” according to Pamela. The same goes for Brooke Shields, who opted for an outlier with daughter Grier, “while first daughter Rowan’s name walks closer to the fashion line” according to Pamela, who adds,

“For a name expert, celebrity parents choosing these outlier names is really exciting, because they shine the spotlight on names that are truly distinctive and deserve more attention.”

In addition to her work with nameberry.com, Pamela has co-authored ten baby-naming books with Linda Rosenkrantz. Their newest title, Beyond Ava & Aiden, is available now.

– Missy

What’s your favorite outlier name? Are there any outlier names you dislike?

Thinking outside the box when it comes to naming babies goes part and parcel with being a celebrity, and in their search to come up with the perfect moniker some have clearly pushed that envelope more than others. According to nameberry.com co-founder Linda Rosenkrantz, word names are an increasingly popular way to do just that.

“When looking for a really unusual baby name, many celebrities have started to search the dictionary for a noun or adjective that will define their child, choosing words that have rarely, if ever been used before as people-names,” she explains.

“Some of them seek words that reflect their spirituality or values, others display their appreciation for nature, and then there’s a whole range of others from the sweet Poet and Petal to the bad-boy Bandit and Rogue.”

The so-called “bad boy” names are “the most audacious of all,” Linda says. Director Robert Rodriguez is clearly a fan of this genre, with sons Rogue, Rebel, Racer and Rocket. Meanwhile rocker Jonathan Davis opted for Pirate, and Gerard Way is dad to daughter Bandit.

Tobey and Ruby Maguire; Jenna and Story Elfman – Splash News Online; Axelle/Bauer-Griffin

Click below for Linda’s picks for the best “soft and sweet” word names and more.

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Many expectant parents love the look and sound of an exotic name for their baby-on-the-way, but can’t quite pull the trigger when it’s time to sign the birth certificate. If this sounds like you, nameberry.com co-founder Pamela Redmond-Satran says that you can have your cake and eat it too.

“Middle names used to be either placeholders — the Anns and Lynns and Lees of the 50s and 60s — or a way to honor Great-Uncle Philip (in hopes that he’d leave you all his money),” she explains. “Today, middle names are often a place to use a wilder name than parents might want to use in first place, and one that may have ethnic or other individual significance.”

Heidi Klum and Seal did just that one week ago today, when they welcomed daughter Lou Sulola. An African name, Sulola honors Seal’s heritage just as the couple’s sons Henry Gunther Ademola Dashtu and Johan Riley Fyodor Taiwo have done with their own middle names. Likewise, Lisa Bonet and Jason Momoa paid homage to dad’s Hawaiian roots with son Nakoa-Wolf Manakauapo Namakacha.

Ione Skye and Ben Lee paid tribute to India with Goldie Priya; Pronounced pree-ah, the name is Sanskrit for beloved and means an individual type of beauty. Celebrity chef Tom Colicchio went a similar route with Luka Bodhi, with Bodhi being Sanskrit for “awakening” and a Buddhist term that means an escape from the cycle of birth, karma, and death. Spirituality has factored into the middle name selections of other celebrities, like Golden Brooks and D.B. Woodside’s daughter Dakota Tao.

Michael Caulfield/WireImage; LuMar Jr/AFF-USA

Click below to learn which celebrity baby middle name Pamela feels is “the most head-turning” in recent history.

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Celebrities are known for pushing the envelope when it comes to naming their babies — to say the least! Nameberry.com co-founder Linda Rosenkrantz notes that recently some celebrities have been blazing a different trail, however. “One of the latest trends among celebrity parents is the trend away from trendiness,” she notes. “Even though we still see some extreme choices like Bandit and Bronx, more and more celebs seem to be opting for classic, traditional, ‘normal’ names.”

Although it’s possibly a backlash against all the negative publicity provoked by their “kooky” celebrity baby name counterparts, Linda suspects that “a bigger factor is the wish to give their children names with substance and, ideally, some connection to family history.”

Ramey; Mike/Splash News Online; Pacific Coast News

British royal names — Anglo-Saxon classics — have made a real comeback, and Henry leads the charge. The name of choice for celebrity parents like Julia Roberts, Minnie Driver, Heidi Klum and Rachel Weisz, Linda labels Henry “one of the hottest names in Hollywood.” Other star-baby boy names in this category include James, as chosen by Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick, Isaac Hanson, Tom Cavanagh and Colin Farrell; John, as chosen by Julie Bowen, Nancy Grace, Bridget Moynahan, Johnny Depp and Lauryn Hill; Edward, as chosen by Megyn Kelly; Charles, as chosen by Russell Crowe, Emily Robison, Cynthia Nixon and Chris O’Donnell; William, as chosen by Sarah Shahi, Mary Louise Parker and Billy Crudup and Clay Walker; and George, as chosen by Eva Herzigova and Kristin Scott Thomas.

There are other, non-regal traditional boys’ names that are making a comeback on celebrity birth certificates. Mayim Bialik named her son Frederick, Jack Black and Dennis Quaid each chose Thomas, Traci Lords has a Joseph (while Kate Winslet went straight to the nickname Joe), Bryce Dallas Howard is mom to Theodore, Jennifer Hudson opted for David Daniel, and one of Diana Krall and Elvis Costello’s twins is called Frank.

Click below to learn the biggest perk of picking a classic name.

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J names have had their day in the sun: a whole generation of Jennifers and Jessicas, Jasons and Joshuas are now growing up and having babies of their own. Then came the K names popular in the nineties: Kyle, Kayla, Kaitlyn. Next up? The L names. Pamela Redmond-Satran, co-founder of nameberry.com, says that “L is the hottest beginning consonant for babies’ names here and throughout Europe.” Hotter still are names with a double-L sound like Lila and Tallulah.

There are a litany of celebrity babies born recently with L names in the Luke and Lucy family, which means light. They include Lucia, as chosen by Amber and Rob Mariano; Luciana, as chosen by Carnie Wilson; Lucy, as chosen by Nancy Grace; Luc, as chosen by Peter Gabriel; Luca, as chosen by Vincent D’Onofrio; Luka, as chosen by Tom Colicchio and Luke, as chosen by Natalie Morales.

The letter L is long on variety, however, offering unlimited choices — both traditional and quirky — for parents-to-be. Lindsay Davenport opted for Lauren; Gael Garcia Bernal opted for Lázaro; Matthew McConaughey opted for Levi; Tori Spelling opted for Liam; Erinn Hayes opted for Lilah; Shane Richie opted for Lolita and Constance Marie opted for Luna — a name CBB readers clearly loved!

Albert Michael/Startraks; Alison Dyer for PEOPLE for use on CBB; Karl Larsen/INF

Click below to read about the biggest L name trendsetter of all.

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Summer is turning to autumn but for some celebrity babies, spring is forever in the air. “There’s nothing sweeter or more feminine than an old-fashioned flower name for a girl, and celebrities — along with other baby namers — are looking at lists of botanical choices for inspiration,” according to nameberry.com co-founder Linda Rosenkrantz. “Lately, an interesting variety of flower names has been sprouting across the celebrity landscape, both old favorites and some that have rarely been used before.”

Clearly, the front-runners in this category remain Lily and Rose, with Lily more commonly used as a first name and Rose as a middle name. Johnny Depp and Vanessa Paradis were so enamored they used this exactly combination with daughter Lily-Rose, 10. Gilbert Gottfried also opted to double the flower power with daughter Lily Aster, 2. Other celebrity parents who fell in love with Lily include Lisa Hartman Black and Clint Black (parents to Lily Pearl, 8), Kate Beckinsale and Michael Sheen (parents to Lily Mo, 10), Fred Savage (dad to Lily Aerin, 16 months), Greg Kinnear (dad to Lily Katherine, turning 6 this month) and Chris O’Donnell (dad to Lily Anne, 10 this month).

Rose, on the other hand, is “without doubt the middle name of the last couple of decades,” according to Linda. It works for so many parents because it both softens and sweetens all kinds of first names, from the classic to the boyish. A few celebrity examples from the rose garden include Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban’s Sunday Rose, 13 months, Jon Stewart’s Maggie Rose, 3 ½, Dylan McDermott’s Charlotte Rose, 4 this month, Ewan McGregor’s Esther Rose, 7 ½, and Melissa and Tammy Etheridge’s Johnnie Rose, 2 ½.

Daisy Ryan, Lily Sheen, Bluebell Halliwell — Ramey; PR/RS/Flynet

Click below to learn which flower names are up-and-coming, and which have wilted.

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Upon announcing her first pregnancy, many wondered if Kourtney Kardashian would continue her family tradition of using only names which start with ‘K.’ While sister Kim Kardashian has an established ‘K’ name, sisters Khloe Kardashian and even Kourtney herself have names that traditionally begin with the letter ‘C.’ On that point, the Kardashian’s may be ahead of the curve. So says nameberry.com co-founder Pamela Redmond Satran, who tells Celebrity Baby Blog,

“Many parents today are putting a modern spin on classic names by changing the C initial to a K…or sometimes back again.”

In fact, the name Khloe is “one of the fastest rising names this year,” according to Pam. Boys are getting in on the act too. Patrick Wilson recently named his newborn son Kassian; The classic spelling, however, is Cassian — an ancient Latin clan name and also an Irish saint’s name that means “curly-headed.” Other celebrity babies with an interchangeable C-K initial include Kevin Costner’s son Cayden Wyatt, and Angie Everhart’s new baby boy Kayden Bobby. A modern, invented name in various forms, this name is popular in both the C and K versions, with Caden at #95 on the popularity list, Kaden at #99, Kayden at #152 and Cayden at #173.

The ‘Cadence’ envelope was definitely pushed by Tony Hawk, dad to Kadence Clover, and T Pain, dad to Kaydnz Kodah. And although Kieran — an Irish name meaning “little dark one” — has been popular for years (having been chosen by Julianna Margulies with son Kieran Lindsay and Kelly Williams with son Kiran)  it can also be spelled Ciaran, Pamela notes. Last but not least, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas opted for Carys with their daughter; A Welsh name meaning love, the couple’s spelling is classic, but the name is also occasionally spelled Kerys or Keris.

Other interchangeable C-K names singled out by Pamela include Caitlin/Katelyn, Cate/Kate, Caleb/Kaleb, Camden/Kamden, Christian/Kristian, Cian/Kian and Cody/Kody. If you find yourself debating a C-K switch for your baby-on-the-way, Pamela says that your personal style will likely come into play. “While the names are pronounced the same no matter what the initial,” she explains, “K in general has a more modern feel while C seems more traditional.”

Kevin and Cayden Costner, Tony and Kadence Hawk — Frazer Harrison/Getty; Courtesy Tony Hawk

In addition to her work with nameberry.com, Pamela has co-authored ten baby-naming books with Linda Rosenkrantz. Their newest title, Beyond Ava & Aiden, is available now.

– Missy

What’s your favorite interchangeable C-K name? Would you or did you choose one for your baby? Why or why not?

Many expectant parents already have a nickname in mind when naming their unborn child, but for a growing minority the nickname is the name! Linda Rosenkrantz, co-founder of nameberry.com, points out that celebrities like Tiger Woods, Helena Bonham Carter and Mira Sorvino bypassed the full, formal names of Charles, William and Jonathan when naming their sons Charlie, Billy and Johnny, respectively.

What’s more, Tiger and Denise Richards — both of whom have daughters named Sam — are also using the same nicknames for both boys and girls interchangeably. The using a unisex nickname-as-a-name club may include Ethan Suplee and John C. McGinley (with daughters named Billie), Rebecca Romijn & Jerry O’Connell (with daughter Charlie) and Melissa Etheridge (with daughter Johnnie), “but these are miles away from the unisex nickname names of the 60s and 70s like Corey and Jody,” Linda notes. “Today’s versions are mostly short forms of standard appellations, like Joe for Joseph and Gracie for Grace,” she adds.

Other celebrities have opted to depart with tradition somewhat, assigning their children nicknames-as-names but still keeping those names traditionally masculine or feminine. They include Samantha Morton (with daughter Edie), Jamie Lynn Spears (with daughter Maddie), Jon Stewart (with daughter Maggie) and the increasingly popular Gracie, as chosen by both Faith Hill and Tim McGraw, as well as Anna Friel and David Thewles. Baby boys who fit the bill include Charlie Sheen (with son Bob), Julie Bowen (with son Gus), Kate Winslet (with son Joe) and Hank Azaria, who continued a tradition of his own by naming his son Hal; Both father and son are the proud owners of nickname names given at birth!

Nell Burton, Tiger and Charlie Woods, Busy Philipps and Birdie Silverstein — KTB/Eaglepress; Dom Furore/Woods Family/Getty; WireImage

Click below to read about the pros and cons of nickname names.

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Julia Roberts wowed the fashion world in a vintage Valentino gown while accepting the Academy Award for Best Actress in 2001, but her love of all things vintage didn’t end there. She went on to select vintage names for all three of her children with husband Danny Moder — 4 ½-year-old twins Hazel Patricia and Phinnaeus Walter, and 2-year-old Henry Daniel. According to nameberry.com co-founder Pamela Redmond-Satran, Julia was simply following a popular trend. “Celebrity parents are leading the way for the rest of us by reviving some of these old-fashioned names, dusting them off, and making them seem fresh and new.”

So what’s the appeal? Pamela explains,

“Vintage names are finding favor with parents who want something a bit different from the classics such as Elizabeth or David that have been widely-used for decades, but that still have deep roots and staying power, that go beyond the name of the moment.”

Some names, it appears, never go out of style — and if they do, it’s only temporarily! Pamela notes that just this week, the name Mae was selected by former Crossing Jordan star Kathryn Hahn; Other timely examples include Adele (chosen by Molly Ringwald), Marion (by Sarah Jessica Parker), Helena (by Kelly Rutherford), Mabel (by Chad Lowe) and Phoebe Margaret (by Julianne Nicholson and Jonathan Cake).

Violet Grohl, Henry Driver, Olive Baron Cohen — Splash News Online; Mike/Fame; Bauer-Griffin

Click below to read about which celebrity baby had the biggest impact on the trend!

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Once upon a time, naming a little girl ‘Cameron’ was considered radical…but Cameron Diaz arrived on the scene and forever changed the perception of a name that was historically given to boys. Other unisex names, like Taylor and Morgan, soon followed suit. But celebrity parents are known for pushing the envelope, and when it comes to selecting gender bending names they often lead the charge. Linda Rosenkrantz, co-founder of nameberry.com, notes that names like James and Judah had previously been considered 100% strictly male — until they were selected by Brendan Fehr and Ziggy Marley, respectively, for their baby girls! What’s the appeal? Linda explains,

“Boys names on girls bestow on their bearers a certain tomboyish, cutting edge image, an attention-catching rebel sensibility –  and possibly an attempt to level the playing field.”

With that said, there are obvious downsides. Linda cites the possibility for “all kinds of mix-ups and confounded expectations,” including even correspondence confusion. On paper — at least — most people would expect James to be a “Mr.,” and not a “Ms,” she notes. “There has also been some negative reaction from parents of boys with these names, fearing that if too many other girls are named, say, Finley, it might rob the name of some of its good old Celtic masculine punch, and eventually, as in the cases of Ashley and Addison, come to be considered a girls’ name,” Linda adds.

Soleil Moon Frye and Jagger Goldberg, Kelsey and Mason Grammer, Angie Harmon and Emery Sehorn — Charley Gallay/WireImage; Byron Purvis/AdMedia; Andrew Macpherson for PEOPLE for use on CBB

Click below to see which celebrity couple Linda calls ’serial boundary breakers.’

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