There are names, and then there are things. You try not to give people the name of things, but some things sound so good. That is where middle names come in. The middle name is where most parents go a little wild, especially with a common first name. Here are some ideas I have for a few middle names that make even the plainest of janes and johns stand out.
Honeydew- it's a type of melon, but tink about the words in this compound name: honey and dew. Together, it sounds simply rich. And honeydew melons aren't an ugly fruit. I happen to love the color of their spritely green flesh.
Cannon- Butch names are all the rave. I'm all about peace, so most names like Trig do not appeal to me. Cannon is a different story. It might be the name for a weapon, but it also used as a term for the written word. I feel that brings a scholarly edge to the name.
Merryweather- For boys, it is a legit name too feminine for modern times. For girls, it is too fanciful for modern times. why not put it in the middle, then? Furthermore, the fairy Merryweather is my favorite fairy from Disney's Sleeping Beauty.
Rebel- I admit, I wouldn't personally use this as a middle name. But I love a rebel, and with the right child it could be cool.
Sunshine- This name was featured in my post about hippie names, but I just wanted to highlight this name a second time. It has a nice connotation, sounds nice on the tongue, and really sets a common name apart.
To end this post, I'll mix up a few of these names with the top girls and boy names.
"Is all that we see or seem but a dream within a dream?"
A Dream Within A Dream by Edgar Allan Poe
I had a dream a while back. I was calling out to a little girl that was my own. It was a bright sunny day, and this took place on a lawn. I do not remember the name I called out, but I could feel how the name felt: Simple. I know for sure it was a simple kind of name.
Many have said that dreams are a way of telling you something. I subscribe to that motto. If I had a dream of a plane crashing before a big trip, I would cancel the flight. It sounds silly, but it's an uncertain world, and it's only human to cling to any source of certainty.
Nonetheless, this dream has inspired me to go searching for names that are simple. Over at nameberry, I asked for users ideas of what a simple name looks like. here are some names that repeated in people's responses:
Jane
Joan
Jean
June
Mary
Anne
Ruth
Tess
Tessa
Grace
Nora
One comment from taz, a senior member, brought great insight into the benefits of simple names:
"Any classic name fits perfectly. I think that simplicity is an excellent thing to keep in mind when naming. Who would want a confusing name?!"
So I am going to consider simplicity, and especially the names suggested, in looking for The Right Name.
I don't know if it's the rising temperature, the wonderful burst of nature in the air that summer brings, but I have been getting in touch with my hippie side. I mean, doesn't a nice hot day make you want to walk around barefoot and learn how to play guitar?
But I digress. There is one legacy that my mother's generation left behind that I have been really getting into lately: hippie names. It's a wonderfully creative naming movement that I'd love to see more modern parents embrace.Here are a list of especially fanciful names I'd like to see on more flower children
My latest obsession is not a name, it is a movement.
Ye Ye is a movement of music that can pretty much be summed up as European mod pop, but don't let the poppy beats and doe-eyes ingenues fool you. These girls and boys are breaking all the rules of thier time. I like Ye Ye music on a visceral level. It is delightfully campy from my 90's-era perspective and has a European flair that makes it its own.
and did I mention the fashion?
I could go all places about the style and the music, but I'll get on with the names.
Here are the names of some promenant singers in the Ye Ye genre:
France: France Gall is my favorite of the singers. She embodies the childish whimsy of the movement with a pleasing sound that seduces you in the most innocent way possible. Her glorious anthem against players, Laisse tomber les filles, was the first song to pull me into learning about this movement. Her more popular song, Poupée de cire, poupée de son, is more well known (especially if you are from Japan, where Shibuya Kei style bands have loved the movement as much as I do). Name wise...France isn't cutting it. It sounds more like the name of a doll, which many of the Ye Ye girls tend to look like, but nobody wants to be a doll in real life.
Françoise: This is how you do France. While this name is difficult to write with an American typewriter, it has a coolness that transcends barriers. Speaking of cool, Françoise Hardy. She was the quintisential "cool girl" of the Ye Ye group, seen more in leather coats and mens shirts than mini skirts. All of her songs have a grown-up meloncholy that made her beyond just a pop singer. She's still out there, singing to packed crowd that want a glimpse at timeless cool.
Sylvie: Sylvie Vartan had a very strong voice, but had a more campy image than other girls of her day. Her name has a childish breezyness to it, but also has a certain style that cannot be denied. I loved the name before hearing about Mme. Vartan, and now I love it more.
Sheila: Like Cher, Shiela is a one-name pop star who really took the campy nature of Ye Ye music and set it to 11. As a name, Shiela is a bit past it's prime, but the singer herself is still relevant. She plans to come out with a new album to celebrate 50 years in the music industry.
those are the big name girls of the movement, but there were boys in this club as well. They are few, but they are there nonetheless.
Serge: Serge Gainsbourg, a music icon in his own right, was the man behind a lot of these girls' music, especially (my favorite) France Gall. He wrote the song Les Sucettes, which translates to "Lollypops". This is a song which is so rife with double entendres that he scandelised a young France Gall when she realised what the song was really about. They had a falling out after that, which is a shame, because she really nailed that song and all the other songs he wrote for her. Name-wise, I think it's a name only the french could pull off.
Claude: Claude François is another popular Ye Ye singer of the male persuasion. I am not aquainted with his music, but you can bet I'll be looking into it once I'm done with this post. There are not many noteable guys in the Ye Ye music scene, and I'm okay with that. Claude, like Serge, sounds better with a french accent.
Now, for your viewing pleasure, a few of my favorites from the genre:
The one that started it all for me
And the other one that started it all thanks to Mad Men and Jessica Paré's hit preformance.
And to bring us back to earth, a wonderful song by the impeccable Mme Hardy.
Adeu! Until next time! (Which I hope will be sooner than later.)
I have noticed a trend of spelling average/dated names differently( I won't use "wrong" because the social construct of "wrong" and "right" in spelling changes with the times, and I accept that) . on For Real Baby Names, I find that this trend is very prevalent in America. Here is a list of a few names within this trend used in the past posts from American baby name announcements. For reference, I'll put what I assume is the variant.
Haddie Florance (Hattie Florence)
Kelcie Lou (Kelsey Lou)
Kra Lanaye ( Kyra Lanai)
Lenox Jane (Lennox Jane)
Shyle Addison (Shylie Addison? That, or it's supposed to sound like Kyle)
Izaak Jazz (Issac Jazz)
Justyce Storm (Justice Storm)
Paisli Taya( Paisley Taya)
Amaree Kalima (Amarie Kalima)
Cherri Yazmin( Cherry Yazmin)
Clarisa Piper(Clarissa Piper)
Evelyne Ngozi( Evelyn Ngozi)
Preston Lyfe( Preston Life)
Listen, I'm not the world's best speller, but I would be damned if I don't look up how a name is spelled before I give someone a name. By the amount of names I've found with these variant spellings, it cannot be said that it's just a one-time thing. This is consistent. Now, the saying" this name will ruin your child's life" has been thrown around, but these names , I think, might actually have a negative effect on the child.1. They will have to spell their names constantly to the well-meaning people who think their name is spelled the traditional way.
2. People will assume the parent, maybe even the child, doesn't know how to spell.
3. The perception of "right" and "wrong" spelling will be a contentious issue. If Emily can be Emhli, who's to say bright can't be spelled brit?
I just can't get behind this trend. It sort of screams " I am trying to give my child a special name" and fails. Also, it shows a lack of value in intelligence. The parents probably, in a lot of cases, know that the name is spelled a certain way, but eschew logic for their independent tastes. That sort of philosophy has been a detriment to American politics to this day. I just...can't.Use the trendiest name ever, name your child Aidan, but at least spell it A-I-D-A-N.
I don't know if I can make this very clear, but I love my name. I never quite gel to nicknames like Liz or Lizzy or Betsy no matter what family members call me. I have always preferred Elizabeth in full. It is the name of many people I admire and has never been too trendy no matter how many Elizabeths there are.
But Elizabeth isn't the only of it's kind.
Here are a few names that have similar features to Elizabeth: old names that have staid in the top 50 for years, but have not really been in the #1 spot in the past decade.
Samantha: Samantha is a natural variant of Elizabeth. They both have an old colonial sound, and have been steadily popular for years, but not #1 popular.It also has the boyish nickname Sam, making it the enviable name for all tomboys of the world.
Alexis: I am not a personal fan of Alexis. To me it seems like one of those names you give to your daughter because you subconsciously wanted a boy. Still, it has it's charms, and a lot more people have been a fan of this name.
Hannah: This is a very east-coast name. I like the name Hannah, but it doesn't have a lot of oomph. It's got a plain-jane sound to it, no matter how pretty a Hannah could be (and the Hannah I know is quite pretty).
Sarah: Sarah seems like the obvious sister, or cousin, to Hannah. Both are old Hebrew names that do not inspire me. Still, I cannot stop liking the name due to it's many admirable namesakes.
Grace:Grace is a lovely virtue name that doesn't sound too stuffy. It surprises me sometimes in it's simpleness.Sometimes I find it almost too simple, if you know what I mean.
Feel free to share other names that you feel fall into the "Elizabeth" category.
I have recently been loving fairly southern names. I'm the opposite of southern, but like many African Americans, I have family in past and present who have resided below the Mason Dixon Line. One name I like practically begs to be said with an accent.My Jersey accent might take away from the beauty of this name, but I love it still: Louella.
On Nameberry, Louella is said to be a smoosh of Louise and Ella. On Behind The Name, someone comments that Louella could be an old Teutonic word for "shrewd war heroine", but the scientist in me needs more data around that. There is nothing wrong with smooshing Louise and Ella together.
What I like about Louella is that it's a familiar name, can suit a potential tomboy with the nickname Lou, and has just that little dash of "special" that helps it stand out.
Also, might I add that I love the brand Luella? The clothes are often lovely, whimsical, and add a huge injection of youthfulness to the name Louella, or Luella as it's also spelled. The image is from the brand's Spring 2010 show. I look forward to seeing what more Luella Bartley has to offer.
We've all had our name crushes. Mine change constantly.If I talked about every one I've had , I'd have content for years. My current crush is on a vintage family name that while popular in other places, is not as well-known in the states.
The name is Ruby.
As I posted before, Ruby is a family name. In fact, there were two Rubies at a time in different generations.One was called "Big Ruby"and the other was called "Little Ruby" respectively.That alone shows how well Ruby ages.I love a name that ages well, and especially one that adds a bit of sass. You imagine a Ruby, while aging, to still have the vitality and spunk of her younger years.And spunk, some say, is inevitable with a name like Ruby.
That's, actually, one problem I have with the name.
Everyone says sass with a Ruby, but what if she's a more gentle person? It'd be like naming a tomboy Carlotta or a girly girl Jo. I have the same problem with the name Fern. It's a gentle name, but what if the child is more of a Ruby than a Fern? Ruby just seems a bit limiting in that regard, for all people are different. Maybe meeting a soft-spoken ruby can change people's opinion, especially my own opinion. I hope to meet that gem* of a person one day.
I would like to discuss this week about some of the guidelines I use when figuring out if a name will work. I believe that we all have different guidelines, and it's always a special combination of "rules" than anyone else. I use the term guidelines because no matter how many parameters you put up, there is always something out of those parameters that you love. Anyway, I'll Get on to the list.
1. The name must be easily pronounced and/or spelled in Japanese
This is not because I have Japanese family members of will be living in Japan. I know for a fact that I will end up speaking to whatever child I have in Japanese. This is very important for me to consider because some names sound different or are completely unpronounceable when translated to Japanese. I won't bore you with a lesson on Japanese pronunciation, but I'll just say this: some names can change in Japanese, and there are some words that don't exist. 2. The initials must not make me giggle
I have a mind that can come up with weird associations with certain word combinations. For instance, F and N will always sound like "Effin" which will always be translated to a curse word I won't say. Sure, not everyone will find that association, but I will see it, and no child deserves to have their mother giggle at their initials whenever they notice them.Sure, if I ever mature, it won't make me giggle as much, but for now I have that kind of "third-grade" mind. 3. There must be nobody naked upon the first google search
There are lovely names out there, and there are people who have that name who have at some point in their life had their picture taken while naked. More power to them, but in this day and age where everyone googles themselves, it should be safe to google yourself at work. 4. Extra consideration will be made to names from family members
Mabel tops Leila in the "useable" spectrum because I have a family member with that name (though I never actually have met her). Furthermore, variations on Mabel like Mae, Belle,Mabelline (never mind the makeup. This is a lovely name) are more useable than names not related to family. I may not be very close to my family members, but I still want to honor them if I can. 5. There must be a nature name somewhere.
I love nature. I kind of shrivel up a bit like a flower taken out of the sun when I am away from nature. No matter what names I chose, one has to pay homage to an element of nature. 6.No Twilight names. Ever.
I know twilight has been used as a punchline for bad books. Still, I have not read it and have no interest in reading it. I don't want any ties to the book at all, so if there is a character from the series with a name I like (and there are a lot), it's off limits. I'm not touching that with a ten foot pole. 7.The name must age well
I don't do the " introducing, president ________" to make sure a name is suitable. President Barack Obama blows that test out of the water. What I do is just make sure the name works as the person ages. I imagine the name on a baby, someone's classmate, someone's lover, and then someone's grandmother. It's hard to think of a child of your growing up, but it's very important because it's inevitable.
What guidelines do you use when choosing a good name? I'd love to hear some of yours.
Pippi Longstocking is a favorite book of mine. Her full name in English , Pippilotta Delicatessa Windowshade Mackrelmint Ephraim's Daughter Longstocking, is a sort of gag-name that is funny to hear her introduce herself no matter how many times I read it. Her first name, and nickname especially, might be ready for modern times in my opinion. Some might say Pippilotta is supposed to be part of the joke in how frilly it is, but it sounds pretty legit. It even sounds kind of like a smoosh of Philippa and Carlotta.The nicknames for Pippilotta is what really sells it for me. I consider Pippilotta the most original way to get to high-trending nicknames such as Pippa and Lottie.Not to mention the original Pippi, which gives a nice alternative to those that don't want to seem like they're naming the child after Pippa Middleton but want a name people recognize. I'd recommend Pippilotta to anyone who is not afraid of the frills and loves the books as much as I do.
I recently looked up Wikipedia's list of popular given names all around the world. It gave a lot of perspective on how "normal" can change depending on where you are. For instance, Mohammad comes out at number 1 in a lot of places due to the muselm population in a lot of areas of the world. By the rule of popularity, Mohammad/Muhammed is a more popular name than Jacob could dream of being in some areas. Even with that information, nobody in America would ever use that name.People make jokes about Mohammed being too sacred to be shown in cartoons or telivision in the US, but it begs to differ against that belief when you see so many people naming thier children after thier prophet. You find other names that people in the US would probably stumble over, but are ubiquetous in some areas.Kazakhstan's #1 name for boys in 2010 was Yerasyl. Seoyeon is the South Korean version of Isabella. Yet mention naming your child these names in American sites and you'd probably get the internet version of the stink eye. It's just too big a world for European names to be the end-all-be-all for "normal".
Am I the only one who thought "Oh, how darling!" when I heard of the latest Celebrity Name Maple Sylvie? Many people are saying that it sounds too much like Maple Syrup, but I think that makes it even sweeter.Maple syrup is almost as iconic as the trees it comes from. Sylvie is also a lovely name, and adds a lot of sprightly zest to the middle. Ever since Maple has been suggested as an actual name, I've been intrigued. I hope that the latest Maple helps people name more of their children with the name.
I'm going to admit it now: I love My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. One aspect of the show that I love above all things is how diverse the main characters are. This show teaches that girls do not all act one way, and they can bond together despite of and because of their differences.I've sometimes toyed with the idea of what their names would be if they were human and not living in a fanciful world. For those uninitiated to the show, the characters have very fanciful names. There is Twilight Sparkle, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash. Thier personalities are all different, which makes it fun to come up with real names that match the personality. Here is a round up of the personalities of these ponies and how everyone (or everypony?) can use with making up the names:
Twilight Sparkle: Heavy reader who is socially awkward.
Pinkie Pie: Happy-go-lucky and loves to party.
Rarity: Sophisticated; has a flair for the dramatic.
Applejack: Hard-working and down-to-earth. Comes from a culture like in the American south.
Fluttershy: As her name gives it away, she is shy and gentle as a butterfly's wing. She also loves animals.
Rainbow Dash: Total tomboy. Always trying to be "cool"
The uninitiated (and yes, some would say there is an initiation to watching the series) can look it up on wikipedia to learn more about the characters. Anyway, here are my ideas for more real names for the main cast.
Twilight Sparkle= Twila Felicity
Pinkie Pie= Philippa "Pippi" Adamina (In the series, her full name is Pinkamina Pie)
Rarity= Verity Nicolette
Applejack= Jackie Jean
Fluttershy= Felicia Edith
Rainbow Dash= Iris Althea
I chose these names because they fit my own personal interpretation of the characters. There are plenty of other names that fit my interpretation and the interpretation of any other person. I challenge anyone who likes the series or a good name game to give a shot at naming the mane cast with more probable names. Welcome to the herd!
Shalom.
No seriously, Shalom.
I think it is becoming a trend. Used by two people on different sides of the lifestyle spectrum, Shalom has that calm-before-the-storm moment where two people have it used and you think it's an interesting coincidence. Then BAM, it's everywhere. So far it is used as a middle name, but as we all know, middle names are a gateway drug to first names. Before Shalom becomes a household name, I would like to reccomend we have a look at Shalom's Indian cousin: Shanti.
They are creepily similar. They both have two syllables, start with a soft Sh like a librarian gently shushing a child, and they both mean "peace".Shanti is a lot less popular, but given Shalom's presence in nameworld, Shanti definitely has a chance to shine. It's also a nice way to spruce up a popular, fussy, or boring name. Here are some ideas for using Shanti:
Margaret Shanti
Shanti Isabelle
Agatha Shanti
River Shanti
Shanti Violet
Novella Shanti
Zia Shanti
No matter what version of Shanti is used, it already comes with a song that you can sing and dance to. If you love Bollywood, prepare to be delighted.
I made a post about Bernadette being a nice, strong name for girls. Lately, I've been having similar feelings for the name Thora. This could become a regular thing if I put my energy toward it.
Thora is pretty much the feminine version of Thor. Thor is the Norse god of, as wikipedia says: "thunder, lightning, storms, oak trees, strength, the protection of mankind, and also hallowing, healing, and fertility."There are only two Thoras that people will recognise:
Thora Birch: well-known actress in such films as The Neverending Story and Ghost World. Grandma Thora: The cool granny from the well-known Arthur series.
Thora is one of those old-fashioned names I wish more people would use. It's got very strong ties. I mean, what's better than a god of thunder to name your child after? Thora sounds very feminine, however, and some would say it sounds soft despite her meaning (On Nameberry, they say exactly that). This soft, old-fashioned name has a lot of hidden power, which one could say all people have.
image source. I need to suck it up and post more images no matter what legal scaryness ensues.
I like to mention names I really like to my mom. it's a nice experiment on actually saying the names and getting an opinion from someone outside of the name-loving loop. I consider my mom has decent tastes in names (She gave my brother and I excellent ones), so I trust her opinion.
but then, when I said " what do you think about Sunniva?" she said that she felt it sounded made-up.
I don't know what to feel.
On one hand, not a lot of people would be familiar with Sunniva. It's a Norwegian name meaning "Sun's Gift". It's not in a lot of name databases , and you can forget about finding it in the top 1000 for baby names.
Still, Sunniva is easy to pronounce, has a positive meaning, and has a lot of cute nicknames (Sue, Sunny, Niva). I really like this name for these qualities. I find it interesting that with all these qualities of a real name, my mom still thinks it sounds made-up. Maybe it's just something to do with her generation, and I should use this as a reminder to take caution when mentioning my more out-there name ideas.
I would like to bring up a few names that I have stumbled upon, and have been talking about, that sound like popular or well-loved names, but are not nearly as popular. They could have been popular or even accepted, but there is something that gets in the way of the name from truly shining.
Lumi: I mentioned that I am loving Lumi in my previous post, but I would like to give away my defense. Luna is gaining admission into the public conciousness as a legitimate name thanks to Luna Lovegood from Harry Potter and people's new found love for using the names of goddesses. Some people say that their problem with Luna is how much the moon plays in imagery of craziness. Lumi is a nice alternative. It may sound more like Loony than Luna, but it also sounds more like Luminescence, which is a very very pretty word. I don't think of crazy or the moon. I simply think of light.
Sybil:If characters can revive old names, why hasn't Downton Abbey done anything to help with Sybil? It's an award-winning show, so there are plenty of people aware of a Sybil existing, and boy howdy is Sybil an awesome character! She is the kind of proto-feminist who paved the way for the modern woman we know of today. Perhaps I need to see the film with the other Sybil to understand the hesitations, but it was quite a while ago when that film came out.
Jezebel: Okay, I'll admit that I would never ever give my child this name. Jezebel has been the name given to a stereotype of African American women who are portrayed as sex-crazy in the media.It is simply too soon. That said, I follow the news blog Jezebel, and it's given another perspective to the name.Jezzie is the affectionate name many of the commenters on Jezebel give to each other, and I think it's a lovely way to bring Jezebel into the real world. The full name Jezebel is also a fun way to get to "bella" in a unique way. I would , however, not recommend the other nickname Jezzies give to each other : Lesbian Shitass. it's a long story how that got to be used, and it's all Scott Baio's fault.
Isadora: I've waxed poetic about the name Isadora, but I'd also like to point out how similar to Isabella this name is. Same syllables, first three words are the same, and both names can be nicknamed Izzy. Isadora is kind of like an alternate-universe version of Isabella. I'm sure in this alternate universe, people are wearing pants on their head and complaining about all the Isadora's on their naming blogs.In this universe, however, Isadora is surprisingly rare for how similar it is to the name given to the most girls.
I cannot believe that my blog was mentioned on Appellation Mountain. That is an immense honor for me. It's the blog I go to every day for my daily dose of names. Her posts are always full of information and insight. I love to read every post that comes up, because I'm bound to learn something.I know a lot of other people visit her blog as well, which explains the huge spike of viewers in my stats. Thank you for giving my blog a gander, newcomers, and a special thank you and Happy Birthday to Abby.
Do you want to know what name I am in love with right now?Lumi
It does not age well at all, it sounds more like Loony than even Luna, and it's very, very Finnish (it's a more popular Finnish name, and means "snow").I still love Lumi. I will even defend Lumi.
I've realized something about myself, the life I want to live, and the values I would like to pass down: it does not encourage conforming to social norms.I am not an average person with average values, and I've yet to really meet one with "Everyday American" values that I liked. I prefer to hang with social outcasts and deviants. Why would someone like me worry about how normal a child could turn out? Names can be changed, after all, so what's the harm other than a little paperwork?Thus, I have given up on trying to use a name that's normal. using the anchor rule , I'm sure I can make the name work. Here are some ideas I have for the name:
There are names that are so out-there that people find thier status as a real name questionable. There are names so well-known that thier use is sometimes a dissapointment to others the name it is uttered. Put them together and you just might have the perfect name.I call this The Anchor Rule in naming:
If one name is normal, it gains improvement from an abnormal name and vice versa.
Why don't we take this rule to practice. Let's use some names that are fairly unique:
Snow
Keziah
Zea
Amity
Twila
Pepper
and pair them with very normal* names:
Elizabeth
Mary
Lauren
Catherine
Isabella
Mia
now let's put them together:
Elizabeth Snow
Keziah Mary
Zea Lauren
Amity Isabella
Mia Pepper
Twila Catherine
I am pulling these names out of my butt, and I'm already kind of liking these combinations.I challenge you to give this a shot by making a list of strange and normal names. You'll be surprised what will come out of it.
I am going to put this out there and let it rest: I would have preferred the Bey-Z child to be named Ivy Blue. I have a soft spot for Ivy since it is one of my cousin's names. Since she was the closest I had to an older sister, I have always looked at Ivy as a very grown-up name.
As it stands, however, the child's first name is Blue.
Blue is, in my narrow opinion, nowhere near as adult as Ivy. I'd have the same opinion if the child was called Barbie Ivy or Bitsy Ivy.Luckily, however, in case of seriousness, the child has a serious name to work with. Thus is the magic of middle names.It's sort of like a backup if the first name fails.
But whatever my opinion on Blue Ivy, I wish her the best in life, and for her all the love a child needs when growing up.
There is this trope for the Manic Pixie Dream Girl. She is a creative and free spirit whose use is to help the (usually male) protagonist learn to express themselves.While I find stories that utilize the trope tired and renders a woman as a tool, I have nothing against the person themselves. In fact, I wish there would be more stories from the perspective of the Manic Pixie Dream Girl's perspective. A film I watched that did a bit of deconstructing of this trope was a film called Happy Go Lucky, and it was about your typical type for a Manic Pixie Dream Girl: "quirky", lighthearted, and a free spirit.The film, however, was shot from her everyday perspective and showed her motivations and trials with having such a personality.You rarely have that when the story is from the perspective of the man who needs that kind of woman to fix them. I'm not going to give away more about the story because I recommend you see it yourselves.
Where was I getting at? Oh yes: names. The name of the main character in the film Happy Go Lucky is Poppy. On reflection, I realized that of course her name would be Poppy. Poppy is upbeat, brings to mind the color red, and is a name better carried by bohemians than accountants.That is the essence of a Manic Pixie Dream Girl or MPDG: they live outside the corporate world and have no need to have a professional air about themselves.Their names can be cutesy or weird or plain and nobody within their artistic circle would care.
Another "Manic Pixie Dream Girl" who isn't quite a "Manic Pixie Dream Girl is Clementine from the film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. She has all the trappings of a MPDG: cool style (and awesome hair!), eccentric, and her name is Clementine. Her character "archeotype", like in Happy Go Lucky, is also deconstructed. Clementine bites back. But I am still hung up on her name.It's a true darling.
However, while the two films were deconstructions of the MPDG, the film that pretty much brought this trope to it's full definition is the film Garden State. The MPDG in this film who does what all MPDG's do is named Sam. From my name-fancying perspective, the name Sam is a bit of a letdown.I can imagine the person writing this film trying to find an oh-so-quirky name and finding it oh-so-original that girl would go by Sam. Never mind the popularity of Samantha and how Sam is the obvious nickname for every little Samantha once she shows a whiff of tomboyishness.That is my main problem with the traditional use of the MPDG: she has so much potential to be cool (and have names like Clementine and Poppy), but the director just turns her into something traditional (Sam) in the end, thinking it's oh-so-original.
In honor of Sam, Here are some names that truly suit a Manic Pixie Dream Girl.They are special and lighthearted and suit a free spirit.
Araceli
Callisto
Denni
Dulce
Delphine
Eppie
Ember
Emmaline
Fern
Faustine
Georgette
Imogene
Iris
Josephine
Juno
Katinka
Kali
Lulu
Lola
Louella
Manon
Misty
Magnolia
Nona
Nerissa
Opaline
Pommeline
Polina
Rio
Sia
Theodora
Ursula
Vesta
Winnifred
Willa
Yulli
Zelda
Zinnia
