What's in a name? These days the names that our grandparents and parents would have considered 'unusual' (or simply not considered at all!) really aren't that remarkable.
There's always so much anticipation around celebrities announcing their babies' names. It's almost as if we expect wacky, way-out choices.
Baby Harper: Victoria Beckham named her daughter after her favourite author. Photo:RexFeatures
Take baby Harper Beckham for example. Named after Harper Lee, the author of Natalie Portman and Benjamin Millepied haven't made any secret about the place baby Aleph holds in their hearts. Aleph is both the first letter in the Hebrew alphabet, and the word for the number one.
While I was pregnant, and before we knew we were having a boy, Kris had a dream about the name Ethan. He woke up and said to me that in his dream he was walking along and called back to our little boy who was walking behind him, and he said "Ethan".
Neither of us was familiar with the name but we loved it, and it stuck with us through my pregnancy, so we decided on that name. It suits him so well. His second name, Edward, was chosen after Kris' father's name and, as he gets older, it turns out Ethan looks just like Eddie!
Admittedly Kris and I chose what I would call 'traditional' names for Ethan, but I think these days anything goes. And if anyone can identify with the desire for an atypical name it's me. When I was a teenager I changed my name from Danielle (a not uncommon moniker in the classrooms and neighbourhoods of my childhood) to Dannii because nobody else spelled it that way.
In an era where communications tools like Twitter and Facebook make everybody a celebrity in their own living rooms, why are we surprised that people try to choose names for their children that underline their individuality and might one day help them stand out from the crowd?
I'd love to hear the inspirations behind your names - let me know in a comment below!
D x