Blog instalments have been on a bit of a hiatus of late due primarily to a hectic academic schedule. Apologies for the dry spell. I’m breaking the drought now to say a big, big thanks to everyone who took the time to answer our survey questions on baby naming preferences. The response was truly overwhelming and has been invaluable in helping to guide the development of the Brainstormer: Mach 2 (development of which continues unabated).

In the meantime, I thought I would make available some results from the survey which may have broader public-interest.

Our survey asked, among other things, which of 15 name attributes most influenced preferences in choosing a name. According to readers of this blog, the most influential decision factors are:

• Sounds (68%)
  
• Feelings and associations (53%)
  
• Style (49%)
  
• Popularity / originality (47%); and
  
• Honouring of family members (45%)

The middle ranks are made up of more special interest factors such as meanings (43%), origins (27%) and spellings (39%). Rhythm is also a popular consideration at 43%.

Compatibility with siblings names was a consideration for only 26% of respondents, but this number might be skewed because less than half of the respondents admitted to having had children.

Historical and literary references are favoured by a relatively small minority; while the least important factor for respondents was association with a prominent namesake (only 16%); a result consistent with an earlier survey I ran on the subject: Namesakes where voted least popular feature request in an earlier poll. Okay—I get the message.

Perhaps most interesting of all is how diverse preferences are with regard to these categories. Only two categories received more than 50% of the vote with the remainder fairly equally represented. And perhaps it’s not surprising. You can’t get much more personal than in choosing a name, and these numbers reflect that.

We’ve been hard at work to bring you a better brainstormer experience. Today, we’re excited to announce the arrival of the latest brainstormer incarnation, replete with all-new splendidness…

A taste of the new treats:

• The new-look name graph is leaner and meaner, showing multiple levels of name association concurrently for a greater contextual view and more flexible navigation.
• Associations are no longer limited to 20 links per node. The new relation chaining feature now allows you to explore literally thousands of connections for each name so you can delve deeper into the name universe.
• There are more great name themes being published every day and an updated theme manager which makes it easier to keep track of your own.

New Brainstormer Screenshots

My step father, a fiercely patriotic ‘Southern Man’ New Zealander has oft’ proclaimed that the Kiwis “punch above their weight”. It’s not just nationalistic pride either. For its modest population of 4 million people, this little Pacific island nation has certainly earned its share of accolades: Whether it’s scaling Everest or claiming the America’s cup, the Kiwis are as resilient as they are industrious.

Now, you can add one more title to their auspicious array:

World’s Whackiest Nation of Baby Namers

Yes, it’s official. The Kiwis are number one. The baby name world is still reverberating after last year’s tragic story of poor Talula which blew the cover off the sordid and harrowing history of New Zealand’s most appalling baby namers.

Now, the saga continues as on January 11 the world said hello to bouncing bundle Zealand-New. Welcomed to the world by parents Tomicina and Mana at Tauranga Hospital.

Don’t get me wrong; I’m not suggesting Zealand-New comparable to the likes of Midnight Chardonnay or Number 16 Bus Shelter (actual names of some of her less fortunate Kiwi contemporaries). Actually, on some level, I find it quite appealing in its freshness. I just hope the child’s handle doesn’t cause any confusion for her future post master.

The little girl’s full name is Zealand-New Sharron Phyllis Atareta Davoren. Sharron honours her grandmother, who is apparently responsible for Zealand-New and has certainly done her part to help cement NZ’s outstanding reputation for baby name novelty.

“It is unusual to name your child that”, Mother, Tomicina said.

The Kiwis also have quite a talent for understatement.

Source: Stuff.co.nz

The good folks over at Name.com have recently released the beta version of their Baby Naming Wizard (not to be confused with Laura Wattenberg’s Baby Name Wizard).

Like all good Wizards, it’s a no brainer to operate: Simply enter your last name and your baby name criteria, then press the magic button and like a Vegas slot machine, the Wizard will spin you up candidate first and middle names for your consideration. You can filter the lists by gender, name length, meanings, origins, popularity or particular letters.

The Name Wiki is an open content, community effort and a great source of name information.

Any child can tell you that the sole purpose of a middle name is so he can tell when he’s really in trouble. — Dennis Frakes

Ah, middle names: those seldom uttered but much anguished upon appendages of personal appellation. Pride of our parents, mirth of our peers, bane of our preparatory schoolyard years.

Have you ever wondered where our middle names come from? I did, and I discovered there are some historical and social factors that commonly influence our choices. What follows is a humours look at the Seven Species of middle place monikers. Which one do you most identify with?

Read the rest of this entry »