I started April off under a bit of a cloud health-wise. A nasty virus took its hold to the point where just a five minute walk exhausted me. Consequently, I didn't get out in the world much to discover new names this month, so television and film became my only source for name-musings.
Auli'i
I know I'm extremely late to the party, but I finally got to see Moana this month. Moana itself is a great Hawaiian name (meaning "ocean") that is very accessible. I can easily see this getting more use in the next few years.
But, I'm most intrigued by the name of the young actress who voiced Moana: Auli'i Cravalho. You can hear her pronounce her name here, but it's basically ow-LEE-ee.
This Hawaiian name (meaning "dainty") isn't especially easy for English-speakers, but I'm just happy that this name has had a chance to have it's moment in the spotlight and get more recognition.
Gordian
This one comes from my favourite TV viewing: history documentaries. I was reminded this month of Gordian. Emperor Gordian I and Gordian II (father and son) were joint rulers who ruled for a mere month. The former's grandson -- the son of his daughter Antonia Gordiana -- became Gordian III, the youngest ever emperor at the age of 13.
Gordian is the anglicised form of the Roman family name Gordianus, meaning "from Gordium," the capital of Phrygia in Asia Minor.
Esra
A Netflix account + virus = lots of obscure film watching, and a chance to see subtitled international films -- something I rarely have time to concentrate on in my multi-tasking lifestyle. So, cue lots of Turkish films (Netflix UK seems to have a whole stash of them at the moment).
One of the films, Romantik Komedi (how fun is that title!) features the heroine's name as Esra. It's pronounced the same as Biblical Ezra, but is a feminine name in Turkey as the Turkish form of the Arabic Isra meaning "night journey."
Several notable Turkish women have borne the name, including a Turkish princess.
Ece
Another Turkish name which caught my eye was Ece, pronounced EH-jay, meaning "queen."
I was struck by the fact that this is a Turkish vocabulary word, as well as a top 100 given name in Turkey (ranking #62).
As English-speakers, we’ve come to expect that the names we choose “mean” something, but those meanings most often feel removed in abstract – either a translation of a foreign word or, occasionally, an abstract noun (grace, hope, faith etc). Girls called Queen are rare here -- it smacks of being too fanciful, a bit hippyish, or, for some, a bit trashy. But girls called "queen" in Turkey are common.
It's an interesting reminder that in Western European languages we are actually quite unusual in our lack of vocabulary words which we use as names compared with most other languages and cultures around the globe.
Micah
The 2016 stats for Northern Ireland are out! While looking through the top 500 (see the full list here) I was surprised to see Micah at #127.
It is a great Biblical choice, with its finger right on the style-pulse thanks to its similarity to popular Noah, Joshua, Elijah, Eli and Ezra. It is little wonder then that it is catching on in Northern Ireland, but the reason I was surprised is that it is streets ahead of the rest of the UK. Micah ranked #322 in England and Wales in 2015, and #331 in Scotland in 2016.
Gisela
April has been "the month of Gisela" for me. Not only is it featuring currently as a new main character in the second series of the BBC's Anglo-Saxon/Viking epic Last Kingdom, but also MP Gisela Stuart has been talked of much on my local news as she has announced that she is stepping down from her Birmingham constituency.
Both the character and the MP use the German pronunciation for the name (GEEZ-ə-lə), which caught me off guard when I first heard them both. I'm so used to the anglicised 'jee-ZEL-a', that I didn't recognise it as "Gisela" in my mind when the name hit my ears. Now, I'm hearing 'GEEZ-ə-lə' so much, I wonder whether that has become my new default.
Lio
Footballer Steven Gerrard and his wife Alex have welcomed a son and continued their L-name theme: Lio George, a brother for Lilly-Ella, 13, Lexie, 10 and Lourdes, five.
With this spelling, it's appealing to think that fellow footballer Lionel Messi is the inspiration (apparently Gerrard is a fan), but I'm more convinced that the Gerrards were simply looking for a spelling that was a little "different."
I'm used to seeing almost every imaginable spelling for popular names when I compile my combined spellings rankings for England and Wales every year, and I often hear parents talk of using a different spelling of their favourite name as a way of being "more unique" (the inverted commas are very deliberate here). It is remarkable then that the spelling Lio is incredibly rare, especially given it's similarity to Lionel, and has only ranked twice in the last 20 years.
But, now the young Master Gerrard sporting this spelling, I expect we will be seeing it a LOT more now.
