Beachy Names

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Summer is in full swing, and what better time than now to give your child a beachy name? Here are my favorites.

Blue- The color of almost everything at the beach, from the waves to the sky.

Coral- A cute, retro spin on the trendy Cora.

Cove- A cool, up-and-coming nature name for boys.

Dune- A unisex name (also spelled Doon) that conjures up images of the sand hills.

Harbor- For those of you who want a beachy alternative to Harper.

Lake- In Chicago we swim at the lake, so this will always have a beachy feel to me.

Marine- Chicer and more unique than Marina. Marine is very trendy in France.

Oceane- One of my favorite water names. This French name is pronounced oh-SHAY-ahn.

Palma- Palm trees remind me of beach vacations, and Palma reminds me of palm trees. Perfect.

Pearl- The best ocean treasure.

Roxy- Roxy is a cute swimwear company based in California. She's usually used as a nickname for Roxanne, but your beach babe can rock it on it's own.

Sandy- Dated, but most definitely beachy.

Sea- Sea is another one of my favorite water names. She's absolutely lovely. Use her on her own, or as a nickname for Season.

Sky- The beach isn't all about the sand and water--the sky is beautiful as well.

Summer- The best time to go to the beach.

Month Names: January

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Happy New Year everybody! I'm so glad it's finally 2015. It's going to be a good year, I can feel it. If you're having a baby this month, consider sneaking a January-related name in the choice pool. I have a lot of great options for you.

Birthstone: 
Garnet- Garnet is a great gemstone name, and one of the few that works better on boys.

Birth Flower:
Camellia- Camellia is a beautiful name on her own, but you can also call her Cammie.
Carnation- I'm not sure how usable Carnation is as a name. You could call her Carnie?
Plum Blossom- In China, January's flower is the Plum Blossom. You might not want to use them as a set, but Plum or Blossom make fun names on their own.
Snowdrop- Snowdrop doesn't really work as a name, but there are names that are related to snow, like Neve.

Birth Colors: 
Black- Black itself isn't a name, but Ebony, Jet, Noir, and Onyx are.
Dark Blue- We went over dark blue names in November. I stand by my picks of Cobalt, Indigo, and Navy.

Star Sign:
Aquarius- Aquarius means water bearer, so a water name like Bay, Lake, or Oceane would be perfect.
Capricorn- Last month I suggested Caprice as an option. Does it work?

Related to January:
Jan Names- Most of the Jan- names are not in style, but Jane, January, and Janson are in vogue.
Winter- Winter is in full swing, why not name your daughter after her birth season?

10 L Name You Never Thought of Using: Girls

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L is a super popular letter for names right now. Lily, Layla, Lucy, and Leah are some of the most popular ones, which definitely shows a trend. We like L names that are two syllables, have a strong vowel sound, and preferably a "Y" in there somewhere. The names on this list might not meet all that criterion, but they have something else going for them--their popularity. None of these L names are in the top 1000, so you don't need to worry that your daughter will go by "Leonie F." in school.

Lake- I have a feeling actress Lake Bell will give this one a boost (will we see her in next year's top 1000?) but she still won't be that popular. Lake is a great nature name that works for both genders, but now swings female.

Larkin- A unisex surname that has one of the sweetest nicknames--Lark.

Leatrice- Is Beatrice too popular for you? (she ranks at 593, so I doubt it). Try Leatrice, which is almost the same name, but with an L.

Leonie- Pronounce her however you like (is it LAY-oh-nie, lay-OH-nie, LEE-oh-nie, or lee-OH-nie?) but you can't really go wrong. She's a super cute name, and an excellent way to honor all the Leonas and Leos in your life.

Libra- I've talked about Libra a lot in the past, she's one of the best star sign names out there. Libby would be a nice nickname.

Lilias- She's one of the few full forms of Lily that hasn't become very popular. I think she's the most gorgeous of the bunch; I would choose her over Lillian or Liliana any day.

Lilo- I adore Lilo, she's much more spunky than Lily. But the Disney character has turned me off to her, I wonder if other Lilo lovers feel the same.

Linden- A unisex tree name that I prefer for girls. Linden would make a great modern way to honor a Lindsay.

Lolita- I know why everyone doesn't want to name their daughter Lolita. But gosh, she's such a pretty name. Any brave parents out there?

Lotus- So many nature names this week! Lotus is a lovely, almost ethereal, flower name, perfect for your beautiful, mellow baby girl.

Lucienne- A very sophisticated and French way to get to Lucy. She's much prettier than Lucille, in my opinion.

Super Anagram Names

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I've talked about Anagram Names in the past, but today we are going to discuss the Super Anagram. We've all heard of that family with the kids named Alex, Axel, Xela, Lexa, and Xeal (that's boy, boy, girl, girl, girl), and that got me thinking about other names that can produce the same effect. Hence, the Super Anagram. To qualify as a Super Anagram, there must be at least four useable names produced, with at least three being well-known and/or legitimate names. The others can be uncommon names or something that could be a name (Let's face it, you wouldn't use Xela under normal circumstances). The Super Anagram is an uncommon way to connect all your children's names, albeit an obvious way. Just a warning before I go on- this list features A LOT of misspellings/creative spellings, and not all of the names make great sibsets. Don't be alarmed.

A, A, N, Y
Anay, Anya, Naya, Yana

A, C, E, L
Alec, Cael, Cale, Clea, Lace

A, C, I, L
Cail, Cali, Clia, Laci

A, D, E, V
Evad, Dave, Deva, Veda

A, D, I, N
Adin, Andi, Dani, Dina, Nadi

A, E, D, N
Aden, Dane, Dean, Edna

A, E, K, L
Alek, Elka, Kale, Lake

A, E, L, N
Alen, Elan, Lane, Lena, Neal

A, E, L, X
Alex, Axel, Lexa, Xale, Xeal, Xela

A, G, I, N
Angi, Gani, Gina, Inga

A, I, K, M
Kami, Kima, Maki, Mika

A, I, K, N
Anik, Inka, Kina, Nika

A, I, L, M
Amil, Liam, Lima, Mila

A, I, L, S
Ilsa, Isla, Lasi, Lisa, Sali

A, I, L, V
Alvi, Liva, Vail, Vali

A, I, M, R
Irma, Mari, Mira, Rami

A, I, N, R
Arin, Nari, Nira, Rain, Rina

A, I, R, S
Arsi, Irsa, Risa, Sari, Sira

A, I, T, Z
Itza, Tazi, Tiza, Zita

A, M, O, R
Amor, Mora, Omar, Roma

A, N, O, R
Aron, Nora, Orna, Roan, Rona

E, I, K, L
Elki, Keli, Kiel, Kile

E, I, L, N
Elin, Leni, Neil, Nile

E, L, N, O
Elon, Leon, Noel, Nole


It's pretty obvious that not all of these would make great sibsets. I wouldn't suggest having kids name Lena and Lane, or Noel and Noel. That being said, some of them do work really well. My favorite was the Amor, Mora, Omar, and Roma set. They all have distinct sounds, start with different letters, and have an exotic, Latin feel to them.

Some interesting statistics:
All of the names here have four letters: two vowels and two consonants. With the exception of the first set, none of the vowels repeat within the same sets.
A is the most popular vowel (as well as letter), accounting for 23% of all letters, and is in 88% of all letter groupings.
I was the second most popular vowel, as 15% of all letters, and in 46% of all groupings.
L was the most popular consonant, as approximately 12% of all letters and in 45% of all groups.
Close runner up was N, accounting for 10% of all letters, and was in 42% of all groupings.
The only vowel not featured was U.
Only seven consonants did not appear, and those were B, F, H, J, P, Q, and W.
There are a total of four creative spellings of Aaron featured on this list.

In conclusion, this would be a fun link between children. You CAN pull it off tastefully, but you have to have the right set of letters. If you just plan on having two or three kids with anagram names, check out my post on regular Anagram Names, for options that have been selected for being a good match.

Chicago Neighborhood Names

Chicago has hundreds of neighborhoods. I pulled the ones with the most name potential.

Albany- There's an Albany Park here in Chicago, but most people think of New York first.
Anderson- Andersonville is one of the best neighborhoods in Chicago, and Anderson is stylish right now. Bonus points for the nickname Anders.
Arcadia- For Arcadia Terrace. A little clunky, but wearable.
Archer- A cool name for boys right now, this one can represent Archer Heights.
Austin- More Texas than Chicago neighborhood.
Avalon- An awesome alternative to Ava, there's a neighborhood called Avalon Park in Chicago.
Beverly- A little dated, but her sounds are on track to be stylish.
Brighton- A unisex name more common for girls.
Chester- For West Chesterfield. He's very vintage and possibly ready for revival.
Douglas- Another old man name, there's a Douglas and Douglas Park in Chicago.
Edison- A cool surname name perfect for lovers of science or Edison Park.
Forest- Forest (or more likely, Forrest) is another revival. This is the spelling used for the neighborhood Forest Glen.
Glen- A vintage unisex name that's short and sweet.
Ford- Whether it's after Henry Ford or Ford City, he's a neat name endorsed by celebrities.
Gage- The perfect tough boy name.
Gale- Galewood is a neighborhood in Chicago, and thanks to The Hunger Games, Gale is now unisex (especially this spelling).
Garfield- Garfield still makes us think of cats, but his nickname Gar would be cool to honor Garfield Park or Ridge.
Grace- For Graceland. A common, slightly boring girls name.
Irving- Another vintage pick, he comes with the nickname Irv.
Jackson- Super popular pick for boys.
Jefferson- A unique way to honor a Jeffrey, or Jefferson Park.
Jeffrey- He's dated, but not a bad pick.
Kelvyn- Very andro-girly, this one's for Kelvyn Park.
Kennedy- She's a popular unisex pick for girls.
Ken- For Kenwood. Very Sixties, surfer boy vibe.
Lake- There are four neighborhoods with Lakeview in the name. Lake makes a cool first or middle for either gender.
LeClaire- A cool update on Claire; after LeClaire Courts.
Lincoln- Lincoln Park and Lincoln Square are both very popular 'hoods here. Lincoln is a popular, now unisex name (thanks to Kristen Bell) that is rising up the charts.
Logan- A widely used unisex name, though more often for boys.
Mary- A classic name for girls that can be used for either Marycrest or Marynook.
Mayfair- A unique update on the sugary sweet May.
McKinley- Another andro-girly name, this one's for McKinley Park.
Morgan- A top 100 girls name, but used for both genders.
North- Not specifically representing any neighborhood, but North is still one of my favorites (especially for a girl).
Oak- This would make a cool middle for either gender.
Peterson- A contemporary way to honor Peter.
Prairie- For the Prairie District. One part modern. Two parts hippie.
Raven- Ravenswood is a fun neighborhood here in Chicago. Love it too? Raven an underused option.
River- Becoming more and more popular for both genders.
Roger- Rogers Park is Chicago's most north-east tip. Roger is a nice, vintage name that can honor this lakeside neighborhood.
Roscoe- An interesting name that's practically unheard of.
Rose- Overused as a middle, underused as a first. Rose can be for Rosehill, Roseland, or Rosemoor.
Scott- For Scottsdale. An up and coming dad name.
Sheridan- An undiscovered unisex name.
Washington- Not sure if I'd stick my kid with this one, but he'd make a cool middle.
Wrigley- Whether it's after Wrigley Field or Wrigleyville, you hear many a dog called Wrigley in Chicago.

Of course, why not just Chicago? It has the nickname Chi, and the ever-popular "O" ending. Maybe for a middle? ;)