A Nickname Story: Joss

Joss Whedon via Wikipedia

Joss is a fascinating nickname to me. I'm not usually one who would consider using a unisex name, but I would love an opportunity to call my son OR daughter Joss. It's also a great given name, however the options of full names are plentiful and superb:

Boy Names
Joseph
Joshua
Josiah

Girl Names
Jocelyn
Josephine
Josette
Josie

Interestingly, Joss was the given name of 11 boys and 11 girls in 2011. There happen to be two celebrities (one male and one female) who are known as Joss: the (awesome) director/producer/writer Joss Whedon was born Joseph Hill Whedon and the singer/songwriter Joss Stone was born Jocelyn Eve Stoker. The name fits a baseball-wielding boy and a tutu-wearing girl. Whatever your preference, I do not see how parents can go wrong with this spunky choice.

Would you use Joss as a given name? If you like it as a nickname, which full name would you use?

Name Madness - Round 3

photo by Leo Reynolds via Flickr

Thank you to everyone who voted in Round 2! We had 44 responses this time and I'm so encouraged that the votes are increasing with each round. Round 2 had some close matches, one tie (involving Matilda again), and a few landslides (poor Sheldon). Here are the results (winner in bold):

#1
Claire 66%
Zoe 34%

#2
Ramona 52%
Elena 48%

#3
Josephine 55%
Genevieve 45%

#4
Celia 50%
Matilda 50%

#5
Hazel 48%
Penelope 52%

#6
Savannah 25%
Juliette 75%

#7
Camille 64%
Primrose 36%

#8
Willow 48%
Daphne 52%

#9
Pierce 41%
Declan 59%

#10
Thayer 39%
Nolan 61%

#11
Winston 41%
Conrad 59%

#12
Emmett 80%
Troy 20%

#13
Henry 86%
Axl 14%

#14
Luke 91%
Sheldon 9%

#15
Brody 66%
Saul 34%

#16
Frederick 25%
James 75%

Are you surprised that a certain name is still around? Are you disappointed that a certain name lost?

Using these results, I have created the ballot for Round 3. It's the Sweet Sixteen and voting is just going to get harder and harder as the number of names dwindle. You have the next week to VOTE! Round 3 ends Sunday, December 2. Please vote only once and for only one name in each match. Have fun!

Where Are They Now? - 1911 #21-30

Grace Kelly via Wikipedia

Continuing the Where Are They Now series, here is a look at the next 20 names in the Top 100 from 1911. You can review the Top 10 and #11-20 entries to compare.

1911 #21-30

21 Louis - #332 and steady (after rising to #20)
22 Fred - fell off the Top 1000 after 2002
23 Clarence - fell off the Top 1000 after 2010
24 Ralph - #953 and steady
25 Jack - #45 and steady (after falling to #179)
26 Carl - #591 and falling
27 David - #18 and falling (after rising to #1)
28 Howard - #960 and falling
29 Joe - #491 and falling
30 Samuel - #26 and steady (after falling to #72)

21 Irene - #689 and falling
22 Ruby - #109 and rising (after falling to #401)
23 Grace - #16 and rising (after falling to #397)
24 Annie - #386 and steady
25 Hazel - #211 and rising (after falling out of the Top 1000 for 20 years)
26 Virginia - #576 and steady
27 Thelma - fell off the Top 1000 after 1982
28 Martha - #772 and falling
29 Josephine - #182 and rising (after falling to #498)
30 Gertrude - fell off the Top 1000 after 1965

Jack and Samuel both fell and rose again since 1911. Ruby, Grace, and Josephine fell even further before turning things around. However, the biggest mover of the group is Hazel, falling completely out of the Top 1000 for twenty years, reentering in 1998 at #942, and rising quickly since. These names definitely fall in the "100 year rule" category. In this group of names, more have fallen out of the Top 1000 and we have our first reverse situation: David rose to #1 and then fell back within the hundred years.

I would like to see Virginia on the rise again. Do you see any of the other names making a comeback soon?

Women in the Senate

Hattie Caraway in 1914 via Wikipedia

The United States held its most recent election two weeks ago today, and 2013 will boast the beginning of a term that includes the most females in Senate history with twenty. That news prompted a name post of course!

Actually, what started rolling this ball was a picture of all the women of the Senate a friend posted on Facebook. That made me wonder about their names. I looked it up on Wikipedia and found that one of the earliest women in the Senate was named Hattie. THAT is what inspired me to post, since Hattie is my new name crush.

Hattie Caraway was a Senator for the state of Arkansas from 1931 to 1945, and the first female Senator to be elected and serve a full term.  She was born Hattie Ophelia Wyatt in 1878, which is before the Social Security Administration started recording name popularity, but in 1880 Hattie was ranked #27 and fell from there. Hattie's parents were William Carroll and Lucy Mildred; she married Thaddeus Horatius Caraway in 1902 and had three sons Paul, Forrest and Robert. She first entered politics by taking over her husband's Senate seat after he died in 1931. She then won a special election in 1932 to complete his term, won reelection later that same year as well as in the 1938 election, and then lost the 1944 election. She never served with more than one other woman while in the Senate.

There have been 39 women in the Senate since 1789 and five new female Senators were elected last week. Here are their first names, middle names when found, and birth year (and anything else I found interesting):

Rebecca Ann 1835
Hattie Ophelia 1978
Rose 1892
Dixie 1882 (parents were Payton and Isabel)
Gladys Shields 1890 (Shields was her mother's maiden name)
Vera Sarah 1889
Margaret Madeline 1897
Eva 1892
Hazel Pearl 1888
Maurine 1907
Elaine Lucille 1929 (parents were Errol and Myrl)
Muriel Fay 1912
Maryon 1925
Nancy 1932 (her mother's name was Theo)
Paula 1927 (her father was Paul and mother was Leone)
Barbara Ann 1936
Jocelyn 1922 (her mother was Magdalena)
Dianne Emiel 1933
Barbara 1940
Patricia Lynn "Patty" 1950
Carol Elizabeth 1947
Kathryn Ann "Kay" 1943
Olympia Jean 1947 (her father immigrated from Greece)
Sheila 1945
Susan Margaret 1952
Mary Loretta 1955*
Blanche Meyers 1960
Maria 1958
Jean Anne 1933 (parents were Reginald and Alvina)
Hillary Diane 1947
Deborah Ann "Debbie" 1950
Lisa Ann 1957
Mary Elizabeth Alexander "Liddy" 1936
Amy Jean 1960
Claire Conner 1953
Cynthia Jeanne 1947
Janet Kay 1953 (her father was Josie Perry "Joe")
Kirsten Elizabeth 1966 (her mother was Polly Edwina)
Kelly 1968
Debra "Deb" 1951
Tammy Suzanne 1962
Mary Katherine "Heidi" 1955
Mazie Keiko 1947
Elizabeth 1949

*Mary's parents were Verna and Maurice "Moon" and she was one of nine kids: Mary, Mark, Melanie, Michelle, Mitchell, Madeleine, Martin, Melinda, and Maurice, Jr.

Maybe I'll do the House of Representatives next.  ;)

Besides Wikipedia, I also gathered information from the Women in Congress website.

Name Madness - Round 2

photo by Leo Reynolds via Flickr

The results from Round 1 are in! I'm pleased to announce that thirty-nine people voted in this round, an increase from the twenty who voted last round. There were some big wins as well as a couple of ties, and you will now find out that tie-breaker goes to ME! There were also a few people who voted for both names in certain matches and in those cases, the percentages do not equal 100%. I understand some of these matches are hard, but please only vote for one name! Both ties were in matches where someone voted for both options. Here are the tallies for Round 1 (winners in bold):

#1
Virginia 26%
Claire 74%

#2
Bay 44%
Zoe 56%

#3
Ramona 51%
Margaret 51%

#4
Elena 85%
Regina 15%

#5
Anastasia 41%
Josephine 59%

#6
Edith 18%
Genevieve 82%

#7
Haddie 41%
Celia 59%

#8
Matilda 51%
Caroline 51%

#9
Mallory 28%
Hazel 72%

#10
Auden 23%
Penelope 77%

#11
Savannah 59%
Britta 41%

#12
Juliette 56%
Serena 46%

#13
Marian 38%
Camille 62%

#14
Astrid 41%
Primrose 59%

#15
Willow 72%
Arya 28%

#16
Daphne 72%
Hermoine 31%

#17
Deacon 36%
Pierce 64%

#18
Declan 51%
Hugo 49%

#19
Thayer 59%
Artie 41%

#20
Nolan 85%
Hoyt 15%

#21
Toby 26%
Winston 54%

#22
Conrad 72%
Archie 28%

#23
Emmett 77%
Damon 23%

#24
Gunnar 36%
Troy 64%

#25
Henry 87%
Tyrion 13%

#26
Gaius 38%
Axl 62%

#27
Luke 79%
Dexter 21%

#28
Sheldon 69%
Sherlock 31%

#29
Brody 56%
Malcolm 44%

#30
Brick 33%
Saul 67%

#31
Bertram 10%
Frederick 90%

#32
Cedric 44%
James 56%

What do you think? Any surprises? Any disappointments? I was a little sad to see Haddie go (although I prefer Hattie), and I wonder if you all really like Frederick or really dislike Bertram.

Using these results, I have created the ballot for Round 2. More great matches await you. You have the next week to VOTE! Round 2 ends Sunday, November 25. Please vote only once and for only one name in each match. Have fun!

Where Are They Now? - 1911 #11-20

Lillian Gish in 1921 via Wikipedia

Last week, I took a look at the Top 10 names of 1911 to see if any of them have fallen from the top only to rise again by 2011. As we saw, all but three of the names (Elizabeth, William and James) are still falling in popularity. I have decided to continue the research and examine the top names of 1911 20 at a time (10 of the girl names and 10 of the boy names) to see if there is a group of names that is more likely to follow the "100 year rule" than others. This week we look at the names ranked between 11 and 20.

1911 #11-20

11 Henry - #57 and rising (after falling to #146)
12 Walter - #375 and falling
13 Harry - #709 and falling
14 Willie - #614 and falling
15 Albert - #392 and steady
16 Harold - #843 and falling
17 Paul - #187 and falling
18 Arthur - #338 and steady
19 Raymond - #234 and falling
20 Richard - #127 and falling

11 Alice - #142 and rising (after falling to #444)
12 Florence - fell off the Top 1000 after 1981
13 Lillian - #22 and rising (after falling to #485)
14 Rose - #291 and rising (after falling to #362)
15 Ethel - fell off the Top 1000 after 1975
16 Evelyn - #24 and rising (after falling to #289)
17 Edna - fell off the Top 1000 after 1991
18 Gladys - fell off the Top 1000 after 1999
19 Louise - fell off the Top 1000 after 1991
20 Catherine - #161 and steady

Lillian is the biggest turnaround and proof of the "100 year rule" so far. Henry, Alice, Rose and Evelyn are also followers of the rule. However, this group has the biggest drops as well, with five of the ten girl names falling off of the Top 1000 with no foreseeable reentry in the near future. One thing that seems to be compatible to most ideas on baby names--boy names tend to be more consistent, with less drastic or dramatic movement. It will be interesting to see if Albert and Arthur start rising to the top again soon.

Note: I had to make some changes to the information from last week's post. Nothing changing the analysis, but the corrections have been made. 

Matilda Magazine

Announcing a new arrival! Last month, the first online magazine dedicated to baby names was born. Welcome to the world, Matilda Magazine!

The ladies behind Name Soiree and For Real Baby Names have come together to bring Matilda to life. I encourage you to check out the site for a ton of baby name love and appreciation! The magazine itself is full of baby name advice, trends, and name stories. Several name bloggers on my blog roll have made contributions, so you know it's great! But the site also has a boy and girl name database, polls, and a blog. Yours truly even has a new post on the blog:

When You Like Ben But Not Benjamin...

There is a Matilda page on Facebook that will give you a heads up on the magazine's issues as well as other name news. I won't keep you from it all any longer.

Names from Little Einsteins

via Wikipedia

When my kids became obsessed with Little Einsteins a few years ago, I started researching its episodes to find out what piece of music and art each one used. Much to my surprise and glee, my research unearthed name stories for each of the characters! I am thankful to Wikipedia for this information.

Leo - The red-headed character who loves to conduct music was named after famous conductor Leopold Stokowski. Leo is on the rise, ranking at #167 in 2011.

Annie - Leo's younger blonde sister who loves to sing was named after famous jazz singer Anni Rossi. Annie ranks at #386 in 2011 and has held steady in the 300s over the past couple of decades.

June - The possibly Asian-inspired character who loves to dance was named after famous choreographer June Taylor. June ranked at #470 in 2011 and is rising quickly; it had just reentered the Top 1000 in 2008 after a 20 year absence.

Quincy - The African-American character who loves to play musical instruments was named after famous musician/composer/arranger Quincy Jones. Quincy is the only name of the four that is falling somewhat, ranking at #599 in 2011.

The show originally ran from 2005 through 2009. Whether the creators intended to or not, they chose names (or namesakes) that are very fashionable for today!

Name Madness - Round 1

We're off to a great start! We had 20 voters for Round 0.5... let's shoot for more this week!

The results for Round 0.5 are as follows:

#1
McLean 3
Virginia 17

#2
Claire 16
Diana 4

#3
Macon 6
Deacon 14

#4
Gilbert 3
Pierce 17

You all definitely had your favorites in these first matches! There were no close calls in the play-in round and the winners will now move on to Round 1. Thanks to a friend, I found a better way to collect your votes for the remainder of the tournament. The ballot for Round 1 is embedded below. I apologize for any imperfect formatting on the blog. And for those who are wondering where these names came from, below the ballot is a list of the references for each character name.

Note: If you printed out the brackets from the Round 0.5 post, you will need to make a correction on it. I mistakenly included the name Damon twice. I have replaced the Damon from Match 27 with Luke.

I am so excited about a lot of these match-ups and can't wait to see the results! Have fun making your selections! Please vote only once and for only one name in each match.



Here is the list of where I got the character names. I realize that a lot of these names have more than one possible reference, but I list the one where it first caught my eye for this tournament:

McLean - What Happened to Goodbye
Diana - Anne of Green Gables
Virginia - Raising Hope
Claire - The Breakfast Club
Bay - Switched at Birth
Zoe - Firefly
Ramona - Ramona Quimby
Margaret - Little Women
Elena - Vampire Diaries
Regina - Once Upon a Time
Anastasia - Battlestar Galactica
Josephine - Little Women
Edith - Downton Abbey
Genevieve - White Girl Problems
Haddie - Parenthood
Celia - As You Like It
Matilda - Matilda
Caroline - Little House
Mallory - Family Ties
Hazel - The Fault in our Stars
Auden - Along for the Ride
Penelope - The Big Bang Theory
Savannah - Dear John
Britta - Community
Juliette - Nashville
Serena - Gossip Girl
Marian - Where We Belong
Camille - Parenthood
Astrid - White Oleander
Primrose - Hunger Games
Willow - Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Arya - Game of Thrones
Daphne - Switched at Birth
Hermoine - Harry Potter

Macon - Someone Like You
Gilbert - Anne of Green Gables
Deacon - Nashville
Pierce - Community
Declan - Revenge
Hugo - Hugo
Thayer - The Lying Game
Artie - Glee
Nolan - Once Upon a Time
Hoyt - True Blood
Toby - Switched at Birth
Winston - New Girl
Conrad - Revenge
Archie - Once Upon a Time
Emmett - Back to the Future
Damon - Vampire Diaries
Gunnar - Nashville
Troy - Community
Henry - Once Upon a Time
Tyrion - Game of Thrones
Gaius - Battlestar Galactica
Axl - The Middle
Luke - Star Wars
Dexter - Dexter
Sheldon - The Big Bang Theory
Sherlock - Sherlock Holmes
Brody - Glee
Malcolm - Firefly
Brick - Hart of Dixie
Saul - Battlestar Galactica
Bertram - All's Well That Ends Well
Frederick - Persuasion
Cedric - Harry Potter
James - James Bond

Where Are They Now? - 1911 Top 10

via Wikipedia

There is a so-called "100 year rule" in baby naming. Names have a good chance of becoming popular again after 100 years. This isn't necessarily the case all the time, as we all know that the rise and fall of names can happen drastically and unpredictably. But for fun, let's look back to 1911 and see where the top 10 names lie in 2011:

1911 Top 10

1 John - #27 and falling
2 William - #3 and rising (after falling to #20)
3 James - #17 and steady
4 George - #165 and falling
5 Robert - #61 and falling
6 Joseph - #22 and falling
7 Charles - #62 and falling
8 Frank - #308 and falling
9 Edward - #148 and falling
10 Thomas - #63 and falling

1 Mary - #112 and falling
2 Helen - #427 and falling
3 Margaret - #187 and falling
4 Dorothy - #937 and steady
5 Ruth - #362 and falling
6 Anna - #38 and falling (after falling and rising again)
7 Elizabeth - #11 and steady
8 Mildred - fell off the Top 1000 after 1984
9 Marie - #599 and falling
10 Frances - #789 and falling

Besides William, James, and Elizabeth, all of these names are still falling in popularity. Looking a little further into the top 100 of 1911, several "old-fashioned" names have made a return, examples include: Emma at #35 in 1911, fell to #458 before rising back up to #3 in 2011; Violet at #83 in 1911, fell off the Top 1000 chart before rising back up to #101 in 2011; and Ruby at #22 in 1911, fell to #401 before rising back up to #109 in 2011. Maybe the rule can be expanded a bit, because I feel like some of the Top 10 names from 1911 are due for a comeback in the next generation. I mean, if Hattie can come back from oblivion (was #86 in 1911, fell off to Top 1000 for 40 years, and just reentered at #993 in 2011), why can't Helen make a comeback?

Which of these names deserve to be rising stars again?

Names from Wreck-It Ralph

via imdb.com

A friend of mine sent my kids some toys from the movie Wreck-It Ralph and told me I would appreciate the names of the characters.  I have not seen the movie yet, but to say that I enjoy the names mentioned on the box the toys came in would be an understatement:

Gloyd Orangeboar
Crumbelina DiCarmello
Snowanna Rainbeau
Vanellope Von Schweetz
Taffyta Muttonfudge
Adorabeezle Winterpop
Candle Head
Rancis Fluggerbutter
Jubileena Bing-Bing
Minty Zaki
Swizzle Malarkey

How fun! While most of these names are probably not meant to be taken seriously, some of them can definitely be considered:

Snowanna - Nature-lovers who want to honor a family member named Anna could be drawn to this name.

Rainbeau - The name Rainbow was given to 10 girls in 2011. This alternate spelling could be attractive to those wanting to use it for a boy.

Taffyta - Taffeta is a type of fabric, and was a given name to 5 girls in 1966. Taff, Taffi, Taffie, and Taffy were also given names from the 1940s through the 1990s. Taffyta is a varied spelling that would go along with the current "y" trend.

Vanellope - I'm guessing this is pronounced like Penelope, which is becoming more and more popular ever since it reentered the top 1000 in 2001. Van and Nell are just a couple of possible nicknames.

Rancis - Subtract the F in Francis and you have Rancis. Unfortunately, it's a little too close to the word "rancid" for my liking, but others may see the name's appeal. Twenty-eight boys were named Rance in 2011.

Jubileena - Just add a popular ending to Jubilee and you have Jubileena.  Jubilee was given to 103 girls in 2011.

There are other interesting names from the movie. From what I understand, some of them are names from video games, but I think you can see some similarities in the types of names chosen (not in the top 100 and falling in popularity):

Ralph - Ranked #953 in 2011 and holding steady in the 900s after falling.

Felix - Ranked #311 in 2011 and has remained in the 300s for the past 60 years.

Calhoun - Political history buffs like me might recognize this surname from the first half of the 19th century, and it was a given name to at least 5 boys in 1886.

Wynnchel - Wynchell is an English name and means "drawer of water".

Mary - Ranked #112 in 2011 and falling.

Don - Fell off the Top 1000 after 2001.

Deanna - Ranked #817 in 2011 and falling.

Roy - Ranked #565 in 2011 and falling.

Duncan - Ranked #799 in 2011 and falling.

Clyde - Fell off the Top 1000 after 1998.

Ken - Fell off the Top 1000 after 1995.

Ryu - Japanese in origin and means "dragon".

What do you think of the names from Wreck-It Ralph? Do you have a favorite?

Let Name Madness 2012 Begin!

While those in the United States are making their vote for President count this week, I invite everyone to make their vote count here on NameFreak! It's time for Name Madness!

I would like to thank you all so much for your character name contributions. You gave me a huge field to work with and after I chose the 68 names to be included, they were randomly placed in 34 matches. The resulting match-ups are going to be tough, but a lot of fun. A wide variety of names from books, movies and television are now subject to your votes!

Here is how it works. The brackets are set up just like in the basketball tournament. Instead of the teams playing a game to determine the winner, you pick the name you prefer from each "match" or pairing for each round. I will tally up the results and then post the next round with the winners of the previous round, at which point you will choose the name that you prefer in the new matches, and so on until we have a winner for girls and a winner for boys. I will leave each round open for a week, so make sure you make your mark and vote as soon as you can!

To complicate things further, I have decided to do a play-in round, or Round 0.5.  We will start things slow this week; you will vote on only four matches, the winners of which will go on to compete in Round 1 next week. Here are the matches:

ROUND 0.5

#1
McLean
Virginia

#2
Claire
Diana

#3
Macon
Deacon

#4
Gilbert
Pierce

I searched for a way of doing a survey online, but realized the easiest way for me to collect your votes is through the comments. So, in your comment, put the number of each pairing and the name you choose. For example: #1 McLean, #2 Claire, #3 Macon, etc. (Probably the easiest way to do this would be to copy the list, paste it into your comment, and then delete the name that is NOT your choice.)

I have created a document you can print out to help you see the process more clearly. You can see it below or access it here. Each match is color coded, and you can write the winner of each round over the number of the match. You can also use it to keep track of your votes by circling your choice. You may have also noticed that Round 1 is also already printed on it, so you have a sneak peak of next week's matches.



You have through Sunday, November 11 to vote for Round 0.5! The winners will be announced next Monday, November 12, along with the matches for Round 1. And then we do it all over again. :)

Spread the word so we can have as many votes as possible! Have fun!

Diverted by a Name: Thiago

via FoxSports.com

It was announced recently that Barcelona soccer star Lionel Messi and his girlfriend Antonella Roccuzzo had a baby boy, Thiago. I was immediately diverted. What a fabulous name!

According to Behind the Name, Thiago is a variant of Tiago, which is the Portuguese form of James (derived from Santiago). Messi is from Argentina, where Thiago was ranked #6 in 2011 (Santiago was ranked #2). It's interesting that the name is so popular in Argentina, where they speak Spanish, and not as much in Brazil, where they speak Portuguese (Thiago ranked #33 in Brazil in 2011). Santiago is also a Spanish form of James, but Diego, Jaime and Jacobo are other options. In Spain, where Thiago Messi was born, Diego was #9, Jaime was #45, and Santiago was #70 (2010 rankings).

Wikipedia says that Thiago is "only used in Brazil" and is the "Brazilian anglicized spelling" of the name. I guess it crossed the border into Argentina in recent years. Famous Thiagos include Thiago Silva the fighter, Thiago Silva the footballer, and Thiago Alves the martial arts, all from Brazil, as well as Thiago Motta the footballer born in Brazil but of Italian decent.

James is one of my favorite names, and many of its variants are great names as well. Besides Thiago, there is Séamus from Ireland, Iago from Wales, Giacomo/Jacopo from Italy, and Yakov from Russia (with Yasha as a nickname). Others include Jacob from the English and similarly Jakob from Denmark, Estonia, Germany, Iceland, the Netherlands, Norway, Slovenia, Sweden and Jakub from Belarus, Bosnia, Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia (the Js in those names are generally pronounced with a Y sound).

What do you think of Thiago? Do you prefer it or another variant of James?

Welcome to NOVember!

via mycutegraphics.com

As we enter into November, I wonder about the likability of the month's name as a baby name. So, I look into the history of it, as well as the history in general of names that begin with the letters N-O-V.

First, let's look at meanings. November means "ninth month" and was the ninth month of the ancient Roman calendar. The meanings of names that begin with Nov- usually include "new" or "young".

Now, let's look at popularity throughout history. I checked every 10 years since 1881 and listed each name that begins with Nov- along with the number of babies born with that name:

1881
None

1891
Nova 13
Novella 13

1901
Nova 23
Novella 28
Novie 8

1911
Nova 36, 5
Novella 63
Novie 8

1921
Nova 91, 5
Noval 5
Novel 6
Novella 140
Novelle 7
Novice 9
Novie 10

1931
Nova 75, 7
Novella 90
Novie 5

1941
Nova 35
Novella 74

1951
Nova 33
Novel 7
Novella 53

1961
Nova 23
Novella 37

1971
Nova 46, 6
Novella 32
November 6

1981
Nova 53
Novella 6
Novia 7

1991
Nova 20
Novella 7
Novia 7
Novian 15

2001
Nova 86, 19
Novalee 62
Novaleigh 6
Novali 5
Novella 7
November 16
Novia 6

2011
Nova 293, 41
Novah 21, 6
Novak 19
Novalea 7
Novalee 83
Novaleigh 15
Novali 6
Novalie 12
Novalynn 8
Novella 33
November 30
Novia 7

Nova and Novella have a constant presence over recorded history. Novalee, and it's various spellings, has been around since 2000, probably due to the book by Billie Letts and the subsequent movie starting Natalie Portman, Where the Heart Is, in which the lead character is named Novalee Nation. Other names I saw in the annual lists that weren't used in the years above are Novalene, Novaline, Novaly, Novena, Noveta, and Novis.

November first appeared as a given name in the 1970s, but has only recently started to make a scene (albeit a small one). The thirty Novembers born in 2011 are the most born in any year. Visually, I think it's a beautiful name and it has a pretty nickname in Ember. Out of all the Nov- names, I like Novalene or Novaline in terms of sound. But overall, I really love Novella. It is a word name literature-enthusiasts would love (a novella is a narrative that is shorter than a novel but longer than a novelette), flows nicely, and has the always attractive "ah" ending we love for our girls.

For boys, Novian has a strong sound to which people who like Adrian or Damion might be attracted.

What do you think of November as a given name? Which of the Nov- names is your favorite?