# Given names off the beaten path **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 24, 2013, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216 "2013-05-24T13:49:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/41 "2013-05-25T18:09:01Z")
> [@LawMonkey](#): > > I plan on naming my future cats after bad Roman emperors. My current cat is named Mayhem; she inherited the moniker from a ferret (and then proceeded to live up to it). My mom used to have a cat named Mayhem. He was a good cat. Lasted a long time, too–he died last year at 17. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/42 "2013-05-25T18:13:46Z")
N/M ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/43 "2013-05-25T18:14:49Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#): > > As mentioned in earlier threads, Thor (also spelled Thor) Oops. That should be “also spelled Tor”. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/44 "2013-05-25T18:23:26Z")
The combination of my forename and surname is unique within the U.K.; there are several Americans who share it, ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/45 "2013-05-25T18:46:02Z")
One of my favorite rock stars is Todd Rundgren. In addition to his daughter Liv Tyler (nee Rundgren) he has three sons - Rex, Randy and his youngest Rebop. Which is not as far afield as Frank Zappa’s children Dweezil, Moon Unit, Ahmet and Diva. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/46 "2013-05-25T18:58:00Z")
> [@Zeldar](#): > > How many Geronimo or Cochise names are you aware of outside the Native American community? Do you accept Jerónimo? Pretty popular in some locations, usually either the patron saint is St Hyeronimus or there is a large monastery by that name. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/47 "2013-05-25T19:02:33Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > Do you accept Jerónimo? Pretty popular in some locations, usually either the patron saint is St Hyeronimus or there is a large monastery by that name. Cool! ---
**Author:** ![AngelSoft](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angelsoft/32/440_2.png) [@AngelSoft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AngelSoft)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/48 "2013-05-25T19:12:45Z")
I’ve probably mentioned this before, but when I worked daycare back in the late 90s, I saw A LOT of kids who were named after their method of conception. Ie, what their mother was under the influence of when she got knocked up. The three that I remember specifically are Hennessy, Sativa and Alizé. The mothers were very proud of their childrens’ names and were very forthcoming with their origin. I thought it was a bit lowbrow myself, but whatever. ---
**Author:** ![gracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8e7dd6/32.png) [@gracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gracer)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/49 "2013-05-25T19:20:19Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > One of my favorite rock stars is Todd Rundgren. In addition to his daughter Liv Tyler (nee Rundgren) he has three sons - Rex, Randy and his youngest Rebop. > > Which is not as far afield as Frank Zappa’s children Dweezil, Moon Unit, Ahmet and Diva. Oh, and of course: I have a friend whose _first_ name is Zappa. I’m sure there are more… (And my grandmother’s best friend’s grandson is called Jagger, which means nothing to my granny so she always refers to him as “Bugger-Or-Something”) ---
**Author:** ![jehan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f6c823/32.png) [@jehan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jehan)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/50 "2013-05-25T20:16:17Z")
> [@LawMonkey](#): > > My best friend’s daughter, who is without doubt the most awesome kid in the world, is named Rowan. My cousin’s daughter is named Harper. > > I plan on naming my future cats after bad Roman emperors. My current cat is named Mayhem; she inherited the moniker from a ferret (and then proceeded to live up to it). Rowan has been popular for the past decade or so. It’s a top 500 name for girls, and slightly less so for boys, but still fairly popular. Harper’s popularity has exploded over the past decade- it’s now number 24 in the US. She won’t be the only one in her grade at school. Surnames as first names for both boys and girls (Taylor, Harper, Archer, Mason, Cooper and such) is the latest trend- taking over from the rhymes-with-Aiden trend on the past decade. ---
**Author:** ![campp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@campp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/campp)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/51 "2013-05-25T20:49:56Z")
I’ve met a Woodfin and a guy named Booger in Texas. ---
**Author:** ![11811](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/1/9d8465/32.png) [@11811](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/11811)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/52 "2013-05-25T23:04:31Z")
I know a guy who named his son Judas. ---
**Author:** ![11811](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/1/9d8465/32.png) [@11811](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/11811)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/53 "2013-05-25T23:08:56Z")
I also went to school with a Merlin, but he went by a nickname (no, it wasn’t “Wiz”). ---
**Author:** ![11811](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/1/9d8465/32.png) [@11811](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/11811)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2013, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/54 "2013-05-25T23:53:24Z")
And there was a co-worker of Chinese descent named “Babyshark.” ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2013, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/55 "2013-05-26T04:51:08Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > One of my favorite rock stars is Todd Rundgren. In addition to his daughter Liv Tyler (nee Rundgren) he has three sons - Rex, Randy and his youngest Rebop. Liv Tyler is not Rundgren’s biological daughter. She is Steven Tyler’s daughter. When she was born, her mother, Bebe Buell, who was living with Rundgren, named him as the father, and Liv was given Rundgren’s last name. Buell didn’t want to admit Tyler was the father because he was heavily involved with drugs and she felt he wasn’t fit to be in her daughter’s life, but Liv learned the truth at the age of eight. Liv Tyler’s relationship to Steven Tyler became public knowledge in 1991 and they have remained close since. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2013, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/56 "2013-05-26T05:12:22Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#): > > I’ve never met an Odin, though (nor any Baldurs or Lokis, in case you’re wondering), and I guess I’d have to go to Greece to find a Herakles. An acquaintance here just named his son Odin. I think he wanted Hercules but compromised; we agreed Odin will be a big name to fill. Since I have a first (sort of Welsh), middle (Greek), Confirmation (French) and last name(German), I’m pretty sure no one has ever had my combination. ---
**Author:** ![Claverhouse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/13edae/32.png) [@Claverhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Claverhouse)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2013, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/57 "2013-05-26T05:36:34Z")
Well my name combination is pretty unique, but more through chance than oddity of any of them. The forename is an English variant of a German variant of a common European name, which like most is ultimately of Old High German origin — used affectionately by squaddies to respectfully denote their officers; and the last is a once common Irish name. The internet has only shown one other person with this name, and he was Canadian — in the 18th century. The kicker though is my middle christian name, which is that of a once famous explorer. I can’t think name uniqueness has affected me in any way; but I’m glad of all my names, and envy continental royalty, who could run up a dozen christian names per child easily. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2013, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/58 "2013-05-26T14:55:03Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > Names come and go in waves of fashion. > > When I was a child (1950’s-1960’s), Jared and Jennifer were unheard of – except in stories we read about American life in the colonial or pioneer days. According to the [Baby Name Wizard Name Voyager](http://www.babynamewizard.com/voyager#prefix=jennifer&ms=true&sw=f&exact=false), Jennifer was the 20th most popular girl’s name in the 1960s (and the most popular of all in the 1970s). (Mouse over the graph for rankings.) I was also a kid in the '50s and '60s, and that accords with my experience. There were Jennifers among my contemporaries. Jennifer seems to have begun to be popular in the 1940s. I seem to recall that there is a character called Jenifer in the play _The Doctors Dilemma_ by G.B. Shaw (1906), but someone in the play remarks on what an unusual name it is. I am pretty sure you can find quite a few women known as Jenny much earlier, but back then it may have been short for something else (Virginia, perhaps). Also, _Jennie_, according to the Name Voyager, seems to have been fairly popular as a given name in the late 19th century (the data does not go back beyond the 1880s). _Jared_ you are probably right about. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2013, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/59 "2013-05-26T15:01:23Z")
> [@AngelSoft](#): > > I’ve probably mentioned this before, but when I worked daycare back in the late 90s, I saw A LOT of kids who were named after their method of conception. Ie, what their mother was under the influence of when she got knocked up I’m thinking of Ambien and Rohypnol as names for my kids. Now off to find some mothers… ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2013, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216/60 "2013-05-26T15:06:00Z")
I knew the late, well-known philosopher U.T. Place. The U stood for Ulin. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/given-names-off-the-beaten-path/659216.md?page=4)