The Baby Name Wizard

IIRC, Rilya is another one where the acronym came first--Remember I Love You Always. Ironically, the Rilya whose mother named her that way was a four year old girl who ended up a symbol of sorts for corrupt foster care systems: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rilya_Wilson

What do you think of the baby girl name Paisley?
We are considering it.. as it has a family connection for me.

I grew up in a town called Paisley (first 12 years of my life) .. my family has lived there for many many generations. Now there is only 1 family left.. and none of their grown up children have chosen to live there... So in 20 years guaranteed my family will no longer live there.. and probably never will..its a very small town with not much happening. I have nothing but happy memories there..so hearing the name makes me smile.

Do you have any middle name suggestions to go with Paisley? Our last name is Code. Our other daughter has 2 middle names so we will probably stick with that. Don't like Filler middle names.

So far we are considering Paisley Laura Grace

I went to school in the early 90's with a girl named Ily. She said her parents couldn't think of a name so they named her Ily for I LOVE YOU.

I never heard it again till this blog.

A long time ago, then-boyfriend and I called each other Lily as an acronym (just amending it to Love, I love you), but I've never wanted to name a child Lily for that -- felt fine for a term of endearment, but not as the meaning behind an enduring name for someone. But that's just me, I'm sure other people would feel differently.

Paisley strikes me as kinda hipster, kinda modern. It's cute and the story is really sweet. As you said, the name brings a smile to your face, so what better reason to pick a name? And Paisley Laura Grace flows well.

So DS has bestowed his first name. The stray cat we feed has now officially been dubbed "A". And DS was quite clear that is the kitty's name.

At 35 weeks now and on the baby name front I think a boy will be Osric William A-. Still torn on girl names between Beatrix and Elfreda. DH and I had a good conversation about it at 3 the other morning. LOL

Actually on topic -- I never really could understand why people can't just say "I chose the name because I like it" rather than inventing meanings. That doesn't make the name or the person wearing it any lesser. And after the first encounter, it's the person that affects the perception of the name, not the other way around. That was long for "I don't get it."

Melly C:

To me, the name Paisley resonates of an informal Western or Prairie vibe, for some reason...kind of breezy, friendly, and relaxed. For that reason, it seems to go really well to me with Laura and Grace (I guess from Little House on the Prairie). What is your other daughter's name? My only question would be whether Paisley doesn't quite give the girl/woman a more dignified, formal option. There are plenty of fine names that don't do that, but I think it's a good question to ask just in case (like, could there be a judge Paisley, for instance?). Again, there are many popular names out there that aren't particularly dignified, so it doesn't have to be a deal breaker. If you end up not going with it, could it become one of the middle names?

I've recently been tossing around the name Calder as an option for us. I really don't like the nickname Cal, though. Do you think that would be inevitable? I just wish we had more compelling boy options, and Alexander Calder was a pretty inspiring person. I got interested, because he had both a technical and artistic mind - dh is a scientist and I am an artist.

These are the boy names that have lasted:

Simon (don't think dh will ever go for it, but it's still my favorite, and think it goes best with ln...can anyone think of other great names that end in -mon?)

Xavier (fine option, if a little popular, but I think I can deal)

Atticus (all the controversy makes me wary...to bad, because I do like it...seems to label us more than other names, somehow, which I don't really like)

Jonah (somehow haven't stayed attached to it)

Walker (family name, but we have mixed feelings about people associated with it)

Elliot (same as Jonah)

Everett (I like, but don't love)

Nathaniel (like, but too popular and traditional, maybe?)

August (Leaning back towards this one a little. I'm warming to the nickname Gus, a little...don't even mind association with Gus Gus for a pudgy baby)

I like Declan, but we know a Declan we're not close to, so it might be odd.

Any thoughts?

Melly C.: I like Paisley. It's cute and it has a lovely story. But I agree that a more formal middle name would balance it. (Alexandra? Judge P. Alexandra Code?).

PennyX: If you choose Declan, when talking to Declan 1 say something like "I've loved the name Declan since I was {age before you knew him}". I don't think that Cal would be an inevitable nickname.

My parents named me Elizabeth for "Every Little Infant Zooms Around Breaking Everything, Terrorizing the Household." Sweet, huh?

I think that incidental acronyms or backronyms are kind of cute. They shouldn't be relied upon as the only origin of a name but rather cute family story things. I did not realize at the time of naming my children, how nicely the initials fit into an acronym for our family. When I did realize I thought it was wonderful. All the family intials make a word that is meaningful to our family.

Melly C-I like the combo of Paisley Laura Grace and agree with PennyX in that it has more of a casual, western kind of vibe. However, with the right mn's it could also have a hipster vibe as Kimberly mentions. So here are some other choices you may or may not like:
Paisley Elizabeth Grace
Paisley Desirae Ivy
Paisley Anthea Violet
Paisley Jacqueline Claire
Paisley Opal Sophia
Paisley Margaret Quinn
Paisley Caroline Nicole
Paisley Ellen Nicole
Paisley Constance Irene

PennyX- The only other name I can think of ending in -mon is Eamon. Is the name Liam close enough to that sound? I still like Simon Xavier for a very classy, bookish type of a name. My othe fav was Jonah Walker but it looks like that isn't working for you.

Kimberly-I'm not a big fan of Elfreda as I've said the other times you've asked for comments. However, don't let that sway you if it's YOUR favorite.

I think Paisley is will fit right in to a lot of other names that are currently en vogue, but I do agree with other posters it wouldn't necessarily be perceived as being dignified or serious on a grown woman's resume. However, it does have a surnamey (as well as a western, hipster-y) feel so it's not really a dealbreaker on that basis. I think this could be solved by giving a regal, serious name as the middle name ("P. Elizabeth" or "P. Eleanor" would be fine for a judge)... or by just using Paisley in the middle name spot. I do really like the connection you have to the name, and I would encourage you to use it somewhere!

PennyX, if you're considering Calder, you really could consider Chaucer as well - no pesky nicknames there! But "Cal" as in California or Calvin isn't really an intuitive nickname for me since I say Calder with a different "a" sound entirely... so I wouldn't really let that stop you. But, if you're concerned about labels, I think Calder labels you as artistic even more so than Atticus. Atticus just says to me that you and/or your husband completed high school in the US.

Other "mon" names besides Simon: Solomon, Caedmon, Eamon(n) are I think very usable - I've heard all of these on babies recently! And one more I haven't heard on any babies: Philemon... has an Athenian poet/playwright namesake, is a Saint's/Biblical name that isn't overused, has a nice normal nickname to use if he wants a less standout name at any point. Nice. Am actually adding it to our "what if we have four boys" contingency list! [ETA: the Spouse gave it a thumbs up, after a quick check at the bookshelf to make sure that's "not the name of the kid in the Bacchae who gets killed by his mom." That was Pentheus, phew!]

I can see where Everett has nice sounds, but it's a local suburb that isn't particularly glamorous, so I have a hard time judging it as a name. I think I like Elliot better as a way of getting the same rhythm.

If Walker is a family name but you have mixed feelings about the people you'd be namesaking, then I personally probably wouldn't use it. We have some names in this category too, and we decided we're either going to pick a namesake because we feel wholeheartedly they are/were fabulous, or pick a name that we truly love that does not have any family connection.

I really like Xavier and Declan for you. I don't think it would be odd with your acquaintance Declan. Xavier SEEMS less popular than August to me, at least locally. Jonah is a very nice name but it's a bit less exciting than your girl choices. (Really not a big deal given that many people have different boy and girl naming styles.)

Ok, I've been kind of MIA lately, trying to keep up with reading, but I don't think I'll be able to catch up with comments from the last thread, so I'm starting fresh here.

Melly, I kind of like Paisley, and you definitely have a nice story to go with it. When I've heard it before, it was from parents also considering names like Presley or even Ryleigh or Kaylee for girls--that is, mostly rural, often southern or western US, and often politically conservative. Still, Paisley is worlds nicer than these other options to me, so that wouldn't rule it out for me. I could also see a judge named Paisley--it has a smart side to me, as well as cute/spunky.

Kimberly, sounds like you have some good choices. I'm 34 weeks now and we plan to start our major name talks next week. On one hand it makes me nervous, but I think it will be fine, so I'm trying not to stress. There are lots of other big things we still have to do to prepare, too! We did get word from Korea the other day that just Joon might be an acceptable/lucky name for our boy (don't ask me why it only has one syllable and why it doesn't include the standard generational syllable--young, in this case--this process seems to be more fluid than I was previously led to believe, and I can't get an explanation). Anyway, DH and I like "just Joon" as a MN, but it makes August look less likey as FN, and Oliver look more likely. We shall see.

PennyX, I really like Calder a lot, and I don't think Cal is inevitable at all--it may not even be intuitive because the A sounds are different. The 2 year old Calder I know doesn't have a nn. For me, Alexander Calder is the biggest downside of the name, because I'm not a huge fan of his (he's fine of course, just NMS, and so we certainly wouldn't be using him as a namesake--I just like the sound/feel and meaning of the name). I also think Calder is much *better* than Atticus for the reason lucubratrix states--Atticus can seem "faux intellectual" because every American school kid knows who that is, while Calder sounds more like the kid of a person who may have continued to develop their artistic interests past middle scool/high school. As for the -mon choices, I love Solomon, like Eamonn a lot, like Caedmon ok, but Philemon sounds a little too esoteric to me. Of course I love August, and I think it goes quite nicely with your LN.

PennyX: Timon, Djimon, Harmon? Lol, probably not so helpful.

PennyX - How about Damon? Or something with the same sound, like Benjamin (likely too popular for you) or Roman?

Melly - Paisley also reminds me of Ainsley/Ainslie. I like the idea of a more classic or stately middle name, not so much because I'd be worried about her career options, but more as someone else said, to keep it from tipping into the trendy crowd.

Thanks for the opinions so far keep them coming.
Our other daughters name is Chelsea.. so not stylistically similar to Paisley.

We did consider Paisley for our first daughter's name. For those who considered it similar to Ainsley... Ainsley is actually on our baby name list at the moment. As well as Sierra, Natalie & Kirsten.

For those who thought it was Western sounding.. we actually live in a prairie/western province.. although not really in the prairies.

@Melly - I quite like Paisley. I think it will age fine and I don't see it as anymore lightweight than many of the names around. Poppy or Daisy are in a similar class for me and there are plenty of adults with these names. I think Paisley Laura Grace works well but I also like some of the other middle name suggestions.

@PennyX - I was going to come in and suggest Eamonn and Solomon for you but others have beaten me to it. If you like Declan then Eamonn is similar in style.

@hyz - I've been wondering where you were! As much as I love August I think with Joon it's a no-go. Oliver Joon does work very well though.
I think I might have suggested this before but is Oscar an option for you?

MellyC-LOVE your other choices as well. I really don't think you have any bad choices. I might pick Sierra or Natalie as matching with Chelsea better though if that concerns you.
Some ideas because I have so much fun creating them.
Natalie Olivia Grace
Sierra Maren Skye (earth water air LOL)
Sierra Laura Maren
Kirsten Laura Elaine
Kirsten Natalie Janelle
Kirsten Sierra Eleanor
Kirsten Aaliyah Noelle

Thanks for the middle name suggestions.
If we use Kirsten... that was on the top of our list... although I worry it will be mispronounced all the time.. I love it pronounced K-ear-sten... and not K-ur-sten.

We have Kirsten Samantha Sadie picked if we used Kirsten.

Other middle name possibilities that we like with any names from our list (Ainsley, Paisley, Sierra, Natalie, Kirsten) .. haven't come up with combos yet... Rachel, Alexa, Hayley, Noelle, or maybe use some of the names on the list as middle...

We aren't into old names such as Elinor, Evelyn.. etc unless they have family significance... Laura & Sadie do for us.

Another -mon name I haven't seen mentioned is Ammon.

Ok, so I have a question for you all. Alasdair is still on my boys list. I have some concerns though about it being too similar to other names in our family. A little Alasdair would have the following relatives with simlar names:

Grandfather: Alan (goes by Al)
Aunt: Alison (goes by Ali)
father: Antony
uncle: Andrew

Is this too many A names in a retatively small family, particularly the /al/ names?

Chimu, thanks--thing have just been really hectic lately. I was thinking August could work with Joon as a hippie name, maybe, like August J00n River Appletree LN, or something, lol. But yeah, otherwise DH and I agree Joon (if that's what we end up using) is a big strike against August. As for Oscar, I like the feel of it if I try to think of it in the abstract, but I can't get past the grouch enough to actually use it. I did know one young Oscar, and I thought it was great on him, but his parents were Mexican, so the pronunciation was different from the Sesame Street character.

You know I love Alasdair, and I really don't think the other A(l) names in your family should eliminate it, especially if you plan to call him by the full name (I would!) rather than Al or Allie or something. I don't think most people would even notice and/or focus on the existence of all those A names.

hyz - I know a couple of young Oscar's and they have totally gotten me past the 'grouch' association but I can see it would be hard to shake for some people.

I would definitely use the full Alasdair or maybe the traditionally Scottish lad/laddie, not an 'Al' nickname!

My parents realized after the fact that if you rearrange the letters in my dad's name, Charles, you got me, Rachel S. Not a backronym but I've always loved the connection.

Melly C: I think Paisley sounds kind of preppy/cute/sophisticated. She could totally be a judge in my opinion or an artist (or both). The name is great and the meaning to your family clinches it for me.

Finally, my son's middle name is Calder (named in memory of the aforementioned Charles). We were planning it to be his first name until I made the switch at the very last minute in the hospital. One of the doctors asked me what we were going to name the baby if it was a boy and when I said Calder Joel the other 8 people in the room all stopped what they were doing and said, "huh"? I panicked and announced to my husband that we'd better switch it to Joel Calder. (We were seconds away from a C-section so he was in no position to argue.)

Anyway, my son, Joel Calder, is now 3.5 and I still wonder if we went with the right order. I adore the name Calder and have since met several others. In my opinion, it is a fantastic choice. (We also loved it because I was a math major, my husband a visual art major and Alexander Calder was an artist/mathematician)

Chimu - I don't think that's a problem at all, especially if you're not planning on calling him "Al" or "Ali". My brother's full name sounds just like the last syllable of my son's name. Having an uncle "Yahn" for our "Jol-yuhn" has not been at all confusing, even when he was living with us for a month after the birth and we were all sleep deprived.

My father's first name starts with the same "Jo" beginning as our son's name. My father goes by his middle name, but he thought it was a subtle homage and was pleased. We hadn't really thought of it in advance due to the difference in pronunciation, but once it came up, I thought it was nice. These are very subtle ties to those family members (I would never present letter or syllable repetition to someone with the expectation that they feel honored as a namesake), but it does mean that a stylistically different name fits nicely into the family tree.

I think in this case, Grandfather Al and Aunt Ali and a little Alasdair would be a very nice pattern. If I were the Alan or Alison I would probably feel a bit honored by an Alasdair, without having to deal with any of the confusion that actually having the same name would generate. So, win-win! :) Also, we have more J names kicking around than you have A names, and while it does get noticed (my parents gave all three of their kids J names) it's only ever been commented on favorably that our son also is a J. (We have gotten asked if we are continuing the theme, but no.)

Chimu- I don't think that it would be too confusing, especially if you use a different nickname or just Alasdair. I'm called Christina and I have an uncle named Christian and that's not confusing (although we live on different continents so it doesn't come up often).

hyz: I have to agree on August, unfortunately, though Oliver Joon sounds dashing. Personally, I would go with Oscar in a split second if DH hadn't nixed it. The grouch and the hot dog association really doesn't bother me though I can understand how it might bother some. I can't quite get past the ghost thing with Caspar. No idea why the ghost thing bothers me but the grouch doesn't. *shrug*

On the baby front, we finally got an infant car seat. I've got a bed. We've got 1 pkg NB diapers and a couple dozen cloth diapers all washed and we have, well, almost everything in the birth kit, so we've got all the essentials covered. :)

Chimu: I wouldn't let the A- names dissuade me from using a name I loved and honestly I don't think Alisdair is too close in sound to the other names if you're planning on using the whole name.

Re Calder: I think the big concern would be if you are an inevitable nicknamer. I'm afraid I am, which is why I crossed Alaric off our list. I don't like Al or Rick as NNs but, given how quickly Rowan became Ro, I just don't see myself able to resist NNing.

Chimu-I will echo what the others have said and respond that I don't think in the long run it will be a big deal. My family has a few of the same names in Jr's and we just find a nn or mn to call them. My uncles also have the same name and we have done the same thing. Your family will make it work whatever the name is.

Melly-I like Kirsten Samantha Sadie quite a bit. Many of the names on your list were ones we had on ours for our dd (Nicole, Noelle, Natalie, Samantha, Elizabeth, Kimberly, Renee) so I used a few of them to create the list above. Of your updated list I will offer these:
Paisley Samantha Noelle
Kirsten Alexa Noelle
Sierra Rachel Alexa
Natalie Kirsten Renee
Paisley Sierra Noelle
Sierra Rachel Hayley
Paisley Hayley Alexa
Natalie Rachel Sierra
Kirsten Ainsley Alexa

hyz-August Joon does sound off to me. Oliver Joon does better. Oscar Joon is not my fav. Simon Joon even works for me. Good luck.

I've experienced an interesting phenomenon recently... I've had many people ask about my DOG's name- Mina. But when they ask for more information, they don't ask where I got the name from, they ask "what does does it MEAN?" It is a dog's name. I could tell them that Mina is a nn for Wilhelmina which is a dutch feminine version of William, which could mean protector, or something to do with helmets...
But really, it is dog's name. does the meaning matter? We found it in the book Dracula and thought it was cute.
btw,
I don't correct most people when they say Nina rather than Mina, because it doesn't matter that much and my dog can't really tell the difference (she'll answer to Peanut too--they are all similar enough).

I agree Oliver Joon sounds better, but if you really like August, I go with it in your case. I see mn's as something to contribute to flow, but since your mn is basically chosen for you, I would discard flow for the name that you want to actually call your child. Speaking of flow, can you remind us of your ln? I do know that your naming situation is a little different with the blend of cultures, but I do think that the fn/ln flow is more important than the fn/mn flow.

knp-That is SO funny! Thanks for sharing.

I like Calder! The main characters in Blue Balliett's series of childrens' mysteries are Calder and Petra. I wouldn't think "Cal" would become a nickname, but you never know what people are going to come up with, or your children, for that matter.

Melly C: I once met a Kjersten and that spelling helped me learn to pronounce it your preferred way. I think maybe it was because it was unfamiliar to me and the "j" through me off, slowed me down, and caused me to listen and learn how to pronounce it. Unfortunately I think this spelling makes it more distant from your other daughter's name.

[Duplicate post, disregard.]

Speaking of backronyms, we were wondering if anyone had any ideas for retroactive literary namesake finding. We realized that all of the names on our list are literary names featured prominently in a book with a character we feel very positively about... except for Rupert. This isn't a huge deal, since the literary theme won't be obvious to everyone else, but does anyone have any strong, positive, literary associations for Rupert? Failing that, I think I'll just have to read about historical Ruperts and find one sufficiently virtuous. Totally bizarre, because I am not much one for meanings!

Thanks for all the feedback on Alasdair. I was inclined to think that it would be OK but you have helped me with that thought process!

@hyz I was thinking that if you still wanted to consider August it may work with a double syllable name for the korean name, and also swapping the order. For example Joon-Young August works better for me than August Joon.

@knp, I think hyz's last name is something like 'Soh'. I hope I'm remembering right!

Chimu-I believe you are correct about hyz's LN and I also like the suggestion of Joon-Young August!

Hm, I guess Rupert Murdoch isn't what you are looking for, lucubratrix.

Rupert Birkin from D.H. Lawrence's Women in Love?

The obscure fin de siecle British Georgian poet Rupert Brooke?

The British comic strip character Rupert Bear?

Chimu: What about Rupert of Hentzau, the swashbucking villain in Anthony Hope's delightful Prisoner of Zenda books? He's the bad guy, but the kind of bad guy you respect as a noble and worthy adversary, the kind that has the heroes are constantly saying things like, "Ah, if only he were one of us!," etc. If nothing else you should at least check out the books. They are all kinds of fun--imagine The Princess Bride with the tongue out of cheek: lots of kidnappings, sword fights, mistaken identities, and the like. (Plus, the hero's name is Rudolf Rassendyll! If that's not a name lover's dream, I don't know what is.)

Whoops! That previous comment should be directed to lucubratrix! Sorry for the mix-up.

Hey, just mentioned Orson to dh (who was admittedly mostly focusing on something else at the time), but he seemed to go for it this this time around. 0rs0n Xav13r F0nt--- might just have the sound combinations that appeal to me while being a little more manly to suit dh. I guess, we can't both have an Orson and an Ursula, though...A bear theme might be a little odd ;)

He's a little concerned about the image of the corpulent Orson Wells doing wine commercials. I had never seen them, but he so helpfully found a video of them on line. Oh well...

Yes PennyX, I'm afraid Orson Wells is the person most forefront in my mind when mention of the name comes up. If you can't do both I prefer Ursula over Orson. How about Norman, Orlando, Oscar, or Morris for that sound?

Melly: if you like the name Kirsten, then go for it, but if you are concerned that it will frequently be mispronounced, then you are correct to be concerned. A relative of mine goes by the "K-ur-sten" version and EVERYONE gets it wrong, even people that she has worked with for years. I'm not sure if more people would assume your pronunciation, though, and get it right...

I encountered an unusual pair of sibling names in a news story tonight: Tsunami (girl) and Typhoon (boy). Sadly the story was about Baby Typhoon being killed by a stray bullet fired during a shootout.

Hi friends,
Just thought of something. Her last name will start with M. Can we still name our daughter Sylvia? She'd have a middle name to break up the initials but....is this a concern?

namedaftermygra:

It took me a moment to even figure out what the problem was with the initials SM, so I don't think it should be a concern. Seeing them together makes me think of the abbreviation for "small" first. It's not like she will have & as a middle name. For bullying/teasing, I would imagine that kids use the name itself for inspiration more often. No doubt they can be creative, but I wouldn't think the initials come to mind quite as much, anyway. Maybe I'm wrong. I say go for it.

NAMG-The initial thing didn't occur to me at all until I read PennyX's comment. I wouldn't worry about it. However, it does sound a bit smushed when I say it- like Sylviam rhymes with Miriam. I think that is just me though. Sylvia is a nice name.

Melly: I assume K-ur-stin from the spelling Kirsten and K-ear-stin from the spelling Kiersten. Adding the e might reduce the number of people who will misread it as Kristen too, especially by teachers who likely grew up with multitudes of Kristens and Kristins.

NamedAfterMyGrandma: I don't think SM will be a problem. I do know a Silvia in her twenties and she said that kids in school sometimes called her Saliva but she seems none the worse for the wear. It doesn't really matter what your name is, if kids want to make fun of you, they'll find something. I think Sylvia and Sylvie are wonderful; elegant & sleek and cute & warm at the same time.

Kimberly: I CD too! This is my first time doing it (used regular disposables with the first two) and I really like it.

PennyX: Orson = Orson Wells in my mind too. Ursula vs Orson I think Ursula is better. And, FWIW, I don't think of the sea witch at all and I've seen Little Mermaid at least 4000 times (I have two little girls). I think of Ursula K. Le Guin, the author.

hyz: I agree with the suggestion of Joon-Young August if you want to keep August on the table. Putting Joon together with Young makes it feel more like one syllable of a name, like Joonyoung August instead of a list of months: June, August. I like Oliver Joon or Joon Oliver or Joon-Young Oliver all better though. I think Oliver it just darling with Ivy. I like to say it out loud too. Oliver and Ivy. The rhythm and the flow of it makes my mouth feel happy and... dancey. :)

Miriam: Very interesting sibling set. Very sad story. :(

Everyone: I gave your suggestions to my friend and she's presenting them to her dh. I'll definitely let you all know what they end up naming him. I'm pulling for Huds0n Thoma5 or Huds0n 6arrett, personally. He has grandfathers named Gary and Tom and I'm partial to middle names honoring a family member. Plus Enz0 is really nms.

Makes me think of a science teacher called Matt who wanted to name his daughter mitochondria after the coolest thing in the universe according to him...

He didn't get his way (fortunately) and she's now called Maia which he claims is short for 'Matt And Irene's Accident'.
I hopw he never tells little Maia...

Paisley is one of those trends I don't understand at all. It's not pretty, to begin with, and it's ridiculously preppy in meaning. Why not name your child Herringbone or Polka-dot?

Namedaftermygran - I do mind initials that spell things, but I don't think S.X.M. is a dealbreaker at all, where X is a generic placeholder initial for the middle name of choice. However, I would encourage NOT using an N-starting middle name under any circumstances, because as SNM it would certainly occur to someone at some point. And if only having two children, I would try to avoid having the second child's name start with an M, because "S. & M." would come up much more with siblings than with first and last initials.

Orson makes me think first of Orson Scott Card, the sci fi author. I think it's utterly usable, though not with an Ursula.

I think Mitochondria would be an excellent name for a cat!

And lastly, thanks so much for the reading list suggestion, everyone! I am heading to the library today! :) The Rupert of Hentzau character does sound very appealing!

Rupert of the Rhine was a Cavalier hero in the English Civil War - very dashing, if not the most gifted of strategists!

http://www.british-civil-wars.co.uk/biog/rupert.htm

Rupert Brooke isn't obscure at all in England - he's one of the poets most English children study in school.