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Tuesday, October 13, 2009

on names

Choosing a name is arguably the most important thing you will do when preparing for a new baby.
I think so, at least.
But how important is a name, really? Does it affect how people react to your child? Does it set the stage for the kind of person your child will be? Does it have an effect on their blossoming personality?
When I was pregnant with Tempe, the only other name we considered was Isabella (and only in passing). If she was Isabella, would she be as spunky as she is now? Would she still play in the mud? Would she love racecars? Or would she be more refined, more delicate?
Did my notions of how a "Tempe" should act cause me to condition her to act that way?
Did we unknowingly choose a name that fits her personality to a T?
Did her personality cause me to form an idea of how a "Tempe" should be?
What do you think?

8 comments:

Candice said...

I think names are the most important thing when preparing for a baby as well. So does my husband.

I'm not sure what the answers are to your questions but I often think about how naming your child a popular name does to them. Like if I had a daughter and named her Jayden and there were 6 other Jaydens in her class, would it call her to feel like she was "just another Jayden"...who knows. Then again, i would NEVER name my child something like that.

Tempe is one of the best names I've heard in years!

Amy said...

is this some sort of announcement?

Kathryn said...

I have often thought along the same lines and believe it or not, in a way thinking this narrowed down our possibly names list with Ethan. I have a fun website that I found to comfirm all my feelings, whether true or not, it is kinda fun and neat to check out. For fun, I typed in Tempe's full name and from what I read of her on your blog, it sounds like her!! Check out the website if you like... http://www.babyzone.com/babynames/baby-name-advisor.asp

Kate said...

lol, no, this is not an announcement... just the name-geek in me coming out!

Jamie said...

I think names are extremely important and do play a role in what a child is going to be like! I almost named Courtney "Tori" and I am glad I didn't, she is so not a Tori! I love the name, but it would not suit my daughter as she is now....but maybe she is the way she is now BECAUSE she's a Courtney!

The Hiller Family said...

I am always disappointed when I meet another Heidi! I LOVE unique names! (although, to me MY Ethan is VERY unique)

I have this vinyl quote that I'd like to put someplace in our house and it says...
"Be true to who you are and the {family} name you bear"
It seems like a quote you would like!

danielle said...

i love this, names are important & make a difference i think.
i love strange, unique names with personality. p.s. your kiddos are cuties :)

danielle said...

you would probably LOVE these websites too, kate:
http://www.nymbler.com/
you type in names you like and they give you more name suggestions along with your "style"
http://namemapper.babynamewizard.com/namemapper/
show's where a name is most commonly used & the voyager section shows the history of when it was most common, etc. it's very interesting!