Sibset of the Week: The Deneuves

from wikipedia.org

We’re heading to France for this week’s edition, focusing on a rather renowned French actress by the name of Catherine Deneuve, born Catherine Fabienne Dorléac (she uses her mother’s maiden name professionally). Catherine is possibly best known for her role in Indochine, which won her an Academy Award in 1993.

Catherine herself is the daughter of an actor, Maurice Dorléac to be precise. She also has two siblings, sisters Sylvie and Françoise.

But it’s the names of her children which caught my eye and got me to pull together this post. She has two children, and it’s worth noting that one of them has a Russian father, whilst the other has an Italian father:

Christian Igor Christophe

Chiara Charlotte

Both children have gone on to have families of their own, with Christian having children named Igor and Lou, whilst Chiara has Milo and Anna.

Weekend Post: Bowling Alley Aliases

That epic 92 score, yeah, that’s mine 🙂

It may seem an odd topic to cover, but a valid one since going bowling is one of the easiest ways to spot names, given that there a giant screens down the length of the building, each displaying on average 4 names.

As it so happens, in the past 12 months or so, I’ve been to French bowling alleys more than ones in England. This is possibly because it is one of the easiest activities to do with people who don’t speak your language proficiently; the only French/English you need to know is how to shriek with delight when you get a strike. In this case, the French version of yeah is ouais, which is pronounced pretty much the same way as the English word way.

One of the best things about French bowling alleys is that if you want to see what your name translate in France, the bowling alley is the place to go. I’ve already mentioned this week that my sister went from Heather to Hayley at a French bowling alley, and another friend went from Bethan to Bella. Personally, I usually become Lucie, as that is the more popular spelling in France.

As for my many other friends with whom I’ve shared a lane:

• Cait became Kate (this could happen anywhere, though)
• Caprice became Capucine (not through the attendant mis-understanding her, more to do with Caprice choosing to be Capucine in France)
• Helen became Hélène
• Lénaïg became Lena (this is a French girl; her name is a Breton form of Helen)

Speaking of the French, want to hear some of the awesome names I’ve seen on other French people whilst at the bowling alley? Here you go (I’ve approximated the ages):

• Sisters Anya & Alexia; between 13-18 ish
• Brothers Camille & Yannick; mid-20s ish, possibly twins
• A 30-something female Laurence
• Twin sisters Louna & Jade; 4-6ish
• Brothers Quentin & Julien; both under 10.
• A 50-something Sylvie – was with her 18-25 yr old son, Florian
• A teen-aged girl named Tameline
• A 20-something Younes, male – was with either a male friend or relative of similar age named Bouna

30th December

Mowgli, from The Jungle Book, from comicvine.com

Today’s my birthday, so to celebrate I’ve been through a list of all the famed people also born on the 30th December in search of some interesting names to provide inspiration on one of the best days of the year 🙂

Asa Griggs Candler

Ato Boldon

Bennett Miller

Chandler Burr

Concetta Tomei

Del Shannon (Charles Westover)

Dorothea Lieven

Douglas Alder ‘Doug‘

Eldrick Woods ‘Tiger‘

Émile Loubet

Janko Prunk

Jay Kay (Jason Cheetham)

Josée Verner

June Anderson

Kenyon Martin

Leon Jackson

Louis–Jean–François Lagrenée

Meredith Vieira

Rachid Karami

Rosalind Hurley

Joseph Rudyard Kipling

Skeeter Davis (Mary Frances Penick)

Sylvester Jordan

Sylvie Moreau

I would happily use many of these names – especially Asa and Sylvie. This is also the first time I’ve come across a triple-barreled first name, aside from the ones which occasionally turn up over at Eponymia.

Names Tipped For Stardom

What names are looking like they might explode over the coming years.

Well, one of the major factors in a names popularity depends on the current trend in names. For female names at the moment, people are choosing between the girly (Isabella, Ava) and the not-so-girly (Harper, Finley). Currently, it’s the girly names that dominate the top spots. But, could all that change? As for boys, well, there are names that are consistently in the top spots each year (James, Matthew) and then there are the wildcards (Aiden) that appear due to a sudden preference for that name.

What characteristics will place a name in a likely position for a comeback? Well, if the name is similar to another popular name (Such as how Maribelle is similar to Isabella) it will begin to rise in the name charts, as parents who love the top name look for alternatives.

Another is that of names that have been unpopular for decades, and are beginning to look much more appealling nowadays to parents. These are names such as John and Mary. These names were once top spot names; they have since fallen very much down the name charts. Does this place them in favour for a comeback?

Also, sounds are very important in name, especially for girls. We like how Sophia sounds, so will that mean we’ll begin to like Sylvia soon too? We love Jack and Jacob, so will this mean we’ll start to go crazy about Jake too?

So, here are a list of names I believe are poised to become popular:

Eve, an alternative to Ava and Eva. It has biblical roots, which could help for when people start to turn from the made-up names towards more traditional names once more.

Amelia, it’s similarity to top names Emma and Emily mean it’s bound to start climbing. Amelia is already in the top 20 in Europe, and European trends tend to be a few years ahead of American ones this name looks set to storm the USA.

Violet, Floral names such as Lily are popular, and this name is certainly enjoying more popularity than before.

Lila, the two ‘l’s make it a perfect replacement for Ella. It’s also similar to Lily, another name currently big in Europe.

Verity. We love Grace at the moment. Could this be its successor?

Ivy, another floral name.

Nancy and Wendy. Old-school favourites. Perhaps ready to make a comeback?

Sylvia or Sylvie. Both similar sounding to current favourite Sophia.

Ruby, like Amelia, this name in hot in Europe at the moment.

Leonie, a hot favourite in Germany, could this name’s popularity spread?

Matilda, this name has a lot going for it. It can be shortened to either a boyish nickname such as Mattie, or a girly one such as Tilly.

Harper and Scout. The novel ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ could help boost both these names. These names are both part of the trend of giving girls more boyish names, and the literary association can only boost their popularity further.

Camden, it’s similarity to Charles and Charlie may place it in a good spot to become their replacement. It’s also a place name.

Milo, could the ‘o’ ending place this name in favour? The similar sounding name Leo has recently started to climb, will the same happen for this name?

Theodore, this name has been low for a few years now, it’s nickname of ‘Theo’ means that this name has the potential to start climbing.

Xavier. The ‘x’ at the start of this name gives it a rather unique feel to it. Names such as Felix and Max are climbing, perhaps due to their ending of ‘x’, so Xavier should start rising as well soon.

Ryder and River. Ryder is a surname that has started to leap up the name charts for boys, as names such as Harper and Sawyer start to drift towards becoming feminine, this puts Ryder in a good position to replace them. River is a name with links to the natural world, as the world’s population face Climate Change, people are starting to become more ‘in-tune’ with the world around them. Could this translate into names?

Kai. It has roots in many cultures, and as people are more likely to have a partner of another race due to the surge in movement of people between countries, its likely that names that appeal to many cultures will become more popular.