Naming Research: Still Fascinated by Xzavier

We're still trying to come to a final decision on the topic of baby names. I confess, I am still fascinated by the name Xzavier. According to the Socialist Insecurity Administration, Xzavier was the 707th most popular name in 2003, having been used 268 times, and it is gaining in popularity.

Why do I find this name so interesting? Well, I suppose you need to consider its origins. I assume that somewhere, someone saw the name Xavier, didn't know how to pronounce it, and started saying "Ecks-zavier". Then, someone else said, "'Ecks-zavier', that's a nice name. How do you spell it?" and got "X-z-a-v-i-e-r" as the response. I guess the issue is, how many other names have two obvious mistakes in their derivation?

When it comes to our own name selection saga, we may be reaching some resolution. We've had a girl's name selected for a long time now, and other than some wrangling over the spelling, I think we're set. However, we always have more problems with boys' names. Some of what we've considered can deduced from an entry in this blog. However, we now have another leading candidate. (Hint: It's another non-English name from the British Isles.) I'm not sure if it will be our final decision or not, but it may be.

One problem with this choice is that it might be too popular. It was in the top 100 in popularity for each year since 1990. Ideally, we'd prefer to go with names closer to 200 in popularity: something you've heard of, but a name that isn't too common. We may make an exception this time.

Then there's the problem of middle names. Actually, we're not having as much indecision here.

Also, you may be thinking I should mention my ideas here and perhaps get your input. Sorry, but if I wanted your input on this, I would have already asked for it (and I have asked for some). I feel that I'm under a lot of pressure if someone asks which of two baby names I like better, and I don't want to burden anyone else. This is something we need to handle (mostly) on our own. (Also, once a kid is named, it is then too late for the polite to say anything but, "That's a wonderful name!")

Speaking of wonderful names, some of my better ideas, like Ernest, Frederick, and Brock keep getting vetoed.