What are your favorite names inspired by?

General Name Discussion
1

Most of my favorite names are inspired by something. Usually my favorite things.

Right now:
[name_m]Paul[/name_m] - [name_m]Paul[/name_m] McCartney
[name_m]George[/name_m] - [name_m]George[/name_m] [name_m]Harrison[/name_m]
[name_m]Richard[/name_m] - [name_m]Ringo[/name_m] [name_f]Starr[/name_f], whose real name is [name_m]Richard[/name_m] Starkey
[name_m]Maxwell[/name_m] - [name_m]Maxwell[/name_m]'s [name_u]Silver[/name_u] Hammer, a Beatles song
[name_u]Jude[/name_u] - Hey [name_u]Jude[/name_u]
[name_m]Dhani[/name_m] - The name [name_m]George[/name_m] [name_m]Harrison[/name_m] chose for his son

I’m sure I don’t need to explain the rest. It’s pretty obvious what I like, and that it influences my favorite names. lol

2

[name_m]Linus[/name_m] - [name_m]Linus[/name_m] Pauling and [name_m]Linus[/name_m] Torvalds
Fiala - Czech form of violet. [name_f]Violet[/name_f] is the state flower of both the state I was born/raised in and the one we live in now.
[name_f]Alma[/name_f] - My great-grandmother’s name and I like the meaning of soul.

Most of the rest are just names I like.

3

Most of my favorite names come from my favorite movies/books.

[name_m]Jack[/name_m] - [name_m]Jack[/name_m] [name_m]Dawson[/name_m] in Titanic
[name_m]Oliver[/name_m] - [name_m]Oliver[/name_m] Twist
[name_f]Eliza[/name_f] - Pride and Prejudice & The Forgotten Garden
[name_f]Alice[/name_f] - [name_f]Alice[/name_f] in Wonderland

I could go on and on but I’ll just say most of the names listed in my sig I got from some character in a book/movie or someone in real life like an actor or a family member.

4

[name_u]Owen[/name_u], [name_m]Patrick[/name_m], [name_m]Thomas[/name_m], [name_f]Claire[/name_f], [name_f]Soleil[/name_f] - Family
[name_m]Mark[/name_m], [name_m]Thomas[/name_m], [name_m]Adam[/name_m] - Blink 182
[name_f]Wendy[/name_f] - Blink 182/All Time Low
[name_m]Jack[/name_m] - [name_f]Sparrow[/name_f], Barakat, [name_m]Daniel[/name_m], [name_u]London[/name_u], etc. etc.
[name_m]Gregory[/name_m] - House
[name_f]Vera[/name_f] - [name_u]Bradley[/name_u], Wang
[name_u]James[/name_u] - and the Giant [name_f]Peach[/name_f]
[name_f]Fiona[/name_f], [name_f]Annie[/name_f] - Degrassi
[name_u]Sailor[/name_u], [name_u]Ocean[/name_u] - The water aspect
[name_m]Holden[/name_m] - Caulfield
[name_u]Salem[/name_u] - MA and NH

And that’s all I can remember currently.

5

[name_f]Catherine[/name_f]- Northanger [name_u]Abbey[/name_u] and the duchess of Cambridge
[name_f]Isabella[/name_f]- [name_f]Isabella[/name_f] d’este (one of the most powerful women during thr the Renaissance)
[name_f]Fiammetta[/name_f]- after my favorite painting A vision of [name_f]Fiammetta[/name_f].

6

haha. Awesome thread! Most of my favorites are inspired by family ([name_f]Liliana[/name_f], [name_f]Catherine[/name_f], [name_m]Boaz[/name_m], [name_m]Grayson[/name_m], [name_f]Violet[/name_f], [name_f]Hannah[/name_f], [name_f]Eleni[/name_f], [name_u]Avery[/name_u], [name_m]Jack[/name_m], [name_m]Charles[/name_m], [name_m]Zane[/name_m], [name_m]Cristiano[/name_m]/[name_m]Ian[/name_m]…) in some way, by literature ([name_m]Jack[/name_m], [name_f]Olivia[/name_f], [name_m]Charles[/name_m], [name_f]Catherine[/name_f], [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f]…), by my faith ([name_f]Isabelle[/name_f], [name_f]Arianne[/name_f], [name_f]Olivia[/name_f]/[name_f]Olive[/name_f], [name_f]Liliana[/name_f], [name_f]Rachel[/name_f], [name_f]Hannah[/name_f], [name_m]Caleb[/name_m], [name_m]Asher[/name_m], [name_m]Boaz[/name_m]), or by what favorite musicians/bands/soloists named their children ([name_f]Isabelle[/name_f], [name_f]Arianne[/name_f], [name_f]Emmeline[/name_f])–I heard the name, and I liked it, or I heard the name, liked the idea of it, but tweaked it a bit–[name_f]Isabelle[/name_f] for [name_f]Isabella[/name_f], [name_f]Emmeline[/name_f] for [name_m]Emmerson[/name_m] nn [name_f]Emmy[/name_f], etc.

All that leaves out is [name_f]Eva[/name_f], [name_f]Tess[/name_f], [name_u]Everett[/name_u], [name_u]Bailey[/name_u], [name_m]Brody[/name_m], and [name_m]Dominic[/name_m]. All of which I just heard somewhere and just really fell for. I think [name_u]Bailey[/name_u] and [name_m]Dominic[/name_m] were inspired by actors/characters in movies that I saw, but the others I just fell for over time, the more I heard them.

The majority of my combos/names are inspired by family, faith, and literature, though. I think it makes a pretty cool blend.

7

[name_m]Dominic[/name_m]- the [name_m]Saint[/name_m] (set the world on fire!)
[name_m]Caspian[/name_m] - the sea
[name_f]Eulalie[/name_f] - also [name_m]Saint[/name_m]
[name_m]Charles[/name_m] - my granddad : )
[name_f]Zoe[/name_f] - my grandma’s favorite name
[name_m]John[/name_m] - St. [name_m]John[/name_m] [name_m]Bosco[/name_m]/my uncle
[name_f]Tallulah[/name_f] & Akule & [name_f]Panama[/name_f] - Indians!

8

[name_u]Ever[/name_u]- The connotations more than anything… it also stemmed from my love of the name [name_f]Eve[/name_f].
[name_m]Reno[/name_m]- Main character [name_m]Reno[/name_m] [name_u]Sweeney[/name_u] from the musical ‘Anything Goes’… mainly because [name_m]Sutton[/name_m] [name_m]Foster[/name_m] played her recently and I love her!
[name_f]Juno[/name_f]- [name_m]Just[/name_m] because I love it, but I do like that it has mythological ties and I must admit I did enjoy the movie.
[name_f]Lola[/name_f]- It just sounds strong and fiery to me. It’s also my best friend’s favourite name (wonder who will have a baby first! haha).
[name_u]Vesper[/name_u]- [name_f]Love[/name_f] that it means evening (my favourite time of day).

[name_u]Guthrie[/name_u]- The obvious answer would be that I’m a fan of someone with this surname, such as [name_m]Woody[/name_m] [name_u]Guthrie[/name_u], but I’m not;
I just like the name for what it is.
[name_m]Wilder[/name_m]- I like what it evokes… the idea of the wilderness and untamed open spaces. I also loved reading [name_f]Laura[/name_f] Ingalls [name_m]Wilder[/name_m] when I was growing up.
[name_m]Shepard[/name_m]- My baby brother’s almost-name. My stepmum loved it because of the artist [name_m]Shepard[/name_m] Fairey.
[name_m]Atticus[/name_m]- I just love the sharp rhythm of it as it jumps out of your mouth!
[name_m]Leo[/name_m]- It happens to be my star sign, but I wouldn’t name my kid after that. Basically I just like it :slight_smile:

9

Mm, interesting thread topic!! I don’t think about it a lot, where my favourites have been inspired from. But… Some, quite a few actually, are from favourite books that have left an impression on me. Some are inspired by family and a few close friends (surnames as firsts or middles/names they have talked about…) Others are word names, inspired by words that have attracted me with their meaning and image. These are the names that I love the best, the ones with meaning and inspiration behind them.

10

[name_m]Lucien[/name_m] - after [name_m]Lucien[/name_m] [name_m]Pol[/name_m], my great-grandfather who emigrated from [name_f]France[/name_f] to the U.S.
[name_m]Anders[/name_m] - [name_m]Anders[/name_m] Jakobsson, a family patriarch from Denmark.
[name_f]Maren[/name_f] - another ode to my ancestry, this one from the Danish matriarchal side.
[name_f]Gretchen[/name_f] - [name_m]Faust[/name_m].
[name_f]Modeste[/name_f] - Modest Mussorgsky.
[name_m]Mads[/name_m] - [name_m]Mads[/name_m] Mikkelsen.
[name_f]Brigitte[/name_f] - my favorite professor.

11

usually things I love, the bible, nature, books, movies, etc

12

I’m only including the ones that are inspired by something, ha.

Dashiel – Dashiel [name_m]Robert[/name_m] [name_m]Parr[/name_m], the spunky kid from The Incredibles. :slight_smile: That’s where I heard the name, at least.
[name_m]Matthias[/name_m] – My father, and Mattimeo, that little mouse in Redwall.
[name_m]Gerard[/name_m] – [name_m]Gerard[/name_m] [name_m]Way[/name_m], lead singer/songwriter of my favorite band.

[name_f]Helena[/name_f] – [name_f]One[/name_f] of my own characters… whoops… Heh.

13

Most of my favorite names are ones I love because of their history or some association with a character I love. This is mostly true for girls.

[name_f]Matilda[/name_f] - the character, and also several strong women throughout history
[name_f]Penelope[/name_f] - the Odyssey character
[name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] - [name_m]Roosevelt[/name_m], and [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] of [name_f]Aquitaine[/name_f]
[name_f]Victoria[/name_f] - [name_f]Victoria[/name_f] Woodhull
[name_f]Madeleine[/name_f] - [name_f]Madeleine[/name_f] Albright, and [name_f]Madeline[/name_f], the character (Though I probably wouldn’t use bc of its popularity)
[name_f]Sophia[/name_f] - love its connections to wisdom and knowledge
[name_f]Lyra[/name_f] - His Dark Materials

Boys:
[name_m]Atticus[/name_m] - the character, I also just love the sounds it makes and how it rolls off your tongue
[name_u]Max[/name_u] - [name_f]LOVE[/name_f] [name_u]Max[/name_u], it’s so cute, and it’s from WTWTA, and with my SO’s last name it sounds like a superhero haha
[name_m]Atlas[/name_m] - only in the middle spot, but I love its connections to travel and worldliness
[name_m]Milo[/name_m] - The Phantom Tollbooth is still one of my fave. books
[name_m]Westley[/name_m] - Who doesn’t love The [name_f]Princess[/name_f] [name_f]Bride[/name_f]? The book is even better
[name_m]Alexander[/name_m] - What guy wouldn’t want a connection to [name_m]Alexander[/name_m] the Great?

The rest of the names I like are because I like the meaning or imagery, or the sound.

14

A lot, though not all, of my favorites are names related to nature. For girls anyway.
[name_f]Rose[/name_f], [name_f]Lily[/name_f], [name_f]Autumn[/name_f], [name_u]Winter[/name_u], [name_f]Violet[/name_f], [name_f]Tulip[/name_f], [name_u]Sky[/name_u]/[name_u]Skye[/name_u]/[name_u]Skylar[/name_u], [name_f]Daisy[/name_f], [name_f]Jasmine[/name_f], [name_f]Holly[/name_f], [name_f]Heather[/name_f], [name_u]Rain[/name_u], [name_u]Raven[/name_u]…etc. Quite a big list just with them lol.

For boys my favorites are somewhat random I guess. I love [name_m]Zachary[/name_m], [name_u]Tyler[/name_u], [name_m]Joshua[/name_m], [name_m]Jason[/name_m], [name_m]Jackson[/name_m], [name_m]Dominic[/name_m], [name_m]Dimitri[/name_m], [name_m]Eric[/name_m]/[name_m]Erik[/name_m]. I do like [name_m]Samuel[/name_m] because of a character on Supernatural, a show I watch. [name_u]Sam[/name_u] Winchester. Also [name_m]Jared[/name_m], the name of the actor, [name_m]Jared[/name_m] Padalecki. [name_u]Jensen[/name_u] as well as [name_u]Jensen[/name_u] Ackles also acts in the show. I never heard of [name_m]Jared[/name_m] or [name_u]Jensen[/name_u] before.

I like many names though all over the place.

15

My favourites are all pretty random.

[name_m]Edmund[/name_m]- I’ve been in love with this since my grade 3 English teacher read us The [name_m]Lion[/name_m], the Witch, and the Wardrobe.
[name_m]Marius[/name_m]- there was a character in a play we read in grade 10 [name_m]French[/name_m], and the name has stuck with me since then. I think it’s so handsome and versatile.

[name_f]Leonor[/name_f]- I will be honest, I never thought about how nice this name was until the Infanta in Spain was born, and she is so gosh darn pretty!
[name_f]Amparo[/name_f]- the Patron [name_m]Saint[/name_m] of the [name_f]Valencia[/name_f] Community, which is where I used to live.

None of the others on my list were really “inspired” by anything, like in an honouring way. Most were just brought to my attention during normal events of meeting or hearing about people with these names, and the name striking a chord with me. For example, I have a friend whose middle name is Aña, and when she said that, I about fell over. SO AWESOME! It’s not on my list because I want to honour her or anything, but I just think it’s such a neat name.