Amanda Elizabeth Barden - Baby Names Made Easy: The Complete Reverse-Dictionary of Baby Names

A huge thank you to Stephanie Kip Rostan, my agent. I thank you for all your kind and wise advice and for being so patient with each of my novice questions. I will always be grateful for my good fortune in finding you and for how lucky I was the day you said you wanted to represent me. I also want to thank Monika Verma, Beth Fisher, Melissa Rowland, and the entire Levine Greenberg Literary Agency for all your hard work on my behalf.

To Michelle Howry, my editor, and everyone at Simon & Schuster, I thank you for seeing the promise in this project and helping make my vision a reality. Special thanks go out to Josh Karpf, Allison Brennan, Joy OMeara, Ruth Lee-Mui, Trish Todd, Mark Gompertz, Bridget Curtis, and Marcia Burch.

I am grateful to my brothers Chris and Prescott and to all my friends who provided moral support breaks when I needed them and talked with me about baby names more than they probably wanted to. I would like to give credit and thanks to those who helped with research: Prescott Barden, Aaron Calbreath-Frasieur, Wendy Cunningham, and Michael Graham. Its a lot of work to write a book. Thanks for pitching in when I needed it most.

Finally, to Robert E. Barden, my dad, who was ready to help each and every time I asked, no matter what I asked. And my biggest thank you goes to Shirley A. Barden, my mom, who spent countless hours helping me with the book. You started helping me on Day One and I couldnt have finished it without you.

Birth of a Baby Name Book

When I was in elementary school, my mom gave me the baby name book she got while in the hospital having my older brother. Ive been hooked ever since. Over the years, my fascination with names has grown as Ive collected baby name books and spent hours reading them, making lists of names I liked and their meanings. Eventually the lists graduated into notebooks and, finally, a baby name book of my very own.

If youre a name junkie like me, you will immediately see that this book is an interesting and fun spin on the traditional baby name book. If you are a soon-to-be parent picking up a baby name book for the first time, you might find yourself a little overwhelmed with the options out there. There are dictionaries that give a list of names organized alphabetically. There are books that give opinions and statistics about names. Then there are the specialty books that include only certain types of namesIrish baby names, Jewish baby names, even sci-fi baby names. Depending on what youre looking for, all these books can be helpful. However, my book combines the best of all these books for parents who want to decide for themselves which names are cool, strange, or too trendy.

Organization

The organization of this book is fairly self-explanatory. Naturally, the names themselves determined the chapters. My job was to group the names into categories according to their meanings. The result is an easy-to-use guide that will help parents in their search for the perfect baby name. Baby Names Made Easy has over forty chapters covering a wide variety of categorieseverything from Love & Affection to Nature to Religion & Faith to Intelligence & Wisdom and more.

My research showed me that some names have multiple definitions or interpretations. In instances where a name fits into more than one category, it is listed in all relevant chapters. For example, Violet is in the Flowers, Trees, & Things That Grow chapter as well as the Colors chapter.

One of the most useful and time-saving features of Baby Names Made Easy is that the definitions are listed after each name, not just under the root name. This might sound like common sense, but many baby name dictionaries refer readers to other entries in order to find the definitions of some names. This happens when one name is derived from another. It is especially common for feminine names that have their roots in masculine names. For example, in other books, the entry for Georgia might only tell you that it is the feminine form of George, forcing you to then look up George to find out what Georgia means. Thats too much work! No more flipping back and forth to find definitions Baby Names Made Easy saves you time and frustration by simply telling you that Georgia is the feminine form of George and that it means farmer. That was easy!

As you read through the book, youll see that some chapters have more names than othersand some chapters have more girls names than boys names and vice versa. There just arent a lot of boys names that mean innocence or that are derived from jewels. Likewise, there are fewer military-related names for girls than there are for boys. My research also uncovered names that refused to be categorized. To accommodate these names I created a Miscellaneous chapter where youll find everything that didnt fit elsewhere.

Throughout the chapters you will find boxes that feature groups of names. Some boxes highlight a specific subcategory within a chapter. For example, the Physical Characteristics & Personality Traits chapter has a box full of names that describe hairblond hair, curly hair, red hair, and so on. Other boxes feature interesting names worth a second look. I had a good time putting these together and I hope you enjoy reading through themand maybe even get an idea or two.

Meanings Matter

Instinctively, we all know that meanings matter. This is why parents-to-be usually factor in a names definition when selecting a name for their baby. While writing this book, I discovered that most people know what their names meanand the people who didnt were really curious to find out. I also discovered that this conversation is a little awkward when you are talking to someone whose name has a questionable meaning. For example, people named Portia usually do not like to find out that their name means pig. Other examples are Regan (impulsive, angry), Mallory (unhappy, unlucky), Kennedy (odd-shaped head), and Trista (sorrowful, sad). That said, whether a definition is good or bad is very subjective. Other than the examples I gave here, I try not to make that judgment. I leave it up to you to decide for yourself whether the meaning works for you and your new baby.

I have a question for you. Which comes first, the baby name or the meaning? Different parents have different naming strategies. Some parents have meanings that are important to them and want to find names that fit into their preferred category. For example, you might have your heart set on a nature-related name and prefer to see all your options before making a final decision.

Other parents already know what names they like and simply want to make sure the name they choose has an acceptable meaning. For example, maybe you have always loved the name Zachary and are pleased to find out it means remember God. Maybe you have a list of family names youre considering. You can narrow the list by choosing the names with the definitions you like best. No matter what your naming style, this user-friendly book will make it easier for you to find the perfect name for your baby.