Melanie Mannarino - Epic Baby Names for Girls: Fierce and Feisty Heroines, from Ancient Myths to Modern Legends

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First Tiller Press trade paperback edition October 2019

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ISBN 978-1-9821-3292-7

ISBN 978-1-9821-3293-4 (ebook)

INTRODUCTION

Lets start with you: youre choosing a name for another human. That right there is epic.

Choosing a name is a big responsibility: you do your best and hope that when your child is old enough to have an opinion, they say, Great job, I love my name! (Fingers crossed.) Its also sometimes political: you have to be sure it doesnt echo (some might say copy) any other names in the family, or those of your friends kids. You might be looking to honor a loved one whos passed, or you might be rebelling against a family tradition of giving every female the same middle name.

But choosing a name for your child is also a lot of fun. If youre anything like me, youve looked everywhere for inspirationI used to read every last credit on the movie screen, scanning it for a name that would catch my eye. (The key grip is named Chloe? Thats pretty!) Characters from books, movies, even video games can make the cut. Public figures past and present spark ideas. Your choices are limitless.

In the spirit of curation, weve narrowed the field for you, zeroing in on the most epic, the most iconic, the most (excuse my language) badass female names weve ever heard. The fierce names in this book come from the past, the present, and even the future. They come from real and imagined cultures around the worldfrom Egypt to Denmark, Wakanda to Caprica. And behind each of these names is a feisty female who uses her strength to make her world and the world around her better.

These are the heroines of our time and of other times. Some have legitimate superpowers (if you want to name your daughter after a mermaid or fairy, there are plenty of options!); others have more earthly abilities, like compassion and courage. Whatever life throws at these girls and women, they get back up, fighting for their beliefs and their right to live and love with all their might. They are passionate, selfless, loyal, and determined. Just the qualities we all hope our children will possess.

Browse this book by chapter (theres one on world mythology! And another on pop culture!) or read it cover to cover, learning a little about each legendary namesake. You can also learn the original meaning of each name mentioned, as well as find alternate spellings that might be just the spin you need to make the name fit your child and your family.

Whatever you choose, we know it will be epic.

CHAPTER 1 EPIC MYTHOLOGICAL NAMES

E very culture has its otherworldly, outlandish mythsespecially when it comes to their own origins. Babies are born from mens foreheads; women deliver fourteen children at once, flooding the earth when their water breaks. We may not accept these stories at face value, but each supernatural ability and magical circumstance reveals a lesson about human nature. The female figures in this chapter are important to the history of their respective culturesancient Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Celtic, African, Japanese, and more. The stories of their actions have stood the test of time, making them all extraordinary choices for parents considering a powerful, epic name for their child.

A Celtic goddess of love, wealth, the moon, and summer, ine is referred to as a fairy queen in ancient Irish myths and legends. Its said that she often took the form of Lair Derg, a red mare, in order to walk among her people. She is known for being sensitive and joyfulbut her life wasnt all sunshine and roses. At least once, she had to prove her strength (of body and spirit) against a king. As the story goes, he came away missing an ear (though ultimately she lost her life). Her most devoted followers traditionally hailed from County Limerick, where there is a lake dedicated to her name.

ine, pronounced awn-yeh or on-ya, is derived from a Gaelic expression meaning brilliance, splendor, radiance.

The ancient Egyptian goddess of fertility and war, Anat is a fierce warrior with a reputation for violence. When her brother Baal is killed by the god Mot, she seeks vengeance for his deathand as a result, Baal is reborn. Ancient Egyptians sometimes called her Queen of Heaven, and she is also a goddess of love and vengeance.

The name Anat comes from a Hebrew expression meaning to sing.

The mythology of the Greek goddess of love is thought to have been influenced by the older Phoenician goddess Astarte, the Mesopotamian goddess Ishtar, and the Sumerian goddess Inanna. In other words, she wasnt the first goddess of love to be worshipped by humans. She is a character in Homers classic tales the Odyssey and the Iliad. In the latter, she, Hera, and Athena get into a disagreement over who is the fairest goddess. When they turn to Paris, a Trojan prince, to decide, they inadvertently kick off the Trojan War. Among her abilities, Aphrodite can make women beautiful, cause people to become overwhelmed with desire, and bring statues to life.

Aphroditeknown to the Romans as Venuswas said to have been born from the sea foam. Hence the name Aphrodite: aphrs is a Greek word meaning sea-foam.

The daughter of King Minos of Crete, Ariadne is best known for helping Theseus defeat the half-bull, half-human Minotaur. When Theseus is tasked with entering the Minotaurs underground Labyrinth in order to battle him, Ariadnewho fell in love with Theseus at first sightgives him a sword with which to kill the beast and a ball of twine to unwind as he navigates the Labyrinth, so that he can follow it back out when the deed is done. Ariadne helps Theseus in his quest, and afterward the two leave Crete together, intending to elopebut after complications on the island of Naxos, she eventually ends up with Dionysius instead.