What is in a name? Different cultures around the globe use the naming privilege to impart upon their children as special benefit, reputation, and even spiritual protection. Family lines are preserved in the naming of little boys after their fathers, and hyphenated names also allow the girls to partake in this preservation of the family name. Yet at times it appears that the naming of a child is a huge undertaking that requires vast amounts of literature, naming books, and even on-line voting!
Unique baby names have been on the forefront of many a parent's mind since the beginning of time. Fashions and fads often added to the confusion, and what used to be a unique baby name in the good old days, nowadays would hardly stand the test of time. For example, it is said that a child born to a Puritan family was burdened with the weighty yet unwieldy name of "Through Much Tribulation We Enter The Kingdom Of Heaven Clapp." While this is most likely at the top of the "Unique Boy Baby Names" list, it is also a good example of unique baby names gone wrong.
Nonetheless, unique baby names are here to stay, and many a parent is no longer content with the popular names that the census bureau reports to us year after year. Some parents scour religious texts, such as the Bible, in search of their unique baby name. Names such as Saul (which means, roughly translated, "asked of God"), Reuben (translated as "behold, a son"), or Jadon (which may be translated as "He will judge") have entered the mainstream as acceptable albeit utterly unique boy baby names. Girls, too, are receiving these biblically inspired names, and mothers on the playground calling out to little Dinah (which may be translated as "judgment"), Ariel (no, not the mermaid, but instead the translation of "lion of God"), or Eden (translated as "delight") are no longer in the minority.
Naturally, not everyone looks to the spiritual books for naming ideas, and some parents are instead inspired by the annals of history, especially medieval history. Unique baby names abound in the archives of the medieval times, especially in France and England, and many a parent has decided to add the beauty of these names to the timelessness of their nobility. For example, boys' names that now may be heard in the halls of elementary schools are Etienne (the French translation of the English "Stephen"), Gregory (which translates from the Latin to "watchful"), or Thibault (which is French for "bold"). Medieval girls' names that are finding favor now are Emeline (French for "rival"), Mirabell (which translates from the Latin to "wonderful"), or Reyna (which translates from the Spanish as "queen").
Last but not least, for those who do not wish to look too far for unique baby names, there is the option of a more creative approach to the spelling of any given name. Granted, "Thomas," no matter how creatively spelled, is still "Thomas", yet with a bit of finesse, many a seemingly ordinary name can be transformed into a unique moniker for a child.