ISLA Eyed in Crate & Barrel Catalogue
July 18, 2008
Thumbing lackadaisically through my Crate & Barrel catalogue (as I had no intention of buying anything), my eyes grew wide as the name geek in me lit up and I saw, again, that which I have noticed popping up a lot: Isla. This time she was selling a pillow case. Just as managers are concerned with the marketing of their product, so too are modern parents regarding their baby’s name. With the recent onslaught of appellations from Pottery Barn to Crate & Barrel, I’d argue that marketers and baby namers are looking toward one another for what sounds current. My given example, Isla, is a name I am seeing everywhere these days: the actress Isla Fisher seems to have singlehandedly injected this palatable Scottish name into the conversation. Once relegated to Scotch and a multilingual translation for the word “island”, she’s now all over baby name boards, was rumored to be one of the Brangelina twins, and is selling bedsheets to boot.
It’s not farfetched to think that an expecting mother might be thumbing through her furniture catalogue and then days or weeks later believe a name came to her in a dream. It’s a subtle, almost subconscious accumulation of information. When a name seems to have come out of thin air, it very rarely does.
Both artistic and yuppy, modern and familiar, these names cover a broad spectrum specifically designed to target as large an audience as possible. Among these choices we find foreign words for “happiness” and “river”, vacation places for the wealthy, private schools, and characters from soap operas. I’d be interested to hear your thoughts on what unites this group of names. How is the staff coming up with them? Other associations? Anything you’d pluck for your own offspring?
“FROM THE CRATE”:
Abaca- Banana plant that grows in the Philippines.
Aberdeen- City in Scotland, with a much coveted familiar-yet-hard-to-pinpoint quality and the appealing nickname “Abby.”
Acacia- Shrub plant used by Freemasons as a symbol of purity and endurance of the soul, and in Asia to make incense that is thought to ward off demons.
Aerin- Character from J.R.R. Tolkein’s Legendarium from Lord of the Rings.
Allegro- Italian for “happy”, and a musical term meaning “quick.”
Avalon- From the Celtic abal meaning “apple.” Island from Arthurian legend.
Bexley- A borough in London.
Bosco- An Irish children’s television show in the 1970s and 80s.
Breck- Famed for a tulip nursery and shampoo.
Brighton- English beach town.
Cleo- Born Cleopatra, Cléo de Merode was the object of King Leopold’s affections.
Colby- College in Maine and “Survivor” contestant.
Cole- In marketing for a long time via Kenneth Cole and Cole Haan.
Dylan- Bob, Poet Thomas, 90210 and the daughter of Ralph Lauren.
Emerson- A Massachusetts college, Ralph Waldo, and the daughter of Teri Hatcher.
Exeter- The prestigious Philips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire, and a city in England that is home to a university and an eleventh century cathedral.
Fiona- Bringing to mind the clashing imagery of The Emerald Isle, the angst-ridden and talented pop star, and the bride of Shrek.
Foster- English surname, place name, and supposedly, “Australian for beer.”
Genesis- Simultaneously ancient and futuristic, and a popular name for girls in the Latino community.
Greta- Garbo, Van Susteren, and one letter away from “great.”
Hampton- Lux vacation spot for New Yorkers.
Hanson- Blond brothers band and Dutch surname.
Henley- A kind of shirt, Don, and town on the Thames.
Hennessy- Irish aristocrat and founder of the popular Cognac.
Ibis- Type of bird worshipped in Ancient Egypt, and a popular French hotel chain.
Isla- Hollywood actress, Spanish and Gaelic for “island.”
Jackson- Wyoming, Michael, Andrew, Jesse.
Jura- Isle of Jura is in Scotland, and yet another Scotch.
Kendel- I’m reminded of Kendall on “All My Children”
Kingston- Jamaica and Master Rossdale, of course.
Kiran- CNN anchor Kiran Chetry made this Sanskrit appellation a household name.
Kumi- Sort of a Pan-Asian name, if there is such a thing. A Japanese given name and a river in Korea.
Logan- An airport in Boston and a Scottish surname.
Lucciana- A commune on the island of Corsica.
Madison- A city in Wisconsin, a president, Daryl Hannah’s character in “Splash”, and one of the most surprising and successful takeoffs in recent years.
Malaga- Port City in Andalusia, Spain and a resort community.
Memphis- Tennessee, Egypt, and beginning to be seen as a first name.
Mesa- flat-topped mountain named for its shape, that of a table.
Murphy- Years later, Murphy Brown remains the most vivid image for the name.
Nito- May be too close to “neato”, but Nico is a viable alternative.
Octave- Another musical term and the French form of Octavian.
Oleander- An evergreen shrub and a natural bent on Leander and Evander.
Olivine- Mineral also known as Peridot, and might make an intriguing alternative to the ever popular (and lovely) Olivia.
Oona- An Irish name meaning “lamb” born by Charlie Chaplin’s wife.
Ona- Name given to South American aboriginal Selk’nam people. One of the daughters of Urizen in William Blake’s mythology.
Orion- Constellation and rising star in baby names.
Otis- Otis the Aardvark is a BBC puppet character.
Oxford- One of the most prestigious universities in England and the world.
Palmer- English surname name connoting peace.
Parker- Another all around amiable surname name.
Pax- Yet another “peaceful” moniker and chosen by Angelina Jolie for her son adopted from Vietnam.
Piper- A spirited English name originally given to a person who playes the flute, popularized by the series “Charmed.”
Rhodes- Rhodes scholarships are among the most prestigious.
Ria-Spanish for river.
Rialto- An area in Venice and the name of that city’s famous bridge.
Ricci- Christina comes to mind, as does this names “rich” sound.
Sammie- Once a nickname for Samuel, this is more likely heard now as a nickname for Samantha or as a given name on its own.
Sloane- Sloane Peterson in “Ferris Beuller’s Day Off” helped to memorialize this name in the 1980s. Sloanes or Sloane Rangers is also a term for upper class West Londoners.
Somerset- Coastal county in Southwest England. Somerset Maugham was in English playwright whose first name was William.
Sonora- The Sonoran desert is in the southwestern United States, and Sonora is also a federal state in Mexico.
Stella- “Star”, rapidly regaining favor as a first name.
Sterling- Connotes silver and wealth, and is a surname name to boot.
Strand- Surname name, and a reknowned bookstore with “miles of books” in New York.
Strauss- Synonymous with “waltz.”
Tanner- The occupation of tanning leather; also a British sixpence coin.
Taylor- Classic English surname, which catapulted to top ranks as a given name for little boys and girls.
Tivoli- Italian destination town and home to the ancient Hadrian’s Villa and Renaissance Villa D’Este.
Trey- Now a given name, which originated as a pet name meaning “three” or “third.”
Troy- A name which boasts the unusual combination of being simultaneously Ancient Greek and country- western.
Tsara- Tsarina and Tsaritsa are the female counterparts to the Tsar, and Tsara Komba is a resort hotel in Madagascar.
Viv- Sure to rise in the ranks, this lively nickname is short for VIvian, Vivienne, and Viveka.
Windham- Connecticut, New Hamshire, New York, and Maine all have towns called Windham. Adding to its clout, Wyndham is a chain of resort hotels.
I adore the simplicity of Isla but fear it’s likely ascent to the top of the charts. For me, her mysterious beauty will be lessened by over familiarity.
That’s true of so many names. One of my beloveds has skyrocketed in popularity, and I fear she is teetering on the brink of overuse and may not sound so refreshing once I get the chance to use her. I’m not telling what it is, though!
I love Isla, the way it sounds. However, I look at it and think EES-la each time. I am planning on majoring in Spanish one day, and I can’t help but pronounce it like that in my head, correcting myself everytime. It is such a beautiful name, though. I love a lot of the names on this list, particularly Avalon, Acacia, Exeter, Fiona (I would use this, if it wasn’t climbing the charts like crazy), Genesis, Greta (I have a four-year-old cousin Greta), Oleander, Orion, Pax, Ria, and Stella.
Good list. I may have to pick up one of these catalogues one day.
I had no idea there were so many names in this catalogue. I started subscribing to Boden for the names, looks like I might have to add another.
Oh, and Acacia is one of my all time favorites. I’ve loved this name since I was a little girl, naming my 11 imaginary children. Dh has poo-pooed it, but he might reconsider once I present the Freemason angle.
To be picky, the Spanish for river is “rio”… you can’t change the ending. Ria is a cute name, though.
Thanks, Amy, you may be correct. More precisely, Ria means “estuary”, which accounts for the Rias Altas along the Northern Galician coast: Ria de Ribadeo, Ria de Foz, Ria del Barqueiro, Ria de Viveiro, and the Ria de Ortigueira.
Acacia has a gorgeous sound, !!!DH!!! I love the hard C and the soft shushing C (what’s that called?) together in one name. I great first lesson in linguistics!
Stephanie, I love a lot of the names you were drawn to! Particularly Fiona. I think you’re safe with her, she may have peaked and seems to be staying pretty steady in the mid 300 range. I have known an adult Fiona and an adult Avalon, as well as baby Avalons, Genesises, Orions, Stellas, and one Ria. Stellas are a dime a dozen around here. I have yet to meet a young Isla in real life, but can’t imagine it will be too long. It is, as you said, SUCH a pretty name.
Just wanted to say I love this site.
I tried to name my daughter Isla. My husband hated it. I’m glad he did, since it is appearing everywhere now. That would have made me ill. Fiona (as PP said) went out the window for the same reason!
Isla is a traditional Scottish name and it is a shame it seems to be ripe to catapult further into the public consciousness.
I agree Louise and “Me”, Isla is gorgeous and while it may be a shame that this rare jewel has been discovered, it is far FAR from overuse. Let’s look on the bright side and think that more little girls will have such a lovely appellation! And people MIGHT even be able to spell it. Some of them, anyway.
Isla is coming along at the right moment. She counts Lila, Delilah, and Kyla (I know) among her cohorts.
I wonder where “Me” is from? In the US surely, Isla hasn’t even made it into the top 1000 yet. Lila has moved up quickly though isn’t it?