Report on Baby Names

 

Image from Yahoo.com

Social Security just released the list of most popular baby names in 2008.  In the online article “Top Baby Names in the US” Yahoo reports that in the search for a popular yet unique name,

“Many [parents] turn to the Bible; others turn to TV.

Emma debuted in the top 10 in 2002, the same year that Jennifer Aniston’s character on “Friends” gave the name to her TV show baby. In the latest lineup, Emma was followed by Isabella, Emily, Madison and Ava.

“They might want to emulate the stars, but if they do, the name can’t be too far out,” said Jennifer Moss, author of “The One-in-a-Million Baby Name Book” and founder of Babynames.com.”

(Click on the picture to read the full story.)

What if parents also turn to books for a name source, i.e. Twilight?  When I read the series I thought to myself, “Why, what a nice name Isabella is, and isn’t Bella the most darling nickname?  I’d love to name my daughter that.”  Maybe the same was true with other expecting couples and the Twilight series was one of the driving factors catapulting Isabella to the number 2 girl baby name in America.

Also interesting to mention, Jacob remains the top boy name while Edward has consistently fallen since the year 2000.  Does this hint at a werewolf favoritism?  Just kidding!

Yay for literacy!

Twilight in Theaters

     The Twilight movie will be in theaters on the 21st, next Friday, and I’m thinking of going to the midnight showing.  One might wonder, why would I not see it?  Well, I’ve told everyone since the prospect of a Twilight film was ever mentioned that I would not under any circumstance see it.  I hate the idea of the movie characters overriding my mental images of the characters and otherwise forever altering my memories of a beloved book.  In the same way I make an effort to read the book before seeing the movie.
       Some examples of this are the Harry Potter movies, Eragon, and the Golden Compass.  The making of Harry Potter was a special case where the film company was held accountable by millions of ardent fans and the author J.K. Rowling worked closely with writers, directors and actors throughout production.  Those movies were so very magical and the characters precise that it synced perfectly with what my imagination had come up with.
       On the other hand, I heard from friends how unlike the book and poor quality the movie Eragon was.  I’d rather not sully my impressions with a half-rate film, so I don’t plan on ever seeing it, and I don’t think I’ll be scarred for life.  The movie The Golden Compass was also very different from the book.  I saw that movie last New Years Eve, and I had read the book about four years before that.  I was able to separate the two into completely separate stories in my mind and could then enjoy the rich graphics and vibrant characters.
       So, the question in my mind remains, can I keep the movie and the book as two individual experiences?  This is all probably bordering on fanatical book loyalty, do other book fans feel the same way?  Feel free to weigh in on the discussion.