babynames | Place names?

Well, my name is Candice, but my friends call me Kansas, so I think that Kansas is only cute if used as a nickname.

I like Brooklyn suprisingly as a name for a child, because it'd be the same if you named your daughter Brooke Lynne.

I don't like Dakota. It irritates me and I don't know why. I also don't like Sahara. Zahara is fine with me because it sounds exotic, but Sahara doesn't do it for me. Verona is pretty, I like it.

I love Phoenix for a boy, I don't like Orlando that bothers me. I also like Jackson and Dallas. My cousin's name is Dallas.

I like Zahara also, but that's Angelina Jolie's daughter's name. I think people would associate her child with mine, and think I'm an obsessed fan of AJ.

I like the name Dallas. Phoenix is fine but I don't think I would ever use it.

For some reason, when I think of Phoenix, I think of the mythical firebird on X-Men that possesed the body of Jean Grey.

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turabiannights.livejournal.com - 2005-12-23 21:57 (UTC) - Expand

I like Brooklyn for a girl, but the others... to be entirely truthful, if I came across a kid who was actually named Kansas, Sahara, or Verona, my first thought would be to report the parents for child abuse. Dakota's not horrible, but it would still probably make me cringe if I came across it on a child. Same with Phoenix. I'll admit to having a soft spot for Jackson and Dallas, though I'd probably never use them on a child (I have, however, used them on characters). And Orlando's not my cup of tea, but it's nice.

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every time i see a kid named dakota, i wonder if his/her parents named them after the family SUV. i wonder if they have a sibling named tacoma or something.

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turabiannights.livejournal.com - 2005-12-23 21:57 (UTC) - Expand

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babyalligator.livejournal.com - 2005-12-24 09:15 (UTC) - Expand

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composure.livejournal.com - 2005-12-24 13:18 (UTC) - Expand

i don't like place names at all. i generally find them kind of tacky unless there may be some meaning behind it. i particularly hate austin. i know of several austins and they're all kind of dirty and ew. i have poor connotations.

HOWEVER... i do like phoenix. it's not something i would use, per se... perhaps as a middle. maybe. but i do not associate it with arizona. i associate it with the bird.

I associate it with the bird as well.

Hate 'em.

I don't mind place names that have other meanings (e.g., Austin, Jackson).

I generally like place names, especially Georgia and Virginia. But not Kansas. Not Pheonix. Not Sahara. (Why not just call it Gobi?) Maybe Verona. Jackson and Orlando are real names, not just places. ....Aren't they?

Yeah... but I still associate them with places. My dog's name was Jackson.

The name Phoenix sounds great, but despite the good association with the mythical bird, it's also got the River Phoenix association, and a burning miserable city in Arizona. I'd stay away from it for that reason.

Kansas I like.

As someone from the north, I would never, ever name a girl Brooklyn; it's a dirty, miserable city. Why name a girl after something like that?

Dakota, Sahara and Verona sound like car names (are they already?).

Orlando may have historical references, but I can only associate it with the teenybopper cupcake Bloom. Jackson I associate with the singer. Dallas I don't have a problem with, if you're looking for a good casual name.

Don't forget River's brother :)

*hate*

Unless the place name was an actual name first, or if it's only a middle name and has some great meaning behind it. Otherwise - tacky.

On another note, from what I've seen, the whole place name thing seems to be an American phenomenon - I haven't heard of anyone here in Canada naming their kid Ottawa or Moncton... or Paris... The whole concept seems odd. Are place names popular in the UK as well? Australia? Anyone know? I wonder...

I bet there are Australians named Sydney.

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ewaeva.livejournal.com - 2005-12-23 20:19 (UTC) - Expand

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krazyhippie.livejournal.com - 2005-12-23 21:37 (UTC) - Expand

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composure.livejournal.com - 2005-12-24 13:23 (UTC) - Expand

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anapology.livejournal.com - 2005-12-25 16:53 (UTC) - Expand

I dislike most of them, but I love the name Breton, after the Cape Breton Lullaby, which I guess is a place name, although the child could easily go by the more mainstream Brett.

I like that too. It's unusual and doesn't scream "place!".

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dolcedaze.livejournal.com - 2005-12-23 20:22 (UTC) - Expand

some are ok. names like dakota, georgia, and phoenix are cute. others like kansas, sahara and dallas i'm not so fond of.

I'm not a huge fan of 'place' names. Though I do call my youngest cousin Dakota, but that's just so she fits in with her brother and sister. (They both have desert-y names, but her name is Mallory).

I like Paris for a girl, probably because of my minor Gilmore Girls obsession. Other than that, most place names make me think either of old ladies (Virginia, Georgia) or rednecks (Cheyenne, etc).

A girl at a shelter I worked at one time was named Shyanne. Now there's a yooneek spelling that'll bite her in the ass.

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composure.livejournal.com - 2005-12-24 13:25 (UTC) - Expand

i love some place names... dakota being one of my favorites. :) however, orlando in particular has always bothered me. i'm not sure why, but it always has.

I love Dakota and plan on using it when ever I have (a) child(ren).

weee.

I'm all for Dakota as it's on my list for our next child if we have a girl :) I also like Brooklyn.

I like Phoenix, but I think it would be hard to find a middle name for that would flow right.I also like Orlando,never would've thought of it though had it not been for Orlando Bloom :)

Dakota's on my top five for a girl. Brooklyn was, until my cousin picked it to name her baby if it was a girl.

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akgothbitch.livejournal.com - 2005-12-25 02:29 (UTC) - Expand

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I HATE that I like India.

I like place names for the most part. My first daughter's name is Denver :)

Kansas isn't bad, but Brooklyn and Dakota I don't like because they're very popular right now. Sahara is so-so, Verona is nice (I'm obsessed with Romeo & Juliet, that could be why). I like all of the boys names except for Jackson, because again, it's really popular.

I'm not a big fan of place names, but I'm an even bigger non-fan of Dakota, simply because of the Native American connotations. I am a firm believer in not naming too far out of your culture, and certainly not naming after a culture. Narrow? Perhaps. But I think it is better to err on the side of respect rather than go on how cute the name is. Are Dakota and Cheyenne cute? Totally! But it would be like naming a kid Hmong or Zuni or Kurdish. I don't like it at all.

That said, Brooklyn, Sahara and Verona could all work for girls, though they are not my favorites. Kansas isn't really something I think of as a people name. Orlando and Jackson are both names as well as places, so I like those just fine. Phoenix is a bit gutsy, but is still name-ish. Dallas would only make people think of soap operas and "Debbie Does..."

The only ones I really like are Phoenix and Jackson, and Phoenix I would only use as a mn. Usually I am not a fan of place names as first names, unless the place name is also an accepted "people" name (like Austin, Lawrence, Jackson or Lincoln).

Verona makes me think of beer.
*burp*

Verona makes me think of Italy

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composure.livejournal.com - 2005-12-24 13:31 (UTC) - Expand

Most places are generally named after people in the first place. I'm from Australia and my daughters name is Montana. Not because it's a place but because it's my Boyfriends mothers maiden name and also his second middle name.

Some I like, some I don't. It's nice if people use them with some sort of meaning behind them, but I guess everyone has their own reasons for what they choose. *shrug*

I will say though, that once the place is something with the word "land" in it, it's going to far. Ireland etc.

The majority of them I don't like, but a couple of them I do.

I actually really like many state/place names. I just prefer when there's a reason behind naming a kid that instead of just going "Ooh, India sounds pretty. Sure we've never been there or know anything about the country or it's culture, but let's name the baby that anyway!"

well, orlando was a name before it was a place... at least I assume the mexican family across the street didn't name their kid after the city in FL.