May 2013 Roundup

It's time for my monthy round-up of other blogs that have profiled geeky names!

Once Upon a Time Baby Names had a post on Cedric, which was a character in Harry Potter, and Caspian from C.S. Lewis' Prince Caspian.

Naming the Fishes had a great list of werewolf names, dragon names, and minotaur names. I think I like Zylo the best.

Nancy's Baby Names had a post about a baby born in 1971 named after a lunar module, and Atreyu, from the Neverending Story.

Appellation Mountain profiled Mira, which among other things is a star in the constellation Cetus.

British Baby Names had a post on Merewen, which can be found the two fantasy series: Stonewylde, and The Door Within.

Bewitching Names always manages to find something new and interesting, and this time she's discovered Chrysalis.

Baby Name Pondering talks about Cestus, which has some sci-fi references, and Delta, which pops up a lot in mathematics and sciences.

Nameberry has a post of Joss Whedon names. They also have a cool post on Arctic inspired names. They're mostly nature-related, but there are some science inspired choices.

In Name Only had a post on names from the television show, Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Nyssa

Nyssa was a companion of the Fifth Doctor in the television series, Doctor Who. Like the Doctor, she was the last of her kind, as her homeworld, Traken, had been destroyed. Her father Tremas, was a Consul on Traken, and she had a privileged life. She specialized in bioelectronics, and possessed a brilliant intellect. Nyssa met the Fourth Doctor when he came to Traken to stop the Master from becoming the Keeper of Traken, a powerful position that her father was heir to. Unfortunately, the Doctor was unable to prevent her father's death at the hands of the Master. The Master released waves of entropy on the universe, which destroyed Traken. After the Doctor was mortally wounded in his fight with the Master, he regenerated. While he was still recovering from his regeneration, Nyssa helped him back to the TARDIS. Since she no longer had a home to return to, she stayed in the TARDIS as his companion. She ended her travels with the Doctor at the space station Terminus, which was a treatment facility for those with Lazar's disease. Nyssa contracted the disease, so she chose to stay behind to help find a cure, which she eventually did.

Nyssa Raatko was a villain in Batman comic books. She was an illegitimate child of Ra's al Ghul, one of Batman's greatest enemies. She was born in Russia in the 19th century. She tracked her father down, and joined him until she became disenchanted by his genocidal plans. When she refused to allow her children to become his heirs, he disowned her, however, he did allow her to keep a Lazarus Pit, which gave her extreme longevity.

Nyssa Damaskinos was a vampire in the movie Blade II. She was a natural born vampire, and daughter of Eli Damaskinos.

In the Star Wars franchise, Nyssa was a planet where the Mecrosa Order arose.

The name Nyssa comes from an ancient Roman town in Turkey, and is the genus name of the Tupelo tree. Nyssa has never been in the top 1,000 names in the U.S. In 2012, 24 girls were named Nyssa.

Firenze

In Harry Potter, Firenze was a centaur that lived in the Forbidden Forest. In the first novel, he saved Harry Potter from Voldemort and carried him to safety. He became Professor of Divination when Professor Trelawney was fired by Dolores Umbridge. His colony banished him because they saw this as servitude. When Trelawney was rehired, they shared the class. Firenze was wounded in the Battle of Hogwarts, and eventually was allowed to return to his colony.

Firenze is the Italian name for the city of Florence. I think it would be a great way to honor someone named Florence. It was also the name of a famous racehorse. Firenze does not appear in the Social Security Administration's name database.

Éomer

Éomer was the son of Éomund, who in turn was the nephew of Théoden, King of Rohan in J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. Théoden's son, Théodred, died young, making Éomer the heir to the throne of Rohan. His cavalry killed the orcs that had captured Merry and Pippin. He was imprisoned by Wormtongue for allowing Aragorn and his companions go free. When Gandalf restored Théoden, Éomer was released. He fought in the Battle of the Hornburg and the Battle of the Pelennor Fields. He became king when Théoden was killed in the latter battle. He was known as Éomer Éadig, or "the Blessed" because of the prosperity of Rohan during his reign.

Eomer was a legendary King of the Angles. He appears in genealogy of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, and in Beowulf. The name means "Horse-famous". The name does not appear in the Social Security Administration's name database.

Hera

In Battlestar Galactica, Hera Agathon was the first Human/Cylon hybrid. She was the daughter of Human Karl Agathon, and Cylon Sharon Agathon, both of whom were officers on Galactica. Previous attempts at reproduction by the Cylons failed, and they decided that love was a necessary component, so they sent Sharon to make Karl fall in love with her to help her conceive. Hera was born premature, and her parents were told that she died. She was then given a new identity and to another woman to raise. This was done to hide her from any Cylons that might be hiding amongst them. After Her adoptive mother died, Hera was taken to the Cylons where she was eventually reunited with her mother. Hera settled on New Earth, and died as a young woman, but 150,000 years later, her skeleton was found, and it was determined that she was the Mitochondrial Eve, the ancestor of all living humans. 

In Disney channel's Star Wars Rebels, Hera Syndulla was a Twi'lek and the owner of the freighter ship, Ghost. She also owned a droid named Chopper. She was an expert pilot and marksman. Her homeworld was Ryloth, and her father, Cham, led the resistance to the Empire there. She eventually left her world and became a member of the Rebellion.

Hera Tuix was a character in a Star Wars Novel, Yoda: Dark Rendezvous by Sean Stewart. She was a human Padawan during the Clone Wars.

In Star Trek, there was a Federation starship named the U.S.S. Hera. 

There is a main belt asteroid named 103 Hera. One of Jupiter's moons, Jupiter VII was once informally called Hera, but now bears a different name. 

There is a particle accelerator in Hamburg, Germany named HERA. It is short for Hadron Elektron Ring Anlage. 

The name Hera comes from Greek Mythology. She was the wife and sister of Zeus, and she was the goddess of women and marriage. Hera the Goddess was a character in the Marvel Comics Universe, 
and the Goddess Hera was also referred to as an alien of the same race as Apollo in an episode of Star Trek. 

Hera has never appeared in the top 1,000 names in the United States. In 2012, 16 girls were named Hera.

Yvaine

In Neil Gaiman's novel, Stardust, Yvaine was the name of a star that took human form when she fell from the sky. She was knocked down by a necklace sent by the King of Stormhold, as a test for his heirs. She landed in the the land of Faerie. There she encountered Tristran Thorne (Tristan in the film adaption), from the town of Wall, who tried to abduct her to take her as a gift to Victoria, a girl he was smitten with. She was also hunted by witches who wished to cut out her heart and use the magic to live forever, and by the heirs of Stormhold, who were after the necklace that knocked her from the sky. Tristran, her would be abductor, became her rescuer, and the two fell in love.

As far as I can tell, the name was invented by Gaiman, although some baby name websites have unsourced origins. The closest I can find that appears legitimate is the male name Yvain, which is of Welsh origin. Yvain is a form of Owain, meaning 'Youth', the name of a knight in the Arthurian legends. In 2012, 9 girls were named Yvaine.

Rubeus

Rubeus Hagrid was a character in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. His mother was a giant, and his father was a human wizard. He was expelled from Hogwarts when it was believed that his pet acromantula was responsible for the deaths of students, who were actually killed when Tom Riddle opened the Chamber of Secrets. He was not allowed to practice magic, but he occasionally did anyway. Hagrid later became gamekeeper at Hogwarts, and he brought Harry Potter to the Dursley's house after Lily & James Potter were killed. He was also chosen to tell Harry that he was a wizard and help him get ready for his first year at Hogwarts. A few years later he was made a professor and he taught Care of Magical Creatures. After Voldemort came back, Dumbledore sent Hagrid as an envoy to the giants, hoping to prevent them from joining Voldemort's army. Hagrid failed, but he brought home his half brother, Grawp, who he kept hidden in the Forbidden Forest. Hagrid went into hiding with Grawp during the Second Wizarding War, but returned for the Battle of Hogwarts. During the battle, he was captured by Death Eaters. Hagrid was still teaching at Hogwarts when Harry Potter's children attended the school.

Crimson Rubeus was a Sailor Moon Character, and was a villain of the Black Moon Clan.

Rubeus is the Latin word for 'Red'. It does not appear in SSA's name database, making it a very rare name. Since the character was mainly called Hagrid, it's also a name that doesn't scream 'Harry Potter'. 

Callisto

Callisto is one of Jupiter's moons that was discovered by Galileo. It is Jupiter's second largest moon, and is nearly as large as the planet Mercury. It is composed of equal amounts of rock and ices.

In X-Men, Callisto was a mutant who possessed superhuman senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. She was once a beautiful woman, but became scarred as a result of violent encounters with normal humans. She was the leader of the Morlocks, a group of mutants that lived in the sewers. She lost leadership of the Morlocks when Storm defeated her in a duel.  She later became a servant of the wizard Kulan Gath. When she found herself in a new timeline, she became an ally of the X-Men and even rescued Professor X. 

Callisto was a character in Xena: Warrior Princess and in Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. Callisto witnessed the death of her mother and sister at the hands of Xena, who killed them during a chaotic attack on her village. As a result of this trauma, Callisto became a ruthless and bloody warlord, who was out to get Xena. She died twice, became an immortal, then a God, then a demon, and ultimately an archdemon. 

The Callisto series was a series of science fiction novels published in the 1970s by author Lin Carter.

In Doctor Who, the Callisto Pulse was a device that could disarm micro-explosives. River Song traded a Callisto Pulse for a vortex manipulator she needed to reach the Doctor.

In Star Trek, the U.S.S. Callisto was a Federation starship, and in a Star Wars novel, Callisto was the name of an Imperial Star Destroyer.

In Greek mythology, Callisto was a nymph of Artemis. She was transformed into a bear and set among the stars. Callisto has never ranked in the top 1,000 names in the United States. In 2012, 7 girls were named Callisto in the U.S.

Alva & Edison

Thomas Alva Edison was one of the most prolific inventors in history. He began his career as a telegraph operator, and his first inventions were for improvements telegraphic devices. The first invention that earned him some attention was the phonograph which he invented in 1877. He created the first industrial research lab in Menlo Park, NJ, and he became known as "The Wizard of Menlo Park." Other notable inventions by Edison were the incandescent light bulb and the kinetescope. 

Balthazar M. Edison was the captain of the U.S.S. Franklin in Star Trek Beyond. 

Edison Po was a character in Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. He was a former marine who was part of the Centipede Project. He was killed by the John Garrett.

Ethan Edison was a minor character in the television series Eureka. He created Martha, a drone used to test weapons systems, but who developed into an AI.

There are several types of software named Edison. 


Alva has several origins and can be suitable for boys or girls. It is an English variant of Alvah, a male name of Hebrew origin that means 'his highness', a female variant of the Swedish name Alf, meaning 'elf', or an Anglicization of the Irish female name Ailbhe, which means 'noble, or bright.' Alva has not ranked in the top 1000 since 1969. In 2011, 13 girls were named Alva.

Edison is an English name that means 'son of Edward'. In 2011, Edison ranked at #767 in the U.S. 

Arwen

Arwen Undómiel is a character in the Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. A member of the Half-elven in Middle-earth, she is neither elf or man, and must choose which to become. Arwen chooses to give up the immortal life of an elf to marry her love Aragorn.

Arwen is a real name of Welsh origin, which can also be spelled Arwyn. The meaning of the Welsh name is 'muse', but in Tolkien's world, it means 'noble maiden or noble woman'. It can be used for both boys and girls. In 2011, 72 girls were named Arwen, and 20 girls were named Arwyn.

Newton

Isaac Newton was an English physicist and mathematician that lived from 1642 to 1727. He is best known for explaining gravity in his law of universal gravitation, and the laws of motion. He also developed infinitesimal calculus. He was a fellow at Trinity College and a professor of mathematics at the University of Cambridge. 

There are craters on the moon and Mars named for Newton. 

In Star Trek, there was a starship named the U.S.S. Newton. It was also the name of that particular class of vessel. 

In the Harry Potter universe, Professor Newton Artemis Fido "Newt" Scamander was the author of the textbook, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. J.K. Rowling wrote a real version of the book for charity.

Newton is an English name that means 'New town'. Newton appeared in SSA's top 1,000 names in the U.S. from 1880-1957. It's highest rank was in 1880 at #182. In 2011, only 14 boys were named Newton. I love this name, and the cool nickname "Newt", but it as been totally ruined for me by a distasteful American politician.

Barbarella

Barbarella was a French comic character created by Jean-Claude Forest in 1962. The comic spawned a movie, also called Barbarella, in 1968, and a musical in 2004. The character represented a future where women were sexually liberated. Barbarella traveled to other planets, meeting aliens that she often had sex with. 

Barbarella was the name of a German hybrid rocket launched in the 1970s.

Barbarella is a variant of the name Barbara, which means foreign, or strange. Barbarella only appeared in the Social Security Administration's database for 2 years. In 1969 the name was given to 17 girls, and in 1970, it was given to 8 girls.

Hal

HAL-9000 was an artificial intelligence from 2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke. HAL was short for Heuristically programmed, ALgorithmic computer. Hal was part of the computer in the Discovery One spaceship. HAL began to malfunction, and when the astronauts decided to disconnect his cognitive circuits, HAL decided to kill them. In the sequel, 2010: Odyssey Two, HAL was restarted, and his previous attempt to kill the astronauts was revealed to be due to a conflict in his programming. HAL sacrificed himself to save the astronauts, but was turned into a non-corporeal being by the monolith.

Harold 'Hal' Jordan was one of several humans to become member of the Green Lantern Corps. He was a member of the U.S. Air Force. When Abin Sur, a member of the Greeen Lantern Corps, crash landed in California, the power ring chose Hal Joran as it's replacement officer. He was one of the founding members of the Justice League. 

Hal Yorke was a vampire in the U.K. television series Being Human. He was born in the late 15th century. He went on a bloody rampage for centuries, and gained such an evil reputation that even the Old Ones were afraid of him. In the 20th century he lived with a werewolf named Leo and a ghost named Pearl. After Leo died, Pearl went with him to the afterlife, leaving Hal with another werewolf and ghost, Tom and Annie.

Halfast 'Hal' Gamgee was a Hobbit and a cousin of Samwise Gamgee in the Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. 

Hal the Archer, and Hal Korwin where minor characters in the Doctor Who television series. 

Hal is typically a nickname for Harold or Henry. As a stand alone name it is not very popular. In 2011, only 15 boys were named Hal.

Teyla

Teyla Emmagan was a character in the television series, Stargate: Atlantis. Teyla was born in the Pegasus Galaxy on the planet Athos. Her planet was frequently culled by the Wraith, an alien species that consumed the life force of humans. A group of humans from Earth visited her planet shortly after discovering the lost city of Atlantis in the Pegasus Galaxy. Teyla's people were forced to evacuate to Atlantis as well, and Teyla joined the human expedition. Some Athosians had a small amount of Wraith DNA, which gave them the ability to sense the presence of the wraith. In Teyla this ability was unusually strong, and with practice, she was eventually able to make telepathic contact with Wraith minds. Teyla had a relationship with an Athosian named Kanaan. The relationship produced a son named Torren. Teyla stayed on Atlantis when it traveled back to the Milky Way galaxy to stop a Wraith attack on Earth. 

Teyla is an invented name. In 2011, 20 girls were named Teyla.