Pamela Redmond Satran: The Pope, My Catholic Girlhood, and Baby Names

I couldn't wait to hear who the new pope was going to be, not because I'm a practicing Catholic any longer or because I cared which Cardinal got elected.

No. As usual, I was in it for the name.

I couldn't help but wonder: Do all the Pope candidates approach the process like Academy Award nominees, except with their name choices rather than their acceptance speeches clutched tight in their hands? Does the name choice have any influence on which Cardinal gets chosen -- I know it would in my world -- and do the finalists have to reveal their pope names before the decision is made final?

My Catholic girlhood went far to making me a professional name nerd. In fact, we all might owe the existence of my website Nameberry to Sister Miriam Gervase.

Most kids back at Immaculate Conception School were dying to know whether the nuns had hair under those veils or what they wore to bed at night, but to me those mysteries paled in comparison to the nuns' names.

Nuns got to pick new names for themselves when they entered the convent. That itself was appealing enough, but what was really amazing was that their choices were not confined by ethnic background, historical period, or even gender.

The principal of Immaculate Conception, for instance, was named Sister Miriam Gervase, an appellation that had it all going on. Miriam may have been a Mary relative, but it was one used mostly by Jews. unfamiliar in our Irish and Italian Catholic enclave.

And Gervase! That may have been a hot name in 6th century Gaul....for guys. But in mid-20th century New Jersey, it really stood out in the world of Gerrys and Jeans.

My favorite nun was also the one with the best name: Sister Jacinta. Sister Jacinta was young, at least as far as we could tell, and she was Irish. So where did the name Jacinta come from? I may have even been brave enough to ask her, and she explained that it was the Spanish name of a holy person -- the blessed Jacinta, one of the children who saw the apparition that became known as Our Lady of Fatima.

Jacinta: What a gorgeous name, and how exotic! It was as if the nuns had access to some secret list of fantastic names they've since passed down to Hollywood celebrities.
But actually, we all have access to those names today, thanks to the internet and such sites as Catholic Online, Which sends out a Saint of the Day newsletter that I get for -- what else? -- the names.

These names go far beyond the names I gleaned as a girl from the Lives of the Saints books that detailed the usual saintly suspects: Anne, Francis, Cecilia, Anthony, saints' names used consistently over the centuries down to my (yawn) neighbors and schoolmates. Though there was the occasional outlier -- one boy in my class was called Guy Ignatius and a church nearby was named for Saint Cassian, we were privy to only a narrow slice of the saintly possibilities.

Thanks to my grown-up name research, I've become familiar with the wide world of saints' names that the nuns have obviously known all along, names that are still unfamiliar yet might translate into modern life. Among the thousands of intriguing possibilities are Marinus and Marcellina, Romaric and Romana, Dallan and Dominica.

(Here's a much longer list of wonderful saints' names.)

Of course there are also thousands of saints' names it's hard to imagine ever clawing their way back into contemporary usage, from Disobod to Dingad to Dodo. But that doesn't really matter to a name nerd.

What was most appealing about Catholicism was the ritual of renaming, which extended far beyond the nuns to include pagan babies, popes, and even yourself.

I was an enthusiastic collector of coins in the interest of adopting these so-called pagan babies, not because I had any interest in their welfare but because I wanted to bless them with new names. Once the class had pulled together something like $36 in pennies and nickels and dimes, we laid official claim to another theoretical orphan in another far-flung locale, and held an election on what to rename her (somehow, in my memory, they were all girls, so much more fun for an 11-year-old girl to name than boys). My classmates' imagination for this practice was as limited as their enthusiasm, but mine wasn't. If only there'd been a Nameberry back then, I'd have given these poor children much better names.

The only thing more exciting than naming the pagan babies was getting to pick our own Confirmation names. Not strictly a renaming, this meant adding a second middle to our own lineups. My choice, I'm chagrined to admit, was the pedestrian Mary, but for very name nerdish reasons: Combined with Pamela Ann, it made my initials P.A.M. Brilliant!

While the Pope aspect -- upon election to that highest office, popes take on a new name -- gave renaming the highest possible endorsement south of Heaven, it was too distant and too infrequent to have much meaning in the everyday name nerd's life.

Still, I hung on the announcement of the new pope's identity yesterday, waiting for his name choice. I give the new pontiff high marks for choosing a name, Francis, never before used as a pope name, yet wish he'd picked something a little less stereotypically...Catholic. I know he was confined to the world of saints, but Leopold might have been cool, or even Xavier. Looking at popes of the past, my choice would have been Clement or Felix.

Or even cooler, he might have defied gender boundaries the way Sister Miriam Gervase did. A male Pope Felicity or Tatiana (yes, those are saints' names)? Now that would be name nerd heaven.

EARLIER ON HUFFPOST

• Clover

  Humble <a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/Clover">Clover</a>, until recently a name most often found in the barnyard, tops our list of unusual girls? names you?ll be hearing a lot more of because 109 little girls were given the name in the U.S. last year, the most of any of our 11 choices for girls, but it?s also one of the hottest choices in the group. Clover is a charming, offbeat botanical name used by Natasha Gregson Warner to honor her mother Natalie Wood, who starred in the film Inside Daisy Clover.

• Calla

  <a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/Calla">Calla</a>, an exotic flower name given to just over 100 girls in the U.S. last year, puts a fresh spin on two of its overused relatives, Lily and Callie. A trivia detail any little girl named Calla will surely love: Princess Calla was a character in a 1980s Disney show called "Gummi Bears."

• Gray

  Grayson may have already popped -? there were nearly 4000 of these latter day Jasons born in 2011, vaulting it into the Top 100 -- but quieter brother<a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/Gray"> Gray</a> was given to just under 100 boys last year. One of the few color names better suited to boys than to girls, there are slightly more boys given the spelling Grey. We predict the numbers of Grays and Greys to swell, along with boys named Graylon, Grayton, and so on.

• Zephyr

  Name of the Greek god of the west wind, <a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/Zephyr">Zephyr</a> is starting to blow into the modern world along with many of his ancient brethren. Until recently, most children only heard the name, spelled Zephir, as the appellation of the monkey friend of Babar the Elephant in the classic French story books. But in the future, Zephyr will more likely be a preschool classmate.

• Lux

  <a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/Lux">Lux</a>, a cooler way than Lucy to signify light, was given to 77 girls last year but is attracting attention thanks to the kickass heroine of the League of Legends game as well as the main character of the hipster novel and film The Virgin Suicides. Lux can also make a sleek, surprising middle name.

• Florence

  Italian place-name <a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/Florence">Florence</a> has been chic in England for several years now, but in the U.S., it fell off the Top 1000 around the time Florence Henderson starred in "The Brady Bunch" and has yet to climb back on. A Top 50 name in the UK, last year Florence was given to only 73 little girls here. But we see Florence along with flowery sisters Flora and Fleur set to blossom.

• Lazarus

  <a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/Lazarus">Lazarus</a> is rising again. While only 71 boys received the Biblical name last year, we see an increasing number of parents interested in Lazarus, in the vanguard of the next wave of ancient names. Lazarus also embraces several related names with considerable appeal: the Eastern European Laszlo, Latinate Lazaro, Hebrew Eleazar, and cool boy Lazer.

• Waverly

  Cool girl name Waverly was used for a character on "Friday Night Lights" and also gets some appeal from the fashion for girls' names that end in the <em>lee</em> sound -- Ashley's daughters, like the popular Kinley and Hadley. Television's "The Wizards of Waverly Place" helped popularized it. <em>Pictured: Actress Selena Gomez who plays Alex Russo on "The Wizards of Waverly Place</em>

• Marguerite

  French favorite<a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/Marguerite"> Marguerite</a> means ?daisy? (and also ?pearl,? both great names in their own right) and is starting to attract attention here as a more exotic and attractive spin on the standard Margaret. Saint Marguerite was a pioneering nun.

• Indigo

  <a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/Indigo">Indigo</a>, a name as alluring as the dark purplish blue color it represents, was given to only 62 girls last year. But as a color name it could eventually challenge Scarlett, with its fashionable I beginning and O ending, and it?s independent-minded nickname Indie.

• Bellamy

  All names Bella have attracted attention since Isabella scaled the charts. <a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/Bellamy">Bellamy</a> puts an androgynous, surname spin on the genre. Originally French for fine or beautiful friend ?- belle ami -? Bellamy got some attention as the name of one of the seven children of the Novogratz family of the reality show "9 By Design." Just over 50 girls received the name last year, but we predict the numbers to climb steeply. <em>Pictured: The Novogratz family</em>

• Coralie

  The melodic <a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/Coralie">Coralie</a>, which means Coral, was given to only 38 girls last year. But parents newly enchanted by Cora and longtime fans of Caroline are looking to it as a new twist on those favorites. Popular in Quebec, there are characters named Coralie in two 19th century novels.

• Nero

  <a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/Nero">Nero</a> is not the most inspiring namesake for a young boy -? he was the emperor who fiddled while Rome burned. But with the fashion for all names Ancient Roman, we see interest in Nero rising too. The Roman Nero?s birth name was Lucius, another obscure name attracting more heat, and there is also a modern fictional detective hero named Nero Wolfe.

• Stellan

  Scandinavian name<a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/Stellan"> Stellan</a> is a natural to migrate to our shores, on the heels of trendy sister Stella. Jennifer Connelly and Paul Bettany?s son Stellan is a namesake of actor Stellan Skarsgard -- that?s him with now-grown actor son Alexander. Despite its celebrity connections, only 37 boys were named Stellan in the US last year. <em>Pictured: Jennifer Connelly</em>

• Cyra

  <a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/cyra">Cyra</a>, which may be pronounced sigh-ra or seer-a, is the newest spin on Keira and Cara. Cyra also relates to also-fashionable brother name Cyrus; both have Persian roots and mean ?throne.? There was also a fifth century saint Cyra. Only 19 girls were named Cyra in the U.S. in 2011.

• Breccan

  An Irish name that means ?freckled,? <a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/Breccan">Breccan</a> was given to only 17 American boys last year but is set to rise on the heels of once-obscure brothers such as Declan and Brayden. Breccan was the name of both a saint and a mythological figure. A modern bearer with a less-attractive phonetical spelling is Breckin Meyer.

• Tiberius

  Ancient Roman emperor name<a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/Tiberius"> Tiberius</a> was also the name of two figures in the Harry Potter universe, enough to draw attention to a name never in the Top 1000 and given to only 17 American boys last year. But like brethren Atticus and Titus, we see interest in Tiberius rising and predict we?ll all be hearing it outside of history books.

• Snow

  <a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/Snow">Snow</a> is one of the freshest, coolest names around, especially for winter babies. Given to only 13 girls in the U.S. last year, it?s attracting twice as much attention as the average name on Nameberry. We see it rising along with simple, offbeat nature names such as Bay and Lake, Fox and Wren.

• Balthazar

  <a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/balthazar">Balthazar</a>, also spelled Balthasar, was the name of one of the Three Wise Men who visited the infant Jesus. The name has been used quietly in the modern world, most notably given to young oil heir Balthazar Getty. Balthazar has also been the name of many literary heroes ? of Shakespeare and Balzac, James Bond and Buffy the Vampire Slayer ? as well as of a fashionable restaurant in New York. Only 13 boys received the name last year, but we see that number rising.

• Cato

  Roman <a href="http://nameberry.com/babyname/cato">Cato </a>may be the most quietly used of our collection ?- only 8 boys were given the name in 2011 ?- but it may be the choice most likely to rise the furthest fastest. The reason, of course, is "The Hunger Games." While that fictional Cato was anything but an appealing character, Cato is a straightforward, modern-feeling name with the fashionable O ending. <em>Pictured: Actor Alexander Ludwig who played Cato in "The Hunger Games"</em>

• More Baby Name Ideas

  <strong><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/07/nameberry-classic-girls-names_n_1865314.html" target="_hplink">The 12 Classic Girl Names Making A Comeback </a></strong> <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/14/classic-boys-baby-names_n_1884361.html">Classic Boys' Names That Are Hot Now</a> <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/13/baby-names-2012_n_1666164.html" target="_hplink">The Hottest Baby Names Of 2012 (So Far)</a> <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/pamela-redmond-satran/baby-name-rules_b_1456854.html" target="_hplink">22 Rules To Follow When Choosing A Baby Name</a>

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Follow Pamela Redmond Satran on Twitter: www.twitter.com/nameberry

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