Celebrity movie star Kate Hudson and her fiance British rocker Matt Bellamy recently gave birth to their baby boy. The tabloids were ripe with speculation regarding the baby name the couple would choose for the newly arrived family member. After much deliberation, the couple chose the name “Bingham” or “Bing” for short much like the search engine. Meanwhile, on an entirely different plain, celebrity football star David Beckham, who plays for Manchester United, and wife Victoria were busy naming their newly arrived baby daughter Harper Seven which sounds more like a password to a secret Gmail account than a baby name. What is it with the movers and shakers of our planet? Don’t they realize that the first thing their child is going to ask Dad and Mom when the “time cometh” is “what does my name mean?”

A Rich and Holy Tradition of Celebrity Baby Names

The practice of giving off-beat and unusual names to celebrity babies isn’t a recent trend by any stretch of the human imagination, More than three decades ago, singer composer Frank Zappa shocked everyone by naming his daughter Moon Unit Zappa. Moon later grew up to be a mover and shaker in her own right with hits like Valley Girl and others. More recent examples include Jermaine Jackson, Michael Jackson’s elder brother, who named his baby Jermajesty, and actor, skateboarder and photographer, Jason Lee who named his baby Pilot Inspektor.

Probing questions like “what does my name mean” or “what does my last name mean” are obviously not restricted to celebrity children. Even you have the right to know. Although whether or not your name has a meaning may have more to do with your ethnic heritage and cultural background, it really doesn’t hurt to either ask or research the issue because many baby name meanings are not obvious at first glance. In the Hindu naming tradition for example, chances are about 99.5% that your name means something and may be derived from Sanskrit, India’s ancient language. On the other hand, its meaning may be known only to those who are familiar with the language because, like Latin, Sanskrit isn’t used anywhere in India for conversational purposes.

Many Norman and Anglo-Saxon names have no meaning and even if they do, the meaning may be more legendary than derived through etymology. In China, baby names take on clearly defined meanings and often tend to reflect virtues and traits that are worthy of emulation. As is the case with baby names in these cultures, the names of babies can have religious connotations in many parts of the world thus assuming added significance.

Direct Response to the Million Dollar Baby Name Meaning Question

Let us spring ahead for a moment instead of falling behind and assume that you are now a parent and have a child who wakes up one fine morning and pops the question, “what does my name mean?” Your response should be as natural as can be. it is very likely that you researched baby name meanings when you researched baby names for your son or daughter. In that case the answer will be forthcoming instantly. If that is not the case and given the remote possibility that you do not know the meaning of your child’s name, simply buy time. Say that you need a day to come up with your baby name’s meaning and share it as soon as Almighty Google has shared it with you.

Either way, any questions regarding your baby’s name (after all a baby is always a baby no matter how old he or she is) such as “what does my name mean” or “what does my last name mean” should be addressed by you and your significant other accurately and in a timely fashion. If there is an anecdote behind your baby’s name, share it. If there is a family connection with a grand dad or grand mom, reveal it. Discussions about baby names once the children are old enough to understand is always productive and instills in them not only a sense of confidence but also goes a long way to help the family come closer and bond together.