“Yao Ming's expected baby stirs fresh Yao fever in China - Xinhua” plus 3

Yao Ming's expected baby stirs fresh Yao fever in China - Xinhua
Kourtney Kardashian Explains Whe She And Scott Disick Named Their Baby Mason Dash - MTV.com
Popular or unique, a name sticks with you - Petoskey News-Review
Top Baby Names - WITN (blog)

Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

Yao Ming's expected baby stirs fresh Yao fever in China - Xinhua

Posted: 06 Jan 2010 01:54 AM PST

SHANGHAI, Jan. 6 (Xinhua) -- YY: they don't mean much right now, but Chinese basketball fans hope these two initials could herald future victories for the national team.

"YY" looks certain to be the nickname of Houston Rockets star Yao Ming's first child, whose imminent arrival was broken on Chinese television on Monday by Miao Lijie, a friend of Yao's wife, Ye Li.

The letters are the twinned initials of Yao and Ye, explained Miao on a live TV show in Shanghai.

Miao, who plays alongside Ye on the Chinese women's basketball team, said Ye was quietly expecting the couple's first baby at home.

The news, which was later confirmed by Zhang Chi, Yao's spokesman in Shanghai, triggered a barrage of baby names on the Internet, as well as predictions about its height, gender and nationality.

Suggested names for the child are found in every major forum and portal. The most popular suggestion was Yao Yuchun in reference to Li Yuchun, winner of Super Girl, a nationwide singing contest.

The facial resemblance of Yao Ming and Li Yuchun has long been a hot topic on Chinese portals.

The name took the lead over traditional and auspicious Chinese names and those coined with basketball big names like Yao'neal, Yao Kobe.

Although sources of sina.com, one of China's largest portals, said the baby would not be born until May or June, fans have already made predictions on its eventual height.

According to on-line commentator "Li," who claims to be a doctor, a genetic equation show the height of a son would range from 2.075 to 2.215 meters and that of a daughter from 1.945 to 2.085 meters.

But he added that it was possible that Yao junior could outgrow the father. In a vote held by sina.com, 29,000 Internet users agreed that Yao junior will be taller than 2.05 meters while 12,592 others believed that the child's height could exceed 2.2 meters.

Yao Ming and Ye Li both played center in China's national men's and women's basketball teams. Yao is 2.26 meters tall and Ye 1.9 meters.

Miao said the couple had wanted a boy, fearing that a girl might be too tall among her peers. A story on sina.com, however, quoted an anonymous source as saying the baby would be a girl.

The place of the delivery also drew speculation as it would decide the child's nationality. Many feared the baby could be born in the United States, making it an American citizen.

Ye is currently at the couple's home in Shanghai and the couple were yet to decide where the child would be born, said Zhang Chi. "It's a personal matter. Please respect their decision."

Zhang declined to reveal or comment on the gender of the baby and its expected date of birth.

"Please give Yao and Ye more room for privacy to face this significant transition in their lives," Zhang requested of the media and the public.

Yao, 29, and Ye, 28, both single children, were married in 2007.

Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

Kourtney Kardashian Explains Whe She And Scott Disick Named Their Baby Mason Dash - MTV.com

Posted: 05 Jan 2010 12:34 PM PST

By Cara Alwill

Celebrity baby names are always a hot topic. Stars seem to pick the most unique names for their bundles of joy, and let's be honest ... sometimes they are a bit, well, strange. But Kourtney Kardashian and boyfriend Scott Disick didn't just pull a name out of the hat when naming their new son, Mason Dash. In the current issue of Life & Style, the new parents talk about the meaning behind the name and why they chose it.

"The first time I started looking at baby names, Mason was the only one I liked," Kourtney tells the mag. "It was the only one that stuck with me. Right before he was born, I told my aunt we were thinking about going with that for a name. She told me that Mason means the same thing in English that Kardashian means in Armenian — stone worker. Another aunt told me my great uncle used to use the name Mason when he made dinner reservations, because Kardashian was too long. When I heard that, I thought, Oh my god, it's meant to be."

And while fans are most familiar with the name Dash from the Kardashian sisters' clothing boutique, Kourtney insists that's not where Baby Mason's middle name is derived. "Dash is not for my clothing store, as some people have suggested online," says Kourtney. "That would be stupid. Dash is short for Kardashian, and it was my father's nickname."

Kourtney and Scott admit that Mason Dash is not the only name this baby is called. He also goes by "Gorgeous, Precious, Munchkin, Angel," she tells the magazine. We're not surprised!

Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

Posted: 06 Jan 2010 06:09 AM PST

There's always a story behind them.

Whether it's long and meaningful, or short and sweet, a name sticks with you forever.

In 2008, 575 babies were announced in the Petoskey News-Review — 297 girls and 278 boys.

After going through each name carefully, the News-Review was able to compile the top 10 most popular baby names for the area — both boys and girls — and compare them to national trends.

Taking the top spots for newborn names locally were Caden for a boy (also spelled Cadin, Kaden, Kaiden and Kaidyn), with eight babies named; and Ava for a girl, also with eight babies named.

When compared to www.babycenter.com's top 100 baby names for 2009, Caden was ranked 87th in popularity and Ava was ranked fourth.

The remaining nine most popular names for boys in the area were John with seven babies named, ranked 46th on babycenter.com; Jacob, with six babies named, ranked third on babycenter.com; Alexander (also spelled Alex-zander and Alixandyr) with six babies named, ranked 16th; James with six babies named, ranked 27th; Brayden (Bradyn, Braeden and Braden) with six babies named, ranked 37th; Aiden with five babies named, ranked fourth; Jackson with four babies named, ranked sixth; Landon (Landen) with four babies named, ranked 33rd; and Isaac with four babies named, ranked 50th on babycenter.com.

The remaining nine most popular girl names locally were Emma with seven babies named, ranked second on babycenter.com; Isabella with six named, ranked first; Addison (also spelled Addyson and Adison) with six babies named, ranked ninth; Lillian (Lilian and Lillyann) six named, ranked 37th; Madison (Maddyson) with five named, ranked sixth; Abigail with five named, ranked eighth on babycenter.com; Ella with five babies named, ranked 11th; Anna with five babies named, ranked 26th; and Olivia (Alivia) with four babies named, ranked third on babycenter.com.

The top 10 most popular names for 2009, according to babycenter.com — from first through 10th — are Ethan, Jacob, Noah, Aiden, Logan, Jackson, Jack, Ryan, Jayden and Matthew for boys; and Isabella, Emma, Olivia, Ava, Sophia, Madison, Chloe, Abigail, Addison and Emily for girls.

Some parents, when choosing a name, stray off the beaten path.

The following are some of the most unique baby names announced in the News-Review in 2009.

Alex-zander, Aurelius, Azlan, Bruyn, Enzo, Flavel, Hezekiah, Kitchi-Kishap, Rhys and Urijah for boys; and Adelaide, Colter, Giada, Maitlyn, Nevaeh, Sayla, Vixen, Zaelyn, Zahra and Zaryah for girls.

Tiffany Henderson of Charlevoix said she named her son Alex-zander based on her Irish heritage, but did things a little differently by spelling it as two separate names.

"It's two names in one ... I don't like the name Alex, and if he doesn't like that either, people can call him Zander," she said.

Aaron Wiers of Charlevoix said he and his wife, Candice, came up with the name Adelaide for their first-born daughter based on a trip they took to Australia in college for a study abroad program.

"(Adelaide) was one of the cities we visited," Aaron said. "We call our daughter Addy for short."

Lorelee Zook of Harbor Springs said she and her husband named their son Azlan after the Lion (Aslan) in "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe."

"I really liked (The Chronicles of Narnia) books when I was younger ... and I always liked the name Aslan ... we thought it was a fun, unique name," she said.

Zook said her son's name had several meanings for her.

"I did some work with a mission in the inner city of San Francisco and one of the kids used Aslan as his street name ... I liked the sound of it," she said. "Also, the (lion) character in the movie is a representation of Christ — obviously that's a pretty strong name, and my husband and I are Christians."

Zook said she believes her son will settle into his name just fine.

"He came out with fiery red hair, so he kind of has a lion mane," she said. "We don't think our kid's going to blend into a wall anyway."

Most unique baby names for area in 2009

Boys: Alex-zander; Aurelius; Azlan; Bruyn; Enzo; Flavel; Hezekiah; Kitchi-Kishap; Rhys; Urijah

Girls: Adelaide; Colter; Giada; Maitlyn; Nevaeh; Sayla; Vixen; Zaelyn; Zahra; Zaryah

Top 10 baby names locally

Boys:

1. Caden (also spelled Cadin, Kaden, Kaiden and Kaidyn) 8 born locally, 87th in nation

2. John 7 born locally, 46th in nation

3. Jacob 6 born locally, 3rd in nation

4. Alexander (also spelled Alex-zander and Alixandyr) 6 born locally, 16th in nation

5. James 6 born locally, 27th in nation

6. Brayden (also spelled Bradyn, Braeden and Braden) 6 born locally, 37th in nation

7. Aiden 5 born locally, 4th in nation

8. Jackson 4 born locally, 6th in nation

9. Landon (also spelled Landen) 4 born locally, 33rd in nation

10. Isaac 4 born locally, 50th in nation

Girls:

1. Ava 8 born locally, 4th in nation

2. Emma 7 born locally, 2nd in nation

3. Isabella 6 born locally, 1st in nation

4. Addison (also spelled Addyson and Adison) 6 born locally, 9th in nation

5. Lillian (also spelled Lilian and Lillyann) 6 born locally, 37th in nation

6. Madison (also spelled Maddyson) 5 born locally, 6th in nation

7. Abigail 5 born locally, 8th in nation

8. Ella 5 born locally, 11th in nation

9. Anna 5 born locally, 26th in nation

10. Olivia (also spelled Alivia) 4 born locally, 3rd in nation

Christina Rohn

439-9398 - crohn@petoskeynews.com

Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

Top Baby Names - WITN (blog)

Posted: 06 Jan 2010 02:58 AM PST

It's one of the biggest decisions for expectant parents: what to name the baby? You may find it interesting to know what the most popular names are right now.

Isabella and Aiden top the list of the 100 most popular baby names for 2009. That's according to BabyCenter.com, which based its list on submissions from parents. Rounding out the top five for girls are Sophia, Emma, Olivia and Ava. For the boys, Aiden is followed by Ethan, Jackson, Jayden and Jacob.

(Quick sidenote: BabyCenter.com is just one of several websites that sends you weekly updates on where you are in your pregnancy, including comparing your baby's weight to a fruit or vegetable. My baby is said to weigh the amount of a Chinese cabbage this week.)

Some speculate Isabella could remain popular for the next few years, thanks to the popularity of the Twilight series. One of my nieces is fortunate to have that gorgeous name. Emma has been near the top of the most popular list for years now. Remember the name of the baby Jennifer Aniston's character had on the TV show Friends? It was Emma.

Pop culture certainly has its influence on what parents name their babies. On the other hand, some people shy away from names that make the top baby name lists, or any baby name list, in order to find a unique name for their child. Some dear friends of mine liked the names Gabrielle and Gabriella but worried they were both too long for their last name. Their solution was Brielle, a beautiful choice they'd never heard of anywhere else.

Certainly, some parents name their children after themselves. Men have the option of adding a Junior to their name. For women, you have to be more creative if you want your baby to bear your name. A friend named Caroline also named her daughter Caroline, but everyone calls the child Charlie.

For Chris and me, we have names selected for both a boy and a girl, since we're not finding out the sex of our baby in advance. We are relying heavily, though not entirely, on family names in our selection of first and middle names.

How about you? Tell us about your baby's name and how you decided on it.