Once upon a time parents gave their children a first, middle and last name and called it a day. These days kids are lucky if they get off with monikers that take less a day to pronounce.
Case in point: the latest round of celebrity babies born to some of Hollywood’s biggest names. Last week acting duo Rebecca Romijn and Jerry O’Connell welcomed fraternal twin daughters into the world. The bitty babies were bestowed the following gigantic names: Dolly Rebecca Rose O’Connell and Charlie Tamara Tulip O’Connell.
But, the O’Connell twins are not the only Tinseltown tots embracing the four-name trend. Gwen Stefani named her second son Zuma Nesta Rock Rossdale while star parents Nicole Richie and Joel Madden couldn’t decide on just one name for their firstborn so they went with Harlow Winter Kate Madden. Even reluctant star mom Bristol Palin has jumped on the multiple name bandwagon giving birth to Tripp Easton Mitchell Johnston.
Then, there’s actress Lisa Bonet. The former “Cosby Show” star recently gave birth to a son with her actor boyfriend Jason Momoa. The star couple are now the proud parents of Nakoa-Wolf Manakauapo Namakaeha Momoa. Try getting that to fit on a SAT form (which barely provides enough space for a first and last name) or job application.
In all fairness, the aforementioned celeb parents (and other mere mortal moms and dads who also work the four-name trend) likely have very good reasons for giving their children such elaborate monikers. For example, according to Jason Momoa’s mother, her grandson’s name is chockfull of meaning: Nakoa is the Hawaiian word for warrior while Mana means strength, kaua is rain and po means dark. Did I mention the infant was born in the middle of the night during a December rainstorm?
So what’s behind the extra-long baby name trend? Is it simple indecision on the part of parents? Too many great names and too little time to decide on just two? Or, is it a way to avoid World War III? Rather than fight with your spouse over one name, just give the kid your top four or five favorites. Often parents give their children names of family members or other loved ones to honor a long standing tradition. By bestowing a baby with four or five names you can appease practically everyone in the family.
Still, I’m not sure I see the point in giving a child a name that will take him or her until high school to get straight. After all, it’s not as though the kid is going to go through life stating his full name on a daily basis. Think about it: How many of your adult friends introduce themselves using their full names?
My young daughter has a first, middle and last name. We had a hard enough time coming up with those. I can’t imagine how long it would have taken us to generate three more.
What about you? How many names do your children have? And how many is too many names, anyway?
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