[OT] Naming a child Arwen

[arwel]

Wahat's some what ironic is that we picked Elizabeth to be the middle name. From what I understand (after the fact) "Rhiannon" means "Queen", So my daughrter is "Queen Elizabeth". I think that I'm in trouble later on.

Rhiannon is a Welsh name and roughly means pure maiden. I did get accused of having a name like an elf at work this week, which I thought was very amusing. First time anyone's said that.

Getting back to the topic, I think it's a cool name and I doubt it'd be overly associated with the movie or the book. It also has the benefit of actually sounding like a real name and not a fantasy one. Then again I'm Welsh and it's only one letter out from my name I'd cringe if I saw a kid called Aragorn or Galadriel though.

 

[Aloïsius]

From what I understand (after the fact) "Rhiannon" means "Queen".

That's correct -- a translation of that name I've seen was "the royal one", which is pretty much "queen".

I think Arwen would be a fine name. I like Elanor too (Sam Gamgee's daughter, named after an elvish flower.)

Elanor sounds also quite a lot like Éléonor or Aliénor (Old French names -- although there are girls named Éléonor again nowaday).

 

[Henry]

I named my daughter after a Fantastic Four supporting character, but worried because it was shared by recently (if perhaps temporarily) popular celebrities -- who I have nothing against, but didn't want it thought that we were the kind of horrible people who name their children after actresses and singers (rather than blind sculptors).

Don't worry, I think "Silver Surfer" is a perfectly lovely name...

(I'm guessing "Alicia," which is a GREAT name, but I could be wrong...)

 

[Piratecat]

When I was TSR's web guy, someone wrote in to see if it was OK with us if he named his kid Cyric. Yes, he wanted to name his son after an insane evil god of murder and death.

I remember someone writing into Dragon and saying that he named his daughter Alustriel; he wanted to know what it meant. Ed Greenwood explained that it doesn't mean anything. He should have added "You do know she's going to have to deal with the nickname 'Lusty' her whole life, don't you?", but he didn't. It's a shame how some people miss the opportunity to impart simple wisdom.

 

[Aitch Eye]

Don't worry, I think "Silver Surfer" is a perfectly lovely name...

(I'm guessing "Alicia," which is a GREAT name, but I could be wrong...)

Yes, it is, pronounced the way I read it as when I was 10 (Allisha). If it was a boy, it would have been Ben or Benjamin. If it had been twins...we'd have had to come up with something else, obviously. (As we would have if Silver Surfer would have been the boy's name.)

My wife agreed to the names immediately (Ben had been on her list anyway), though I didn't tell her why I suggested them until some months after the birth.

 

[Sixchan]

When you think about it, Arwen isn't even a particularly strange name to use. People change their names to things like Turok. I'm sure at least one sad parent named their kid 'Drizzt'.

Drizzt, Turok, Arwen.

Arwen is cool. Turok is naff.

 

[mythago]

Personally, I would avoid naming a child after a fictional character. Think: will it sound cool to her for her entirely life? How are you, and she, going to handle being associated with Liv Tyler?

I knew a Tinuviel in college. (She went by Tina.) She had zero, zip interest in Tolkien in particular and fantasy in general.

 

[tmaaas]

My three daughters all have "A" names:

Arinmir
Amber
Amethyst

Arinmir is based on Tolkien. (It was the name of a card [female elf] in the MECCG game put out by ICE.) Because it's not an "official" Tolkien name with a Tolkien etymology, we took it as a form of "Arien-mir"; in Tolkien's Sylvan or Quenya Elvish (I think Sylvan, but don't remember) this means "Maiden of Sunlight Jewel".

We had very seriously considered naming our second daughter Arwen, but went with the alliteration / jewel theme instead.

-- tmaaas

 

[Mistwell]

I named my Daughter Rhiannnon and I only get the occational question about Fleetwood Mac. (incase you're wondering, no, I didn't name her after the song.) My wife and I have Celtic blood way back.

Wahat's some what ironic is that we picked Elizabeth to be the middle name. From what I understand (after the fact) "Rhiannon" means "Queen", So my daughrter is "Queen Elizabeth". I think that I'm in trouble later on.

Oh well, atleast we didn't choose hte middle name to be "Mary."

We are thinking of naming our daughter Rhainnon or Rhianna actually

We thought about Arwen but rejected it for the very reasons contemplated here...

 

[Mistwell]

It's a lovely name. If you and the missus like it, then I say use it. There's nothing bizarre, offensive, overly silly or likely to result in ridicule, about the name Arwen IMO.

...but just so you know, we named our second son Griffin .

Funny enough, Griffin is high on out list of boys names. I am noticing a trend!