A Rory By Any Other Name ...

Some of you may be curious to know how we chose the name "Rory Catherine" for our little girl.

Our short list of first names included a wide range of options from many cultures, but "Rory" first appeared on the list when Sarah was reminded of the name after watching an episode of Gilmore Girls (yes, we are slaves to pop culture). It combined strength, femininity, and a touch of the Irish.

As we thought about the name and researched its origins, it quickly grew on us. We had been searching for names that begin with the letter "R" with which to honor Sarah's great grandmother Ruth, her mother Roberta, and my grandmother Rosemary.

But the etymological twist that sealed the deal concerned the history of the name "Rory". Rory is an Anglicized form of the Irish name Ruaidhri, which was the name of the last high king of Ireland, who got his name from his red hair ("ruaidh" means "red" and "ri" means "king"). This reminded me of my grandfather, who was the red-headed patriach of my family for so long.

Yes, while the name "Rory" has been used more frequently as a boy's name in the past, it has always been a cross-over name (Robert Kennedy youngest daughter was named Rory, for example) and is growing in popularity as a girl's name.

The name "Catherine" honors the men of Sarah's family whose names begin with "C" ... her grandfather Charles and her father Charles Junior. The name, in its shortened form ("Cats") sounds strikingly familiar to Sarah's maiden name, Katz.

Do we think too much about these sorts of things, or what?