|
|
12 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Entries are OK; preface and rankings, truly frightening!, January 7, 2000
If you're only in the market for a name dictionary (which any educated person should have on his shelf, not just the expectant), the "New American Dictionary of Baby Names" by Leslie Dunkling and Wm. Gosling gives a far beefier entry for each name-- meaning, history, translations, when in and out of fashion, etc.-- than this book does, and for the same price. (Sorry, but the Brits beat us hands down at this kind of thing.)However, there are better reasons to get this. One is the above-average introductory essay, which goes into parents' reasoning, ethnic and geographic differences, and other issues. The other reason is the survey carried out by Dr. Evans of nearly eight hundred thousand 1990 newborns. He ranks the top 500 names for each sex, which account for about 5 of 6 babies christened. (That's all, you say? Consider the percentage of children born to immigrants with very unusual names.) This list speaks volumes, and should be studied by sociologists and historians, particularly those holding to a Gibbonesque or Spenglerian worldview. Grandma and grandpa's names, if here at all, will be near the bottom, and it's a shock to see how far even the "hot" names of the 1950's have sunk. Fashion is king, especially for girls, and the majority of names ultimately have the same meaning: "mommy's an airhead, and daddy humors her". Our ancestors would shudder at the sheer vapidity, and disloyalty, of their descendants. Prof. Evans plays the diplomat in his introduction, titled "Naming Baby" (as if the new person will always be a baby!). He neither defends nor dismisses the thinking of modern parents, but merely sets forth their reasons. This alone can ruin a thinking person's day. Dr. Evans has given us, whether by intention or not, the perfect tool to learn how NOT to name your child-- a most valuable service. Get this along with the Dunkling/Gosling book, and it's a well-invested...
|
