Name on a train

Unicleus. That's a new one. 

Today I purposely boycotted the quiet car and lucky for me because otherwise I would have missed Unicleus and his mom getting on the train. "Come sit by the window, Unicleus." Wow!  I started to wonder how this name came into being. "I want my baby to be unique! Something different. But strong. Hercules? Zeus? Hmm...let'see. I got it!" 

The names people pick for their children has always fascinated me. I've often joked with fellow Hispanics about how creative people in different Latin American countries get when it comes to baby naming. I even have some interesting names in my family, thanks to my grandfather. See, he had a theme. His love for all things "American" played a big role in the naming of his children. Galo Jorge Washington, Tomás Edison, Benjamín Franklin and Abraham Lincoln. Yeah, for real. He had great admiration for the U.S. and boy did he show it. My uncle, Salvador Bolivar, while not named for an American personality, was in fact named for El Libertador, Simón Bolivar, who helped several Latin American countries gain their independence from Spain. 

We can still see evidence of U.S. admiration today as more and more "American" names make their way into the name registries in Latin America...albeit with alternative spellings. Jhonny, Yenifer, Michel. An English name may just give their kids a certain cachet...a je ne sais quoi.

Hoping their kids will stand out, parents sometimes get really, really creative and make names out of other English-language words that sound cool to them. Words that were never meant to be names. Here's what I'm talking about: Usnavi- US Navy / Usmaíl- US Mail / Milady- My lady / Yesaidú- Yes I do / Juan Jondre- 100 / Crismas- Christmas (I'm not kidding).

For more about the naming culture in Latin America, check out this oldie but goodie about Venezuelan names from the New York Times.