I’m pregnant. Can tech help me name my baby?
AOne of Big Daddy GaGu’s more unusual requests, this one, but he’s happy to help. There are many sites online with big lists of baby names, which Guru is sure you’re already acquainted with. They generally consist of a difficult-to-navigate catalogue, with the perceived or historical meaning of each name attached; research is recommended before you make a decision. If it’s a boy, for instance, you can avoid calling him Gideon (‘Stump for a hand’) or Kennedy (derived from the Gaelic for ‘ugly head’). And if you’re having a girl, Guru would avoid the name Portia, given that it essentially means ‘pig’.
Info from the NSW Government ( nsw.gov.au) will help clue you in on the most- and least-used names from the last year. Not that this should influence your decision, but if you don’t want your kid to be the fourth Olivia or Oliver in class, it might be best to look near the bottom of the list.
Parents of prospective NFL players, or those looking for more originality, might want to generate something completely fresh. You could try name-generator.org.uk (which includes the hilarious question ‘Do you care if your baby can never fit his/her name on a form?’) although its suggestions are often rather conventional and useless. Using the tool at
behindthename.com/random, on the other hand, offers up results based on heritage or other criteria – Guru selected ‘wrestler’, and will definitely be naming his next child ‘Rhinoquake Doubleslam’.
If your problem is not so much originality as consensus, install the app Babyname (free, but some features locked behind IAP) on yours and your partner’s phones, then go full Tinder on it. Swipe right on the names you like, and it’ll generate a list of your matches, hopefully before the little blighter makes its way outside.