REAlity Bytes: Rea's Forename Archive

What is so amazing about a name you find
That you just have to see what lies behind?
Just like the archeologist getting a clue
To find out how the caveman built his first loo
Or just like Curie or Einstein or Freud
I swear that I'm totally overjoyed
When I find out that Nieves actually means "snows"
You see, my friend this is how it goes:
I shout "eureka!" and I want to celebrate...
...and now, you who got a common fate:
We know that we all feel the same
Sing ho! for joy of a name!

(Fredrika)

I have been a language, word and name enthusiast for as long as I can remember. The fact that my own name is rather rare in Finland may have ignited the initial spark for my interest in onomastics. Further inspired by baby name books, old nameday calendars, and foreign language studies, my flair for names has never faded. I even managed to combine business and pleasure in my MA thesis, titled Names in the Frame. A Study of the Popularity of Forenames in England and Wales from the 1950s to 1995 (University of Tampere, 1999). My particular areas of interest include the history of personal names, loan names and name variants, name-formation, the diffusion theory and other processes related to the popularity of names, as well as the morphological, phonological, and extralinguistic properties in names. The thesis, however, was merely a quick glance over the vast expanses of anthroponymy... My post-graduate (PhD) studies, a project started in 2003, are bound to yield more ambitious results in the years to come ;-) In the meantime, do check out some non-academic name trivia: the baby name book Aarnu, Evena, Vinjami. 1 700 ehdotusta etunimeksi that I co-authored with Juri Nummelin and Elina Teerijoki was published in May 2006. Currently, I'm working on another book project.

I created the Forename Archive in 1999, inspired by pure collection mania. The *very* unscholarly and unofficial site is mainly intended for fellow name hunters to enjoy. In the present form, the site best serves those searching for a name that starts with a particular letter of the alphabet, or alternatives for their overused all-time favorite. My site also provides ideas for naming fictional creations, such as role-play characters. I guess it has become something of a treasure chest of out-there inventions as well... The Forename Archive has been featured in Nyt, the Friday supplement of Helsingin Sanomat (March 14, 2003), in Valo, the Friday supplement of Aamulehti (July 14, 2006 and October 19, 2007), and in Helsingin Sanomat (October 16, 2007) as well as on YleX, a Finnish national radio channel (October 11, 2004). The site is also listed in Makupalat, Behind the Name, as well as on various other link lists. I warmly welcome any feedback and inquiries concerning names and naming. In 2005, a whole new archive was added as the active members of the Finnish Etunimet mailing list started an ongoing project to collect all the first names used in Finland within the past century. The results can be viewed on my Names Used in Finland site. At present, it is the only public Finnish collection available with free and unlimited access.

I collect names from a variety of sources available: the world of fiction; history; birth announcements and obituaries; nameday calendars and saint indices; baby name books; popularity lists and national statistics. Moreover, there is a myriad of international websites available dedicated to names and naming, plus bulletin boards to discuss your choices. In my opinion, one of the best venues for discussing names is Behind the Name. After finding a 'new' name, I check its orthography and variant spellings, and trace its origins and the possible meaning. In this process, the Internet is of considerable assistance, but I also use dictionaries and other tools as necessary. I systematically save the acquired information for personal use only. On this site, the terms 'first name' and 'name' are used to refer to any names that are not considered surnames only. The collection thus includes first names and middle names. I have also included different spellings and variants of what might be considered one name (Hayley/Haleigh/Haili/Hailea), as well as various fixed compounds (Maryanne, Stellakay). The items on these lists are for the most part names that are known/used in the Western world, with a special emphasis on girls' names. At present, the archive contains very few Asian names, African names, or names from aboriginal cultures. The lists are updated on a regular basis in order to make them as multicultural and unbiased as possible. In my private collection, I have plenty of background material on the etymology and popularity of the names. For the time being, however, I choose not to publish this material online.

And oh, my personal favorites? Some categories that I find particularly fascinating include ancient Finnish names (Airikka, Arijoutsi, Kotivalo); Old Germanic names (Kunigunda, Sonnehild, Wilhelm); Medieval names (Gaudente, Geoffroi, Grissel); transfer names (Paige, Paris, Sonnet); and the modern formations and "kre8yv spellyngz" of the 21st century (Sayra, Skylar, Tarynn).

My own name, Rea-Maria, is a combination of the names of two mighty matriarchs. The name incorporates my parents' shared interest in classical mythology and family heritage. 'Rea' is a Latinized form of Greek 'Ρεια' (Rheia), meaning unknown, perhaps related to 'ρεω' (rheo) "to flow" or 'ρεος' (rheos) "river, stream". In Greek mythology, Rhea was the daughter of two Titans, Uranos (the Sky) and Gaia (the Earth) and sister to Cronos (Time). She gave birth to the supreme god Zeus, as well as to Poseidon, Hades, Hera, Demeter and Hestia. This sealed her status as a prominent figure in innumerable Greek myths and folktales. Greek mythology has also lent the name Rhea to the second biggest satellite of the planet Saturn. Centuries later, in classical mythology, Livy tells the story of Rea Silvia in Ab Urbe Condita. The Vestal Virgin Rea Silvia, a daughter of Numitor and descendant of Aeneas, was raped by Mars and gave birth to the twins Romulus and Remus. A she-wolf found the twins in the River Tiber and milked and raised them to become the legendary founders of the city of Rome. Silvia means "woods", and Rea may in this context be related to the Latin words 'res' and 'regnum'. The Greek word 'ρεω', "to flow", may relate to her association with the spirit of the river Tiber--and the panta rhei symbolism. [Strangely enough, the Latin word 'rea' also means "poppy".] Variant spellings of Rea include Réa, Reea, Rhea, Rhaya and Rheya (the latter is made popular by the movie Solaris). The name is pronounced roughly as RAY-uh. In Finnish, Rea does not thus rhyme with Maria. All variants of Rea are little used in Finland.

Rea as a surname is an altogether different matter. I'll briefly cross over to surnames here because of the frequent association to Chris Rea, a British singer-songwriter :-) The surname Rea originally hails from four different locations: Britain, France, Italy, and Spain. In Old English, Scottish, and Irish, 'rea' means someone who lives near a pasture or a river. In Britain, the surname Rea is pronounced as 'ray'. In France, Rea is of Latin origin, derived from the word 'rex' ("king"). In Spain, the surname Rea originates from the Basque country and derives from the old Basque word 'larre' ("meadow"). Alternatively, the surname may be of nickname origin: 'rea' is the feminine form of the Spanish word 'reo' (< Latin 'reus', "accused"). In Italy, Spain, and France, Rea is pronounced roughly as 'RAY-uh'.

Meanwhile, Maria (Mary) is the most wide-spread female name in all of Christianity, owing its popularity to the immense cult of the Virgin Mary. The status of Mary as a respected "hardy perennial" of the onomasticon can also be explained by the narrow selection of important female names in the New Testament. Today, the Catholic church recognizes over 70 saints and martyrs by the name of Mary. In Spain and Italy, devotion to the Virgin Mary has not remained content with the simple Maria, as a number of her festivals and epithets are also used as female names: Conceptión, Asunción, Encarnación, Mercedes, Dolores (Spanish), and Assunta, Annunziata, Concetta (Italian) etc. The name Mary originates from the Hebrew Miriam, but its etymology remains a mystery. There are several theories, however, including "sea of bitterness", "rebelliousness", and "wished-for child". Most likely, it was originally an Egyptian name, perhaps derived in part from 'mry' ("beloved") or 'mr' ("love"). A host of cognate forms of the name exist in most languages in the Western world. In Finnish, these include Maria, Marja, Mari, Meeri, Maija, Maiju, Marjatta, Marjo, Marjut, Marjukka, Marju, Marianna, Marianne, and many others. Maria is the most common female name of all time in Finland, and also the name of my dear Grandma.

My middle name, Catharina, then—snob appeal or symbolic value? For me, Catharina embodies a strong link to the centuries-old socio-cultural tradition originating from Central Europe. Incidentally, the combination of my names forms a cultural tripod reflecting the Greek, Roman, and European frame, the fourth pillar obviously being the Finnish last name. Flirting with cultural rather than ornamental snobbery, then... ;-) Catharina is a variant of Katherine or Aikaterine, an ancient name of ultimately Greek origin. I first grew attached to the alleged meaning of the name, "pure". However, the etymology turns out to be not as straightforward as that. Today, the long-held etymology from the Greek word 'katharós' (and thus the classic concept of catharsis) is mainly considered a false Roman derivation. Other guesswork as to the meaning includes "each of the two", "crown", and the rather unfortunate "torture" (referring to the tortures of St. Katherine of Alexandria; hence the Katherine wheel). Katherine is one of the most popular names in Christianity. The name has been borne by some 15 martyr saints, as well as by two empresses of Russia and other members of European royalty. The cult of the learned St. Katherine of Alexandria started to spread rapidly in Europe during the Crusades, and the trend continued throughout the Middle Ages. The University of Paris even inaugurated her as the matron saint of the philosophical arts. Another well-known Medieval namesake is St. Katherine of Siena (1347-1380). Fast forward to the present day, Princess Catharina-Amalia of Holland represents the modern aristocracy. Catharina and Katharina are old German variants of the name. The C in Catharina is undoubtedly due to a Medieval fancy for the Latinate. In Finland, the earliest records of the name date back to 1281. It was the most popular female name in Medieval Finnish registers. Following the German suit, the official spelling in the first Finnish nameday calendar is no other than the 16th-century Catharina. In Finland, too, the name has developed and generated a host of variants and diminutives, the currently 'established' form being Katariina. Other variants in the present nameday calendar are Katri, Kaisa, Kaija, Katja, Kaarina, Katriina, Kati, Kaisu, and Riina.

REA-MARIA CATHARINA LEHTONEN
rea.lehtonen@uta.fi