Preparing for parenthood means going through dozens of different names looking for a winner, and that means doing some digging to discover new names and weigh your options.
Unless you're a futurist like my dad was you'll probably look to the past for inspiration, so why not go way, way, way back and search for naming inspiration in The Dictionary Of Medieval Names from European Sources?
It is a hefty work of scholarship that “aims to contain all given (fore, Christian) names recorded in European sources written between 500 and 1600, less the names of historical/non-contemporary people and names occurring only in fictional literature or poetry.”
It really is a treasure trove of long unused names that deserve to make a comeback, here are a few of the olde timey names that caught my eye:
2. Cherubina
This variant on the word cherub showed up as a name in Rome in 1527.
3. Aylward
There were spelling variations on this one, including Eilwardus, Aloardus, and Æðeluuard, but this one probably works best for the Kindergartener learning to write.
8. Everbern
For your dangerously cuddly cub, ever goes back to the Old High German for "boar," and bern goes back to the word for "bear."
10. Ysoria
The etymology is uncertain, “but perhaps related to Latin Isaura, an ethic byname derived from the region of Isauria in Asia Minor.”
16. Magner
Feel like Magnus is too common? Go for Magner, which can be traced back to the Old High German for "mighty army."
17. Alleaume
This name of a 10th century French saint means "noble helmet."
See 23 Hipster Baby Name Ideas From The Dictionary Of Medieval Names here