Tennis star Arthur Ashe and his wife, photographer Jeanne Moutoussamy-Ashe, adopted a baby girl in December of 1986.
What did they name her? Camera Elizabeth Ashe — “Camera” in tribute to her mother’s profession.
(The picture-taking device takes its name from the term camera obscura, Latin for “dark chamber.” Ultimately, the Latin word camera means “vaulted room.”)
The baby name Camera saw its highest usage in 1993 and 1994, when Camera Ashe was being mentioned in the news following the death of her father from AIDS-related pneumonia in early 1993 (and the posthumous release of his memoir Days of Grace in mid-1993).
- 1996: 6 baby girls named Camera
- 1995: 12 baby girls named Camera
- 1994: 24 baby girls named Camera [peak usage]
- 1993: 18 baby girls named Camera
- 1992: 8 baby girls named Camera
What are your thoughts on Camera as a baby name?
Source: “Arthur Ashe and Wife Jeanne Moutoussamy-Ashe Are Parents of Baby Girl.” Jet 9 Feb. 1987: 22.
Image: © 1993 Jet