Baby Name: roald

Namestorm 15 – Baby Names Inspired by Explorers

2 Comments | 22 July 2010
Reader “C in DC” recently e-mailed me with a great namestorm idea–explorers. She mentioned Zebulon Pike to start things off. Here are ten more explorers I’d add to the list: Abel The Tasmanian Devil has Dutch sailor Abel Tasman (1603 – 1659) to thank for his name. Tasman was the first European to reach both [...]
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Names from Children’s Literature – Veruca

2 Comments | 29 July 2007
Veruca Salt doesn’t have a whole book named after her (as Matilda does), but she surely would have wanted it that way. Veruca is a minor (but memorable) character in Roald Dahl‘s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (1964). She is spoiled, demanding, and prone to temper tantrums. Dahl named Veruca after a wart medication. (Indeed, [...]
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Names from Children’s Literature – Matilda

Leave a comment | 29 July 2007
Matilda Wormwood, the titular character of Roald Dahl‘s book Matilda (1988), is extremely smart and loves to read books. One day Matilda discovers she has psychokinetic powers, and she decides to use these powers to get back at her monstrous headmistress Miss Agatha Trunchbull. The name Matilda can be traced back to the Germanic elements [...]
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