StrangeSights

Having trouble settling on a name for your new baby? Here’s some monikers to add to your list of choices:

• a Chinese couple have tried to name their baby ‘@‘ after the ‘at’ symbol used in email addresses which apparently sounds like ‘love him’ to Mandarin speakers when sounded out in English;

• a New Zealand couple, recently denied their attempt to name their child 4Real, have reportedly settled on Superman instead;

• a couple of years ago, the Golden Palace Casino paid a couple to name their child GoldenPalaceDotCom; and

• lastly, let’s not forget those celebrity names - Moon Unit and Diva Thin Muffin Pigeon (Frank Zappa’s children), Apple Martin (Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin), Heavenly Hiraani Tigerlily (child of the late Michael Hutchence and Paula Yates) and our personal favorite Pilot Inspektor Riesgraf-Lee (actor Jason Lee and Beth Riesgraf).

And, if you’re still having trouble finding the right name, professional help is now at hand with the arrival of the ‘baby-name consultant’. That’s right, a consultant whom you pay to help you come up with the ‘right’ name for your offspring. Raises the question of how to find the right consultant which could in turn create another job - perhaps known as the ‘consultant finding consultant’.

What are your favorite names?