the long and winding road...

Baby G officially has a name!

~Georgiana Rose NianSheng Crowell~

When searching for the "perfect" name for our Baby G, I consulted naming books, hit the net for ideas and thought, and thought, and thought. I wanted a name that was:

--pretty but solid,

--didn't make her sound like a stripper or a ding dong,

--had some history to it,

--wasn't trendy or overtly kr8tiv,

--lended itself to a cute nickname ie. Georgie or Gigi,

--definitely not too common --anything in the top 500 per the social security baby name index was out!

--timeless--could just have easily been used in 1808 as 2008,

--and, would serve her well from babyhood to adulthood, SAHM or corporate CEO, cheerleader or valedictorian.

I like most of the common very feminine names of today: Sophia, Isabella, Juliana, Lily, etc but they are so, so common. So the secret was to find a name that would have the feminine sound I was looking for but not result in her being "the chinese (insert name here)" --that is how Georgiana originally caught my eye.

The name, a derivative of George of course, has been around forever. A woman named Georgiana Pittock had the first of what would become the annual Portland Rose Festival in 1889. Georgiana Darcy was the cultured and kind sister of Mr. Darcy in Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice published in 1813. Georgiana Cavendish (b. 1757) was the Duchess of Devonshire and, interestingly, the subject of a movie coming out this year The Duchess starring Keira Knightly.

Then, what to pair it with. I've always loved the name Rose. Its classic, simple and beautiful and flows so wonderfully with a long name like Georgiana. I did consider some other very lovely options: Lorelei (kind of mouthful), Elise (this was my second choice), Lenore (after my mother), Skye (beautiful but a little too trendy for me), Sage (seemed out of place next to Georgiana). But, I always came back to Rose.

Her chinese name. People have varied opinions but, to me, it was important for our daughter to carry her chinese name if al all possible. G's name was Zhang Nian Sheng. Zhang comes from Zhangshu the SWI where she's been housed since birth and is given to all children who are placed in the orphanage. I consulted with several native chinese speakers on the characters of Nian Sheng. I originally had concerns because the name seemed like a boys name. Traditionally girls have been given pretty, nature-type names with meanings like Gentle Stream, Beautiful Lily, etc. Boys have traditionally been given names suggesting hopes or promises of success for the future. G's name means that she will grow to be an educated woman of recognition and respected prominance. I have been told that this type of name has been more commonly chosen for girls in modern China. It seems to be sign of China's greater respect for the abilities of women. Anyway, it is a "good name" and seems to fit our hopes for G so I like it!!!

I believe that NianSheng is pronounced like "N'yen Seeng" but I will have to confirm that as well as the tones once we're in China due to differences in local dialects.

So there we have it!! Baby G has a name!