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My Blog

The Naming of Kittens

9/22/2011

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PictureThe newest member of the fur family
So this is Hazel, my "foster failure" that I adopted recently. (A foster failure is a foster animal that the person fostering ends up adopting themselves.) I had named her after one of the characters from the play "Mourning Becomes Electra" because her mother's name is....Electra. Yeah, it's a theme. I don't mind using themes in the naming of cats. I just don't like to be obvious about it (like naming all the kittens in a litter after types of food or cars). However, when I named her, I didn't realize at the the time that she would eventually become a permanent member of the "fur family". Whenever I think of that name, I flash back to the old television sitcom called Hazel. The image of the frumpy housekeeper from the TV show just doesn't mesh with the image of the cute little fur ball that is now a Resident Cat.

The other Resident Cats have a theme to their names, too. They are all of a Celtic origin (Duncan, Galen and Caitlyn). My family roots are Irish, Welsh, Scottish and English so it seemed appropriate. I also prefer giving cats (and dogs) "human" names as they are every bit as much a member of the family as the humans in the household. So, I have compiled a list of names that I've been toying with. They are:
  • Aderyn - pronounced: add + er + in; meaning: bird and suggests someone not held back by earthly restrictions or limitations
  • Aela - pronounced: ale +a; meaning: ardour or rampart
  • Ailsa - pronounced: ale + sa; meaning: From Ailsa Craig, a rocky islet in the Scottish Firth of Clyde)
  • Ainslie - pronounced: ayns + lee; meaning: Hermitage in or at the clearing or wood
  • Aneira - pronounced: an + ee + rah; meaning: honor or golden
  • Arwen - pronounced: ar + wen; meaning: fair, fine
  • Maeve - pronounced: mayv; meaning: intoxicating
  • Rhiannon - pronounced: ree + an + un; meaning: nymph
  • Rowen - pronounced: ro + wan; meaning: little red one
  • Rowena - pronounced: ro + ween + ah; meaning: joy and fame
  • Sian - pronounced: shan; meaning: God is gracious (Welsh form of Jane)
  • Sinead - pronounced: shin + aid; meaning: God is gracious (Irish form of Janet)
  • Vivian - pronounced: vih + vee + en;meaning: alive, living (Norman version of the Irish name Bébinn)
I set up a poll (which I have since deleted) so that family and friends could vote on a name. And the winner is....Arwen! Actually, it was tied with Vivian and Ainslie, both of which I also liked but somehow, Arwen just seemed to "fit" better.

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    About the Author

    I'm a tech writer who loves animals and fostering homeless cats and kittens. After being diagnosed with non-celiac gluten sensitivity (NCGS), I adopted a Paleo/Keto lifestyle to improve my diet and repair my gut. I have a passion for learning and sharing that knowledge with others (probably why I became a tech writer in the first place). My interests range from cooking, scrapbooking, and animal welfare to home improvement, genealogy, and photography. This blog will likely cover a wide variety of topics as the mood hits me.

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  • Home
  • About Me
  • Resident Cats
    • Galen
    • Duncan
    • Caitlyn
    • Arwen
    • Kieren
    • Liam
    • Photo Gallery
    • The Cat Tree
  • Foster Cats
    • Background
    • 2008 >
      • April 2008
      • May 2008
      • Fall 2008
      • Winter 2008/2009
    • 2009 >
      • Spring 2009
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      • Fall 2009
      • New Year's Eve 2009
    • 2010 >
      • Suumer 2010
      • Fall 2010
    • 2011 >
      • January 2011
      • Winter 2011
      • Spring 2011
      • Summer 2011
    • Summer 2012
    • Summer 2020
  • Writing Samples
    • Grace Murray Hopper
    • The Stirrings of Nationhood
    • The Supreme Court
    • Service School Command
    • Being a Cat Foster
  • Family Tree
    • My Roots
    • First Generation
    • Second Generation
    • Third Generation
    • Fourth Generation
    • Fifth Generation
    • Headstones
    • Sources
  • Blog