Seven

It's my birthday. 04/07. Four seasons, seven wonders. So seven is one of my favorite numbers.

You'll notice that I don't post a lot about the names of celebrity children. This is because, to be honest, I just don't care what famous people are doing. But it seems like you can't be a name enthusiast without hearing, "Can you believe what so-and-so named their kid? These crazy celebrities! When will they learn?" And I still remember years ago when Erykah Badu and Andre 3000 named their son Seven.

The knee-jerk reaction against Seven was, "Why did they give their child a number? It's degrading." I'll admit that it was my reaction at first. But the more I thought of it the more it made sense as a name. Seven isn't just any ordinary number. Seven is a very sacred and lucky number in many cultures. There are seven archangels, Seven Lucky Gods in Japanese mythology, seven saintly virtues and deadly sins, and seven islands of Atlantis. In European folklore, the seventh son or daughter will be a werewolf or a vampire. Others say that the seventh child of a seventh child will be gifted in clairvoyance and healing. In some countries, cats are said to have seven lives instead of nine.

There are also Seven Wiccan Clans. Most people believe that the Seven Clans are a work of fiction. Whether they're based on Witches that have existed or not, they have really awesome names. The clans are Rowanwand (teachers), Wyndenkell (spell writers), Vikroth (warriors), Leapvaughns (tricksters), Burnhides (gifted in gem and metal magick), Brightendales (gifted in medicine), and Woodbanes (the "Slytherins" of the group). They're practically asking for a big fantasy epic.

So do I still think Seven is degrading? No. And neither does anyone else, it seems. The snarky "weird name" police seems to have completely forgotten about little Seven. That's what happens. If you're famous and dare to name your children something outside the box, the media is going to jump on it and start a judgmental snit about how terrible it is. But then they're going to forget about it and move on to the next one. The parents will have the last laugh because after the storm, names like Seven become generally accepted.

If you would like a unique name that has a lot of symbolism attached to it, or maybe if you just really like math, Seven is a bold option.

P.S. How old am I? Um...22? Is that plausible? Okay, I'm 26. Ugh. At least I get cake and presents.

Sources:
http://www.babynamewizard.com/namipedia/boy/seven
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7_(number)
http://wiccanwitches.webs.com/the7clans.htm

Image Credit:
http://archann.deviantart.com/art/The-Joy-Ballad-79278733