Natalie Hanson is a name-loving celebrity mom married to Taylor Hanson, lead singer of the band Hanson. She and Taylor have six children and are expecting their seventh baby at the end of this month.
Natalie is a dear friend of Nameberry, and we are thrilled to be hosting a very special celebrity baby name contest on Instagram with a one-time prize of $1000. As usual, I have dibs on my top ten guesses (which you can read more about below), and you get to guess one name per friend you tag in a comment. The first person with the correct prediction wins — and this time, the stakes are high.
The surprises don’t stop there — Natalie gave me a sneak preview of the sex of the baby and we’re making the announcement today, right now.
So, drumroll, please…
It’s a girl!
Woohoo! But what are they going to name her? Natalie wouldn’t tell me that part, so I came up with ten of my own predictions for the Hanson baby name.
The names and birth years of Natalie and Taylor‘s older children are as follows:
Jordan Ezra, “Ezra” (2002)
Penelope Anne, “Penny” (2005)
River Samuel (2006)
Viggo Moriah (2008)
Wilhelmina Jane, “Willa” (2012)
Claude Indiana Emmanuel, “Indy” (2018)
Natalie and Taylor were ahead of the curve in each of their children’s names — each name was below the Top 400 the year the child was born. However, they’ve gotten more adventurous over the years. The younger three children’s names were below the Top 1000 in their birth years, while the older three’s ranked between 400 and 600. So odds are, this baby will have an uncommon name.
All of the Hanson children have traditional names, in the sense that they have strong roots and have been used for centuries. Their names are familiar yet unexpected — everyone’s heard of them, but few are actually using them.
The girls’ names, Penelope and Wilhelmina, are both long and feminine with nickname potential — qualities Natalie has expressed she looks for in a girl name.
I’ve taken all of this together to determine my top ten choices for Baby Hanson Number 7. I excluded names beginning with any of the children’s first initials (E, P, R, V, W, and I, and also J and C) since I don’t think they’re going to repeat initials.
Read my rationale, then come up with your own predictions and enter them into our contest!
The Seventh Hanson Baby Name
Cornelia: I realize I sort of broke my own rule here, since Cornelia begins with the same letter as Indy’s given name, Claude. But it’s too good to exclude from the list. Cornelia is a true neglected classic with a storied past. In Ancient Rome, Cornelia was the mother of the Gracchi brothers, who attempted social reforms in the Republic. Nell or Nellie is a charming nickname — another option is Cora.
Dorothea: Dorothea ticks a lot of the Hanson baby name boxes. It’s easily recognizable thanks to a host of literary and historical associations, yet grossly underused in the 21st century. Nicknames Dot or Thea would fit well with her sisters’. Plus, Dorothea’s meaning, “gift of God,” feels especially appropriate for a Christmastime baby.