The Office Baby, Names
The television series The Office has some great names. Consider Dwight Schrute, the science fiction-loving authoritarian-sycophant. But tonight, the focus will be on Jim and Pam, the Office couple who married (finally!) at the beginning of this season and in a much-anticipated episode tonight, are expected to give birth to their first baby.
Pam (played by Jenna Fischer, pictured) and Jim are everyone's favorite romantic pair on the show, the "normal" people among all those personalities. Their names reflect that ordinariness -- James and Pamela were both extremely popular in the seventies (when the characters, presumably, were born). In perhaps a subtle nod to the downbeat feel in their place of work, the names were even then on their way down. James had fallen from #1 in the forties to #5 while Pamela had fallen from #13 in the fifties to #47. Today, the names Jim and Pam have a slightly dated quality, mirroring the lack of glamour in the office life.
Will they choose a similar name for their baby? If so, a popular but downward-trending choice like Alexa or Christopher might fit the bill. Of course, the show IS a comedy. On "Pam's" baby blog, she lists suggestions she's gotten. Her boss, Michael Scott, suggests Michael Scott for a boy, or maybe Michelle Scott for a girl. Her ex-hippie coworker Creed suggests Mary Jane. Other suggestions include Taylor, Roman, Anne Marie, Julian and Kandi.
We don't know what Jim and Pam will name their baby, but perhaps a look at The Office characters vs. their British counterparts from the original series will give a clue into the naming style of the show's writers:
U.S. Michael Scott = U.K. David Brent
U.S. Jim Halpert = U.K. Tim Canterbury
U.S. Pam Beesly = U.K. Dawn Tinsley
U.S. Dwight Schrute = U.K. Gareth Keenan
And, playing a central role, of course is the paper company where the characters work:
U.S. Dunder Mifflin = U.K. Wernham Hogg
Any thoughts on the U.S. versus U.K. character names? And what do you think Jim and Pam should name their baby?
Update: They went with Cecilia Marie. What do you think of Cecilia?
--J.B. + L.R.
Comments
Roman, Julian and Anne Marie seem like real choices a young couple might choose. Wonder if they're a clue?
mouth dropped open when he announced the name. LOVE it. Love it so much, in fact that we named our daughter Cecilia Marie. She was born 6 months ago tonight.
I LOVE Cecilia Marie. I love both names sooooo much! I was so happy, I think the choice is perfect for the two. It goes with their personalities. LOVE IT!!!
The Name Lady said Cecilia was one of the most popular names for Ivy League parents. A little upscale for Jim and Pam? :-)
I love Cecilia, but Marie (as well as Ann and Lynn) have been overused for decades; it's hard to believe people are still using them. Middles names are a great opportunity for parents to use their imagination! For example, Cecilia Ruth (if you like biblical names) or Cecilia Colleen (if you are Irish) makes a child's name more personalized. (These two names are just examples to illustrate my point.)
I rarely get a chance to watch The Office, but when saw that they were going to have the baby in this episode I made sure to catch it. Well, you could have knocked me over with a feather. They named the baby Cecilia Marie--which is also my name. AND, the show aired on March 4, which is MY birthday! That's gotta be a sign of something. I may have to buy a lotto ticket now.
I've always loved Cecilia, ever since I was a little girl and would sing the Simon and Garfunkel song at the top of my lungs dancing around the kitchen (only later did I find out what the song was about...) but my husband really doesn't like the name (mostly out of fear of a "Sissy" nickname). It's okay though because there are plenty of other names I like that we both can agree on! :-)
Wow, Cecilia Marie, that's so cool!
I love the nickname Celia for Cecilia, but I guess it works better for the Cecelia spelling.
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