Choosing your baby's name can be a thrilling journey of discovery: every name has an amazing history that you will want to explore. While other baby name books offer a line or two explaining what a name means, What's in a Name? reveals virtually every known fact about each name: its origin, meaning, and how it evolved over the course of generations as it traveled around the globe. In addition, What's in a Name? is the only book to offer contemporary analysis of the numerological significance of each root name, its astrological association, and its relationship with particular herbs, colors, metals, and stones. It's an unprecedented, in-depth look at every popular and prevalent name in use today.

Inside you'll learn such intriguing information as how Jennifer and Wendy were adapted from their root name Guinevere; why the complementary gemstone for the name Simon is green amber (which, when worn on the body, supposedly relieves toothaches and other ailments); and how the name Tiffany -- whose astrological association is Capricorn -- took a hiatus in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries only to burst back onto the scene again in the 1960s, thanks to the classic movie, Breakfast at Tiffany's.

Fun to browse, fascinating to read, this one-of-a-kind guide sheds light on more than 3,000 names -- and will help you make the choice that will last a lifetime both educated and just right for your baby.