Name of the Year

Amid every person's group of friends, there is at least one with a bizarre name, the kind of name that makes for great conversation at a party. Mine, for instance, is the woman I went to junior high with named cruelly by her parents Crystal Chanda Leer. This blog showcases those names, of folks famous and otherwise. Name of the Year was founded in 1983 on the campus of an unnamed Ivy League college in order to discover, verify, nominate, elect, and disseminate great names. Though not updated as often as I would like (which may change as the fall semester gets underway), the site spotlights interesting and real names nominated by visitors for consideration. Occasionally, there is a name of the week face-off, like the heated Elrazor Sharp v. Treasure R. Johnson race (Elrazor won with 71% of the vote). There are site favorites as well, such as Crescent Dragonwagon, to whom references appear occasionally. My favorite comes from the 2007 Name of the Year ballot, and winning the spot for eighth best name of the year according to visitor votes: Mario Hilario.