An intriguing piece of information I came across recently. There is a trend in the USA for naming baby girls “Malaysia”. It seems it’s a rapidly accelerating trend which started around 10 years ago, and in 2013 630 babies were given the name, in 2014 810.

Now, I think it’s a very pretty name, Malaysia, with all those fluid open vowels, that soft ‘m’ , that gentle ‘sh’ sound. But, I wonder… how will it be shortened? Lots of names seem to be, whether or not the parents intend it*.  May? Lacy? Layshy? Shia (maybe not, depending on her religion).

And what if little Malaysia, at some point in her life, ends up living in – Malaysia? I remember some English friends whose daughter was (rather fashionably) named India. There was no end of confusion registering for visas and schools and the like when the family moved to Mumbai. And little India used to get quite cross when people asked her name, then thought she was telling them where she lived…

*Unless the name is so short already it gets lengthened, of course. But that’s another story….