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Do You Give a Name to Your House?
Good Questions

072209goodquest000.jpgQ - We just bought a new house (pictures below) and we have decided that it needs a name. It's a very unique construction, inside and out, and was clearly a labor of love for the builder and we're now looking to give our new home a name that matches its architectural personality...

 
 

Do other people name their houses? How do you go about coming up with a name? Is it just organic and a matter of time until the inspiration strikes? Frank Lloyd Wright had "Fallingwater". What do you think we should call our new home?

Posted by Ann


Editor - Any name ideas for Ann's new home?

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Comments (41)

Our house is named "Williams Weyr." It's earth-bermed so it's rather cave-like. As a fan of McCaffrey's Dragonrider series, we combined the dragon's weyr (home) with our name. A former neighbor called their house Robbins' Roost (after their last name). Give it some thought and I'm sure you'll come up with the appropriate name for your new place. The Aerie comes to mind . . .

posted by williamsweyr on July 22nd 2009 at 8:20pm
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Our little house is called Acorn Cottage, for no other reason than we like acorns, the home is tiny, and I'm kind of a nut... while not all the other houses I've lived in over the years had names, there was one named "Rosehaven" for the climbing roses alongside the house, and "Fjords End" for the location at the end of one of the inlets of Puget Sound.

Since one of the obvious visuals of your house is stairs, you could count the steps and call it something like "Ninety-seven Steps" just as an example.. But really without knowing your personal metaphors and style, it is hard to name something for someone else.

One of the best advice I was ever given about naming is to choose something that you wish to emphasize or to increase. This struck me as Good Thinking, since I had the year before nicknamed a friends small black car "Briquette". She thought it was a cute name till the the engine caught on fire!

posted by fjorlief on July 22nd 2009 at 8:41pm
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My apartment for the last year (a basement one-bedroom) has been nicknamed the Natcave. And my boyfriend Paul's new place is likely to become the Fortress of Paulitude.

Not as stately or grand as befits such a lovely home, mind, but who's to say we renters can't have our delusions of grandeur (or superheroism)?

posted by natomaton on July 22nd 2009 at 8:44pm
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I bought a foreclosure that was in serious need of repairs and updating. It is called, with affection (most days), The Halfway House. I look forward to the day when I can say that the Work Program has ended and it becomes The House

posted by MLH on July 22nd 2009 at 9:12pm
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My fiance's grandparents had an enormous home in nh that was nestled in the woods and had a great view of a lake. It was called Springsong.

posted by calderonlm on July 22nd 2009 at 9:17pm
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Not all the places I have lived have merited their own name, but I agree that a home with character needs a name to suit it!

For the names of my past places, we were inspired by the locations. Perhaps there is something special or charming near your new place that you could reference in its name?

posted by Mod Mischief on July 22nd 2009 at 9:42pm
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Congratulations on your beautiful new home! I named my current place, but not until inspiration struck about a year after moving in. Don't force yourself to come up with something - the house will "speak" to you before too long.

posted by Stiletto on July 22nd 2009 at 10:16pm
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Good luck with a good name! You'll have to tell us when the perfect one comes upon you. I myself have never had a house to name... Only the 'Czech Republic', which was the first awful apartment out of college that flooded and lost electricity on a biweekly basis, and the 'Casbah', as in, Rock the Casbah, as the following apartment that did not flood or lose electricity, and thus was bliss.

posted by Priscatip on July 22nd 2009 at 10:23pm
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Just my opinion, but I think that naming a home is one of the most pretentious things a homeowner can do.

That being said, I guess if you don't think it's silly, then go for it. I know that if I gave our mid-century modern home a name my friends would likely look at me like I was an idiot.

posted by modtramp on July 22nd 2009 at 10:25pm
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We named our house on the river, Dunowen, which translates "fort on the river" in Gaelic. Our friends laughed when we told them saying we'd actually be owing for a long time...

posted by Cassiam on July 22nd 2009 at 10:39pm
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Traditionally houses had names because street numbers didn't exist, and the name grew organically out of the house's site and history (Rose Cottage because it had climbing roses all over it, Snootington Manor because it was owned by Lord Snootington, Hilltop Farm because it's on a hill top, etc).

As such, if this is just a house (albeit a rather fancy house) on a suburban street, giving it a name could be awfully pretentious. And given that this is an assertively styled, distinctive house, pretentiousness is the very last thing you need.

Give it time and see if anything evolves. Guests have a habit of coming up with the perfect title when you least expect it.

P.S. I've got to admit... with all of that shiny metal, science-fictiony detailing and commanding position, I'd be tempted to call it The Death Star. Or Battlehouse Galactica :)

posted by Blandwagon on July 22nd 2009 at 10:44pm
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My house is called "Dorothy Palmer". We keep getting (junk) mail addressed to her, no matter what we try to stop it, so we decided it's all for the house.

I believe your house will name itself somehow.

posted by papoocha on July 22nd 2009 at 10:46pm
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I agree with modtramp. But to each their own.

posted by chez shoes on July 22nd 2009 at 11:49pm
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My old house was called The Slanty Shanty and my current house is called the miami vice mansion. I refrain from calling them by name around anyone but my husband.

posted by bmb on July 23rd 2009 at 1:34am
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Names come to homes from experience or character, I think you may want to solicit your friends and visitors for ideas. That said, 'Peregrine Perch' springs to mind looking at your pictures. The house is sleek, perched up high, and decorated in Peregrine colors (white/cream, browns & blacks). The ceilings swoop and dive, and the exterior feels like a solitary falcon's coop set on a cliff.

I like homes with names, they set a tone; fun, quirky, welcoming, inspiring. Our homes always seem to acquire a name fairly quickly. Our current place is called the 'Buena Vista Inn & Suites", its a bit long but it fits our little 1100 sq ft/2bdrm/1bth perfectly. We manage 4 guests all right and frequently have friends call to make their reservations.

We're tucked away in the back of a small rural beach town south of San Francisco, so our friends come to relax and enjoy the sea breeze in the summer and cozy up with a fire in the winter. We don't have much space but we are always open for friends.

Peregrine Perch springs to mind looking at your

posted by Kacie on July 23rd 2009 at 1:42am
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A neighbour once presented us with a sign for our house that said "The Garden of Aidan" (my father's name is Aidan). I think it's often friends and neighbours, people who know you and your house from the outside, that will come up with the best names. And I think if you find a humorous name for your house it won't look pretentious.

posted by idontdobeige on July 23rd 2009 at 6:17am
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Maybe name it after the builder?

I've been doing alot of work on our house, and I associate each room or project with the audiobooks I listened to while working on it. For example, I just finished sewing the Rabbit Angstrom slipcover in the Falkner dining room, which is adjacent to the half finished Elmore Leonard kitchen ;)

of course i never say any of this out loud

posted by southof290 on July 23rd 2009 at 6:24am
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It's a wonderful English tradition to name houses, however modest. Yes, it would be pretentious for an American McMansion, but then again...aren't McMansions pretentious to begin with?

posted by sally305 on July 23rd 2009 at 7:23am
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It's a beautiful house! It looks nautical to me, so maybe something like The Hull.

posted by Fire Wife Katie on July 23rd 2009 at 7:33am
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I call mine "the house with the pink door" because, well it is the only house in the whole neighborhood with a bright pink door. Everyone knows exactly which one it is when I tell them I live there. :)

posted by Wisconsin Kate on July 23rd 2009 at 8:07am
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I think it's fine if it's done with a tongue firmly planted in cheek, such as calling a home "Wit's End."

posted by Doug on July 23rd 2009 at 9:03am
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It has a perched, kind of nest-like quality to it, lots of overlooks both internal and external. I might suggest a descriptive name that evokes some of those ideas. Like ___ Landing, or the Overlook, or ___ Nest, or ___ Perch.

Hehe, you could combine it with the above comment suggesting a nautical theme, and call it the Crow's Nest.

It's a very characterful house, and certainly one deserving of a name! Good luck.

posted by degaussing on July 23rd 2009 at 9:09am
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Naming your house is like naming a beloved body part or an interesting period of your life. It's a bit of an inside joke that's personal to you and folks that are close to you.

It's only pretentious if you're giving out calling cards with your home's name on it. That would be a bit much generally, but your friends would probably enjoy it.

posted by Kaisertizer on July 23rd 2009 at 9:33am
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Love your house, fantastic! I also think that naming a house is a great idea. Your house is your home, its one of your biggest assets as well as your refuge. Many homes in Europe are named and it makes the home YOUR home. i love the idea and I think it adds character and interest, rather a number on a street.

That being said, I am at a loss as to what to name your house, there must be some name that hits a familiar note with you when you walk through the front door.

Good Luck and I wish everyone would name their homes and put the names on the mailbox or door, what a fun walk through that neighborhood that would be.

posted by bagelpower on July 23rd 2009 at 9:36am
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I agree with bagelpower for a fun neighborhood walk in the making. At first glance, I thought of "Monitor", as your home seems to stand tall above, monitoring the goings and comings of objects below.

posted by Marcee-ah on July 23rd 2009 at 9:45am
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There's always Big Willie.

posted by JoanneM on July 23rd 2009 at 9:58am
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Naming homes is fun!

My roommate named our old apartment Melrose Place, because we were on Melrose Street. Don't worry, no one burned the place down or ripped off their wigs...

I've since moved in with my boyfriend. His name is Geoffrey, and my nickname is Dezh. We dwell in The House of DEO, or DEO for short.

Geo used to live in an apartment that was called The Dirty Thirty because they lived on 30th Avenue, and because the apartment was dirty (of course, that's my own assumption... sorry babe!).

Also, don't listen to whoever said to call it the Overlook unless you want to end up with bleeding walls, scary twins, and freezing to death in a topiary garden.

posted by aregularmess on July 23rd 2009 at 10:05am
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ours is the super happy rainbow house. somehow i don't think that name would work for yours. serenity now, mayhaps?

posted by doubledutch on July 23rd 2009 at 10:12am
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I live on a housebarge in Seattle that we dubbed "The Brighton Sunshine". I suppose we combined a couple of ideas mentioned above. We named it after something we wanted more of (sunshine), and we named it for a family member (my husband's grandfather who was born in Brighton England, and who's money bought us the barge).

I don't have any particular suggestions about what you should name your abode, but I thank you for posting this question. The responses are some of the most heartfelt that I have ever read on AT. Which shouldn't come as too much of a surprise I guess. After all asking home enthusiasts for house name suggestions is almost like asking for baby name suggestions. Whatever you name your place I hope that you are happy there!

posted by Nancy_Claire on July 23rd 2009 at 10:24am
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My college professor named his house, it was called The Brook. He said his wife had named all her houses in her life and that her previous one was called The Bee. It was cute, but they definitely had the kind of house that merited a name. It had a lot of character.

posted by brittmitch on July 23rd 2009 at 10:34am
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I had an apartment at one time that I moved into because I needed a pet-friendly place in a hurry. I ended up referring to it as the "Ghetto Chateau" because someone was shot in the intersection three days after I moved in. And there was the neighbor kid selling drugs at the curb out back. And the crackheads who used to ask me if my dog would bite ("Yes! He's very protective!")And the the hooker who propositioned my father at 5:30 in the afternoon the day I was moving out...

posted by ThreeBySea on July 23rd 2009 at 10:40am
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"FallingPortico"?

Honestly it's pretty homely on the outside. I don't think I'd want to bring that sort of attention to it? The inside is quite nice.

posted by LBhirise on July 23rd 2009 at 11:02am
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The Fungalow.

posted by spinsLPs on July 23rd 2009 at 12:17pm
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I don't know why but Hi-Lo popped into my head the minute I saw the house

posted by Philip_Littell on July 23rd 2009 at 12:43pm
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Ann, darling- any house that you own has to have a strong character and its own name. And, knowing you, the perfect name will come to you in a moment of inspiration.

I do like the idea of highlighting how "aloft" it seems, and also calling attention to the decks. I like "Crow's Nest!" It's got a little gothic nautical thing going for it. "Widow's Walk" is rather dark, but you know how I go for that stuff. If you want to emphasize that it's home, maybe something a bit lighter, like "The Perch."

posted by shockthebourgeois on July 23rd 2009 at 1:16pm
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Do it, girl. How do you feel about Arcoiris?

posted by Erik Satie on July 23rd 2009 at 2:10pm
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I named my house Lois. For some reason, the name Penny or Penelope came to mind for your house. My house is known to all in town and among all friends as just "lois" and i am so happy i named it. Your house will tell you the right name...

posted by pugluv on July 23rd 2009 at 3:39pm
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We jokingly named our house the "Green Machine" because when we bought it there was 3000 square feet of green shag carpet. We've since embarked on a energy efficiant renovation, so it remains the "Green Machine."

posted by cal on July 23rd 2009 at 8:14pm
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Oh, fun - or, rather, I'm a big fan of humorous names.

The above menitoned "The Perch" gets my vote.

posted by puddle on July 24th 2009 at 9:37am
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Our place is called "Muumitalo" or the Moomin House, because it's the same color and tall like the house in the books & cartoons. Check http://muumitalo.wikia.com/wiki/Etusivu

Our place is a edwardian basic san francisco place, not detached or doesn't have a tower, but it still reminds us of the moomin place.

And it's a nice nod towards our Finnish roots and heritage.

posted by Lilli K. on July 24th 2009 at 11:30am
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My live-work loft in downtown Los Angeles (the Little Tokyo/Toy District/Homeless Mission District) was dubbed the 'ShangriLoft' by a visiting friend, because is was, quite literally, an "oasis in a sea of sh*t." (her words) I thought it was quite fitting and used it until I moved.

posted by DrTheopolis on July 24th 2009 at 1:03pm
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