Monday, April 13, 2009

canon vs cannon (aka what's in the spelling of a name)

All right, so when we were trying to decide what to name our latest addition I posted a name poll on Babycenter. All I wanted were votes, but Babycenter allows people to comment, and comment they did! (why are people so opinionated about what other people name their children, it's not like I was trying to name my baby Adolf or Osama) Anyway, we had many, many people "suggest" we spell his name Cannon instead of Canon. Which really surprised me, because the meanings behind canon are infinitely better than cannon. Since then, we've had a few others question the name etc. I thought that people knew that canon is more than just a brand of camera, but apparently not. So I'm putting it out there for all to know. I actually came up with the name when I was going through my Bible Dictionary. Here is the definition of canon in the regular dictionary:
1.an ecclesiastical rule or law enacted by a council or other competent authority and, in the Roman Catholic Church, approved by the pope.
2.the body of ecclesiastical law.
3.the body of rules, principles, or standards accepted as axiomatic and universally binding in a field of study or art: the neoclassical canon.
4.a fundamental principle or general rule: the canons of good behavior.
5.a standard; criterion: the canons of taste.
6.the books of the Bible recognized by any Christian church as genuine and inspired.
7.any officially recognized set of sacred books.
8.any comprehensive list of books within a field.

There are more, like a musical canon (i.e. Pachelbel canon in D), but I won't put all of them in.

So compare that to this cannon:

1.a mounted gun for firing heavy projectiles; a gun, howitzer, or mortar.
2.British Machinery. quill (def. 10).
3.Armor. a cylindrical or semicylindrical piece of plate armor for the upper arm or forearm; a vambrace or rerebrace.
4.Also called cannon bit, canon bit. a round bit for a horse. (what???)
5.the part of a bit that is in the horse's mouth. (double what???)
6.(on a bell) the metal loop by which a bell is hung.
7.Zoology.
a.cannon bone.
b.the part of the leg in which the cannon bone is situated.
8.British. a carom in billiards.
9.Underworld Slang. a pickpocket. (my favorite)

Why would anyone want me to name my sweet little boy after heavy projectiles, machinery, or the part of a bit that is in the horse's mouth? It's like choosing between good and evil. :)

(no offense to anyone who chose or chooses to spell their son's name cannon, it's just not for me) ;)
Here is my canon of cuteness, he's much more of a standard or criterion than pickpocket or artillery

8 comments:

Julia said...

Yeah, I don't get why anyone would have something against spelling it "Canon." I prefer your way, definitely.

Christy said...

I liked the name before I really thought about what it meant, and now I like it even better! Way to think about the meaning and not just the "look" or ease.

The Knight Family said...

I love the name Canon even more with your descriptions! A very strong and meaningful name. BTW, I know what you mean about the "you named your kid after a brand name?" comment. We got a lot of those after Levi was born!

Unknown said...

Thanks for the explanation. I love the stories behind names. They intrigue me. Now I completely understand the name and I think it's great.

Heather said...

Cannon Stoner would've been a very strong name if he was destined to be a miner, or a mason;) Very cute little man with an adorable smile and name. Love the pictures of him! Thanks much for the package for Aiden...he loved his gifts! I'll call you sometime this week.

Julie said...

He is totally the Canon of cuteness. I'm proud of myself that I understood the name choice before the explanation. The literary canon is the standard of good books and I learned all about this at BYU while I was studying English.

suziebabyzsazsa said...

He is so cute, I love the HUGE smile. We can't wait to see you all!

Vintage Dutch Girl said...

Check out that beautiful baby grin!

Rylan stealing Beckam"s Pacifier (7 months old)