Dylan Dreyer and her husband, Brian Fichera, chose a meaningful name for their third son, who arrived early Wednesday morning.
The name Russell is after Brian’s father and James is after Dylan’s. Russell James joins big brothers Calvin Bradley, 4, and Oliver George, 20 months.
Nameberry co-founder Pamela Redmond previously told TODAY Parents that the meteorologist and Fichera are drawn to names that are "quirky classics" and distinctly masculine without being conventionally so.”
“Russell fits right into that lineup,” Redmond said. But she noted that Russell is a “more out-of-the-box choice” than Calvin and Oliver.
“It’s a name that’s starting to re-emerge after a long downward slide,” she explained.
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Russell is a boy’s name of French origin meaning “redhead, fox-colored,” according to Nameberry. It was No. 370 in the United States in 2020. Russell has been in the top 1000 since 1880.
“It’s never been super popular, but it’s never dropped out of fashion either,” Redmond said. “Maybe Dylan will put it on the map.”
TODAY’s Vicky Nguyen suggested that Dylan and Fichera call their baby “R.J” for short, while Craig Melvin said he likes "Russ.”
Perhaps they'll call him Rusty?
On Wednesday, proud dad Fichera shared a clip from the 1997 comedy "Vegas Vacation," in which Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) is calling for his son Rusty, aka Russ (Ethan Embry). In his caption, Fichera used the hashtags, #heshere #rusty #mythreesons."
Earlier this year, TODAY Parents asked viewers what the couple should name their third child. In a live survey, 30% of users voted for Maxwell. Noah came in second with 25%, while Brodie finished third with 20%. Julian placed fourth with 8% of the votes. Arthur and Walter tied at 6% and Archie came in last with 5%.
In 2016, Dylan revealed that she and Fichera fell in love with the name Calvin while they were watching TV.
"We were like, ‘I kind of like that,’” she recalled. “It just kind of hit us both at the same time. And same with Bradley. We’re trying to set him up to be a cool kid and we thought Calvin Bradley was a good start with that.
Oliver is also a name that Dylan and Fichera just liked.
If you like the sound of classic names like Calvin, Oliver and Russell, here are Redmond's suggestion for similar names
Boys:
Arthur
August
Everett
Ezra
Felix
Hal
Quentin
Silas
Theodore
Walter
Girls:
Aurelia
Beatrice
Cecilia
Eloise
Flora
Hazel
Mae
Ophelia
Phoebe
Violet
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