Gotham Gossipist: Have Celebrities Gone Too Far With Crazy Baby Names?

July 8, 2011 11:17 AM

Actress Natalie Portman and dancer Benjamin Millepied arrive at the 83rd Annual Academy Awards held at the Kodak Theatre on February 27, 2011 in Hollywood, California (credit: Jason Merritt/Getty Images)

Filed under

Entertainment

By Kimberly Rae Miller

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – Natalie Portman may have been raised on Long Island, but she didn’t forget her Israeli roots (Natalie Portman, born Natalie Hershlag, was born in Jerusalem and moved to the United States at the age of three) when naming her infant son.

The three-week old Portman-Millepied baby has a name, and now we all know what it is: Aleph (or Alef). But do we all know what it means?

PHOTOS: 11 Bizarre Celebrity Baby Names | Celebrity Moms And Their Famous Kids

Aleph is the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet, but don’t try to pronounce it, because it doesn’t actually have a sound of its own. The letter aleph is usually takes on the sound of a vowel in the vowel-free language. It is also the character used for the number one.

And you thought Jermajesty (Jermaine Jackson’s son) was a tongue-twister.

It sounds like this kid is already ready for the pre-school curriculum.

As a name Aleph can mean “leader” and “the oneness of God.” From a Kabbalah perspective it translates to “primordial one that contains all numbers.”

Primordial one – that’s catchy. Let’s hope the kids at school call him Al.

You weigh in: Have celebrities gotten a little too unique with their baby-naming practices?

Kimberly Rae Miller is a writer, actress, and host living in New York City (kimberlyraemiller.com).

ArchivesMLS

At least she didn’t name her son Gilgul.
Riana Tucker

Dumb name! Alef? sound cartoonist.

ArchivesMLS

Not a very bright comment. You are confusing this with the personal name Alf, which would be like confusing council with cancel. To clarify, Alef is a name of a letter. BTW, it is cartoonish, with an -h at the end, not a -t. You seem to have a problem with substituting and dropping letters, but at least you’re on the topic without knowing what the topic really means.

Beau

And what someone names their baby is your business how? Explain it to me again.
val

Just you wait, 20 years from now there won’t be a normal name left in Hollywood! Poor kids… Aleph isn’t too bad, but still… Celebs are nuts.
Chris Reubenstein

His middle name is Shlomo. That’s the one everyone will use.
http://cuteellaisbold.wordpress.com cuteellaisbold

I kind of like it. It’s different, but other than the Kabbalah meaning, it’s not that different than names like Ryan, Edward, or Kendrick