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>>>As far as language goes.......many (most/all????) have many words which have different meanings depending on context. It is quite possible that this word means all three things depending on how you use it. The first meaning is beautiful and I would have no problems naming my next daughter -- ok, recommending that my first grand-daughter be so named.
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>>Do you use foreigner names? My wifes cousin named her daugter as "Lara" and I'm calling her as "Tomb Raider" (of course when they cannot hear my voice). Some of turks use names "Melisa" and "Lara" and they claims these names actually not just christian names. I don't know... Maybe I'm a bit conservative... :)
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>Many American Jews (I can't speak for other countries but I suspect the practice is common) give our children a Hebrew name for religious purposes and an "English/American" name for everyday use. Some names are actually the same in both languages (I have a son name Seth and a nephew named Aaron - both names come from the Torah (bible)). To get to the point of your question (Do we use "foreign" names?) it is also becomming more common to use the same name for both purposes (I have a nephew named Ari, which means lion in Hebrew). I'm sure Tamar can speak much more authoritatively on this subject than I can.
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>Other American ethnic communities are also adopting names that are not really English. Many Black Americans are giving their children names derived from various African languages.
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>I would not be at all surprised to find many Americans going to other languages to find new, beautiful, and unique names for their children.


Not really addressing your point, I just think this is cool. My younger daughter is downstairs having a sleepover with two of her volleyball teammates. One is black, one is blonde, and they're both named Hayley ;-)