The Pentagon has released an official statement that there are no plans to change the names of US American military bases named after Confederate leaders. The statement comes in reaction to the recent decision by the South Carolinian government to retire the Confederate flag, known as the Southern Cross.

A few examples of Confederate leaders whose surnames were chosen for now famous US American forts are: Benning, Polk, Bragg, Hood, and Lee. In a recent interview with CNN, the Army Chief of Public Affairs, Brigadier General Malcolm Frost, explained the logic behind the original selection of these surnames. According to Officer Frost, at the end of the Civil War, which claimed nearly 2% of the total national population, these names were purposefully chosen by the United States government “in the spirit of reconciliation, not division.” That being the case, Frost speculates that it is highly unlikely that the names of these military bases will change.

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One of New York’s architectural icons, the 70 story skyscraper at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, now has a new name: The Comcast Building.

This is third time that the skyscraper has undergone an onomastic overhaul. Starting in the late 1930’s, the building was first known as the RCA Building. The Art Deco monolith carried this name for nearly five decades until it was renamed for its new owner, GE, in 1988.

Despite the grandeur of the 11-foot technicolor peacock which now adorns the new Comcast moniker, most New York natives will probably continue to refer to the building with the insider name, 30 Rock. This affectionate nickname is derived from tower’s address 30 Rockefeller Plaza, where each Christmas the lights of a mammoth conifer light up Rockefeller Plaza ice skating rink.

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The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has officially removed another name from its official list of storm monikers. According to officials, the name Odile is retired out of respect for the 11 people who perished in the 2014 Hurricane which slammed across the Baja Peninsula.

The other name to be taken off of the WMO list was Isis, given its inescapable resemblance to the name of the terrorist organization charged by the UN for committing war crimes.

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According to Australian government officials, the award-wining HBO series, Game of Thrones, has inspired scores of parents to bestow their newborn babies with a whole host of fantastic characternyms. Topping the list are:

• Khaleesi
• Arya
• Tyrion
• Brandon
• Kylie

According to Jennifer Moss, founder of BabyNames.com and ANS member, the last time a media event had such an impact on baby naming was when the Twilight vampire series hit the theaters.

Maisie Williams who plays Arya Stark in the HBO “Game of Thrones” series

According to the US Social Security Administration (SSA), the folks down under are by no means alone in this onomastic trend. Based on the SSA record, 241 babies born in USA now carry the name of George R. R. Martin’s majestic dragon mother, Khaleesi. In the British Isles, the name of the sword-swinging underage heroine, Princess Arya, has proven similarly popular. Statistics released by the Office for National Statistics indicate that the ever-resilient vengeful Princess was the namesake for some 187 baby girls.

If these names continue to trend as they have been, we may well see a head-to-head race between the Stark Princess and Dragon Queen for the 2016 ANS fictional name of year. Click here to vote early for this election (as well as for the other categories for Names of Year).

In a cave located 100 feet under the earth, spelunkers and historians have made a fascinating discovery: Buried in the depths of Naours, France, two hours outside of Paris, there is a series of inscriptions of almost 2000 WWI servicemen, who left their names for posterity.

According to experts, this historic find represents the highest concentration of onomastic graffiti along the Western Front.

Located adjacent to the infamous Somme battlefields where over a million soldiers perished, the names carved into the cave walls stand as a chilling testament to the tremendous sacrifices made during the First World War. Although researchers have not completed cataloging all of the names, at last count, experts report having identified the names of 731 Australian, 55 American, and 339 British servicemen. International efforts to determine the fates of the brave name-bearers who found temporary respite in the cave are underway.

Click here to read the story published by the Sydney Morning Herald.

The US Institute of Medicine (IOM) has called for the renaming of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (CFE/ME) to Systemic Exertion Intolerance Disease.

According to the IOM, the onomastic move was made to spare the millions of people who have been diagnosed with CFE/ME additional suffering from public stigmatization.

According to the ME Association (an international association dedicated to CFE/ME support, education, and training) it remains to be seen whether this name change “will actually improve attitudes towards patients and their assessment and care”. However the ME Association has applauded the attempt by the IOM as a “brave” and “important step” towards changing public perceptions.

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The chocolate and peanut butter porter beer initially marketed under the product name Sweet Baby Jesus has been pulled from some Ohio grocery store shelves in response to multiple consumer complaints about the popular beverage’s name.

Dave Benfield, owner of the Baltimore-based company Duclaw, which produces the brew, defended the product name by saying that the name was not meant to be offensive, but was chosen as a “phrase of excitement or astonishment.” When asked in an interview with FOX News if the company was planning to change the name of the dark brew, Benfield responded: “We don’t censor ourselves because it might cost us dollars.”

Although the name remains controversial amongst some consumers, the rocky head porter is a hit amongst beer connoisseurs. According to the company website, Sweet Baby Jesus won the Bronze Medal for chocolate beers at the Great American Beer Festival in 2014.

Other religiously inspired names in the Duclaw company repertoire include:

• Divine Retribution, the moniker for an imperial stout aged in a Kentucky white oak bourbon barrel
• Mad Bishop, a German-style seasonal brew inspired by the Oktoberfest
• Devil’s Milk, a Gold medal winner barley wine ale of the Brewer’s Association of Maryland.

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Yngwie Malmsteen

Guitar World discusses some of the best stage names in this recent article.

Michael Bloomberg

Hybrid surnames are becoming increasingly popular. The New York Times reports that Zelda Violet Frissberg’s surname is the combination of Frissora, her father’s, and Bloomberg, her mother’s. Given that former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is her grandfather, New Yorkers are likely to see Fissberg denoting New York cultural and philanthropic institutions in the near future.