Why Did Leighton Meester Name Her Baby Arlo Day?

The world is a pretty insane place. Long after we bid farewell to The O.C. — and not so long after we said goodbye to Gossip Girl — something magical happened: Seth Cohen and Blair Waldorf got married. OK, OK — not really. But the actors who played them, Adam Brody and Leighton Meester, totally did get hitched, and not long after meeting on the set of the film The Oranges. Then, last year, fans got wind that the former Queen Bee of the Upper East Side was pregnant with the couple's first child. Now, Brody and Meester's first child has arrived — and in addition to being the heir to both Newport Beach and the Upper East Side, she reportedly has a seriously awesome name. According to TMZ, Brody and Meester's daughter is named Arlo Day, and it's definitely a unique moniker. But, is there a story behind the name? Why did Brody and Meester pick Arlo Day as the name for their first child together?

Of course, I did some digging. According to She Knows, the name Arlo is typically a male name that, in English, means "fortified hill." In Spanish, Arlo translates to "barberry or piperidge bush." Now, I sincerely doubt that Brody and Meester named their child after a particularly awesome hill or bush — but perhaps it was the earthy quality of the name that appealed to the parents. It's also possible that they were referencing folk singer Arlo Guthrie, one of the few famous people with that name. Meester and Brody are both music lovers — Meester slays covers like "Dreams" by Fleetwood Mac and Brody was formerly in the band Big Japan — so perhaps they wanted to honor this singer by naming their child after him.

Then there's the chance that Meester and Brody wanted to name their baby something that was a combination of the two of them. "Ar" could be for Adam, while "Lo" could represent Leighton. I mean, it'd be just a tad more creative than calling the baby Leighton Jr., right?

As for the name Day, well — few sites seem to have an explanation on its meaning, save for the traditional meaning of the term as a "day of the week." That's not to say that Day is completely devoid of any connection: '50s starlet Doris Day also shared the moniker, though there's no word on whether Meester or Brody are big fans.

Then, of course, there's the idea that Meester and Brody just really like the sound of Arlo Day when it rolls off the tongue. It's a rare name, but it certainly is a pretty one.

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