This Page has 11 Kalan Pix.

Kalan Porter photos

Are you a Kalanadian?

New Canadian Word

Many words new and old flash into our attention span, but this one caught my eye in 2004: Kalanadian, a blend of Kalan and Canadian.

A Kalanadian is a fan of Kalan Porter, the curly-headed singer who became the first Canadian Idol anointed on a CTV variety show. His unusual given name is a challenge for those who study names. Kalan looks like it might be sui generis, entirely made up simply because his parents liked the sound of it. Kalan is also a possible variant of Cailin or Keelan, an Irish saint whose name meant ‘slender lad.’ Kalan is a Turkish word, also used as a male name. Then in Scottish Gaelic is the male name Cailean ‘whelp.’ Perhaps one of his numerous fan clubs can discover the actual meaning of Kalan and let us know?

Here's an email from a reader:

Dear Bill Casselman -

I was looking up stuff on Botticelli and pomegranates and happened upon your interesting site.

Jumping off onto other pages, I came across Kalan Porter and your enquiry as to his first name.

In Welsh, the word calan (pronounced Kalan, with both a's pronouced as in 'and') means the first day of every month, but is primarily used to denote special days. So Dydd Calan is New Year's Day, (dydd- day); Calan Mai is May-day, the beginning of summer, Calan gaeaf (winter) = Allsaints, Allhallowtide.

I have a friend called Calan, named because she was due on New Year's Day though, confusingly, she wasn't born until the 6th of January.  But, had she been a boy, her parents could have used the same name for him, since it is not gender-specific.

Yours sincerely,
E. Evans

Here's a sample of text incorporating this new term:

“Porter is out and about on the extensive tour in support of his debut album ‘219 Days.’ Upon its release the album jumped into the top 10 selling albums in the country, thanks to Porter’s loyal army of Kalanadians. The first single lifted from the album is called ‘Awake in a Dream,’ which was chosen as the song for the winner of the Idol competition.”

Will the word Kalanadian endure and roll down through the centuries as part of the mighty word hoard of eternal English? Probably not. It's a playful and ephemeral neology. But play and silliness and fun are as valid a part of wordmaking in English as the solemn lists of serious words.

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KALAN PIX

If the names of famous Canadians like Kalan Porter interest you, if the origin of first and last names fascinates you, there are hundreds more startling stories about famous Canadian names in my book, What’s in a Canadian Name? Click on the bookcover for more samples or to order the book online.

Order in bookstores or online

Any comments, additional word lore or book orders?

Please email me at wordguy@shaw.ca

© 2005 William Gordon Casselman

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