Guernsey Press

Cobo now has Jethou as his little brother

THE small island of Jethou was the inspiration for the name of a baby boy born in London.

Published
Pete Walter and Katie Gaudion with their children, Cobo, 2, left, and nine-month-old Jethou. (Picture by Sophie Rabey, 25472598)

Baby Jethou Gaudion-Walter, born 5 November 2018, is continuing the tradition of being given a Guernsey-inspired name, with his big brother Cobo Gaudion-Walter named after the island’s famous bay.

Born to former Blanchelande pupil Katie Gaudion and her husband Pete Walter, baby Jethou is said to be very laid back, with a strong appetite.

‘We wanted to continue having Guernsey-inspired names, as it is where my wife is from and as soon as we knew it was a boy we decided on Jethou,’ said Mr Walter.

‘We got “married” while on the Travel Trident to Herm and we know Jethou used to be connected to the island, it’s a great connection to tell people about and we love the look of the island and, though we’re not allowed to visit, we’d love to try.

‘It would be nice to be able to show Jethou his namesake.’

Two-year-old Cobo has also said to have begun to grasp the reason behind his name.

‘We’re on holiday here at the moment, visiting family,’ continued Mr Walter.

‘And we spent some time on Cobo beach, Cobo absolutely loved it, he kept saying his name and where he was – it’s lovely to see.’

With two unique names in the family, Dr Gaudion said bets are on if a third baby joins the family.

‘Friends and family were guessing what the name of the baby would be as soon as they knew we were going to keep the tradition of Guernsey-inspired names,’ she said.

‘They were saying Vazon, Rousse, funnily enough nobody said Jethou, but everyone loves it.

‘Who knows if we have a third one what we’ll name them.’

n The name ‘Jethou’ is supposed to be derived and subsequently corrupted from the medieval name Keitholm, which itself comes from Keithou, containing the Norman-hou suffix, meaning small island or small hill, translating in full to island place or roaring.

This is said to be due to the noise of air being forced through the passage into the Creux du Diable, the Devil’s Hole, which makes a roaring noise.