Name of the Week

 

 
In 2011, Frankie made it into the Top 100 in 
England and Wales for the first time. Unsurprisingly Franklin has 
also started on an upward curve in recent years.

 

Origin:

Before it was a first-name, Franklin was a surname; in use since the 12th century. The Middle English form was Frankeleyn, derived from the Norman fraunclein, meaning "a land-owner of free but not noble birth" (cognate with Freeman). It was made up of the Old French adjective franc "free" and the Old English and Germanic suffix -ling which indicates a person of a specific kind or origin. By the 14th century frank had come to mean "free, liberal, generous, sincere, forthright, worthy," but its earlier meaning in Old French denoted someone (or something) who was free, i.e. not a servant or a serf. This meaning developed from an association with the Franks — the Germanic tribe that conquered Celtic Gaul from the Romans in the 5th century A.D. — because it was the conquering Franks that held the status of freemen. A.Harding argues that the Franks actually helped develop the concept, and vocabulary, of freedom. "Chieftains and vassals within the warrior aristocracy of Franks all possessed a quality of freedom, a franchisia, which the conquered population lacked. A military vassal was necessarily a liber homo [free man] because he was a franc homme [Frank], and he expected to hold the land given him by his lord on conditions which were worthy of a freeman."* So, frank came to mean free because of the Franks, but not the reverse. The tribe's name most likely derives from the old Germanic word *frankon "javelin, lance" (cognate with the Old English franca), as that was their preferred weapon. There certainly is precedence for this; the Saxons derived their name from seax "knife, short sword, dagger."

Usage:

As a surname, Franklin has been in use in Britain since the 12th century, no doubt used to denote a person of that status. In the 14th century Chaucer wrote The Franklin's Tale (The Frankeleyns Tale) as part of The Canterbury Tales. It tells the story of a franklin of Brittany named Arveragus who loves Dorigen so much he agrees to an equal-status marriage with her. (They put on a show in public, however, so they don't arose suspicion). Arveragus travels to Britain to make his fortune, leaving Dorigen grieving for his absence. She gains a sweet but unwelcome admirer and tries to let him down gently by promising to run off with him if he completes an impossible task. Unfortunately he succeeds, but after a few twists and noble sacrifices, husband and wife are happily reunited.  The use of the surname inevitably led to usage as a first-name. A few examples of Franklin and Franklyn can be found from the 17th century (most exclusively male), but the name didn't really kick off until after Benjamin Franklin (1706—1790) rose to fame. We can see his impact on British naming from the number of children in the late 18th and 19th centuries called Benjamin Franklin, Franklin Benjamin, and Franklin Washington.  The 1841 UK census records 102 Franklins and 10 Franklyns (90% living in England). The number had risen to 308 in 1861; 414 in 1871; 720 in 1881; 724 in 1891. and 797 in 1900.  Throughout the 19th century the name averaged approximately 25 birth per year and this continued consistently into the 20th century. A noticeable increase can be seen in the early 1940s (56 boys were registered with the name in 1941), no doubt thanks to Franklin D. Roosevelt and the aid he gave to the British during WWII. But, after that, the name dropped back to its previous usage. Indeed, the name remained so consistent in birth count that from 1996 to 2006 it had a birth count of between 17 and 33 each year in England and Wales. Showing a slight rise, in 2007 the name ranked #742 (37 births). It was #789 (36 births) in 2008, #760 (38 births) in 2009, and #635 (51 births) in 2010.  In 2011, Frankie reached the Top 100 for the first time (#84) in England and Wales, and Franklin also saw a rise to #444, with 85 births. Franklyn ranked #1398 with 17 births. The name did not rank in Scotland.

Famous Bearers:

History: * Benjamin Franklin (1706–1790), a founding father of America; scientist, inventor, diplomat and politician. * Rear-Admiral Sir John Franklin (1786–1847), Arctic explorer and governor of Tasmania.  * Franklin Pierce (1804–1869), 14th American President. * Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945), 32nd American President. Literature and Other Media: * The Franklin's Tale, one of The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer. * Franklin is a character in Peanuts. * Franklin Richards is a Marvel character in the Fantastic Four series. * Franklin the Turtle is a children's book franchise, turned into a TV series.

Variants:

Franklyn

Pronunciation:

FRANK-lin  [key]

Possible Diminutives:

Finn, Flynn, Frank, Frankie

Sibling Names:

Maggie     Elsa     Hester     Mona     Mabel     Cora  Douglas     Calvin     Leonard     Warren     Sidney     Vincent

Name Lists:

Victorian Darlings

 

If you like Franklin you may also like:   Edwin, Heston, Quentin, Lincoln, Fletcher, Ronnie, Victor, Fraser, Marvin, Malcolm

 

Thanks to Emily for requesting Franklin as this week's NotW.