It's no secret that late-Victorian and Edwardian parents went batty over floral names for girls. Snowdrop, Gladiolus, Mignionette, Azalea, Daffodil, Eucharis, Orchid, Lotus, Mimosa — practically every flower around was used for name inspiration. Some parents loved them so much, they created a whole garden full of floral names.
Here are some florally inspired sibling sets from the late 19th and early 20th century. You'll notice that while often all the girls get a plant name, the boys have a varied assortment; in a few cases they also got plant names.
N.B. Though we associated it more as a month name now, the Victorians classed May as a floral name because of the May Blossom. Marguerite, Veronica and Magnolia were also grouped in this category.
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The Willats:
Henry (1877)
George (1880)
Arthur (1883)
Leslie (1885)
Daisy (1888)
Poppy (1890)
Lily (1893)
Bunnels:
Ivy May (1882)
Daisy Violet (1884)
Snowdrop Olive (1885)
Myrtle Pansy (1889)
The Letts:
Acacia Harriet S (1872)
Linden Fritz Barnabas (1874)
Edgar James (1876)
Olive Aurelia (1878)
Rose Zilpah (1879)
May Elizabeth (1881)
The Oakhills:
Daisy Eleanor (1885)
Christie Rosanna (1888)
Jasmine Beatrice (1890)
Ivy Josephine (1893)
Olive Winifred (1895)
Poppy Irene (1897)
The Youngs:
William Henry Kirk (1878)
Daisy (1881)
Tom (1882)
Fred Archer (1884)
Herbert Gladstone (1886)
Sullivan (1888)
Violet (1890)
Pansy Blossom (1892)
Corbett Mitchell (1894)
Snowdrop (1896)
Heather (1899)
The Osbornes:
Emily Hannah (1883)
Mary Ann (1884)
May (1886)
Violet (1888)
Lily (1890)
Lavender (1892)
William (1895)
Ivy (1897)
Marguerite (1899)
Iris Dorothy Primrose (1891)
Myrtle (1903)
Robert Henry (1905)
The Castles:
Daisy May (1886)
Violet Myrtle (1888)
Lily Zinnia (1890)
Ivy Camelia (1892)
Cecil Rodney (1893)
Lavender Mignonette (1896)
The Paskes:
Violet Elizabeth (1891)
Lily (1894)
Ivy Rosina (1896)
Dahlia Louise (1897)
Charles Henry (1899)
The Woodmans:
Henry Edgar (1882)
Lilian (1886)
Violet Lobelia (1893)
Daisy (1895)
Ivy (1898)
Mignonette Verbena (1899)
The Palmers:
Rosebud Helena Esther (1902)
Henry William Rondel (1904)
Iris May Rondel (1906)
William Henry Rondel (1908)
Charles Henry Rondel (1910)
Harold Henry Rondel (1913)
George Henry Rondel (1916)
Cyril Henry Rondel (1917)
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The Dodmans:
John Edward (1884)
Frank Victor (1886)
(Marie) Violet (1888)
Daisy Clare (1890)
Mignonette Ethel (1892)
Vernon Edgar (1894)
Snowdrop Gladys (1896)
Henry Ernest (1900)
Lily Elsie (1903)
The Hartes:
Violet Mary C (1888)
Lily Josephine M (1889)
Camellia Theresa M (1895)
Marguerite Gertrude M (1897)
John Herbert (1900)
Gladiolus Bernard & Hyacinth Joseph (1904)
* I suspect Camellia is Camellia Theresa Megri after the flower as "Lily Josephine" is also a plant variety.
The Stanleys:
Una Lilian (1884)
Daisy Constance (1885)
Violet Louise (1889)
Magnolia Kate (1892)
Iris Ivy (1894)
Veronica Dorothy (1896)
Olive Naomi (1899)
Myrtle Irene (1902)
Clematis Mary Claire (1905)
The Birds:
Lily Violet (1890)
Daisy May (1892)
Ivy Narcissus (1894)
Charles Cecil C (1896)
Azalea Ivy Narcissus (1899)
The Watsons:
Iris Ellen (1892)
Ivy Emma (1893)
Poppy Doretta (1900)
The Gilberts:
Daisy Charlotte (1888)
Victor George Henry (1890)
Violet Maria F (1895)
Primrose Henrietta M (1899)
Lilac Lily R (1902)
Laud Thomas J (1903)
The Borrowsons:
Ivy Elizabeth (1895)
Poppy Marjorie (1898)
Olive Mavis (1901)
The Churchills:
William John (1894)
Daisy Ellen (1897)
Lily Beatrice & Rosie May (1899)
Bluebell, May & Violet (1902)
The Blunts:
Eddie Walter (1902)
Ivy Violet (1904)
Snowdrop Lily (1907)
Reginald Stanley (1911)
The Monroes:
Bluebell (1903)
Buttercup (1906)
The Taylors:
George (1883)
(Bertie) Lovell (1886)
Happy Mary J (1888)
Violetta Matilda M (1890)
Lemon Playford (1892)
Mignionette Rhona (1895)
Prudence Vie (1899)
Claude Oak (1901)
Felix Ruby (1902)
(Elm) Oliver (1905)
Alice Rhoda (1909)
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For an interesting contemporary discussion from 1892 concerning floral names, and the prejudices and other opinions towards them, see this Twas Ever Thus post.
