British Baby Names

Name of the Week: Roscoe

 

Origin:

Roscoe is an uncommon English surname which heralds specifically from Lancashire. Although one can't be found on the map anymore, it is most likely the surname was a geographical one  taken from one of the many villages or hamlets which did not survive past the 15th century, thanks to the Black Death and land clearances. Roscoe most likely derived from the Old Norse rā "roe deer, roebuck," and skógr "small wood, forest, copse." This is mirrored in Derbyshire's village of Rowland (from Old Norse rā "roe" + lundr "wood) and similar to nearby Thrunscoe (þyrni "thorn" + skógr "wood, forest, copse") in Yorkshire.

Usage:

The earliest attested record of the surname dates from 1293, when a Gilbert Roscoe of Euxton, Lancashire is mentioned in the Wills at Chester. The name continues to be found in parish records in Lancashire through to the 16th century, gradually becoming more widespread around the country.  Data from the Surname Atlas. Click to enlarge. As with all surnames,  Roscoe did have some early use as a given name from the 16th century as a family or godparent surname. Intriguingly, data from the 1881 census shows that use of Roscoe -- very rare as it was -- centred in Lancashire, the origin, and maintained hot-spot of the surname.  In England and Wales, use of Rosco(e) as a given name was very uncommon throughout the 19th century, and even rarer in the 20th century, as births per decade show: 1840s: 7 births 1850s: 8 births 1860s: 13 births 1870s: 25 births 1880s: 19 births 1890s: 29 births 1900s: 21 births 1910s: 16 births 1920s: 8 births 1930s: 4 births 1940s: 4 births 1950s: 8 births 1960s: 16 births In America, on the other hand, Roscoe ranked #152 in 1880, #138 in 1885, #145 in 1890 and #174 in 1895.  One notable bearer -- known to have been a direct namesake for American parents -- is American senator Roscoe Conkling (1829-1888), a Radical Republican who fought against anti-black prejudice. Because of his standing in politics, many babies were named after him in the 1870s, including silent film actor Roscoe Conkling "Fatty" Arbuckle (b.1877), educator Roscoe Conkling Bruce (1879), and senators Roscoe Conkling Patterson (b. 1876) and Roscoe Conkling McCulloch (b. 1880). Roscoe remained within the top 200 at the turn of the century, only leaving the US top 300 at the end of the 1920s. The name stayed in the top 1000 right up until 1978.  click to enlarge Up until the last few years, Roscoe remained rare in Britain. Its breezy, hipster surname status has moved it out of obscurity, and it is now on an upward curve.  In 1998, Roscoe ranked #2419 (4 births) and was used intermittently until 2006 when it ranked #1545 (12 births).  The turning point in popularity came in 2013, when it rose to #1339 (18 births) and further to #866 (34 births) in 2014.  In 2015, Roscoe and Rosco both ranked #1234 (1 birth) in Scotland. It did not rank in Northern Ireland.

Famous Bearers:

History: * Roscoe Conkling (1829-1888), American politician. * Roscoe Miller (1876-1913), American Major League Baseball pitcher. * Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle (1877-1933), silent film star. * Roscoe Nicholson (1887-1959), American surveyor and conservationist. * Roscoe Karns (1891-1970), American actor. * Roscoe Holcomb (1912-1981), American singer and musician. Contemporary: * Roscoe Lee Browne (1925-2007), American actor and director. * Roscoe Born (b. 1950), American actor. * Roscoe D'Sane (b. 1980), British footballer. Literature and Other Media: * Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane, a character from The Dukes of Hazzard. Other: * Roscoe (2002), a novel by William Kennedy.

Variants:

Rosco, Rosko, Roscow

Pronunciation:

ROS-kō [key]

Possible diminutives:

Ross, Rock, Roe

Sibling Names:

Kinvara     Peony      Sylvie     Everly      Bellamy     Cassia  Beckett     Lennox    Treeve     Lorcan     Keaton     Emmett

Name Lists:

N/A

 

If you like Roscoe you may also like:    Reeve, Macsen, Kester, Reed, Alban, Robson, Hendrix, Cosmo, Saxon, Fintan

 

Thanks to Sarah for requesting this post. 

Name of the Week: Timothy

 

Origin:

Timothy is the Anglicised form of the Greek name Timotheos (Τιμόθεος), made up of the words timé (τιμή) "to value, accord honor, pay respect" and theos (θεός) "(a)God, godly." The name became established thanks to Saint Timothy (d.c. 97), a resident of Lystra, whose father was a Greek and mother a Jew. He was a trusted friend and companion of Saint Paul to whom two epistles (letters) of the New Testament are written.  Timothy is also the common name of the perennial grass plant Phleum pratense, also known as herd's grass or meadow cat's-tail. It is thought to have got its name from American farmer Timothy Hanson who widely promoted the plant as a source of hay in the 18th century.

Usage:

Timotheos was not uncommon in Ancient Greece. Data from the LGPN shows it was in moderate use, and was borne by a noted musician and poet in the court of Alexander the Great. It continued use in to the Christianised Byzantine Empire, when Greek was the official language, and there were also five more saints bearing the name Timotheus/Timotheos, martyred in the 3rd and 4th century.  In Britain, the name was rare until after the Protestant Reformation. It was first used in the 16th century, rarely at first, but then with increasing frequency. In the name frequency tables from 1538-1700 by Smith-Bannister, Timothy doesn't rank at all in the top 50 for the first century. It debuts at #48 in 1640-9, after which it moves to #29 (1650-9), #33 (1660-9), #48 (1670-9), #35 (1680-9), #34 (1690-9).  Around the same time, the feminine form Timothea also came into use, particularly for girls whose fathers were named Timothy. This may also explain the occasional instances of "Timothy" used for girls. It is more likely that "Timothy" in these cases was being used as a vernacular form for Timothea (as with Philip /Philippa, Julian/Juliana and Christian/Christian) than that they were "gender-bending."  The name continued to be a top 50 staple for the following two centuries. Leslie Dunkling's ranks for England and Wales puts it at #45 in 1700 and #37 in 1800. By the end of the 19th century, as with many other biblical names, Timothy began to decline, leaving the top 100 by 1890: click to enlarge 1860: #68 1870: #77 1880: #99  1890: #136    1900: #152   It stayed out of favour until the mid-20th century, reaching #77 in 1944 and peaking at #24 twenty years later in 1964. After that time it began to decline, leaving the top 100 after 1999.  Since 2004, the name has plateaued between #200-#300.  In 2014, Timothy ranked #274 (178 births) in England and Wales, #680 (3 births) in Scotland and #281 (6 births) in Northern Ireland.

Famous Bearers:

History: * Saint Timothy (d.c. 97), early Christian evangelist and the first first-century Christian bishop of Ephesus. * Pope Timothy II of Alexandria (d. 477), Patriarch of Alexandria. * Timothy I (d. 523), Patriarch of Constantinople. Contemporary: * Timothy West (b. 1934), British actor.  * Timothy Dalton (b.1944), British actor.  * Timothy "Tim" Curry (b.1946), British actor.  * Tim Allen (b. 1953), American actor. * Sir Timothy Berners-Lee (b. 1955), British computer scientist and inventor of the World Wide Web. * Timothy Spall (b. 1957), British actor. * Tim McGraw (b. 1967), American country singer. * Timothy Olyphant (b. 1968), American actor. * Timothy Omundson (b. 1969), American actor. Literature and Other Media: * Timothy Cratchit "Tiny Tim", a character from Charles Dickens' novel A Christmas Carol (1843). * Tim Drake, the third character to go by the name of "Robin" in the DC Universe comics. Other: * Timothy-grass, a type of a grass.

Variants:

Timothée, Timothé (French), Timotheus (German, Dutch), Timoteo (Italian, Spanish), Timoteo (Portuguese),  Timofei, Timofey (Russian), Timotej (Slavic), Tymoteusz (Polish)

Pronunciation:

TIM-ə-thee [key]

Possible diminutives:

Tim, Timmy, Timo, Theo, Tom

Sibling Names:

Rachael      Phoebe      Caroline      Lydia      Teresa      Joanna  Jonathan     Stephen     Christopher     Anthony     David     Elliott

Name Lists:

Popular Biblical   Gorgeously Georgian  Victorian Darlings  Bronte Names   Disney Names

 

If you like Timothy you may also like:    Simon, Tobias, Thaddeus, Gideon, Philip, Moses, Robin, Hamish, Laurence, Josiah

 

Thanks to Dawn for requesting this post. 

Name of the Week: Luna

 

 

Origin:

Luna was the Roman personification and goddess of the moon, equivalent to the Greek goddess Selene, who travelled across the sky in her horse-drawn chariot. Her siblings were Sol (Helios) "the sun" and Aurora (Eos) "the dawn."  Luna is a Latin word for "moon" derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *leuksna- "shining, gleaming." The Shining One seems to have been an ancient epithet for the moon as it was adopted in several languages as a name for the moon (Old Church Slavonic luna "moon," Armenian lusin "moon," Middle Irish luan "light, moon"). Similarly, the Greek equivalent Selene relates to the word selas "light, brightness, bright flame." The Roman writer Varro (116 BC–27 BC) categorises Luna as one of the twenty principal gods of Roman religion (Di selecti) and also one of the twelve deities who are vital to agriculture (De re rustica). As Apollo was often identified as Sol/Helios, the sun, so too his twin sister Diana (Artemis), the goddess of the hunt was often identified with Luna; the temple dedicated to Luna on the Aventine Hill in Rome was just below Diana's. Juno, the goddess of childbirth and the home, also had Luna as an epithet: "The name Apollo is Greek; they say that he is the Sun, and Diana they identify with the Moon . . . the name Luna is derived from lucere 'to shine’; for it is the same word as Lucina, and therefore in our country Juno Lucina is invoked in childbirth, as is Diana in her manifestation as Lucifera (the light-bringer) among the Greeks. [...] She is invoked to assist at the birth of children, because the period of gestation is either occasionally seven, or more usually nine, lunar revolutions..." Cicero, De Natura Deorum 2. 27 (trans. Rackham)* Luna was also used as a name for silver by ancient alchemists.

Usage:

As Latin became the basis for many languages in Europe, so luna, and variants thereof, were adopted across the Continent (luna in Spanish and Italian, lune in French and Danish, laune in German, lua in Portuguese). As such, by the 17th century, Luna was not only considered to be a Classical name of Roman mythology, but also one adopted to personify the moon in poetry. Luna can be found in a handful of baptisms across Europe, including England, from the late 16th and early 17th century.  The Italian fairy tale Sole, Luna e Talia (1634) by Giambattista Basile tells the folk story of a beauty named Talia who is put into a deep sleep by a splinter of flax. In the tale, Talia's son and daughter are named Sole "sun" and Luna "moon." This later became the basis for the fairy tale Sleeping Beauty which we know today. In the 19th century, Luna was used moderately for girls and occasionally for boys. The 1891 UK census lists 4 males with the first name Luna and 79 females. Births in England and Wales show that it averaged two births per year in the 19th century, but became rare in the mid-20th century: 1840s: 10 births 1850s: 15 births 1860s: 22 births 1870s: 22 births 1880s: 17 births 1890s: 15 births 1900s: 11 births 1910s: 5 births 1920s: 10 births 1930s: 2 births 1940s: 2 births 1950s: 5 births 1960s: 9 births 1970s: 13 births click to enlarge From 1996 up until 2006, Luna was registered no more that twenty times in any given year, putting it firmly below the top 1000. Since then, however, it has been on an upward curve, reaching #639 (50 births) in 2006, #526 (76 births) in 2010, #337 (144 births) in 2012 and #225 (224 births) in 2013.  By this point, Luna had received media attention with the Harry Potter character Luna Lovegood who first appears in the novel The Order of the Phoenix (2003) and her character continued to develop up to the final installment of the series in 2007. The character, portrayed by Evanna Lynch, first appeared in film versions in 2007 and continued the role up to the final film in 2011.  2012 saw the birth of Uma Thurman's daughter Rosalind Arusha Arkadina Altalune Florence, known simply as "Luna," and the following year Penelope Cruz also named her daughter Luna.  In 2014, Luna ranked #146 (380 births) in England and Wales, #246 (18 births) in Scotland and #255 (7 births) in Northern Ireland.  Demonstrating its international appeal, in the same year Luna ranked # 43 in Denmark, #44 in both Belgium and the Netherlands, #50 in France, #65 in Croatia, #67 in Portugal, #81 in Switzerland, #90 in Slovenia, #94 in Spain and #99 in Sweden.

Famous Bearers:

History: * Luna Leopold (1915–2006), American (male) scientist. Contemporary: * Luna (b. 1993), a South Korean singer. * Rosalind Arusha Arkadina Altalune Florence Thurman-Busson "Luna" (b. 2012), daughter of Uma Thurman. * Luna Encinas Cruz (b. 2013), daughter of Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem. Literature and Other Media: * Adeline Luna, a character in Henry James' novel The Bostonians (1886). * Luna Lovegood, a character in J.K.Rowling's Harry Potter novels.  * Princess Luna, a character in My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic.

Variants:

Lunar

Pronunciation:

LOO-nə [key]

Possible  longer forms:

Albulena, Aluna, Calluna, Emmanuella, Luciana, Lucina, Lucinda, Lunaria, Lunette, Lunetta, Melusine, Melusina, Ursulina

Sibling Names:

Aria     Belle     Penelope     Maia      Esme     Iris   Seth     Milo     Roman     Enzo     Rex     Arlo

Name Lists:

Dulcet Dainties   Slickly Continental   Gods and Goddesses    Butterfly Names

  

If you like Luna you may also like:   Lyra, Orla, Juno, Lois, Mila, Ariana, Lila, Hebe, Thea, Nova

 

Thanks to Stephanie for requesting this post. 

Name of the Week: Albertine

 

Origin:

Albertine is a French, Swiss and Dutch feminine form of Albert.  Albert itself derives from two cognate names: the old Germanic Adalberaht (Adalbert) and the Anglo-Saxon Æðelbeorht (Ethelbert). The former was introduced to Britain by the Normans where it largely replaced its Old English counterpart. Both names were descended from the Proto-Germanic elements *athala- "noble" and *berhta- "bright."

Usage:

Prince Frederick Henry and his wife Amalia of Solms-Braunfels and his three youngest daughters From the 17th century as a name among Dutch, German and later French and Swiss nobility. Albertine Agnes of Nassau (1634-1696), was a daughter of the Dutch ruler Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange who became regent of Friesland, Groningen and Drenthe in her own right. She is pictured (right) with her parents, holding the hand of her sister Henriette Catherine (1637-1708) who married into German nobility, and whose own eldest daughter was Princess Elisabeth Albertine of Anhalt-Dessau (1683-1742). Though it wasn't particularly prolific, there are several other examples of the name being used in German and Dutch nobilty. Some of them like Albertine Agnes of Nassau -- such as Countess Sophia Albertine of Erbach-Erbach (1683-1742) and Princess Elisabeth Albertine of Saxe-Hildburghausen (1713–1761) -- acted as regents for their provinces.  It was also influentially borne by Albertine Necker de Saussure (1766-1841), the daughter and wife of noted Swiss botanists, who campaigned and wrote extensively about women's rights to education. Her principal work, L'Education Progressive (1828), was a long and influential study on educational theory and the education of women and was influential in nineteenth century England in reforming educational policy. It is now acknowledged as an educational classic.  Beyond the elite, Albertine can be found in baptism records across Germany, Prussia, Belgium and the Netherlands from the mid-17th century. A few early examples in Britain, such as this baptism for a Susanne Albertine Carle in 1697 in London, shows that it was used primarily among French Hugenot families and largely was confined within London. Despite its Anglo-Saxon heritage and reinforcement by the Normans, Albert itself had been little used in Britain until the marriage in 1840 of Queen Victoria to Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1819-1861). The impact on the name Albert was marked. Albert went from not appearing in Dunkling's top 50 names fro either 1700 or 1800, yet by 1860 it was #19 and was #9 by 1890. As the Victorians loved to used feminised forms of names for their daughters, Albertine and Albertina became much more established names in Britain during the 19th century thanks to the success of the masculine Albert. Albertina was the more popular form (as the births below show) as the Latinised -a ending was a more common convention in Britain. Births in England and Wales: Albertine Albertina 1840s: 12 births 1850s: 15 births 1860s: 15 birth 1870s: 18 births 1880s: 20 births 1890s: 20 births 1900s: 21 births 1910s: 25  births 1920s: 3 births 1930s: 5 births 1940s: 6 births 1950s: 3 births  1960s: 3 births 1840s: 60 births 1850s: 76 births 1860s: 106 birth 1870s: 87 births 1880s: 84 births 1890s: 74 births 1900s: 45 births 1910s: 50 births 1920s: 16 births 1930s: 2 births 1940s: 11 births 1950s: 2 births  1960s: 15 births The name was quite consistent in use up until the 1920s when it saw a sharp decline. By the 1940s, many examples of the name Albertina are for children born to Italian immigrant  parents.  Albertine is also a very literary name.  In 1886, Norwegian author and artist Christian Krohg wrote a novel Albertine about the life of the unmarried seamstress Albertine, who is eventually forced into prostitution after being assaulted due to the social system of the time. The book caused great controversy, and was immediately confiscated by order of the Supreme Court of Norway leading to a demonstration, held outside Prime Minister Johan Sverdrup's office in January 1887, which gathered 5,000 protesters. Thanks to the novel and the debate that followed it, public prostitution in Norway was soon after abolished.  Another influential literary charcter is Albertine Simonet, the most important character in Marcel Proust’s seven-volume novel In Search of Lost Time (1913-1927). The same character is also the basis for Jacqueline Rose's novel Albertine (2001) and the 2003 musical My Life With Albertine by Ricky Ian Gordon.  The character was also the inspiration for the name of the Albertine rose, a wichuraiana rambler bred in France in 1921 by one of the Barbier brothers.  The Albertine is one of the most popular roses of all thanks to its strong sweet perfume, coppery pink colour, and full and hardy bloom. Since 1996, Albertine has only ranked three times in the official England and Wales name data: #3409 (4 births) in 2002; #5876 in 2012 (3 births); and #4684 (4 births) in 2014.  This is not the name's only use however, as the data only lists names given to three or more babies in any given year. Birth records show that there was one birth in each year in 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004 and 2005 and also several examples as a middle name.  Albertina is less common, and hasn't ranked in the data at all. Neither form of the name has been registered in Scotland from 1974-2014.

Famous Bearers:

History: * Countess Albertine Agnes of Nassau (1634-1696), a regent of Friesland, Groningen and Drenthe, daughter of Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange. * Princess Elisabeth Albertine of Anhalt-Dessau (1665-1706), daughter of John George II, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau and Henriette Catherine of Orange-Nassau. * Countess Sophia Albertine of Erbach-Erbach (1683-1742),  Countess of Erbach-Erbach by birth and  Duchess of Saxe-Hildburghausen by marriage. She acted as regent for her son after her husband's death. * Princess Albertine of Brandenburg-Schwedt (1712-1750), wife of Victor Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Bernburg. * Princess Elisabeth Albertine of Saxe-Hildburghausen (1713–1761), a Duchess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. She served as regent for her son after the deaths in 1752 of her husband. * Albertine Necker de Saussure (1766-1841), Swiss writer and women's education pioneer. * Albertine Thackwell (1863–1944), a British archer who competed at the 1908 Summer Olympics in London. * Albertine, baroness Staël von Holstein (1797–1838), daughter of Madame de Staël. * Albertine Morin-Labrecque (1886-1957), a Canadian pianist, soprano, composer. * Albertine Sarrazin (1937–1967), French author. Contemporary: * Viv Albertine (born 1955), British singer and songwriter. Literature and Other Media: * Albertine (1886), a novel by Norwegian author and artist Christian Krohg. * Albertine Simonet, a character in Marcel Proust’s novel In Search of Lost Time (1913-1927). * Albertine (2006), an album by New Zealand singer-songwriter Brooke Fraser. * My Life with Albertine (2003), a musical with music and lyrics by Ricky Ian Gordon based on Proust's novel. Other: * Albertine, a popular sweet-smelling rambling rose. * Albertine owlet, a species of owl found in Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda.

Variants:

Albertina

Pronunciation:

al-bə-TEEN [key]

Possible  diminutive:

Allie, Albie, Aline, Bertie, Tina, Beattie, Bettie, Rose, Rosie

Sibling Names:

Edwina      Corisande      Lavinia     Eglantine     Clotilde     Dolores  Gilbert     Emmanuel    Ambrose    Silvester    Ferdinand   Algernon

Name Lists:

Names of Roses

 

If you like Albertine you may also like:   Augusta, Thomasina, Ghislaine, Wilhelmina, Ernestine, Alexandrine, Eugenie, Clarinda, Roberta, Angelica

 

Thanks to Prue for requesting this post. 

Name of the Week

Feistier and bolder than dainty Rose, but just as sweet.
Rosa is a vintage gem with pan-European appeal.

 

Origin:

Rosa is the Latin name for the rose, a flower which has been of symbolic importance for milennia. The rose has been the sacred symbol of many important goddesses associated with love, such as Ishtar, Aphrodite, Isis and Venus. It was later used as such for the Virgin Mary under the titles Rosa Munda  "pure rose," Rosa Mundi "rose of the world," Rosa Mystica "the mystical rose" and Rosa d'Abril "April rose." Long before Rosa was adopted as a given name in honour of the flower, however, it was used as a Latin form of the Norman name Roheis (also found as Rohais, Rohese and Roese). These names in turn were Latinised as Rohesia, Roesia and Roesa and later became Royce and Rose. By the 13th century, Rose was the common form -- by which time it was associated with the flower -- and Rosa was the Latin form most commonly found in records.  Like Rosalind and Rosamund, Roheis may derive from hros "horse." However, a more tempting possibility is that it derives from the Old Germanic name Hrodohaidis, derived from hrod "fame" and heit "sort, kind, type." The are a few examples of the name in early Frankish nobility including Ruodhaid (775–810), abbess of Faremoutiers, and a daughter of the great king Charlemagne.  The move from Hrodohaidis to Rohesia and eventually to Rose/Rosa, with the gradually dropping of the harder consonants, is mirrored in the similar Germanic name Adalheidis (adal "noble" and heit "sort"): Hrodoheidis > Rohesia > Rose/Rosa Adalheidis > Adelisa > Alice/Alicia Other Germanic names starting with hrod are plentiful: Hrodebert (Robert), Hroderich (Roderick), Hrodgar (Roger), Hrodland (Roland), Hrodulf (Rolf), Hrotsuitha (Roswitha),

Usage:

As a variant of Roheis, examples of Rosa in British records date back to at least the 13th century. There are two Rosas in the 1379 Poll Tax of Yorkshire and in the Hundred Rolls of 1273.  However, as it was common to write names in both vernacular and Latinised forms in records up until at least the 17th century, it is impossible to separate Rosa from Rose in records. They were essentially the same name.  Rose itself was not uncommon from the 14th century onwards. It appears in thirteen out of sixteen decades in Smith Bannister's rank of top 50 names from 1538 to 1670 in England: 1538-49: #39; 1550-9: #28; 1560-9: #40; 1570-9: #35; 1580-9: #42; 1590-9: #45; 1600-9: #37; 1610-9: #50; 1640-9: #32; 1650-9: #33; 1660-9: #47; 1680-9: #36; 1690-1700: #27.  Given that it is the Latin form, Rosa was the vernacular form of the name in Italian, Spanish and Portuguese speaking countries. so it is unsurprising to find it there also from the Middle Ages.  St Rose of Lima (1586–1617), or Santa Rosa in her native tongue, was a native of Peru known for her charitable works. Her birth name was Isabel, but she adopted the name Rosa in childhood. Stories vary as to why. Some say she was given the name because she was a beautiful baby; others say her nursemaids saw a vision of a rose appear over her cot (or that her face was transformed briefly into the image of a rose).  In Britain, Rosa came into use as a name in its own right in the 18th century, becoming fashionable alongside other romantic Latinate names such as Maria, Sophia, Julia and Amelia.  Data from the Surname Atlas In 1860, Rosa ranked #54, just below Rose at #49. It was #43 in 1870, #52 in 1880, #73 in 1890 and #91 in 1900.  Data from the 1881 census lists 27,828 women with the name Rosa, giving it an overall rank (male and female names combined) of #118. The distribution of the name was largely situated in the South of England, particularly in Surrey and Norfolk.  In the 20th century, Rosa's fortunes very much followed that of Rose, declining by the 1930s, only to rise again in the 1990s.   1900 1925 1935 1950 1955 1960 1965 1970 1975 1980 1985  1990    16    2    4    -    -    -    -    -    -    -     -     1 Data by Leslie Dunkling per 10,000 births in England and Wales.  Also like Rose, Rosa is currently on the rise in England and Wales, though not yet as rapidly or as highly as the top 100 favourite. In 1996, Rosa ranked #459 with 63 births, rising to #263 (179 births) in 2006. In 2013 it ranked #204 with 249 births.  Rosa has also been rising in Scotland, from #484 (5 births) in 1994, #308 (10 births) in 2004 and #174 (27 births) in 2014, a rise from #213 in 2013.

Famous Bearers:

History: * St Rose of Lima "Santa Rosa" (1586–1617), the patron saint of Latin America.  * Rosa Scarlatti (1727–1775), Italian opera singer. * Rosa Vercellana (1833–1885), mistress and later wife of Victor Emmanuel II, King of Italy. * Rosa Luxemburg (1871–1919), Polish-German philosopher and political activist. * Rosa Ponselle (1897–1981), American operatic soprano. * Rosa Parks (1913–2005), American civil rights activist. Contemporary: * Rosa López (b. 1981), Spanish singer. Literature and other Media: * Rosa Dartle, a character in Charles Dickens' David Copperfield.  Other: * 223 Rosa, an asteroid.

Variants:

Roza (Bulgarian, Russian, Slavic), Róża (Polish), Ruža (Croatian, Slavic), Roos (Dutch), Rózsa (Hungarian), Raisa (Yiddish)

Pronunciation:

RŌ-zə  [key]

Possible  Diminutives:

Rose, Rosie, Roz, Ro

Sibling Names:

Clara     Anna     Eva     Isabella      Eloise     Harriet  Oscar     Hugo     Ned     Everett     Lucas     Arthur

Name Lists:

Vintage Names   Victorian Darlings   Jane Austen Names   Dickensian Names

 

If you like Rosa you may also like:   Leona, Cora, Lois, Flora, Elsa, Willa, Ailsa, Rosina, Violet, Sylvia

 

Thanks to Louise for requesting this post. 

Name of the Week

Vivid Violet is the Victorian Darling
turned Comeback Queen. Expect to see more of her
in the next decade.

 

Origin:

Violet is the name given to a group of small purple-blue flowers. The name of the flower has been used since at least the early 14th century, itself derived from the Old French violete, diminutive of viole "violet," from Latin viola "the violet." By the late 14th century, the term violet also came to describe the colour.  The violet has been revered since ancient times. The flower is alluded to several times in Greek mythology: some goddesses are referred to as "violet-haired" or "violet-garlanded," and there was even a water nymph (Oceanid) named Ianthe, which literally translates as "the violet flower." To the Romans it symbolised innocence and was used to decorate tombs -- particularly those of the young -- as a symbol of mourning and affection for the deceased.  Because the violet plant hides its flower within its leaves, the plant has long been associated with modesty and humility. In the Middle Ages, Christians directly linked it to the Virgin Mary, giving it the name "Our Lady's Modesty." According to one legend, violets were originally white, but turned purple to echo Mary's mourning when she saw her son die on the cross. Given this strong association, it is little wonder that several Renaissance Madonna and Child paintings depict violets.* In Victorian floriography, violets also symbolised modesty, however, blue violets specifically meant 'faithfulness' while white violets stood for 'Let's take a chance on happiness.'

Usage:

As a given name, Violette and Violetta was used on the Continent in the Middle Ages. There are a few instances which occur in England, such as Violet de la Bere wife of Sir John Chandos (d.1370) vice-chamberlain of England and constable of Aquitaine.  The Latinised Viola was also in some use -- it was borne by Viola of Teschen, Queen of Bohemia and Poland (1291-1317) -- as was the Spanish variant Violante.  Violet continued as a given name well into the 17th century. It was uncommon in England, but was well used in Scotland from the 15th century -- especially in Perth -- most likely thanks to their strong cultural and political ties with France.  Violet moved beyond Scotland's borders into general use in other English speaking countries in the late 19th century.  Of the 809 Violets recorded on the 1841 census, 69% were living in Scotland compared with 30% living in England. The number increased across all countries to 1356 in 1861, with Scotland only just leading with 55%.  The Surname Atlas (click to enlarge) By 1881 Violet had surged in popularity in both England and Scotland, with the number of Violets registered increasing tenfold to 8120. Given England's larger population, it took the larger share of 84% as can be seen by the distribution map on the right. However, when we look at births per 100,000 -- balancing out the population differential -- we can see that Violet's popularity was evenly spread across Scotland and England.  In terms of ranking, Violet ranked #156 in England and Wales in 1860, #99 in 1870, #68 in 1880, #43 in 1890 and #19 in 1900. It was also #36 in Scotland in 1900. Violet stayed strong in the top 100 in the first half of the 20th century, before it fell dramatically out. In England and Wales it ranked #17 in 1904, #20 in 1914, #29 in 1929 and then fell sharply to #62 in 1934 after which it fell out of the top 100.  Afterwards, Violet continued to decline, becoming extremely uncommon as it hit "grandma name" status. This is reflected in the number of birth registrations in England and Wales: 1930: 2221 births 1950: 253 births 1970: 28 births The name's mid-century unfashionable status is reflected (and perhaps added to) in Roald Dahl's choice of the name for his character Violet Beauregarde in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (1964).  Violet stayed in the top 100 of Scotland for longer, ranking just #100 in 1950, after which it fell out.  click to enlarge By 1996, Violet didn't even rank in the top 1000. It rose ever so gradually to #656 (41 births) in 2002 but it wasn't until 2005 that it saw a dramatic rise, going from #607 (50 births) to #273 (161 births). It has been rising rapidly ever since, finally hitting the top 100 again in 2012.  The jump in 2005 was most likely helped along by two high-profile films of 2004 featuring characters named Violet: Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events and The Incredibles.   Violet ranked #78 in England and Wales in 2013, #141 (35 births) in Scotland in 2014 and #191 (10 births) in Northern Ireland.  Internationally it ranks #67 in America, #30 in Canada, #51 in Australia and #47 in New Zealand.

Famous Bearers:

History: * Violet Florence Martin (1862–1915), Irish writer. * Violet Hunt (1862–1942), British writer. * Violet Jacob (1863–1946), British writer. * Violet Vanbrugh (1867–1942), British actress. * Violet Gordon-Woodhouse (1872–1948), British musician. * Violet Markham (1872–1959), British writer and social reformer. * Violet Loraine (1886–1956), British actress and singer. * Violet Bonham Carter (1887–1969), British politician and diarist, daughter of Prime Minister Herbert H. Asquith.  * Violet Hopson (1887–1973), British actress. Contemporary: * Violet Affleck (b.2005), daughter of Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck.  Literature and other Media: * Violet Gray, a Peanuts character. * Violet Beauregarde, a character in Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (1969). * Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham, a character on Downton Abbey played by Dame Maggie Smith. * Violet Baudelaire, a character in Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (1999). * Violet Parr, a character in The Incredibles (2004).

Variants:

Violette (French), Violetta (Italian), Violeta (Spanish), Fioled (Welsh), Wioleta, Wioletta (Polish)

Pronunciation:

VĪ-ō-let  [key]

Possible  Diminutives:

Vi, Vivi, Lettie, Lottie

Sibling Names:

Elsie     Florence     Alice     Beatrice      Eliza     Annabelle  Theo     Stanley    Jude     Alexander     Edward     Oliver

Name Lists:

Dulcet Dainties   Victorian Darlings   Names from Enid Blyton   Names from Tennyson   Butterflies

 

If you like Violet you may also like:   Iris, Elodie, Clara, Ivy, Peony, Emilia, Margot, Bella, Evelyn, Edith

 

Thanks to Kaela for requesting this post. 

Name of the Week

In a garden full of Poppys, Daisys and Lilys
Iris stands out with her gentle elegance and flapper vintage charm.
And unlike other flowers, this lady is also an ancient goddess.

 

Origin:

Iris comes from the Ancient Greek iris meaning "rainbow." Appropriately, Iris was the name given to the Greek goddess (or more specifically the personification) of the rainbow. She was also a messenger to the gods, most likely due to the similarity of the Greek words iris "rainbow" and eiris "messenger."  Her father Thaumas was a water god, her mother Elektra a cloud-nymph and as far as the Greeks were concerned, Iris united the two elements through her rainbow arcs by taking water up to the clouds to replenish the rain. She was also the handmaiden to Hera and, as such, she is often depicted by the queen of the gods' side.  Her epithets included Khrysopteron "Golden-Winged," Aellôpos "Storm-Footed" and Junonia "envoy of Juno/Hera," and she made appearances in numerous epics and plays. Ovid says of her: "Iris, in her thousand hues enrobed traced through the sky her arching bow . . . Iris entered, and the bright sudden radiance of her robe lit up the hallowed place ..." (Metamorphoses 11. 585 ff). And Virgil described her as: "Soaring to heaven on balanced wings, [Iris] blazed a rainbow trail beneath the clouds as she flew ... Iris, glory of the sky, cloud-borne" (Aeneid 9. 2 ff). The iris flower was so named in the late 14th century thanks to the number of colours of its different species. The iris of the eye was similarly named because of the many colours of eye shades.

Usage:

From the late 16th century, a handful of birth, marriage and death records can be found for the name Iris. Examples are extremely rare, and it remained this way for the following two centuries. In 1611, William Shakespeare's The Tempest was staged, including three Roman goddesses: Juno, Ceres and Iris, but this was not enough to spark usage of the name.  Iris is really a prime example of a name which goes from obscurity to a household name. Between 1838 and 1880 only 36 girls were registered with the name in England and Wales. None were registered in 1870, 7 were registered in 1880, but by 1890 41 girls were given the name, ranking around #253. In 1900 the name rose to #158 and, in a meteoric leap that only of-the-moment names can manage, it had broken the Top 100 four years later at #92. Over the course of the 19th century, Iris rocketed up the charts only to later decline, leaving the Top 100 by the 1950s. 1914: #58 1924: #34 1934: #30 1944: #70 This curve of popularity, ties in very nicely with Leslie Dunkling's data for the number of girls registered with the name Iris in every 10,000 births in England and Wales, which shows that Iris peaked around the late 1920s:  1900 1925  1935 1950 1955 1960 1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990     7     94     66     4    4    5     -     -     -     -     -     - But, as a vintage gem which fits the current fashion for floral names, Iris is having yet another resurgence in popularity. Only 8 babies (#1914) were called Iris in England and Wales in 1996 and this situation stayed much the same for the next five years. Iris first started on its upward curve in 2001 when it re-entered the Top 1000 (#710, 35 births) and finally reached the Top 200 in 2009 with 264 births (#195). In 2012 Iris ranked #122 with 476 births. Iris has also been risng in Scotland, from #270 in 2010, #238 in 2011, #174 in 2012, to #140 in 2013.

Famous Bearers:

History: * Iris Adrian (1912–1994), American actress * Dame Iris Murdoch DBE (1919–1999), Irish-born British author and philosopher. Contemporary: * Iris Johansen (b. 1938), American author. * Iris Berben (b. 1950), German actress. * Iris DeMent (b. 1961), American singer. Literature and Media: * Iris, a character in William Shakespeare's play The Tempest (1611). Other: * 7 Iris, an asteroid

Variants:

Irys, Irissa; Eirys (Welsh)

Pronunciation:

Ī-ris [key]

Possible  Diminutives:

Ice, Issy

Sibling Names:

Elsa     Violet     Clara     Polly     Esther     Nancy  Hugo     Albert      Felix     Ned     Jasper     Rex

Name Lists:

Vintage   Victorian Darlings   Shakespearean Names   Names from Tennyson   Gods and Goddesses   Operatic Names     Butterfly Names

 

If you like Iris you may also like:  Zinnia, Ivy, Elestren, Olive, Elsie, Beatrice, Nancy, Lilian, Vera, Flora

 

Thanks to Kiri for requesting this post. 

Times and Telegraph: Twinsets, Trends and Diminutives 2013

The stats are compiled and we now know the most popular names of The Times and The Telegraph birth announcements in 2013. Let's now look a little closer for some of the hidden gems. 

 

Given Diminutives

Here are all the names that were announced in The Times and The Telegraph in 2013 that were listed with both a formal name and a nickname:

Beatrice Kathleen "Bea" Charlotte Lily Rose "Lottie" Charlotte Ruby "Charlie" Eleanor Kitty Lloyd "Ellie" Elizabeth Camilla Jessica "Betsy" Elizabeth Georgina "Libby" Emilia Beatrice "Millie" Evelyn Rose "Evie" Isadora Alice "Izzy"  Katherine Margaret Daisy "Kitty" Lillian Grace "Lily" Mary Lily "Molly" Mathilda Elizabeth Violet "Tilly"

Alfred George "Alfie" Archibald Patrick "Archie" Arichibald Robert Brown "Archie" Augustus Edward Marwood "Gus" Benedict Frederick Alexander "Ned" Benjamin Albert "Ben" Benjamin Samuel John "John" Charles Astley Robert "Charlie" Charles William David "Charlie" Christopher David Doucas "Kit" Christopher Mark Buffalo "Kit" Edward George Randall "Ned" Edward James "Teddy" Frederick Charles Barclay "Freddie" Frederick Christopher Giles "Freddie" Frederick David Lister  "Freddie" Frederick John Albert "Freddie" Frederick John Talbot "Freddie" Frederick Lysander Ferro "Freddie" Frederick William Stanhope "Freddie"

Henry Arthur Tyndale "Harry" Henry Geraint Foster "Harry" Henry Edward "Teddy" Hubert William George "Bertie" Jacob Harry George "Jake" Jonathan Charles Christian  "Johnnie"  Maximilian Donald "Max" Montagu Christopher "Monty" Montague Henry "Monty" Montgomery James "Monty" Montgomery Welch "Monty" Nicolas Henry George "Nico" Oswald George Bear "Ossie" Ruaridh James Howard "Roo" Samuel Paul "Sam" Theobald James "Theo" Theodore James Marco "Theo" Wilfred George Guy "Freddie" William "Billy"  William Archy Borthwick "Will"

Times and Telegraph twins (plus triplets)

Biggles George Fittleworth & Posie Betsy Winifred
Charles Jonty Edward & Rose Olivia Bay
Jack & Charlotte
Jack & Heidi
James Gordon John & Kirsty Mary Anne
James Ian Nikolai & Sophie Honor Beatrice
Louis Frederick & Cordelia Vyvyan
Lucas & Valentina
William & Cecily

Alfred Charles Nicholas & Vesey Peter Michael
Archie Alexander John & Thomas Arthur William
Arthur Peter & Rory Albert
Barnaby & Herbert
Bertram Joseph Orion & Cosmo George Russell
Broderick Grey & Graham Sparks
Charlie & Johnnie
Cosimo Benedict Thomas & Montague George Franco
Danson Aubrey & Maximilien Savile
Frederick Charles Mearns & George William Mearns
Jordan Everest & Logan Rayner
Orlando William Percy & Robert Duncan Thomas
Finn, Halkett & William

Alexa Margaret Lily & Saskia Patricia Amaryllis
Alexandria Aprille & Katerina Patricia
Amber Elena & Daisy Amelia
Beatrice Olive & Daisy Elizabeth
Elodie Nancy Florence & Ettilie Elsie Mabel
Emilia Rose Brassey & Isabella Bridget Brassey
Emily Grace & Evie Louise
Florence Mary & Matilda Rose
Isla Mae & Rosie Sophia
Isla May & Molly Rose
Isla Rose & Lillian Rose "Lily"
Leila Grace & Mia Yasmine

 

The Longest

Alexander Robert Patrick David
Aurelia Autumn Ottilie Velvet
Charles Isaac Saville William
Chloe Jacinth Kathryn Eileen
Clement Willoughby Frances StGeorge
Cosmo Henry Hugo Wilfred
Cosmo Nicholas Willoughby Hayden
Eloise Victoria Rose Mimi Howard
Elsbeth Rebecca Mary Sandra
Florence Ruth Adventure Helen
Frederick Dmitri Richard Patrick
George Henry Charles John Alton
Harry Anthony Arthur Herbert Fortescue
Hebe Clico Flora Mary
Henry David William Charles
Henry Peter Michael David
Ida Ophelia Rose Henny
Ishbel Beatrix Emma Rose
Ivo Balthazar Michael Shellard
John Bartholomew Justice Kensit
Minnie Flora Matilda Rastrick
Nelson Eugeniusz Isambard Lukasz
Olivia Elizabeth Florence Maria
Rose Bénédicte Sally Marie
Thomas James Kiu Sam
Tobias John Anthony Horatio
Wilhelmina Sophie Charlotte Bidwell
William Louis Walter Santos
Winston Alfred Robert Michael

 

Trends

As in the previous year, nature and word names were quite prevalent in 2013:

Alexander Fox Neil, Anna Myrtle, Annabella Teal Henrietta, Aria Rose, Aurelia Bay, Aurelia Autumn Ottilie Velvet, Basil Rupert Spikins, Bay Diana Dorothy, Bay Georgina, Betsan Rosia River, Bonny Hazel Rita, Bnnie Blue Una, Cecily Bohème, Heath Roll, Henry Fox Marmion, Herb Winter Alfred, India-Rose Sunny, Iris Lula Myrtle, Ivy Poppy Margaret, Jemima Storm, Laria Willow Rona, Laurel Kathryn Primrose, Lily Camillia Rose, Margot Bluebell Evie, Marina Iris Maud, Marni Sky Lucia, Octavia Cloud Indigo, Oscar Bear Willoughby, Oswald George Bear, Peony Olivia, Posie Betsy Winnifred, Rose Mary Blossom, Saskia Patricia Amaryllis, Velvet Valentine Florence

.
Several combos were rich with alliteration and assonance:

Albert Andrew, Alette Iris Rita, Alice Agatha, Allegra Annabel, Amelie Alice Audrey, Angelina Astara, Arthur Adrian Boris, Arwen Annabel, Barnaby George Jonty, Beatrice Benedetta, Calliope Clementine, Catherine Clementine, Christina Clementine Coventry, Clementine Lilla Cayley, Cleo Kinvara, Ettilie Elsie Mabel, Florence Coco Clementine, Freddie Fergus, Henry Hallam John, Hugo Henry, Ivan Oliver, Jack Julian, Jackson James, Jacob Joseph Jirou, Jasper Jock, Jasper Julian, Jaydon Sampson Alston, Joshua Jeevan, Leo Laurie, Margaret Mary, Marieta Martha, Molly Mabel, Quentin Claude, Rafe Robin James, Rafferty Ralph, Rufus Redgrave Page, Sybil Sabrina Ernestine. Theodora Tabitha, Valentina Violet Clare, Velvet Valentine Florence, Zara Romilly Rose

. 
Several parents opted for spare short forms as given names:

Bea Florence, Ben Stewart, Beth Harriet, Coco Ava Minnie, Gus Patrick Campbell, Gwenno Tegwen, Hattie Isabella, Herb Winter Alfred, Jake Timothy Stephen, Joe Philip, Joss Peta, Kit Gunnar, Kit Alexander, Kitty Penelope, Lou, Ned Miles Crosby, Nell Viola, Nelle Vautier, Patsy Elizabeth, Peggy Frances Sydney, Raff William Robert, Roly Percy George, Sam Harvey, Stevie Belle, Ted George Sheppard, Wilf Luca Sandy

. 

Also notable was the use of uncommon, adventurous or exotic middle names with more regular first names:

Alexandra Zelie Eden, Alice Eirwen, Arabella Lukrecija, Barnaby Bacchus, Benedict Caractacus, Bertram Joseph Orion, Cecily Bohème, Charles Octavius Douglas, Christopher Mark Buffalo, Eliza Mariquita, Elizabeth Grace Araceli, Eloise Ghislaine, Elsie May Silke, Emiko Christie Batwoman, Felix Lysander, Finley Valentino, Florence Ruth Adventure Helen, Frederick Viggo, Greta Delennyk, Harri Rhys Elvis, Hector Michael Neptune, Isla Aafke Isabel, Leonardo Ross Wolfram, Marina Odette Lucia, Mary Assumpta, Otis Livio Charles, Ottilie Jemima Alethea, Petra Alberta Juno, Ralph Atlas Varouge, Raphael Henry Acceus, Xanthe Rose Asenath

. 

And then there were the one-of-a-kind names i.e. names (first or middle) that appeared uniquely in one announcement in 2013:

Aariv Prithviraj Ajay, Alba Wilhelmina, Alette Iris Rita, Alexina Florence, Anouk Ramona, Ariel Brooklyn, Aubrey James, Augustin Edmund Nicolas, Belén Catalina, Bibiana Rose Sophia, Biggles George Fittleworth, Caireann Maria Dorothy, Caius Christian, Carina Leonora, Dara James, Dhruv Rayan, Finnigan Bernard Christopher, Henley William Leonard, Idonea Maud Isabella, Iróna Grace, Isis Mireille, Jacobi Hugh, Lancelot Graydon, Loveday Beatrice, Ludovic Fotis Anthony, Luella Charlotte Jane, Maurice Samuel, Minerva Freda Isabella, Mungo Charles Timothy, Olympia Bea Hermione, Panayiotis, Posie Betsy Winifred, Quincie Violet Insole, Sholto Montgomerie James, Sibylla Henriette Marie, Sterling Botolph, Tarquin John Mackenzie, Teymour Wafic Eskander, Tirso James, Titania Mill Mitchell, Utpalaksha Hektor, Wentworth Louis Canning, Xanthippe Phyllis Elizabeth, Zephyr Patrick

 

 

Name of the Week

An exotic spice that is quite
literally worth its weight in gold.

 

Origin:

Saffron is a spice that comes from the saffron crocus (crocus sativus). The name saffron originates from the Persian za-faran, cognate with the Arabic asfar "yellow," which became safranum in Medieval Latin; safran, zafferano, and azafran in Old French, Italian and Spanish; and saffron in English from the 12th century.  Saffron is the most expensive spice in the world. It takes around 80,000 hand picked stigmas to yeild just half a kilogram of saffron. Not simply an expensive cooking spice, the saffron has been used for ornamental, aromatic and medicinal purposes for millennia. It is highly fragrant. In Classical times was strewed on floors as a perfume by the wealthy, and women used it to adorn themselves. It is mentioned also in the bible as one of the incenses of the garden.  Most ancient cultures, from the Sumerians, Assyrians, Egyptians, Chinese, Greeks and Romans, heralded the saffron for its medical properties — a quality it is still prized for to this day. It was used to promote fertility, as a stimulant, and to cure a multitude of ailments from minor cuts to plague.  One of the plant's basic ingredients, crocin, is a powerful colourant, and so it was the saffron that was the principal yellow dye of the ancient world. Wealthy Roman ladies used it to die their hair and create yellow eye-shadows, while a red-yellow saffron-dyed ceremonial robe was worn by their priestesses and brides. The Greek's associated it with Artemis, and so was used to symbolise purity; girls would wear saffron-coloured robes in sacred rituals.  Both Homer and Ovid describe the goddess of dawn (Eos / Aurora) as being saffron-haired, wearing saffron robes and having saffron coloured wheels on her chariot. She is also referred to as the 'saffron mother' or 'the saffron-robed' (Krokopeplos).

Usage:

In the ancient world, saffron cultivation declined steeply with the fall of the Roman Empire. It was reintroduced when the Islamic civilisation spread to Spain, France, and Italy, and from there into Britain. It was a huge business. Several towns who cultivated the plant were elevated to cities on the back of the saffron trade, and the offence of adulterating saffron was so serious it was punished by being burned or buried alive. When, in 1374,a consignment of goods bound for Basle was ambushed, it sparked the fourteen-week long Saffron War.  European saffron was traded in Britain from around the 12th century. There was huge demand for its medicinal properties during the Black Death (1347–1350) and it was also prized for its fragrance and culinary taste. In the Pardoner's Prologue (14th century), Chaucer uses the saffron as a verb; his phrase "to saffran with my predicacioun" means 'to adorn my sermons with'.  Saffron became cultivated in Britain in the 15th century. It was grown particularly in Essex and Cambridgeshire and became an extremely important commodity for that area. The centre of its trade was the town of Walden, which was renamed Saffron Walden by Henry VIII in its honour. The British saffron trade flourished up until the late 18th century. Saffron was also notable in Cornish cuisine as the saffron trading came from Spain to the coast of Cornwall. Most notable is the Cornish Saffron Cake. There are a few very rare examples of Saffron in use as a first name in Britain from the 17th century: a man named Saffron Wandell was maried in Greenwich in 1632; a woman named Saffron Dallan was married in Cornwall in 1680. There are also a small handful of examples of the use of Saffron during the Victorian era, a trend which could be explained by the Victorian love of botanical names. A man named Saffron Crow was born in 1849, Saffron Lees in 1878 and a girl named Enid Saffron Cunliffe in 1891.  For the most part, Saffron did not come into proper use as a given name until the late 1940s. There was one birth registration for the name in England and Wales in the years 1947, 1948, 1950, 1952, 1953, 1956, 1958, 1960 and 1966. However, 1967 saw 19 registrations of the name, followed by 15 in 1968, 11 in 1969 and 23 in 1970. The reason for this sudden uptake was thanks to the song Mellow Yellow, containing the words "I'm just mad about Saffron / Saffron's mad about me / I'm just mad about Saffron / She's just mad about me," which reached number 8 in the UK music chart in early 1967. Perhaps thanks in part to popular British comedy Absolutely Fabulous, Saffron steadily rose in popularity for girls in England and Wales in the 1990s, peaking at #133 in 2000. From that point on, it has been on a downwards decline: 1996: #239 (166 births) 1998: #168 (258 births) 2000: #133 (345 births) 2002: #152 (288 births) 2004: #205 (225 births) 2006: #248 (189 births) 2008: #321 (142 births) 2010: #370 (123 births) 2011: #352 (136 births) 2012: #468 (96 births) Between 2005 and 2011 in Scotland, between 1 and 6 girls recieved the name each year. In 2012 the name ranked #426 with 8 births.

Famous Bearers:

Contemporary: * Saffron Aldridge (b.1968), British fashion model, freelance journalist and social activist . * Saffron Burrows (1972), British actress. Literature and Other Media: * Saffron "Saffy" Monsoon, a character in BBC sitcom Absolutely Fabulous (1992-2004). Other: * Saffron Walden, a town in Essex, England, named after the spice.

Variants:

Safran

Pronunciation:

SAF-rən [key]

Possible  diminutives:

Saf, Saffy, Ronnie, Fifi

Sibling Names:

Leila     Romilly    Juniper     Calla     Arya     India  Ruben     Milo     Flynn     River     Zane     Rio

Name Lists:

Yellow Names   Butterfly Names

 

If you like Saffron you may also like:   Scarlet, Tamsin, Ebony, Juno, Seren, Rowan, Yasmin, Lilah, Farrah, Dahlia

 

Thanks to Alannah for requesting this post. 

Name of the Week

Faye is a swift and sweet name that combines
magical mysticism with Hollywood glamour. 

Origin:

As a name, Faye is a merging of several homophonous words that were introduced to Britain with the Normans, culminating in the surnames Faye, Fay and Fey.  Since the 14th century the word fay in English has referred to fairies, or enchanted beings in general. The word derives from the Old French fae and, even further back, from the Latin fata, neuter plural of fatum "prophecy, oracle, destiny," the route of the English word 'fate'. The term was particularly used the refer to "The Fates" — the three goddesses of Greek and Roman religion who personified destiny and determined the course of human life. In Italy, Fata is now used to mean 'fairy' while Fata Morgana is a figure of medieval folklore, equivalent to Morgan le Fay. However, before we were using the word fay to mean fairy, fay was a (now archaic) word for faith — such as in Shakespeare's line from Romeo and Juliet: "Sirrah, by my fay, it waxes late." The word derived from the Middle English fai "faith," Norman fei(d) and ultimately the Latin fides "trust, faith, confidence, belief." Not only did the Normans bring the words fae "fairies" and fei "faith" with them, they also brought the word fay "beech tree," derived from the Latin fagus and the Proto-Indo-European root *bhagos "beech tree." The same source is the route of the word 'book', thought to be so named because of either the use of beechwood tablets to incribe runes, or the general use of beech trees to carve letters and names.  The first name Faye is essentially a culmination of all of these elements.

Usage:

The surnames Faye, Fay and Fey date to at least the 12th century in Britain. In early instances it is easy to separate the different origins. The book of fees from Herefordshire in 1242 lists a man named both Richard de Fay and the Latinised de Fago, clearly showing that his name was derived from a French place named Fay; no doubt sited near beech trees. On the other hand, the instance of Margaret le Fey in the Subsidy Rolls of Surrey in 1332 more likely derives from fae "fairy".  In later centuries, with so many varied spellings for each being used and conflated over time, it is impossible to determine from which route a family named Faye, Fay or Fey derives. Fay came to be used as a given name in the 16th century. It was predominantly feminine in use, indicating that fay "faith" was the inspiration for the name, especially given the common use of the name Faith (often spelt Fayth, Ffayth or Fayeth) during that period. In subsequent centuries, Fay also became used as a diminutive of Faith itself.  Later examples, especially in the rare cases when it was used for boys, most likely represent an adoption of the surname Faye (from either fata or fagus).  The name picked up usage in the 19th century, most likely thanks to the Victorian fascination with Arthurian legend — Morgan le Fay was a popular subject of artwork and literature — and the late Victorian and Edwardian preoccupation with fairies.  Birth registrations for Faye and Fay in England and Wales were as follows: 1840-9: 1 1850-9: 1 1860-9: 2 1870-9: 1 1880-9: 7 1890-9: 19 1900-9: 13 1910-9: 62 1920-9: 573 1930-9: 1471 The initial rise in the name's use may have been influenced by American stage actress Fay Davis' move to, and popularity in, Britain from 1895. The spike in usage in the 1920s and 1930s was no doubt also in part thanks to Fay Compton, a notable British stage actress of the era, and Hollywood actress Fay Wray. Initially, Fay was the most popular spelling, up until the 1970s when Faye became more popular, perhaps bolstered by actress Faye Dunaway. This can be clearly seen from Leslie Dunkling's data for the number of girls registered with the names Fay and Faye in every 10,000 births in England and Wales:   1925 1935 1950 1955 1960 1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 Fay    4    6     2     4     2     4     4     7         4  Faye          2         4   12    10    16    38  Occasionally, Fay has been used as a diminutive of Francis.  Though Faye has never been in the Top 100 in England and Wales, for the past twenty years it has sat within the Top 150, consistently having a birth count of between 379 and 442. In 1996 it ranked #112 (405 births), peaked in 2002 at #105 (442 births) and dipped to its lowest point in 2009 at #144 (379 births).  In 2012, Faye ranked #144 (393 births), Fay #1297 (25 births) and Fae #2521 (10 babies) in England and Wales. In Scotland Faye ranked #138 with 34 births.

Famous Bearers:

History:  * Fay Templeton (1865–1939), American actress, singer and comedienne. * Fay Davis (1873–1945), American stage actress who moved to England in 1895.  * Fay Compton (1894–1978), British stage and film actress. * Fay Bainter (1893–1968), American film and stage actress. * Fay Wray (1907–2004), Hollywood actress. * Fay Kanin (1917–2013), American screenwriter, playwright and producer. Contemporary: * Fay Zwicky (b.1933), Australian poet. * Faye Dunaway (b. 1941), Hollywood actress. * Fay Ripley (b.1966), British actress.  * Faye Hamlin (b. 1987), Swedish singer.  Literature and other media: * Morgan le Fay, legendary sister of King Arthur. * Dr Faye Miller, a character in the TV show Mad Men. Other: * 4P/Faye, a comet.

Variants:

Fay, Fae

Pronunciation:

FAY [key]

Possible  longer forms:

Fabienne, Fadrina, Faith, Felicia, Felicity, Feline, Pasiphaë, Phaedra, Raffaella

Sibling Names:

Una     Mirren     Orla     Cara     Parisa    Anya    Evan     Adam     Scott     Reggie     Beau     Seth

Name Lists:

Dulcet Dainties   Golden Age Hollywood   Magical Spirits and Sprites   Names of Roses   Astronomical Names

 

If you like Faye you may also like:   Joy, Skye, Fern, Pari, Ivy, Maeve, Esme, Alys, Mari, Elle

 

Thanks to Faye for requesting this post.