June

The lovely name June has been used for girls as a given name since the 19th century!  Boys occasionally wear it too but not to the same extent as girls.  As a month name, June originally comes from the name of the Roman goddess Juno.

Juno's true meaning is unknown but it is said to possibly be related to a root name meaning "youth". Juno was the wife of Jupiter in Roman mythology and considered the queen of the heavens. She protected marriage, women and childbirth. That is one of the reasons that many weddings traditionally took place in the month of June.

This sweet name hasn't been very popular lately.  In fact, there was a twenty year dry-spell that ended in 2007 where June was not ranked within the Top 1000 names at all. Until recently, She's generally been considered an old-fashioned, grandma name because of her super-popularity that peaked in 1925. But as the 100 year rule goes, she's due to become a hot name once again and we're already seeing signs of her revival!

Back in the day, June rose to fame very quickly! She was always used in some capacity but right around 1914, her popularity skyrocketed. 6,649 baby girls were named June in 1925 (#39), setting a record that hasn't been matched since. After that year, the name began a steady decline in usage. Right around the 1970s, June had fallen to the middle of the pack and began receiving less than 1000 births a year.

In 2008, June jumped back in the game, ranking in at #869 with 320 baby girl births. Since then, June has continued to climb the charts, ranking in at #435 in 2012 with 710 births. Very soon we will find out where she stood in 2013 but I have a feeling she climbed a little bit higher once again.  Click here to view the dramatic popularity charts!

What do you think of June? Is it your favorite month name or do you prefer another? What would you pair with it? Here are some ideas I came up with:

Sibling Name Ideas:
Sisters: Alice, Celia, Elsa, Grace, Hazel, Ivy, Pearl, Rose, Tessa
Brothers: Arthur, Clark, Frederick, Henry, Isaac, Leo, Philip, Silas

Middle Name Ideas:
June Caroline
June Francesca
June Leonora
June Millicent
June Penelope
June Rosalind
June Theodora

As a Middle Name:
Adeline June
Charlotte June
Evelyn June
Lavinia June
Matilda June
Priscilla June
Vivian June

Most of these names have a similar vintage quality to them. I couldn't resist. :)

Name of the Day: Lavinia

I chose this name for my very first "Name of the Day!" It is one that I've recently discovered and fell in love with.

The name Lavinia ranked on the Top 1000 chart from 1880-1929 and hasn't been seen since then! An old name that dates back to Roman Mythology, Lavinia was considered the mother of the Roman people. She was the wife of the Trojan hero Aeneas and he named the Town of Lavinium, Italy after her.

In Literature, Lavinia was the protagonist's daughter in Shakespeare's "Titus Andronicus" which includes the line "She is Lavinia, therefore must be lov'd."  There is also a Lavinia in "The Hunger Games" series, which may have caught the eye of our younger name-enthusiasts!

American actress Ava Lavinia Gardner wore the name gracefully during the Old Hollywood days.  Emily Dickinson's younger sister was known as Lavinia "Vinnie" Dickinson. And an Italian painter wore the name from 1552-1614, Lavinia Fontana.

In Pop Culture, (and where I first heard of this lovely moniker,) there was a character on the British period drama "Downton Abbey" named Lavinia Swire.

Have you ever heard of this old-fashioned gem before? If not, I'm proud to introduce it to you. I would personally love this name paired up as a middle name to Ivy.  Ivy Lavinia sounds beautiful to me!

Sibling Name Ideas:
Sisters: Cassandra, Eveline, Delilah, Genevieve, Marina
Brothers: Alistair, Elijah, Lachlan, Oliver, William

Middle Name Ideas:
Lavinia Rose
Lavinia Katherine
Lavinia Aveline
Lavinia Eve
Lavinia Wren

As a Middle Name:
Ivy Lavinia
Ava Lavinia
Olive Lavinia

What do you think? Tell me in the comments below!