Primrose

Purple Primroses

I got this week's featured name from the list of Colonial names that I posted on Tuesday! It was apparently used back then but it sure is rare now!

There are many "Rose" names out there. Beyond just Rose, there are Rosa, Rosalie, Rosamund, Roseanne, Roselyn, Rosemary, Rosetta, Rosemarie, etc. I have never been a huge fan of any of these. And then I found Primrose. 

It switches the "rose" to the end of the name and is an entirely different flower altogether than a rose, which I like! I'm one of those odd girls that do not like roses just because everyone else does. The primrose is very lovely, though, and comes in many colors!  (Don't let the name fool you! The Primrose flower comes from the family Primulaceae and is not closely related to the rose family Rosaceae.)

This name was originally used as a Scottish surname but it ultimately derives from the Latin "prima rosa" which means "first rose". And as its name indicates, it has the word "prim" in it which lends to the saying "prim and proper." Many people view this name as somewhat uppity but I think it is uniquely cool.

Primrose has been used in several British novels and TV series so it does have a British air about it that may not work as well in America. But despite the general vibe that it gives, it is definitely a bold and attractive choice! It is a great alternative to other popular flower names like Lily and Daisy and Rose itself!

The most recent Primrose that may be familiar today is the character Primrose "Prim" Everdeen in the Hunger Games trilogy, who is of course the younger sister of Katniss.  I think that it was that exact character that influenced the 16 births of girls named Primrose in 2012.

Before 2012, there were no girls being given this name for 30 years! There were 5 born in 1982, 6 in 1973, 5 in 1960, 7 in 1940 and a total of 66 Primroses born between 1914 and 1932. Basically, this name is a rare gem! If you are looking for something pretty and unique, this is it! It has the beautiful image of flowers to back it up and she can still be called Rose or Rosie as a nickname. Win win!

I would pair this name with something somewhat classic or traditional since it is a very unique choice. Something short and sweet!  What do you think of this name? What would you pair with it?

[Sidenote: I had to choose Primrose after I chose Peregrine last week. They are my two favorite P-names and they just sort of "go together" in my mind. I would love to meet boy/girl twins named Peregrine and Primrose! Both super unique and rare and nature related! Pip and Prim or Perry and Rosie.  Just my thoughts!]  :)

Sibling Name Ideas:
Sisters: Amity, Cordelia, Everly, Honora, Junia, Lavinia, Magnolia, Octavia, Pearl, Verity
Brothers: Amadeus, Declan, Emmett, Faustus, Hawthorne, Merritt, Peregrine, Theodore, Ulysses, Vincent

Middle Name Ideas:
Primrose Eve
Primrose Hope
Primrose Kate
Primrose Lucille
Primrose Susanna

As a Middle Name:
Anna Primrose
Claire Primrose
Hester Primrose
Lydia Primrose
Tabitha Primrose

Colonial Names for Boys and Girls

The Freake Limner
(American Colonial Era Painter,
active 1670-c 1680)
Mrs Elizabeth Freake and Baby Mary 1674

British Colonial America was a very important time in our history. They are the ones that started it all with a sense of freedom and independence. The ones who made the voyage over were discovering a whole new land and developing their own rules in their own new towns.

They also had some interesting names, some of which you don't hear often today, and others that might just be cool enough to actually use again. These names were popular in colonial times, taken straight from the 18th century!

Some of these overlap with the Biblical names list, and they seem to be much different than the names popular in England during the Victorian era. If you're looking for some cool, historical choices, perhaps you'll find a name that you like here!

Boys:                              Abel Abiel Abijah Abimael Abner Abraham Absalom Adonijah Ajax Alden Amias Amiel Ammiras Amos Amzi Ansel Archibald Asa Asahel Azariah Balthasar Barnabas Bartholomew Bazel Benajah Boaz Chauncey Clement Comfort Constant Cotton Cyrus Duncan Ebenezer Elbert Eleazar Eli Eliab Eliakim Elias Elihu Elijah Eliphalet Elisha Emanuel Emory Enoch Enos Ephraim Experience Ezekiel Garvan Gawen Gerrard Gideon

Hannibal Hercules Hezekiah Hiram Holmes Homer Horatio Hosea Increase Isaac Isaiah Isham Israel Jabez Jared Jedidiah Jehu Jeremiah Jethro Job Jonas Josiah Jothan Kenelm Lazarus Lemuel Levi Linus Matthias Micajah Miles Nehemiah Noble Obadiah Philo Philomon Phineas Prosperity Reason Rufus Salmon Sampson Seth Silas Simon Solomon Thaddeus Theophilus Truth Zaccheus Zachariah Zadock Zebulon Zephaniah Zophar

I noticed that there were a lot of Ab- and El- names. The list includes some biblical names that are common and even popular today like Elijah, Isaac, Josiah and Seth to name a few.

Click here to view an updated report on the 10 Best Colonial Names for Boys and Girls!

As for the girls, the list is a bit more limited. Again, there are some biblical names but also some virtue names that were popular with the puritans.

Girls:                       Abigail Abitha Amity Anne Aphra Aurinda Azuba Candace Catherine Charity Charlotte Chastity Clarity Comfort Cornelia Constance Dorcas Edith Eleanor Electa Elizabeth Emeline Esther Fanny Fidelity Georgine Harriet Hecuba Helen Henrietta Hepzibah

Hester Isabella Jane Joy Judith Keturah Keziah Lydia Mahala Martha Mary Mercy Modesty Patience Phila Phoebe Primrose Prudence Rebekah Remember Rosanna Sarah Selah Silence Susanna Tabitha Temperance Theodosia Verity Virginia Zipporah

Do you find any of these names completely unusable for a modern baby? Which is your favorite?

Baby Name Popularity By The Letter

Source

Have you ever wondered which beginning letters seem to be most popular when it comes to baby names? I know that I tend to favor a certain few letters and then there are those letters that continuously stump me when searching for a favorite or even one that I can tolerate.  Have you ever tried to pick a single favorite name for each letter of the alphabet? I cannot narrow down my favorites for A or C or E, but when I get to the tail-end of the alphabet, choosing a decent one seems to be an impossible task!

It begs the question, why do we prefer these letters and side-step those ones? Does it have to do with the sounds? I see trends that favor soft letters like vowels and L's and M's, (think names like Lila and Emma). Are there letters that just have really, really bad name choices all bunched up together?  For instance, I was reminded of this article that discusses F names and how there is only ONE in the entire Top 100 in 2012 but there were 9 in 1880. Parents aren't naming their children Floyd and Fannie anymore. The article asked the question "Is F an unattractive sound for parents nowadays?"

Tell me what you think. Is it related to the basic sound of the name, or does it have more to do with the names themselves?  Below is a tally of how many names start with each letter in the US Top 100 for each gender.

Boys Top 100 By Letter:

Beginning Letter	# of Boy Names in 2012
A	11
B	7
C	12
D	5
E	5
F	0
G	3
H	3
I	3
J	19
K	2
L	7
M	3
N	5
O	2
P	1
Q	0
R	3
S	2
T	3
U	0
V	0
W	2
X	1
Y	0
Z	1

It is no surprise that the letters of the first half of the alphabet are dramatically more popular than the second half.  J is definitely the most popular letter in the top 100 for boys. At first, I was a bit surprised at the amount of J names, but then it just seemed right after I thought more about it. So many of the timeless, biblical choices start with J, and many of those are in the top 100.

The next most popular letters are C with 12 names, then A with 11. After that, B and L both have 7.

Letters that are completely absent from the Top 100 for boys include F, Q, U, V,and Y. Additionally, P, X and Z only have one representative each.

Girls Top 100 by Letter:

Beginning Letter	# of Boy Names in 2012
A	22
B	4
C	5
D	0
E	7
F	1
G	4
H	3
I	1
J	3
K	7
L	8
M	10
N	3
O	1
P	2
Q	0
R	2
S	11
T	2
U	0
V	2
W	0
X	0
Y	0
Z	2

Not surprisingly, the letter A dominates feminine names. 22 of the names in the Top 100 start with A and 32 of them end with A, including the top 5! If you count names that end in the A-sound, like Hannah with the -ah, then you get a total of 37 names that end with the popular A-sound.

In second place is the letter S with 11 names, and then M with 10.  I was a bit surprised to see S be so popular since there were only 2 boys names in the top 100 that start with S.  However, the favorite boy letter is J and the girls only have 3 of those on their side.

Unpopular letters for the girls side include D, Q, U, W, X and Y all with 0 names.

It is interesting to note which letters parents favor and how it differs for each gender.  Just the letters A, S and M alone make up 43% of girl names. 42% of boys names begin with A, C and J.

I wanted to see this kind of data to see how my own naming preferences match up.  33% of America and I love A names.  For a girl, A, C, E, and M tend to be my letters, whereas for the boys, I prefer A, D, E and M.  My problem letters include B, F, J, K, N, P, S  and T, besides the obviously tricky U and Y.  It can sometimes feel a bit limiting.

Which letters do you tend to favor and which do you have trouble with?

Peregrine

The Name of the Week is my favorite from the list of Bird-Inspired names. I took it from the Peregrine Falcon, but the meaning of Peregrine doesn't actually have anything to do with the bird.

This is a name that is rarely used in the US because many have viewed it as an eccentric and extravagant name. However it has been considered elegant and even aristocratic in England.

It was historically chosen as the name of the first English child born in America. The child, Peregrine White, was born on the Mayflower at what is known today as the Provincetown Harbor in Massachusetts. Interestingly, he had a brother named Resolved.

Peregrine is also the name of several early saints, most notably Saint Peregrine Laziosi, the Patron Saint of Cancer Patients. The name comes from the Late Latin name Peregrinus which means "traveler" and more recently "pilgrim". The Italian form of the name is Pellegrino which you may recognize as a brand of mineral water, San Pellegrino.

There is also a character in a novel by Tobias Smollett called Peregrine Pickle. And you can't forget little Peregrin Took, a hobbit from "The Lord of the Rings" series, also known as Pippin.  Pippin or Pip are darling nicknames for Peregrine, and there is also Perry.

Clearly, Peregrine has history behind it from Saints to fictional characters to pilgrims. Statistically in the US, Peregrine has only been in use since 1998 with a total of 70 baby boys ever given the name, the most being in 2010 with 12 births. There have also been 12 girls given the name but it is solely considered a male name.

I would pair a traditional or classic name with Peregrine to balance out the rarity. What would you pair with the name and what do you think of it? Let me know!

Sibling Name Ideas:
Sisters: Aurora, Cecily, Daciana, Evangeline, Imogen, Juniper, Lark, Marigold, Simone, Vivienne
Brothers: Atticus, Benedict, Caspian, Felix, Hadrian, Magnus, Quentin, Soren, Thayer, Vesper

Middle Name Ideas:
Peregrine James
Peregrine Arthur
Peregrine Cole
Peregrine Andrew
Peregrine Lee

As a Middle Name:
Henry Peregrine
Lennox Peregrine
Wiley Peregrine
Alaric Peregrine
Leo Peregrine

P.S.  I have edited all of the previously featured names and added the above sibling and middle name categories for each of them!  Take a look!

Not Just For The Birds: 76 Bird-Inspired Baby Names!

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The following is a list of names that are inspired by birds! In some cases, the name may be a color name that describes the color of the bird like Scarlet and Tawny. In other cases, it is the name of the person who either discovered the bird or had the bird named after them like Tristram's Starling and Elliot's Pheasant.  Of course there are the cool, common ones like Falcon and Wren.

Take a look at the list and let me know which one of these you would consider using! Both male and female options are mixed together.

Adelie (Adelie Penguin) Anna (Anna’s Hummingbird) Argus (Great Argus) Blue (Blue Jay) Blyth (Blyth’s Tragopan) Brent (Brent Goose) Brewer (Brewer's Blackbird) Cara (Caracara) Carolina (Carolina Wren) Cassin (Cassin's Finch) Clark (Clark's Grebe) Cliff (Cliff Swallow) Cooper (Cooper's Hawk) Corella (Little Corella) Cory (Cory's Shearwater) Dunlin Eagle Elliot (Elliot’s Pheasant) Emerald (Emerald’s Toucanet) Falcon Finch Fischer (Fischer's Turaco) Fox (Fox Sparrow) Grey (Grey Plover) Griffon (Griffon Vulture) Harris (Harris' Hawk) Hawk Hazel (Hazel Grouse) Hudson (Hudsonian Godwit) Hyacinth (Hyacinth Macaw) Iago (Iago's Sparrow) Ibis (Glossy Ibis) Iora Ivory (Ivory Gull) Jacana Jack (Jack Snipe) Jackson (Jackson's Widowbird) Jacobin (Jacobin Cuckoo)

Java (Java Sparrow) Jay Kea Koel (Asian Koel) Kori (Kori Bustard) Lark (Crested Lark) Linnet Lory (Red Lory) Martin Myna (Golden Myna) Nene Oliva (Olivaceous Woodcreeper) Peregrine (Peregrine Falcon) Prinia (Graceful Prinia) Robin Rock (Rock Ptarmigan) Ross (Ross's Gull) Rosy (Rosy Starling) Ruby (Ruby Topaz) Saffron (Saffron Finch) Sage (Sage-Grouse) Savanna (Savanna Hawk) Scarlet (Scarlet Ibis) Scott (Scott's Oriole) Shelley (Shelley's Sparrow) Sparrow Socorro (Socorro Mockingbird) Socotra (Socotra Sunbird) Sora Starling Tawny (Tawny Owl) Tristram (Tristram's Starling) Victoria (Victoria Crowned Pigeon) Violet (Violet Sabrewing) Virginia (Virginia Rail) Willow (Willow Ptarmigan) Wilson (Wilson's Storm-petrel) Wren

5 Lovely and Rare Names for Girls

This poll from the sidebar of The Art of Naming blog closed quite a while ago! You voted! Now it is time to find out which of the five options won the poll!  Here are the contenders and the results:

Emmeline  17 votes (32%)

Ariadne  14 votes (26%)

Calliope  8 votes  (15%)

Bryony  7 votes (13%)

Lavinia  6 votes  (11%)

Let's learn more about each of these names!  Which is your favorite?

Emmeline is a name that I fear is rising fast! With the popularity of Emma and Emily, as well as -line names like Caroline and Madeline, Emmeline seems like a shoo-in!  It is a French name that comes from German elements that mean "work."  It ranked just outside of the US Top 1000 in 2012 at #1078.  click here to read even more about this lovely choice. 

Ariadne is an Ancient Greek name that means "most holy." I first heard it in the move Inception (Ellen Page's character) and I liked it right away for being different but full of history. It is pronounced ar-ee-AD-nee. In Greek Mythology, she was the daughter of King Minos and eventually married the god Dionysus. This would be a cool alternative to the more-popular Aria and Ariana. It ranked #1762 in 2012.

Calliope is pronounced cuh-LIE-oh-pee and is a Greek name that means "Beautiful Voice."  In Greek Mythology, she was one of the 9 muses, the goddess of epic poetry and eloquence. To me, this name should be quite common since I hear it so often, but it has never ranked in the top 1000. Its gaining momentum but still only ranks at #1535 as of 2012.  Read more about this name here.

Bryony is another rare name! Pronounced BRIE-ə-nee, it ultimately comes from the Greek βρυω (bryo) meaning "to swell". It is the name of a Eurasian vine that was formerly used for medicinal purposes. I first heard this name (spelled Briony) from the movie "Atonement" and rather liked it. There were only 13 girls named Bryony in 2012. Its only been occasionally used in the US since 1976.

Lavinia was the first name that I featured on the blog. It is of Roman/Latin origin with an unknown meaning. It ranked as high as #360 in 1880 and is quite an old-fashioned gem that many are unaware of. Lavinia was the mother of the Romans and the wife of the Trojan hero Aemeas who named Lavinium, Italy after her. The name hasn't been on the charts since 1929, but I hear it quite often. It was the name of a character on "Downton Abbey," which is where I first heard it. There were only 52 girls given this name in 2012! Read more about it here.

Girl Name of the Week: Zola

The Girl Name of the Week is an African Name keeping in tradition of the past two blog posts. The name is Zola.

First of all, this name is also a Literary Surname, taken by famous French-Italian writer Emile Zola (1840-1902). This form of Zola tends to be feminine despite being a surname originally. However, it is said that this form of Zola does not have a known meaning as it may have been invented as a surname. Emile Zola's father's surname was actually Zolla.  Either way, it has been used occasionally in English-speaking countries since the 19th century.

The version of the name that I'm featuring today is typically female when it is used as a first name, but it is sometimes used on African males as well. It is of Southern African or Zulu origin and it means "quiet or tranquil" in Zulu.

 The name is on record for having been used in the US since 1880. Zola's biggest year was 1924 when 184 baby girls were born. Usage declined after the 20's but it has always been in regular use. In 2012, there were 92 baby girls named Zola, ranking the name at #2075. The name gained some popularity from 2011's 57 births, and the 44 Zola's born in 2010.

It is impossible to know if parents who used the name Zola for a daughter were inspired by the writer or by the Zulu name, or possibly neither! I'd like to know how many of them were inspired by Zola, the adopted African daughter of Derek Shepherd and Meredith Grey on the TV show Grey's Anatomy. She first appeared on TV screens in May 2011, but saw more screen time in fall 2011/spring 2012. Perhaps she helped to boost the usage in 2012! Who knows!

Source

As for boys named Zola, there have only been 21 boys named Zola in recorded US history. 11 from 1916-1917, and 10 from 1922-1923.  I do not have statistics for the number of boys who are given this name in Africa but I saw a few comments from different people saying that they know of men with this name.

Click here for a list of famous people who either have the surname Zola, or their first name is Zola. Among them is Eddie Murphy and Nicole Mitchell's daughter named Zola Ivy Murphy.

If I wanted to choose a traditionally African name to pair with Zola, I would use Zola Dumisani (which means "give praise" in Zulu) or Zola Mbali (which means "flower" in Zulu).

However, for those of us who like the name but are not African, here are some cute Americanized combos with a French influence:

Zola Camille
Zola Genevieve
Zola Isabelle
Zola Juliette
Zola Madeleine
Zola Simone

What do you think of the name Zola? Would you ever use it? What would you pair with it?