[Facts] Re: Marlys
in reply to a message by snapdragon
Marlys was among the top 1000 names on the Social Security list between 1921 and 1956.
This is highly unlikely to have gotten to North Dakota from the Philippines. This is the sort of name which would have been independently reinvented as a combination of popular sounds or syllables in many different places. I have two given name dictionaries from Germany which both include Marlis, explained as a blend of Maria with Luise or Elisabeth. This could have come to the USA with immigrants, and been respelled as Marlys under the influence of names like Gladys and the well-known French phrase "Fleur de Lys".
I wouldn't be surprised if there was some fictional character in a novel with the name Marlys that helped it get established in the 1920s, though I haven't found an example of that yet.
This is highly unlikely to have gotten to North Dakota from the Philippines. This is the sort of name which would have been independently reinvented as a combination of popular sounds or syllables in many different places. I have two given name dictionaries from Germany which both include Marlis, explained as a blend of Maria with Luise or Elisabeth. This could have come to the USA with immigrants, and been respelled as Marlys under the influence of names like Gladys and the well-known French phrase "Fleur de Lys".
I wouldn't be surprised if there was some fictional character in a novel with the name Marlys that helped it get established in the 1920s, though I haven't found an example of that yet.
This message was edited 1/31/2023, 8:08 PM
Replies
Thanks for the information. I've only heard the name in this area, I didn't ever hear it on the East coast. And by East Coast I mean Washington dc, I forget that the Midwest refers to Maine to North Carolina as the East Coast.
I wonder if there wasn't a singer of some sort.
I wonder if there wasn't a singer of some sort.