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Help[Facts] Finlay / Finley
I know that both are male and an anglicized form of Fionnlagh, but I was wondering which one came first (if anyone knows). Secondly, I was wondering if "a"s & "e"s are ever used to differentiate between a female or male name in any language and if anyone could provide an example. I know that Skyler is a variant of Skylar and have heard that the "a" tends to be feminine & "e" tends to be masculine for this and others name, is that just a personal thing or is their any linguistic evidence to support that trend? I know with a name like Finlay it would be trend thing, since its a masculine name, but is their any evidence to suggest that this is a logical way to suggest feminization?
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As said, nothing is set in stone.
Almost all Gaelic surnames are masculine (99.8%?) originally, but their reuse as given-names is gender-crazy. Nothing is overtly masculine or feminine (Cameron, Kennedy, Kelly, Macaulay, etc.).
Given that, use your best judgement. So many Gaelic surnames are still in use as given-names, don't eschew logic if a name is still strongly masculine-associated.
Now Finlay/Finley is not common in the given sense, and your invented lay-rules make a little sense. I say go with them. You will be reviving a great name and hopefully others will follow your lead.
I'll warn you that 'laoch' or 'warrior' indicates a man, but that is historical. Kelly was once only a man's name, and what now?
Almost all Gaelic surnames are masculine (99.8%?) originally, but their reuse as given-names is gender-crazy. Nothing is overtly masculine or feminine (Cameron, Kennedy, Kelly, Macaulay, etc.).
Given that, use your best judgement. So many Gaelic surnames are still in use as given-names, don't eschew logic if a name is still strongly masculine-associated.
Now Finlay/Finley is not common in the given sense, and your invented lay-rules make a little sense. I say go with them. You will be reviving a great name and hopefully others will follow your lead.
I'll warn you that 'laoch' or 'warrior' indicates a man, but that is historical. Kelly was once only a man's name, and what now?
This message was edited 11/2/2004, 2:29 AM
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I've also asked myself this before. Personally, I prefer it spelt Finley. Maybe because I'm more used to 'e' because of names like Bradley or Riley.
While people tend to use male names on girls, they soften them using 'y' instead of 'i' (Robin - Robyn) or change the ending of a name (Riley - Rylie). I don't know if Finlay (with an 'a') makes it more feminine. Either version of this name, whether Finley or Finlay, is male to me.
Sorry, that I didn't have an answer.
While people tend to use male names on girls, they soften them using 'y' instead of 'i' (Robin - Robyn) or change the ending of a name (Riley - Rylie). I don't know if Finlay (with an 'a') makes it more feminine. Either version of this name, whether Finley or Finlay, is male to me.
Sorry, that I didn't have an answer.
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