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Shirley to me is of the way of Ethel, Edith, Agnes and Helen. They still have a certain class to them they just haven't made their way back around to being "in" again yet. Perhaps because they still aren't "old" enough yet. I read somewhere online that 1 theory is that trends follow a great grandparent rule where say you may name a child a great grandparent name like Emma, Florence, William and Henry, which were all top ten names in the 1880s, but not a grandparent name like Donald, Frank, Dorothy and Mildred, which were in the top 10 in the 1920s, because they just aren't "old enough yet" we still associate it with the elderly people of today. I'll place my bets that Shirley, and the like will make a comeback when the babies and children of today are having babies 15-25 years from now. So while we may turn our noses to it we may well have grandchildren named these someday. I personally think Shirley has an interesting aesthetic and though I wouldn't use it, still smile at the idea of having a little granddaughter Shirley someday. I am in college for social work myself and it seems like every single fake case we read about is a "Shirley" in the old textbooks so I reflect on it sometimes. Mostly what comes to mind for me is Shirley Temple the child actress. Her middle name was Jane. I also think Shirley Anne, Shirley Kaye, Shirley Leanne, and Shirley Irene would be interesting sets.

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Please rate my favorite names list if you have a spare moment, thank you :) https://www.behindthename.com/pnl/223226/138473

This message was edited 2/22/2021, 8:13 AM