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HelpRe: 50 forgotten(?) American favourites
in reply to a message by Cleveland Kent Evans
True- but why some names and not others? Why Augusta over Winifred, Muriel or Roberta, as several of the posters think?
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Augusta vs. Muriel & Roberta
Precisely. Augusta is closer in sound to names such as Isabella, Olivia, Arabella, etc. And Augustus is increasing in use for boys.
But most of it is the difference in age. Augusta's previous period of popularity came definitely before Winifred, Muriel, and Roberta, at least in the USA. There were still a lot of Winifreds and Muriels being born in the 1920s; by that time Augusta had practically disappeared as a name. And Roberta is even "younger", peaking in use around 1940. So, ironically, young parents today think of Winifred, Muriel, and Roberta as still being "ugly" because they know real elderly women who have these names. Very few young Americans today know an Augusta personally; almost all the Augustas of the past were dead before they could remember them as real people. Ironically, that's what makes the name sound "fresh" and "revivable" to younger people. If you can't remember the association between the name and gray hair & wrinkles, it can turn in its image from "old, ugly, and outdated" to "retro, old-fashioned, and cool". :)
Precisely. Augusta is closer in sound to names such as Isabella, Olivia, Arabella, etc. And Augustus is increasing in use for boys.
But most of it is the difference in age. Augusta's previous period of popularity came definitely before Winifred, Muriel, and Roberta, at least in the USA. There were still a lot of Winifreds and Muriels being born in the 1920s; by that time Augusta had practically disappeared as a name. And Roberta is even "younger", peaking in use around 1940. So, ironically, young parents today think of Winifred, Muriel, and Roberta as still being "ugly" because they know real elderly women who have these names. Very few young Americans today know an Augusta personally; almost all the Augustas of the past were dead before they could remember them as real people. Ironically, that's what makes the name sound "fresh" and "revivable" to younger people. If you can't remember the association between the name and gray hair & wrinkles, it can turn in its image from "old, ugly, and outdated" to "retro, old-fashioned, and cool". :)
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I work in a nursing home and actually get a lot of the names I love from residents I have cared for. Example: I took care of a Beatrice "Bea", Cora, Viola, Abbie, Nettie,and several Clara's...so I associate the names with the people (and the gray hair ect), but I still think they are lovely names. Most of these women are in their 90's btw...
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Maybe they are so old they are cool again just because...who knows why I like some of the names over other names. I also care for several ladies named Bessie, Dora, Gertrude, Alice, Helen, & Florence... all around the same age as the other ladies, and I don't care for these names. I mean, how long has it been since Bessie has been used...and it's not new and fresh yet!! LOL
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Maybe they are so old they are cool again just because...who knows why I like some of the names over other names. I also care for several ladies named Bessie, Dora, Gertrude, Alice, Helen, & Florence... all around the same age as the other ladies, and I don't care for these names. I mean, how long has it been since Bessie has been used...and it's not new and fresh yet!! LOL
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Bessie's high point in the USA was 1889, but it receded rather slowly and was still among the 100 most common names until 1928.
Obviously there are great individual differences in exactly how people come to like or dislike names; the "ageism" thing is a general social factor, not meant to describe how everybody's mind operates 100% of the time.
And for a name to be strongly revived, it of course not only has to be old enough to be "retro" instead of just "old" to people in their 20s, but it has to fit in with the fashionable sounds of the time. At the moment the -a ending for girls' names is more popular, and Cora, Viola, and Clara fit that. We also are probably moving into an appreciation for the "long I" vowel again, with names like Isaac, Isaiah, and Violet coming back already. Beatrice is very interesting to me, because a lot of young women on baby name discussion boards seem to like it, but there is actually little sign of it really being revived yet. Perhaps this is one of those names that women like a lot more than men at the moment, and fathers veto it when mothers suggest it.
I really expect Florence to come back in about another decade. I think the huge recent success of Cadence will get people interested in the -ence ending, and it will be the right time for young parents to think that it's a "cool" name again. :)
Obviously there are great individual differences in exactly how people come to like or dislike names; the "ageism" thing is a general social factor, not meant to describe how everybody's mind operates 100% of the time.
And for a name to be strongly revived, it of course not only has to be old enough to be "retro" instead of just "old" to people in their 20s, but it has to fit in with the fashionable sounds of the time. At the moment the -a ending for girls' names is more popular, and Cora, Viola, and Clara fit that. We also are probably moving into an appreciation for the "long I" vowel again, with names like Isaac, Isaiah, and Violet coming back already. Beatrice is very interesting to me, because a lot of young women on baby name discussion boards seem to like it, but there is actually little sign of it really being revived yet. Perhaps this is one of those names that women like a lot more than men at the moment, and fathers veto it when mothers suggest it.
I really expect Florence to come back in about another decade. I think the huge recent success of Cadence will get people interested in the -ence ending, and it will be the right time for young parents to think that it's a "cool" name again. :)
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Beatrice & Florence
I read the telegraph and times (UK) birth announcements for fun- and Beatrice (and Beatrix, too) is all over the place there. Florence and Constance are also frequently there, more often as mns, though. The demographic is upper-middle-class and above- three given names is not uncommon.
Having said that, I think you're right on for North America- Beatrice and Florence are names that are either liked by women only or by those in their late teens and early twenties. And yes, I realise youstudy this for a living- I'm just agreeing.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/section/0,,20989,00.html
http://announcements.telegraph.co.uk/
I read the telegraph and times (UK) birth announcements for fun- and Beatrice (and Beatrix, too) is all over the place there. Florence and Constance are also frequently there, more often as mns, though. The demographic is upper-middle-class and above- three given names is not uncommon.
Having said that, I think you're right on for North America- Beatrice and Florence are names that are either liked by women only or by those in their late teens and early twenties. And yes, I realise youstudy this for a living- I'm just agreeing.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/section/0,,20989,00.html
http://announcements.telegraph.co.uk/
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Because Augusta has the feel that is popular now.
That's why. We can't see beyond today.
That's why. We can't see beyond today.
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