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ArchivesHistory of Melody as a Girls Name
I've found lots of info about the meaning and Greek origin of the name Melody but does anyone know when Melody started being used as a girl's first name? I was thinking that maybe forms like Melodia, Melodie or the Ancient Greek name Eumelia were used first and that the modern spelling Melody was used later.
The Social Security Online shows Melody first on the popularity charts in the 1960's but would it have been used as a name before that time?
Are there any online resources that tell about when certain names first began to be used?
http://NameEnthusiast.blogspot.com
The Social Security Online shows Melody first on the popularity charts in the 1960's but would it have been used as a name before that time?
Are there any online resources that tell about when certain names first began to be used?
http://NameEnthusiast.blogspot.com
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Replies
On Ancestry Library there are three Melodys in the 1850 US census, the first where all residents were listed by name.
The oldest one, Melody Loveland, the wife of Aaron Loveland, was born in Connecticut around 1795. I checked the 1860 census and found the same family. They were living in Wisconsin in 1850 and had moved back east to Ohio in 1860, but the unusual names and ages involved (a son named Miller who was 4 in 1850 and 14 in 1860, for example) show this is the same family. So we can be reasonably sure that Mrs. Loveland really was called Melody.
We can't be 100% sure she was born as a Melody because even back then some people did change their names or become known mostly by a nickname. But it's probable Melody was the name her parents gave her.
This was a very rare name in the 19th century, though. I don't have time to check the original records to make sure, but the number of Melodys in the indexes to the US censuses between 1850 and 1930, the last one available, is as follows:
1850: 3
1860: 11
1870: 14
1880: 11
1890 -- the census records for this year were accidentally destroyed
1900: 67
1910: 47
1920: 95
1930: 122
The oldest one, Melody Loveland, the wife of Aaron Loveland, was born in Connecticut around 1795. I checked the 1860 census and found the same family. They were living in Wisconsin in 1850 and had moved back east to Ohio in 1860, but the unusual names and ages involved (a son named Miller who was 4 in 1850 and 14 in 1860, for example) show this is the same family. So we can be reasonably sure that Mrs. Loveland really was called Melody.
We can't be 100% sure she was born as a Melody because even back then some people did change their names or become known mostly by a nickname. But it's probable Melody was the name her parents gave her.
This was a very rare name in the 19th century, though. I don't have time to check the original records to make sure, but the number of Melodys in the indexes to the US censuses between 1850 and 1930, the last one available, is as follows:
1850: 3
1860: 11
1870: 14
1880: 11
1890 -- the census records for this year were accidentally destroyed
1900: 67
1910: 47
1920: 95
1930: 122
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What caused the jump in the 40s?
I'm curious - the name went from not charting to 500.
I'm curious - the name went from not charting to 500.
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The name "Melody" was used in an American children's novel in 1893 (Melody: The Story of a Child by Laura Richards). There were probably at least a few girl named Melody around that time.
Melody first appears on the US popularity charts in 1942, at #523 (top 1000 names). However, if you go beyond the top 1000 you can see more. There were five baby girls named Melody in 1920, and there were 17 in 1930 (I didn't check every year). I wonder what caused the big increase in 1942?
Melody first appears on the US popularity charts in 1942, at #523 (top 1000 names). However, if you go beyond the top 1000 you can see more. There were five baby girls named Melody in 1920, and there were 17 in 1930 (I didn't check every year). I wonder what caused the big increase in 1942?
This message was edited 9/19/2011, 12:30 AM
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The oldest Melody I've known in South Africa (where we don't keep statistics, sadly) was born in about 1958. There may well have been earlier ones that I don't happen to know about.
Incidentally, this Melody was fascinated to discover that names had meanings, and eagerly asked what her name meant ...
Incidentally, this Melody was fascinated to discover that names had meanings, and eagerly asked what her name meant ...
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Although this is funny, it really isn't that dumb a question.
When people ask "what a name means" they are usually asking about etymological origin. I wish we wouldn't use the phrase that way myself, but people do all the time.
And there are certainly examples of other names where there is a commonly used word with the same spelling and pronunciation but where the "meaning" in the sense of the historical derivation is not the same as the dictionary definition meaning of the word.
John, for example, did not originally mean either "toilet" or "prostitute's customer".
Bill did not originate with the meaning "notice of need for payment" or "duck's beak."
Dolly did not originally mean "children's toy shaped like a person."
Eve did not originally mean "night before".
Frank did not originally mean "straightforward."
So, although probably the majority of names that have an exact correspondence with a word did originate from that word, a woman named Melody could well wonder if her name was derived from the modern word or if it had some other original meaning. :)
When people ask "what a name means" they are usually asking about etymological origin. I wish we wouldn't use the phrase that way myself, but people do all the time.
And there are certainly examples of other names where there is a commonly used word with the same spelling and pronunciation but where the "meaning" in the sense of the historical derivation is not the same as the dictionary definition meaning of the word.
John, for example, did not originally mean either "toilet" or "prostitute's customer".
Bill did not originate with the meaning "notice of need for payment" or "duck's beak."
Dolly did not originally mean "children's toy shaped like a person."
Eve did not originally mean "night before".
Frank did not originally mean "straightforward."
So, although probably the majority of names that have an exact correspondence with a word did originate from that word, a woman named Melody could well wonder if her name was derived from the modern word or if it had some other original meaning. :)
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Well put.
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Incidentally, this Melody was fascinated to discover that names had meanings, and eagerly asked what her name meant ...
You're kidding, right? :)
You're kidding, right? :)
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