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ArchivesRe: My column on Daphne
in reply to a message by erb816
It's a bit before "Emma", but this reminds me of this rather famous passage from the first chapter of Oliver Goldsmith's "The Vicar of Wakefield", published in 1766:
"Our eldest son was named George, after his uncle, who left us ten thousand pounds. Our second child, a girl, I intended to call after her aunt Grissel; but my wife, who during her pregnancy had been reading romances, insisted upon her being called Olivia. In less than another year we had another daughter, and now I was determined that Grissel should be her name; but a rich relation taking a fancy to stand godmother, the girl was, by her directions, called Sophia; so that we had two romantic names in the family; but I solemnly protest I had no hand in it."
It's interesting that Augusta is one of the names in the passage from "Emma" because, unlike Selina, it would have mostly have been introduced to England by the Hanoverian royal family, not just by novelists.
"Our eldest son was named George, after his uncle, who left us ten thousand pounds. Our second child, a girl, I intended to call after her aunt Grissel; but my wife, who during her pregnancy had been reading romances, insisted upon her being called Olivia. In less than another year we had another daughter, and now I was determined that Grissel should be her name; but a rich relation taking a fancy to stand godmother, the girl was, by her directions, called Sophia; so that we had two romantic names in the family; but I solemnly protest I had no hand in it."
It's interesting that Augusta is one of the names in the passage from "Emma" because, unlike Selina, it would have mostly have been introduced to England by the Hanoverian royal family, not just by novelists.
This message was edited 4/26/2024, 7:45 AM
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