New Names

Inspiration: Mariposa (the Spanish word for butterfly)

I study the English language as part of my education and I am realising parallels between this and the world of names. I have been studying neologisms (new words) and how they are created and I thought I might pick out a few processes that apply to names as well as words. I highlighted the problem of how to create new names in my posts on the journeys of andrognous names and this may start explaining this.

Loan Words
Or should we call them 'loan names'? These are names we borrow from different languages. Think of Eleni, Giovanna, Xavier or Matthias. Many names are loan names but have become so mainstream that we have forgotten this. Henry comes from the French name Henri but has gone through a slight orthographical change (a change in spelling). Many diminutives-turned-standalone-names like Bella or Lottie were originally loan names. You can find loan words of your own by browsing the top 100 lists from other countries. It is very useful if you can understand enough of a foreign language to pick out names from international baby naming forums because you can find some hidden gems that speakers of English have never heard before.

Here are some beautiful names I found from the Turkish top 100 in 2012:
Zehra, Meryem, Rabia, Esma, Ceylin, Esila, Miray, Aylin.
Eren, Ismail, Kaan, Berkay, Ensar, Onur.


Compounding
Compound words are made up of two other words. Like wind+mill= windmill, Annabelle, Annmarie or Marybeth are compound names. Some names can seem like they are compounds but are just normal names. Elizabeth seems to come from Eliza and Beth but I think they have only become standalone names after being used as nicknames. Liliana is another example. Lil is a name. Liana is a name. But Liliana is not a compound name.

Here are some plausible compound names:
Maudlily, Liluna, Islamy, Leahlina, Evelisa, Elizabella.


Conversion
Usually conversion is where a word changes its grammatical function such as changing from a noun into a verb. Just think of how we use Google as verb (like 'I'm just going to Google this') But maybe conversion in names is little different. Maybe conversion means changing from what we think of as a 'word' into a 'name'. Word names have become very popular. Flower and jewel names (like Pearl and Rose) were popular historically but recently we have been picking from a wider vocabulary especially in celebrity culture. We have North, Saint, Ever and Apple. We often combine loan names and word names (use word names in different languages) like Soleil or Beau. If a word has a desirable meaning (such as love or beauty or happiness) then it is more likely to become popular.

Here are some words from Spanish that could become names:
Vivir, Almendra, Milagro, Mariposa, Lluvia.


Affixation
Affixes are collections of letters that are added onto the beginning or end of a word. Like 'Dis-' can be added to make 'disrespectful', 'disallow' or 'dishonest'. Sometimes affixes can get confused with compounding as they are very similar.  The line between affixation and compounding seems to be quite blurred in the world of names.

Some affixes include -anna, -bel, -lyn and -a. It is harder to find prefixes like Leo- (as in Leonore or Leocadia) but they do exist. Marilyn, Caitlyn and Jocelyn are good examples of the use of an affix.


Blending
Many of the processes I have explained are more relevant to frilly, elaborate girls' names but blending is definitely also for the boys. Think Aiden, Kayden, Jaden, Hayden. Think... Blending is all about changing a very small part of an existing name. Of course, some blends sound better than others. From Taylor, you could have Naylor, Saylor or even Haylor. But when I use Traylor, it sounds awfully like 'trailer' and Jaylor sounds awfully like 'jailer'. You have to be very careful!

Here are some blended names that might be usable:
Mackson (from Jackson), Trentley (from Bentley), Browan (from Rowan)

Journeys of Androgynous Names :: Part 2

Inspiration :: Madison (Madison Square Park)

This post follows on from Journeys of Androgynous Names:: Part 1. You may want to read it first if you haven't already.

Of course, there are a few rebellious names that do not fit the mould of being male, becoming unisex and then female. Sometimes there is a sharper change often spurred on by a catalyst from the media. The jaunty surname Bailey went from female to almost completely unisex in just a year. It is a similar story with Madison which was always a male name. In 1983 it was unheard of to see a female Madison but by 1985 practically all Madisons were female and it has been waving the pink flag ever since. But what causes these sudden changes? I think that it has a lot to do with celebrity culture and many of the sudden changes happened in the 70s and 80s. For example the film ‘Splash’, which features a mermaid named Madison, is an obvious contributor to the popularity of the name.

It seems unfair that the majority of names move from male to female – the girls get the hand me down clothes that are no longer fashionable in the boys’ world. But I’m not just being an angry feminist; women get the short straw with language anyway. There are countless words in the dictionary that get used negatively towards females but only a handful for men. Our androcentric language seems to have influenced our naming culture as well. However, there are a few misfit names that make the rare journey from female to male. Theo is a well-established male name today and the trendy diminutive of Theodore but from 1880 to 1930, Theo was popular female name.

If the majority of names follow the pattern of travelling from male to female, then we will start to hit a problem. Where will new boys names come from? If something doesn’t happen, we are going to be reduced to an ever smaller pool of boys’ names. But I think parents are already finding the answer. They are looking at the historical roots of already popular boys’ names and discovering more unusual names. Joshua was rare for boys until the 1950s where I suspect that the group of parents that started the trend were seen as courageous and innovative. Now, Joshua is high in the charts along with other Biblical favourites such as Benjamin and Isaac. Even characters like Ezra moved 115 places in the UK popularity charts from 2013 to 2014. It seems strange that soon we might be seeing little Zephaniahs or Boazez in nurseries and pre-schools. However, these names seem safer to use, as names with strong historical associations don’t often change gender. Invented or modern names usually have unstable genders and make the switch from male to female.

Nicknames are also adding to the amount of boys’ names. It is becoming more acceptable to put diminutives like Charlie and Freddie on the birth certificate. This doubles the amount of names on offer for sons. But maybe this divide in genders is gradually phasing out. Maybe in the future, all names will be able to be used for girls and boys. 

100 year rule :: 1914 and 2014

Inspiration :: Mary (St Mary's Lighthouse, No. 1 in 1914)

Name nerds use the term '100 year rule' to explain the pattern of name popularity where popular names from 100 years ago become popular again. But how accurate is this 'rule'? I'm going to look at the similarities between the 2014 and 1914 chart to discover this.

Names that were in the top 100 of 1914 and 2014.

27% of names from the top 100 of 1914 were in the top 100 of 2014.

Many of these names are those we would consider 'classic' but is this just because they are historical and are popular at the moment? 

Names in the top 100 of 1914 and the top 1000 (but not top 100) of 2014.

40% of names from the top 100 of 1914 were in the top 1000 (but not top 100) of 2014.

67% of names from the top 100 of 1914 were in the top 1000 of 2014.

These names are what people would call 'vintage'. They are the comeback names that seem fresh and exciting after being uncommon for 100 years.

Names from 1914 that were not in the top 1000 in 2014.

33% of names from the top 100 of 1914 were not in the top 1000 of 2014.

These names are the names that people would say were too 'granny-ish' and would be unlikely to return to our charts. However, I think some such as Marion, Bessie and Freda could make a comeback - just a bit later than their 100 year schedule.

I do not have enough data to comment whether the '100 year rule' works or is just a myth but hopefully, when I have data from other years and from the boys' names, I will be able to create some graphs and charts to reveal the truth.

Journeys of Androgynous Names :: Part 1

Inspiration :: Paris (a name that became female in the 1990s)

Some names metamorphosise like butterflies - changing gender. They start as an egg, then grow into a caterpillar, form into a chrysalis and finally emerge as a beautiful painted lady or red admiral. Many names do not go through a gender change but most names that do go through a similar pattern. Most gender-switched names started life as male. It may surprise you that well known female names such as Lauren and Allison were male at birth. But don’t worry; names like John, Peter, and Paul that have been masculine since their debuts in the New Testament are unlikely to transform into the ultimate ‘girly-girl’ names any time soon.

The next stage of the life cycle is where a few brave souls make the decision to use the boys’ section of their baby name Bible for their darling daughters. This effect is magnified if the name reached its peak and is having a dip in popularity. Parents start to look at dated boys’ names which will sound fresh again if used for daughters. The name may even become androgynous for a while, wavering between masculinity and femininity. At the moment, names such as Emerson and Emory are unisex after being entirely masculine for a hundred years.

The period of being androgynous can last more than 50 years. Paris started to be unisex at the beginning of the 1940s but it was only in the 1990s where it became significantly feminine. But some names, like Hilary switch in only a few years. At the moment, occupational names (names that come from work names) such as Harper or surname names such as Cameron are becoming popular as unisex names. No doubt the actress Cameron Diaz and little Harper Seven Beckham have helped these names rise through the ranks.

After the indecision of being androgynous, names draw nearer into old age as they become feminine. Names such as Kelly and Kelsey started life as masculine, became unisex, then feminine and are now slowly dying as they decline in popularity. Brooke and Alexis, which were both male names, have seen a boost in popularity for females over the past few years but I fear that their time to shine may be over as they plummet down the ranks for both genders. Maybe in 100 years, they will appear back in the popularity charts as male.