Peggy

According to Behindthename.com, Peggy is a pet form of Meg, which itself is a pet form of Margaret. That's a whole lot of petting. This information really only covers the origin of the name, however. In fact, Peggy has often been given as a first name in its own right, with no Megs or Margarets involved. For most of the 20th century Peggy was a top 500 name for baby girls in the United States, only dropping out of the top 1000 in the 1990's. Meg, on the other hand, has never enjoyed such popularity in the U.S. (which surprises me a little, but oh well.) Of course, Margaret is an old classic, and though not as popular as it once was, is still in frequent use--but that's another post. The meaning of Margaret is "pearl," so I suppose Peggy can be considered to mean "pearl" also, although personally I think the new official meaning of Peggy should be "teenager of the 1950's." Again, Peggy did drop out of the top 1000 in the early 1990's, mainly because Peggy was now a name borne by one's mother, or perhaps even grandmother. In other words, it was old-fashioned. Will it at some point come back into fashion? That is anyone's guess. Whatever it was that made parents fall in love with the name in the early 20th century may cause parents of the future to feel the same way.

Beatrice

Beatrice is the French or Italian form of Beatrix. According to Ask Oxford, Beatrix probably came from a combination of the Latin Viator and Beatus. Since the former meant "voyager" and the latter meant "blessed," Beatrice can be taken to mean "blessed voyager." Beatrice was a character in Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing," but is probably more well known as the name of the lady with whom Dante was obsessed. Beatrice was a popular name in England during the Middle Ages, and like many other names that appeared in classic literature, was strongly popular again in the 19th century, when it was very occasionally even given to boys. This popularity continued into the 20th century; in the United States Beatrice appeared consistently in the top 100 names for girls until the 1930's. After that, the name began to be considered old fashioned and declined steadily in popularity. Beatrice has not appeared in the top 1000 in the U.S. since 2001. More recently, well-known bearers of the name Beatrice include Princess Beatrice of York, and Beatrice McCartney, the daughter of Paul McCartney and Heather Mills. Nicknames for Beatrice include Bea and Trixie.

Joyce

According to the authoritative sources, Joyce became a name this way: First there was the Breton name Iodoc, which meant "lord." The Latinized form of that name was Jodocus. From Jodocus came the Norman name Josce and the Middle English Josse. These were all male names, apparently, as well. None of the forms survived the Middle Ages as given names, but they did survive as surnames, including Joyce. Joyce began to gain some popularity for girls in the U.S. in the late 19th century, and became truly popular in the early decades of the 20th century. It remained in the top 100 names for girls in the U.S. from 1924 until 1966. Joyce also appeared as a name for boys during the first half of the 20th century, possibly often as a transferred use of the surname. Joyce is currently still a top 1000 name in the U.S., and may eventually regain at least some of its former popularity, once it is no longer perceived as being outdated. The original meaning of the name that Joyce is derived from is mostly irrelevant to the name as it is used these days, but it is worth noting that part of the popularity of the name is due to the fact that it contains the word "joy," also used as a name in its own right. For this reason, I think it's fair to consider "joy" as an implied meaning of the name Joyce when it's used as a given name.

Elmer

Elmer comes from an Old English name which was comprised of the elements ædhel ("noble") and maer ("famous.") Although Elmer was not used much as a given name after the Norman Conquest, but it did survive as a surname. When Elmer is used as a given name today it represents an instance of a surname being used as given name. The practice of using surnames as given names, particularly for boys, and especially the use of the mother's maiden name as a son's given name, was particularly popular in the 19th and early 20th centuries, and Elmer's popularity coicides with this practice. Elmer seems to be a rare name today, but in the first two decades of the 20th century, Elmer was a top 50 name for boys in the U.S. From the 1920's onward, Elmer's popularity steadily declined until the 1980's, when it more or less stabilized without ever dropping out of the top 1000. Elmer is still given to newborn baby boys enough today that it remains in the top 1000, but it shows no signs of regaining popularity. Elmer's early popularity could have led to its decline in use, due to overuse, and the eventual perception of the name as old-fashioned, but Elmer has more working against it than that. The popularity of Warner Brothers cartoon character Elmer Fudd keeps the name in the public conciousness, while also discouraging its use for babies. Elmer Fudd is so famous and so beloved that Google even has a feature that sort of allows you to search the internet like Elmer Fudd would. Famous and beloved, yes, but still not a character most people would choose to name their sons for. In addition to reminding everyone who hears his name of Elmer Fudd, a child named Elmer might also have to contend with another famous close association with his name, Elmer's Glue. Although Elmer is unlikely to regain much popularity as a name for a child as long as Elmer Fudd is well-known (which we can hope is always,) its still a great name for a pet, particularly for a dog, (or maybe a snake or hamster.)

Sylvia

Sylvia is a variant spelling of Silvia, but of the two, Sylvia is now more often used. Ultimately, it comes from the Latin word silva which means "woods" or "forest." Sylvia was one of the "classical" names that enjoyed popularity in the late 19th century, and into the early years of the 20th century. From 1909 through 1923 the name was in the top 100 for girls in the U.S., and it was again in the top 100 through most of the 1930's and 1940's. Consequently, Sylvia is currently considered a somewhat old-fashioned name, and is in the bottom half of the top 1000. The most well-known Sylvia was probably Sylvia Plath. Sylvia is both pretty to the ear and to the eye, and will most probably return to popularity in the next decade or so. In the meantime, Sylvia is also a wonderful name for a cat.

Clarence

In the 14th century a son of Edward III was married to the heiress of Clare in Suffolk. The title of Duke of Clarence was created for him, and has been held by various British princes in the years since. Clarence began to be used as a given name in honor of one of these, Prince Albert Victor of Wales, who was the popular eldest son of Edward VII, and became Duke of Clarence in 1890. Clarence was an extremely popular name from the late 19th century into the early decades of the 20th century. It remained in the top 100 in the U.S. until the 1950's, but has declined slowly in popularity since then. Today it is still in the top 1000, and hasn't quite become "rare," but because it was so heavily used in early decades, it's considered a bit outdated. Since Clarence is a relatively new entrant to the name game, it is anyone's guess whether it will ever regain any of its popularity of the early 20th century, or if it will turn out to have been a "trend" of its time.

Ada

Like many very short names, Ada comes from more than one original source. It is considered to be a short version or nickname for several names, including Adelaide, Adele, and Alexandra--pretty much any name that has an 'A' and a 'D' and more than one syllable. In other cases it is considered to be essentially the same name as the biblical name Adah (which means "adornment" in Hebrew.) Ada was a popular name in the 19th century, and although that popularity continued into the early 20th century, it declined steadily. Ada finally disappeared entirely from the U.S. top 1000 names after the 1970's. The name began to make a comeback in 2004, and it will be interesting to see if it begins to regain its former popularity. Relatively speaking, Ada is not an "old" name--it only began to be widely used as a name in its own right in the late 18th century, but many of us perceive it as being an old name, because of knowing or having known an Ada from an earlier generation. Over the next few decades we will find out if Ada is to be a "new classic" name, or simply an occasionally remembered trend from earlier times.

Irene

Irene means "peace." It comes from the Greek eirene. Irene, or Eirene, was a Greek goddess of peace, and as one of the Horai (Seasons) she personified spring. (Her Roman equivalent was Pax, which is Latin for "peace.") Irene, along with other "classical" names from mythology and other sources, began to gain popularity in English speaking countries in the 19th century. It had reached the top 100 of names for new baby girls by the 1880's, and peaked as the 16th most popular name in 1918 and 1919. Irene remained popular, staying in the top 100 until the 1940's. Since then it has declined in popularity, falling out of the top 500 in recent years. One interesting thing to note; Irene was originally pronounced with three syllables ( i-REE-nee,) but now is generally pronounced EYE-reen in the U.S. and some other English speaking countries. The name is a classic and will surely return to popularity once it is no longer associated with the "older generation." Whether it will return as a two syllable name or a three syllable name is anyone's guess.

Wilbur

Wilbur comes from the Old English will ("will, desire") and burh ("fortress.") Wilbur is a surname which in the U.S. is sometimes used as a given name. The name was popular enough to be in the top 100 in the U.S. in the second decade of the 1900's, but fell steadily in popularity after that, dropping out of the top 1000 entirely after the 1970's. Wilbur as a given name is famous/notorious in at least two instances, one of which might account for its complete disappearance as a given name for baby boys. First, there was Wilbur Wright, who along with his brother Orville, became famous for inventing the first airplane that worked. Second, Wilbur was one of the main characters in E.B. White's famous children's book Charlotte's Web. For those few people out there who have never read the book, or seen the movie, or at least heard of Charlotte's Web, the Wilbur in the book is a pig who befriends a very resourceful and intelligent spider named Charlotte. Parents are probably wise to avoid naming their boys Wilbur, because sooner or later nearly every child is required to read this book for school, and while Wilbur is indeed one terrific pig, he's a pig, nonetheless.

Barbara

Barbara is the Latin form of the Greek barbarus. The Greek word comes from bar-bar, which was sort of a Greek version of "blah blah" and referred to the language of foreigners which sounded like no more than "bar-bar" (or blah blah) to them. Therefore, barbarus came to mean "foreign," and Barbara means "foreign woman." The word barbarian comes from the same source. Other meanings related to the word are sometimes given for Barbara, including "strange," "exotic," and "untamed." Barbara is a saint's name: Saint Barbara is the patron saint of stonemasons, architects, and artillerymen, among other things. Barbara is currently somewhat out-of-fashion as a name for baby girls. It was extremely popular during the first half of the 20th century, and was a top ten name in the U.S. for most of the three decades (the 1930's, 1940's, and 1950's.) Because of this, many many people have mothers, grandmothers, and even great-grandmothers named Barbara. Often when this happens a name starts to be associated with the "older generations" and goes out of fashion until the older generation has passed. Barbara has not fallen completely out of use, but its popularity has been on a steady decline since the 1960's, and it currently isn't even quite in the top 500. Barbara is a classic name, however, plus a saint's name, so it is doubtful that it will become obssolete. The name can be expected to eventually experience a resurgence in popularity. Barbara is a versatile name, but its versatility is another reason for its decline in popularity; one of the main nicknames for Barbara is Barbie and that name has been virtually taken over by its association with Barbie Dolls. Other nicknames for Barbara are Babs, Babette, and Barb, and Bobbie. The variant spelling Barbra is sometimes used, but I'll deal with that as a name in its own right at some point.

Polly

Polly, which can also be spelled Pollie, is listed by nearly all the "authorities" as being a pet form of Molly. At least Ask Oxford mentions that they don't have a clue why the M in Molly got changed to a P to give Polly. Polly is currently considered a bit of an old-fashioned name--it was in common use in the U.S. until the 1960's when it fell completely out of fashion. The fact that it is associated with parrots (as in "Polly want a cracker?") doesn't help its popularity for human children. So here we have a name with no clear meaning, no clear origin, and associated with an animal to the point of being a cliché, that seems old-fashioned, and also seems like it ought to be a nickname for some other name--can this name ever regain popularity? Probably.

Annette

Annette is, as all the other names sites say, a French "pet form" of Ann(e). Famous Annettes have included Annette Funicello, and Annette Bening. Although Annette is still currently in the top 1000 names for baby girls, its in the bottom 500, meaning, basically that it is in use, but not over-used. It was a much more popular name thoughout most of the 1900's, and in the 1960's was a top 100 name. This is probably why it is not so much in use today: baby girls born today might be the daughter of an Annette, or the granddaughter of an Annette, or perhaps the neice of an Annette. So my best guess would be that in most cases today that the name is given, it is as a middle name, maybe to honor the elder relative with the name. As a middle name, Annette is wonderful. Paired with either a one-syllable or three-syllable first name, it is musical. (It's not bad with a two-syllable first name, but the rule of thumb--which can, and should, be often broken-- is to give names of varying syllables--they usually just flow better. Two syllable names can follow other two syllable names more easily than one syllable names can follow one another though-- example, Katie Annette flows better than Lynn Jean. See?) Annette is definitely a name to keep in mind when naming a baby girl, just because it is such a great middle name, and because it does come with a little bit of versatility. A girl named Annette can also reasonbly claim to be Ann or Anne or Annie, or if she's feeling VERY retro she can be Nettie.

Carol, Carole

Carol began to be used as a name for baby girls in the late 19th century. It was apparently originally just a pet or short form of Caroline, or Carolina, and as such is considered a feminine version of the name Charles. Carole is the French spelling, and this spelling gained much popularity due to actress Carole Lombard (1908-42.) In the 1930's, 40's, and 50's, Carol was a top 20 name in the United States, but has been in decline ever since. Carol will probably make a comeback and regain some popularity at some point, but that may not be in the immediate future; it still seems a bit old-fashioned at the moment--there are still plenty of Carols from the name's peak around. Carol has also been used as a name for baby boys, but more often the male form is Carroll, which will be dealt with in a seperate entry eventually.

Lionel

The name Lionel comes from Latin leonellus, meaning "little lion." Lionel was used as a given name in the Middle Ages and is one possible source of surnames such as Lyall, or Lyell. It has remained in use ever since the Middle Ages; never being used more than infrequently but never falling completely out of use either. Its use has declined even more in the past few decades though, and of late, Lionel has fallen out of the top 1000 names in the U.S. Famous Lionels include actor Lionel Barrymore (1878-1954) and singer Lionel Richie. Many may also remember Lionel as George and Louise Jefferson's son on the tv series The Jeffersons. Why has Lionel fallen so completely out of fashion of late? There may be bad associations with the name that I'm not aware of, but since I'm not aware of any, I'd have to guess that it's some combination of the following reasons: Lionel sounds a bit old-fashioned at the moment, it doesn't have much versatility when it comes to nicknames, and so many "new" names have crowded into the name arena in the past decades as parents (in the U.S. at least) have become more daring, that there simply isn't room for it. Because of the meaning, Lionel makes a great name for a male cat, but if you choose to give the name to your new baby, I'd recommend choosing a strong versatile second name to accompany it, just to give your child some options in the event he hates the name.

Alma

Alma comes from Latin and means "nurturing, kind." Alma was a title of several Roman goddesses, but its use as a given name is relatively quite modern. It was very rarely used until after the 1854 Battle of Alma was fought. The Alma in this case was a river in the Crimea, but Alma's use as a name became established after that point and was fairly popular in all English-speaking countries from 1870 through 1920. Other sources list Alma as being a Spanish name meaning "soul." This comes from dialogue in Tennessee Williams's play Summer and Smoke, and from the use of the name in Spenser's 16th century poem Faerie Queen, in which the name is apparently interpreted as Italian, meaning "soul." Although Alma has not appeared in the top 100 names for girls in the U.S. since the 1920's, it is still in the top 1000. It is possibly being used at this point mostly in honor of older or deceased relatives, but also could be due for a revival in the relatively near future.

Lela

Lela is often considered a variant spelling of Leila, which comes from Arabic and means "dark," or "night," or even "dark as the night." You get the idea. Considering that "Leila" is often pronounced as "lay-la", how does Lela get to be considered a variant spelling of Leila? Here is one way that this can happen. Let's say you write a book and you name your main character "Leila." Someone reads the book, and even though in your head the pronunciation for the name was "lay-la," the reader hears it in her head as "lee-la." She likes the name, and she names her daughter "Leila," pronounced "lee-la." Years later, another lady has a baby, and must choose a name. She was once introduced to Leila (lee-la), and loved the sound of the name. She never saw how the bearer spelled it, and does not care; she simply likes the sound. She names her baby "Lela." And there you go. Some sources also describe Lela as a Spanish name meaning "lofty." Lela was used as a given name fairly often in the U.S. in the 1800's, and was still in use in the early 1900's, but disappeared from the top 1000 after the 1960's. This is a name that currently still sounds at least somewhat old-fashioned, and it was crowded out by all the "new" names that were drafted into the name pool over the past decades. It could easily enough return to popularity with the right catalyst such as a famous actress, model, or fictional character. Lela is an extremely good name for a dog or cat.

Patricia

Patricia comes from Latin. To be Patrician in ancient Rome meant to be a member of the noble class, so Patricia means "noble." Patricia was an extremely popular name in the U.S. from the 1930's until the 1970's, when it began to decline. The name remains in the top 400 names for baby girls in the U.S., and will probably remain in use. At the moment it has that vaguely old-fashioned sound to most of us; this comes from the fact that many of us know or have known at least one older lady named "Patricia," which simply makes it out of vogue. The name will most likely regain some popularity in future generations. Patricia is a versatile name, bringing with it nicknames such as Pat, Pattie, Patsy, and the more recently in-vogue Tricia--all of which are also used as given names in their own right.

Albert

Like William (see below,) Albert is a name that is an Old French form of name derived from Germanic, and like William, Albert was introduced to England by the Norman Conquest. Also like William, Albert is derived from two parts, adal which means "noble," and berht, which means "bright," or "famous." Albert has not had the immense popularity in English-speaking countries that William has, but then, few names have. Albert was extremely popular, especially in England from 1840 through the 1920's, in honor of Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, the husband of Queen Victoria. The name was also well-used in the United States through the first half of the 1900's, finally falling out of the top 100 in the tradition-rejecting 1960's. The name has declined slowly yet steadily in popularity since then, but still remains in the top 400 names for baby boys in the U.S. Albert is definitely in a popularity lull, and to many ears it now sounds hopelessly old-fashioned. Still, as a middle name, particularly given in honor of an older relative, it's a fine name. Its use as a first "main" name is not really recommended at this point however, simply because even its common nicknames, (Al, Bert, Bertie) have a definite out-of-style sound to them. Albert remains a great name for a cat with a certain aloof and dignified manner.

Earl

The use of Earl as a first name comes from two related sources which both come from the same source themselves--the noble title Earl, as in the Earl of Sandwich. First, several titles were used, mainly in the U.S., as nicknames: Earl, Duke, King, Prince, Princess, Queen, etc., and then the nicknames migrated to become used as given names. The other source is the common practice of using a surname, such as the mother's maiden name, as part of a child's given name. Earl is a surname which also began as a nickname or descriptive term given to someone who worked in the household of an Earl. Although Earl held a place in the top 30 names for boys in the early 1900's, its use has declined steadily, and it had nearly dropped out of the top 1000 by 2004. The name has been returned to popular consciousness recently by the television show "My Name Is Earl," but I'm doubting that many new parents will be naming their sons after the lead character in that show. One well-known Earl is banjo player Earl Scruggs, who helped to define a sound with Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys that would eventually become the musical genre bluegrass.

Ruth

Ruth comes from Hebrew and means "friend" or "companion." We know Ruth from the Old Testament, but some of us also think of Babe Ruth when we hear the name (or Baby Ruth, if we happen to be hungry at the time.) Ruth was a popular name with the 17th century Puritans, and was extremely popular from about 1890 through the 1920's in the U.S. It started to lose popularity, slipping out of the top 100 in the 1960's. I was fairly surprised to find that it is still ranks in the top 400 in the U.S. It may owe much of its continued level of use to the Book of Ruth in the Old Testament. The meaning of Ruth makes it an ideal name for a dog, cat, or other pet.