# American Girls Names = British Boys Names? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 26, 2003, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395 "2003-11-26T15:48:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Shrinking\_Violet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@Shrinking\_Violet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shrinking_Violet)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/21 "2003-11-26T19:11:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by acsenray \* > \*\*There are many names in English that started out as masculine names, but have, over time, drifted in the public mind towards the feminine (to varying degrees) – > > Leslie, Stacy, Tracy, Terry, Vivian, Adrian, Lynn, Kelly, Ginger, Alexis, Randy, Christy, Shelly, Beverly, Marion, Hilary, Evelyn, Jamie, Julie, Jill, Georgie – > > My guess is that to the extent that you might still find men who have such names (and they do, both in America and in England), you’ll tend find more of them in England, just because of the stronger traditional influences. \*\* (My underlining) I’d be surprised if this is true, as I’ve never heard of this, and to the best of my knowledge Julie is the feminine version of Julian - you gotta cite? Julie 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/22 "2003-11-26T19:16:02Z")
No cite, Julie, but my understanding is that “Julie” originated as a diminutive for “Julian” or “Julius” in the same way that “Christy” was a diminutive for “Christopher” or “Christian.” So far as I know, the standard feminine form of Julius or Julian is “Julia.” ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/23 "2003-11-26T19:43:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by The Long Road \* > \*\*There are guys named Ginger in England? Really? No,seriously, for real? \*\* I’ve seen/heard ‘Ginger’ used as a nickname, presumably due to red hair and related features. Cream’s drummer was called Ginger but his real name was Peter. The name also appears in a couple of P.G. Wodehouse stories, again as a nickname. Though the recent popularity of “Madison” as a girl’s name is probably due to the movie _Splash_, I’ve heard that upper class families in the northeastern U.S. sometimes give family names like Madison or Campbell to girls, and that this is a longstanding tradition. ---
**Author:** ![BwanaBob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bwanabob/32/2985_2.png) [@BwanaBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BwanaBob)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/24 "2003-11-26T20:09:05Z")
When my son was born, we hadn’t come up with names. I suggested “Morgan” (as in Morgan O’Rourke, the sergeant in F-Troop). Imagine my suprise when my wife and step-daughter insisted that Morgan is a girl’s name. So add Morgan to the list. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/25 "2003-11-26T20:12:07Z")
Well, there’s Morgan the Goat (played by Colm Meany) from that Hugh Grant movie. And there’s Morgan le Fay, King Arthur’s sister and nemesis. What gender was it in the original British/Welsh culture? ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/26 "2003-11-26T20:34:44Z")
In my pa’s generation, (I was born in 1949) I know a Sherrill, a Shirley, and a Judy, all men. Sidney, with a y or an i, shows up in both genders. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_Doris](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5ac83/32.png) [@Sir\_Doris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_Doris)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/27 "2003-11-26T20:41:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by acsenray \* > \*\*There are many names in English that started out as masculine names, but have, over time, drifted in the public mind towards the feminine (to varying degrees) – > > Leslie, Stacy, Tracy, Terry, Vivian, Adrian, Lynn, Kelly, Ginger, Alexis, Randy, Christy, Shelly, Beverly, Marion, Hilary, Evelyn, Jamie, Julie, Jill, Georgie – > > My guess is that to the extent that you might still find men who have such names (and they do, both in America and in England), you’ll tend find more of them in England, just because of the stronger traditional influences. \*\* The spellings tend to get changed so Adrian would definitely be a bloke, but Adrienne would be a woman, and so on. Randy is more of an adjective unless your parents were dead posh and called you Randoplh. I once shared an office with a male Tracy. Most people assumed I was him > [@](#): > > And there’s Morgan le Fay, King Arthur’s sister and nemesis. > > What gender was it in the original British/Welsh culture? The Welsh Morgan is masculine. As I recall Morgan le Fay is a corruption of Morgain or Morgana. That’s what a bloke who’d called his kids after Arthurian characters told me, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![slipster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@slipster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slipster)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/28 "2003-11-26T20:50:32Z")
One might also add the names Sidney (or Sydney), Renee and Laverne to the list of names once used primarily by men but which are now commonly given to women. As a generality, in The United States distinctive given names start out as masculine and then come to be applied to women over time. An outstanding example which comes to mind is “Kelly”. Robert Culp’s character on **I Spy** was named Kelly, but now the name is primarily associated with girls. ---
**Author:** ![quiltguy154](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/ad7895/32.png) [@quiltguy154](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/quiltguy154)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/29 "2003-11-26T20:53:35Z")
Heard a comedian on TV last week, and he said during his monologue that his Irish grandfather’s first name was Florence. He changed it to Frank for obvious reasons. Anyone ever heard of THAT name being used for a male? ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/30 "2003-11-26T21:19:23Z")
> [@](#): > > a British audience would think the following are male rather than female (i.e. more commonly male): > Terry, Adrian, Jamie and Vivian (latterly if only from the legacy of “The Young Ones”) As soon as I saw the thread title this is what I immediately thought of. So are you saying that Vivian _wasn’t_ a common name for a boy, because that seemed to be the joke in The Young Ones (i.e. that he had a **girl’s** name). ---
**Author:** ![mascaroni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dc4da7/32.png) [@mascaroni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mascaroni)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/31 "2003-11-26T21:26:10Z")
Vivian is a male name, Vivienne is female. Gay Byrne is a famous (male) Irish chat show host. ---
**Author:** ![mascaroni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dc4da7/32.png) [@mascaroni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mascaroni)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/32 "2003-11-26T21:31:15Z")
Vivian is a male name, Vivienne is female. Gay Byrne is a famous (male) Irish chat show host. ---
**Author:** ![mascaroni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dc4da7/32.png) [@mascaroni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mascaroni)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/33 "2003-11-26T21:31:16Z")
Vivian is a male name, Vivienne is female. Gay Byrne is a famous (male) Irish chat show host. ---
**Author:** ![mascaroni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dc4da7/32.png) [@mascaroni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mascaroni)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/34 "2003-11-26T21:31:16Z")
Vivian is a male name, Vivienne is female. Gay Byrne is a famous (male) Irish chat show host. ---
**Author:** ![mascaroni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/dc4da7/32.png) [@mascaroni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mascaroni)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/35 "2003-11-26T21:37:06Z")
😕 ---
**Author:** ![irae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f0a364/32.png) [@irae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irae)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/36 "2003-11-26T21:59:08Z")
One of the network admins I regularly talk to in Richmond, VA is named Tiffany. Oh,… and he’s a guy. Poor bastard. ---
**Author:** ![fortytwo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f9ae1b/32.png) [@fortytwo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fortytwo)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/37 "2003-11-26T23:06:25Z")
My name is Sue. How do you do. V ---
**Author:** ![wakimika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f08c70/32.png) [@wakimika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wakimika)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/38 "2003-11-26T23:40:34Z")
I’m an American male named Leslie, but I changed it when I was a teenager. It was fun getting beaten up as a little kid. ---
**Author:** ![bonzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/45deac/32.png) [@bonzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bonzer)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2003, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/39 "2003-11-26T23:51:35Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Spectre of Pithecanthropus \* > I’ve seen/heard ‘Ginger’ used as a nickname, presumably due to red hair and related features. Cream’s drummer was called Ginger but his real name was Peter. The name also appears in a couple of P.G. Wodehouse stories, again as a nickname. And, of course, as the nickname of [Biggles’](http://www.biggles.info/) trusty sidekick. ---
**Author:** ![casey-lou](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8c91f0/32.png) [@casey-lou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casey-lou)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2003, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395/40 "2003-11-27T00:05:23Z")
hey i am from da uk and i know girls that are called them names so y do u think that its not the care ma best matse are calle leslie robin and stacey stcaey is a girls name and alsweya have been it always will be so u are really chattin sum shit [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/american-girls-names-british-boys-names/215395.md?page=3)