# Extinct Woman names **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 14, 2009, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840 "2009-02-14T18:06:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2009, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/41 "2009-02-14T22:51:08Z")
who knew my paternal grandmother’s name emma sophia, would be tops in popularity now? one of her sisters was a hilda, another dorothea (used dora). cousins did consider mum’s name but the whole wizard of oz thing kinda did in dorothy and its variants. maternal grandmother is still in the bottom of the list (being russian she has dad’s name as well) matrona daughter of prokop. matrona for girls and prokop for boys are def. not in vogue. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2009, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/42 "2009-02-14T22:55:47Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > My sister’s name is Marian (she’s in her 70s). I’ve never known any other woman with that name. Marian is a common name in Ireland. Marian Finuncane (Broadcaster) and Marian Keyes (Author) are two famous examples. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2009, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/43 "2009-02-14T22:56:47Z")
> [@autz](#): > > I thought my daughter, Clara, would be teased for her old fashioned name. But it’s one of those ‘everything old is new again’ names. > > once we were at the park and there were only 2 other girls there, both were named Clara. That was my grandmother’s name, who died last week at age 97. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2009, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/44 "2009-02-14T23:03:28Z")
I do like the name Viola. That rare girl with the purple eyes should get that one. ---
**Author:** ![freckafree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/freckafree/32/3050_2.png) [@freckafree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freckafree)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2009, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/45 "2009-02-14T23:10:12Z")
> [@LouisB](#): > > Callie I have a friend named Cally. Although Olivia has had a recent surge in popularity, Olive has dropped off the charts. I rarely meet anyone in my generation (or younger, for that matter) with my name, although I hear ALL THE TIME, “Oh, that was my mother’s name!” ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2009, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/46 "2009-02-14T23:14:21Z")
> [@wunderkammer](#): > > My grandma and her closest sister were saddled with Agnes and Agatha. > > They went by “Aggie” and “Aggie”. > > (The younger Aggie later married into a wonderfully Dickensian name: Agatha Pigeon.) My young cousin (now in her late 30s) is named Agnes. Her parents are Hungarian, and the name is a lot more common there. Ed ---
**Author:** ![Huerta88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/82dd89/32.png) [@Huerta88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Huerta88)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2009, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/47 "2009-02-14T23:19:45Z")
> [@suranyi](#): > > My young cousin (now in her late 30s) is named Agnes. Her parents are Hungarian, and the name is a lot more common there. > > Ed Agatha is popular in parts of E. Europe as well. ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2009, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/48 "2009-02-14T23:23:05Z")
I know a family with a son named Jordan and a daughter named Lottie. It always struck me that they sounded more like a grandson/grandmother pair than a brother/sister pair. ---
**Author:** ![tumbleddown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@tumbleddown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tumbleddown)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2009, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/49 "2009-02-14T23:37:16Z")
> [@ivylass](#): > > Eulalie was very popular for about 20 years, but hasn’t popped up again since the 1900s. > [@Chefguy](#): > > My sister’s name is Marian (she’s in her 70s). I’ve never known any other woman with that name. Eulalie and Marian are names for the daughters of a fan of _The Music Man_. One of grandmothers was a Leona, the other a Georgina. My mother is a Sonia. All are names that have gone out of vogue, but I like all three. ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2009, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/50 "2009-02-14T23:38:25Z")
I’m willing to bet an amount of money that the name “Fanny” will not be making a comeback, especially in the UK. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2009, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/51 "2009-02-14T23:45:51Z")
The Granny (or rather, Great-Granny) names are hugely popular in the UK right now, as the Grandad names have been for a while too. Reading a class register can be like reading a world war two war memorial. 😃 Ethel is very rare indeed, though, although I think it’s quite nice, really. The names that are currently out of fashion are the ones of my parents’ generation - Maureen and Pam and the like. Sadly, give it twenty or thirty years and they’ll come back too, like **Ataraxy** said. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2009, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/52 "2009-02-14T23:46:21Z")
> [@Bin-Gay](#): > > … > Esther > … Esther is a Bible name - and a heroic one - so it’s not likely to go completely away. I know several Esthers - a couple of whom are teenagers. Popular fiction also seems to bring names back to the surface - I’ll bet there are a few more young Ronalds and Hermiones out there now, for example. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2009, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/53 "2009-02-14T23:46:53Z")
> [@tumbleddown](#): > > One of grandmothers was a Leona, the other a Georgina. My mother is a Sonia. All are names that have gone out of vogue, but I like all three. Leona and Georgina are both fairly popular in the UK with kids right now. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2009, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/54 "2009-02-14T23:51:14Z")
I know a wonderful older lady whose name is Gertrude. She goes by Trudee. which I think is delightful. My father (age 87) went to school by with a girl named Gertrude Gross. IMO, the reason why Gertrude is not popular, is cuz the last syllable sounds a lot like “rude.” ---
**Author:** ![PapSett](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecc23a/32.png) [@PapSett](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PapSett)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2009, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/55 "2009-02-15T00:00:30Z")
> [@AuntiePam](#): > > I read a local obit yesterday for a woman named Dimple. If there had been an internet 80+ years ago, she would have turned up in a thread about unusual names. Anyone ever know a Dimple? I’m old and she’s the first. > > She married a Raven, which I think makes a good stripper name – Dimple Raven. I can picture her lifting her dress and showing her knees. > > **ivylass** , yep, Vernon and Walter – they have to be at least in their 60’s. > > Hazel’s not common anymore, but I think it’s a pretty name, and might make a comeback. Actually, I went to grade school with a Dinple. We were in the same grade, so that would make her my age, 48. her middle name was Venitia. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2009, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/56 "2009-02-15T00:04:05Z")
> [@notfrommensa](#): > > My father (age 87) went to school by with a girl named Gertrude Gross. Like something out of Lemony Snicket. My Mother’s name is Rona, and my Auntie’s name is Lenore. These are not common names anymore, if they ever were. My cousin’s name is Carolyn. It’s not really an old name, but it’s also not as common as it used to be. My family is full of uncommon names, though, for both male and female. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Plastic\_Ninja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f07891/32.png) [@Little\_Plastic\_Ninja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Plastic_Ninja)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2009, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/57 "2009-02-15T00:14:39Z")
> [@tumbleddown](#): > > One of grandmothers was a Leona, the other a Georgina. My mother is a Sonia. All are names that have gone out of vogue, but I like all three. I have spoken to many young Sonias – twenty-something or thirty-something – so I don’t think it’s that out. And I know a pregnant lady who wants to name her theoretical daughter Leona, her theoretical son Leonard. I’ll add Mavis and Eloise into the mix. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2009, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/58 "2009-02-15T00:14:58Z")
> [@An\_Gadai](#): > > Marian is a common name in Ireland. Marian Finuncane (Broadcaster) and Marian Keyes (Author) are two famous examples. My sister was named after our Aunt Marian, who was named after _her_ Aunt Marian (born 1867). The last name (of the latter) was Saunders, (daughter of a Saunders and a Colegrove). Both names are British, with Colegrove thought to originate in Wales. Saunders may have had some roots in Ireland, according to one genealogy I found. My grandmother’s first name was Elona, which I’ve never seen anywhere else. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2009, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/59 "2009-02-15T00:18:22Z")
> [@PapSett](#): > > Actually, I went to grade school with a Dinple. I’ve also met one Dimple, but she was of Indian heritage. Lettuce is a traditional English woman’s name that doesn’t seem to be among those having a renaissance, for some odd reason. ---
**Author:** ![Razncain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9d8465/32.png) [@Razncain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Razncain)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2009, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840/60 "2009-02-15T00:25:27Z")
Did a quick scan, and I don’t think I seen Lois mentioned yet. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/extinct-woman-names/485840.md?page=4)