Endangered Baby Names

Cary Grant's debonair image has stood the test of time - he is still rated as one of the most handsome and admired men in Hollywood. There are not many other names that can combine good-looks, wit and such decency all in two little syllables.

Has a musty 1940s feel. Try Georgia -- or Georgiana.

One of the old-school nicknames -- think Ray, Vince, Frank -- that's on the brink of coming back into style. Name him Stanislav or Constantine and he'll have a groovier long form to fall back on.

Almost always a girl's name now.

Once the teenaged babysitter, now more likely to be the mom who hires her. The names many variations include Nickee, Nickie, Nickey, Nicky, Niki, Nikkee, Nikkey, Nikki, Nikkie, Nikky, and Niky.

Terry hit the Top 30 in the fifties when it was seeen as a cool, sleek gender neutral name, but it's long since lost that edge. Today's Terry would probably be Tess or Tessa.

Tim is a boyish short form very rarely given on its own.

Tim is a boyish short form very rarely given on its own.

Kim was the coolest name... of the 1960s. Kim was popularized by actress Kim Novak, and its energy is still maintained by rapper Lil' Kim, but it holds lil' or no appeal for new babies. Parents who like Kim's short, sweet sound might look to a choice such as Sam, Lou, or Belle.

Innocent, sincere, and bright-eyed, and as outdated as its mother name, Gertrude.

Long integrated into the U. S. name pool but still retaining some Slavic flavor, Tanya feels a bit tired; it's ready for replacement by cooler Russian choices like Sasha, Mischa, or parent name Tatiana.

Meg, perennially one of the Little Women, is a Margaret short form that manages to be neither quite in nor quite out of style. Meg is sleeker and more sophisticated than Maggie, more contemporary than Peg, more stylish than Megan, and still one of the best diminutives of Margaret.

Meg Ryan was born Margaret Mary Emily Anne.

Candice is the spelling of this ancient name used by actress Candice Bergen. Candice is a form of Candace, an ancient title of a dynasty of Ethiopian queens mentioned in the New Testament.

Ever since the enormous German cannon was dubbed by Allied soldiers "Big Bertha" in World War I, this name hasn't worked for a sweet little baby girl. But this was not always so. Hard as it might be to imagine now, Bertha was a Top 100 name until the 1930s, and in the 1880s was the seventh most popular name in the land--the equal of Joseph.

Kristy (and Kristi and Kristie) are the ultimate kool girl nicknames of the sixties and seventies, not kwite as kute any more.

"Help Me, Rhonda. sang the Beach Boys -- help me convince my parents not to give me this sixties name.

Kerry is the name of one of the most beautiful and lush counties of Ireland was a seventies favorite. Related, updated versions might include Cerys and Keira.

After a century of association with horses and cows, this name just could be ready for revival by a fearless baby namer -- after all, it did happen to Jessie and Becky.

The Shirley of the 1950s. Shelley Winters was born a Shirley.