Names that Peaked in 1884
- Osborn
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"divine bear; divine warrior"Description:
A surname style choice that could get you nicknames Bear and Ozzy, which is pretty cool. It comes from the Old English variant of the Old Norse Ásbjǫrn, which was introduced to England after the Norman conquest and used occasionally as a given name ever since. Victorian author Elizabeth Gaskell used the spelling variation Osborne in her final novel, Wives and Daughters.
- Orange
Origin:
Fruit and color nameDescription:
No babies of any gender were named Orange in the US in the most recent year counted. But that doesn't mean, in this era of anything-goes baby names, that it couldn't happen.
- Wilhelmine
- Tennessee
Origin:
Native American, Cherokee, place-nameMeaning:
"bend in the river or meeting place"Description:
Young rocker Tennessee Thomas has brought this former one-person name over to the girls' side -- though the census roles of North Carolina in 1850 included a female named Tennessee and called Tincy.
- Cleveland
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"hilly land, from the cliff"Description:
A presidential and place-name that's not a stand-out in either category.
- Albina
- Johannah
- Lucious
- Stafford
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"from the ford by the landing place"Description:
Sounds as if it should have a Sir before it or a shire following it.
- Avie
- Clemmie
Origin:
Diminutive of Clementine, FrenchMeaning:
"mild, merciful"Description:
Cutesy pet form of Clementine.
- Doctor
Origin:
Word nameDescription:
Doctor is an honorific used as a name, somewhat like names such as Bishop, King, and Princess. Banned in New Zealand, Doctor can lead to the kind of confusion you may feel would be only positive for your child -- a bona fide Doctor before he even gets to kindergarten. At its zenith in 1884, Doctor was used for 12 boys, but last year it didn't even clear the five-baby minimum to make it onto the Social Security extended list.
- Bascom
Origin:
Surname nameDescription:
One of these forgotten Victorian surname names, like Spurgeon and Elwood, that almost feels so far out it could come back in. The key word there being "almost."
- Leland
- Simpson
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"son of Simon"Description:
Try Simon. Or Homer.
- Elenor
- Silvester
Origin:
Latin, "wood, forest"Meaning:
"wood, forest"Description:
More commonly spelled as Sylvester in English speaking countries, Silvester is closer to its Latin origins silva .
- Gustave
- Bowman
Origin:
English surnameMeaning:
"archer"Description:
Bowman has a lot of winning ingredients: an occupational surname, a cool "Bo" sound, and an archery-related meaning.
- Vollie