Names that Peaked in 1891

Much more modern than Marty and rhyming with the stylish short name Hart, could Mart show success as an independent baby name? Perhaps that’s too much to ask, but we do like it as a nickname for Martin.

Loretto is an old school spelling of the more common Loretta, which comes from the Italian Laura diminutive Lauretta. Antiquated to the point of extinction -- no baby girls have received the name in the US for more than half a century -- Loretto nevertheless ranked among the Top 1000 names until the early 20th centiury.

Plummer might be an occupational name for someone who works with pipes -- yes, like a plumber -- or with feathers, from the Olde English (from the French) plume. Or it could indicate someone who lived near a plum tree.

The final s turns this name into a manservant.

Elzie was given to 16 baby girls in the US last year, almost certainly as a spelling variation of the increasingly popular sweet nickname Elsie, a diminutive of Elizabeth.