Old-Fashioned Names from "Anne of Green Gables"
Recently the internet was buzzing about the newly tarted-up cover for Anne of Greene Gables, the beloved children’s novel about our favorite red-headed orphan (or maybe tied with Little Orphan Annie). Lovers of the book were up in arms about the modern blond teen pouting on the cover of this reprint, but we just thought it was nice to see one of our dearest childhood books in the news. Big fans of the Anne books will remember that Anne herself was a naming afficianado--she started out as Ann but first asked to be called "Cordelia" and when that is refused by her foster mother, Marilla, she insists on adding an –e ending so her name stands out.
The name change could actually be considered an inside joke from the author Lucy Maud Montgomery (who went by Maud). The author also intended for her book about a feisty heroine to stand out from other stories of orphans named Ann, apparently popular trend at the time.
For fans of old-fashioned names, the book is a treasure trove of girls’ names you might want to consider:
Anne – Though Anne Hathaway’s omnipresence may have made you thought otherwise, nickname Annie has actually outpaced the original
Diana – Despite Jack and Diane and Sam and Diane, Diana is the more popular version of this name, as Diane has been out of the top 1000 for almost ten years
Gertie – Though it hasn’t been popular since the ‘30s, we think Gertie is due for a comeback on the heels of names like Violet, Pearl and Olive
Jane – Jane has seen a slight rise in popularity of late
Josie – After a peak in the 1910s, Josie has been climbing steadily
Marilla – A nickname drawn Amaryllis, it may be a dark horse for parents who want a twist on Mary
Minnie – The Mickey and Minnie connection may be too strong to bring this name into the 21st century
Ruby – A name on the rise, Ruby was bestowed on a couple of celeb kids recently, including Ruby Flynn (daughter of Marley Shelton) born last year
Shirley – We hope that Shirley Temple’s recent (spoof) arrival on Twitter will revive interest in this long-lost name
Do you like any of these Green Gables names? What are your favorite names from childhood books?
--H.A.
Comments
I've always loved Blythe!
Ruby is a gem of a name.
What about the boys?!? Gilbert and Matthew. I can see Gilbert/Gil making a comeback.
I've always loved Blythe also, but my husband nixed it for our daughters, but our 2nd daughter who will be born in June will have the middle name Avonlea!
Anne did not start off as "Ann." She was always "Anne" -- she made a point of spelling her name for people because she said it looked more distinguished with an "e." Anne made many comments about people's names and whether she liked them or not -- she renamed places because she thought they weren't named beautifully enough. And in one of the sequels, she makes a point of telling a character named Katherine that she thinks Katherine with a K is the only proper way to spell the name. The Anne of Green Gables series is a great one for name lovers.
I love the name Anne, as well as Gilbert. I was also always fond of the name Hester, which I believe appears in one of the book's sequels.
very helpful post....!
there's also some great names from the later books in the series-
Rilla (Anne's youngest, nn'd for Marilla)
Una
James nn'd Jem
Walter (might be due for a comeback)
Meredith (last name of major characters)
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My daughter is reading the books at this very moment. She took awhile to get into them, claiming that Anne wasn't "real," but suddenly they took hold of her imagination and she won't do anything but sit around and read "Anne." I am jealous, I want to be reading them for the first time!
I told her that Anne has 6 children, so much more gratifying than Laura Ingalls Wilder's one, but they have mostly terrible names:
Jem, Walter, Anne and Diana (too similar for sisters, much less twins), Shirley (wrong for a boy, even in Canada), and Rilla.
One of my proudest moments was when I convinced a dear friend to spell her daughter's middle name "Anne," instead of "Ann." Still waiting for that child to thank me.
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