Name of the Day

Urania Rainsford Belcher

via Find a Grave

Name of the Day

Goodeth Copp

That's Judith to all you picky spellers out there.

Name of the Day

Copp's Hill, Boston, MA

I could not make these things up if I tried.

Name of the Day

Smallhope Bigg

b. 1605, England

d. 1644, Middlesex Co., MA

Come on, now. This is just silly. This is not one of those names that seems funny because the meaning of a word has changed over time or because the alliteration is unusual. Perhaps Smallhope's parents wanted to make sure their son was humble in spite of his surname.

Name of the Day

Rexella van Impe

Not a colonial American name — Mrs. van Impe was born in 1932 — but notable anyway.

Name of the Day

Dionysia Savage Ravenscroft

Dionysia was the daughter of Major Thomas Savage of Boston. In 1679, she married Samuel Ravenscroft.

Samuel Sewall on Hortatory Names

In 1701, Samuel Sewall was one of the judges who heard the case of Esther Rogers, accused of murdering an infant daughter born out of wedlock. Rogers was found guilty and Sewall chastised her for not living up to her name:

I told her . . . Esther was a great saviour; she, a great destroyer. Said did not do this to insult over her, but to make her sensible.

So it seems that at least some people were thinking about first names as exhortations to good behavior. It makes the Jezebels and Vajezathas all the more perplexing.

SSA Baby Names Predictions Update

The Social Security list of the top 1,000 baby names for 2010 is out! Let's see how I did predicting the top risers and fallers:

Fastest Rising Names (Girls):

• Everly: Strike out, not in top 1,000 for 2010. Next year, for sure.
• Tiana: Nailed it! Ranked #604 in 2009, #334 in 2010! This was the third-fastest riser (behind Maci and Giuliana).
• Aurora: eh. This name rose an anemic 15 spots.
• Cecilia: Wrong! down 11 spots.
• Harlow: Yes! #904 in 2009, #778 in 2010. I said it would go up 100+ spots; it went up 126.
• Bristol: Yes! Went from #666 to #562. Over 100 spots again.
• Bonus prediction: Amalia: Nope, didn't happen.

Fastest Rising Names (Boys):

• Archer: #681* in 2009, #550 in 2010. The SSA does a list of "Change in Popularity," but it only accounts for names that were in the top 500. If Archer were included on that list, +131 would make it the #5 fastest riser of 2010.
• Bentley: Called it! Top riser for boys in 2010. Up 414 spots over 2009.
• Jaxton: Modest success. Rose from #853 to #798.

Fastest Falling Names (Girls):

• Analia: Called it! This was absolute rock bottom for falling names. Went from #330 to #802. I am so relieved.
• Miley: Modest success. Dropped 28 spots.
• Yaretzi: Completely and utterly wrong — it rose 125 spots! There must be some celebrity in Spanish-language media that I am unaware of.

 Fastest Falling Names (Boys):

• Aaden: Called it! This terrible spelling was the fastest falling name for boys.
• Peyton: Wrong-o. Only lost one spot, which is basically the same as holding steady.
• Jacoby: Modest success — it lost 29 spots.

I think I did pretty well! I correctly predicted the fastest fallers for both boys and girls, and I picked a couple of good risers (Bentley and Tiana). I'm kicking myself for not choosing Maci as well — I picked Bentley and didn't even consider Maci. I didn't have enough faith in the power of Teen Mom.

My worst miss was Yaretzi. Not only did it not fall, it rose substantially! I must just not be plugged in to the pop culture reference fueling its rise.

*In addition to releasing the 2010 list, the SSA has slightly revised the 2009 list — Archer used to be #679 in 2009, now it is #681.

Baby Name Predictions

The Social Security list of the top 1,000 baby names for 2010 will be coming out in the next few weeks. The Baby Name Wizard always has a contest seeing who can predict the fastest rising and fastest falling names of the year, and I thought it might be fun to write down my predictions in public to see how I do.

If you are into modern baby names, leave your own guesses in the comments!

My predictions:


Fastest Rising Names (Girls):

• Everly: not in the top 1,000 in 2009, but I think it will break onto the scene in a big way for 2010. It could be the new Neveah. Ever is right behind!
• Tiana: ranked #609 (and falling) in 2009, but The Princess and the Frog will change that. It came out at the end of 2009, so it had the full year of 2010 to rise.
• Aurora: this is a risky choice because Aurora was already #217 in 2009, so it doesn't have much room to rise. Still, it is the title character of 2010's most popular telenovela, and telenovela names have a track record of spiking popularity.
• Cecilia: Pam and Jim on The Office named their baby Cecilia. It might not rise very far because SSA counts Cecilia and Cecelia as different names.
• Harlow: All of those androgynous H names are hot right now — Harper, Hadley, etc. I'll take Harlow for +100 spots on the chart.
• Bristol: She won't go away.
• Bonus prediction: Amalia will make the top 1,000 for the first time.

Fastest Rising Names (Boys):

• Archer: debuted in 2009 at #679. Similar-sounding Asher is at #165 and still climbing, so I think Archer will gain ground.
• Bentley: we already saw a dramatic jump (from #940 in 2008 to #518 in 2009) thanks to MTV's Teen Mom Maci and her little Bentley. They were still in the news in 2010 and I think this name will rise even more.
• Jaxton: The Jackson trend is completely out of hand. It's only a matter of time.

Fastest Falling Names (Girls):

• Analia: This was the fastest-rising name for girls in 2009, thanks to a telenovela. I am hoping that it falls back into obscurity, both because it looks like "pertaining to the anus" and because I worry that someone, somewhere, might mistake Amalia for Analia.
• Miley: Miley Cyrus had a bad year, and I think that this name rests on her fortunes. It burst onto the list at a shocking #278 in 2007, peaked at #128 in 2008, and slipped to #189 in 2009. I think it will lose at least 100 places in 2010.
• Yaretzi: big spike last year — must be some celebrity I don't know about

 Fastest Falling Names (Boys):

• Aaden: Jon & Kate are finally off the air. Hopefully, they will take their spelling issues with them.
• Peyton: As it rises for girls, it will fall for boys.
• Jacoby: The Red Sox were terrible last year.

Obscure Biblical Names: Vajezatha

Meet Vajezatha Daniels of Mendon, MA.

I think this goes on the list of names that may have been ok once upon a time, but are not good for the 21st century. See also Urana Daniels.

In the Bible, Vajezatha is another of Haman's sons, killed in the Book of Esther. I've given up trying to understand why New Englanders gave their children the names of people they believed to be the enemies of God. And such horrible names!

Obscure Bible Names Alphabet

A New Names Series

I propose a new series for VPI:

Scraping the Bottom of the Biblical Names Barrell:

an Alphabet

In this series, I will highlight obscure Biblical names given to New Englanders. I may not be able to find examples for all 26 letters, but I will try.

See today's name of the day for the first installment and check back for updates in the future.

A: Abihail

B: Bezer

C: Cozbi
D: Dumah
E: Eliashib
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z

Names of the Day

Jabez Rice of Marlborough, Massachusetts and his wife, Miriam, bore names appropriate for members of the new Israel. When Miriam gave birth to twins on June 27, 1775, she named them John Hancock and Dorothy Quincy Rice, names for the new republic.

source: Boston Gazette, 10 July 1775 

Another Tough Name

Here's another perfectly fine 18th-century name that would cause problems on a modern American playground: Gayer Coffin.

From the Boston Birth Records.

The Children of Elizabeth DePeyster and Charles Willson Peale

The Peale Family, c. 1773, Charles Willson Peale*

Professor Ulrich spoke briefly about the family of Charles Willson Peale in a lecture this week. Here is a list of the 17 children born to Charles Willson Peale and Elizabeth DePeyster Peale:

1. Margaret Jane, b. 1763 (they start out tame)
2. James Willson, b. 1765
3. Eleanor, b. 1770 (names for Charles' mother)
4. Margaret Van Bordley, b. 1772 (ideas?)
5. Raphaelle, b. 1774 (named for Raphael)
6. Angelica Kauffmann, b.1775 (named for Angelica Kauffmann, painter)
7. Rembrandt, b. 1778 (named for Rembrandt van Rijn, painter)
8. Titian Ramsay, b. 1780 (named for Titian and [maybe?] Allan Ramsay, painters)
9. Rubens, b. 1784 (named for Peter Paul Rubens, painter)
10. Sophonisba Augusciola, b. 1786 (named for Sophonisba Augusciola, painter)
11. Rosalba Carriera, b. 1788 (named for Rosalba Carriera, painter)
12. Vandyke, b. 1792 (named for Anthony van Dyke, painter)
13. Charles Linnaeus, b. 1794 (named for Carl Linnaeus, naturalist)
14. Benjamin Franklin, b. 1795 (Franklin merits inclusion among the great scientists and artists)
15. Sybilla Miriam, b. 1797 (named for Maria Sibylla Merian, illustrator and naturalist)
16. Titian Ramsay, b. 1799 (the older brother of the same name died in 1798)
17. Elizabeth DePeyster, b. 1802 (Elizabeth DePeyster Peale died soon after the birth of her youngest daughter).

Gravestone of the Day: Catharine Almy

Catharine Almy, 1743, God's Little Acre, NCBG, Newport, RI

Catharine Almy

wife of Hurrican

Dunbar died

Augst: ye 1st: 1743

Aged about

35 Years.

These stones never cease to astonish me with their concise encapsulation of the cruelties of slavery. Catharine was the wife of a man whose name she could not share. Instead, her surname was the name of the people who owned her. No one knew how old she was, which probably means that she was born in Africa and that Catharine was not the name given to her by her biological family.

See my statement on naming the enslaved here.

Gravestone of the Day: Daniel Whitcomb

Daniel Whitcomb, 1746, Stow, MA

HERE LIES BURIED

Ye BODY OF DANIEL

WHITCOMB SON OF

CORNEl EPHRAIM &

MRS PARTHAIANS

WHITCOMB WHO

DECd SEPTMbr 13th

AD 1746

AGE 1 YEAR

2 M & 2 DS

"Parthaians" is Parthias Wheeler, who married Ephraim Whitcomb in 1731. Her name is also recorded as "Parthiana," but she may well have been named Parthians, as the stone suggests. Any guesses as to why an 18th-century New Englander is named after an ancient kingdom in Iran are welcome. The Parthians are mentioned once in the Bible (Acts 2:9), but the story is about Pentecost, and it is clear that "Parthians" are people from Parthia – it isn't a given name. Is there another Parthia/Parthias/Parthiana in classical literature?

Gravestone of the Day: Orinda Carpenter Hyde

Orinda Carpenter, 1812, East Bridgewater, MA

In Memory of 

ORINDA CARPENTER

Daught. of

Mr. Ephraim &

Mrs. Mary Hyde,

died Dec. 14, 1812;

Aged 7 Years

& 5 Months.

Orinda Carpenter Hyde was named for her maternal grandmother, Orinda (Carpenter) Dresser (b. 1738). Though little Orinda's mother bore the prosaic name of Mary, Orinda the elder had an ecclectic naming style – English, German, biblical, classical/literary, and puritan virtues. Her children were:

• Elfreda (b. 1759)
• Huldah (b. 1761)
• Serena (b. 1764)
• Esther (b. 1766)
• Thomas (b. 1767)
• Nathan (b. 1769)
• Mary (b. 1772)
• Abel (b. 1775)
• Comfort Carpenter (b. 1777) named for Orinda's father, Capt. Comfort Carpenter
• Sally (b. 1779)
• Jonathan (1782)

Orinda was the pseudonym of the 17th-century English poet Katharine Phillips. I do not know why an 18th-century New England family decided to name their daughter after a high-society, Anglican, pastoral poet whose work is best known for its celebration of passionate female friendships. Classical names were all the rage in 1800, but not so common in the 1730s.

Colonial American Names That Would Cause Trouble for a 21st-Century Child

Freelove

Mehitable

Dorcas

Gravestone of the Day: Asenath Tinkham

Asenath Tinkham, Nemasket Hill Cemetery, Middleboro, MA, 1806

Miss Asenath Daughter

of Mr James

Tinkham and Mrs

Chloe his wife

Died the 12 of April

1806 aged 22 years

and 11 Months

Another Asenath.

Gravestone of the Day: Oratio Gaits Lawrence

Oratio Gaits Lawrence, 1778, Groton, MA

Here lies

the Body of

Oratio Gaits

Lawrence (Son of

Capt. Asa Lawrence

& Mrs. Abigail his

wife) who died

Octr. 27th 1778 Aged 4

months & 16 days.

Fresh in ye morn ye sumer rose

hangs Wither'd ere its noon

We scarce injoy ye Balmy gift

But mourn ye Pleasure gone

Why should we look at original gravestones rather than relying exclusively on transcriptions? In most cases, there is an easy answer to that question — the transcription does not preserve the iconography present on the original. Other important aspects of the stone are also lost in transcription — type and quality of stone, size, position, proximity to other stones, etc. A photograph fills in some — but not all — of those holes.

But even with this stone, which has very little embellishment, a transcription would miss some intriguing details. For example, the original omission of the year implies that this stone may have been carved in late 1778 or early 1779, when the carver (or epitaph writer) when the year in question was so obvious that it slipped the writer's mind. That may be overthinking things — perhaps it was just a matter of an eye skipping a line — but it seems much easier to forget to specify the year for a recent event than a distant one.

Young Oratio's name also makes me wonder about the production of this stone. He was obviously named for General Horatio Gates, whose victory at the Battle of Saratoga in October of 1777 made him an American hero. Yet, the carver misspelled both names. Why? If he was working from a written order, the mistake may have originated with the family member or friend who composed the epitaph. If he was working from an oral order, he may have done his best to spell it phonetically. In either case, two things seem to be true: 1) the first try, beginning with "Or-" was not satisfactory and had to be gouged out, resulting in a second spelling that was still wrong, and 2) whoever came up with this spelling knew about Horatio Gates through oral sources, but may never have seen his name spelled correctly. Taken together, these clues indicate that people in Groton were talking about Horatio Gates, but they weren't all reading about him. Perhaps they heard his name when a newspaper was read aloud or when a minister prayed for military success.