Top Old-Timey And Vintage Girl Names That Are Popular Again
Stephen King said it best, “Sooner or later, everything old is new again.” Maybe he wasn’t necessarily talking about baby names, but it applies here. Old-timey names for baby girls are hitting the scene once again.
Many celebs are even naming their daughters old lady names. This includes Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds naming their third daughter Betty. Actors like Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner named their oldest daughter Violet. And George and Amal Clooney named their daughter Ella.
The BabyNames.com founder Jennifer Moss told TODAY.com that the old-timey names trend isn’t going anywhere and that parents should expect preschools filled with “Lucilles, Adelaides, and Mabels.”
The top names for girls in the early 20th century included Mary, Helen, Margaret, Anna, Ruth, Dorothy, and Barbara, according to the Social Security Administration.
Some are calling it the “100-year rule.”
BabyCentre reported that the comeback of vintage baby girls’ names is due to people’s associations with the names. Names that were popular in our parents’ generation are still associated heavily with them. They also say that some parents just want to name their child something different.
Top old-timey names for baby girls.
TODAY.com, along with the help of Moss, compiled a list of the top old lady names for baby girls. If you’re inspired by old-fashioned, vintage names, or just want something unique, then consider these names. At the top of the list is Violet. It’s a vintage name with both a flower and color name. According to Verywell Family, Violet had its “heyday” in the early 20th century.
Following Violet is the name Agatha. Interestingly, there were 136 newborn American girls named Agatha in 2021, the most since 1926, according to MomJunction.
Third on the list is Ida. MomJunction said that it was prevalent in the U.S. in the 1880s. Additionally, they point out that in 1847, Lord Alfred Tennyson wrote a humorous poem called The Princess with Princess Ida as a feminist Victorian-era royal.
Other names on the list include Maude, Lottie, Edith, and Charlotte, among others. Take a look at the full list here.
