Patches of Names

The first month of summer evokes sunny days, beach trips, and lots of cooling off. Its name of June is shocking, considering the namesake had nothing to do with summer.  The Roman god Juno ruled over marriage, women, and finance; she did not rule over summer. Besides, the sixth month of the year originally had a different name. The Anglo-Saxons referred to it as lide se ærra , meaning "early mildness." It was not until the later Middle Ages when the Romans renamed the month June after the god. The reason is not known, but it probably has to do with Juno's perpetual youthfulness. June became a first name centuries after she became a month, as part of the Victorian craze for nature names (yes, these include months). However, being a month alone does not make June a "nature name;" instead, she is a calendar name in the same realm as May and Sunday.  Anyway, June first ranked in the American top 1000 through 1986, peaking in the top 100 between 1915 and 1941. She be...

"Vintage" names are not a fixed style; the names that passed thirty years ago now feel modern, dated, or are back to being merely classics.  It is difficult to pinpoint when a name loses its "vintage" charm, especially with generational differences in consideration. For instance, Millennials did not grow up with many Charlottes and Amelias, making these names sound vintage to them. Generation Alpha children will not think the same.  However, many parents have met multiple small children by the time they have their second or third child. If many of these girls share the names Charlotte and Amelia, their vintage charm might wear off.  Yet, I list multiple girls' names below that I can say, for sure, are no longer vintage. They have been back in the top 100 for at least twenty years, long enough for these names to become more common among mothers: Audrey (reentered 2002, peaked at #33 2013) Ella (reentered 2002, top 20 2008-2021) Emma  (reentered 1993, top 10 since...