Elisabeth Okasha’s book Women’s Names in Old English details close to 300 female names from Anglo-Saxon England. Most names were chosen from two words, such as bregu (ruler), wif (woman) and cynn (family).
The website Medievalists.net has selected their 10 favorite female names, including:
Blaedswith (Blædswiþ) – from splendour and strong
Cwenhild – from woman and war
Cynewise – from family and wise
Click through to see the rest of the list!
Phoebe Cates and her husband Kevin Kline
Dr. Cleveland Evans writes about names for the Omaha World-Herald. In his October 24th column, he looks at the history of the names Kevin.
The actor Kevin Kline turns 70 today. Kevin is the English form of Cáemgen, ancient Irish Gaelic for “beautiful birth.” In the sixth century, former hermit St. Kevin founded a large monastery in Glendalough, Ireland. Legend says a blackbird laid an egg in one of Kevin’s outstretched hands when they were raised in prayer, and he held it until it hatched.
In the late 19th century, the name Kevin was revived by Irish nationalists. By 1900, it was common in Ireland, though still rare among Irish-Americans. It was used only by recent Irish immigrants and a few highly educated parents with Irish ancestry — such as the wealthy Seattle father of actor Kevin McCarthy (1914-2010).
Want to know more? Read on to find out more about Kevins in history!
Tom Saunders, a researcher at the University of Auckland, said he wanted to show that the wasp, which he named after the Lucius Malfoy character in the JK Rowling books, is not as evil as its reputation suggests. Despite the insect’s fearsome reputation, New Zealand’s 3,000 species of native parasitoid wasps do not sting and do not live in colonies.
“I used the name Lusius malfoyi because Malfoy is a character in the books with a bad reputation who is ultimately redeemed and I’m trying to redeem the reputation of our native wasps,” said Mr Saunders.
After years of debate, a U.S. government board has voted to rename Utah’s Negro Bill Canyon, overruling a recommendation by Utah officials to keep the name. The U.S. Board on Geographic Names decided to rename it Grandstaff Canyon to get rid of an offensive name.
The new name honors black rancher and prospector William Grandstaff, whose cattle grazed there in the 1870s. “His name was Grandstaff; it was not Negro Bill,” said Wendi-Starr Brown, a member of the federal board who is Native American. “I’m pretty sure that’s not how he wanted to be addressed in life.” Brown is a member of the Narragansett Indian Tribe who represents the Bureau of Indian Affairs on the federal board.
A year ago, the federal Bureau of Land Management changed signs to say “Grandstaff Trailhead” instead of “Negro Bill” trailhead. “I think we have to look forward,” said federal board member Elizabeth Kanalley, manager of National Geospatial Services at the Forest Service.
Husky dogs hitched up on Mawson’s expedition 1911-14. (Frank Hurley)
The Antarctic Place Names Committee is naming 26 islands, rocks, and reefs after the beloved dogs, that were a crucial part of Australia’s heroic era of ice exploration a century ago, and had a role into the 1990s. The dogs were all on Douglas Mawson’s Australasian Antarctic Expedition (AAE) of 1911-14, but the naming is a tribute to all the huskies that underpinned Australian exploration in the icy continent.
Rod Ledingham detailed “the fine art of dog driving” in a manual and in lectures, to countless Australian Antarctic expeditioners and scientists from the 1970s, after training and running teams for the UK. Mr. Ledingham said dogs had been critical to exploring the Antarctica, up until they were removed in 1994.
“Most of the leaders were female,” he said. “There was even a team of all ladies, it was called ‘The Ladies’, 11 females that were a very good team.”
Pauli Murray
The debate over the naming of two new colleges at Yale University began in earnest in fall 2015. With racially charged protests sweeping college campuses across the country, the as-yet-unnamed construction sites by Science Hill emerged as a litmus test for Yale’s commitment to diversity: Would the University seize the opportunity to honor a woman or person of color, students asked, or choose another dead white man as a college namesake?
In the end, Yale did both. The college closest to Science Hill was named after Anna Pauline Murray LAW ’65, a queer black activist who co-founded the National Organization for Women. But to the dismay of student protesters, the second college was named in honor of the founding father Benjamin Franklin — a writer and inventor who also owned slaves.
Read this article at the Yale Daily News to find out more about the controversy over the names.
Tanya Tucker
Dr. Cleveland Evans writes about names for the Omaha World-Herald. In his October 10th column, he looks at the history of the names Tanya and Tonya.
Tanya is a pet form of Tatyana, the Russian form of Tatiana. Tatiana comes from the Roman family name Tatius. In Roman legend, Titus Tatius was king of the Sabines. He attacked Rome after its founder, Romulus, abducted Sabine women. The war was a draw, and Tatius and Romulus ruled Rome jointly.
Russians rarely use Tanya as a full name, but it gradually spread west through literature. In 1882, French author Henry Gréville (Alice Durand), who set many novels in Russia, published “Tania’s Peril.” In 1920, Tchaikovsky’s opera “Eugene Onegin,” with its aria “Ah, Tanya, Tanya,” had its U.S. premiere at New York’s Metropolitan Opera.
Tanya doesn’t appear in U.S. Census records until 1880. In 1940 there were 644 women named Tanya or Tania in the census, 21 percent of whom were born in Russia. Russian Tanya is pronounced “TAHN-yuh.” Many Americans look at its spelling and want to say the first part like the word “tan.”
That’s how Tanya Tucker herself says it. Tucker’s mother found the name in a Texas newspaper birth announcement for a local banker’s daughter. The Tuckers assumed the “tan” pronunciation.
Want to know more? Read on to find out more about Tanyas and Tonyas in history!
Amazon wants to establish a new corporate hub, currently called HQ2, and some cities are pulling out all the stops to entice the Seattle-based giant to their state. The Stonecrest, Georgia City Council has voted to de-annex 345 acres of land if Amazon picks them – and on top of that, they’ll name the new city Amazon.
“There are several major U.S. cities that want Amazon, but none has the branding opportunity we are now offering this visionary company,” said Stonecrest Mayor Jason Lary. “How could you not want your 21st century headquarters to be located in a city named Amazon?”
Is this just the 21st century version of a company town? Read this article at AJC.com to find out more.
You might know that many auto brands are named after the founders (Ford, Honda, Suzuki, Peugeot), but do you know the origin of the name Audi? Alfa Romeo? Isuzu? Check out this article at the UK site CarKeys to find out the story behind these famous brands.
With the ascension of hip-hop in popular music, brand references have became a shorthand for aspiration and status. According to Bloomberg’s research, over the past three years Rolls-Royce or the name of a Rolls-Royce product was mentioned in 11 top-20 songs on the Billboard Hot 100. A few artists who mention Rolls in their popular songs include Quavo, Future, The Weeknd, and Kodak Black.
Ferrari came in a close second, with nine songs mentioning its supercars. Porsche tied with Hennessy, each with seven shout-outs, while Lamborghini and Chevrolet tied for six. Bentley, Cadillac, and Mercedes-Benz all tied, along with Jordan Brand, Rolex, and Xanax, with five mentions. Head over to the Bloomberg article to find out more about how brands feature in today’s hits and why Rollers are still king.
