Got to wondering about this while reading here recently.
Anybody know how the first name 'Bailey' got its relatively recent start? The U.S. 'baby names' site (http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/babynames/) shows it reaching the top 1000 girls' names in 1983 and peaking in the 1990's. It shows up as a boys' name in 1993.
(Only Bailey that I was aware of growing up was a male pro basketball player named Bailey Howell, born (according to Wikipedia) in 1937.)
Frequently a name moves up the charts because of a prominent fictional character (for example, Allison MacKenzie of television's Peyton Place in 1965; Luke Skywalker of Star Wars in 1978-80) or a celebrity (Annette and Darlene in the Mickey Mouse Club days; Whitney and Britney more recently). Anybody know if Bailey fits into that category? I don't know of anyone myself.
Eric
Bailey Quarters in WKRP in
Bailey Quarters in WKRP in Cincinnati --played by Jane? Smithers? from LA. Kinda tall redhead that should have been given better parts in the series. One of 4 female actors in the series, she was overshadowed by Loni Anderson's character. Ironically, it was suggested by someone that she was (her character) TS but I couldn't find anything out about it other than the silly rumor.
CaroL
Always Liked The Name ;)
For some reason I always identified with her character more than any other on that show. Maybe something to do with being thin and bespectacled, and maybe a bit smarter than my coworkers?! Slightly less well-endowed?LOL!;0
I'm sure Freud woud have plenty to say about my current partner's name!!!
Love And Hugs,
Bailey Summer's Cuter Half!;D
[email protected]
Thanks, Carol...
That's what I was looking for.
I found it interesting that the jump onto the chart didn't come until the network run had ended and people started seeing the reruns in syndication five days a week.
Along those lines, there was a modest increase in the name Ginger after Gilligan's Island went into daily reruns, though nothing like the one from Ginger Rogers about 25 years earlier. No way to tell about Mary Ann; since it's two words, the site doesn't cover it.
Eric
Names get confused
There is a 'glamour model' (pronounced 'glammuh moddoo') in the UK whose working name is 'Jordan'. An American friend, on seeing her son's female schoolmate christened Jordan after said moddoo, rhetorically asked why a parent would give a girl a boy's name. I wanted to ask why any parent would give their child a place name, but bit my tongue.
To a British view, a lot of names popular in America are surnames arther than traditional forenames, and Bailey is no exception. It means someone who holds a particular rank. Times change, though. What does get me twitchy a little are those parents who hear a name, and then gives it an original spelling. So...Alicia becomes Eleishya, Siobhan becomes Shivawn, and so on. And when did the Gaelic for 'John' become a girl's name?
Answers own question...
Web says it was unisex. Oops.
Most unisex names start out
Most unisex names start out as male names. At some point, enough people start giving what had been a boy's name to a girl, and it becomes associated with girls, too. I can't think of any examples that went the other way (i.e. An exclusively girl's name that becomes popular with boys, and thus unisex).
Well, neither can I exactly...
But I can think of a few that have sort of traded places.
Lauren used to be exclusively male, it started getting more popular for girls, until eventually it became rather uncommon for males and associated almost entirely with girls.
There're others, but they escape me at the moment.
Abigail Drew.
Going the other way
Not so much in terms of popularity, but one notable couple (hint: he's fairly good at kicking balls, she's a darling of the fashion industry and used to sing a bit) did give one of their boys a name usually associated with girls - although their reasoning was apparently due to where they were staying during conception...
As the right side of the brain controls the left side of the body, then only left-handers are in their right mind!
But even Brooklyn (assuming
But even Brooklyn (assuming that's the name you mean) is a unisex name, that's historically applied to both boys and girls. While it might be more common for girls, these days, it wasn't always.
Mary and Eve
The only two women's names I can think of that became men's names are Mary and Eve, both of which are fairly common male names, by derivation or different spelling, in non-English speaking countries.
Hugs,
Erin
= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.
Religious connection
I think that it might be a thing done in christian countries, particularly Catholic ones, although it might be just a Spanish or Portuguese subset of those, perhaps.
A lot of boys in Spain, Mexico etc. seem to get names like "Jesus-Maria" or other funky combinations which sound odd, especially to a UK ear. Then you get nuns called "Sister Matthew"... I suppose it all adds to the gender-blurring fun, doesn't it?
Penny
Talking of odd names...
Mercifully, looking at the various ONS releases of baby name statistics, there's no sign of Brooklyn, Romeo, Cruz, Harper, Harvey, Junior, Princess, Fifi or Peaches in any year following the births of those celebrity offspring (offspring of The Beckhams (x4), Katie Price (x3) and Bob Geldof (x2) respectively). At least the Beckhams chose relatively sane middle names for their boys - unlike the girls who ended up with Seven, Tiaami, Trixibelle and Honeyblossom...
Incidentally, Brooklyn is normally a girl's name, so evidently someone forgot to give the Beckhams the memo... :)
As the right side of the brain controls the left side of the body, then only left-handers are in their right mind!
And very few named Moon Unit,
And very few named Moon Unit, too, fortunately.
Or (sticking with that one)
Dweezil.
That's my dog's name!
'Cause he's the color of Bailey's Irish Cream.
Mr. Ram
Little Kids Kamp
Bailey is the name of a female puppy owned by Rich, Jenner and Cathlene of Little Kids Kamp (see "The Easter Story" by Maggie the Kitten aka Maggie O Malley)
At least there are no Talibans
A lot of names are changing gender, especially those that seem more last names than first names.
I think that, at least in the US, that people are going more by the sound of the name than any history or real associations.
And why not?
It's not only names
which change gender or meaning, don't forget the word girl meant a child in English about two hundred years ago and wasn't gender specific. Mind you in those days all young children wore dresses until they were six or seven. So what's the Daily Wail making such a fuss about?
Angharad
Fuss?
These people depress house prices and give you cancer. Their story is too shocking to tell (continued pages 3-11, 15, 18-25 and pull-out photo supplement)
for me
Bailey is a family name, surname that is!
It derives from the post of Bailiff although it may relate to a castle dweller too. Was down where my rels lived in the 18/19th century at a place called, yep, Bailey down near Ross on Wye.
I'm not sure why you'd name your daughter after a wooded hillside, its okay but not greatly beautiful! May as well call them Stick or Branch!
Mads
Madeline Anafrid Bell
my name
is gender non specific . it could be male or female, dog or cat, and can be spelled many ways .i have always liked it and have no trouble as its just a good name. my parents were going to call me Neil thank god they changed their minds. come to think of it i know of a lama that has the same name as me . i take it you want to know what it is huh ok its Casey (giggles) . yes i to also know of the Bailey name as it was a good friends last name .Jerry Bailey sleep well dear friend and ride the highways of heaven with the sun on your face.
Boys with Girl's Names
I was just reading something about this as I was googling it to help Koz with a story.
In this article there is mention of a boy named Jessica
http://www.city-data.com/forum/parenting/646707-boys-girls-n...
equally fascinating are the cases where a boy has a name like Courtney, Tracy, or Kelly
http://www.4forums.com/political/general/8433-boys-girls-nam...
I was considering giving a boy in a story a unisex-almost girls name, but to me it softens the TG element. That is why I ha dto thin k really hard for name that would transition for my Bad Girl to Good Boy Story -- hence -- Chrissie to Chris to Christopher.
Trap
There is a Bailey Pickett,
There is a Bailey Pickett, played by Debby Ryan, on a popular Disney show named Suite Life on Deck. I don't know if the show is still running new episodes, or if it's over, but she was one of the main characters.
There are also a lot of sports players with the last name Bailey.
I don't know if it's extremely popular, but I see it a lot as a last name, more than a first name. It has been around a long time as a last name though.
Being a rather straight derivative of the position of Bailiff, it would be more suitable for a boy, rather than a girl. It's actually a strong name when you consider what a Bailiff is/was, which is a steward or custodian with quite a bit of authority. They were in charge of overseeing quite a bit of the castle and/or estate in medieval times.
For a girl, I think it just sounds pleasant. It's not exactly typical, so there is a bit of uniqueness to naming a girl Bailey. And I personally think it has just enough femininity to it to be used as a girl's name. Mostly I attribute that to the fact it ends with an "ee" sound, making it lighter like Jenny, Mary, or Becky, etc. Could almost compare it directly to Haley, or Kaylee in sound.
I just know that it's worked for me, either way you want to look at it. :P
~Bailey
~Taylor Ryan
My muse suffers from insomnia, and it keeps me up at night.
Variations on Names by Gender
Then there is also the spelling variations that flip a name from masculine to feminine.
Naturally there is Francis and Frances. But then we have the case of my friend Koz, who's real first name is Tony. He has taken to spelling it Toni. He has not really taken any grief over it and just seems to enjoy people's reactions which at times have seen him referred to as a girl in spite of being in guys clothes and having a somewhat deeper voice.
However, there have been times, he has told me that when registering for something and saying his name the person will write Toni or ask 'with a y or an i' much to his amusement. This happens more often with women than with men/
Trap
Baily (The Name)
Perhaps the most frequent miss-application is the name Caitlin often miss-pronounced as Katelyn. It is in fact the Irish spelling for the name Kathleen. The first four letters are abbreviated to the pet-name Cait which is pronounced as Kate
Baily (The Name)
A motte-and-bailey castle is a fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised earthwork called a motte, accompanied by an enclosed courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade. I went to a school that had it's own castle strangely enough Also every one of those names that I saw in the previous posts were Irish surnames. Happy St. Patrick's day to you all.
2 others that are unusual
John Marion Wayne. ( yup, the Duke's full name )
Burgess Meredith. ( Mickey in the rocky movies, the Penguin in the original Batman tv series. )
Marion is an unusual name for a guy, and Burgess Meredith sounds like it is last name, first name for a woman.
Stupidity is a capital offense. A summary not indictable.
We remember
A famous sportsman with the the forenames Stanley Michael Bailey.
Teri Ann
"Reach for the sun."