Given name

A given name is a name which specifies and differentiates between members of a group of individuals, especially a family, all of whose members usually share the same family name. A given name is a name given to a person, as opposed to an inherited one – such as a family name^[1]. So, strictly speaking, the term excludes names acquired by other means – such as changing one's name. This article does not generally assume the strict definition.

In most European countries and in countries that have cultures predominantly influenced by Europe (North and South America and Australia), the given name usually comes before the family name (but often not in lists and catalogs), and so is known as a forename or first name (see usage below). But in most cultures of the world, including those in Africa and most of East Asia (for example in Japan, China, Korea and Vietnam), and also in Hungary, the given names traditionally come after the family name. In those cases, even part of the given name may be shared among all members of a given generation in a family and the family's extensions, to differentiate those generations from other generations.

In fact, even in some Western countries, the family name is used last only in writing and formal speech, and the inverse order is still very common in normal everyday speech. In addition, many if not most Western cultures originally used the family name first even in writing and formal speech. Interestingly, most Western credit card companies use the family name first and without a comma. This is in violation of normal spelling rules observed in the West in situations in which it is convenient to list family names first (e.g. in libraries and lists).

Under the common Western naming convention, people generally have one or more forenames (either given or acquired). If more than one, there is usually a main forename (for everyday use) and one or more supplementary forenames. But sometimes two or more carry equal weight (see the list of well-known people known by two or more forenames). Beyond the fact that forenames come before the surname there is no particular ordering rule. For some people the main forename is at the beginning, so they have a first name and one or more middle names. For others nothing comes between the main forename and the surname, so they have a central name and one or more precursory names. It is, of course, also possible for a person to have both precursory and intervening names. (The existence of a list of well-known people in these last two categories perpetuates the popular belief that it is in some way remarkable for the main forename not to be placed first.)

Given names are often used in a familiar and friendly manner in informal situations. In more formal situations the surname is used instead, unless it is necessary to distinguish between people with the same surname. The idiom "on a first name basis" alludes to the fact that using a person's given name betokens familiarity.

Legality

A child's given name or names are usually assigned around the time of birth. In most jurisdictions, the name at birth is a matter of public record, inscribed on the birth certificate or equivalent. In some jurisdictions, mainly civil law jurisdictions such as France or Quebec, the functionary whose job it is to record acts of birth may act to prevent parents from giving the child a name that may cause him or her harm, such as a bizarre or obscene one (in France, by referring the case to a local judge).

Etymology

The etymology of given names includes:

Aspiring personal traits (external and internal). For example, the Japanese name Hiroshi means "generous"[1]. English examples include Faith, Prudence, Augustus, and Fido (The last coming from the Latin for 'faith').
Occupations, for example George means "farmer"[2] and Booker means "bookbinder" or "book-printer"[3]
Circumstances of birth, for example Thomas means "twin"[4], or the Latin name Quintus, which was traditionally given to the fifth child.[5]
Objects, for example Peter means "rock"[6] and Edgar means "rich spear"[7]
Physical characteristics, for example Calvin means "bald"[8]
Form of another name, for example Pauline or Georgia (especially to change the sex of the name)
Surnames, for example Taylor, Hamilton, and Washington
Places, for example Brittany and Lorraine
Time of birth, for example day of the week, as in Kofi Annan, whose given name means "born on Friday," or the holiday on which one was born, for example Natasha, which means "born on Christmas"
Combination of the above, for example the Armenian name Sirvart means "love rose"
Names of unknown or disputed etymology, for example Mary [9].

In many cultures, given names are reused, especially to commemorate the dead (namesake), resulting in a virtually limited repertoire of names that sometimes vary by orthography. And those namesakes, in turn, were often named after biblical characters, except for the name Jesus, which is almost always considered taboo or sacrilegious when used as a given name in Germanic-speaking regions or in Poland. In the Spanish-speaking world, however, Jesús is a very popular name, without any negative implications.

On the other hand, Mary is almost universally popular among Christians, especially among Roman Catholics. This name, however, in most of the Christian world was considered too holy for ordinary people until about the 12th century, and in traditions of particular veneration of Mary (e.g. in Poland, where both Marian and Marianna, forms of Mary, were used instead of Maria) even until the 19th century (in Poland, until the 17th century, with the arrival of queens of France named Marie[10]).

Most common given names in English (and many other European languages) can be grouped into broad categories based on their origin:

Hebrew names are often from the Old Testament. Some have elements meaning "God," especially "El." Examples: Joel, Michael, Elijah, Joshua, Joseph, David, Jeremiah, Rebecca, Adam, Elizabeth, Matthew, James, Benjamin, Hannah, Mary, Sarah, Daniel, John, Susanna, Zechariah, Rachel. There is also a handful of names in use derived from the Aramaic, e.g. Thomas, Martha, Samantha,Bartholomew, Salome.

Germanic names often are warlike in nature, or have roots meaning "glory." The "-bert" element common in many such names comes from beraht, which means "bright." Examples: Albert, Robert, Norbert, Gilbert, Alfred, Adelaide, Edward, Roger, Rosalind, Emma, Gerard, Gertrude, Henry, Eric, Matilda.

French forms of Germanic names. Since the Norman conquest of England, many English given names of Germanic origin are used in their French forms. Examples: Albert, Robert, Gilbert, Charles, Roger.

Celtic names are sometimes anglicised versions of Celtic forms, but the original form may also be used. Examples: Aengus, Alan, Brian, Brigid, Mòrag, Niamh, Conor, Guinevere, Jennifer, Fionnghuala, Donovan, Malcolm, Medb, Eoghan, Gráinne, Ian, Rowan, Kaylin, Bronwen, Gwendolyn, Ryan, Seán. These names often have origins in Celtic words, as Celtic versions of the names of internationally known Christian saints, as names of Celtic mythological figures, or simply as long-standing names whose ultimate etymology is unclear.

Greek names can be derived from the Greco-Roman gods, or may have other meanings. Some may be derived from the New Testament and early Christian traditions. Some of the names are often, but not always, anglicised. Examples: Stephen, Alexander, Andrew, Peter, Gregory, George, Christopher, Melissa, Marina, Margaret, Katherine, Jason, Lucas, Timothy, Sophia.

Latin names can also be adopted unchanged, or modified. Examples: Laura, Victoria, Marcus, Paul, Cecilia, Felix, Francis, Julia, Pascal.

Word names come from English vocabulary words. These are often feminine names, derived from nature, flowers, birds, colors, gemstones, or aspiring traits. Sometimes the spelling of the word is changed for the name. Examples: Lily, Mavis, Amber, Serenity, Sky, Sienna, Sierra, Apple, Ember, Jewel, Jasmine, Coral, Crystal, Laurel, Lotus, Lavender, Lilac, Blaze, Ridge, Jade, Sunny, Summer, Windy, Autumn, Raven, Blue, Brooke, Fawn, Dawn, Daisy, Rose, Iris, Ivy, Harmony, Charisma, Faith, Grace, Hope, Breezy, Rain, Stormy, Scarlett, Lark, Amethyst, Azalea, Cadence, Chance, Indigo, Justice, Maverick, Sage, Savannah, Trey, Violet.

Nicknames Nicknames are often used to distinguish between two or more people with the same given name. Names which are currently in fashion tend to be varied the most. Nicknames are informal forms of names, often made by abbreviating and adding a y. Shortenings reduce the size of a long name, but nicknames can also be the same length as, or even longer than, the original name. Nicknames are often used especially in childhood; in English, Robert may be shortened to Bobby and then Bob. In German the names Johann and Margarete are shortened to Hänsel and Gretel in the famous fairy tale. Examples: Vicky, Bob, Tony, Mike, Laurie, Sasha, Ginger, Annette, Elsa, Steve, Sally, Molly, Luke.

Feminine variations Many masculine names have feminine variations, often multiple ones. Examples: Charlotte, Stephanie, Tamsin, Silvia, Petra, Nicole, Michaela, Phillipa, Jacqueline, Lucy.

Frequently, a given name has versions in many different languages. For example, the biblical Hebrew name Susanna also occurs in its original Hebrew version, Shoshannah, its Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese version Susana, and its French version, Suzanne.

Slavic names are often of a peaceful character, the compounds being derived from word roots meaning "to protect," "to love," "peace," "to praise [gods]," "to give," and so on.

The Chinese and Korean given names are often unique, because meaningful Hanzi and Hanja characters can be combined extensively. However, some parents recycle popular given names as well. The names of famous and successful persons are also reused occasionally. Nevertheless, many Chinese and Korean parents invest a tremendous amount contemplating the names of their newborns before their birth, often with comprehensive dictionaries or with religious guides, formal or informal. Sometimes, especially in traditional families, paternal grandparents are the name-givers. The Chinese language doesn't have a particular set of words that function as given names, which differs from English. Any combination of Chinese characters theoretically can be used as given names, but usually not any combination of English letters are used as given names, which sometimes make Chinese people think that there may be more English-speaking people sharing identical full names than Chinese. This is not the case due to the much larger set of words used as family names in English.

In many urbanized Asian locations, many Chinese also take on an English given name in addition to their Chinese given name. This is also true for East Asian students at colleges in countries like the United States, Canada, and Australia, and people who wish to do business internationally. For example, a Chinese man named "Wuen-lin" might become "Willie" in the USA. It's also interesting to note that when Chinese immigrants or students give themselves English given names, they tend to pick an English given name with the initial letter identical to that of their family name, e.g. a Chinese lady named "Li Ma" might name herself "Mary Ma" or a Chinese man named "Xiaobing Tang" might name himself "Tony Tang." Due to often relatively limited knowledge of English given names, these Chinese people tend to more frequently use some particular English given names; for example, Michael and Lily.^{[citation needed]}

Many female Japanese names, such as Yoko Ono's, used to end in ko (子), which means "(girl-)child." This fell out of favour in the 1980s, and has remained outdated since. As a result, while the vast majority of Japanese women born before 1980 have names ending in ko, it is relatively rare for the younger generation.

Most names are specifically masculine or feminine, but there are many unisex names as well, such as Jordan, Taylor, and Jesse. Often, one gender is predominant.

Popularity distribution of given names

The popularity (frequency) distribution of given names typically follows a power law distribution.

Since about 1800 in England and Wales and in the U.S., the popularity distribution of given names has been shifting so that the most popular names are losing popularity. For example, in England and Wales, the most popular female and male names given to babies born in 1800 were Mary and John, with 24% of female babies and 22% of male babies receiving those names, respectively.[11] In contrast, the corresponding statistics for in England and Wales in 1994 were Emily and James, with 3% and 4% of names, respectively. Not only have Mary and John gone out of favor in the English speaking world, also the overall distribution of names has changed significantly over the last 100 years for females, but not for males. This has led to an increasing amount of diversity for female names.[12]

Influence of pop culture

Popular culture appears to have an influence on naming trends, at least in the United States and United Kingdom. Newly famous celebrities and public figures may influence the popularity of names. For example, in 2004, the names "Keira" and "Kiera" respectively became the 51st and 92nd most popular girls' names in the UK, due to the rise in popularity of British actress Keira Knightley.[13] In 2001, the use of Colby as a boys' name for babies in the United States jumped from 233rd place to 99th, just after Colby Donaldson was the runner-up on Survivor: The Australian Outback.[14]

Characters from fiction also seem to influence naming. After the name Kayla was used for a character on the American soap opera Days of Our Lives, the name's popularity increased highly. The name Tammy, and the related Tamara became popular after the movie Tammy and the Bachelor came out in 1957. Some names invented by authors were established or spread by being used in fiction. Notable examples include Vanessa, created by Jonathan Swift; Fiona, a character from James Macpherson's spurious cycle of Ossian poems; and Wendy, often said to have been created by J. M. Barrie in his play Peter Pan.

Perhaps the greatest example of recent years is Jennifer. The popularity of the 1970 film and novel Love Story, with the character Jennifer Cavalleri, is credited with being the reason the name Jennifer was the number one baby girls' name in the United States from 1970 through 1984.[15]

Kayleigh became a particularly popular name in the United Kingdom following the release of a song by the rock group Marillion. Government statistics in 2005 revealed that 96% of Kayleighs were born after 1985--the year in which Marillion released "Kayleigh."

Emma was the fourth most popular baby name in the United States in 2002 and second in 2003-2005. This rise in popularity (it was #13 in 2001) may be attributed to the climax of the 2001-2002 season of the popular TV show Friends in which Rachel Green (Jennifer Aniston) names her baby daughter Emma.

Popular culture figures do not seem to have to be admirable in order to influence naming trends. For example, Peyton came in to the top 1000 as a female given name for babies in the United States for the first time in 1992 (at #583), immediately after it was featured as the name of an evil nanny in the film The Hand That Rocks the Cradle.[16]

In other instances, names become less common because of negative associations in popular culture. For example, Adolf has fallen out of use since the Second World War.

Twin names

In some cultures, twins may be given distinctive pairs of names. Twin names are sometimes similar in sound, for example boy/girl twins named Christian and Christina or twin girls named Sudha and Subha. The names may have a thematic similarity such as Jesse (or Jessica) and James (named after the American outlaw Jesse James) or Matthew and Mark (named after the first two books of the New Testament in the Bible). The oldest ever female twins, who both died in 2000, were named Kin Narita and Gin Kanie, gold and silver respectively in Japanese.

Name changing

People may change their names for a variety of reasons. In many countries there is a mandatory or voluntary official procedure.

Popular reasons for changing one's name include:

too common or uncommon.
too hard to spell or say.
too long.
too "foreign-sounding".
too "old-fashioned sounding".
one feels that a nickname is more "oneself" than the given name.
is unisex.
is not unisex.
conflicts with one's spiritual belief (popular in Asian countries; and often amongst converts to Islam).
to effect a clean break from the past and make a fresh start.
a family member has the same name.
name is obscene, vulgar or insulting in another language the name's owner later comes to use.
name is too closely identified with someone who became famous or infamous after that person's birth (for instance, Adolf).
to reflect the identity of a transgender person.

References

^ "A name given to a person at birth or at baptism, as distinguished from a surname." according to the American Heritage Dictionary

External links

Social Security online - Baby Names - United States Social Security Administration provides a website where people can search the popularity of names and naming trends in the United States.
Given Name Frequency Project - Analysis of long-term trends in given names in England and Wales. Includes downloadable datasets of names for persons interested in studying given name trends.
U.S. Census Bureau: Distribution of Names Files Large ranked list of male and female given names in addition to last names.
[17] - The Norwegian Bureau of Statistics maintains a service through which one might learn how many people carry a particular name or combination of names (both given and family). It also shows the historical usage of quite a few first names over the past 120 or so years.

Most Popular Names of the 20th Century in United StatesA compilation of the 50 most popular boy's names and girl's names in the United States in the entire 20th century, compiled from Social Security Administration data.

[1] "A name given to a person at birth or at baptism, as distinguished from a surname." according to the American Heritage Dictionary

[1]