Poll
August 13, 2014 § 2 Comments
ORIGIN:
Shortened version of “Polly“, a variant of “Molly“, which is a diminutive of “Mary“. Sometimes used as a diminutive of “Pauline“, “Paulette”, etc.
VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Moll, Mollie, Molly, Paula, Pol, Pola, Pollie, Polly, etc.
REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Family nickname for Polly Branghton, the youngest child of Madame Duval’s (and Evelina’s) cousins, the crude, ill-mannered Branghton clan, in Evelina, or, The History of a Young Lady’s Entrance into the World (1778), by Fanny Burney.
The Art of Literary Nomenclature 
[…] (published in 1847-48, but set in the 1810s-20s).- Polly Branghton (sometimes called “Poll“), the youngest child of Madame Duval’s (and Evelina’s) cousins, the crude, ill-mannered […]
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[…] or “Mary“, through the “Doll” / “Moll” / “Poll” / “Loll” rhyming […]
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