BOY NAMES | The Art of Literary Nomenclature

Mark

August 14, 2014 § Leave a comment

ORIGIN:
Variant of “Marcus“, from a Roman last name derived from Mars, the god of war.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Marc, Marcas, Marco, Marcos, Marcus, Marek, Markie, Marko, Markos, Markus, Marky, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Mark Burney, Prescott Burney’s father, an investor in the Good Luck silver mines, in “The Youngest Miss Lorton”, from The Youngest Miss Lorton, and Other Stories by Nora Perry (1889).
– Mark Tourin, Marty’s older brother, who aspires to be just like Howard Cosell, in Sleeping Arrangements, by Laura Cunningham (published 1989, set in the 1950s).

WRITERS:
– Mark O’Brien (1949-1999), American activist, journalist, and poet.
– Mark Rutherford (1831-1913), pen name of English civil servant, translator, and writer William Hale White.
– Mark Twain (1835-1910), pen name of American humorist, journalist, lecturer, and novelist Samuel Langhorne Clemens.
– Mark Van Doren (1894-1972), American poet, writer, and critic.

Prescott

August 14, 2014 § Leave a comment

ORIGIN:
Old English place name, meaning “priest’s cottage”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Prescot, Prestcot, Prestcott.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Prescott Burney, a young man who, unfortunately, believes Dolly Lorton’s idle gossip, resulting in trouble for the Lorton family, in “The Youngest Miss Lorton”, from The Youngest Miss Lorton, and Other Stories by Nora Perry (1889).

Richard

August 14, 2014 § 4 Comments

ORIGIN:
Germanic, meaning “strong ruler” or “brave power”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Dickey, Dickie, Dickon, Dickson, Dicky, Dicun, Dix, Dixon, Rhisiart, Ric, Ricard, Ricardo, Rich, Richie, Rick, Rickey, Rickie, Ricky, Rico, Ritchie, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Richard, a cousin of the two Miss Steele’s, who stay with his family in their London home in Bartlett’s Buildings, in Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility (set between 1792-1797, published in 1811).
– Sir Richard Blewitt, a local magistrate in Lorna Doone, by R.D. Blackmore (written in 1869, set in the 1670s-1680s).
– Richard de Lindsay, one of Sir Peter and Lady Constance’s two sons, in The Door in the Wall (written in 1949 and set sometime between 1327-1377), by Marguerite de Angeli.
– Mr. Richard Lorton, whose failure to teach his youngest daughter to curb her chattering results in much trouble for the whole family, in “The Youngest Miss Lorton”, from The Youngest Miss Lorton, and Other Stories by Nora Perry (1889).
– Richard Mason (called “Dick“), Bertha Mason’s brother, in Jane Eyre, 1847, by Charlotte Bronte.

WRITERS:
– Richard Allen (1922-1993), pen name of Anglo-Canadian pulp novelist James Moffat, who also published under the pen names of “Etienne Aubin” and “Trudi Maxwell”.
– Richard Bach (b. 1936), American writer.
– Richard Cargoe (1911-1983), pen name of Cornish biographer, historian, lecturer, novelist, poet, and professor Robert Payne, who also used the pen names “Howard Horn”, “John Anthony Devon”, “Robert Young”, and “Valentin Tikhonov”.
– Richard Hugo (b. 1947), pen name of English author Jim Williams, who also publishes as “Alexander Mollin”.
– Richard Lovelace (1618-1657), English poet.
– Richard Matheson (1926-2013), American author and screenwriter.
– Richard Price (b. 1949), American novelist and screenwriter.
– Richard Pryor (1940-2005), American actor, comedian, critic, director, and writer.
– Richard Raine (1923-2006), pen name of English author Raymond Sawkins, who also wrote under the pen names “Colin Forbes”, “Harold English”, and “Jay Bernard”.
– Richard Russo (b. 1949), American author and screenwriter.
– Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751-1816), Irish playwright and poet.
– Richard Wilbur (b. 1921), American poet.
– Richard Wright (1908-1960), American writer and poet.

Charley

August 14, 2014 § 1 Comment

ORIGIN:
Alternate spelling of “Charlie“, a diminutive or feminine form of “Charles“, meaning “man”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
For girls: Carla, Carlotta, Carola, Carolina, Caroline, Charlize, Charlotta, Karla, Karola, Karolina, Let, Lettie, Letty, Lotta, Lotte, Lottie, Lotty, Tot, Tottie, Totty, etc.
For boys: Carl, Carlos, Carroll, Charlie, Charles, Chas, Chaz, Chick, Chip, Chuck, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Charley, Red Milton’s amiable, impudent assistant at the newspaper, in Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt (1964; set during the American Civil War, 1861-1865).
– Charley Aplin, a snobbish, bragging boy from a snobbish, bragging family, in “Esther Bodn”, from Nora Perry’s A Flock of Girls and Boys (1895).
– Charley Freer, a member of Jim Lorton’s boating club, in “The Youngest Miss Lorton”, from The Youngest Miss Lorton, and Other Stories by Nora Perry (1889).
– Charley Kronborg, Thea’s second-oldest brother in The Song of the Lark by Willa Cather (written in 1915 and set in the 1890s).

WRITERS:
– Charley Chase (1893-1940), American actor, comedian, director, and screenwriter.
– Charley Rogers (1887-1956), English actor, director, and screenwriter.
– Charley Rosen (b. 1941), American author and coach.
– Charley Trujillo (b. 1949), Mexican-American editor, filmmaker, novelist, and publisher.

Pierre

August 13, 2014 § Leave a comment

ORIGIN:
French version of “Peter“, from Greek, meaning “stone”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Boutros, Peadar, Pedro, Pejo, Petri, Petruccio, Petruchio, Petrus, Piero, Pierrot, Piers, Piet, Pieter, Pietro, Piotr, Peer, Per, Pere, Pero, Pyotr, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Pierre Baudouin, the art critic and lecturer whose attention makes all the difference in Esther’s life, in “Esther Bodn”, from Nora Perry’s A Flock of Girls and Boys (1895).
– Monsieur Pierre Du Bois, Madame Duval’s friend from France, who falls in love with the wrong woman, in Evelina, or, The History of a Young Lady’s Entrance into the World (1778), by Fanny Burney.

WRITERS:
– Pierre Barbet (1925-1995), one of several pen names used by French author Claude Avice.
– Pierre Loti (1850-1923), pen name of French novelist and naval officer Julien Viaud.

Arthur

August 13, 2014 § 4 Comments

ORIGIN:
Possibly Celtic, meaning “noble” or “king”, or “bear-hero”, or from Norse, meaning “Thor’s eagle”, or from a Roman last name. No one really knows. Your guess is as good as mine. Unless you are very, very bad at guessing, in which case, mine might be a little bit better.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Art, Artair, Arther, Arthie, Arthy, Artie, Arto, Artur, Arturo, Arty, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Rev. Mr. Arthur Villars, guardian to both Evelina and her mother, Caroline, in Evelina, or, The History of a Young Lady’s Entrance into the World (1778), by Fanny Burney.

WRITERS:
– Arthur C. Clarke (1917-2008), English writer, inventor, and explorer.
– Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930), Scottish author.
– Arthur Miller (1915-2005), American essayist and playwright.
– Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch (1863-1944), English critic and writer.
– Arthur Ransome (1884-1967), English author and journalist.
– Arthur Stone (1931-2015), pen name of American crime author Ann Rule, who also published as “Andy Stack” and “Chris Hansen”.
– Arthur Stringer (1874-1950), Canadian novelist, screenwriter, and poet.

Jotham

August 12, 2014 § Leave a comment

ORIGIN:
Hebrew, meaning “Jehovah is upright” or “Jehovah is perfect”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Yotam . . . and . . . that’s it, I guess.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Jotham Powell, the Frome’s hired man, in Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome (written in 1911, but set in the 1890s or first few years of the 1900s).

Andrew

August 12, 2014 § 5 Comments

ORIGIN:
From the Greek “Andreas”, meaning “man”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Aindreas, Aindriu, Ander, Anders, Andi, Andie, Andor, Andre, Andrei, Andres, Andrea, Andreas, Andrius, Andro, Andrus, Andy, Deandre, Drew, Ondre, Ondrei, Ondreas, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Brother Andrew, one of the monks at St. Mark’s, in The Door in the Wall (written in 1949 and set sometime between 1327-1377), by Marguerite de Angeli.
– Andrew Hale, Ned’s father, a builder who frequently does business with Ethan, in Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome (written in 1911, but set in the 1890s or first few years of the 1900s).

WRITERS:
– Andrew Clements (b. 1949), American children’s book writer.
– Andrew Davies (b. 1936), English novelist and screenplay writer.
– Andrew Gross (b. 1952), American novelist.
– Andrew Murray (1828-1917), South African pastor, teacher, and writer.

Orin

August 12, 2014 § 1 Comment

ORIGIN:
Alternate spelling of “Oran” / “Orrin“, from Irish, meaning “little pale green one”, or of “Oren”, from Hebrew, meaning “pine tree”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Odran, Odrhan, Oran, Oren, Orren, Orrie, Orrin, Orry, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Orin Silver, Mattie’s ne’er-do-well father, in Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome (written in 1911, but set in the 1890s or first few years of the 1900s).

Matt

August 12, 2014 § 2 Comments

ORIGIN:
Shortened form of “Mattie” / “Matty” or “Matthew“.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
For girls: Maddi, Maddie, Maddy, Madge, Mart, Martie, Marty, Mat, Matti, Mattie, Matty, Maud, Maude, Maudie, Midge, Pat, Patti, Pattie, Patty, Tilda, Tilde, Tillie, Tilly, etc.
For boys: Mat, Mattie, Matty, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Matt (Matthew) Creighton, Ellen’s husband and Jethro’s father, a well-respected farmer of integrity and compassion, in Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt (1964; set during the American Civil War, 1861-1865).
– Matt (Mattie) Silver, Zeena’s attractive young cousin who comes to stay with the Fromes, in Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome (written in 1911, but set in the 1890s or first few years of the 1900s).

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