1890s | The Art of Literary Nomenclature

Marjory

August 22, 2014 § 3 Comments

ORIGIN:
Alternate spelling of “Margery” / “Marjorie”, a medieval English version of “Margaret“, influenced by the name of the herb “marjoram”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Madge, Mae, Maisie, Maisy, Mame, Mamie, Margaret, Margareta, Margaretha, Margarethe, Margarita, Margaux, Marge, Margery, Margie, Margit, Margy, Margo, Margot, Marguerite, Marji, Marjorie, May, Mayme, Maymie, Meg, Megan, Megeen, Megen, Meggie, Meggy, Meta, Metta, Midge, Mim, Mimi, Mimsie, Mimsy, Mysie, Jorey, Jori, Jorie, Peg, Pegeen, Peggie, Peggy, Peigi, Reeta, Rita, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Marjory, a village woman who loses her reason after her man falls from a cliff, in “Nurse Crumpet Tells the Story” (written in 1887, set circa 1630s-1669), from A Brother to Dragons, and Other Old Time Tales (1888), by Amélie Rives.
– Marjory Pebble, a little girl who lives near the Lemons, in “The Farrier Lass o’ Piping Pebworth” (written in 1887, set circa 1600), from A Brother to Dragons, and Other Old Time Tales.

WRITERS:
– Marjory Stoneman Douglas (1890-1998), American activist, journalist, and writer.
– Marjory Wardrop (1869-1909), English scholar and translator.

Margaret

August 22, 2014 § 15 Comments

ORIGIN:
From the Latin “Margarita”, derived from the Greek word “margarites”, meaning “pearl”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Greet, Griet, Greta, Gretchen, Grete, Gretel, Grethe, Gretta, Maarit, Madge, Mae, Mag, Maggi, Maggie, Maggy, Maighread, Mairead, Maisie, Maisy, Mame, Mamie, Mared, Maret, Marga, Margaid, Margalo, Margareeta, Margareta, Margaretha, Margarethe, Margaretta, Margarit, Margarita, Margaux, Marge, Marged, Margery, Margherita, Margie, Margit, Margy, Margo, Margot, Margreet, Margrethe, Margriet, Margrit, Marguerita, Marguerite, Marita, Marjeta, Marji, Marjorie, Marjory, Marketa, Marketta, Marsaili, May, Mayme, Maymie, Meg, Megan, Megeen, Megen, Meggie, Meggy, Mererid, Merete, Meta, Metta, Midge, Mim, Mimi, Mimsie, Mimsy, Mysie, Peg, Pegeen, Peggie, Peggy, Peigi, Reeta, Rita, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Lady Margaret of Amhurste, Lord Robert’s brave and strong-willed twin sister, who saves the wild, cavalier Lord Denbeigh, in “A Brother to Dragons” (written in 1886, set in 1586), from A Brother to Dragons, and Other Old Time Tales (1888), by Amélie Rives.
– Margaret Dashwood, the third Dashwood sister, “a good-humoured well-disposed girl; but as she had already imbibed a good deal of Marianne’s romance, without having much of her sense, she did not, at thirteen, bid fair to equal her sisters at a more advanced period of life”, in Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility (set between 1792-1797, published in 1811).
– Margaret Pelham (called “Peggy“), a simply-dressed, sweet girl who experiences a case of mistaken identity, in “That Little Smith Girl” from Nora Perry’s A Flock of Girls and Boys (1895).

WRITERS:
– Margaret Atwood (b. 1939), Canadian activist, critic, essayist, novelist, and poet.
– Margaret Blake (1921-1995), pen name of English mystery and romance author Barbara Margaret Trimble, who also published under the pen names “Barbara Gilmour” and “B.M. Gill”.
– Margaret Major Cleaves (b. 1946), American romance author who also publishes under the pen name “Ann Major”.
– Margaret Gibson (b. 1944), American poet.
– Margaret Gibson (1948-2006), Canadian novelist and short story writer.
– Margaret Millar (1915-1994), American-Canadian mystery author.
– Margaret Mitchell (1900-1949), American novelist.
– Margaret Oliphant (1828-1897), Scottish novelist and historical writer.
– Lady Margaret Seymour (1540-????), English writer.
– Margaret Truman (1924-2008), American historian, novelist, and singer.
– Margaret Wilson (1882-1973), American novelist.

Anthony

August 22, 2014 § 4 Comments

ORIGIN:
English version of the Roman last name “Antonius”, meaning unknown. It has been sometimes linked to “anthos”, meaning flower, but that’s Greek, so probably not the original meaning.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Akoni, Anakoni, Andon, Andony, Antal, Antanas, Ante, Anto, Antoine, Anton, Antonello, Antoni, Antonie, Antonij, Antonije, Antonio, Antonis, Antonius, Antono, Antony, Antoon, Doncho, Teun, Teunis, Theun, Theunis, Ton, Tone, Tonci, Toni, Tonino, Tonio, Tonis, Tono, Tony, Toon, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Anthony Butter (called “Tony“), the gardener at Amhurste Hall, who narrates “A Brother to Dragons” (written in 1886, set in 1586), and is made fun of by Humfrey Lemon and Bered Turnip for his envy of their large broods, in “The Farrier Lass o’ Piping Pebworth” (written in 1887, set circa 1600), from A Brother to Dragons, and Other Old Time Tales (1888), by Amélie Rives.
– Anthony Styles, the shoemaker who passes Sibyl’s message on, in “Sibyl’s Slipper”, a story of the American Revolutionary War, from Nora Perry’s A Flock of Girls and Boys (1895).

WRITERS:
– Anthony Armstrong (1897-1976), Anglo-Canadian writer, dramatist, and essayist.
– Anthony Bailey (b. 1933), English writer and art historian.
– Anthony Browne (b. 1946), English children’s book writer and illustrator.
– Anthony Burgess (1917-1993), English writer and composer.
– Anthony Gilbert (1899-1973), one of the pen names of English novelist Lucy Beatrice Malleson.
– Anthony Horowitz (b. 1955), English novelist and screenwriter.
– Anthony Powell (1905-2000), English novelist.
– Anthony Trollope (1815-1882), English novelist.

Philip

August 21, 2014 § 2 Comments

ORIGIN:
From the Greek “Philippos”, meaning “friend of horses”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Felip, Felipe, Filib, Filip, Filippos, Filippus, Flip, Phil, Phillip, Philippe, Philippos, Pilib, Pip, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Philip Canning, the narrator of “The Portrait” (1885), from Stories of the Seen and Unseen by Mrs. (Margaret) Oliphant.
– Rev. Mr. Philip Elton, the handsome and seemingly-agreeable vicar of Highbury, who turns out to be rather conceited and inconsiderate, in Jane Austen’s Emma (1815).
– Philip Frederick Ottenburg (called “Fred“), the dynamic young brewing heir who launches Thea’s operatic career, in The Song of the Lark by Willa Cather (written in 1915 and set in the 1890s).

WRITERS:
– Philip K. Dick (1928-1982), American essayist, novelist, philosopher, and short story writer.
– Philip Freneau (1752-1832), American editor, poet, and polemicist.
– Philip Latham (1902-1981), pen name of American astronomer and science fiction author Robert S. Richardson.
– Philip Pullman (b. 1946), British fantasy author and playwright.
– Philip Roth (b. 1933), American novelist.
– Philip Van Doren Stern (1900-1984), American author, editor, and historian.

Tillie

August 18, 2014 § 1 Comment

ORIGIN:
Alternate spelling of “Tilly“, diminutive of “Matilda“, meaning “strength in battle” or “mighty battle-maid”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Malta, Mathilda, Mathilde, Matilda, Matilde, Mattie, Matty, Maud, Maude, Maudie, Tilda, Tilde, Tilly, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Tillie, Mrs. Rosenfeld’s niece who works in the dining room at Mrs. McKee’s boarding-house, and who is courted by the already-married Mr. Schwitter, in K. by Mary Roberts Rinehart (1914).
– Tillie Kronborg, Thea’s eccentric aunt and biggest fan, in The Song of the Lark by Willa Cather (written in 1915 and set in the 1890s).

WRITERS:
– Tillie Olsen (1912-2011), American activist and writer.

Nancy

August 17, 2014 § 6 Comments

ORIGIN:
Medieval diminutive of “Annis”, or of “Ann” / “Anne” (via “Nan“).

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Ann, Anne, Annie, Anny, Nainsi, Nan, Nancie, Nana, Nance, Nandag, Nanette, Nanice, Nanine, Nannie, Nanny, Nanse, Nansi, Nansie, Nansy, Nenci, Nensi, Neske, Nest, Nesta, Nina, Ninette, Ninon, Nona, Nonna, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Aunt Nancy, who might be a fallback matron for Hope should something happen to Mrs. Bell, in “What Hope Bell Found in Her Stocking”, from The Youngest Miss Lorton, and Other Stories by Nora Perry (1889).
– Nancy Creighton, John’s quiet and withdrawn wife, “amiable, but aloof to the friendly Creightons” in Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt (1964; set during the American Civil War, 1861-1865).
– Nancy (Annie) Ridd (sometimes called “Nanny“), John’s favorite sister, a sweet little homemaker, in Lorna Doone, by R.D. Blackmore (written in 1869, set in the 1670s-1680s).
– Nancy (Anne) Steele, Lucy’s well-intentioned but empty-headed ninny of an older sister, a woman of “vulgar freedom and folly”, in Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility (set between 1792-1797, published in 1811).

WRITERS:
– Nancy Boyd (1892-1950), pen name of American poet and playwright Edna St. Vincent Millay.
– Nancy Cato (1917-2000), Australian activist and writer.
– Nancy A. Collins (b. 1959), American horror novelist.
– Nancy Farmer (b. 1941), American author and children’s book writer.
– Nancy Garden (1938-2014), American author.
– Nancy Holder (b. 1953), American novelist.
– Nancy Huston (b. 1953), Canadian essayist and novelist.
– Nancy Kress (b. 1948), American sci-fi writer.
– Nancy Milford (b. 1938), American biographer.
– Nancy Meyers (b. 1949), American director, producer, and screenwriter.
– Nancy Mitford (1904-1973), English biographer, journalist, and novelist.
– Nancy Oliver (b. 1955), American playwright and screenwriter.
– Nancy Pickard (b. 1945), American crime novelist.
– Nancy Brooker Spain (1917-1964), English broadcaster, columnist, and journalist.
– Nancy Springer (b. 1948), American author.
– Nancy Werlin (b. 1961), American author.
– Nancy Willard (b. 1936), American novelist, poet, and children’s book writer and illustrator.

QUOTATIONS:
– From “Wages“, by Norman Rowland Gale: “Because I bowed / content, I fancy, / He gave me you / for wages, Nancy!”

Hannah

August 17, 2014 § 10 Comments

ORIGIN:
From the Hebrew name “Channah”, meaning “favor” or “grace”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Aina, Ana, Anabel, Anabela, Anabell, Anabella, Anabelle, Anais, Anca, Ane, Aneta, Ania, Anica, Anika, Aniko, Anita, Anja, Anka, Anna, Annabel, Annabela, Annabell, Annabella, Annabelle, Annabel, Anne, Annetta, Annette, Anneli, Anni, Annica, Annick, Annie, Annika, Anniken, Annikki, Annukka, Annushka, Annuska, Anny, Anushka, Anya, Chanah, Channah, Hana, Hanna, Hanne, Hannele, Hania, Hena, Henda, Hendel, Hene, Henye, Jana, Janna, Joanna, Joanne, Johanna, Johannah, Nainsi, Nan, Nancie, Nancy, Nanette, Nannie, Nanny, Nina, Ninon, Ona, Onna, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Hannah, a houseservant at the Elliston’s, in “Major Molly’s Christmas Promise” from Nora Perry’s A Flock of Girls and Boys (1895).
– Hannah, the servant in the Rivers household, in Jane Eyre, 1847, by Charlotte Bronte.
– Hannah, “a civil, pretty-spoken girl”, housemaid at Randalls and daughter of Mr. Woodhouse’s coachman, James, in Jane Austen’s Emma (1815).
– Aunt Hannah, who might be a fallback matron for Hope should something happen to Mrs. Bell, in “What Hope Bell Found in Her Stocking”, from The Youngest Miss Lorton, and Other Stories by Nora Perry (1889).

WRITERS:
– Hannah Arendt (1906-1975), German-American political theorist and writer.

QUOTATIONS:
– Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s “Elizabeth” (published in 1873, but set in 1701-02; from Tales of a Wayside Inn, Part the Third: The Theologian’s Tale) tells the love story of John Estaugh (1676-1742) and Elizabeth Haddon (1680-1762), with her servants Joseph and Hannah as supporting characters, and Hannah described thusly: ” . . . Hannah the housemaid / Laughed with her eyes, as she listened, but governed her tongue, and was silent, / . . . Hannah the housemaid, the thrifty, the frugal . . . / . . . for a season was silent the penitent housemaid; / . . . Nothing was heard for a while but the step of Hannah the housemaid / Walking the floor overhead, and setting the chambers in order. / And Elizabeth said, with a smile of compassion, ‘The maiden / Hath a light heart in her breast, but her feet are heavy and awkward.’ / . . . Hannah the housemaid, the homely, was looking out of the attic, / Laughing aloud at Joseph, . . . / . . . Hannah the housemaid / Diligent early and late, and rosy with washing and scouring, / Still as of old disparaged the eminent merits of Joseph, / And was at times reproved for her light and frothy behavior, / For her shy looks, and her careless words, and her evil surmisings, / . . . And not otherwise Joseph, the honest, the diligent servant, / Sped in his bashful wooing with homely Hannah the housemaid; / For when he asked her the question, she answered, ‘Nay;’ and then added: / ‘But thee may make believe, and see what will come of it, Joseph.'”

Sylvia

August 16, 2014 § 2 Comments

ORIGIN:
Alternate spelling of “Silvia”, feminine form of the Latin name “Silvius”, meaning “of the forest”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Silva, Silvia, Silvie, Silviya, Silvy, Syl, Sylva, Sylvi, Sylvie, Sylwia, Szilvia, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Sylvia (Sylvie) Lamonte (called “Syl“), the “little dryad that had slipped from some rose-tree’s bark” who Doctor Tom cures, in “The Story of Little Syl”, from The Youngest Miss Lorton, and Other Stories by Nora Perry (1889).

WRITERS:
– Sylvia Plath (1932-1963), American poet, novelist, and short story writer.
– Sylvia Townsend Warner (1893-1978), English novelist and poet.
– Sylvia Wright (1917-1981), American editor, humorist, and writer.

Theodore

August 15, 2014 § 7 Comments

ORIGIN:
From the Greek “Theodoros”, meaning “gift of God”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Fedir, Fedor, Fedya, Feodor, Fyodor, Tad, Taddie, Taddy, Ted, Teddie, Teddy, Tedo, Teo, Teodor, Teodoro, Theo, Theodor, Theodoros, Theodorus, Todor, Toshe, Tudor, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Theodore, Ray Kennedy’s deceased chum, in whose honor he nicknames Thea “Thee”, in The Song of the Lark by Willa Cather (written in 1915 and set in the 1890s).
– Theodore Brocklehurst, one of the children of the formidable and hypocritical supervisor of Lowood Institute, in Jane Eyre, 1847, by Charlotte Bronte.
– Theodore Ingram (called “Tedo“), Blanche and Mary’s brother, one of the elegant people who make up Mr. Rochester’s social set, in Jane Eyre, 1847, by Charlotte Bronte.
– Mr. Theodore Shaffer (known as “Teddy“, and later “Ted“), who found his long-lost ship captain father while working in a paper mill, in “In a Rag-Bag”, from The Youngest Miss Lorton, and Other Stories by Nora Perry (1889).

WRITERS:
– Theodore Dreiser (1871-1945), American novelist and journalist.
– Theodore Seuss Geisel (1904-1991), American writer, poet, and cartoonist, most famous for his work under the pen name “Dr. Seuss”.
– Theodore Roethke (1908-1963), American poet.
– Theodore Taylor (1921-2006), American author.
– Theodore H. White (1915-1986), American journalist and historian.

Tommy

August 15, 2014 § 1 Comment

ORIGIN:
Like “Tom“, a diminutive of “Thomas“, the Greek form of the Aramaic for “twin”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Tam, Thom, Tom, Toma, Tomas, Tommie, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Tommy Harrison, Carlotta’s touring minstrel father, in K. by Mary Roberts Rinehart (1914).
– Tommy Lambert, whose generous choice inspires Elsie, in “The Thanksgiving Guest”, from Nora Perry’s A Flock of Girls and Boys (1895).
– Tommy O’Flaherty, a denizen of Pump Court, in “In a Rag-Bag”, from The Youngest Miss Lorton, and Other Stories by Nora Perry (1889).

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