E | The Art of Literary Nomenclature

Elly

August 16, 2014 § 1 Comment

ORIGIN:
Diminutive of “Ella“, “Eleanor”, “Ellen”, etc., or of names ending in “-ella” or “-elle”, etc.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
El, Ella, Elle, Ellie, Elsa, Elsie, Elsy, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Elly Dunbar (sometimes called “Ella“), a refined girl, somewhat inclined to be priggish, one of the founding members of the children’s society for the prevention of cruelty to cats in “The Kit-Kat Club”, and reluctant participant in the plan to open a shop to sell doll’s clothes, in “The Little Dunbars, and Their Charming Christmas Plans”, from The Youngest Miss Lorton, and Other Stories by Nora Perry (1889).

Em

August 16, 2014 § Leave a comment

ORIGIN:
Shortened form of “Emma“, “Emmy“, “Emily“, and other names beginning with “Em-“.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Amie, Amy, Ema, Emma, Emme, Emmalyn, Emelina, Emeline, Emmaline, Emmeline, Emmie, Emmy, Ima, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Em Mayo, poor little Jessie Mayo’s little sister, one of the girls Doctor Tom tells the story of Sylvie to, in “The Story of Little Syl”, from The Youngest Miss Lorton, and Other Stories by Nora Perry (1889).

Evelina

August 13, 2014 § Leave a comment

ORIGIN:
Variant of “Evelyn” or “Aveline”, from the Germanic “Avila”, possibly meaning “desired one”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Aileen, Ava, Avalina, Avaline, Avalyn, Avelina, Aveline, Avelyn, Avila, Eileen, Eva, Evalina, Evaline, Evalyn, Eve, Eveline, Evelyn, Evie, Evita, Evvie, Evvy, Lena, Lina, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Evelina Anville, the naive and unspoiled young lady whose “entrance into the world” is told, through a series of letters, in Evelina, or, The History of a Young Lady’s Entrance into the World (1778), by Fanny Burney.

Endurance

August 12, 2014 § Leave a comment

ORIGIN:
One of the “virtue” names created by the Puritans, meaning, you know, “endurance”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
I don’t think there are any variations, unless you count all of the other “virtue” names (“Faith”, “Hope”, “Charity”, “Patience”, etc.). As for nicknames . . . whatever. You do what you want.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Endurance Frome, Ethan’s mother, whose death left him lonesome enough to turn to his cousin Zenobia for comfort, in Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome (written in 1911, but set in the 1890s or first few years of the 1900s).

Ethan

August 12, 2014 § 5 Comments

ORIGIN:
From Hebrew, meaning “firm” or “enduring”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Eathon, Eitan, Eten, Eth, Ethe, Ethen, Eytan, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Ethan Frome, the luckless, careworn farmer of the title in Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome (written in 1911, but set in the 1890s or first few years of the 1900s).
– Ethan Frome, Sr., who frittered away what little wealth the family had, leaving his wife and son to a hardscrabble existence, in Ethan Frome.

Edith

August 11, 2014 § 4 Comments

ORIGIN:
Old English / Germanic, meaning “rich war” or “blessed war”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Eadie, Edie, Editha, Edita, Edyth, Edytha, Edythe, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Edith, Maud Hallett’s aunt, who took her to Paradise Valley one summer, in A Little Country Girl (1885), by Susan Coolidge.
– Edith Beers, the audacious and scandalous heiress who jilts her fiancé Dick Brisbane for his friend Fred Ottenburg, in The Song of the Lark by Willa Cather (written in 1915 and set in the 1890s).
– Edith Elliott, Dolly’s best friend, in “Dolly Varden”, from The Youngest Miss Lorton, and Other Stories by Nora Perry (1889).

WRITERS:
– Edith Carter (fl. 1920s-1930s), English actress and playwright.
– Edith Hamilton (1867-1963), German-American educator and author.
– Edith (E.) Nesbit (1858-1924), English author and poet.
– Edith Pearlman (b. 1936), American short story writer.
– Edith Wharton (1862-1937), American author and designer.

QUOTATIONS:
– From “The Children’s Hour” (1859), by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: “From my study I see in the lamplight, / Descending the broad hall stair, / Grave Alice, and laughing Allegra, / And Edith with golden hair.”

Ethel

August 7, 2014 § 2 Comments

ORIGIN:
Germanic, meaning “noble”.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Adele, Adell, Ethelina, Etheline, Ethelinda, Ethelinde, Ethelyn, Ethelynne, Ethyl, Ethyle, Etta, Ette, Ettie, Etty, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Ethel Amory, the somewhat spoiled, impetuous young lady who wastes a trip to Europe on frivolity, in “Poppies and Wheat”, from A Garland for Girls, by Louisa May Alcott, 1887.
– Ethel Curtis, Berry Joy’s friend, in A Little Country Girl (1885), by Susan Coolidge.

WRITERS:
– Ethel M. Dell (1881-1939), English novelist and short story writer.
– Ethel Mannin (1900-1984), English novelist and travel writer.
– Ethel Brilliana Tweedie (1867-1940), English journalist and travel writer (as Mrs. Alec Tweedie).
– Ethel Lilian Voynich (1864-1960), Irish novelist and musician.
– Ethel Lina White (1876-1944), English author.

Eva

August 6, 2014 § 1 Comment

ORIGIN:
Alternately spelled “Ava”, the Latin form of “Eve”, from Hebrew, meaning “breath” or “life”. Sometimes used as a diminutive of “Evangeline”, “Evelyn”, etc.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Ava, Chava, Chavah, Eabha, Efa, Eve, Eveline, Evelyn, Evie, Evita, Evvie, Evvy, Hava, Havva, Hawa, Yeva, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Eva, a young guest of Mrs. Warburton’s, rather inclined to be helpful, in “Pansies” from A Garland for Girls, by Louisa May Alcott, 1887.
– Eva Nelson, a kind, thoughtful girl, who wants to do good in the world but doesn’t know how, in “A Little Boarding-School Samaritan”, from Nora Perry’s A Flock of Girls and Boys (1895).
– Eva Randal, an older girl who Anna Winslow emulates by reading to the working-class girls at the Union in “May Flowers”, from A Garland for Girls.

WRITERS:
– Eva Ibbotson (1925-2010), English novelist.

Ella

August 6, 2014 § 4 Comments

ORIGIN:
From the Germanic “Alia”, meaning “all” or “other”. Sometimes used as a nickname for “Eleanor“, “Ellen“, names ending in “-ella” or “-elle”, etc.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
El, Elle, Ellie, Elly, Elsa, Elsie, Elsy, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Ella Carver, member of the Mayflower Club in “May Flowers”, from A Garland for Girls, by Louisa May Alcott, 1887.
– Ella Dunbar (sometimes called “Elly“), a refined girl, somewhat inclined to be priggish, one of the founding members of the children’s society for the prevention of cruelty to cats in “The Kit-Kat Club”, and reluctant participant in the plan to open a shop to sell doll’s clothes, in “The Little Dunbars, and Their Charming Christmas Plans”, from The Youngest Miss Lorton, and Other Stories by Nora Perry (1889).

AUTHORS:
– Ella Wheeler Wilcox (1850-1919), American author and poet.

Emma

August 4, 2014 § 10 Comments

ORIGIN:
Germanic, meaning “universal”, or “nurse”. Sometimes used as a diminutive of “Emily“, “Emilia”, etc.

VARIATIONS and NICKNAMES:
Em, Ema, Emmalyn, Emelina, Emeline, Emmaline, Emmeline, Emmie, Emmy, Ima, etc.

REFERENCES IN LITERATURE:
– Emma Crawley, one of the Rev. Bute Crawley’s daughters in Vanity Fair, by William Makepeace Thackeray (published in 1847-48, but set in the 1810s-20s).
– Emma Knightley, the youngest of John and Isabella’s two daughters, the baby of the family, in Jane Austen’s Emma (1815).
– Emma Woodhouse, “handsome, clever, and rich” young match- and mistake-making heroine of Emma.

AUTHORS:
– Emma Goldman (1869-1940), Russian-American activist and writer.
– Emma Lazarus (1849-1887), American poet.

Where Am I?