Baby Name Basics (2024)

22/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. These kids are the last of the 1936 Buffalo high schoolers. Seems like they lasted forever, but there were so many good names in the bunch (and many I didn't end up using. I'll have to figure out something to do with them!) Rounding out the crew are these lovelies. Meryl Streep is a lovely actress, and I think that's from whom most modern day folks would recognize this name. Why doesn't she have more namesakes? I like this spelling of Lorne, Lourne. Maybe his folks were from somewhere with British rule with that "u"? Anyhow, tell me your thoughts on these and stay tuned for a new decade and city tomorrow!

Meryl Bernadette & Edgar Lourne

21/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. *So, I normally rearrange the names I find if I get the rare first and middle in a yearbook (usually seniors get this honor) and there were a number of them in this yearbook that were too pretty as-is to mess up! Jacqueline Camille was worn by a real person and I think she's just lovely. So chic, so French, so timeless! And I was surprised to see a Huntley born around a decade ago, it seems modern (although I guess the "real" modern spelling would be something like Huntleigh. Please don't do that.)

Jacqueline Camille & Nathan Huntley

20/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. *So, I normally rearrange the names I find if I get the rare first and middle in a yearbook (usually seniors get this honor) and there were a number of them in this yearbook that were too pretty as-is to mess up! Grace Matilda was worn by a real person and I think she's just lovely. This could totally be a modern name! And we can't let Grace have all the fun of being a virtue name, can we? Honor is a wonderful thing to aspire to have!

Grace Matilda & Honor Alphons

19/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. *So, I normally rearrange the names I find if I get the rare first and middle in a yearbook (usually seniors get this honor) and there were a number of them in this yearbook that were too pretty as-is to mess up! Mabel Julia was worn by a real person and I think she's just lovely. So classy! Perfect for a flapper or a modern girl a century later.

Mabel Julia & Warren Gerald

18/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. *So, I normally rearrange the names I find if I get the rare first and middle in a yearbook (usually seniors get this honor) and there were a number of them in this yearbook that were too pretty as-is to mess up! Charity Maybelle was worn by a real person and I think she's just lovely. I remember meeting several Chastitys in my age group when I was younger (where have they all gone?) and many of them had "alternative" spellings, including Chassidy, Chasity, Chasadee....you get the idea. Why weren't there more Charitys? It has a much nicer meaning, in my opinion! Maybe people equate it with charity thrift shops? And Tyril took me down a rabbit hole - it's Old French! It's Scottish! It's Old Norse! If your heritage is Pan-European, check out Tyril.

Charity Maybelle & Tyril Edmund

17/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. So, I normally rearrange the names I find if I get the rare first and middle in a yearbook (usually seniors get this honor) and there were a number of them in this yearbook that were too pretty as-is to mess up! So, June Sarabelle was worn by a real person and I think she's just lovely. Y'all should know by now that I can't resist a good smush name, shout out to Sarabelle! Therlo is interesting. It seems like it was most popular around the time this guy would have been born (1910-20s) although it does have some use in decades before and after. I couldn't figure out *exactly* where it came from, other than Therlo and Thurlow are last names. Perhaps a prominent political figure? Anyone know?

June Sarabelle & Therlo Pierce

16/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. So, I normally rearrange the names I find if I get the rare first and middle in a yearbook (usually seniors get this honor) and there were a number of them in this yearbook that were too pretty as-is to mess up! Priscilla Louise was worn by a real person and I think she's just lovely. I wonder if the recent-ish Elvis movie will give it a boost? Also, I'm crushing on Fernand. He's not quite Ferdinand, not quite Fernando.

Priscilla Louise & Sibley Fernand

15/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. *So, I normally rearrange the names I find if I get the rare first and middle in a yearbook (usually seniors get this honor) and there were a number of them in this yearbook that were too pretty as-is to mess up! So, Rosa Carolyn was worn by a real person and I think she's just lovely. Conrad is just fun to say. Conrad. If you were naming twins and wanted them to have the same first initial, Carolyn Rosa & Conrad Albert would be just as nice!

Rosa Carolyn & Conrad Albert

14/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. Two vintage sweetheart names for this sweetheart of a day. 🌹💝 Doing anything special today?

Tillie Rosemond & Merritt Valentine

13/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. So, I normally rearrange the names I find if I get the rare first and middle in a yearbook (usually seniors get this honor) and there were a number of them in this yearbook that were too pretty as-is to mess up! So, Florence Teresa was worn by a real person and I think she's just lovely. Emil - why hasn't that come back after the resurging popularity of Emily and Emma?

Florence Teresa & Emil Overton

12/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. I think Octavia and Theron could probably be bffs with Honora and August from yesterday. They just give off those stately vibes! Oreste was intriguing to me -- he's the Italian "Orestes" of Greek mythology, and was the name of many notable Italians who were mostly born near the turn of the 20th century.

Octavia Maude & Theron Oreste

11/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. I love these two, and I love these two together! Don't they sound like they would be regal, kind, and fair?

Honora Felice & August Casimir

10/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. Maybe I should have put Zena with Zoltan from yesterday, but maybe the alliteration of two quirky Z names would be too much? Instead you get Ezra, who also has a z, but it's a little tucked away.

Zena Mercedes & Ezra Bertram

09/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. Callista has always seemed so regal to me! And Zoltan is so futuristic yet vintage. Makes me think of the birth of electricity! Couldn't you see little Callista and Zoltan as siblings in a New York high rise?

Callista Helen & Zoltan Archie

08/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. I think these are just some nice, respectable, easy to spell and pronounce names. Classic and classy!

Esther Lucia & Dominic Leo

07/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. This school had a lot of Steph- variation names, I'm guessing from the Polish community in Buffalo. I thought Stephanna was really pretty and a nice update on Stephanie. Pascal is cool - comes with the built in nickname Paz (peace)!

Olive Stephanna & Pascal Raymond

06/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. I'm loving all the -etta names in the yearbook from this time period. I think they'll make a comeback! It's just a matter of time, right? With the popularity of Ella , parents will start picking up Etta, and then all the -etta names will get to see the light of day again. I can dream, right? Saceen is really interesting; the only information I could find of relevance was that his mother was Syrian. Does anyone have further insight?

Tessie Junetta & Saceen Merlin

05/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. Lottie Adelia has soft pretty curls and Basil Gerard is a handsome gent. What do you picture?

Lottie Adelia & Basil Gerard

04/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. Another fancy one, Irissia! From what I could tell, there are at least four generations of Irissias in her family -- can't be too much of a good thing! I like the French Aurore together with her to make a pretty boho sounding full name. And Ignatius is just super duper cool.

Irissia Aurore & Wesley Ignatius

03/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. This school had so many fun names! Zoreldah seems like they couldn't decide between Zora and Zelda, and I am here for the result! I think Thaddeus Greydon would fit right in at a posh nursery.

Zoreldah Pearl & Thaddeus Greydon

02/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. Love me a cute smush name, hi Maryruth! Can't you just picture her in patent leather shoes and thick rimmed glasses. Adorable. And I love the floweriness of Florian, he needed classy Clement to join him!

Maryruth Roma & Florian Clement

01/02/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. Solvay, wow! Apparently this is an Americanized version of Solveig, which has never been very common in America but is pretty widely used in Norway. I'm also digging Renwick, reminds me of the art gallery in D.C. Do you think these names have a chance at being dusted off?

Solvay Marcella & Renwick Elias

31/01/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. Mirba! I thought she was so cute. From what I could find, it's a Persian name, but I'm not sure if any of the random meanings that are attributed to it are correct. Any native speakers who might know? And does anyone think there'll be a rise in the name Orville after the singer, Peck?

Mirba Jean & Orville Atwater

30/01/2023

Names picked from a 1936 Buffalo, NY high school yearbook and rearranged to make new combinations. Autumn Genevieve was actually already someone's first and middle name! She would have been born around 1920. Very forward thinking of her parents!

Autumn Genevieve & Leon Greer

29/01/2023

Names picked from a 1919 West Virginia university yearbook and rearranged. Eulalia is like the female compatriot of Ulysses yesterday - she's well storied. Saints, an opera singer, the leader of a coup, a writer's pseudonym...and the list goes on. A name with history, heft, and elegance: the Anti-Braylee!

Eulalia Hazel & Royal Edwin

28/01/2023

Names picked from a 1919 West Virginia university yearbook and rearranged. Let's talk about Ulysses. It's the Latinized version of "Odysseus," the Greek name that the word "odyssey" comes from. It's the name of a novel. It's the name of a former U.S. president. It has quirky-but-cool nicknames. (Uly, Lys, and even the gender bending Lizzie!) it has small bursts of use here and there, but I think if you're looking for a solid, historical, underused name, Ulysses is one to check out! On another note, how cute would Ada Jo be?

Ada Josephine & Ulysses Isaac

27/01/2023

Names picked from a 1919 West Virginia university yearbook and rearranged. Ione is a pretty rare name, but I think it deserves more awareness! There are several ways people pronounce it; maybe that shies expectant parents from it? eye-OH-nee, ee-OH-nee, eye-OWN...

Lena Ione & Loxley Graham

26/01/2023

Names picked from a 1919 West Virginia university yearbook and rearranged. Although I'm not usually a fan of misspelled names, I feel like Valorie doesn't exactly count. Valerie may be the most widely accepted version of the name, but they both come from the same root word that gives us valor, "valere" (Latin).

Clara Valorie & Nathaniel Fairfax

25/01/2023

Names picked from a 1919 West Virginia university yearbook and rearranged. Eloise is too cute, I'm glad it's gaining in popularity! I may also be biased because I had a cat named Eloise.

Eloise Bonnie & Paxton Lyle

24/01/2023

Names picked from a 1919 West Virginia university yearbook and rearranged. Apparently Lalah is a Bulgarian name that means "Tulip," but I think it was also used in the olden days as a nickname for Eulalia. Anthony Clement was another name that was too perfect and classy to deconstruct!

Lalah Frances & Anthony Clement

Baby Name Basics