old christian names


Recommended Posts

  • Replies 82
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Top Posters In This Topic

Popular Posts

Daughter registered the baby today,..Seth..Benjamin,...which takes the name Benjamin back thru....me,Dad,Grandad,Great Grandad and Great Great Grandad,...................to 1870s,................Great

My brother George was born on St George's day, my other brother Andrew was born on St Andrews day. I'm just glad I wasn't born on pancake day.

1995 would not have been a good year for you either Kath! WTFi Alice?

Re the above, it was Nearest and Dearest with Hylda Baker and Jimmy Jewell and Pledges Pickle factory !

As someone with an interest in family history , strange christian names are a godsend ! It can make tracking someone via various census etc so much easier .

If I get lost trying to sort out my Janney relos from Lincolnshire I just go back to one with the fairly rare name of Solomon and I know where I am then .

  • Upvote 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

Biblical names, and Jesus is probably the most popular, are very common among the Hispanic community.

My aunt was "Marinah" - a name she hated so was always called "Maude" - her middle name.

Don't hear of may Alf's or Reg's these days.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I absolutely hate my first name with a passion (and I'm not about to tell you it). My first supervisor on the railway was called Horatio. We all called him Ray.

Link to post
Share on other sites

In Africa I worked with an "Ephraim", but also with an "Oily Can" - Honest!

Nobody has mentioned Inspector Morse - first name, "Endeavour" - I don't think I would have used it either!

Link to post
Share on other sites

Another chap I worked with on the railway was called Naphtali (one of the sons of Biblical Jacob), and yet another was called Asa. He told me he was actually named after 60s footballer Asa Hartford who was probably named after the old testament king Asa.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Hi Eric, was it really Oily Can (i.e. written like that) or was that phonetic rendering of, perhaps, Oerlikon - which would be unusual enough in itself? I had a colleague whose middle name was Ephraim - and he didn't care much for it! Funnily enough, however, I do know a 7-year old Alfie. Another name you don't hear much these days (but perhaps never did anyway!) - Athelstan.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Working for the Indian Clinic I got used to names that would make me laugh at first but then the came to be quite normal

Like..................... First to dance

............................ Mighty Dog

............................ Two hat

Have to go through my invoices to remember more.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Yep, it really was "Oily can", but a lot of the locals had names like that. Mostly they also had a Swazi name, but they do not translate to English very well, so they would pick and English name for themselves - often with funny results, but they seemed to take the humor in the right spirit!

My wife had a girl in school whose name was "Female", pronounced "Fem-ah-lee". When Mary asked how she got the name, the replay was "the nurses gave it to me in the hospital"! No, I am NOT joking!

  • Upvote 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

My grandmother and her mother were both Fanny. Wonder who would dare give their daughters a name like that today!

In France Fanny is still given to children, but it does not have a second meaning like in the UK, some other old names are Agnes, Gertrude, Violet, Walter, Gladys, Rose, Edna,

Link to post
Share on other sites

Another chap I worked with on the railway was called Naphtali (one of the sons of Biblical Jacob), and yet another was called Asa. He told me he was actually named after 60s footballer Asa Hartford who was probably named after the old testament king Asa.

I could be wrong here, but I always understood Asa Hartford was named after Al Jolson, whose real first name was Asa, as Hartford's father was a fan of the singer.

On that theme - although not an unusual name - I used to work with a Kathryn who was given that name (so she said) because her father was a fan of the film star and singer Kathryn Grayson.

Link to post
Share on other sites

my great grandfather was enoch and his wife was fanny there was an ebeneser and a fefew other biblical names in that familly tree too.

my great nephew is nearly 18 and his christian names are are malichi amedeaus aragorn his older brother is connor arathorn and younger sister molly arwen

jesus is also a popular names in some parts of africa i have met at least 4 two where from the congo and two from nigeria.

  • Upvote 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

In France Fanny is still given to children, but it does not have a second meaning like in the UK, some other old names are Agnes, Gertrude, Violet, Walter, Gladys, Rose, Edna,

In France Fanny is still given to children, but it does not have a second meaning like in the UK, some other old names are Agnes, Gertrude, Violet, Walter, Gladys, Rose, Edna,

How did you manage to pick a selection of names like that? My Fathers sisters name was Edna Rose, Edna being female for Edward, he had a sister named Doris Violet, and a Sister-in-law named Gladys. I had a Great Grandfather named Walter. You almost covered my entire family tree in one post!

  • Upvote 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

my great nephew is nearly 18 and his christian names are are malichi amedeaus aragorn his older brother is connor arathorn and younger sister molly arwen

With Aragorn, Arathorn and Arwen it sounds like someone was keen on 'Lord of the Rings' - maybe the book rather than the films if they're that old.

Link to post
Share on other sites

My dad wanted to call me Alice Maud, mam said not bloody likely. I would have stuck out like a sore thumb at school in the 50's, but Alice is quite nice nowadays.

  • Upvote 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

In France Fanny is still given to children, but it does not have a second meaning like in the UK, some other old names are Agnes, Gertrude, Violet, Walter, Gladys, Rose, Edna,

How did you manage to pick a selection of names like that? My Fathers sisters name was Edna Rose, Edna being female for Edward, he had a sister named Doris Violet, and a Sister-in-law named Gladys. I had a Great Grandfather named Walter. You almost covered my entire family tree in one post!

They are the names of either my grand children or the names of my neighbours children....

Link to post
Share on other sites

My dad wanted to call me Alice Maud, mam said not bloody likely. I would have stuck out like a sore thumb at school in the 50's, but Alice is quite nice nowadays.

Preferably pronounced the French way.

Baz :ninja:

Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...