Rare Names: The 21-25 Range (Girls)

Since my list posts seem to be so popular, I will continue raiding the 2014 data for unusual names until the SSA releases the 2015 info.  I was going to write a post on the unusual names in the 21-30 range, but apparently there were so many I’ve had to split them into two separate entries.  Remember, these are actual first names used in the U.S. two years ago.

The 21-25 range is where we start to see a lot of older names that used to be very popular, like Cornelia and Ethel.  Indeed, many of these names will appear familiar to you as you read them.  There are fewer “discomforting” names among this set than in lower ranges, but they’re there.  Perhaps the prime example here would be the appearance of the name “Aryan.” 

25: Adelaida, Alvina, Amelya, Amory, Anberlin, Anoushka, Camber, Cornelia, Diem,  Elektra, Elowen, Eulalia, Havanna, Hayat, Hayzel, Jezebel, Jody, Joya, Kansas, Mairead, Mamie, Marcie, Minna, Nautica, Orly, Rosina, Shai, Tennyson, Thelma, Windsor, Zelie

24: Aaleah, Aberdeen, Adaeze, Angelin, Antonina, Arwyn, Ashna, Aurea, Betsaida, Brayden, Brittish, Cashmere, Deirdre, Eevee, Ellowyn, Elowyn, Gwenivere, Harleyquinn, Imelda, Inga, Kabella, Lelia, Lita, Monzerrat, Nandini, Orion, Parisa, Renezmae, Riva, Saffron, Shanley, Tavia, Truth, Verena, Yamilex

23: Adabella, Aleksa, Amilliana, Anastasiya, Aryan, Aster, Avital, Barbie, Blessin, Catharine, Ciel, Dionne, Dolly, Eleonora, Elspeth, Evolette, Ezmae, Getsemani, Giabella, Gweneth, Hafsah, Irena, Janina, Joanie, Kemper, Kia, Kimbella, Klaudia, Lakshmi, Lee, Lovina, Lyrical, Maelle, Maybelle, Rosabelle, Rosaria, Shauna, Shealyn, Sophy, Tahirah, Tennessee, Tigerlily, Ursula, Yashika, Ysabel

22: Adel, Alishba, Anouk, Armonie, Azara, Beyonce, Candelaria, Caprice, Catori, Cerys, Chisom, Clarabelle, Dorcas, Dulcemaria, Gioia, Gwendolen, Harnoor, Heavenleigh, Jazzmyn, Jewelz, Kashmir, Kharma, Leidy, Leta, Mable, Marsha, Mattea, Melaina, Mithra, Mumtaz, Nevada, Nicolina, Nixon, Odyssey, Oliviana, Peggy, Promyse, Quincey, Richelle, Ruchy, Rut, Sheryl, Talulah, Torah, Vega, Verona, Wanda, Zoelle

21: Alexianna, Analucia, Arizbeth, Assata, Ayelet, Barrett, Breeze, Callahan, Chasidy, Copeland, Cosima, Devine, Emelina, Esmerelda, Ethel, Fae, Faustina, Germany, Goddess, Gypsy, Isabeau, Isolde, Jazzelle, Justus, Kaylianna, Laramie, Legaci, Matilde, Mccartney, Mele, Merry, Nicoletta, Persia, Prim, Ravenna, Shelley, Stormi, Teal, Tricia, Tuesday, Wrigley, Wylie, Yetzali, Zephyr, Zita, Zlata

Comments:

• 23 girls name Aryan…Yikes!  Some of these might be attributed to the current popularity of Arya, but I can’t help but be reminded of those parents who lost custody of their kids because everyone discovered the baby son was named “Adolf Hitler”…his sister was named something like “Aryan Nation.”  If you’re interested in reading more about names that have caused custody-losses, check out this older article that I wrote here.
• Anberlin – Isn’t that a band?
• Diem – These are all first names here, not middle names.  My inner Latin student is twitching because Diem is accusative case, not nominative.  In more lay terms, this means that Diem (which means “day”) is a direct object.  As in: “something verbs the day.”  If it were nominative (Dies instead of Diem), this would be the subject, i.e. “day verbs something.”  I’m going to call this Schrödinger’s Name, because in an existential sentence the person is subject and direct object at the same time. 
• Elowen, Ellowyn, and Elowyn – Elowen is a very modern Cornish name.  I’m surprised to see so many spellings of such a rare name with about equal usage, but I will say that Elowen has been creeping up for a few years now.  It’s a trendy name, however rare. 
• Arwyn – Americans really like their “-wyn” endings.   If Tolkien based Arwen on feminine Welsh names when he created it, then these parents just found its masculine form.
• Harleyquinn – Holy Batman!
• Tennyson – I’ve been seeing this a lot lately, actually.  Unisex.
• Shai – I realize this is probably a variation of Shea or Shay, but it looks more like a transliteration of the Arabic word for “tea.” 
• Kimbella – “Bella” names are really popular right now, but Kim fell out of fashion a while ago.  Makes me wonder about Kardashian influence…
• Tigerlily – One of the most unusual flower names I’ve seen.  Surprising how much more popular it is right now than Petunia or Lilac! 
• Chisom – Is there a reason why everyone’s using a phonetic spelling of Chisholm instead of Chisholm?  Pop culture, maybe?
• Odyssey – No idea why this is used as much as it is.  Journey is popular though; maybe the parents were bored with that and searched a thesaurus?
• Isabeau and Isolde – Medieval throwbacks.  Awesome! 
• Matilde – I like this name, but it constantly reminds me of that Guy de Maupassant story we had to read in high school about a misplaced necklace.
• Shelley – Frankenstein!  That is all.
• Wrigley – Found the baseball fans.
• Mccartney – These are probably McCartneys, but the data doesn’t show if letters beyond the first were capitalized. 
• My favorites: Adelaida, Alvina, Anoushka, Cornelia, Elektra, Elowen, Eulalia, Minna, Antonina, Imelda, Adabella, Avital, Catharine, Dionne, Eleonora, Elspeth, Lee, Maelle, Maybelle, Rosabelle, Tahirah, Candelaria, Cerys, Clarabelle, Dorcas, Gwendolen, Melaina, Vega, Cosima, Emelina, Ethel, Faustina, Isabeau, Isolde, Matilde