We all recall the brouhaha following the birth of Gwyneth Paltrow’s daughter Apple. But at least one fruit has been a respectable name for girls for generations. It is a tale that begins in ancient Rome, travels to a palace in Belgium, to the wilds of the American West and eventually to the gardens of an orphanage in Algeria. And yes, from there to a supermarket produce aisle near you.
ApMtn is indebted to Elisabeth for suggesting today’s Name of the Day: Clementine.
At the dawn of Christianity, Clement was the name taken by several early leaders of the church, including Pope St. Clement I. It may be derived from a family name – St. Clement of Alexandria, for example, was born Titus Flavius Clemens. Several variants of this surname remain common throughout the West.
What’s certain is that Clement is from the Latin for merciful and gentle. It’s an appealing meaning, especially for parents looking for alternatives to Grace and Hope. And while the first use of a feminine version of Clement is lost to history, it’s likely that it was well-established centuries before the next stop in our story.
Fast-forward hundreds of years to a palace in Belgium. Princess Clementine of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha was born in 1872. If that unwieldy place name sounds familiar, it’s probably because her cousin, Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, had married Queen Victoria back in 1840. Clementine went on to marry Prince Victor Napoleon in 1910, and if not for some trifling matters of state, might have become Empress of France.
The romance between the princess and the pretender to the throne was widely reported, almost certainly adding to the popularity of the name in the US.
But the princess alone wasn’t responsible for the name’s use. In 1880, the first year for which Social Security data are available, Clementine was the 376th most popular name for girls born in the US – not Mary, but far more popular than Ava or Abigail.
In the 1880s, in the American West, Percy Montrose penned the lyrics to Oh My Darling, Clementine, a mournful ballad about a lovely girl. Odds are you know the refrain; perhaps you’ve forgotten that most of the verses are about the hapless Clementine’s death by drowning. It’s been a staple in the Boy Scout songbook ever since.
Early in the 20th century clementines began to grow on trees. As it turns out, the link between the personal name and the citrus fruit is purely coincidental. In 1902, Father Clement Rodier discovered the hybrid growing the gardens of his orphanage in Algeria, then a French colony. He dubbed the new fruit a clementine, and a few years later they made their way to the US.
There’s one more Clementine to mention in our whirlwind tour: Clementine Churchill, wife of Winston Churchill, known for her leadership in the Red Cross and YWCA during World War II and as a steadfast and loyal partner to her husband.
It’s far more history than we expected to discover attached to this sweet, slightly old-fashioned name.
The name remains well-used in Europe, but in the US, Clementine has not cracked the Top 1000 since 1953.
All of this leads us to conclude that Clementine is ripe for a revival – feminine but not frilly, worn by princesses and historical figures and boasting a ready-made lullaby, this is a name with depth, character and charm.
You may have officially sold me on Clementine. Well done! Her pedigree is much more aristocratic than I’d thought, and what an interesting journey she’s been on! Thank you for addressing this name. I am hearing Clementine pop up on more and more lists, and I think it will brew for a little while amongst creative urbanites and then balloon.
Come see my new name blog: youcantcallitit.com I’ve wanted to do something like this for eons, so thanks for helping to inspire with appellationmountain. You’ll see yourself linked if you scroll down.
~Elisabeth, from You Can’t Call It “It”!
Great site, Elisabeth! And I’m flattered to be on your blogroll – I’m adding your shiny new site to mine, too. Um … as soon as I figure out how to get one.
P.S. And I’ve always liked Clementine, but I was amazed at the history I unearthed.
Yeah! We’re starting a baby name circuit. Thanks for the link.
As Rick said at the end of Casablanca, “Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”
Cheers.
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I think this name’s quite interesting. Do you pronounce it ClemenTINE (long i) like the song or Clementeen… I think that is how they say it in England and I like that better. Or Clementina.
Clementine is new on my list, and honestly I’m not sure of it. I currently have it paired with my favorite name of all time, Eliza. Hmmm. Eliza Clementine. I think it sounds nice, but I’d like to avoid tryndynys so I’m a bit worried. Sorry for blathering, Eliza has just been so very stubborn of late.
I do love Eliza Clementine. I know quite a few little Elizas, but I don’t think it can be called tryndy. Fashionable, yes. But enduring.
I’ve never met an Eliza, probably one of the reasons I like it so much. I’m glad you like it and think it is fashionable. I hope neither name rises in popularity any time soon. May I ask a question? Do you think my favorite names, Eliza Clementine and Dexter Benjamin mesh well?
I think they do. Eliza and Dexter both have the same retro-spunky feel. Plus, Eliza has her “z” and Dexter his “x” – along with v, three letters that make names seem vibrant and fit for the 21st century. But as for whether they’ll be gaining in popularity? I suspect both will – though whether they’ll be so popular to bother you, that’s hard to say.
Fewer children receive the most popular names today, but I’ve always found that there are certain names that dominate among friends and family. We know more boys called Max and Theodore, and more girls called Esme and Eleni than you’d expect. And someone just pointed out today that there are LOTS of Fin- names in my neighborhood. I know two Finns, plus two Fin- names, one for a girl and the other a boy … so there’s always the chance of a name that is only ranked #200 nationally being #10 in your world!
But if you love a name? Then I think you’ll probably overlook the popularity issue and just enjoy how many friends wish they’d thought of the names first!
I don’t mind popularity as long as it isn’t top 10 or dated (though top 10 doesn’t bother me much for boys, just girls). Dexter is one of the few uncommon boy names I love… the rest pretty much stay on my GP list. Eliza, on the other hand, is on of the more popular girl names that I like. My other faves are Gwendolen, Cassia, Sabrina, Veronica, Aurelia, Jessamine, Imogen (which I’m sure is on the rise), and Cordelia (also probably on the rise). Those are just the first names, though. I don’t really seek out uncommon names, but I like to find underused gems (in my opinion, at least) like Cassia or Aurelia. These names seem perfectly suitable for today, will probably age well enough, and have a nickname or two that I’m partial to. I’d like to think there is a way to find a middle ground between overpopular names and entirely obscure ones.
Anyway, sorry for the rant. I’m a tad obsessed with names at the moment, and I’m finally gotten my official list to a reasonable length.
Thanks for your help, I love talking to other people who share my passion. 
Great list! Cassia does seem like she’d really stand out today, but in a good way. Cordelia is on the rise, but she’s yet to break into the Top 1000, so she’s still far more rare than Veronica – another name I love.
Aly had a classmate named Avery (a boy!) with a little sister called Sabrina. I love that sibset.
I’m less sure of Aurelia – with Aurora, Adrianna, Ariana and company on the rise, I wonder if she’ll blend in. And Jessamine – gorgeous Jessamine, doomed to be misunderstood as Jasmine/Jasmyn/Jazzmyn. Except I still love Jessamine.
No need to apologize. That’s why I’m here.
I’m so glad you approve! Avery and Sabrina are wonderful together, I just fear the possibility of gender confusing for boys, so I tend to stick to names that aren’t likely to be used on girls, like William, Anthony, Garrett, Alec, Joshua, Zachary, Arthur, Matthew, Nathaniel, Dean, Marcus, Dominic, etc. I really don’t like boy names on girls, it just seems to make the pool of nice, masculine boy names smaller (like Elliot, which seems to be a rising girl choice). Some of the more feminine, widely used ones are fine (like Ashley, Kelly, or Leslie), but Ryan, Noah, and Jasper? Really? I guess I just can’t see them on a girl.
I’m excited to see you love Veronica, I don’t think she’s really back in style yet based on the feedback I’ve gotten. Such a pretty, spunky name. The meaning is fabulous, too, and it was one of the reasons I paired it as Veronica Lenore was their meanings. “True image/light.”
I can see how Aurelia might get confused. I like it a lot as a first name (I think Auri would be a pretty nn), but I must admit I only have it paired as Juliet Aurelia. Juliet will probably blend in with the Julie/Julia/Juliana crowd, though. I really don’t mind. Ah, Jessamine is beautiful, isn’t she? I like Jasmine, too, but I’ve seen it used to much as a stage name. I have Jessamine paired as Jessamine Lilith. Lilith is another really gorgeous (though likely to be misunderstood) name that I love. Plus, the history/meaning is a tad bit scary. Still, I think it is tons more interesting than simple Lily. I’m probably alone in thinking that.
Sorry, ranted again.
Someone at Nameberry mentioned yesterday that you covered Clementine. I thought I’d read this already & commented. Surprise, I hadn’t commented. Considering Clementine’s been on my list for 3 years, it’s been a love for a long while. My boys were boy scouts for about 8 years (maybe 9, I forget) and I asked both of them to sing “Clementine” for me the other day. Neither could get past the first verse!
Clementine’s rising in my estimation, she’s pretty, doesn’t rhyme with Josephine (-FEEN, -TYNE), but looks absolutely perfect next to her. I’m a real weirdo, I practice writing my kids names out like I was signing Christmas cards. No, I don’t sign Leo & Simon’s name to our cards since they officially moved out two years ago. They can send their own cards!
But I digress. Clementine is sweet, pretty and a bit of a standout sound among the other popular names of today. I utterly love her and would name a girl Clementine if I had one. (don’t know yet, don’t know if I want to know yet!) I just have to sell Him on her. Since Josie likes Clementine, I’m going to have her work on Papa!
Clementine’s aces! I’d nn ours Cleo: CLE+ the O of nickname names, like Steve-o, which is something my brother gets fairly often. Does anyone think Cleo’s too big a stretch from Clementine? Or maybe Clea? Ooh, Clea’s pretty! I could use both, interchangably in case Leo comes home to visit!
Lola, I absolutely LOVE Clementine and I think Clementine and Josephine sound wonderful together for sisters! Josie and Cleo/a are lovely
And I wouldn’t worry about Cleo and Leo rhyming since as you’ve mentioned Leo’s moved out. Congrats!
Thanks Sarah A.! I appreciate the time it took to not only find my comment but also the time it took to post a reply. Now to show this to Him!
No problem Lola, that’s why I love the ‘most recent comments’ part of this site. It ensures that even if you post about an older NotD, people can still easily find it. Good luck convincing your hubby about Clementine, it really is a beautiful name that manages to be both familiar but rare.
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I’ve been in love with this name for a while but only just started seriously considering it for a future girl. I don’t like many of the nicknames for it because I really love the full name but I’m thinking with young kids, we’d had to come up with something easier. Do you think Minnie is too far off? I can’t help but smile when I picture myself introducing my daughters, Bay and Clementine. Too cute!
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