Name of the Day: Rex
For many years, this one had gone to the dogs. But something makes us think that today’s choice might not be confined to the kennel much longer.
Thanks to Lola for suggesting our Name of the Day: Rex.
We all know that Rex is from the Latin for king. There’s the violent dinosaur, the Mardi Gras rex, Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex. Little wonder that many parents shied away from using such a regal moniker for their sons.
But today, Rex has a lot in his favor. Consider:
- The boom in King names for boys includes straight-up King (#722) and starbaby-inspired Kingston (#355), as well as surname spins like Kingsley. They make Rex feel downright subtle – and wearable;
- Our love of the letter x, from Alexander to Felix;
- The trend towards single-syllable boys’ names, like Gus, Cole, Jack and Max – there’s that x again!
Rex is helped by his history of use as a given name. Compared to newcomers like Kingston and Cole, he’s positively traditional. We can trace Rex back to those wacky Victorians. They were unpacking classics like Homer and Virgil for their sons during the 1800s. Rex was part of that trend. By the time the US first collected data in 1880, Rex ranked #519 for newborn boys. That made him about as common as Logan, Rodney or Aloysius.
Among our favorite bearers of the name is the dashing actor Rex Harrison, who starred opposite Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady, as well as appearing in Cleopatra, The Great Game and Anna and the King of Siam. As it happens, this Rex was born Reginald.
There have been a few notable Rexes born with the name: early 20th century author Rex Beach, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation commentator Rex Murphy, former Pantera bassist Rex Brown and former Brooklyn Dodger-turned-sportscaster Rex Barney.
Of course, we’re more familiar with Rex, the sheepdog from the pig flick Babe and the claymation pooch starring in Rex the Runt.
But Rex has been used with some frequency for men born in the US. In 1951, he charted as high as #171. While he fell out of the rankings from 1999 through 2002, he’s been back ever since. Today, Rex charts at #870.
With the Jolie-Pitt boys answering to Maddox, Pax and Knox and boys everywhere answering to Max, we can imagine this one wearing well on a modern child. Or if you have an ancestral Reginald on your family tree, use that as the formal name and adopt Rex as a spirited pet form.
Either way, we suspect there will be more two-legged Rexes in the future.
Filed under: Little Ruler, Names for Boys, Names of the Day | 9 Comments
Tags: Rex
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Thanks a Million, Verity! I’ve really been digging Rex the last few months and I’ve been hiding him in third place, to boot: Cassius Barnaby Rex. He’s a bit grander than I normally like but I am so liking his vibe!
I’ve been toying with him in first place. I’m really liking his simple strength and his lordly feel. But like most one syllables, I have trouble pairing him so he feels right, flow wise. I got lucky with Maud!
Rex Harrison is where I first heard it. “My Fair Lady” is, hands down my favorite musical, for the costuming alone (another bizarre love of mine), it’s stunning. But the music and classic ‘Pygmalion-esque” plot works very nicely too. No family Reggie’s for me to honor. The closest I get to a Reggie is my brother’s fandom of Reggie Jackson when we were kids. I’d be willing to wager my kid brother would really like a nephew named Rex.
I’m into simple R names right now, Remy is my other favorite (and I have him as a standalone (Remy Valentin __ or Remy Vincent __ right now) as well as a nickname for the more classic & stodgy Remus. (Which works better for the Mr. Who likes strong, manly and more than a tiny bit OTT) And I can still get Rex as a nickname, since the combo is Remus Edward Xavier and his initials would be REX. I’m fine with that as well.
I can’t wait to see if anyone else posts on him, I think he’s a touch polarising. I get “Hate” or “Love” when I mention Rex, no gray there!
I want to see if I’m mistaken in what I think or not.
Count me firmly in the “Hate” category, Lola! I can’t get past the dog name connotations. It even sounds like a bark to me, onomonopoetically at least.
I prefer my male names a bit smoother, I suppose.
I’m with Kim. (Major eye roll on this one.)
Well, can’t have all winners, can I?
On the plus side for me, anyway, if everyone else hates it, he’s likely to be the only one! With my surname gone to the girls, it’s tougher than you think to match it to a less common boy name that doesn’t end up sounding girly. I am firmly against anything for me in the top 100 these days!
I like Rex! I teach a little boy whose father is named Rex, so I suppose that’s what makes it read more human than animal to me.
Speaking of animal associations, though, I think “dinosaur” before I think “dog.”
I don’t like Rex. It does sound like a dog’s name to me and I automatically think either dinosaur or dog. I couldn’t do that to my kid. He will probably be made fun of.
It also reminds me of a guy I used to know who was a jerk.
Lola, I’m pretty much against top 100 names too. There are a few exceptions but I would save those for middle names.
I’m somewhere in the middle for Rex. I *love* him as a nickname or a middle, but I’m not sure about him in the first name spot.
Still, I think we will hear more of him – think Max and Knox. And surely I’m not the only one out there who thinks Rex Harrison lends the name some real style.
Plus, there seem to be a lot of of mamas out there hoping their babies grow up to be cowboys – and I betcha Rex would appeal to some of them. Rex fits in with Cash (#328) and Slade (#850), names that I don’t understand as given names, but that are undeniably out there.
It’s OK.. but probably would prefer it for a dog!
As a retired thespian, one of my first associations with ‘Rex’ is Alfred Jarry’s absurd play Ubu Roi (aka Ubu Rex), which, if you know the play, probably doesn’t to ‘Rex’ any favours! Notwithstanding the bumbling Ubu, I like the boldness of Rex, but probably not as a first name.