Back when there was still ice on the ground, I looked ahead at the calendar and wished for spring.
And so, with the first day of April just a few hours away at last, here’s the Name of the Day: Avril.
Avril Lavigne’s career exploded with the 2002 release of her smash debut album Let Go. Even if you’re past the age for pop music, her singles “Complicated” and “Sk8r Boi” probably caught your attention. She’s had plenty of success since.
In the US, however, her name has never cracked the Top 1000. The same seems to be true internationally, including Lavigne’s native Canada. Given Avril’s similarity to the white hot Ava, her nature name vibe and French flair, this seems surprising.
April has been a popular choice for girls in the US for years, ranking in the Top 100 from 1967 through 1991. (She was #310 in 2007.) Avril has been worn by a handful of others – including legendary British comedienne Avril Angers – but has never attained April’s popularity.
Perhaps it is her pronunciation. I can count at least three versions in use: ah VRIL, ah VREEL and AV ril. Chances are there are more – and you’d hear every one of them if you chose this name for your daughter.
And yet, Avril has an appealing meaning. She comes from the Latin aprilis. While she might sound ripped from the calendar, the word has deeper roots. In Ancient Rome, Aprilis was the month dedicated to the goddess Venus. Scholars speculate that Aprilis is derived from the Etruscan name for Venus – Apru – which, in turn, is a translation of her Greek name, Aphrodite. It may also relate to the Latin word aperire – to open, or bloom.
Avril and April have also been in use as a surname. The name could simply be given to someone born in the month. But there’s a second, intriguing theory – perhaps April was given to individuals with a mercurial temperament. Just like April’s weather is changeable, your neighbor might’ve been unpredictable, too. If people were named for their brown hair or for living near the river, why not for their temperaments?
While Avril’s meaning initially seems straightforward, mix in those two bits of information and she’s also a subtle goddess name and the right choice for an imaginative, inventive child.
Xanthe Linnea pointed out Avril’s similarity to Averil, which also connects her to the old saint’s name – though it usually written Everild.
Avril could represent that perfect balance of standing out and fitting in. She seems like she ought to be more popular – after all, Miss Lavigne has inspired plenty of young women to buy her music. (Perhaps her fans simply aren’t having children of their own yet.)
With her “v” sound, she’s feminine but still sharp. And while May and June – and even April – are sweet and gentle appellations, there’s something a little bit wild about Avril. She could wear well on a daughter.
May & June are my family variants but if April was, you could be sure I’d be updating it with Avril! (I like Averil too, but find the pronunciation a bit boggy, Avril’s sleeker and easier to spit out).
I think you nailed it as to why her fans aren’t picking up on it just yet, but I say “why not now” ? for others? It’s happy, springy (pardon the pun) and sweet. I think I’m going to add this one to the list for Byron’s Mama, I think it’d make a great name for his potential sister! (Now, if I could only come up with some spicy little thing to use to replace May, I’m sure the Great Aunt would have appreciated it, she was real wild thing in an era when it wasn’t exactly proper to be so!) Maybe a Marguerite, nn Maisie? Hmmm, must go looking.
Avril gets a huge :thumbsup: for me!
I love Avril, but only pronounced AY-vril, a long A, like April but with a V. It just irks me to no end to have pronounced like Avril Lavigne pronounced it, like a short A. This name is gorgeous and unusual, it sounds pretty and looks cool. I love this name and have toyed with using it, but in the end I think I’d get annoyed with people pronouncing it wrong. So, great name, but probably not for me, at least not while memory of Avril-pronounced-wrong Lavigne is still around!
I like it. I like it the way Lavigne pronounces it. I definitely love the relationship to Aphrodite. But I would never, ever use it. In the end, it’s still April, which to me evokes a picture of a very plain, sad woman.
Also, it’s close to Avery, one of those stupid trend names I detest.
I like Avril. I’ve imposed a bit of a rule on myself that I won’t use a name I heard for the first time on a celebrity, however, so I don’t think Avril’s one I’d pick.
Hmmm… but there is a Middle English poem that begins “Bitwene Mersh and Averil”… perhaps that makes it usable for me again.
http://www.headlesschicken.ca/eng204/texts/alisoun.html
I think I prefer Averil with the extra E. It distances it from the celebrity a bit.
I think most people hear the celebrity when they think of Avril, but I think she’s definitely worth consideration! She’s considerably more sleek than April, which reminds me of the pastel colors of Easter and sounds like APE-ril. (Ook! Ook!) Avril : April :: Gavriel : Gabriel, is how I see it. I pronounce it AHV-ril, but A-VREEL is much prettier.
By the way, I’m Ysabeau. You have a wonderfully informative and fun to read blog, I’ve been following it for a bit. I’d appreciate it very much if you’d add me to your blogroll! http://www.ysanames.wordpress.com
Thanks, Ysa! And I’ve added you to the blogroll.
Emmy Jo, that’s an interesting rule. Rarely have I met someone who admits to naming their child after a celeb or starbaby. But when you look at the statistics, it seems like parents MUST be doing just that. And you’ll often hear “I’ve always liked the name Miley, even before the singer.” Except that Miley probably didn’t appear in many baby name books before the singer, so how would you even stumble on the idea?
Lola, Byron and Avril do make a nice pair! But I think I like May as she is. Reminds me of Edith Wharton’s The Age of Innocence.
Averil does give the name a bit of distance from the singer, but puts it a smidge closer to Avery, too.
I adore Avril over April. One little letter makes it sound so much, um, sleeker? modern? something. I hate the sound of April, but the V makes the name sound so much more appealing to me.
I also think that the celebrity name totally depends on how well Emmy’s rule works for me. Totally out there or made up names, like Harlow or Miley? Seems too obvious a namesake. Names that are unusual but occasionally used, like Avril or Clementine? Totally okay to me. I know Harlow is a real name, but it’s just too distinctive, if that makes sense.
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