Image by cobalt123 via Flickr
Any name as popular as Cynthia is bound to have spin-offs. Here’s one of the more obscure.
Thanks to Aimee for suggesting our Baby Name of the Day: Cindal.
Cynthia peaked at #7 in 1957. That means there are a lot of grandmas called Cynthia right about now. Besides the formal Cynthia, plenty of short forms have charted in the US Top 1000 on their own, including:
- Cindy
- Cindi
- Cyndi
- Cinda
There’s also the lovely – and unrelated – Lucinda, a seventeenth century literary invention based on Lucia, but boosted by Cindy just the same.
Today, Cindy is no more current than Marcia or Jan, and Cynthia continues to fall.
Cindal is the rarest among all of the Cynthia-related names, though like many a rarity, she’s not new. There were at least two in the 1920 US Census, and other records suggest that there have been plenty more born since. It isn’t clear when she first came into use, but she may have been influenced by Crystal, Coral, Opal, and a handful of other girls’ names that end in -al.
Pronounced sin DAHL or sin DEL, her sound edges close to cymbal and symbol, kindle, cinder, even sandal. It seems like an unlikely sound for a daughter’s name. But could Cindal serve as an update to Cindy, one that embraces our love of surname names?
Surname Kendall has become a staple for girls in recent decades, along with respellings from Kendelle to Kendyl. With girls called Kennedy and Taylor, Cindal seems more like a tailored twist on a classic girls’ name, suited to keep company with Allison or Brooke.
Nameberry doesn’t list Cindal, but they’ve written about Cindy. In fact, they put her in the “uncool” column of their Coolator. The Coolator indicated that Sydney was cool; Sidony even cooler.
With apologies to the good people of Australia, I don’t think there’s anything cool about the name Syndey these days. With seven straight years of declining use, Sydney feels like a name that is past her prime. (And since Pam and Linda are always ahead of the curve, I suspect this Coolator was written some time ago.)
If Sydney is due for an update, but Cindy is not yet ready for revival, would Cindal make for a cooler version of Cindy? Nancy tells us that five girls were named Cyndel in 2009.
If you’re looking to reboot Cindy for this generation, Cindal makes for an intriguing option.
Kate says
February 2, 2013 at 3:51 PMI was delighted to see Cindel/Cindal on here. I have been in love with this name since I was 4 years old and watched Ewoks and the Battle of Endor. Cindel is the adorable main character of the movie. I named my favorite doll CIndel after her. I probably wouldn’t use it for my child as It feels like it could be too trendy sounding.
Cindal Jackson says
February 19, 2011 at 12:47 AMAll the research I’ve ever found on my name actually points to it being a derivative of the cinderella stories not of cynthia. In addition most people with the name Cindal were named after a character in a movie namely ‘Star Wars The Battle for Endor’ in which the main character is actually named Cindal. That’s where my brother came up with the name, and it was afterwards a favorite of my own. If you’re thinking of naming your kid Cindal its a good strong name, but trust me very few teachers in school will ever pronounce it correctly.
appellationmountain says
February 19, 2011 at 7:18 AMCindal, thanks. There’s rarely one origin for a name, but I really should have looked into Cinderella when I wrote this.
And the character from the Star Wars movies must have been a big influence, too.
Isadora says
January 29, 2011 at 10:50 PMI’m intrigued. So was my mother when I told her. Her name is Cynthia. I love her, but her name? Not so much. But Cindal? A possibility.
chaneltara says
December 22, 2010 at 12:15 AMOH weird! My cousin is named Nicole Cindel, called by both names. I kind of thought Cindel was made up!
Sebastiane says
December 19, 2010 at 2:50 PMNot a name I’d use, but I do kinda like it.
Julie says
December 15, 2010 at 11:53 PMI can appreciate Cynthia, but I don’t like Cindal (or Kendall for that matter.)
Cindal reminds me of Cymbeline, which I’ve seen as baby girl name (even though the Shakespeare’s character is male.) I don’t know where I’m going with this, but maybe Cindaline would be better? It’s still not my style, except that this feels more like a name.
British American says
December 16, 2010 at 9:29 AMI prefer Cindaline over Cindal. 🙂
Aidan Donnelley Rowley @ Ivy League Insecurities says
December 15, 2010 at 9:51 PMI kind of like this one. Unfortunately, ’tis not boyish enough for my liking 🙂 Love your explanation/exploration of the name as much as I do the name itself!
Bek says
December 15, 2010 at 8:18 PMHmm, seems a bit incomplete to me… as if there should be just a bit more on the end there. I can’t explain it.
Charlotte Vera says
December 15, 2010 at 7:45 PMHmmm, I’m not much of a fan, although I definitely prefer the sin-DEL pronuncation to the sin-DAHL one. Perhaps it’s because I grew up eating the Indian staple, rice and dhal (lentil curry), very, very frequently.
Lemon says
December 15, 2010 at 4:32 PMHm. Before I realized the emphasis was on the second syllable, I couldn’t help but thing of a Kindle! Cindal isn’t really my thing at all, and even though Cindy could make a cute comeback, I think I’d call a Cindal “Dali” for short. 🙂
British American says
December 15, 2010 at 2:43 PMNever heard of this one either. Makes me think of cymbals.
Not really my style of name – maybe because of the Kendal vibe – I think I’d prefer it as a nickname for something, though I’m not sure what.
It certainly would be a way to put a modern spin on honoring a grandma Cynthia.
Claire says
December 15, 2010 at 1:08 PMThe only Cindal I’ve ever heard of is my cousin’s rambunctious dog, so I have to say this name is a “no” for me.
appellationmountain says
December 16, 2010 at 7:51 AMWait – I’m stunned that you’ve met a Cindal, four-legged or otherwise! Wonder where your cousin got the name …
Claire says
December 16, 2010 at 9:13 AMThat’s a good question! Although I’ve never seen the name spelled out, I always assumed it was “Sindel,” I’m sure because I was thinking of the character from Mortal Kombat 3: http://mortalkombat.wikia.com/wiki/Sindel. (I played a lot of video games with my brother in the mid-’90s)!
Whitney Gigandet says
December 15, 2010 at 12:07 PMOh my gosh, I have never heard of this name before! That in itself is a rare find, but more importantly, I really, really like it. Cindy is an adorable nickname, but I’ve never cared for it as a full name personally. I also think Dally would be a super cute nickname!