Eliza evolved as a stylish short form of Elizabeth. Today it’s leaping up the charts.Thanks to Lemon and Inbal for suggesting our Baby Name of the Day.
Eliza: Musical Moniker
Eliza Schuyler Hamilton grew up privileged and determined. She married Founding Father Alexander Hamilton, and played a pivotal role in his career and ensuring his legacy.
Hamilton: An American Musical shows her in the company of Angelica and Peggy – the Schuyler Sisters. They get their own introduction song.
It’s not the first time the name has been part of a celebrated musical.
When My Fair Lady opens, Professor Henry Higgins is bragging that he can teach any person to speak the most elegant English. His friend calls him on his boast, and soon Higgins is charged with transforming the churchmouse-poor, Cockney-accented flower seller Eliza Doolittle into a lady. And not just a born aristocrat, but one who can fool Professor Higgins’ rival linguistics expert into believing she’s the real deal.
At least the Hollywood version, starring Rex Harrison and Audrey Hepburn, ends that way. George Bernard Shaw penned the original, Pygmalion, in 1913. It debuted on Broadway in 1956. Shaw argued against such a happy ending.
Eliza: History
Despite being in the spotlight for much of the twentieth century, this name belongs to an earlier age.
It appears in the historical record as a variation of Elizabeth by the 1500s.
Legend tells of a pair of conjoined twins, said to be born in Biddenden, Kent in the year 1100. The Biddenden Maids probably evolved as a folk tale, and their names – Mary and Eliza – weren’t attached until many years later. But the story makes the name feel even older.
A patriotic opera about Queen Elizabeth I of England bears the name; written by Thomas Arne, it dates to the 1750s. In the 1790s, an unrelated French opera set in the Swiss Alps also used the name as its title.
Jane Austen used the nickname for one of the Bennet sisters in her 1813 masterpiece, Pride and Prejudice, though she’s also known as Lizzie.
Harriet Beecher Stowe gives the name to a character in her 1852 novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin. She flees rather than see her young son sold to another owner.
No surprise, then, that this name ranked in the US Top 100 in the 1880s.
It all tracks with Mrs. Hamilton’s story. She was born in 1757.
Eliza: On the Rise
By the 1960s, the name left the US Top 1000 entirely. It didn’t stay gone for long, but it wasn’t until the 1990s that Eliza’s revival began.
It currently stands at Number 175.
Along the way, boosts came from:
- The daughter on The Wild Thornberrys, which ran from 1998 through 2004. She can talk to the animals, which brings to mind another Rex Harrison role: Doctor Dolittle.
- A handful of actresses, like Buffy the Vampire Slayer alum Dushku, Scrubs’ Coupe, and The 100’s Taylor and pop singer Doolittle (born Caird).
- In 2004, a young Lindsay Lohan starred in Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen. She plays Lola, who is cast as Eliza in an updated version of My Fair Lady.
The numbers follow along. In 1995, the name returned to the US Top 500.
As of 2015, it stands at #175.
Eliza: Perfect Pick
Classic and vivacious, Eliza offers a winning mix of elements. The z sound feels modern, but the name boasts plenty of history. There’s every reason to expect Eliza will continue to climb.
Originally published on May 10, 2010, this post was revised and republished on January 11, 2017.
I love the name Eliza. It is the name of my second daughter (my other daughters are Evelyn and Edyth). I know when I first brought her home, there was so much confusion as to pronunciation if a stranger saw it written and confusion on spelling if I was saying it to them. I pronounced it “ah-Lye-za” at the beginning but got so sick of people spelling it with an A that I now pronounce it “ee-Lye-za.” I first read the name in Pride and Prejudice when Caroline Bingley calls Elizabeth “Miss Eliza Bennett.” Miss Eliza sounded so sweet to me! My daughter fits this name perfectly. She is sweet but also spunky. She is outgoing and social but is also sensitive. I think those qualities are perfectly summed up in the name Eliza. It is sweet with a little zing!
I saw on a new website http://www.parenting-checkpoint/baby-names/Eliza that Eliza is the “smartest female name”. Eliza is 6.5 times more likely to study at Yale and 3.5 times more likely to study at Harvard than an average female student.
I like Eliza. It sounds sweet and down-to-earth to me.
I LOVE the name Eliza. Its dropped a bit on my list of favorite names but I still adore it. I’ve always liked it as a way to honor my sister whose middle name is Elizabeth.
I think one of the reasons I like the name so much is the LYE sound. (Obviously I prefer the pron. eh LYE sah). It is an interesting sound that gives the name a little something extra over the more popular Elizabeth. I’ve also played around with the name (LYE ah) but everyone always tells me it sounds too similar to lier. :\
Well, my middle name is Elizabeth, but as for Elizabeth’s nicknames, I prefer Libby, Elsie or even Elzie. I wish I could like Eliza, but I really don’t. I don’t know why. I wouldn’t mind meeting a little Eliza over another Ella or Ellie, though.
I have tried to love Eliza — I really have! My Fair Lady has been a favourite movie ever since I was a child, so I’ve always wished I liked its heroine’s name more. Sadly, it is not to be. I’m in the camp that finds its sound harsh.
It’s a perfectly fine name, but I much prefer just Elizabeth and other diminutives before Eliza. I know quite a few of all ages, so it actually seems a bit tired to me and not all that distinctive. Boring, even.
I love Eliza, I agree that the “beth” and “liz” sounds of Elizabeth don’t appeal to me, though many of her nicknames do. I think I grew up with too many girls who went by Liz and Beth.
Really though I love her because of My Fair Lady, I’ve performed the musical and it’s one of my absolute favourites. 🙂
As a nickname for Elizabeth – yes, as a stand-alone name – no. I quite like jaunty Eliza and I’m not usually a fan of the harsh ‘zz’ noise but I can’t see her as anything other than a lively nickname for the enduring classic Elizabeth. I think her ascension to popularity might well be quicker in the UK as I’ve heard of two babies named Eliza recently (not that this anything much to go on I know, but but it’s just how it usually goes).
I’ve always loved names with the long I sound: Jemima, Keziah, Irina, etc. It’s an unusual sound in girls names, so that’s probably why I love it.
My best friend “claimed” Eliza ten years ago and even though I think she’s done after 3 boys, I can’t use Eliza without feeling like I poached “her” name.
I really like Eliza and agree with Lemon that the ‘lie’ pronunciation is very attractive to my ears. I also dislike the ‘beth’ portion of Elizabeth, as well as the ‘liz’ sound, so Eliza is much preferable to the full version, IMO. Personally, I also like Liza as an even more streamlined option.
I do, however, also think that Eliza could gain the Top 100 shortly.
Well, obviously I adore Eliza. I don’t find it harsh – I find it strong. And, the lack of “Beth” on the end doesn’t make it feel more nickname-y or less-feminine in my personal opinion, though I totally see the similarity with Elijah. To me, Eliza is clean and classic, charming and cheerful. It’s got all the sophistication I’d want in a name, yet it feels just slightly whimsical to me.
I’ve met girls named Aliza and Alisa, pronounced more with that “ee” sound, but very rarely do I hear of an Eliza. Why? Not sure. As you mention, Abby, what’s stopping her from hitting the top of the charts? Could be that some people find her harsh. Oh, well. Maybe she won’t be insanely popular whenever I get around to using it…
I’ve always loved Eliza (long i), even if she was Alonzo’s uptight sister in the Little House books.
I like it pronounced El-ee-za. Pronounced ee-ly-za just seems a bit too masculine sounding, especially with Elijah and Elisha so popular for boys.
Eliza is a name that was under consideration for a granddaughter, and I recalled printing out an earlier “Name of the Day” you did for Eliza: http://appellationmountain.net/2009/04/30/name-of-the-day-eliza/
The mom who had Eliza on her list, still has it there for a possible second daughter. She likes the sound of the name and that it’s a form of her own middle name Elizabeth. Her concern has been that the name would be shortened to Liza, which reminds her of Liza Minnelli, not a particularly appealing connection for her.
I think it’s a beautiful name! Maybe not in English, though- but in Spanish it is pretty(we pronounce it “Ay-LEE-sah” rather than “Eh-LYE-zuh”)!
Huh. Mercy, do you think that explains the popularity of Elisa and Alisa a few decades back? I always assumed that had more to do with Lisa/Alyssa, but maybe it is just a more phonetic spelling of Eliza? I’m intrigued …
I second that! Eliza’s got an unattractive sound, feels incomplete & nicknamey and just baffles me as to why she’s so popular. Blah!
I’ve never understood the popularity of Eliza. The sound is harsh and unappealing to me.