Miss Christian Elspeth Mallock; Image via Wikipedia
She’s a Scottish take on the evergreen Elizabeth.
Thanks to Lola and Shan for suggesting Elspeth as our Baby Name of the Day.
Like many a true classic, Elizabeth has been transformed by the ages, borrowed and reassembled in languages all over the world. Some of her versions are obscure – like the medieval Isabeau or Belsante. Others are common in their place, but quite rare elsewhere in the world.
File Elspeth in the latter category. She’s reasonably common in the UK, but nearly unknown in the US, where she has never appeared in the Top 1000.
There are plenty of Elspeths in the UK. Agatha Christie gave the name to a character. In real life, we find:
- English designer Elspeth Gibson;
- Veteran Scottish actress Elspeth Gray had long a career television, and was one of several mothers of the bride in 1994’s Four Weddings and a Funeral;
- The famous Huxley family includes an Elspeth, a writer best known for her memoirs about growing up in Colonial Kenya in the early twentieth century.
All of these Elspeths are around a certain age, and that may be an issue – in Great Britain, she’s mature, even fusty, and not-quite-ready for revival. The name of your aunt, sure, but not your newborn niece. In the 2001 television version of Snow White, the evil queen is named Elspeth.
But in the US, she’s deliciously rare. Popular short forms Ella, Ellie, and Elle are available if your daughter prefers to blend in. Elspeth manages to stand out. She’s frills-free and unexpected, like Tamsin or Margot.
While digging through Burke’s Peerage – where Elspeths abound – I found this sibset: Elspeth, Ailsa, and Fergus. I also found plenty of families with an Elizabeth in one generation and an Elspeth in the next, or vice versa.
The Elspeth that I can’t quite trace is Miss Christian Elspeth Mallock. Her portrait is above; it was painted by Edward Arthur Walton, the noted Scottish portrait and landscape painter, active in the late 1800s and early part of the twentieth century. Her biography might be lost, but her image endures – and looks, to me, very much like an Elspeth.
The thing that probably confuses parents about Elspeth is the b-to-p consonant shift. Elsbeth, like Lisbeth, seems like a logical contracted form of Elizabeth. But -peth probably strikes some as unusual. I’m not sure I can explain the shift; while b-to-p occurs in many words, most of those changes took place by the 800s – well before Elizabeth would have been a common name in England. (Isabel was dominant until the ascension of Queen Elizabeth I.) Still, I can find Elspet in the records from medieval England, so the forms must have co-existed for ages.
Overall, Elspeth has a quirky Scottish charm that works well in the US today. She’s offbeat, but not outrageous. If you’re looking for a tailored name for a girl that isn’t a surname or borrowed from the boys, and still nods towards the classics, Elspeth could appeal.
I’m thinking that perhaps the first name of Miss Christian Elspeth Mallock would be pronounced Christi–Anne not Christian as in a follower of Christ.
Makes me think of the the Mother Goose rhyme:
ELIZABETH
Elizabeth, Elspeth, Betsy, and Bess,
They all went together to seek a bird’s nest;
They found a bird’s nest with five eggs in,
They all took one, and left four in.
Of course there are many more nn’s for Elizabeth such as Beth, Betty, Bette, Ellie, Elle, Eliza, Liz, Lizzie & Lily. I love the uniqueness of Elspeth. I also am found of Bess and Bessie.
It’s pronounced Els-peth. Not El-speth.
I’ve loved the name Elspeth for years since I was about 10-11, after reading Isobelle Carmody’s Obernewtyn series. It sounds so pretty to me, no harsh letters just nice and flowing. Ellie or Elsie would make a great nickname. As a middle name I think the combinations of Elspeth May or Elspeth Lily would be pretty, maybe even Elspeth Adelaide. It’d be a way also to pass down my name in a different form, which I share already with my sister being one of those rare Isabeau’s.
This name is just……not my cup of tea at all. It sounds like someone trying to spit out a watermelon seed. The ”speth” just has a very awkward and harsh sound.
I would be forever grateful if Elspeth could be next in line to get fixed! Thanks!
Done!
Thank you!
I love Elspeth! I think it’s really elegant and I just love Scottish names.
My introduction to Elspeth is the Heir to the throne in the Valdemar series by Mercedes Lackey. So after 12 or so books with Elspeth as a character, I’m fond of the name and would love to meet a little Elspeth on the street but I already have a Stephanie Elizabeth (she and I have the same middle name) so that rules that out for me.
I like Elizabeth and the nicknames Lizzie, Lisa and Elsie. But somehow, Elspeth doesn’t do much for me. I think it’s the -speth part.
Lovely to read this. I fell in love with Elsbeth after meeting a friend with the name a few years ago. Timeless.
Oh, I LOVE Elspeth. My first introduction was a character in a book (now one of my favourites), and she was very spunky.
I love the nickname Elsie, and even Pethy. I seem to love Elizabeth in all her forms stemming from the Eliza- part, though I’m partial to Elisabeth, Elspeth and Isabel. (And dislike Liz(zy) and most of the Beth- derivatives.
I’d love to have daughters someday named Rose and Elspeth.
I’m not remotely Scottish and an Elspeth Mysurname would inevitably have a lisp — but the name is lovely and I’d be delighted to meet a little one.
There’s an Elspeth in the Hamish Macbeth series by M. C. Beaton. When the novels were made into a BBC TV series, the character was renamed Isobel. While Isobel is lovely — it’s no equal to Elspeth.
Even though I have no connection to Scotland I would still consider the name, just as I would happily use the name Alistair. The nickname of Elsie is just adorable.
Both DH and I have a lot of Scottish ancestry so we’ve talked about using Scottish names. There aren’t too many from the girl’s side that I love, but Elspeth is definitely one. Unfortunately one of my sister’s has already laid claim, but we’ll see. *sigh* I do love the nn Elsie.
I’ve known 2. Both attended my alma mater (one with me, and one years later). It’s a quirky name, and both friends had the right kind of quirky personalities to make it work.
Elspeth is our top choice for a sister for Josie (should she ever occur). I think she’s utterly lovely and meshes incredibly well with the Scots surname too. I just love Elspeth to pieces. Ours would answer to Elsie, like the Great Aunt who used to bear the name. I ‘m still trolling the family tree for middles from His side, so far I’ve got Elspeth Saffron, Elspeth India & Elspeth Ghislaine but I’m still working on her! 🙂
I love all of your amazing combos Lola! I personally think Elspeth India is the best 🙂
LOVE Elspeth and have considered suggesting it for the middle spot in place of Elsie for a hypothetical future child. I would suggest it as a first, but it’s just a might spare next to my other kids’ names (Roseanna and Alaric).
I have one in my genealogy. I think she was the first to immigrate.
I like it . I like the syllable sounds separately, but I just can’t get myself to love it or to imagine using it as a first name. That’s annoying, as I’d like to. It’s just one of those names that is cool.
I have been intrigued by Elspeth for years, but am still in love with Elizabeth. Belsante now that is interesting!!!
I have a friend named Elspeth who uses the nickname Libby. I think they’re both smashing.
Smashing is EXACTLY the right word!
I like that it gives you somewhere less-travelled to go from Elizabeth, since almost anyone can find that name in their family tree, but personally I’m partial to Elsbeth. I went to school with an Elsbeth, and my last name is 2 syllables with a P in the middle, so it would be tougher to wear in my house.
I don’t know why, but I always mix-up Elspeth and Lisbeth.