He’s an Americana option with an intriguing meaning.
Thanks to Heather for suggesting Travis as our Baby Name of the Day.
Travis peaked in 1979, reaching a respectable #36 in the US.
Baby Name of the Day: Travis
on Jun 28, 2011
on Jun 28, 2011
He’s an Americana option with an intriguing meaning.
Thanks to Heather for suggesting Travis as our Baby Name of the Day.
Travis peaked in 1979, reaching a respectable #36 in the US.
Travis is not a name I would use, but of the Texas pride names, I prefer it to Austin or Tyler. I think knowing the incredible courage, history and leadership behind the name from frequent visits to the Alamo and viewings of the Alamo IMAX in San Antonio makes me think of the name as a timeless classic hero name, rather than a dated name. Most boys I’ve met named Travis here are just good old Texas types – people who are confident, smart, polite, work hard and love our state and country.
*boys and men – the name does not seem to be limited to a single generation here in Texas.
Listening to a recording of one of Wodehouse’s Jeeves and Wooster novels just now, I was reminded that Bertie’s good and deserving Aunt Dahlia is actually a Mrs.Travers, wife of Tom Travers. I think I prefer Travers to Travis, which somehow sounds unfinished to me.
I grew up with a Travis (b. 1969), with younger brothers Trent and Troy, and parents Tony and Tonia…
To me, Travis is even more dated than Tyler and Austin; it goes with Scott, Todd, Dean and other surname choices of the 50s and 60s.
For some reason, this always makes me think overalls. I know sooooooooo many Travises, so it does seem common. On a side note, had I been a boy, I would have been Tyler, because my mom liked it, and hadn’t heard of any babies named Tyler. Of course, this was in 1994, the year it peaked. It just goes to show how naming trends work.
Since the subject of word names came up last week, random words keep coming to my mind as possible names… Traverse could make an interesting middle name, since it sounds similar to Travis, to me it feels somewhat “name-like”.
Travis is too common. I’d feel differently about it if it was a timeless, classic, but it feels like Travis should be getting ready for college with his buddies Tyler and Austin.
Could you please do more unique/unusual names? Sorry, but everyone already knows about Travis and Robert. It seems like only the girls are getting the non-mainstream names.
Thanks for commenting, Alex! Robert and Travis are pretty mainstream, but I’ve recently covered Crew, Arkady, Darwin, Rafferty, Malik, and Kipling. Perseus, Jehosophat, and Armistead are all coming up in July.
If you’d like to request a name, please drop me a line at appmtn (at) gmail (dot) com. I won’t respond immediately – I save requests up and put them on the calendar in batches so I don’t schedule too many similar names back-to-back. But you can request any name you can think of, and if I can find a shred of something to write about, I will.
As the one who suggested both of those names, I have to put in my two cents. Even though I know people by those names and nothing about them is unusual or rare, it is nice to hear Verity’s take on the more common names as a break from the totally unusual ones. In the pas I’ve also suggested Lilith, Circe, Sarai, and Amoret as well as a few more that were already on the books. Personally, I tend to prefer more common names for boys and more unusual ones for girls so I tend to suggest them that way. Just an explainer.
One of my most polite and kindest students this semester was a delightful young man named Travis. I think nothing but good thoughts when I hear the name, though when it’s time to name my own I might avoid names of students who have stood out (for the good or the bad!).
I like Travis’ meaning but his sound is too sharp before that final hiss or me. or maybe it’s as simple as T is one of my least favorite letters, right behind F. I wouldn’t bat an eyelash if I met a Travis though, I don’t hate the name, nor do I get a ” lower class” vibe from him. He’s simply a smooth dude who fits in my neighborhood. Not Byron & Claudia’s sibling, but Madison’s ( girl) little brother, and Abby’s big brother as well. Travis is nice for someone else, but not for me.
I was just thinking of Travis the other day. There was an episode of Man Vs. Food (my guilty pleasure show) and they were at a restaurant in New Mexico (I think) where there was a giant burrito called the Travis. The competition was three guys named Travis trying to eat the entire Travis burrito. Pure entertainment.
Travis has always felt like a southwest name, but I never knew where the connection was. Now, I know why. The backstory really livens this name for me. I know two families with little Wyatts. Travis would make a good younger brother name.
HA! Arthur watches Man vs. Food. I kind of love it, too. And if I had a burrito named the Travis, I’d definitely recruit a bunch of like-named guys to tackle it!
I like the meaning of Travis. I have always been a wanderer, unable to settle in any one place. Travis’s meanings sound familiar, and traits I would likely pass on to my children.
I used to like the name Travis. Partly because I have a much-loved, deceased name friend called Travis, partly because of the eponymously named band. I LOVED their song “Sing”. However, since joining Babycentre (the UK site – though I am not from the UK) all I have heard is how “chavvy” the name Travis is. Even setting aside how much I hate the word “chavvy”, I can’t seem to put aside the connotations of Travis. Pity… The Travis I knew was a lovely guy who’d lived through a lot. He wanted everyone to live their best life, and that’s what I will remember him by.
Interesting – I can tell you the class perceptions associated with many names in the US, but “chavvy” eludes me. I’m always surprised when a name of think of as just plain mainstream triggers something very different elsewhere in the English-speaking world.
I was introduced to the term “chavvy” while in the UK last year: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chav . It’s not something to aspire to.