Brooke: Baby Name of the Day

The baby name Brooke would top the charts today … if only it hadn’t already been such a big hit.

Thanks to Pamela for suggesting our Baby Name of the Day.

SURNAME and NATURE NAME

Brooke started out as a surname for someone who lived near a brook or stream. That’s true whether it is spelled with or without an ‘e’ at the end.

The Old English broc referred to a small, flowing stream. The origins are a little obscure, but it’s been used for centuries, and Dutch and German have similar words – and names.

This makes Brooke an obvious nature name, the big sister to River and Willow and many a current favorite.

HAYWARD and ASTOR

Many family surnames were sometimes given to boys, and there are men named Brook and Brooke in small number over the years.

But in the 1930s, the name slowly started to catch on for girls.

One early example: actress Brooke Hayward, daughter of actress Margaret Sullavan and producer Leland Hayward. She made the cover of Vogue in 1959, then switched from modeling to acting in the 1960s. There might have been some publicity following her 1937 birth, too, because by 1940, two dozen girls received the name.

Credit for Brooke’s widespread familiarity goes to a twentieth century socialite.

Born Roberta Brooke Russell and known as Bobby to friends and family, the future philanthropist had a globe-trotting childhood. Her dad served as Commandant of the Marine Corps, taking the family all over the world. She married twice – once disastrously, once happily – before meeting the wealthy Vincent Astor. In between, she worked as an editor for Home & Garden.

Brooke wed Vincent in 1953. The match made headlines. Vincent Astor inherited a massive fortune from his father; the family wealth goes back to German born businessman and New York City real estate developer John Jacob Astor.

On Vincent’s death in 1959, her main role became philanthropist, as head of the Vincent Astor Foundation. She dissolved the foundation in 1997, after completing many high profile projects bearing the family name. But she remained active in New York City philanthropy for many years afterwards. Brooke lived to the age of 105, a grande dame who left her mark on the city that she loved.

BY the NUMBERS

First came the actress, then the philanthropist.

In 1953, the year Brooke Russell became Mrs. Astor, the name enjoyed a boomlet. 133 girls were given the name that year, up from 51 the year before.

By the 1960s, the name appeared consistently in the US Top 1000.

One of the early parents to take notice? Frank and Teri Shields, who lived in New York City as Mrs. Astor was beginning her philanthropic career. In 1965, the couple welcomed a daughter who would make Brooke a household name.

BROOKE SHIELDS

That daughter, of course, was future model-actress Brooke Shields.

Shields worked as a model from her earliest years, and rose to fame in 1978’s Pretty Baby. Then came her famous 1980 campaign for Calvin Klein, and a series of equally successful movies. She took time off to earn a degree from Princeton, but has remained in the public eye. Shields continues to act, author books, and host a podcast.

The name’s rise tracks with her career. In 1978, a record 2,533 girls were given the name. By 1981, use doubled to more than 5,000 girls.

MODERN STAPLE

Some celebrity names fade. Others become mainstream favorites.

Count the baby name Brooke among the latter. Even as Shields left the public eye to study, the name remained in steady use. By the mid-1990s, Brooke reached the US Top 50. It hovered around the 50 mark into the mid-2000s.

As of 2023, Brooke stands at #299. It’s a sharp decrease from the early 2000s peak.

It’s also worth noting that Brooke opened the door for place name Brooklyn, as well as current rising favorite for boys, Brooks.

Plenty of other famous women have worn the name Brooke, along with fictional characters. Before she joined the cast of Sex and the City, Kristin Davis played Brooke on Melrose Place. One Tree Hill gave the name to a character, too, as did several soap operas.

TAILORED TRADITIONAL

Despite the name’s fall in the rankings, Brooke remains a tailored choice with a modern traditional sensibility.

That’s down to the legacy of the late Mrs. Astor, as well as the long career of Brooke Shields. We recognize it across generations, and can’t forget it. It’s endured better than similar 90s names, like Paige.

If you’re watching HBO’s The Gilded Age, a sort of Downton Abbey-meets-New York City, one of the family names among the privileged is Brook. It’s pitch perfect.

That long history of use makes Brooke feel more like Kate. It also nods to the natural world, as well as slim, trim surnames like Quinn and Sloane.

It’s easy to imagine Brooke wearing well on a daughter today, and aging every bit as well as it has for the famous figures who wear it so beautifully.

What do you think of the baby name Brooke?