I don’t have much patience for the idea that every name is clearly and unambiguously gendered. I’ve defended borrowing conventionally masculine names for girls before, and I often find so-called boys’ names on girls downright appealing.
If there is one thing that irks me it is the idea that once a name goes girl, it can’t come back. Now this isn’t exactly true – names tend to rise for both genders at the same time. But when a name hits the big time for girls – Avery or Madison, for example – parents of boys do tend to cross it off their lists, and the few parents that had recently bestowed it on a son, well … they’re often found on baby name forums insisting that everyone needs to stop stealing Bailey.
So this week’s list are my top picks for boyish girls names we’re likely to cautiously reconsider for our sons – eventually.
Ashley – Yes, we hear this sound as feminine today – so feminine that I can’t really imagine it on a boy. But that’s true of almost any ends-in-ley or -lee name these days – they can read girly circa 2012. Think Kenley, Linley, Hadley. But before you dismiss this one as permanently assigned to Team Pink’s roster, consider that first Ashton (#126 in 2010) and now Asher (#139) have gained in recent decades. Parents like Ash- names – for both genders, and certainly for boys. Give Ashley a few decades, and he could be all Southern gentleman once more.
Madison – With the exception of Madison Smart Bell, this name wasn’t much known until a mermaid met Tom Hanks on the big screen. The fish tale made Madison a possibility for girls, with feminine short form Maddie and a similar sound to conventionally feminine – and stylish – Allison. And yet Madison feels like Harrison and Anderson – names parents have embraced for their sons. Fast-forward five decades, and can’t you imagine some of the first wave of female Madisons holding their namesake grandsons, all nicknamed Matt?
Shannon – Madison and Ashley are still school-aged, but how ’bout Shannon? It’s been ages since this Irish appellation caught on for both genders. Shannon peaked in 1976 at #98 for boys – but #17 for girls. Now that Shannon is firmly a mom name, and the 1976 single “Shannon” is gone, he sounds strangely boyish once more, a mix of Sean and all those ends-in-n boy names.
Jane – Okay, this is cheating. Jane has never been a boys’ name, not anywhere in the English-speaking world. But the small screen wants us to consider the possibility. Characters on Firefly and The Mentalist have both answered to the traditionally feminine form of John. Strong man Jayne Cobb appeared on Firefly, and wicked smart Patrick Jane helps solve crimes on The Mentalist. Could Jane catch on for boys? It’s a long shot. But on sound alone, Zane, Thane, Lane, Cain, Dane, Jane … not as out there as it seems at first.
Reese – Ms. Witherspoon, I adore you. But I was disappointed when I realized that your given name – well, actually your extra-middle-turned-professional-name – was more popular for girls than boys. Rhys is still dominant for boys, with all his Welsh hero cool. But Reese shares sounds with Patrice and Clarice and now shares a playground with Emma and Sophie. Despite the numbers, I suspect Reese is more akin to Peyton than Madison. Parents will keep Reese on their boys’ list anyhow – at least until their neighbor/co-worker/college roommate uses it for a girl.
Tracey – 30 Rock makes Tracy masculine, and Trace Adkins has made his name cowboy cool. Could Tracey make a comeback? He’s a masculine name in a Charles Dickens novel, and probably comes from a place name derived from Thrace – an ancient territory located in modern-day Turkey and Bulgaria. But today we tend to think of Tracey as a short form for Theresa. Still, Trace has been floating around the boys’ Top 1000 for two decades, suggesting that some parents like the sound for a son.
Alexis – In much of the world, Alexis is a guy – always has been. In the US, Dynasty helped cement this one as an option for our daughters, peaking at #3 in 1999. But Alexis fared well for boys in the same period, peaking at #103 in 2004, and still ranking #219. Alexander and Alexandra have been wildly popular in recent years, with oodles of spin-off names riding their coattails. Chances are that they’re all due for hibernation, but when they come back in a few more generations, I think it is anyone’s guess which gender will claim Alexis.
Courtney – Like Tracey and Shannon, courtly Courtney is firmly a mom name these days – and one of those moms is a Kardashian. It is easy to overlook Courtney’s masculine roots, but parents are using names like Corbin, Cormac, Courtland, and even Cortez for their sons.
Cary – There’s dashing Hollywood icon Cary Grant, and The Princess Bride’s Cary Elwes. Of all the names on this list, Cary is among the most wearable for a boy today. Sure, we’re calling our daughters Caroline – and some will surely answer to Carrie. But boys’ names like Carter and Carson are wildly popular, and there’s Corey, too. Throw in all of those Irish surnames, like Brady and Riley, and Cary starts to feel as boyish as William.
Kelly – I’ve saved the best for last. Despite peaking as a girl’s name in the 1970s, Kelly has a long history of use for boys. Plenty of uber-masculine figures have answered to the surname: there’s Australian Robin Hood-figure Ned Kelly, and Clint Eastwood’s 1970-turn in World War II flick Kelly’s Heroes, where the good guys make off with German gold. Actress Holly Marie Combs has sons called Finley Arthur, Riley Edward, and Kelley James. In that company, Kelly is effortlessly masculine.
I’ve left plenty of names off this list. Evelyn is unlikely to ever feel boyish again, between Eve and that -lyn ending. Addison strikes me as a less-likely comeback for similar reasons. But I do think that parents are willing to take more risks with their kids’ names than ever before. If Jayden can chart in the Top Ten, surely we can consider Kelly a classic Irish surname pick for a boy.
Are there others that you think should be considered for boys? Which of these do you think is most likely to make a comeback?
I actually know 2 male Addisons, one in his twenties and the other about 10. But strangely, I’ve never met a female Addison. Madison’s just more popular in my area, I guess.
Slightly off topic, but any chance of a profile of names like the ones Diablo Cody uses for characters? I was just thinking the other day about how fascinating Juno and Mavis (from Young Adult) are. They’ve got a lot of similarities, too, and I think there’s a lot of other names that could fit into the category.
My brother’s name is Morgan, and it fits him perfectly, and he’s a man’s man. I also have a girl cousin named Morgan, and I think it’s great on them both.
Like you, most of those names I like as much or better for boys than for girls. (I may be biased with my own name though!) You’re right on how once a boy-turned-girl name enters “mom name” territory it may give a small boost for those wanting to reclaim said name for Team Blue, since when used on a boy they generally don’t have the same dated feel (of course the same is also being said for using names like Dylan and Ryan on girls which are overdone on boys but sound fresher on girls to some). Now a word from me on a couple of the names you mentioned:
Alexis – I noticed the gender usage of this one is largely drawn along linguistic lines. The majority of male Alexises in the U.S. appear to be Hispanic (the stats generally show it higher in the states with large Spanish-speaking populations). Likewise in Canada Alexis dominates on boys in primarily francophone Quebec, but in the other provinces it rates higher on girls like it does in the States.
Ashley – Despite the popularity of other Ash- names for boys, I think due to its extraordinarily high popularity on girls for at least two decades (and unlike for example Kelly or Shannon not also being modestly popular for boys as well) this one has a greater challenge to finding its way back to the blue side. We may have to wait for the four-generation rule to kick in (i.e. once the generation of lots of female Ashleys dies out) to see it have a viable shot at finding its way back (unlike the less-lopsided-ratio ones which may have greater “more refreshing on a boy” and/or family name* appeal). On the other hand, Ashley survived as a boy’s name in places like the UK so that may also help its masculine image.
*Another sign of historical gender bias I’ve seen is the rarity of naming a boy after a female relative (other than using her maiden name, etc. as his first or middle name) as compared to female to male, female to female, or male to male honoring. If you want to name him after a woman with a unisex name, why not use her first name directly (or as a middle name, etc.)?
I much prefer Ashley on a boy, possibly because it’s so worn out on girls. On the flip side, I once knew a girl named Tristan.
I can see Tristan on a girl – especially thanks to the popularity of Kristen. I think there’s a (female) blogger named Tristen.
There was a girl named Aidan who graduated a year before I did (so she’d be around 33-34 now)
My stance on this issue is well-known — I love most of these names, for boys/men only.
I absolutely, unabashedly ADORE Jane/Jayne for a boy/man, and I REALLY wish I could use it for my own son. Firefly debuted a few months after my husband and I started trying to conceive, when we were in the heat of name-choosing, and I immediately fell for the name Ja(y)ne. Then The Mentalist came along, further cementing my feelings. I don’t ‘name after’ characters, but when I hear a name that I already like on shows/movies repeatedly, they tend to grow on me even more — I suppose because then they seem more wearable.
I very much agree with you about names and the issue of gender, but I do tend to think of names that begin with Mac- or end with -son or -sen as being masculine names (not that I don’t approve of their use on girls but they do tend to mean ‘son of …’), so Madison has always sounded quite masculine to me. I know a male Kelly (it really suits him), which is a name I much perfer to see on a guy, and all the Ashleys I’ve known have been boys.
I love Reese, Cary and Kelly so much more on boys than on girls… Jamie is another one that I far prefer on boys and wish it would come back.
Jamie is so cute for a boy! It’s the main reason I like James as much as I do, simply for that potential nickname. I don’t know if I could get away with it as a full name for a boy.
I know 2 little boys under the age of 1 named Reese. Although, I do live in OK where it fits in with the all the one syllable cowboy-sounding names.
I love a lot of the names you picked 🙂 (this is Catherine Dee on FB btw :)) I suspect that the fiance would probably veto all of these, sadly. His favourite boy’s name atm is Cinder. I’m hoping to play the “I’m going to have to get fat and give birth” card and -sticking with the fire theme- modify it to Blaise Something Lastname. We’ve already agreed on Ember Josephine for a girl. (My firstborn is 10year old Stephanie Elizabeth Lastname). I’m secretly hoping to sell him on Peregrine as a mn for a boy as I’ve loved the name ever since meeting the dashing Peregrine Lovat in The Adept series by Katherine Kurtz. Given that we’re still saving up for IVF, we still have a bit to debate names and since I am a total name nerd… 😛
Oh, I thought of another couple for the list – Dana and Stacy and maybe in a couple of generations there’ll be little boy Evelyns named for grandma Evie/grandpa Everett.
I still pine over the loss of Evelyn as a boy’s name, but will admit that it isn’t exactly feasible…however, as a middle name, I like it because if you look at Evelyn Waugh’s full name- Arther Evelyn St. John Waugh- it works, has a certain flow to it. Also, think about Ted Evelyn Mosby on “How I Met Your Mother”. Granted, the other characters poke fun at him about his middle name, but it adds a certain charm.
Or I’m just nuts.
Also, for Ashley, there’s a former member of a boy’s pop group that was quite popular when I was in middle school… Ashley Parker Angel. I can’t even remember what group he was in, but his name stuck with me 🙂
That, and he was really good looking.
Ashely Parker Angel was in the hear one minute gone the next boy group…O’town. Named for their home town of Orlando, FL. Is it sad that I remember that? In my defense I am originally from Orlando.
I actually went to school with a few guys named Ashley, Shannon, Courtney, Kelly & Tracey! (I’m only 25). And I grew up across the street from a Cary (younger brother to Curt, Chris & Carl). So I don’t think these names are too off the map. I think Rhys has definitely seen a resurgence for boys. And I love the name Jayne for a boy (I’m a big fan of The Mentalist & Firefly)…I think this is one of the few add-a-y spellings that makes the name seem more masculine…or is that just me?