This post was originally published on January 11, 2009. It was substantially revised and reposted on July 28, 2014.
He’s an ancient appellation with plenty of indie cred.
Our Baby Name of the Day is the red-headed Rufus.
Singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright might not be a household name, but he’s gained a cult following since he launched his career in the 1990s. Even if you’ve never heard of him, you’ve probably heard his music – he’s contributed tracks to movies from Shrek to Brokeback Mountain.
Rufus suits an indie darling perfectly. There’s something offbeat about this choice and, indeed, he’s been worn by some unusual fictional characters, including:
- Groucho Marx answered to Rufus T. Firefly in 1933’s Duck Soup.
- George Carlin played a time-traveling Rufus in 1989’s Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure.
- Rufus, the thirteenth apostle, played by Chris Rock in the 1999 movie Dogma.
- In Kill Bill, Vol. 2, Samuel L. Jackson appears as Rufus, the wedding chapel organist.
- Television’s Gossip Girl included not-quite-rock-star dad Rufus Humphrey.
There’s also an animated cat in Disney’s The Rescuers, a dog in the Chalet School series of books, and a naked mole rat who takes part in Kim Possible’s adventures on the Disney Channel.
Yup, quirky is Rufus’ calling card.
The name first appears in Ancient Rome, where it probably started out as a name for a red-headed fellow. In Latin, rufus referred to the color red, especially red hair. It is ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root reudh, the origin of our words red and ruddy.
Plenty of Rufuses appear in the historical record from 100 BC to 400 AD, including a physician remembered for his writings on anatomy, poets, politicians, military generals and at least nine saints. One saintly Rufus is mentioned in the New Testament.
The name fell out of favor in the early Middle Ages. There is the eleventh century King William II of England, commonly known as William Rufus. That’s him in the picture above. But his name referred to either his red hair or perhaps his flushed red face – legend has it that the king had quite a temper.
Post-Protestant Reformation, Rufus was revived by parents searching for novel Biblical baby names, and by the late nineteenth century, he was well established.
Rufus peaked at #88 in 1880, keeping company with choices like Horace and Homer, Julius and Francis.
It didn’t last. Rufus fell steadily, and last charted in the US Top 1000 in 1988. Just 44 boys were named Rufus in 2013, and that seems to be the pattern – between two and four dozen newborns every year for the past two decades or so.
With names like Atticus and Silas climbing up the charts, Rufus seems like a logical choice. Except it hasn’t happened – yet.
But while Rufus may be rare, he’s not unknown. Singer James Taylor chose the name for one of his twins in 2001. (His brother is called Henry.) There’s also English actor Rufus Sewell, who played the bad guy in A Knight’s Tale and has a role in upcoming summer flick Hercules.
Rufus is cool – undeniably ancient and comfortably 21st century at the same time. He takes current trends a little bit farther than the relatively safe Marcus, but isn’t quite as daring as Ignatius. It’s the perfect name for a creative family with a daring streak to bestow upon their son.
What do you think of Rufus? Would he wear well in 2014?
Baby Name of the Day: Varian
Baby Name of the Day: Humphrey
I love Rufus. Love, love, love…..along with Jethro. I just don’t have the guts to do it. You have to REALLY be able to carry off a Rufus or a Jethro and I am not sure we could.
I’ve been trying to convince my husband to put Rufus on our shortlist for a year or so. No luck so far. Which I think is crazy, because my husband legally changed his own name to Seumas when he came of age. I’ve asked why Seumas is a great name but Rufus is unacceptable, but haven’t gotten a proper answer yet. ;p
We called our son Rufus. Had some funny looks when we told people we planned to do so when I was pregnant but since he’s been born everyone agrees he ‘looks like’ a Rufus! I absolutely love it, it’s one of the few boys names to suit both little boys and grown men. We generally call him Roo though for brevity’s sake!
I think kids would say Doofus, Goofus, Woofus.. I’m thinking I would use Rufus for a dog though, a red-haired dog (if ever I should have one!). I’ll have to see if it’s on the list of popular dog names.
Rufus is so cool! It’s one I really love and could totally see using, if only I were a little braver. I don’t think it would go over well with my family at all. I feel like the kid would get made fun of a lot with the name Rufus. Funny, since Marcus, Julius, etc. are totally acceptable. Rufus is in the same category as Bruno for me, love them both (and they’d make great brothers, no?) but couldn’t bring myself to use them… sadly.
YES! I love Rufus. I will admit, though, it’s probably because of Wainwright. I love him so. *sigh* Anyway, I think it’s a great unexpected choice, but most people will say dog (or Woofus)! That’s what my boyfriend says, just reminds him of a dog. I think I might play around with it later…Thanks for this post! I love it when my pet favorites are done, even if I’m not the one who suggests them!
Oh, and Kate, My other half does the Woofus thing, but insists he still likes the name. Promises not to call him “Woofie”. I don’t have the inclination myself but find it endearing rather than annoying. Anything Monty Python related is more than welcome in this house!
Since he came off my list, I have to admit I’m chamed by him, hmm? I do like him. Exactly because he’s familiar but not expected, wich is exactly the feel of Leo & Simon all those years ago. I like that feel. 🙂 Rufus first hit my radar because of Bill & Ted. “Rufus George would be pretty awesome” I thought back then. None of the other pop references from the movie bother me. I still like him very much. What about Rufus George Porfirio? Hmmm, will have to stew on that one.
I see the charm of Rufus.. but maybe a bit too quirky for me. I like the idea of using a name that goes back that far in history.
Confession: I have the urge to say ‘Woofus’ instead of Rufus a la Monty Python everytime someone mentions this or indeed quite a few other boys names that begin with R! (Wupert, Woderick, Woger – anyone?!)
That aside, I think ‘quirky’ is a good word to describe Rufus as he would perfectly suit a parent with a Bohemian style because he’s slightly left of field whilst remaining widely recognisable. And, inspite of my Monty Python inspired urge to say Woofus(!) I really like him and have been pleasantly surprised to learn that he has such a vast history. So, while Rufus will never exactly be my thing, I would be utterly charmed by him on someone else’s child.