Skip to main content

Robin


A while ago someone asked me what I thought of Robin for a little girl's name, so I looked into how popular it was, and I was shocked that there were only 143 baby girls named Robin in 2011. Robin, the name of the bird (my state bird), is one of the truly unisex names out there. Some may see it better on girls or boys, but this one has no rules, just like Sage and Rowan. However, back in the day it was used as a pet form of Robert (most will remember Robin Hood immediately, or Batman & Robin, although this name has been used by William Shakespeare as well) and it was Germanic, meaning "bright fame." In this case, it could still work very well for boys named Robert (for parents who do not like the nickname Robby/Rob). For girls, it has not ranked since 2004, a decline from it's highest ranking at #25 in 1962 and 1963, always ranking since 1932. For boys, it has ranked since 1881, it's highest ranking being at #143 in 1956, then falling off the charts in 1999. Overall, more popular for girls in modern times. Robinet/Robinette and Robina are two rarely heard female variations.

Looking for a different bird name? Perhaps Birdie, Feather, Wren, Lark, Nightingale, Cardinal, Oriole, Dove, Linnet, Swan, Finch, Heron, Starling, Kestrel or Weaver?

Here's a fun fact: actor Robin Williams named his daughter Zelda after the video game.


Labels:

Comments

  1. RenSeptember 8, 2012 at 10:32 PM

    I really like the name Robin for a girl. I know a girl and her middle name is Robin. She was named after her dad Robin.

    ReplyDelete
  2. CristinaSeptember 8, 2012 at 11:58 PM

    I've only known girls with this name, too. One is my age and one is my mom's age.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Galician Baby Names

I grew up on a street that was named an Italian variant of Roger. When I got married and we bought our first house, it turned out to be on Roger Street. Once noting that coincidence, I started searching for other variants of the name. However, female variants turned out to be pretty nonexistent. Save for Roxeria, which I later discovered was the Galician female form, possibly pronounced rohz-AIR-ee-uh. That led me to a few lists of female Galician names, ranging from common to rare. Here is a sampling of names not often heard here in the states... Albina Alda Alma Alodia Aloia Amada Amadora Amalia Amparo Anisia Antia Araceli Aranzazu Artemisa Avelina Azucena Baia Balbina Baltasara Beatriz Benvida Berenice Bieita Branca Braulia Caetana Carola Casilda Casimira Ceferina Celsa Cipriana Cira Clorinda Coralia Cornelia Cosima Davinia Delfina Desideria Dionisia Dominga Dorinda Dorotea Dositea Edelmira Edenia Elba Elvira Emiliana Etelvina ...
2 comments
Read more

Massimo

Today's name: Massimo (male) Pronunciation: MAH-see-moh Potential nicknames: Masi, Simo, Max Origin: Along with Massimiliano, Massimo is the Italian variant of the Latin name Maximilian (which was the name of three Roman emperors and a few saints), meaning "greatest." Popularity: Massimo did not rank on the top 1000 baby names in 2010, but there were 148 baby boys born named Massimo and 5 named Massimiliano. In 2011 there were 107 named Massimo. Fun fact: (1) The name Maksim is also a variant of Maximilian. (2) Massimo has been the surname of many powerful Roman families. (3) Saint Massimo, a 5th century bishop. (4) Massimo D'Alema, Italian Prime Minister. (5) Massimo Capra, Canadian celebrity chef. .
Post a Comment
Read more

Elowen

Elowen is a recent Cornish baby name meaning "elm." It may not take off in America like the last Cornish hit, Jennifer, but it's certainly pretty. She's part of a "linguistic revival," as Appellation Mountain puts it  here . Her nickname could be Ellie, Elle or Ella, or a more unusual choice, Wendy. The pronunciation of Elowen is "ell-LOH-en," though most Americans will probably stick with "ELL-oh-wen." Please note that it is not spelled Elowyn. There is a similar name, Eowyn, but if you spell it Elowyn it will no longer be the Cornish name meaning elm tree, just some creative name. Other great Cornish names include Penrose, Chesten (the Cornish form of Christine), Demelza, Denzel, Hammitt, Kerensa/Kerenza, Meraud (very similar to French gem name Emeraude, both meaning emerald, but Meraud is pronounced "meh-row"), Merryn, Morwenna, Tremain, Emblyn, Jory, Massen, Treeve and Cotton. Here's 's a link to a post on Cornish n...
2 comments
Read more