LITERATURE AND OUR CHRISTIAN NAMES

Evening Post, Volume CXVIII, Issue 36, 11 August 1934, Page 25

LITERATURE AND OUR CHRISTIAN NAMES

John is England's favourite Christian name for boys, according to investigations made by private researchers, says the "Christian Science Monitor." Oil tho register of a public school opened in 1859 there were in that year' 29 boys called John, 42 called William, and 45 called Charles. In 1900 at tho same school there were 26 Johns, while Charles and William had sunk to 19 each. In 1930 the Johns had risen to 77, William had risen slightly to 22, arid Charles had fallen spectacularly to seven. '

The popularity of Jolm is one that has endured through the ages. The 600 most popular Christian names of men and boys in England at intervals during the last 750 years arc listed m the "Complete Peerage." This publication shows John to bo the most consistently popular of all. In 1347, the year after the Battle of Crecy, John easily topped tho list, followed by William, Thomas, Robert, and Richard.

At the timo' of the) accession of Queen Elizabeth in 1558, John was again definitely tho leading name. It was at this time thai; Charles, George, and Arthur appear in tho list of favourite names for the first time. Not until 1738, under the premiership •of Sir Robert Walpole, did Joseph, Samuel, and Frederick begin to achieve a considerable measure of popularity.

Innumerable factors enter into the popularity of particular names. Poter does not appear in any of the peerage lists, has only orie representative in tho

aforesaid school register of 1859, nono in. that of 1000, arid 39 in tho list of 1930. This is ascribed definitely to the popularity of Sir James Barrio's "Petor Pan," which was first produced in 1904.

Yofc on the whole it is not supposed that literature has any groat influence on the choosing of names. Conan Doylo's detective stories aro perhaps as widely known as Barries plays, but there are very few Sherlocks about in England. \

An exception to this rule is provided by tho Bible, which in spite of the preninotoenth century lack of Peters, has exerted an immense influence on the naming of children. ..Lord Macaulay mentions a Pnritan soldier whose parents christened him Obadiah their-kings-in-chains-and-their-nobles-in-links-of-iron. This man's surname was Sykes.

The popularity of Florence as a name for girls in tho-second,half of. the nineteenth century is thought to be duo rather to tho fame of Florence Nightingale than to the fact that Florence was the heroine of Dickens's "Dombey and Son," published a few years before the Crimean War in which Miss Nightingale earned her. great reputation. The Koyal Family, it is said, has not much affected parents' choice of names, for it is not thought that the Georges and Marys have greatly increased during the roign of the- present rulers of England. It is said,- however, that there is today a revival of Elizabeth and Margaret, inspired by the little daughters of the Duke and Duchoss of York.