Those who read this blog regularly know that musings on names are nothing new to me, but I've been thinking lately of the names of virtues or 'grace names' that were popular first names for girls in particular in much of the western world from about the 17th century onwards. These are names such as Prudence, Patience, Faith, Hope, Joy, etc.
I think it's quite interesting that the names Prudence, Temperance, Constance and Patience were far more common in the 19th century than Faith, Hope, Love, or Joy. So clearly, the Victorians, on the whole, wanted daughters who were well-behaved and sober, rather than happy and hopeful.
Some of the weirder names were found in the Puritan period, both here and in the USA - unfortunately, some people took taking names from words in the Bible a little too literally, leading to children named such bizarre things as Job-raked-out-of-the-ashes and Continent. Slightly more common (but still not in wide use) were names such as Humanity, Silence, Experience, Diligence, and Tribulation.
Names were also not always gender ascribed in the way we would do so today. Hope was a name for both men and women, for example. The name Christian was not usually used for a boy; it was however relatively common as a girl's name until about the mid-nineteenth century.
Friday 12 December 2014
Friday 5 December 2014
Welsh family history (Coming Home) and a series from a little further away (WDYTYA? USA)
Thought I'd let you all know that the Welsh family history series Coming Home starts tonight on BBC1 Wales at 7.30pm. Viewers outside the region will be able to see it on iPlayer.
Though the celebrities may not have the razzle-dazzle of a big series like Who Do You Think You Are? the programmes are well presented, interesting, and, at half an hour long, perfect to slip in between other things you want to see.
On a similar note, the digital TV channel Watch has been showing Who Do You Think You Are? USA in the UK (if that makes sense,) to allow us here in Britain to see the US episodes which the BBC may not have decided to screen, or have screened at off-peak times in the middle of the night (they have the habit of putting WDYTYA?USA on at 11.35 or a similar time, with little to no advertising, and choosing a selection of episodes as opposed to purchasing the entire series. Although, the editing the BBC does perhaps makes it more suited to British audiences.) So keep an eye on the schedules, as Watch have been repeating them and are likely to continue to do so.
Though the celebrities may not have the razzle-dazzle of a big series like Who Do You Think You Are? the programmes are well presented, interesting, and, at half an hour long, perfect to slip in between other things you want to see.
On a similar note, the digital TV channel Watch has been showing Who Do You Think You Are? USA in the UK (if that makes sense,) to allow us here in Britain to see the US episodes which the BBC may not have decided to screen, or have screened at off-peak times in the middle of the night (they have the habit of putting WDYTYA?USA on at 11.35 or a similar time, with little to no advertising, and choosing a selection of episodes as opposed to purchasing the entire series. Although, the editing the BBC does perhaps makes it more suited to British audiences.) So keep an eye on the schedules, as Watch have been repeating them and are likely to continue to do so.
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