How popular is the baby name Bridget in the United States right now? How popular was it historically? Use the popularity graph and data table below to find out! Plus, see all the blog posts that mention the name Bridget.

The graph will take a few moments to load. (Don't worry, it shouldn't take 9 months!) If it's taking too long, try reloading the page.


Popularity of the baby name Bridget


Posts that mention the name Bridget

Girl names that end with a T-sound

Girl names that end with a T-sound

In the U.S., most of the names given to baby girls end with a vowel sound. And many of the remaining names end with an N-sound.

So, what about girl names that end with other sounds?

Below is a selection of girl names that end with a T-sound, regardless of last letter. The names are ordered by current popularity.

Charlotte
A French feminine form of Charles, which is derived from a Germanic word meaning “free man.” Here’s the popularity graph for Charlotte.

Scarlett
From the English surname, which originally referred to a person who worked with a woolen cloth called scarlet (which was often dyed red). Here’s the popularity graph for Scarlett.

Violet
From the type of flower. Here’s the popularity graph for Violet.

Margaret
From the Ancient Greek word for “pearl.” Here’s the popularity graph for Margaret.

Juliette
A French diminutive of Julie. Here’s the popularity graph for Juliette.

Colette
A short form of the French name Nicolette. Here’s the popularity graph for Colette.

Kate
A nickname for Katherine. Here’s the popularity graph for Kate.

Elliott
From the English surname, which is derived from the name Elias. Here’s the popularity graph for Elliott.

Scout
From the English vocabulary word. Here’s the popularity graph for Scout.

Bridget
A variant of the Irish name Brighid, meaning “the exalted one.” Here’s the popularity graph for Bridget.

Arlette
The French form of the Germanic name Herleva. Here’s the popularity graph for Arlette.

August
From the name of the month, which was derived from the ancient Roman title Augustus. Here’s the popularity graph for August.

Egypt
From the country in northern Africa. Here’s the popularity graph for Egypt.

Amethyst
From the type of precious stone. Here’s the popularity graph for Amethyst.

Harriet
The English form of the French name Henriette. Here’s the popularity graph for Harriet.

Bernadette
A French feminine form of Bernard, which is made up of elements meaning “bear” and “hardy.” Here’s the popularity graph for Bernadette.

Odette
A French diminutive of Oda. Here’s the popularity graph for Odette.

Montserrat
From the island in the Caribbean. Here’s the popularity graph for Montserrat.

Annette
A French diminutive of Anne. Here’s the popularity graph for Annette.

Kit
A nickname for Katherine. Here’s the popularity graph for Kit.

Merritt
From the English surname, which is derived from the place name Merriott, meaning “boundary gate.” Here’s the popularity graph for Merritt.

Nicolette
A diminutive of the French name Nicole. Here’s the popularity graph for Nicolette.

Paulette
A French feminine form of Paul, which is derived from a Latin word meaning “small.” Here’s the popularity graph for Paulette.

Ayat
An Arabic word meaning “signs.” Here’s the popularity graph for Ayat.

Beckett
From the English surname. Here’s the popularity graph for Beckett.

Yvette
A French feminine form of Yves. Here’s the popularity graph for Yvette.

Dalett
Coined by reality TV couple Larry Hernández and Kenia Ontiveros (Larrymania). Here’s the popularity graph for Dalett.

Yamilet
A Spanish form of the Arabic name Jamilah. Here’s the popularity graph for Yamilet.

Janet
A diminutive of Jane. Here’s the popularity graph for Janet.

Millicent
From a Germanic name made up of elements meaning “labor” and “strength.” Here’s the popularity graph for Millicent.

Cosette
A French word meaning “little thing.” Here’s the popularity graph for Cosette.

Jannat
An Arabic word meaning “gardens.” Here’s the popularity graph for Jannat.

Josette
A diminutive of the French name Joséphine. Here’s the popularity graph for Josette.

Everest
From the world’s highest mountain, located in Asia (but named after a British surveyor). Here’s the popularity graph for Everest.

Marguerite
A French form of the name Margaret. Here’s the popularity graph for Marguerite.

Evolet
Invented for a character in the action-adventure film 10,000 BC. Here’s the popularity graph for Evolet.

Jeanette
A diminutive of the French name Jeanne. Here’s the popularity graph for Jeanette.

Lynette
Based on the Welsh name Eluned. Here’s the popularity graph for Lynette.

Antoinette
A feminine form of the French name Antoine. Here’s the popularity graph for Antoinette.

Honest
From the English vocabulary word. Here’s the popularity graph for Honest.

Rehmat
An Arabic word meaning “mercy.” Here’s the popularity graph for Rehmat.

Georgette
A French feminine form of George, which is derived from an Ancient Greek word meaning “earthworker.” Here’s the popularity graph for Georgette.

Harvest
From the English vocabulary word. Here’s the popularity graph for Harvest.

Cennet
A Turkish word meaning “heaven.” Here’s the popularity graph for Cennet.

Lizette
A diminutive of Elizabeth. Here’s the popularity graph for Lizette.

Summit
From the English vocabulary word. Here’s the popularity graph for Summit.

Mannat
An Urdu word that refers to a vow made to a deity in exchange for the granting of a particular wish. Here’s the popularity graph for Mannat.

Suzette
A French diminutive of Susanna. Here’s the popularity graph for Suzette.

Saint
From the English vocabulary word. Here’s the popularity graph for Saint.

Spirit
From the English vocabulary word. Here’s the popularity graph for Spirit.


Less-common girl names that end with a T-sound include Lilibet, Ayelet, Sonnet, Meklit, Garnet, Olivette, and Delight.

Which of the above do you like most? What others can you think of?

Sources:

Baby names with DG: Ledger, Bridger, Judge

hedgehog

Feeling nudged to choose a baby name that contains the letter-pair DG?

It’s an uncommon combination, but I’ve tracked down a few dozen options for you in this post!

Before we get to the names, though, let’s learn…

Where did -DGE come from in English?

French scribes, essentially.

In Old English, the “soft g” sound was rare, and it only occurred at the end of a word. When it did pop up, it was spelled with the digraph CG.

After the Norman Conquest in 1066, the ruling class of England spoke Anglo-Norman French. Over time, “the French-educated scribes [began] imposing traditional French spelling rules on English.”

The Normans had brought with them “soft g” words that utilized the letters G and I (which later evolved into J), but for native English words that contained the same sound, they decided to swap out CG for the trigraph DGE.

Some examples…

Old EnglishModern English
brycgbridge
ecgedge
hecghedge
hrycgridge
wecgwedge

Words derived from Anglo-Norman that happen to have the same ending include judge, pledge, and badge, and budge.

Now, on to the names!

Names with DG

Below are names that feature either DGE or the letter-pair DG (if it represents the same “soft G” sound). All of these names come from the SSA’s baby name data.

  • Adger
  • Adgie
  • Aldridge
  • Bridge
  • Bridger
  • Bridges
  • Bridget, Bridgett, Bridgette, Bridgete
  • Bridgetta
  • Bridgid
  • Bridgit, Bridgitt, Bridgitte
  • Cambridge
  • Coleridge
  • Condredge
  • Coolidge, Cooledge
  • Dandridge
  • Dodge
  • Dodger
  • Edge
  • Edgel
  • Edger
  • Edgerrin, Edgerin
  • Edwidge
  • Elbridge
  • Eldredge
  • Eldridge
  • Elridge
  • Etheridge
  • Ethridge
  • Gadge
  • Gidget, Gidgette
  • Hodge
  • Hodges
  • Judge
  • Knowledge
  • Ledgen
  • Ledgend
  • Ledger
  • Madge
  • Madgel
  • Madgie
  • Midge
  • Midgie
  • Milledge
  • Naledge
  • Padgett
  • Pledger
  • Redge
  • Redgie
  • Redginald
  • Ridge, Rydge
  • Ridger
  • Ridgely
  • Ridgeway
  • Ridgway
  • Rodger
  • Rodgerick
  • Rodgers
  • Rutledge
  • Sedgie
  • Sedgwick
  • Talmadge

Which DG name do you like most? Let me know in the comments!

Sources:

Image: Adapted from Igel by Mi chaela under CC BY 2.0.

Popular baby names in Providence, Rhode Island, in 1868

19th-century Providence, Rhode Island
19th-century Providence

Years ago, I discovered three documents with relatively complete lists of births for the city of Providence, Rhode Island, for the years 1866, 1867, and 1868. I’ve already created Providence’s baby name rankings for 1866 and 1867 using the first two documents, and today (finally!) I’ve got the third set of rankings for you.

Let’s start with some stats:

  • 1,762 babies were born in Providence in 1868, by my count. According to the introduction of the document I’m using a source, however, the total number is 1,866. I don’t know how to account for this discrepancy.
  • 1,617 of these babies (791 girls and 826 boys) had names that were known at the time of publication. The other 145 babies got blank spaces. Either their names hadn’t been registered yet, or they hadn’t been named yet, or perhaps these babies died young and never received a name.
  • 284 unique names (143 girl names and 141 boy names) were shared among these 1,617 babies.

And now, on to the names!

Top 5

A quick look at the top 5 girl names and boy names in Providence in 1868:

Top baby girl namesTop baby boy names
1. Mary
2. Catherine
3. Sarah
4. Ellen
5. Margaret
1. John
2. William
3. James
4. Charles
5. George

All Girl Names

  1. Mary, 149 baby girls
  2. Catherine, 39
  3. Sarah, 38
  4. Ellen, 31
  5. Margaret, 28
  6. Elizabeth, 25
  7. Alice, 24
  8. Anna, 20
  9. Ann, 16
  10. Emma, 14
  11. Eliza, 13
  12. Clara & Martha, 11 each (tie)
  13. Hannah & Lucy, 10 each (tie)
  14. Bridget, Grace, Jennie, Julia & Maria, 9 each (5-way tie)
  15. Annie, Florence, Jane, Minnie & Susan, 8 each (5-way tie)
  16. Agnes, Caroline, Cora, Ella & Harriet, 7 each (5-way tie)
  17. Anne, Carrie, Hattie, Ida, Mabel & Nellie, 6 each (6-way tie)
  18. Eva, Joanna, Lydia & Rosanna, 5 each (4-way tie)
  19. Abby, Charlotte, Emily, Jessie, Josephine, Lillian, Lizzie, Louisa, Louise, Marion, Phebe, Rosella & Theresa, 4 each (13-way tie)
  20. Anastasia, Bertha, Edith, Gertrude, Isabella, Nettie, Pearl, Rebecca & Susanna, 3 each (9-way tie)
  21. Ada, Almira, Edna, Fannie, Flora, Frances, Helen, Henrietta, Inez, Laura, Lelia, Lillie, Lottie, Maud, Priscilla & Virginia, 2 each (16-way tie)
  22. Addie, Adelaide, Adelicia, Adeline, Agatha, Allene, Amanda, Amy, Angelica, Antoinette, Arabella, Augusta, Aurelia, B.*, Belle, Bessie, Betsey, Catharine, Celia, Claudia, Della, Eleanor, Eleanora, Estella, Estelle, Esther, Eudavelia, Eulalie, Evelyn, Francenia, Genevieve, Georgia, Honora, Imogene, Jesse, Juliette, Kate, Leonora, Lilla, Lillias, Lorena, Luella, Luetta, Magdalena, Marian, Marietta, Matilda, Mercy, Minerva, Miriam, Myra, Myrtis, Nanoan, Nora, Pauline, Reberta, Rhoda, Roberta, Rosa, Rose, Ruth, Sabrina, Sophia, Stella & Winifred, 1 each (65-way tie)

*What do you think the “B.” might have stood for?

All Boy Names

  1. John, 112 baby boys
  2. William, 68
  3. James, 64
  4. Charles, 52
  5. George, 45
  6. Thomas, 37
  7. Frederick, 25
  8. Henry, 23
  9. Joseph, 22
  10. Edward, 19
  11. Daniel & Patrick, 18 each (tie)
  12. Robert, 17
  13. Frank, 16
  14. Francis, 15
  15. Walter, 13
  16. Michael, 11
  17. Albert, 10
  18. Arthur, 9
  19. Benjamin, Peter & Samuel, 7 each (3-way tie)
  20. Freddie, Harry, Herbert & Stephen, 6 each (4-way tie)
  21. Edwin, Lawrence, Lewis, Martin & Timothy, 5 each (5-way tie)
  22. Bernard, Edmund, Eugene, Louis, Philip & Richard, 4 each (6-way tie)
  23. Alfred, Augustus, Christopher, Eben, Horace, Howard, Hugh, Jeremiah, Matthew & Willard, 3 each (10-way tie)
  24. Abel, Barney, Byron, Dennis, Edgar, Ferdinand, Gilbert, Luke, Max, Nathaniel, Owen, Roger, Solomon & Victor, 2 each (14-way tie)
  25. Alden, Alexis, Allen, Alrick, Amos, Andrew, Ansel, Anson, Archibald, Asa, Ashby, Bartholomew, Calvin, Carlos, Clarence, Clark, Clarke, Clement, Clifford, Collyer, Crolander, Darius, David, Earl, Elisha, Ellis, Eri, Ernest, Erwin, Eusebe, Everett, Felix, Forrest, Foster, Franklin, Fred, Gardner, Jacob, Jason, Jerome, Jireh, Joaneto, Josiah, Jubal, Justin, Lawson, Lodovic, Louis, Lucien, Lyman, Major, Malachi, Manuel, Melbourne, Monroe, Morey, Morris, Myron, Nelson, Nicholas, Olney, Orville, Oscar, Pendleton, Ralph, Reuben, Rolfe, Rowland, Rufus, Simeon, Simon, Steven, Stewart, Theodore, Ulysses*, Volney, Warren, Whiting, Willie & Winchester, 1 each (80-way tie)

*Ulysses was likely named in honor of Ulysses S. Grant, who was elected president in 1868.

Twins

Finally, nineteen sets of twins were born in Providence in 1868. (All of these twin names are accounted for in the rankings above.)

Girl-girl twinsGirl-boy twinsBoy-boy twins
Caroline & Harriet
Lucy & Lydia
Mary & Rosanna
Margaret & Mary
Lizzie & Martha
(blank) & (blank)
Anne & Thomas
Emma & Charles
Florence & William
Hannah & Josiah
Ida & John
Isabella & John
Jennie & Horace
Charles & William
Francis & Robert
George & John
James & John
James & Stephen
(blank) & (blank)

Have any thoughts about these rankings, or about any of the specific names above?

Source: Snow, Edwin M. Alphabetical Lists of the Names of Persons Deceased, Born and Married in the City of Providence. Number three. Providence: Millard & Harker, 1870.

Baby name story: Anne

Queen Anne (reigned 1702-1714)
Queen Anne

British nobleman John Poulett, 1st Earl Poulett, and his wife Bridget had eight children in the early 1700s:

  1. Bridget (born in 1702)
  2. Catherine (b. 1706)
  3. John (b. 1708)
  4. Peregrine (b. 1708)
  5. Vere (b. 1710)
  6. Anne (b. 1711)
  7. Susannah (b. 1714)
  8. Rebecca (b. 1716)

Looks like five girls and three boys, right?

Except…Anne was a boy. (In fact, he was a member of the all-male House of Commons during the last sixteen years of his life.)

So, why did Anne have a feminine first name?

Because Queen Anne, who reigned from 1702 to 1714, just happened to be his baptismal sponsor.

(In contrast, American author Anne Rice was born with the name Howard…)

Sources: Anne Poulett – Wikipedia, John Poulett, 1st Earl Poulett – Wikipedia, John Poulett – Find A Grave