How popular is the baby name Greer 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 Greer.

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Popularity of the baby name Greer


Posts that mention the name Greer

What turned Greer into a girl name in the early 1940s?

Actress Greer Garson (1904-1996)
Greer Garson

From the 1910s to the 1930s, the rare name Greer occasionally popped in the in the U.S. baby name data as a boy name. In the early 1940s, though, it suddenly started being given to baby girls:

  • 1943: 37 baby girls and 10 baby boys named Greer
  • 1942: 15 baby girls and 6 baby boys named Greer
  • 1941: 5 baby girls named Greer
  • 1940: unlisted
  • 1939: unlisted

In fact, from 1941 onward, the name Greer has been given more often to baby girls than to baby boys:

Graph of the usage of the baby name Greer
Graph of the usage of the name Greer

What caused the switch?

Red-haired British actress Greer Garson, who was most popular in America during the early-to-mid 1940s. She was nominated for the Oscar for Best Actress seven times, though she won only once (for her role in the 1942 movie Mrs. Miniver).

Her birth name was Eileen Evelyn Greer Garson; Greer was her mother’s maiden name. She began going by “Greer Garson” in the early 1930s, while she was still a stage actress in England.

Louis B. Mayer, head of MGM studios, discovered Garson in 1937 while he was abroad hunting for talent. After that particular trip, he sailed back to the U.S. with Garson and several other finds:

Also on board were two Austrian actresses named Hedy Kiesler and Rose Stradner, screenwriter Walter Reisch, and two singers, Hungarian Ilona Hajmassy, and Polish Miliza Korjus. While Mayer renamed Hedy Kiesler “Hedy Lamarr” and changed Ilona Hajmassy to “Ilona Massey,” he was stumped when it came to Greer and Miliza Korjus. Ultimately, he settled with Howard Strickling [head of MGM’s publicity department] to start a publicity campaign for Korjus (“her name rhymes with gorgeous!”), and left Greer’s name alone. But for years he would continue to complain that her name was not feminine enough.

The surname Greer is related to the personal name Gregory, which means “watchful, alert.”

What are your thoughts on the name Greer? Do you like it better as a girl name or as a boy name?

Sources:

P.S. The top image of (a very bejeweled) Greer Garson comes from her appearance on the TV game show “What’s My Line?” in April of 1958.

P.P.S. At the height of her fame, Greer Garson owned two standard poodles with the rhyming names Gogo and Clicquot (pronounced klee-koh).

Numerology and baby names: Number 8

numbers

Below are hundreds of baby names with a numerological value of 8.

What do I mean by that?

Well, in numerology, you substitute each letter in a word with that letter’s ordinal value in the alphabet. (The letter B has a value of 2, for instance, because it’s the second letter.) Then you add those ordinal values together to come up with a total. Lastly, you add the digits of that total together to obtain a numerological value.

Here’s an example: The letters in the name Leah have the values 12, 5, 1, and 8. Added together, these values equal 26. And the digits of 26 added together equal 8.

All of the “8” names below are sub-categorized by totals — just in case any of those larger numbers are significant to anyone. Within each group you’ll find some of the most popular “8” names per gender (according to the most recent set of U.S. baby name rankings).

8

The letters in the following baby names add up to 8.

Girl name (8)Boy name (8)
BeaAbe

8 via 17

The letters in the following baby names add up to 17, which reduces to eight (1+7=8).

Girl names (8 via 17)Boy names (8 via 17)
Gia, Bo, Afia, Eabha, CalaBo, Mac, Cam, Md, Jeb

8 via 26

The letters in the following baby names add up to 26, which reduces to eight (2+6=8).

Girl names (8 via 26)Boy names (8 via 26)
Leah, Maci, Jana, Pia, Dua, Gema, Calia, Brea, CamiEli, Bear, Bode, Obed, Asaad, Adil

8 via 35

The letters in the following baby names add up to 35, which reduces to eight (3+5=8).

Girl names (8 via 35)Boy names (8 via 35)
Mila, Clara, Dahlia, Laila, Heidi, Alicia, Cleo, Hadlee, Cadence, Carla, Ayah, Aarna, Sana, Leela, Chava, Lidia, Hafsa, Haya, Jiana, Ambar, Uma, Jaina, Kamia, Adella, Nika, BobbieLiam, Cole, Eric, Kaden, Jax, Edgar, Kian, Bodie, Makai, Jase, Abram, Creed, Lance, Marc, Jet, Koah, Anas, Akeem, Saif, Ajani, Kain, Hagen, Alakai, Mahdi, Cadence, Eyad, Koi, Beckam, Calen, Najee, Eliah, Blu

8 via 44

The letters in the following baby names add up to 44, which reduces to eight (4+4=8).

Girl names (8 via 44)Boy names (8 via 44)
Ariana, Faith, Hope, Helen, Opal, Keira, Jenna, Anais, Cielo, Xena, Kiera, Celina, Micaela, Khadija, Maliah, Erika, Ainara, Brenda, Rue, Karma, Rya, Carlee, Sanai, Sahana, Tamia, Claira, Hailie, Halima, Nella, Anisa, Jacey, Aleya, Atalia, TinaJayce, Kaiden, Judah, Abraham, Brian, Dante, Archie, Andy, Allen, Ray, Dakari, Hugh, Alaric, Braden, Boaz, Jakobe, Kaleo, Jadon, Akiva, Micaiah, Karam, Emile, Adonai, Arjan, Zael, Akram, Finan, Trae, Athan, Essa, Nicco

8 via 53

The letters in the following baby names add up to 53, which reduces to eight (5+3=8).

Girl names (8 via 53)Boy names (8 via 53)
Julia, Eliza, Samara, Laura, Reign, Legacy, Rosa, Chelsea, Kendra, Malaya, Kori, Kamari, Livia, Shay, Zainab, Deborah, Casey, Layan, Riya, Vayda, Zaya, Nayla, Emilie, Atlas, Aryah, Anyla, Carmela, Marcela, Harlie, Kaelani, Layna, Marli, Blakelee, Hadassa, Alyna, Ollie, Senna, Keren, Jadore, Sora, Greer, Marta, Ahuva, Kaleigh, Xenia, Bryce, Tamar, Bexlee, Emiko, Rayah, Analy, Jaycie, Alize, Kior, Oaklie, Kelsea, TahaniArcher, Atlas, Gavin, Bryce, Aziel, Colin, Khalil, Casey, Kamari, Kyle, Camilo, Kohen, Saul, Reign, Kareem, Keith, Legacy, Felipe, Brodie, Jairo, Zev, Ollie, Beaux, Makari, Aydin, Elmer, Umar, Cormac, Caius, Efrain, Syed, Vince, Yair, Gerard, Guy, Faris, Leeland, Kiran, Izael, Shay, Adolfo, Kove, Aidyn, Kahlil, Braiden, Koby, Lukah, Sora, Eyden, Simcha, Baruch, Yash, Mendel, Tyce, Ghaith, Tuff, Aylan, Eduin, Corban, Kwame, Jahleel, Yug, Mckay, Brix, Cedrick, Lamir, Ayaz

8 via 62

The letters in the following baby names add up to 62, which reduces to eight (6+2=8).

Girl names (8 via 62)Boy names (8 via 62)
Natalie, Leilani, Sienna, Georgia, Kylie, Ariyah, Arielle, Serena, Avianna, Danielle, Navy, Jordan, Kennedi, Gloria, Leslie, Adrianna, Noor, Ramona, Ayleen, Luisa, Keily, Xyla, Tori, Ailany, Solana, Aylani, Annabella, Queen, Yelena, Liyana, Estela, Karmen, Malky, Dalett, Magdalene, Nuri, Avril, Samaira, Terra, Sarina, Laynee, Isobel, Samaria, Toby, Amiracle, Harbor, Ilyana, Mackenna, Kiley, Mason, Mehlani, Kaislee, Eryn, Keyli, Adalyne, Kaloni, Alyse, Analucia, Eugenia, ElliemaeMason, Josiah, Jordan, Adonis, Callum, Ronan, Briggs, Louie, Hassan, Zahir, Randy, Talon, Benedict, Osman, Menachem, Matheo, Casper, Toby, Javon, Andreas, Randall, Bernard, Freddy, Elyas, Nikola, Jovan, Riot, Rudra, Elvin, Xion, Johann, Angus, Alton, Maxx, Mayer, Brenden, Aziz, Navy, Kamren, Braven, Floyd, Adriano, Harun, Jareth, Noor, Chadwick, Axyl, Levin

8 via 71

The letters in the following baby names add up to 71, which reduces to eight (7+1=8).

Girl names (8 via 71)Boy names (8 via 71)
Avery, Zoey, Adalynn, Jasmine, Finley, Octavia, Rowan, Lauren, Shiloh, Astrid, Maryam, Gabrielle, Charleigh, Shelby, Marianna, Royal, Eleanora, Jaylin, Lettie, Mariella, Wendy, Romy, Mireya, Prisha, Briley, Milly, Jailyn, Annaleigh, Elysia, Jazelle, Analiyah, Karleigh, Wilder, Kyler, Betsy, Xareni, Kenslee, Annalisa, Kenleigh, Maryn, EverliSamuel, Rowan, Rhett, Avery, Kyler, Finley, Orion, Royal, Wilder, Apollo, Mathias, Zayne, Emanuel, Wells, Shiloh, Kenzo, Moses, Soren, Nikolai, Julien, Raylan, Flynn, Azriel, Shepard, Mariano, Zeus, Maison, Pierre, Jovani, Kylin, Ross, Jaylin, Jessiah, Steve, Chozen, Javion, Sammy, Jahziel, Destin, Amarion, Brewer, Haroon, Xavian, Daylon, Raziel, Theoden, Yasiel, Izrael, Atharva, Drayden, Abdirahman, Dwight, Khylan, Shyne, Devante, Jionni, Merlin, Niccolo, Quill, Deklyn, Othman, Rickey, Usher, Blayze, Neithan

8 via 80

The letters in the following baby names add up to 80, which reduces to eight (8+0=8).

Girl names (8 via 80)Boy names (8 via 80)
Savannah, Alexandra, Stevie, Colette, Cassidy, Monroe, Emberly, Cassandra, Marceline, Ensley, Cynthia, Lakelyn, Spencer, Carsyn, Marissa, Tyler, Bennett, Lizeth, Preslee, Estefania, Elianny, Annaliese, Pyper, Leonora, Shaindy, Brooks, Jeanette, Polly, Ravyn, Therese, Thyri, Zariya, Sumaya, Mayleigh, Sayler, Austen, Brenleigh, IssabellaBrooks, Bennett, Tyler, Alejandro, Spencer, Moises, Emmitt, Zyon, Waylen, Bryant, Jeremias, Kooper, Eliezer, Cashton, Giancarlo, Alessio, Monroe, Savion, Ransom, Wilmer, Emrys, Giorgio, Samarth, Carsyn, Santiel, Austen, Stefano, Kashmere, Krishna, Kanyon, Cassidy, Theron, Wayland, Latrell, Mouhamed, Carsten

8 via 89

The letters in the following baby names add up to 89, which reduces to eight (8+9=17; 1+7=8).

Girl names (8 via 89)Boy names (8 via 89)
Raelynn, Summer, Emerson, Winter, Alexandria, Felicity, Ivory, Virginia, Alisson, August, Rosalina, Avalynn, Beverly, Arizbeth, Quincy, Marjorie, Susanna, Winry, Wesley, Gentry, Halston, Hartley, Jazmyn, Wyatt, Bellarose, Azariyah, UnityWyatt, Wesley, August, Emerson, Titus, Travis, Garrett, Enrique, Mauricio, Quincy, Alistair, Osiris, Massimo, Graysen, Syncere, Gentry, Antony, Halston, Yisrael, Winter, Zyion, Salomon, Aleister, Dusty, Oswaldo

8 via 98

The letters in the following baby names add up to 98, which reduces to eight (9+8=17; 1+7=8).

Girl names (8 via 98)Boy names (8 via 98)
Scarlett, Valentina, Allyson, Crystal, Londynn, Julietta, Kenzley, Jocelynn, Fatoumata, KynzleeTrevor, Jefferson, Zephyr, Lazarus, Marquis, Brexton, Klayton, Giuseppe, Kashtyn, Everson, Britton, Hutton, Colston, Donatello, Kurtis, Zayvian

8 via 107

The letters in the following baby names add up to 107, which reduces to eight (1+0+7=8).

Girl names (8 via 107)Boy names (8 via 107)
Treasure, Dominique, Phoenyx, Charolette, WinsleyPreston, Dominique, Yousuf, Giovanny, Prosper

8 via 116

The letters in the following baby names add up to 116, which reduces to eight (1+1+6=8).

Girl names (8 via 116)Boy names (8 via 116)
Royalty, Annistyn, Eternity, Suzette, ChristiannaCornelius, Stryker, Treyson, Royalty, Prescott

8 via 125

The letters in the following baby names add up to 125, which reduces to eight (1+2+5=8).

Girl names (8 via 125)Boy names (8 via 125)
Rozalynn, Tristyn, Oliviarose, Skyelynn, RemingtynKyngston, Tristyn, Octavious, Vishruth, Dontavius

Number 8: Meaning and Associations

What does the number eight mean in numerology? Unfortunately, there’s no clear answer. Various numerological systems exist, and each one has its own interpretation of the number eight.

That said, if we look at a couple of modern numerology/astrology websites, we see 8 being described as “successful,” “ambitious,” “organized,” “practical,” and “authoritative.”

Personally, I prefer to look at associations, which are a bit more concrete. Here are some things that are associated with the number 8:

  • Octopus
  • 8-bit computing
  • 8-track cartridge
  • Eight-ball (pool)
    • Magic 8 Ball (fortune-telling toy)
  • Figure 8
    • Infinity symbol
    • Analemma (diagram showing the position of the sun over the course of a year)
    • Figure-eight knot
  • Eight-ender (perfect score in the sport of curling)

What does the number 8 mean to you? What are your strongest associations with the number?

(To see names with other numerological values, check out the posts for the numbers one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, and nine.)

Sources: SSA, Numerology – Cafe Astrology, The meaning of the numbers 1 – 9 – World Numerology, 8 – Wikipedia
Image by dominik hofbauer from Unsplash

[Latest update: Sept. 2023]

Baby name needed: Girl name for Saylor’s sister

light bulbs

A reader named Michelle has a son named Saylor Dorian. She’s expecting a baby girl in May and would like some name suggestions. She says:

We originally picked shiloh for a girl but we aren’t liking how popular it’s getting [due to a celebrity finding it first..grrr] we want a unique name that’s still ‘easy on the ears’ as in easy to get used to. I try to stay away from the too feminine popular vowel names like ava, bella, etc… though we like them we don’t want a trendy name like piper, stella, etc…

We are currently tossing around names like vega, remy…. though what i loved about shiloh was that O ending.. but we are open to whatever.

First let’s try to come up some more o-endings. How about:

Callisto
Calypso
Clio
Flo (Flora/Florence)
Jo (Josie/Josephine)
Juno		Leo (Leona)
Margot
Marlow
Meadow
Mo (Maureen)
Willow

And here are some other names that came to mind:

Audra
Briar
Darcy
Dylan
Emery
Fiona
Gillian
Greer		Heidi
Ione
Jaya
Lotus
Lyra
Mina
Morgan
Nadia		Naomi
Nova
Phoebe
Rory
Tess
Violet
Vita
Zillah

Which of the above do you like best for Saylor’s sister? What other girl names would you suggest to Michelle?

Image by Brennan Burling from Unsplash

One-syllable girl names: Kate, Sage, Wren, Maeve

List of 1-syllable girl names

Looking for a girl name that’s short and to-the-point? Something that might work particularly well as a middle name?

Check out this list of several hundred one-syllable girl names:

  • Anne/Ann, Ash/Ashe, Ayn
  • Banks/Banx, Bar, Bea, Belle/Bell, Bess, Beth, Bjork, Blair/Blaire, Blaise/Blaze/Blayze/Blaize, Blake/Blayke, Blanche, Bless, Blessed, Bliss/Blyss, Bloom, Blue/Blu, Blythe, Brave, Bray, Breck, Bree/Brie, Breeze/Brees, Brett, Bright, Britt, Bronx, Bronze, Brooke/Brook, Bryce/Brice, Brynn/Bryn/Brynne/Brin/Brinn, Burke
  • Cache, Cass, Cate/Cait, Chance, Charm, Chase, Chen, Cher, Chris, Claire/Clare/Clair, Clark/Clarke, Cloud, Clove, Coast, Cove, Cree, Cruz
  • Dale, Dare, Dash, Dawn, Deah, Dee, Deem, Del/Dell, Doll, Dor, Dove, Dream, Drew/Dru
  • Earth, Elle, Eve
  • Fair/Fayre, Faith/Fayth, Fawn/Faun, Fate, Faye/Fay/Fae, Fern/Ferne, Flame, Fleur, Flor, Flynn, Fran
  • Gail/Gayle/Gale, Gal, Gay/Gaye, Gem, Gift, Gold, Grace/Grayce, Gray/Grey, Greer, Gwen, Gwyn/Gwynn/Gwynne
  • Hayes/Haze, Hayle, Heart/Hart, Hope
  • Jace/Jayce, Jade/Jayde/Jaide, Jan, Jane/Jayne, Jaye/Jae, Jazz/Jaz, Jean/Jeanne, Jem, Jen/Jenn, Jess, Jett, Jewel, Jill, Jin/Jyn, Jo, Joan, Joss, Joy/Joye/Joi/Joie, Joyce, Jude, Jules, June, Jung
  • Kai, Kate/Kayte/Kaite, Kay/Kaye/Kae, Kayce, Kayde, Kim, Klaire/Klare/Klair, Klark/Klarke, Kree, Kris, Kyle
  • Lace, Laine/Lane/Layne, Lake, Lark, Leigh/Lee, Light, Liv, Liz, Love, Lux, Luce, Luz, Lynn/Lynne/Lyn/Lin
  • Mae/May, Madge, Maeve/Maebh/Mave, Mai, March, Marge/Marj, Maude/Maud, Maze/Maize/Mayze, Mills, Mirth, Moon
  • Nash, Naz, Nelle/Nell, Neve/Niamh, Nile, Noire/Noir, Noor/Nour, North
  • Paige/Payge/Page, Pam, Pax, Paz, Peace, Peach, Pearl/Perl, Plum, Praise, Prayer, Prim, Psalm, Psalms, Prue, Pure
  • Queen, Quinn
  • Rae/Raye, Rayne/Rain/Raine/Rainn/Reign, Reece/Reese/Rhys, Reem, Reet, Reeve, Rell, Ren, Rise, Rogue, Rome, Rose, Rue, Rune, Rut, Ruth, Ryn/Rin
  • Saint, Sage/Saige/Sayge/Saje, Scout, Shane/Shayne, Shea/Shae/Shay/Shaye, Shine, Silk, Shir, Skye/Sky, Sloane/Sloan, Snow, Sol, Soul, Star/Starr, Storm, Sue/Sioux, Swan, Sway
  • Tai, Taj, Tate, Teal, Tess, Thyme, Tris, Trish, True/Tru, Trust, Truth, Tyne
  • Vail/Vale, Val, Vaughn
  • Wing, Wren/Wrenn, Wryn, Wynn/Wynne/Winn
  • Yaz, Yen
  • Zane/Zain/Zayne, Zeal, Zell, Zen

Please note that I did include names in the gray area between one syllable and two syllables. The deciding factor on these particular names will be your own interpretation/accent, so be sure to test the names out loud before making any final decisions. (“Hayle,” for instance — would you say it like Hale, or like Hailey? Or “Rise” — is it rize, or ree-sah?)

Many of these names also happen to be unisex, so they appear on the one-syllable boy names list as well.

What’s your favorite one-syllable girl name?

[Latest update: July 2023]