How popular is the baby name Pauline 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 Pauline.

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Popularity of the baby name Pauline


Posts that mention the name Pauline

Classics on the decline: Rebecca, Carol, Susan

girl names falling out of fashion

In last week’s “lowest ever” boy names post, I mentioned that reader Caitlin had shared her research on downward-trending baby names with me recently. While many girl names hit relative lows in 2017, for instance…

  • Sarah, now ranked 62nd — lowest ranking since 1970.
  • Rachel, now ranked 195th — lowest ranking since 1960.
  • Melissa, now ranked 273rd — lowest ranking since 1949.

…a couple of the names on her list, Rebecca and Catherine, hit their “lowest ever” rankings last year. (Plus there was Katherine, a borderline case of a lowest-ever tie.)

So I set out to find other “lowest ever” girl names.

Many of the names I checked (like Clare, Lea, and Bridget) hit a low in 2017, but it wasn’t their all-time low. Many others (like Pauline, Sara, and Mary) hit a low recently, but not as recently as 2017. Still others (like Yvonne) had to be disqualified because, even though they hit their lowest ranking on record in 2017, they didn’t appear in the data for all 138 years (1880-2017)…an issue I didn’t encounter with any of the boy names.

In the end, I was able to add a dozen thirteen names to the list:

  • Ann. Ranked 1,023rd in 2017; peak was 28th in the 1930s.
  • Barbara. Ranked 908th in 2017; peak was 2nd in the 1930s/1940s.
  • Carol. Ranked 1,814th in 2017; peak was 4th in the 1940s.
  • Catherine. Ranked 198th in 2017; peak was 18th in the 1910s.
  • Celia. Ranked 857th in 2017; peak was 141st in the 1880s.
  • Cynthia. Ranked 637th in 2017; peak was 7th in the 1950s.
  • Elisabeth. Ranked 775th in 2017; peak was 286th in the 2000s.
  • Katherine. Ranked 105th in 2017 + 1938; peak 25th in the 1990s.
  • Kathleen. Ranked 871st in 2017; peak was 9th in the 1940s. (Late addition–thanks Kelly!)
  • Linda. Ranked 708th in 2017; peak was 1st in 1940s/1950s.
  • Priscilla. Ranked 527th in 2017; peak was 127th in the 1940s.
  • Rebecca. Ranked 216th in 2017; peak was 10th in the 1970s.
  • Rosa. Ranked 672nd in 2017; peak was 52nd in the 1880s.
  • Susan. Ranked 963rd in 2017; peak was 2nd in the 1950s/1960s.
  • Teresa. Ranked 720th in 2017; peak was 18th in the 1960s.
  • Tressa. Ranked 9242nd in 2017; peak was 761st in the 1960s.

That makes 15 (or 16, if you count Katherine). I certainly could have missed a few, though, so if you can think of a good candidate, please let me know in the comments and I’ll take a look.

Which “feminine blend” name do you like best?

In his book The American Language, writer Henry Louis Mencken used the phrase “feminine blend” to describe a female name created by blending two other names together.

Here are the feminine blends he lists:

  • Adelloyd (Addie + Lloyd)
  • Adnelle (Addison + Nellie)
  • Adrielle (Adrienne + Belle)
  • Armina (Ardelia + Wilhelmina)
  • Bethene (Elizabeth + Christine)
  • Birdene (Birdie + Pauline)
  • Charline (Charles + Pauline)
  • Leilabeth (Leila + Elizabeth)
  • Lunette (Luna + Nettie)
  • Marjette (Marjorie + Henrietta)
  • Maybeth (May + Elizabeth)
  • Olabelle (Ola + Isabel)
  • Olouise (Olive + Louise)
  • Romiette (Romeo + Juliette)
  • Rosella (Rose + Bella)

If you had to use one of the above in real life, which one would you choose?

Source: Mencken, H. L. The American Language. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1919.

A smattering of Mormon baby names

Jessie Jensen published her annual Mormon baby names post a few weeks ago. Some highlights:

  • Dallin/Dallen, tied for “Most Mormon name.” Dallin H. Oaks is a prominent member of the LDS church and a former president of BYU.
  • Rexalyn: “Ask your doctor if Rexalyn™ is right for you.”
  • Roczen, which has popped up in Australia recently as well. The influence is probably German motorcycle racer Ken Roczen.
  • Tannin, the “Absolute Worst Name This Year” thanks to the Biblical sea monster association. (For what it’s worth, I thought Zoei was worse.)

One commenter mentioned the historical Malan family of Ogden, Utah. Most of the 16 children were given alphabetical names:

  • Alexis Bartholomew (b. 1873)
  • Claudius Daniel (b. 1875)
  • Ernest Francis (b. 1876)
  • Jeremiah (b. 1878)
  • Gideon Highly (b. 1879)
  • Inez Jane (b. 1881)
  • Kit (b. 1883)
  • Lawrence Maxwell (b. 1884)
  • Nahum Oscar (b. 1886)
  • Parley Quince (b. 1888)
  • Ray Stephen (b. 1890)
  • Teresa Una (b. 1890)
  • Verna Winona (b. 1893)
  • X Y Zella (b. 1895)
  • Benjamin (b. 1896)
  • Louise Pauline (b. 1898)

Another commenter mentioned an aunt “named OE, it was pronounced oh-EEE, just like the letters,” who was born in Utah in early 1900s. (Reminds me of Io.)

Have you come across any interesting Mormon names lately?

Vin Diesel named his baby after Paul Walker

Actors Vin Diesel and Paul Walker in the movie "The Fast and the Furious" (2001)
Vin Diesel and Paul Walker

In March, actor Vin Diesel and his girlfriend Paloma Jiménez welcomed their third child.

The baby girl was named Pauline in honor of Diesel’s longtime Fast & Furious co-star Paul Walker, who died in a car crash in November of 2013.

“He was in the [delivery] room,” Diesel recalled. “There’s no other person that I was thinking about as I was cutting this umbilical cord. I just…knew he was there.”

And Diesel decided that Pauline’s name would be a way to make sure Walker would always be there.

“It felt like, you know, a way to keep his memory a part of my family and a part of my world,” he explained.

The fact that Diesel also happens to have a fraternal twin brother named Paul probably made the decision to select “Pauline” that much easier.

His two older children are a daughter named Hania and a son named Vincent.

(His own birth name is Mark Sinclair. The “Vin” part of his stage name comes from his mother’s married name, Vincent, and “Diesel” was a nickname he picked up while working as a bouncer in New York City during college.)

Sources: Vin Diesel Welcomes Daughter Pauline, Vin Diesel reveals his new baby’s very special name, a tribute to Paul Walker, 15 Things You Didn’t Know About Vin Diesel

Image: Screenshot of The Fast and the Furious