About Names: Dr. Evans on the name “Elijah”

Elijah Wood standing outside of a fan-built replica of the Hobbit Hole from the film adaptation of The Lord of the Rings (Photo: public domain)

Dr. Cleveland Evans writes about names for the Omaha World-Herald. In his January 28th column, he discusses the name “Elijah”.

Frodo’s 43 today.

Actor Elijah Wood, famous for playing hero hobbit Frodo Baggins in the “Lord of the Rings” films, was born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Jan. 28, 1981.

Elijah’s the modern English version of Hebrew ‘Eliyyahu, “my God is Yahweh.” The Bible’s Elijah was one of ancient Israel’s greatest prophets, preaching against wicked King Ahab and Queen Jezebel. Carried to heaven in a fiery chariot, in the New Testament he and Moses appear to Jesus in the Transfiguration.

Because of that, Elijah was the Hebrew prophet most revered by early Christians. St. Elias of Jerusalem, a fifth century patriarch, bore the Latin form of his name.

In medieval England, boys were named Ellis after the prophet and the patriarch. Families with surnames Ellis, Ellison, or Elkins descend from them.

The form Elijah didn’t occur until English Bible translations appeared during the Reformation. It was primarily used by Puritans in England. In Britain’s 1841 census, there were 4,444 Elijahs in England and only 17 in Scotland.

Elijah was even more popular with Puritans in New England. In 1851, there were 5,993 Elijahs in all of Britain, while in 1850, 22,937 lived in the United States, though total populations were similar. Puritan Massachusetts was the birthplace of 4,651 of 1850’s American Elijahs, while only 1,069 were born in Scots Irish and Quaker Pennsylvania, though Pennsylvania had more than double Massachusetts’ population.

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About Names: Dr. Evans on the name “Tristan”

Tristan et Iseult, by Louis Bouquet (1921, Photo: Public Domain)

Dr. Cleveland Evans writes about names for the Omaha World-Herald. In his December 31st column, he discusses the name “Tristan”.

Tristan’s off to war, but “Creatures” goes on.

In the Dec. 24 Christmas episode of “All Creatures Great and Small” on PBS, young veterinarian Tristan joined Britain’s World War II military. On Jan. 7 the new season starts, with brother Siegfried and colleague James overworked due to Tristan’s absence.

Tristan’s a name from medieval legend. Since the 12th century the story of how Tristan, nephew of King Mark of Cornwall, tragically falls in love with Iseult (or Isolde), Mark’s bride, has been retold by multiple authors.

Experts think Tristan was originally Drustan, from Celtic “tumult,” blended with French “triste” meaning “sad.”

Since the 13th century Tristram’s been an alternate form. After 1770 Tristram was more common, partly because of “Tristram Shandy” (1767), a comic novel by Laurence Sterne. Tristram’s father claims names exert enormous influence over one’s fate, and the worst possible name is Tristram. He wanted his son named Trismegistus, “three times great,” after the mystical founder of alchemy, but his mother mistakenly had him baptized Tristram.

The 1850 United States census found 279 Tristrams and 36 Tristans. Tristram was especially common in Massachusetts, probably because Tristram Coffin (1609-1681) was a founding settler on Nantucket. Tristram’s census peak was in 1850 — in 1950, there were 55 Tristrams and 124 Tristans.

In 1950 Tristan was known to opera fans through Richard Wagner’s “Tristan und Isolde” (1865), where the lovers die like Romeo and Juliet, which didn’t happen in many medieval versions.

“All Creatures Great and Small” is based on Yorkshire vet James Herriot’s memoirs. When he began publishing these in 1970, he chose Siegfried as pseudonym for colleague Donald Sinclair from the hero of other Wagner operas, and decided to use “Tristan” for Donald’s brother Brian since he was “romantic,” like Wagner’s Tristan.

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About Names: Dr. Evans on the name “Eileen”

NASA Commander Eileen Collins, the first woman to command a Space Shuttle mission (Photo: Public Domain)

Dr. Cleveland Evans writes about names for the Omaha World-Herald. In his December 17th column, he discusses the name “Eileen”.

Eileen’s creating thrills and chills on screen.

“Eileen,” a dark thriller based on Ottessa Moshfegh’s prize-winning 2015 novel, debuted Dec. 8. Eileen (Thomasin McKenzie) escapes from an alcoholic father by becoming involved in a revenge killing with colleague Rebecca.

Eileen and Aileen are English spellings of Eibhlín, Irish version of Norman French Aveline, brought to Ireland by 12th century Anglo-Norman invaders. Aveline’s from ancient Germanic Avi (perhaps “desired”) with affectionate suffixes -el and -in. In England it became Evelyn.

By the 17th century Ireland’s Norman aristocracy adopted Irish culture, and as Catholics were persecuted by the British. Aristocratic Eibhlín Dubh Ní Chonaill (Eileen O’Connell) (1743-1800) married Captain Art Ó Laoghaire in 1767. In 1773, a Protestant magistrate had Art murdered for refusing to sell him a horse.

Eileen wrote a lament considered one of the greatest Irish poems. In it she tells her husband “Travel that narrow road east where the bushes shall bend before you.”

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About Names: Dr. Evans on the name “Mary”

Mary Todd Lincoln, former First Lady of the United States of America (Photo: public domain)

Dr. Cleveland Evans writes about names for the Omaha World-Herald. In his December 3rd column, he discusses the name “Mary”.

Today is my younger sister Mary Elizabeth Evans Elliott’s birthday. I won’t get into trouble telling how old she is, but it’s a milestone ending in “0”.

Mary’s the English form of Latin Maria, derived from Hebrew Miriam, name of Moses’s sister in the Old Testament. No one really knows Miriam’s meaning. Because Mara means “bitter” in Hebrew, “bitter sea” used to be a common guess. Today “longed-for child” (ma-râma) is thought a more likely Hebrew meaning. However, since most experts now think Moses was an Egyptian name, many believe Miriam’s from Egyptian mry, “beloved.”

Mary is revered by Christians as the name of Jesus’s mother. Six other Marys are mentioned in the New Testament, including Mary Magdalene and Mary, sister of the resurrected Lazarus.

Mary was rare in medieval Britain. Most thought it too sacred to give a daughter. The first known example was Mary, daughter of King Malcolm III of Scotland and his English wife Margaret, born in 1082.

In 1380 Mary ranked 49th in England. It only became common after the Reformation. Though one might think Mary I (r.1553-1558), called “Bloody Mary” for her persecution of Protestants, along with Puritan disdain for what they saw as Roman Catholic “idolatry” of the Virgin Mary, would make the name unpopular, all those New Testament Marys prevailed. Mary, second to Elizabeth after 1600, reached No. 1 during the 1650s, when radical Puritan Oliver Cromwell ruled.

In the 19th century Mary’s popularity was overwhelming. The 1850 United States census found 1,352,362 Marys — 13.5% of all girls and women, nearly one out of seven. In Britain in 1851, it was 16.6%, or one out of six. It’s hard to imagine what life was like when multiple Marys of all ages lived on every street in town.

In 1880, when Social Security’s yearly data starts, 7.24% of newborn girls were named Mary. Though the percentage steadily decreased, Mary stayed No. 1 until 1947, when Linda displaced it. In 2022, Mary only ranked 136th, its lowest in 700 years.

It’s surprising Mary Todd Lincoln (1818-1882) was the only sitting President’s wife named Mary. Two others were acting first ladies — Mary McElroy (1841-1917) for widowed brother Chester Arthur (1881-1885), and Mary Harrison McKee (1858-1930) for father Benjamin Harrison after mother Caroline’s death in October 1892.

“Mary is a Grand Old Name” was written by George M. Cohan for musical “Forty-five Minutes to Broadway,” which debuted Jan. 1, 1906.

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About Names: Dr. Evans on the name “Brandon”

An engraving from an early copy of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility: Marianne greets Colonel Brandon on his arrival (Public Domain)

Dr. Cleveland Evans writes about names for the Omaha World-Herald. In his October 8th column, he discusses the name “Brandon”.

Are you reading Brandon’s “Nightmare” yet?

“Yumi and the Nightmare Painter,” latest novel by fantasy author Brandon Sanderson, was released last week. Sanderson, born in 1975 in Lincoln and a graduate of Lincoln East High School, in March 2022 revealed he’d written four “secret” novels during the pandemic, promoting them to fans in a Kickstarter campaign which raised a record $41 million. “Yumi” is the third of these to get a standard publishing release.

Brandon’s an English surname from a place name meaning “hill with broom shrubs.” In County Kerry, Ireland, it’s also from “Mac Breandáin,” “son of Brendan.”

Charles Brandon (1484-1545), Henry VIII’s best childhood friend, was created Duke of Suffolk in 1514. In 1515 he married Mary Tudor, Henry’s sister. Their daughter Frances Brandon (1517-1559) was mother of tragic Lady Jane Grey (1537-1554), briefly proclaimed Queen after Edward VI’s 1553 death until his sister Mary successfully claimed the throne.

Despite the royal connection, Brandon remained rare as a first name. Even in 1950, the United States census found only 760 men named Brandon, though 14,005 Americans had Brandon as a last name.

The first three celebrities whose fame affected Brandon’s use were all born with Brandon as a middle name. In 1914, the first year more than five American boys were named Brandon, songs by lyricist J. Brandon Walsh (1882-1935) sold well as sheet music. The chorus of his “Harmony Bay” (1914) proclaims “While the moon shines above, we can spoon and make love, on Harmony Bay.”

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About Names: Dr. Evans on the name “Daryl”

An individual cosplaying as “Daryl Dixon”, a popular character from the TV Series “The Walking Dead” (Photo by Marnie Joyce, CC-BY-2.0)

Dr. Cleveland Evans writes about names for the Omaha World-Herald. In his September 10th column, he discusses the name “Daryl”.

‘The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon” debuts on AMC this evening. This spinoff of “The Walking Dead” (2010-2022) finds popular character Daryl (played by Norman Reedus) stranded on a French beach without knowing how he got there. He’ll trek across France trying to find his way back home.

Daryl’s a respelling of Darel and Darrell, surnames brought to England in 1066 by knights from Airel, a town in Normandy whose name meant “open courtyard”.

Darrells were prominent among Tudor nobility. Elizabeth Darrell (1513-1556) was maid of honor to Catherine of Aragon. Sir Marmaduke Darrel (1559-1631) was a jailer of Mary Queen of Scots, and later escorted Anne of Denmark from Scotland to London when her husband James I succeeded to the throne.

Anglican clergyman John Darrell (1562-1603) made a name for himself as an exorcist. Though he claimed he proved Puritans could cast out devils as successfully as Catholics, he was imprisoned as a fraud.

The 1850 United States census found 99 persons with last name Darrell and 14 Darrels. There were 10 men with first name Darell and 12 Darrells.

Best-selling English novelist Mary Elizabeth Braddon published “Darrell Markham” in 1853. There Darrell’s true love Millicent is forced to marry George Duke. When George is murdered, Darrell gathers evidence proving Millicent innocent. They marry on the last page.

In 1867 English judge Sir Douglas Straight (1844-1914) began publishing memoirs and fiction under pen name “Sidney Daryl”, one of the first examples of that spelling.

All spellings stayed rare until the 20th century. Darrell first shows up among the top 1000 boy’s names in 1891, Darrel in 1905, Daryl in 1920, and Darryl in 1932.

Daryl was occasionally given to girls by 1900. In 1921, silent film “Love, Hate and a Woman” featured heroine Daryl Sutherland (Grace Davison) pretending to be a society belle to catch a husband. However, Daryl only made it into the top thousand names for girls between 1945 and 1957. Surprisingly, the 1980s fame of actress Daryl Hannah (born 1960) didn’t popularize it.

Nebraska-born movie producer Darryl Zanuck (1902-1979) helped found 20th Century Fox in 1935. His name being featured in film credits, along with the 1940s fame of child star Darryl Hickman (born 1931) propelled their formerly rare spelling upward. After Hickman was featured on brother Dwayne’s “The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis” in 1959, Darryl became the most common spelling for seven years, peaking at 68th in 1965.

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About Names: Dr. Evans on the name “Clyde”

A timid orange ghost might be the most famous “Clyde” in video game history (Photo: Monsoleiiil, CC-BY-3.0)

Dr. Cleveland Evans writes about names for the Omaha World-Herald. In his August 27th column, he discusses the name “Clyde”.

‘Clyde’s” making sandwiches at Omaha Community Playhouse through Sept. 17.

In Pulitzer Prize winning author Lynn Nottage’s play, Clyde runs a sandwich shop employing ex-cons who she belittles and abuses. The 2022 Broadway production earned “This is Us” actor Ron Cephas Jones, who died Aug. 19, an Emmy nomination.

Glasgow, Scotland, sits on the River Clyde, sacred to Celtic goddess Clota. It’s unclear if the river was named after the goddess or vice versa.

Clyde’s a rare Scottish surname indicating one’s ancestors lived by the river. In the 1850 United States census, 375 persons with the last name Clyde are found. Seven had Clyde as a first name — not surprising given the then-new custom of turning surnames into given names.

The first name Clyde didn’t stay rare: 7,179 men were named Clyde in 1880, while only 832 Americans had the surname.

Various factors may have contributed. In the 1850s, poem “Clyde” by John Wilson (1720-1789) was republished. Wilson celebrated a masculine river, writing “Clyde’s wide bed ten thousand torrents fill, His rage the murmuring mountain streams augment.”

In the 1850s Philadelphia-based Thomas Clyde (1812-1885) owned the Clyde Line, America’s biggest steamship company.

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About Names: Dr. Evans on the name “Nancy”

Jazz Singer Nancy Wilson (Photo: Public Domain)

Dr. Cleveland Evans writes about names for the Omaha World-Herald. In his August 13th column, he discusses the name “Nancy”.

Nancy’s leaving the small screen next week.

“Nancy Drew,” the third television series based on the classic young adult detective novels, ends its four-year run on the CW Aug. 23.

Nancy was originally derived from Agnes. In medieval England Agnes was pronounced “Annis,” with nickname “Ancy.” In some dialects, “mine” was used for “my”. “Mine Ancy” eventually became “my Nancy.” Nell developed from Ellen and Ned from Edward the same way.

Annis was often confused with Ann. Soon Anns as well as Agneses were called Nancy. When literacy increased after 1600 and the “g” in Agnes started being pronounced, Nancy switched to just being a nickname for Ann.

By 1800, many thought of Nancy as being a separate name. That’s shown in the 1850 United States census, where despite most entries not including middle names, 2,411 women were listed as “Nancy Ann.”

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About Names: Dr. Evans on the name “Tyrone”

Stage actor Tyrone Power (Photo: Public Domain)

Dr. Cleveland Evans writes about names for the Omaha World-Herald. In his July 16th column, he discusses the name “Tyrone”.

Tyrone learns there’s more than one of him later this week.

“They Cloned Tyrone,” a science-fiction comedy spoofing 1970s “Blaxploitation” films, debuted June 14 at the American Black Film Festival. It premieres on Netflix July 21. John Boyega plays Tyrone Fontaine, a drug dealer fighting back after discovering he’s a clone created by a sinister government project.

Tyrone’s a county in Northern Ireland. It’s the English form of “Tir Eoghain (Eógan’s land),” bestowed by members of the O’Neill dynasty claiming descent from Eógan mac Néill when they conquered it in the 11th century.

In 1673, Charles II created Irish noble Richard Power (1630-1690) the 1st Earl of Tyrone. His cousins began naming sons “Tyrone,” pointing out their noble connection.

William Grattan Tyrone Power (1797-1841) was the only child of one such cousin, Tyrone Power of County Waterford. He became the actor and playwright Tyrone Power, known for bettering the image of the Irish in his roles. Power toured America four times.

Power’s great-grandson, director Tyrone Guthrie (1900-1971), founded Minneapolis’s Guthrie Theater. Power’s grandson Tyrone Power Sr. (1869-1931) moved to America as a teenager and became a star of stage and screen. It was Sr.’s Cincinnati-born son Tyrone Power (1914-1958) who became the most famous, being a major star from first film “Lloyd’s of London” (1936) to his last, “Witness for the Prosecution” (1957).

In the 19th century Tyrone was rare outside the Power family. The first American Tyrone, Tyrone Landrum, was a free Black head of household in Derry, Pennsylvania, in 1800. Four of the 12 Tyrones in the 1870 census were his descendants.

The census often designated the Landrums as “mulatto.” Many Landrums in America had immigrated from County Tyrone, which may explain the name.

Fifty-three Americans had the given name Tyrone in 1930; 714 in 1940; and 4,283 in 1950, showing its popularity was caused by movie star Power. What’s remarkable is that already in 1950, 67% of these Tyrones were Black.

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About Names: Dr. Evans on the name “Dylan”

Man singing and playing guitar on a crowded stage, drummer sitting beside him and audience on the floor in front of him.

Nobel laureate Bob Dylan singing in the Opinião night club in Brazil (Photo: Public Domain)

Dr. Cleveland Evans writes about names for the Omaha World-Herald. In his July 2nd column, he discusses the name “Dylan”.

Did you watch Dylan help his team win the College World Series?

LSU outfielder Dylan Crews (born 2002) won the Golden Spikes Award for best amateur baseball player June 25, the day before the Tigers beat Florida to win 2023’s CWS. Last year Ole Miss pitcher Dylan DeLucia won the CWS Most Outstanding Player award leading his team to a CWS title in 2022. Today he pitches for the Cleveland Guardians.

Dylan’s a modern name with an ancient origin. The Mabinogion, Welsh legends compiled from oral traditions around 1175, tell of Dylan ail Don, who at his baptism plunges into the sea, swimming away like a fish. Experts think Dylan was originally a Welsh sea god whose name meant “toward the tide.”

There’s no evidence Dylan was a baby name in Wales before 1910, when Welsh nationalists discovered it. The first census example, Dylan Mostyn Wathen, born 1910, lived with widowed innkeeper mother Hannah in Ystradgynlais in 1911.

The Dylan who spread the name worldwide was born 1914 in Swansea to Jack Thomas and wife Florence. They were fluent Welsh speakers who knew Dylan’s first syllable was pronounced “dull” in Welsh. Florence, afraid of teasing, insisted “dill” be used when English was spoken.

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