Used to be all boys
These names are more often thought of as female names now, but were exclusively male names at some point in time. At any given moment, it could change from a popular feminine name back to the boys. In fact, Ashton started as a boy's name, became a girl's name in the late '80's, and returned to popularity as a boy's name after Ashton Kutcher became famous!
- Alva, Ariel, Adelaide, Alexis
- Balie, Beverley, Brett
- Carol, Casey, Clare, Courtney
- Dominique
- Gail
- Hillary
- Jesse, Justine
- Kimberly
- Laurel, Leigh, Leslie, Lynn
- Madison, Marion
- Shelby, Stacey
- Taylor, Tracy
- Whitney
These names may lead you to assume they are boys, but actually could be girls. In fact, if you know a girl named one of these, you may be quick to assume it is a girl based on your own experience! And it isn't impossible that your "tom-boyish" great grandmother had one of these names, she'd just be in the minority.
- Addison
- Blake, Blaine
- Cameron, Conner, Cooper
- Darcy, Declan, Dorian
- Elliot, Evan
- Grady
- Harley
- Jordan (while still dominantly male, there were female Jordans in the early 1900's!)
- Kirby
- Morgan, Monroe
- Noah
- Quinn
- Rory
- Tristan
These names could go either way and there may be no way to know for sure. And time period isn't going to help as they seem to always be interchangeable!
- Nature- Dale, Glenn, Lake, Reed, Robin, Sage, Skyler, Star, Storm, Warren
- Places- Asia, Brooklyn, Dallas, Paris, Raleigh
- Depends on spelling- Braelyn, Devin, Jalen, Frances/Francis (used to be e= girl and i= boy, but it has become interchangeable now)
- Miscellaneous- Angel, Gray, Innocent, Jazz, Justice, Pleasant, Scout, True
Is Joe short for Joseph or Josephina? Is Chris short for Christopher, Christina, or it really just Chris (or Kris)? A "nickname" can actually be a shortened form of their given name, but it could also just be their name with no other clues.
- Alex, Andy
- Bennie, Bernie, Billy, Bobby, Britt (Is it Brittany or Britton or Brighton?)
- Charlie, Chris
- Dean, Denny (Dennis or Denise?)
- Eddie (Edward or Edwina?)
- Gabe, Gene
- Joe, Jo
- Kelly
- Max (Maximilian or Maxine?), Mel (Melvin or Melina?)
- Nick
- Ollie (Oliver or Olivia?)
- Ray (Raymond or Raylene?)
- Sam, Stevie
- Toby (Is he Tobias or is she Toby?)
- Winnie (Winfred or Winifred? Again, all it takes is a vowel to change the sex of this name!)
- Vinnie (Vincent or Lavinia?)
Of course there are "obvious" gender specific names........... well there used to be. As more people wish to have neutral names or "erase gender inequality", they are naming girls traditionally masculine names. Fewer are naming boys feminine names, but even that is becoming blurry. No longer is it just a song to know a boy named Sue (or rather Sioux). So just like any other fact, find a source that proves it!
Is Johnnie a boy or a girl?
-Ana
It's funny that you mention Johnnie... I have one of each side of my family! The genders are appropriate... a boy on my dad's side, a girl on my mom's.
ReplyDeleteIn my family, my brother Johnnie is named after a great uncle Johnnie. But for years everyone thought he was a girl because of the "ie" ending. Same with my uncle Bobbie, tho he started signing his name Bobby in his adult years. For all three, they are not nicknames, they are their given names.
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