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Wow, this list actually seems accurate! Usually they're horribly off. I don't think Shirley and Beverly are going extinct, though. I'm so sad that Bess isn't used anymore because I think it's lovely.

A very eclectic list. It's hard to see any name which has had a great deal of use in the past going permanently extinct, except perhaps for Dick and Gaylord if the present new meanings of dick and gay remain current. Hortense and Philander have special problems that way, too, though I do think at some point Philander will be able to overcome them. A century ago most people would never have believed that Cressida and Scarlett could become regularly used as girls' first names because of their previous negative connotations.

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Some of the names on this list like Arthurine and Nimrod have always been so rare that who would notice if they went "extinct"?

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Most of the rest will surely be back at some point in the future. Since Florence is definitely on the upswing, I expect in another 15 years or so people will be hearing Flo a lot again. It's one of those short forms that I suspect a lot of the parents who are naming daughters Florence won't use themselves, but that their daughters' contemporaries will rediscover when they are teenagers and think is "cool."

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As I understand it Dimple is an English word that was primarily turned into a name in South Asia and has hardly ever been used outside the East Indian community.

I met a little Russian girl named Fifi at my local park a few months ago!
Kathie is still used in lots of other spellings!
Kitty is used plenty, just not on human girls I guess?
My aunt is named Vickie! :)

I can’t imagine how Carol could be going extinct, I feel like I know so many Carols. I also unironically like Almond, but yeah I can imagine no one ever uses it haha. I love Leigh, like Myrtle, Pansy, Velva, and Gale (though prefer Gail), plus a lot of these are nicknames that I enjoy like Dot or Flo.

I think these could come back:
Adelma
Arthurine
Beryl
Beverly
Delmar
Diggory
Gale
Glynn
Hermina/Hermine
Hester
Kirstie
Lucretia
Myrtle
Nedda
Nedra
Orpah
Coralie
Vernice

I like

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Beverly
Delmar
Darlene
Hilda
Helga
Kirstie
Lurline
Myrtle
Shirley
Trish

Is a name on the verge of extinction when there are people with the name that are alive and well? I know both a Beverly and Shirley. I wonder how they will take the news that their names are going extinct when they are barely 35. Names come and go in popularity. Philander is dead though.

I like Myrtle.

God, Nameberry article writers are their own special breed aren't they?
Some of these names were never widely used (at least in the UK) - can a name can be at risk of extinction if it was never common in the first place? Looking at you Adelma, Almond, Dimple, Nimrod, Philander, Welcome...
And a lot of these are nicknames. Which are still widely used. But they're just not people's -legal- names... met plenty of Vickies, the odd Trish and Sal, Kathy, Fran, Debbie etc. It's just that they're legally Victoria, Deborah, Katherine etc.
The only one that is a) probably legit rare and b) not a nickname that I would actually say I like is Lucretia...maybe... but I'm not madly in love with it and Lucrezia is far prettier.

This message was edited 9/8/2024, 9:40 AM

I think that it's a shame that some of these names are saying farewell!

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I love Hester, Darlene, Debby (though, I prefer the Debbie spelling), Dorinda, Beverly (MUCH better than the common, trendy name Everly, in my opinion!), Nedra, Carol, Shirley, Vernice, Vickie, Hilda, and Delmar.

This message was edited 9/8/2024, 7:23 AM

Adelma: like Hedwig, not in general English usage anyway
Adolf/Adolph (obviously): does this apply to German-speaking places too?
Almond: eh?
Arthurine: maybe OK in its home countries
Barney: word name = minor fight/riot. QED
Beryl: a jewel name, and they're fashionable.
Bess (like): nn
Beverly (like): dated, OK, and I prefer Beverley
Biff: nn only, surely?
Bob: maybe, but not Robert or Robin?
Burt: or Bert?
Carol/Carole: Carol is OK but close to Karel; doesn't need an -e
Chuckie/Chucky: nonsense!
Cindi/Cyndi: just these spellings, or Cindy as well?
Debby: but not Deborah?
Delmar: lnfns are fashionable
Dick/Dickie: nn
Diggory: guilty pleasure for humans; better for rabbits or moles
Dimple: nonsense!
Dorinda (not bad): dated but OK
Dot: nn
Doug: nn
Darlene: greatly prefer Arline or Arlene
Fifi: strictly for poodles
Flo: no to Flo but Florence is fine
Fran: nn
Gale: or Gail? A good alternative nn for all the herds of Abby = Abigail people
Gaylord: seriously dated, and it shows
Geri/Gerri: nn
Hilda (like): meh; prefer Hilary but not Hillary
Glynn (ok): passable
Hedwig: apart from a fictional owl, has it ever been used in English on any scale?
Helga: used in English?
Herb/Herbie: nns; what about Herbert?
Hermina/Hermine: used in English?
Hester: prefer Esther, but it's OK
Hortense (sounds better in French): unfortunate if given an English pronunciation, but who would?
Kathie: probably set for a come-back, as a welcome alternative to Katie, Katy and Kate
Kermit: frogs only
Kirstie (ok): nn for Kirsten, which is fine
Kitty: same as Kathie above
Leigh (ok): I prefer it to Lee for girls
Lucretia: heavy and clunky
Lurline: awful; Lurlyn is much better but still not good
Madge: nn
Marge: nn
Melba: toast?
Merle: if Pearl, why not Merle, Myrtle (see below), Bertha and Bert?
Midge: nn and pesky insect
Myrtle: fashionable plant name; unfashionable -yr- sound
Nan: nn; alternative for Gran(dmother)
Nedda: prefer Hedda
Nedra: just another geographical name, this time also fictional. Meh.

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I love Coralie, Lurline and Prunella, and like Adelma, Adolf, Almond, Beryl, Beverly, Diggory, Dorinda, Fifi, Fran, Geri, Hedwig, Helga, Hilda, Hermina, Hester, Hortense, Kermit, Kitty, Lucretia, Madge, Merle, Myrtle, Nimrod, Oprah, Oralee, Paddy, Philander, Shirley, Terry, Velva and Vickie.

This message was edited 9/8/2024, 2:31 AM

Was Almond ever a thing?

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I believe that these will come back:

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Barney - it's kind of vintage cool, it will come back eventually. The purple dinosaur isn't a bad association. It kind of has the same style as Harvey, which would have had a huge comeback as well, were it not for that really awful person.

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Shirley - totally believe that this will have a huge comeback soon. It already feels cool to me. The world is always looking for new -ley names and this one will soon feel fresh enough. Sh-names will come back into style at some point and then its comeback will be huge.

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Sandy - I also see this coming back as a full nature name for girls and possibly boys. It fits in with the River, Ocean kind of trend.

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Beverly - this will have a comeback, too. One letter away from Everly.

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Coralie - feels pretty and vintage.

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I can also see Prudence becoming more popular again and some might be Prue (maybe not Prudy).

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Many of the others are nicknames. I'm pretty sure that Kathy, Cathy, Kitty, Vicky, Terry, Tammy and Patty (not sure why they picked unusual spellings) will come back at some point, simply because Katherine, Catherine, Theresa, Tamara and Patricia will come back and after decades of Katies people will look for now underused nicknames at some point.

Some of these names make me cringe reading them, and I could believe they are going extinct.

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On the other hand, having two characters ironically named Philander and Prudy would be worth a laugh.

These people are so silly. Almond is in danger of extinction? ALMOND?

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A lot of these are just nicknames that have fallen out of style. Vickie and Willie might be rare, but there are still plenty of Victorias and Williams being born.

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I like a lot of these. I think Gaylord IS officially extinct.