Help protect children from gaming harms.

Take our survey

Please or to access all these features

Baby names

Find baby name inspiration and advice on the Mumsnet Baby Names forum.

Ruth due a comeback?

60 replies

Queenieloveforever · 21/09/2022 21:54

Wondering about the name Ruth and if it’s due a comeback. Pregnant with first daughter and really taken with the name Ruth nn Ruthie

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
New posts on this thread. Refresh page
Beachs · 25/09/2022 21:32

No no and no it's a terrible name. especially if you'll hate the pronunciation Roof or Roofie. It's quite a hard name to say properly for alot of accents.

EdgeOfACoin · 25/09/2022 07:28

I like Ruth. I've known a lot of nice Ruth's as well.

mathanxiety · 25/09/2022 04:42

Gorgeous name.

I hope it comes back. Right now it's unusual but instantly recognisable.

Talipesmum · 24/09/2022 23:55

I’ve always liked it.

2orangey · 24/09/2022 23:49

My middle name. Never liked it growing up but appreciate it more now. I find it a bit weird that people are calling it 'unfeminine'. Is it compulsory for all women's names to be flowery and filled with vowels? All these Evies, Arias, Ellas and Avas sound so similar, surely it's time for a change!

bcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyza · 24/09/2022 18:17

MissHavishamsMouldyOldCake · 21/09/2022 22:02

It probably will come back, along with Rebecca and Deborah and other formerly popular biblical names that have fallen out of fashion. It will also come back with all the plain no-nonsense names like Gillian and Sally. I know some great Ruths but I'm just not crazy about the name itself.

I am a Gillian and love my name. In my class there was 4 of us in the year.

I hope my name comes back.

Charliehaus · 24/09/2022 16:57

Please don’t saddle your kid with one of the ugliest names.
its an awful name and I hate it
it’s my middle name thank god
mots neither pretty or strong, classic or appealing

UsernameIsHarderThanBabyName · 22/09/2022 13:45

I love it

SandrasAnnoyingFriend · 22/09/2022 12:48

I know two Ruths - both in the 35-45 bracket. They are two of the nicest people I know so it has good associations for me. They both get Ruthie as a diminutive.

KirstenBlest · 22/09/2022 12:45

or John

KirstenBlest · 22/09/2022 12:45

@inappropriateraspberry , i think you get that with a lot of names. My name is one syllable and they usually hear only the first and last letter, or the general sound. Not the name but something like Jan being heard as Anne or Nan.

RuthW · 22/09/2022 12:10

inappropriateraspberry · 21/09/2022 22:17

I like it (maybe biased!) It's a pain to pronounce on the phone - everyone thinks you've said Rhys or similar, especially if you pronounce it with a 'th' sound not 'f.'

Yes this! Everyone thinks it's liz.

FeedMeSantiago · 22/09/2022 11:52

I know three Ruths - one is about 12, one is in her 30s or 40s and the other is in her 80s.

I know primary age children with other OT names - Jacob, Jonah, Esther, Reuben and Naomi.

So Ruth could well come back.

REP22 · 22/09/2022 10:20

It's my name! Personally I don't like it, I think it's boring and plain. At school I was called "Strewth" (Neighbours being the go-to TV show at the time didn't help with that), "Roof" or "Woof", each person thinking they were original and hilarious. Lots of my friends these days call me Roo, which I don't mind.

I was named after Ruth in the Bible. Not sure if she's a shining example to modern women. And she married a guy named Boaz.

But there are worse names in the world.

Crikeyalmighty · 22/09/2022 10:17

How about Rachael which is in a similar vein and biblical- just think it's a bit nicer, same with Rebecca.

Smallonesaremorejuicy · 22/09/2022 10:15

I really like the name Ruth … not so much Ruthie nn .. but Ru is nice .

kuvira · 22/09/2022 10:13

I know a couple of different ages. I wasn't aware it had ever really "gone away". It's never been one of the most popular names, to my knowledge.

I think it's fine. I'm not in love with the sound, but the Biblical meaning is nice. Be aware that a lot of Irish people and Europeans will pronounce it like "root" though.

MrsBungle · 22/09/2022 10:12

I find it very prim and harsh.

wingingit33 · 22/09/2022 10:08

Reminds me of the friends episode "little baby Ruth. Oh. "

wingingit33 · 22/09/2022 10:07

Horrible, unfeminine, harsh. Sorry. A middle name at a push.

yikesanotherbooboo · 22/09/2022 08:15

I think Ruth fits very much in the current trend towards less frilly , traditional names eg Mary, Jane, Jean, Nora etc.
To my taste it is a bit biblical but beyond that , I like it.

Testng123 · 21/09/2022 23:59

I know a primary aged Ruth. Also Ruth's in their 40's, 50's, 60's, 90's. Classic name.

Nanny67 · 21/09/2022 23:55

My grandmother's middle name was Ruth, my mums name is Ruth and mine and my daughters middle name is Ruth.

DramaAlpaca · 21/09/2022 23:52

I really don't like it, neither the sound nor the look of it on the page.

Round here (Ireland) it gets pronounced Rute or Rutie, which is even worse.

I know three Ruths, all of whom are lovely women, but I don't warm to the name at all.

whatwhhat · 21/09/2022 23:44

It's a meh name that makes me think roof and root in the same name but I don't think it's a bad name (like arlo makes me think of hello and Tom makes me think cat but the name itself is fine)

But I understand the sentiment. I love the name Mary but couldn't get past the idea of giving it to a baby (scary Mary/hairy Mary etc) Although snuck it in as a middle name!

Swipe left for the next trending thread