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Jane / Jayne

25 replies

salamanda · 03/05/2012 11:35

Is it weird that I like the name Jane? Do most people think it's way too dull? There's something about the sound and the simplicity of it that I like, especially as it will be going with a hard-to-spell non-English surname.

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Pasiphae · 03/05/2012 12:03

Jane is beautiful. It's simple and very elegant.
The sounds are quite lively and fresh, all sparkling.

I do not like the Jayne spelling at all, it spoils the simplicity/beauty of the name.

salamanda · 03/05/2012 12:08

Yes! That's exactly what I think about the sounds too Pasiphae! Thought maybe it was just me. Jane is the nicer cleaner, spelling.

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salamanda · 03/05/2012 12:09

Shock at my use of commas there!

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tummytickler · 03/05/2012 12:51

Jane is beautiful (I also like Jean and Joan).
Do not like the Jayne spelling at all though.

BBQJuly · 03/05/2012 13:46

It's a nice classic name. No need for the y, it doesn't add anything.

ButterPecanMuffin · 03/05/2012 14:09

Not weird at all.

I like quite simple names, as they work better with our distinctive surname.

Jean and Joan were both on the name list, when I was pregnant with my DD. We went with Rose in the end, but should we have another daughter in the future, we'd consider Jean and Joan again.

salamanda · 03/05/2012 14:26

Love Rose ButterPecan, DH hates it unfortunately. I would go with Jane rather than Jayne, but I want to know where the Jayne spelling came from and which version came first. I know we associate extra letters as attempts to make names more unusual, but Jayne is so widespread maybe it came first? It looks almost Chaucerian :)

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Beamur · 03/05/2012 14:30

I'm a Jayne in RL - personally I think it is a dated version of the name and good old plain Jane is much nicer and is a classic.

salamanda · 03/05/2012 14:57

Jayne is still pretty Beamur :) I'm surprised at the lack of Jane-bashing so far!

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ButterPecanMuffin · 03/05/2012 15:27

salamanda - Jane/Jayne were both registered as surnames, before being used as first names. Jane came first, with the earliest existing record of it as a surname was in 1509. The earliest existing record of Jayne being used as a surname was 1528.

The earliest that Jane/Jayne were recorded as baptismal (first) names was in the early 17th century, as part of the Puritan movement, because the surname derived from Jans (a Medieval England form of John) so the Puritans recognized the potential for Jane/Jayne to be a feminine form of John.

Therefore, from the records that have survived the centuries, both spellings appear to have started being used as first names around the same time.

I suppose for arguments sake, you could say Jane is the original spelling, as it was the first spelling for the surname. However, as far as the first name goes, I would say neither spelling was first.

I've probably bored you to tears with the history lesson, I apologize!

Positiveplus · 03/05/2012 16:13

I dotn mind the name Jane though would probably use it as a middle name myself.

Also, the 2 Jane's I have known are crazy ladies!!!!!! (so would put me off!!) Smile

salamanda · 03/05/2012 17:08

Thanks ButterPecan, that's really helpful! Not boring at all, I'm a medievalist :)

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revolutionconfirmed · 03/05/2012 17:16

I have a double barrelled first name, one of which is Jayne. I've always loved that part of my name as my first name was very common in the late 80's and I was always one of two, three, four in my class/year. Sometimes I hated the double barrelled name and most people call me just by the first part now but as I grew older I started to love it.

I personally think both are lovely but I'm biased toward Jayne.

agora1 · 03/05/2012 18:35

My dd2 has Jayne as a middle name, but only because DH ex girlfriend was called Jane Angry and both girls have y in their first and middle names. I liked the symmetry.

She is actually named after my mum, Jean, a name neither my mum nor I like, and my mum suggested Jane/Jayne. We call her a posh Jayne Wink

InnitDoh · 03/05/2012 18:44

It has to b Jane. Jayne is so 1970s.

BikeRunSki · 03/05/2012 18:49

I very much like Jane, but I know three Jaynes (waves at Beamur) who are all very nice, so not really bothered by the extra y.

iloveACK · 03/05/2012 18:51

I like Jayne Grin

picnicbasketcase · 03/05/2012 18:55

I'm not sure why but Jayne looks like a name a man might use when dressing as a woman. No offence intended to any Jaynes, transvestite or otherwise. I don't particularly like Jane either, but it is perferable to Jayne.

workshy · 03/05/2012 19:23

I like Jayne

I knew a Jane, but he was a man from eastern europe and it was pronounced ya-nay

Grin

I think Jayne for a girl is very pretty and under used

EskimoPie · 03/05/2012 20:50

The y in Jayne is redundant - end of story!

SweetPea3 · 03/05/2012 20:54

Jane is my middle name and I think it is really boring as a middle name, but strangely enough I really like it as a first name!

jaquelinehyde · 03/05/2012 21:01

My middle name is Jane and DD's name is Janey (pronounced jay-nee)

BackforGood · 03/05/2012 21:10

It's a lovely name, and not very common these days, which I think is a bonus, but people will still recognise it and not have to go "You what?" when they hear it Wink

thegreylady · 03/05/2012 22:53

The original medieval version was Jehane I think.
I love Jane and Joan

Beamur · 03/05/2012 23:34

I did the 'how popular is your name' thing on MN a few days ago and Jayne has plumetted - so a good choice if you want something less common. When I was growing up I was one of three in the class. I don't know any little Janes/Jaynes.
Some people have tried to call me Jaynie - but it makes me squirm a bit - only my late Nan and one other person gets away with it.
(Waves back to BikeRunSki)

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