Can you tell when someone was born by their first and middle name combo?

[TheSharpOpalOrca]

this seems to happen classic names a lot.

for example
Emily Catherine
Emily Jane
Emily ann
Emily Elizabeth

They sound like they would have been born at any time in history, from the Victorian times to now. There’s no way to pinpoint it .

Whereas Emily Rose sounds very much like a 90s/2000s pairing even though both names are established classics.

Another one would be Sarah Louise, very 70s/80s but Sarah Elizabeth is timeless.

I think people assume that if it’s two classics put together it won’t date but that’s not always the case, the middle name sets the vibe for the first name most of the time even if most people don’t hear it.

My great, great, great grandma was Louisa Sophia. It could be contemporary yet was 1815.

One of my grandmothers was called Brenda, a name that strangely hasn’t had a resurgence 😂

Absolutely loads of Elizabeth middle names of my vintage (mid-80s), including me. My 4 year old niece also has it!

I can probably pin down a Susan Michelle or an Angela Jane, or a Claire Louise. I think Elizabeth Jane, Sophie Elizabeth are trickier.

DS would have been Madeline Rose - anyone wish to guess the year?

Other, more unusual, combinations are harder to pinpoint: Juliet Phoebe, Olivia Susannah, Georgia Isabel, etc.

yes you can my name!! Every other girl had my name at school

My first name, absolutely. My middle names - after my grandmothers - were incredibly old-fashioned when I was a child, but now every second teenager is called one or the other of them, including one of my granddaughters.

When I was at school there were 4 of us with my name in the class, now it's extinct

Not many women of my age (72) not having one of their names Elizabeth.

I read this thinking we must be about the same age, and indeed we are!!

My middle name was my granny's name and was absolutely not typical of my age group. My toddler's middle names are my mum's middle names and aren't typical of babies these days either.

My middle name comes down through the female side of my family. My great grandmother, grandmother, mother and I all have it. It spans 100 years from Queen Victoria to the moon landings and it is still very common now.

my peers (born 80s) all had middle names Claire, Louise, jane, Jade, Catherine, Elizabeth, sarah
boys james, John, David, Paul, Thomas
however my middle name is rose and have always liked it 🤷‍♀️

There were no Emily’s in the 60s/70s, so to me all Emilys are young.

Im late 30s and went to school with many Emilys

Oh defo here’s looking at you sarah Louise, born in the 80s???

I think nearly every girl born in the 80s had the middle name Louise or Jane.

Rose replaced Louise as the go to middle name some time in the 2000s.

Now it is May or Mae; sometimes Rae.

Emily was very popular in the mid nineties, as was Jessica, Sophie, Chloe. It’s a nice name, though.

Agree but I would add Ann to Gen X 😆

Add May to Gen Z

And Gen Alpha: Rose, Grace, May and as pp says Rae.

My daughter, born in the 80s, has the middle name Jane but only because my best friend is called Jane. Maybe all the other 80s mums copied me?

@captainoctopus , I think it's nice if there's a sentimental meaning to the middle name, but if you see initials, you can usually guess the middle name. In my age group, SJ is highly likely to be Sarah Jane or Stephen John.

This is me, my sister and my cousin (all in our 50s)!

I’m 33 and my middle name is Ann 😂 my sister is 30 and has a 90’s classic Louise. This thread is so interesting actually. When I was at high school the most popular girls name was Nicole, and boys name was mark there was at least 6 of each. There was 2 Nicole’s with the same surname aswell we referred to them as big Nicole and wee Nicole as one was tall and the other short 😂

I was born mid 60s. It was virtually the law that boys were called Simon as a first or middle name (the TV show The Saint was popular) and girls had Louise as a middle name.

I'm mid 60s. I have so many friends called Jane it becomes confusing.

My first name was very common in the 60s, my middle name wasn’t but is now popular.