What are "American" names?

[CheerfulYank]

I've seen that term bandied about a bit and I'm curious.

Is it the whole surname trend thing? I love my country, but I have to admit I'm sick of all the little Parkers/Mackenzies/Carters running around as well as the Ayden/Kayden/Jayden business. So...just curious! And mightily bored. It's 2 in the morning here but am on vacation and can't force myself to sleep yet!

Oi! No picking on Tristan. It's a real name, ancient this side of the pond. Trystan as an American girl's name kind of throws me, though.

Isn't Sian a Welsh girl's name? I can understand a spelling variation on that to arrive at Sean as a girl's name, although it was usually Shawn for girls, where I grew up.

Laticia. My dad says it's the most popular African-American name he encouters; what's worse, when he asks how to spell it they often reply "The usual way!" There IS NO usual way.

I like Piper, I like Alexander and Dylan even, I just threw Alexander and Dylan out as the most common names in my very large extended American family. Robert is up there, too. The appeal of 'Taylor' completely passes me by, though.

Piper to me is always going to be Piper Maris the potato or Piper Alpha (showing age).

Robert in the most popular names? I wonder if it's a Robert Kaden Jones on the bc, call baby Kaden thing?

I like Robbie on a lttle boy, don't know any under 30

Piper to me means Piper Laurie, or Piper Aircraft manufacturers (how can airplanes not be cool?)

I seem to know a lot of Roberts under 10, including a Robbie. Mostly named after a relative, one of those names that is coming back around, having mostly skipped a generation.

Piper Heidsieck champagne is nice though

true!

DH's a very keen cyclist - he might like the name Cadence for a girl! Or Kadence.

Sian=Sharn I think
I know a Canadian girl child called Aytanna
there are also a few Robyns[girls]
I quite like Robyn actually

I can now see how Americans got to naming their girls Sean. It's how they pronounce Sean/Shaun/shawn!!!

Sian in the UK is pronounced sharn which in the US/Canada is sean etc!!!

Thanks Pranma.

Knew there had to logic to all this naming your girl sean thing!!

PMSL!!

oh dear

I hope you got my drift!

My post above doesn't really make sense does it??

What I mean is sharn (sian to us) i how they pronounce sean.

Hmmm, before we all start sniggering too loudly, that Utah Mormon name list, (just to give one 'loony American' reference cited here) does in fact include several of the names suggested and lauded on this forum - Elodie et al. (Okay I've got a downer on Elodie, Aurel etc etc ikky pretty fairy story names - but how come when mentioned here they are 'lovely', whereas when Americans fall for their charms they are laughable).

On the surnames as names though, I have to agree. Far from too much fairy story imagination that just suggests complete lack of.

I know a family with a dd called Aspen which I take to be quite an 'american' name

I knew a boy once names Aspen Jade...

I find they tend to fit into the following categories (wild generalisations here):

Biblical (Noah, Joshua, etc)
Ye Olde Occupations (Flethcher, Page, Atcher)
Weird and Wonderful (Alora - eh??)
Odd spellings
Girls names that are really boys names/ Surnames as first names

That's pretty much an accurate breakdown, wahwahwah I go with the biblical myself, but also just like classic names (William, Eleanor, etc)

I missed out place names.

I named dd1 Shannon after the river shannon in Ireland. How on earth is that American?

Or am I missing something

I was thinking of Britany (there's another one) Spears son Preston. I have met a 'Scotia'.

My nephew has Morgan (Boy) Hunter (Girl) and Mackenzie (boy), My grandchildren very tame, Sarah, Adam, Amelia, Kiara

Shannon as a girls' name got its start in America. There are a lot of them, depending on age group. It's related to the placename as name trend in the US, like London or Paris, and also to Irish American identity pride. Names related to Ireland like Shannon, Erin, Kelly, Ryan (as opposed to Mary Kate, Eileen, etc.) began to surface in the 1950s when the immigrant Irish made it to the middle class.

Sheepgomeep, I think it's American because they made it a name.

In Ireland Clodagh would be the river name. Although, I like Liffey used to be my screen name, and I like Slaney too! my grandparents from that area so Slaney would have to be my river name.

Sheepgomeep, are your family from the limerick/clare area then?

Actually, Hammie the hamster would have to be my river name of choice.

Morgan horses, I can't help but think of the breed (American breed, I think) every time I hear that name.
An old friend (living in USA) called his daughter Morgan. I hope she's not horse-faced, harhar....

A friend of mine worked in the schools admissions dept of a large london authority. There was a family who had girls called

Brandy
Shandy
Tequila
Champagne

I wonder if it was what the mother was drinking when she got pregnant???

Maybe George Foreman has the right idea......

lol at shandy EVEN amongst her sisters, shandy still sounds cheap.

Well my wife's grandmother was called Scarlett Lulabelle - was nearly the name of our first, but then we had boy, and so he got an equally unique name, British though of course.