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HelpDon't call me Shirley...
Heyo!
So, I actually really love the name Shirley.
It means "bright meadow" and I, coincidently, also love the name Meadow.
I like the way both names sound and what they mean.. the images they put in my head.
The fact remains that Shirley was once one of THE most common names (thanks in part to our dear Miss Temple).
I was even named after the little starlet, for her role in Heidi.
So... Shirley - usable or just too frumpy today?
Do spelling variations liven it up or add to the damper? (Shirli, Sherlie, Shirlee, etc).
What do you think of the sounds and way the name feels in and of itself?
And, do you think it would work on a newborn birthed, say, tommorow?
Thanks!
oh... ps- your preferred spelling? (Shirley is the original, I believe)
______________________________________________
"How wonderful it is that no one need wait a single moment before starting to improve upon the world." -Ann Frank
Mama to my "bright star" Clarisse Bituin and Wife to Julius. Mahal na mahal from our little family to yours!
So, I actually really love the name Shirley.
It means "bright meadow" and I, coincidently, also love the name Meadow.
I like the way both names sound and what they mean.. the images they put in my head.
The fact remains that Shirley was once one of THE most common names (thanks in part to our dear Miss Temple).
I was even named after the little starlet, for her role in Heidi.
So... Shirley - usable or just too frumpy today?
Do spelling variations liven it up or add to the damper? (Shirli, Sherlie, Shirlee, etc).
What do you think of the sounds and way the name feels in and of itself?
And, do you think it would work on a newborn birthed, say, tommorow?
Thanks!
oh... ps- your preferred spelling? (Shirley is the original, I believe)
______________________________________________
"How wonderful it is that no one need wait a single moment before starting to improve upon the world." -Ann Frank
Mama to my "bright star" Clarisse Bituin and Wife to Julius. Mahal na mahal from our little family to yours!
Archived Thread - replies disabled
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Replies
I like the name Shirley with the more classical spelling of "Shirley" although not enough to use it personally. I personally know a Shirlee in her twenties, and I think there is a tendency upon hearing the name to assume the original spelling. It is not too old fashioned or frumpy. Names have a tendency to be cyclical, so I can see it being used again since the Shirley Temple craze has died down. You might get away with using Meadow as a middle name, but for a first name the hippie connotations are too strong.
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I kind of like Shirley. Not enough to use it, and it was way ahead of its time so that when other surnamey names got popular in the seventies it was already way out of style.
But it does have a friendly, grandma image that isn't unattractive. The original spelling is fine, the others just call attention to it and make it seem even more dated.
I like Shirley a damn sight better than I like Meadow, that's for sure.
And believe it or not, I know a little Shirley, she's about ten. Her family is from Jamaica.
But it does have a friendly, grandma image that isn't unattractive. The original spelling is fine, the others just call attention to it and make it seem even more dated.
I like Shirley a damn sight better than I like Meadow, that's for sure.
And believe it or not, I know a little Shirley, she's about ten. Her family is from Jamaica.
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Do you know what they call little Shirley? (by her full name or a nickname?)
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they just call her Shirley ...
She's in this program where older students go to other classrooms for a little bit each day and help the younger kids with their reading and such. That's how my Valerie knows her. They did some activity where they made up fancy name tags for themselves, and Shirley put Shirley Ann on her own tag, but so far as I know, she isn't called Shirley Ann on an everyday basis.
She's in this program where older students go to other classrooms for a little bit each day and help the younger kids with their reading and such. That's how my Valerie knows her. They did some activity where they made up fancy name tags for themselves, and Shirley put Shirley Ann on her own tag, but so far as I know, she isn't called Shirley Ann on an everyday basis.
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My grandma's name is Shirley Joan. Although, her baptismal certificate calls her Marie Shirley Joan, because the priest refused to baptize her as Shirley, which he said was "not a real name". (She was totally named after Shirley Temple)
I think it could be revival-worthy. If names like Lucille and Rosemary and such are becoming cool again, why not Shirley? I'd keep it as the classic Shirley - Shirlee, Shirli, Shirleigh etc are just awful.
I personally dislike the name, but I can see its potential. My grandma used to get called Shirl sometimes, which I thought was kinda cute.
I think it could be revival-worthy. If names like Lucille and Rosemary and such are becoming cool again, why not Shirley? I'd keep it as the classic Shirley - Shirlee, Shirli, Shirleigh etc are just awful.
I personally dislike the name, but I can see its potential. My grandma used to get called Shirl sometimes, which I thought was kinda cute.
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I like Shirley, though the youngest one I know must be in her late 50s, early 60s. I think its time might be coming ... I certainly don't see it as frumpy, more like a tapdancing toddler, which is off-putting but could be worse. At least it guarantees the name a youthful image! The spelling variations serve only to cheapen it, as is so often the case.
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Is Shirley dated or frumpy? Shirley you jest! It IS both frumpy AND dated, imo, thanks to: (1) Shirley Temple and (2) "Airplane." Also, and very importantly, I just don't care for the sound of it. I'm trying to picture it with fresh eyes the way I once viewed Ashley ... and nope, it's just not working for me.
Still, Shirley is so much better for a female. My dd's fiancée's step-grandfather is named Shirley. I'd say he's in his late 70s or early 80s. The name definitely works better for a female and the meaning is nice, I agree with you there. My youngest and I were looking up Leslie the other day and it has a very nice meaning as well. Not all surnames do.
BTW, the Heidi / Shirley connection is pretty cool.
Still, Shirley is so much better for a female. My dd's fiancée's step-grandfather is named Shirley. I'd say he's in his late 70s or early 80s. The name definitely works better for a female and the meaning is nice, I agree with you there. My youngest and I were looking up Leslie the other day and it has a very nice meaning as well. Not all surnames do.
BTW, the Heidi / Shirley connection is pretty cool.
This message was edited 10/20/2014, 12:58 PM
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I love it, and might actually consider using it if I didn't have a great-aunt Shirley (who was born two years before Shirley Temple - it was already a Trend Name of the 20s before she came along and prolonged the trend :D)
I don't think it'd be too frumpy. People are currently adapting to little Florences and Alfreds. Shirley would be just fine.
I don't think it'd be too frumpy. People are currently adapting to little Florences and Alfreds. Shirley would be just fine.
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Eh, as much as I love names that people might think are 'old lady' (Ruby, Vera, Eleanor, Winifred), I can't love Shirley. I like the meaning, but it doesn't have the charm that other names from that era does. Shirley is frumpy, an old woman with curlers in her hair, chain smoking.
I do like Meadow though, it's a guilty pleasure that I think would make a lovely middle name.
I do like Meadow though, it's a guilty pleasure that I think would make a lovely middle name.
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Well, I have a personal association that makes it hard to judge objectively. Shirley is my sister-in-law's name. She's a basically well-meaning but brash, loud, tactless person with an annoying accent. My parents couldn't stand her and my sisters and I always made fun of her accent. Last year she was a real jerk to me over Facebook and unfriended me because she's an idiot. I always point to her as proof that any idiot can go get a college education.
I guess if I could separate the name from her I'd judge it dated, frumpy because it is (although my sister-in-law Shirley is not and never has been frumpy, she's in her early sixties now and was attractive when younger and still is attractive for her age), but if I try really hard to separate it from its datedness I can see some prettiness.
My sister-in-law was born in 1953, and I always thought she had a dated name even for her age, but now I see that Shirley was still number 29 in 1953, although it had peaked in the 30s. Live and learn.
I guess if I could separate the name from her I'd judge it dated, frumpy because it is (although my sister-in-law Shirley is not and never has been frumpy, she's in her early sixties now and was attractive when younger and still is attractive for her age), but if I try really hard to separate it from its datedness I can see some prettiness.
My sister-in-law was born in 1953, and I always thought she had a dated name even for her age, but now I see that Shirley was still number 29 in 1953, although it had peaked in the 30s. Live and learn.
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I keep remembering this girl I went to school with. Early 90s and the class was full of Ashley, Megan and Heathers... and along comes Loretta. Loretta? My name (Heidi) was not so common in a good way, but poor Loretta could never seem to get past her frumpy name.
I don't want to name some kid and have them end up with Loretta of the 90s predicament. Loretta is pretty in and of itself, but it just did NOT fit the times. It was past antique-chic and right into dusty.
SO, I guess your post makes me wonder if you are the majority (who still associates Shirley with relics) or if I am (who thinks it is a shiney old gem just waiting for a bit of polish)?
I don't want to name some kid and have them end up with Loretta of the 90s predicament. Loretta is pretty in and of itself, but it just did NOT fit the times. It was past antique-chic and right into dusty.
SO, I guess your post makes me wonder if you are the majority (who still associates Shirley with relics) or if I am (who thinks it is a shiney old gem just waiting for a bit of polish)?
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I am older (54) so the women who were named Shirley when it was at its peak in the 1930s were in their forties by the time I was a teenager. Most of them are dead now, I'm sure. But the name did stay in the top 100 through 1963, so there are still plenty of older women around named Shirley---older, but not dead yet. That's what makes me think I'm still in the majority. Shirley could well come to be seen as a shiney old gem by the majority, but, if that happens, I don't think it will be for another 30 to 40 years.
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