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HelpPOLL RESULTS! Gendered Connotations
So I was wondering how certain unisex names get gendered today versus their "traditional genders." The polls got between 30-40 votes each (some of the percentages are a little off bc not everyone voted on all names). Some of the results really surprised me!
Like, I've never met a guy named Devon, but I know plenty of women. Jude was really surprising to me, because I only have feminine connotations for that, especially as a nickname for Judith. Tatum I always thought was traditionally a masculine name, but apparently it isn't (I've only met one Tatum tho). I know guys named Cameron, but I have a strong association of a female book protagonist named Cameron. Darcy I immediately think of Mr. Darcy haha.
***Let me know: which names on the list do you like? Which percentages surprised you?***
Ash (m & f)
90% masc
10% fem
Cameron (m & f)
97% masc
3% fem
Casey (m & f)
68% masc
32 % fem
Darcy (f & m)
18% masc
79% fem
Devon (m & f)
85% masc
18% fem
Ellis (m & f) / (m)
87% masc
18% fem
Emery (m & f)
61% masc
36% fem
Fern (f)
8% masc
95% fem
Iphis (f & m)
53% masc
40% fem
Jaime (m & f)
71% masc
21 % fem
Jude (m) (f)
95% masc
13% fem
Jules (m) (m & f)
70% masc
43% fem
Logan (m & f)
96% masc
7% fem
Marin (m)
33% masc
73% fem
Max (m)
90% masc
8% fem
Mica (f) / Micah (m)
73% masc
30% fem
Rain (f & m)
18% masc
82% fem
Tatum (f)
43% masc
61% fem
Like, I've never met a guy named Devon, but I know plenty of women. Jude was really surprising to me, because I only have feminine connotations for that, especially as a nickname for Judith. Tatum I always thought was traditionally a masculine name, but apparently it isn't (I've only met one Tatum tho). I know guys named Cameron, but I have a strong association of a female book protagonist named Cameron. Darcy I immediately think of Mr. Darcy haha.
***Let me know: which names on the list do you like? Which percentages surprised you?***
Ash (m & f)
90% masc
10% fem
Cameron (m & f)
97% masc
3% fem
Casey (m & f)
68% masc
32 % fem
Darcy (f & m)
18% masc
79% fem
Devon (m & f)
85% masc
18% fem
Ellis (m & f) / (m)
87% masc
18% fem
Emery (m & f)
61% masc
36% fem
Fern (f)
8% masc
95% fem
Iphis (f & m)
53% masc
40% fem
Jaime (m & f)
71% masc
21 % fem
Jude (m) (f)
95% masc
13% fem
Jules (m) (m & f)
70% masc
43% fem
Logan (m & f)
96% masc
7% fem
Marin (m)
33% masc
73% fem
Max (m)
90% masc
8% fem
Mica (f) / Micah (m)
73% masc
30% fem
Rain (f & m)
18% masc
82% fem
Tatum (f)
43% masc
61% fem
This message was edited 3/23/2019, 3:52 PM
Archived Thread - replies disabled
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Replies
My connotations would be:
Ash as a full name- masculine
Ash as a nickname - feminine
Cameron - truly unisex, possibly more masculine
Casey - feminine (although this is the most unisex spelling)
Darcy - I guess it does make me think of Mr Darcy but as a first name I'd say feminine
Devon - I think Devon and Devin might have different gender connotations, but they're both unisex to me
Ellis - unisex, but Ellis itself sounds more masculine. Just the potential for "Ellie" makes it sound feminine.
Emery - also unisex but Em, Emmy, etc. make it more feminine
Fern - feminine
Iphis - masculine
Jaime - masculine
Jude - masculine (I've never actually met a female Jude, only Judy)
Jules - masculine
Logan - masculine
Marin - I've never met one but it looks more feminine to me
Max - feminine
Mica - feminine
Micah - masculine
Rain -feminine
Tatum - masculine
Ash as a full name- masculine
Ash as a nickname - feminine
Cameron - truly unisex, possibly more masculine
Casey - feminine (although this is the most unisex spelling)
Darcy - I guess it does make me think of Mr Darcy but as a first name I'd say feminine
Devon - I think Devon and Devin might have different gender connotations, but they're both unisex to me
Ellis - unisex, but Ellis itself sounds more masculine. Just the potential for "Ellie" makes it sound feminine.
Emery - also unisex but Em, Emmy, etc. make it more feminine
Fern - feminine
Iphis - masculine
Jaime - masculine
Jude - masculine (I've never actually met a female Jude, only Judy)
Jules - masculine
Logan - masculine
Marin - I've never met one but it looks more feminine to me
Max - feminine
Mica - feminine
Micah - masculine
Rain -feminine
Tatum - masculine
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For me, Fern has a feminine connotation because of the girl in charlotte's Web
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Ohhh those poll results make so much more sense now. I never read Charlotte's Web, so I never actually knew anyone (person or character) with that name before to make a connection.
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I tend to associate Tatum with sporty guys, and Emery as a unisex girls name. All the others are what I would expect. Some of these I don't really consider gender neutral. Yes, there are a few girls named Logan and Max, but tradition and usage are still overwhelmingly male. I would be very surprised to meet a boy named Fern.
Iphis seems slightly more masculine while Iphys is more feminine. Either way, Iphis is very unusual.
Iphis seems slightly more masculine while Iphys is more feminine. Either way, Iphis is very unusual.
This message was edited 3/24/2019, 11:45 AM
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Hi !!!
I agree with many of them.
Tatum (f) it reminds me the 'tutu' used by ballerinas so it Is very soft and feminine.
Rain (f) also in Italian 'pioggia' is grammatically feminine (pioggia is not used as given name though). If I want a masculine I'll choose Ren (masculine, Japanese).
Mica / Micah (m) both masculine. I prefer Mika as diminutive of Mikael / Michaël.
Max (m) so stereotyped! If I want a feminine form I'll choose Maxine 'Miss'.
Marin (m?) This one is strange in my opinion. I would guess it were masculine. Actually everyone said that's feminine. Being Italian I would use Marino (m) and Marina (f) so seing Marin I thought it were the form of Marino while I know that Marina is common there too..
Logan (m) my first thought is Wolverine by Hugh Jackman... so masculine!
Jules (m) Jules Verne.
Jude (?) This one is really unisex. My first thought is Judith and my second is 'Hey Jude'. It is for both genders.
Jaime (m) the Spanish pronounciation KHIE-me is so strong. After that Jaime Lannister. So masculine.
Iphis (f?) My first thought was Isis (goddess) and Ibis (bird). Someone wearing White Ancient Egyptian toga / clothes. A feminine vibe.
Fern (f) also in Italian 'felce' Is grammatically feminine.
Emery (m) English for Emmerich. If I want a feminine name I'll choose Hilary.
I agree with many of them.
Tatum (f) it reminds me the 'tutu' used by ballerinas so it Is very soft and feminine.
Rain (f) also in Italian 'pioggia' is grammatically feminine (pioggia is not used as given name though). If I want a masculine I'll choose Ren (masculine, Japanese).
Mica / Micah (m) both masculine. I prefer Mika as diminutive of Mikael / Michaël.
Max (m) so stereotyped! If I want a feminine form I'll choose Maxine 'Miss'.
Marin (m?) This one is strange in my opinion. I would guess it were masculine. Actually everyone said that's feminine. Being Italian I would use Marino (m) and Marina (f) so seing Marin I thought it were the form of Marino while I know that Marina is common there too..
Logan (m) my first thought is Wolverine by Hugh Jackman... so masculine!
Jules (m) Jules Verne.
Jude (?) This one is really unisex. My first thought is Judith and my second is 'Hey Jude'. It is for both genders.
Jaime (m) the Spanish pronounciation KHIE-me is so strong. After that Jaime Lannister. So masculine.
Iphis (f?) My first thought was Isis (goddess) and Ibis (bird). Someone wearing White Ancient Egyptian toga / clothes. A feminine vibe.
Fern (f) also in Italian 'felce' Is grammatically feminine.
Emery (m) English for Emmerich. If I want a feminine name I'll choose Hilary.
This message was edited 3/23/2019, 11:15 PM
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Thanks for your thoughts, especially from a bilingual perspective! I think about that a lot too, balancing how names sound in English and Czech :) Like an American would think Dagmar is incredibly masculine, but in Czech it's strictly feminine.
That's an interesting take on Tatum! I kind of hear the sound as being similar "Adam" or "Bertram" or "Callum" so fairly masculine to me, but definitely still gender neutral.
Yeah, I agree on Darcy. Because of Jane Austen, I hear it as very masculine. But I think Darcy in America has a history of being a more feminine name?
The goddess Isis makes an appearance in Ovid's version of "Iphis and Ianthe" :) but in the story (and even more so in Gower's version of the story) the name is quite masculine. Interesting how names change over like... *hundreds* of years!
And wooo Ash Ketchum!!
That's an interesting take on Tatum! I kind of hear the sound as being similar "Adam" or "Bertram" or "Callum" so fairly masculine to me, but definitely still gender neutral.
Yeah, I agree on Darcy. Because of Jane Austen, I hear it as very masculine. But I think Darcy in America has a history of being a more feminine name?
The goddess Isis makes an appearance in Ovid's version of "Iphis and Ianthe" :) but in the story (and even more so in Gower's version of the story) the name is quite masculine. Interesting how names change over like... *hundreds* of years!
And wooo Ash Ketchum!!
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Dagmar would definitely be viewed as a girl's name by most Americans. It is one of those old fashion fugly girl names that used to be more common and fell into disuse.
In Greek mythology, Iphis or Iphys was the daughter of Telethusa and Ligdus in Crete. Even though she dressed as a boy, she is known as a female character, so it makes it hard to decide how to perceive the name.
In Greek mythology, Iphis or Iphys was the daughter of Telethusa and Ligdus in Crete. Even though she dressed as a boy, she is known as a female character, so it makes it hard to decide how to perceive the name.
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Do you think that anyone under 35 would recognize Dagmar as a feminine name tho? Because I feel folks would associate it with like a high fantasy character or that it would be in a Dungeons & Dragons character guide.
Also, in relation to the myth of Iphis and Ianthe––Iphis's mother chose a truly gender neutral name because she didn't want to "technically" lie to her husband about her child's sex because he was going to kill a daughter. You're quite right about how difficult it is to perceive the name as gendered.
I get masculine vibes from it in the context of the story though, because even in Ovid's version (but way more so in Gower's) it's implied (versus straight up a part of the story for Gower) that Iphis is a trans man who by the grace of the gods gets like reaffirmed in his gender by the end so he can marry Ianthe at the end.
The Gower version is pretty neat. A little hard to read, but there's an audio recording that helps with the middle english spellings:
https://d.lib.rochester.edu/teams/text/peck-gower-confessio-amantis-book-4#iphis
Also, in relation to the myth of Iphis and Ianthe––Iphis's mother chose a truly gender neutral name because she didn't want to "technically" lie to her husband about her child's sex because he was going to kill a daughter. You're quite right about how difficult it is to perceive the name as gendered.
I get masculine vibes from it in the context of the story though, because even in Ovid's version (but way more so in Gower's) it's implied (versus straight up a part of the story for Gower) that Iphis is a trans man who by the grace of the gods gets like reaffirmed in his gender by the end so he can marry Ianthe at the end.
The Gower version is pretty neat. A little hard to read, but there's an audio recording that helps with the middle english spellings:
https://d.lib.rochester.edu/teams/text/peck-gower-confessio-amantis-book-4#iphis
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Iphis didn't really get to decide to dress as a boy. She was raised as a boy for survival and had it constantly drilled into her head throughout her life that it was better to be male than female. Women in the ancient Greek world had few rights in comparison to male citizens. Unable to vote, own land, or inherit, they had virtually no political rights of any kind and were controlled by men at nearly every stage of their lives. The gods 'gift' of becoming a man just further reinforced the sexist view that being a man was a superior state of being.
It is also worth noting that Iphis was never asked if she wanted to become a man. Ianthe didn't want to marry a woman so she prayed to the gods that Iphis would be changed, and Iphis's mother also prayed for the transformation so that she'd have the son everyone wanted her to have. To me, Iphis's story is a tragedy because all of the other characters constantly deprive her/him of agency. It is the story of a girl forced to transform to meet the expectations and values thrust upon her in a male dominated world.
It is also worth noting that Iphis was never asked if she wanted to become a man. Ianthe didn't want to marry a woman so she prayed to the gods that Iphis would be changed, and Iphis's mother also prayed for the transformation so that she'd have the son everyone wanted her to have. To me, Iphis's story is a tragedy because all of the other characters constantly deprive her/him of agency. It is the story of a girl forced to transform to meet the expectations and values thrust upon her in a male dominated world.
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That’s an interesting interpretation! It’s always cool to see how different people read a text, and I can definitely see the effects/role of misogyny in Ovid’s version, where the father like literally describes having a daughter as like a waste of money and resources. And like, Iphis definitely felt a lot of shame for falling in love with Ianthe (well, they were mutually in love and Ianthe was looking forward to the wedding regardless, while Iphis was dreading it bc gender reasons). I agree, the story can be read as tragically putting a lot of pressure on Iphis and like reinforcing misogyny and heteronormativity.
I suppose the way Gower revised the medieval version of the story, it became a lot more “progressive” if that’s the right word? Although the father was still terrible, Iphis consistently uses he/him pronouns and it focuses more on Iphis and Ianthe’s love than Ianthe’s shame. And then Gower includes like this whole morality tale explanation that by working hard in love and being committed to your partner, the gods will reward you. And I feel like that reward wasn’t just making their love more heteronormative, but like aligning the way Iphis felt about himself. There’s less of a focus on physical transformation, but more on the spiritual/love transformation.
I suppose the way Gower revised the medieval version of the story, it became a lot more “progressive” if that’s the right word? Although the father was still terrible, Iphis consistently uses he/him pronouns and it focuses more on Iphis and Ianthe’s love than Ianthe’s shame. And then Gower includes like this whole morality tale explanation that by working hard in love and being committed to your partner, the gods will reward you. And I feel like that reward wasn’t just making their love more heteronormative, but like aligning the way Iphis felt about himself. There’s less of a focus on physical transformation, but more on the spiritual/love transformation.
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I agree––I always think of Pride and Prejudice when I hear Darcy. But like within a day of making this poll, I met a woman named Darcy for the very first time, so that was a cool coincidence, haha. But I guess I can understand Darcy as a sort of Souther Belle aesthetic name that isn't as popular for women anymore?
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Casey (m & f)
68% masc
32 % fem
Devon (m & f)
85% masc
18% fem
I wonder if Devin and Kasey would have been much different.
I was surprised Ash, Max, Logan, and Cameron were so overwhelmingly masculine. Those seem pretty unisex to me.
I like Fern for a guy, but I know that's unconventional, so that wasn't surprising.
I've never heard of Iphis.
68% masc
32 % fem
Devon (m & f)
85% masc
18% fem
I wonder if Devin and Kasey would have been much different.
I was surprised Ash, Max, Logan, and Cameron were so overwhelmingly masculine. Those seem pretty unisex to me.
I like Fern for a guy, but I know that's unconventional, so that wasn't surprising.
I've never heard of Iphis.
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I wonder about those spellings too!
I thought about giving a neutral vote option, but since the names were all technically gender neutral already, I wanted to see which gender people leaned toward if they had to choose.
I also think Fern is pretty masculine and was really surprised it was perceived so feminine! I wonder if it has to do with the popularity of nature names right now?
The Iphis I was thinking of was specifically from the myth "Iphis and Ianthe" There's a version written by Ovid, but there's also another version I read in middle English written by Gower.
I thought about giving a neutral vote option, but since the names were all technically gender neutral already, I wanted to see which gender people leaned toward if they had to choose.
I also think Fern is pretty masculine and was really surprised it was perceived so feminine! I wonder if it has to do with the popularity of nature names right now?
The Iphis I was thinking of was specifically from the myth "Iphis and Ianthe" There's a version written by Ovid, but there's also another version I read in middle English written by Gower.
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I’ve only ever heard of Fern as feminine, mostly old ladies/friends of my grandmas.
Then a few years ago met a young Hispanic guy, teenager-ish, named Fernando but typically called Fern his whole life. Kind of weirded me out for awhile, I’m thinking noooo this is little old lady name! I see grandmas church friend, and short chubby neighbor about 80 years old... they’re typical Ferns to me :)
Then a few years ago met a young Hispanic guy, teenager-ish, named Fernando but typically called Fern his whole life. Kind of weirded me out for awhile, I’m thinking noooo this is little old lady name! I see grandmas church friend, and short chubby neighbor about 80 years old... they’re typical Ferns to me :)
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Yeah, I think it seems usable as masculine to me because I have been influenced by knowing a couple Fernandos. Plus there's nothing particularly feminine seeming about the plants.
This message was edited 3/25/2019, 11:46 AM
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>I wanted to see which gender people leaned toward if they had to choose.
Yes, I think it's worth noting that, even if a name leaned "overwhelmingly" towards one sex in the polls, that doesn't necessarily mean almost everyone thought, for example, "That is absolutely a male name." It can also mean that a lot of people thought, "Wow, it's 50-50 for me, but if I had to guess, I'd say it leans ever-so-slightly male."
Yes, I think it's worth noting that, even if a name leaned "overwhelmingly" towards one sex in the polls, that doesn't necessarily mean almost everyone thought, for example, "That is absolutely a male name." It can also mean that a lot of people thought, "Wow, it's 50-50 for me, but if I had to guess, I'd say it leans ever-so-slightly male."
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Yep! And I think that's why the message board followup is helpful. People can discuss their votes and the connotations that lead them to lean one way or another :)
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In 2017, 41 girls were named Max, compared with 3,121 boys - a ratio of over 76:1.
1,103 girls were named Logan vs. 13974 boys, a ratio of over 12:1.
Not many babies of either sex were named Ash - 7 girls and 134 boys. Roughly 4900 girls had names beginning with Ash (I excluded Ashanti since it didn't seem likely to have a nickname of Ash) compared to over 9000 boys. On the other hand, I believe an older Ash is much more likely to be a nickname for a girl named Ashley.
There were 5925 male Camerons and 574 female Camerons. Respellings of Cameron didn't come anywhere near making up the difference.
Male Devins vastly outnumbered female Devins and male Devons outnumbered female Devons.
Male Caseys outnumbered female Caseys but female Kaseys outnumbered male ones.
Wisdom of the crowds confirmed!
I'm really surprised that Cameron and Ash- names turned out to be so male-dominant.
1,103 girls were named Logan vs. 13974 boys, a ratio of over 12:1.
Not many babies of either sex were named Ash - 7 girls and 134 boys. Roughly 4900 girls had names beginning with Ash (I excluded Ashanti since it didn't seem likely to have a nickname of Ash) compared to over 9000 boys. On the other hand, I believe an older Ash is much more likely to be a nickname for a girl named Ashley.
There were 5925 male Camerons and 574 female Camerons. Respellings of Cameron didn't come anywhere near making up the difference.
Male Devins vastly outnumbered female Devins and male Devons outnumbered female Devons.
Male Caseys outnumbered female Caseys but female Kaseys outnumbered male ones.
Wisdom of the crowds confirmed!
I'm really surprised that Cameron and Ash- names turned out to be so male-dominant.
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Thank you so much for these statistics! They're really interesting!
I knew one Max way, way back in kindergarten who was a girl and her name wasn't shortened from Maxine or anything. I actually never met a male Max until two years ago.
This is really interesting, just because some people like to talk about the trendiness of giving girls masculine names, when it seems that statistically that's not really happening all that much. Maybe like celebrities get a lot more of the spotlight for gender neutral/unconventional names too.
I knew one Max way, way back in kindergarten who was a girl and her name wasn't shortened from Maxine or anything. I actually never met a male Max until two years ago.
This is really interesting, just because some people like to talk about the trendiness of giving girls masculine names, when it seems that statistically that's not really happening all that much. Maybe like celebrities get a lot more of the spotlight for gender neutral/unconventional names too.
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I voted in these! For many of them I would not be at all surprised to see a person of either sex bearing that name.
Specifics:
I'd be surprised to see a woman named Max or Logan.
I'd be surprised to see a man named Fern.
For Jaime, it really depends on whether it's using the Spanish pronunciation. Hi-may = masculine. Jay-mee = feminine.
I would expect Jules as a full name to be masculine; as a nickname it could be either.
Had Devon been spelled as "Devin," I MIGHT have voted feminine. Both spellings could definitely go either way.
I had never heard of Iphis so I just went on pure instinct (masculine).
Specifics:
I'd be surprised to see a woman named Max or Logan.
I'd be surprised to see a man named Fern.
For Jaime, it really depends on whether it's using the Spanish pronunciation. Hi-may = masculine. Jay-mee = feminine.
I would expect Jules as a full name to be masculine; as a nickname it could be either.
Had Devon been spelled as "Devin," I MIGHT have voted feminine. Both spellings could definitely go either way.
I had never heard of Iphis so I just went on pure instinct (masculine).
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Thanks for voting!
Interestingly enough, I know an equal number of masc and fem Max's and Logan's. And in pop culture, I think of Max in Stranger Things now (but I'm also a huge Mad Max fan). So it evens out?
I'd always thought of Fern as being really masculine, same with Forrest / Forest? I think it's just the sound for me, ending with an 'r' and then another consonant?
I know a masc and fem Jaime's, and I think they both spell it like Jamie.
I recently learned about Iphis through a medieval lit class. Specifically in "Iphis and Ianthe," Iphis is a gender neutral name. People interpret the narrative in different ways, but I see it as Iphis being a trans man in the story, so more masculine.
Interestingly enough, I know an equal number of masc and fem Max's and Logan's. And in pop culture, I think of Max in Stranger Things now (but I'm also a huge Mad Max fan). So it evens out?
I'd always thought of Fern as being really masculine, same with Forrest / Forest? I think it's just the sound for me, ending with an 'r' and then another consonant?
I know a masc and fem Jaime's, and I think they both spell it like Jamie.
I recently learned about Iphis through a medieval lit class. Specifically in "Iphis and Ianthe," Iphis is a gender neutral name. People interpret the narrative in different ways, but I see it as Iphis being a trans man in the story, so more masculine.
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