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HelpRe: What do you think of . . .
in reply to a message by Trista
I've always liked it (even though I am not a fan of Streep) and was really happy to see it borne by Davis, who gives it the kind of image it deserves. I think it's totally usable and isn't any more made-up than Ellia or Caylee or Alyssa. I think of it as more just a rare and slightly creative name, rather than a dated name.
I think the issue with dated names isn't important when a name is already a "grandma name" from the perspective of the parent generation. It's only a problem when the name was a fad and is a "mom name" - very popular about 15-25 years before the person's birth, but gone out of style at the time she was born. So that when she's a young adult, her own peers recognize the name as "middle aged." Like if you wanted to call her Chelsea, then datedness is more of a problem... that'd be like you being named Misty or Tonya (I'm assuming you're in your 20s).
Having a name that is an old-grandma name to your peers, is not a big negative IMO, it's more a curiosity, especially if the name's as rare as Meryl. It's like you being named, say, Aletha or Nova. Or, it might be like you being named Hazel ... Meryl could well be fashionable again n 25-30 years.
I think maybe the aging of Streep alone keeps it down, for now, because Meryl has been rare enough that it's probably a one-person name to a lot of folks. That, to me, is the biggest downside of Meryl. But it's not enough that it'd stop me from using the name for a daughter. And when the generation born today comes of age, Streep won't be an aging actress anymore but an ancient diva, or dead - to them she'll be more like Lauren Bacall is to us.
- mirfak
I think the issue with dated names isn't important when a name is already a "grandma name" from the perspective of the parent generation. It's only a problem when the name was a fad and is a "mom name" - very popular about 15-25 years before the person's birth, but gone out of style at the time she was born. So that when she's a young adult, her own peers recognize the name as "middle aged." Like if you wanted to call her Chelsea, then datedness is more of a problem... that'd be like you being named Misty or Tonya (I'm assuming you're in your 20s).
Having a name that is an old-grandma name to your peers, is not a big negative IMO, it's more a curiosity, especially if the name's as rare as Meryl. It's like you being named, say, Aletha or Nova. Or, it might be like you being named Hazel ... Meryl could well be fashionable again n 25-30 years.
I think maybe the aging of Streep alone keeps it down, for now, because Meryl has been rare enough that it's probably a one-person name to a lot of folks. That, to me, is the biggest downside of Meryl. But it's not enough that it'd stop me from using the name for a daughter. And when the generation born today comes of age, Streep won't be an aging actress anymore but an ancient diva, or dead - to them she'll be more like Lauren Bacall is to us.
- mirfak
This message was edited 1/10/2015, 1:40 PM
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