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Waltzing More Than Matilda

~ Names with an Australian Bias of Democratic Temper

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Tag Archives: Marian titles

Famous Names: Bronwyn and Dolores

05 Wednesday Aug 2015

Posted by A.O. in Famous Names

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

controversial names, dated names, famous namesakes, fictional namesakes, Harry Potter names, Marian titles, modern names, name history, name meaning, name popularity, name trends, names from films, nicknames, Spanish names, UK name popularity, US name popularity, Welsh names

BronwynBishopDolores

Famous Namesake
Bronwyn Bishop resigned as Speaker of the House two days ago, after a furore over her use of travel allowances. Usually when someone is caught out abusing the system they quickly hand in their notice and quietly slip away before too many questions can be raised. However Ms Bishop refused to admit she had done anything wrong and resisted all pressure to resign for three weeks, which meant we had plenty of time to hear about her extravagant travel expenses.

They included a $6000 private flight from Sydney to Nowra for a Liberal party fundraiser, and more than $1000 on a limo so she could attend a theatre premiere in her home city. There was also the $600 return flight to attend colleague Sophie Mirabella’s wedding in Albury, and $130 000 spent on overseas travel to Europe and Asia, including $1000 a day on private limos.

The one that really left people gobsmacked was a $5000 chartered helicopter to take her from Melbourne to a Liberal party fundraiser in Geelong and back – a trip which takes only about an hour each way by road. Referred to as Choppergate, this was the scandal that brought Ms Bishop down. She wasn’t a first-timer at this: in the 1980s she once hired a helicopter at taxpayer’s expense to transport her from a fete to a dog show.

Ironically, back in the 1990s Bronwyn Bishop rose to fame as the face of public accountability when she was on the Senate estimates and joint public accounts committee. This sounds dull and usually was – an assessment of government departments and where they spent their appropriations. Under Bishop, committee meetings became virtual show trials where senior public servants were routinely interrogated, hectored, and taunted for their spending habits.

When Bronwyn Bishop was appointed Speaker in 2013, the Opposition described her as Dolores Umbridge, after the infamous headmistress from the Harry Potter series. This didn’t refer to a penchant for hair ribbons or interest in fluffy kittens, but indicated a fear she was to be a corrupt tool of government. This turned out to be not unfounded, for in her term of office Ms Bishop showed considerable bias, ejecting 393 Opposition members from the house, but only 7 of her own party.

Bronwyn Bishop was appointed to the role of Speaker by the Prime Minister, who describes her as a close personal friend, and himself as her ideological love child. This has turned out to be yet another damaging captain’s call, and no doubt the next Speaker will be the choice of his party.

It’s been a spectacular fall from grace for the longest-serving woman in Parliament, who once boasted she would be a future Prime Minister. Now the Prime Minister admits her parliamentary career is at an end.

BRONWYN
Bronwyn is a variant of Bronwen, a modern Welsh name meaning “white breasted, fair breasted”. The meaning is possibly less important than the fact it is very similar to the medieval Welsh name Branwen, meaning “fair raven”; in Welsh legend, Branwen was the sister of Brân the Blessed. Both Bronwen and Bronwyn have been used since the 19th century.

There is a popular notion that Bronwyn is the masculine form of Bronwen, since in Welsh the suffix -wyn is usually attached to masculine names. In fact, you can get into some quite nasty arguments about it on baby name forums, with angry people telling you that you have ignorantly given your daughter Bronwyn a specifically male name.

However if you look at the records, Bronwyn was always used as a girl’s name in Wales right from the start, with the -wyn spelling just a variant, not an indication of gender. Interestingly, the few examples of men named Bronwyn I found, dating from the 20th century, were all from outside Wales. I suspect their parents read up on the Welsh language and “corrected” Bronwyn from feminine to masculine, possibly being a bit too clever in the process and giving their sons a traditionally female name.

While Bronwen was originally by far the more common spelling in the 19th century, Bronwyn overtook it in the 20th. It was popularised by the 1941 film How Green Was My Valley, with Anna Lee in the role of Bronwyn, the narrator’s sister-in-law that he loves. The film is based on the 1939 novel by author Richard Llewellyn, and is set in a Welsh mining village. In the book the sister-in-law’s name is Bronwen, and I’m not sure why Hollywood decided to spell her name with a Y. Perhaps they thought it looked more feminine.

The name Bronwyn first joined the charts in the 1940s, coinciding with the release of the film; it made its debut at #143. (Bronwyn Bishop was born in 1942, the year after the film came out). By the 1950s it had joined the Top 100 and peaked in 1964 at #53. It left the Top 100 in 1980, and hasn’t charted since the late 2000s.

For some reason, Bronwyn has only been popular in Australia: it doesn’t seem to have ever been a Top 100 name in the UK, and has never even charted in the US. In 2013, there were 23 baby girls named Bronwyn in England/Wales, and last year there were 49 baby girls named Bronwyn in the US. Numbers of Bronwyns seem fairly stable in both countries.

Bronwen has never charted in Australia. In the UK in 2013 Bronwens and Bronwyns were roughly equal (21 babies named Bronwen), while in the US there were 6 Bronwens, a lot less popular than Bronwyn.

Although Bronwyn is now a dated name, the sound of it seems to have led to the popularity of similar-sounding Bronte, which joined the Top 100 just as Bronwyn slipped off the charts. Perhaps even the rise of Bonnie owe something to Bronwyn, since a common nickname for Bronwyn is Bronnie.

DOLORES
Dolores is a Spanish name meaning “pain, sorrow”. It is taken from one of the titles of the Virgin Mary, Nuestra Senora de Dolores, or Our Lady of Sorrows. The title refers to the Seven Sorrows of Mary, which are seven sad events in Mary’s life connected with her son Jesus. They begin with his Presentation in the Temple, and the prophecies made about him, and end with his body being placed in the tomb.

The feast day for Our Lady of Sorrows began in the Middle Ages, and was originally the third Sunday after Easter; today it is September 15. It’s possible that the name Dolores was first given to girls born around this feast day, although I can’t find any evidence for this.

The feast was rarely celebrated until the 16th century, and by the 17th century Dolores had become a common name in Spanish-speaking countries, although occasionally also used by Catholics in other countries. It came into common use in the English-speaking world in the 19th century, and was a particular favourite with Irish Catholics.

Dolores has never charted in Australia. In the United States, Dolores joined the Top 100 during the 1920s, the era when Mexican actress Dolores del Rio flourished as a Hollywood star. The first Latin American actress to become famous internationally, Dolores was exquisite, elegant, and gracious.

The name left the US Top 100 in the 1940s, after Dolores de Rio was accused of Communism during the McCarthy era, and continued her career in her homeland. The name left the charts in the 1980s, after Dolores del Rio’s death, but Dolores is still remembered as one of the classic Hollywood beauties, and a great lady.

During Ms del Rio’s heyday this name must have been exotic and glamorous, but now seems dated and frumpy. The evil Dolores Umbridge from Harry Potter has not helped its image: her name was chosen because it sounds similar to the English word dolorous, which can be understood as “causing pain or grief” (it has the same Latin source as the name Dolores). However, Lola is a popular pet form of Dolores, and I can see Lolita, Dolly and Lolly becoming fashionable in the future.

Two names connected with Hollywood beauties which have fallen from favour, but are probably more influential on current trends that we give them credit for. Which one will score higher, I wonder?

POLL RESULTS
Bronwyn received an approval rating of 44%. 39% of people weren’t keen on the name Bronwyn, while 18% loved it.

Dolores received an even lower approval rating of 28%. 40% of people weren’t keen on the name Dolores, while 10% loved it.

(Photo from the ABC website)

Waltzing With … Victoria

28 Sunday Jun 2015

Posted by A.O. in Waltzing with ...

≈ Comments Off on Waltzing With … Victoria

Tags

classic names, European name popularity, famous namesakes, Latin names, locational names, Marian titles, mythological names, name history, name meaning, names of businesses, popular names, royal names, saints names, Spanish names, UK name popularity, US name popularity

portland

Famous Namesake
July 1 will mark the 164th anniversary of the independence of Victoria. When the British settled Australia in 1788, they claimed the entire eastern side of Australia as the Colony of New South Wales. The area now known as Victoria was first settled in 1803, partly due to French explorer Nicolas Baudin, who had spent several weeks surveying Bass Strait.

Governor Philip Gidley King got nervous that the French could be planning to establish their own settlement and challenge the British claim to Australia. Rather than risk a future where we might say Bonjour over a croissant or ride clean, efficient trains, the British formed a settlement at Port Phillip. It didn’t work out, and a year later they all nicked off to Tasmania. They tried again in 1826 (after another French explorer started hovering around), but that only lasted a year as well.

Paranoid government had failed, so it was capitalism’s turn to give it a go. Entrepreneurs arrived from Tasmania in 1834-35 to form settlements at Portland and Port Phillip (later Melbourne), which soon became prosperous, thriving communities, although at a devastating cost to the Indigenous inhabitants. Wealthy pastoralists took possession of vast tracts of fertile land, and soon Melbourne was the centre of Australia’s wool trade.

With such power and influence behind it, the Port Phillip District began lobbying for independence by 1840. In 1850 the colony was separated from New South Wales, and named Victoria, after Queen Victoria, and officially founded on July 1 1851. That same year, gold was discovered around Ballarat and Bendigo, sparking one of the largest gold rushes the world has ever seen. Wealth was about to begin pouring into its coffers, and Melbourne to become one of the great cities of the world.

The colony was off to a flying start, soon to to become the state we all know and love. The most beautiful state in Australia, ranging from lush pasture to snowy mountain ranges to golden beaches, it has charming country towns and a sophisticated, quirky capital. You can even get excellent croissants there. Viva la Victoria!

Name Information
Victoria was the Roman personification of victory in battle; her name is the Latin word for “victory”. In her older form, she was known as the goddess Vica Pota, translated by the Romans as meaning “conquering and gaining mastery”.

Victoria symbolised victory over death, and she chose who would be successful on the battlefield, so it was very important to get on her good side. Because of this, she was a popular goddess with many temples in her honour, worshipped by those who returned from war in triumph. She can often be seen on Roman coins and jewellery, and it is common to depict Victoria driving a chariot, probably because Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, was the charioteer for Zeus when he went into battle.

Victoria (or Nike) was depicted as a beautiful woman in flowing garments with large wings sprouting from her shoulders, so that she could fly over battlefields, giving encouragement to the conqueror and proclaiming messages of glory from on high. Statues of her in this mode are called winged victories, such as the Winged Victory of Samothrace. Later this image became Christianised, as it became the rule to portray angels, especially in church architecture, as graceful women with wings, a direct inspiration from the winged victories.

Victoria is also the feminine form of the Roman name Victor, meaning “victor, conqueror”. Like Victor, it was a popular choice for early Christians, symbolising victory over sin and death, and there are quite a few Christian martyrs named Victoria. Some are identified as women of the nobility, and others as servants, so it seems to have been used by all classes in the Roman Empire.

The name Victoria has long had a particular association with Spain, because it also one of the titles of the Virgin Mary: Nuestra Señora de Victoria, or Our Lady of Victory. In 1571, Pope Pius V instituted a feast day for Our Lady of Victory, after a coalition of southern European forces, led by Spain, defeated the fleet of the Ottoman Empire at the Battle of Lepanto.

Although well used in Continental Europe and popular in Spain, Victoria didn’t become common in Britain until the 19th century, when Queen Victoria took the throne in 1937 – there was an enormous jump in use between the 1820s and the 1840s, although it still wasn’t a popular name in England during Victoria’s reign.

Victoria is a classic name which has never left the charts. It was #124 in the 1900s, and sunk until it reached its lowest level ever in the 1930s, at #0. Victoria came back strongly, and was already #155 in the 1940s – perhaps the war era made the idea of commemorating victory very appealing. Victoria made the Top 100 in 1960 at #97, but for most of the 1960s and ’70s was just outside the Top 100. It made good headway in the 1980s, and peaked in 1991 at #49. It left the Top 100 in 2008, but remained within close reach, and was back again in 2010.

Currently it is #80 nationally, #59 in New South Wales, #74 in Victoria, and #85 in the Australian Capital Territory. It appears very stable – it hasn’t been far outside since the Top 100 since the 1950s, and has only once made it into the Top 50. That makes it a safe choice which has never been highly popular, yet has remained common for more than half a century.

Victoria is a popular name around the world, but is most popular in the US at #19. Its popularity in the UK is similar to that in Australia. Not just popular in English-speaking countries, Victoria is a Top 100 name in Western Europe, Eastern Europe, and Scandinavia; still a favourite in Spain, it is also popular in Latin America. Meanwhile international variants such as Viktoria, Victorija, Victorie, Victoire, Vitoria, and Vittoria are popular in a host of countries. That makes Victoria an internationally recognised name that works cross-culturally.

Victoria is a classic traditional girl’s name that’s popular, but not too popular. It’s a long, feminine name that doesn’t seem frilly or elaborate, but clean and professional. It’s well known internationally without seeming exotic. It has a strong meaning connecting it to power and success, which is quite unusual for a girl’s name.

Victoria is a goddess, an angel, a saint, and a winner of battles. Many people will connect her with a queen, and there’s no doubt that Victoria is royal to her fingertips. She’s classy, and every inch a lady, but Victoria’s Secret makes her seem rather sexy too. A fun nickname would be Plum, from the Victoria Plum, like the writer Plum Sykes. My preference is for the lively Vita, inspired by another author from Kent, Vita Sackville-West.

POLL RESULT
Victoria received an outstanding approval rating of 91%, making it one of the highest-rated names of 2015. 33% of people thought the name Victoria was okay, and only 3% hated it.

(Photo shows Portland, the first permanent European settlement in Victoria)

Waltzing with …. Candelaria

02 Sunday Feb 2014

Posted by A.O. in Waltzing with ...

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

Canarian names, Marian titles, name history, name meaning, name trends, nicknames, Spanish names

Candlemas

Today is the Feast of Candlemas, which commemorates the presentation of Jesus at the Temple and the Purification of Mary. Traditionally, there is a blessing of the candles to be used by the church that year, followed by a procession around the church with the congregation holding lighted candles, singing hymns of praise. People can also ask for a blessing on their own personal candles.

The feast follows the story given in the Gospel of Luke, where Mary and Joseph took the infant Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem 40 days after his birth for Mary’s ritual purification after childbirth, and the redemption of a first-born son, according to the Law of Moses. Luke notes that Mary and Joseph sacrificed a pair of pigeons or doves, which was the option offered to the poor – wealthy people sacrificed a lamb.

While in the Temple, the Holy Family encountered an elderly pair of prophets named Simeon and Anna, who prayed for Jesus, prophesying that he would redeem Israel and bring enlightenment to the world. This is significant as the first public recognition of Jesus as a future religious leader, and his first entry into a house of religion.

We know that the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple has been celebrated by the Christian church since at least the 4th century, but its connection with candles only seems to have begun in the Middle Ages. As candles don’t play any role in the Gospel story, one might suspect that the custom began because in Europe, early February marks the midpoint of winter, when it starts to become noticeably lighter. Because Jesus was prophesied to be a “light … to the Gentiles”, there was a natural link between celebrating the return of the sun’s light with the “light of the world”.

Candlemas has many secular traditions associated with it, especially ones connected with agriculture; as the half-way point of winter, Candlemas was a handy reference point. Farmers were meant to have half their winter grain stores left by Candlemas, and it was the date that poultry was supposed to begin laying. It was also the traditional day to bring cattle in from the hay meadows so that the land could be prepared for another crop.

Weather lore is also a Candlemas tradition. In Britain, a saying is: If Candlemas Day is clear and bright, winter will take another flight. If Candlemas bring cloud or rain, winter is gone and will not come again. In the United States, they have the German tradition of Groundhog Day on Candlemas, when folklore says groundhogs will only come out of their burrow if it is cloudy, meaning that spring is on its way; if it is sunny, the groundhog will retreat back into the burrow for six more snoozy weeks of hibernation. In France, they think the opposite is true: a cloudy Candlemas means forty more days of winter, and in Italy, Candlemas is supposed to be the last cold day of the season.

In Australia, we cannot share in these wintry traditions, and as Candlemas often falls during the bushfire season of total fire bans, it would be foolhardy, not to mention illegal, to be messing around with lighted candles at this time. However, Candlemas is also supposed to mark of the end of the Christmas season, and this probably works better in Australia than Europe now, because it is around this time of the year that the Christmas holidays end.

There is a name especially associated with this festival. Candelaria is a Spanish name meaning “Candlemas”, which can be given in honour of the day. It can also be seen as a reference to Our Lady of Candelaria, one of the titles of the Virgin Mary. The Virgin of Candelaria is especially venerated in the Canary Islands, and we learned about this mysterious figure when we covered the name Chaxiraxi late last year. Her feast day is August 15, but she has another on February 2, linking her to Candlemas.

Candelaria is a rather gorgeous Spanish girl’s name, another of the many names which reference light, and in this case, a promise of approaching spring (or in Australia, the promise of cooler weather, which can’t come soon enough for my liking).

Candelaria may seem extravagant to some, and others may worry that the word “candle” is too obvious within it, but it could be used as a middle name if it seems too spectacular as a first name. I think it would be a marvellous name for anyone born around this time of year, and may be especially attractive to those with Spanish or Canarian heritage. The nickname Candy seems dated, but Aria would be smack bang on trend.

POLL RESULT
Candelaria received an approval rating of 42%. 32% of people hated the name, while only 7% loved it.

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