Gone with the Wind!

I was going to do a post on my favourite literary names until I realised that pretty much all the names I liked came from Gone with the Wind. Not your typical literary names. No Edward's or Catherine's for a start. I do like Catherine though and I obviously love Edward enough to use it for my own son.


So here they are. All the best Gone with the Wind names and a little background into the characters and their names. My favourite is Ashley on a boy - On the list.


Scarlett O'Hara - The strong willed protagonist is known for her beauty and is the daughter of the Tara Plantation owners Gerald and Ellen. This name has become rather popular of late, Mel C from the spice girls recently used this name for her baby girl.


Melanie Hamilton Wilkes - Ashley's good-hearted wife. Meaning black and originating is Greece this little name doesn't rank in the top 100 in America. She is a sweet obscure little choice with just enough familiarity.

Prissy - The short form of Priscilla. Such a cute name! In Gone with the Wind Prissy is the lie-prone slave at the Tara Plantation. This girl little name matches the style of some of the most popular names of today.

Bonnie Blue Butler - Her real name is Eugenie Victoria and she is the beautiful and pampered daughter of Scarlett and Rhett. An appealing choice. It literally means 'Pretty Girl' and too me this just adds to the appeal.

India Wilkes - I love this name! Right at the top of my list. Whist India Wilkes isn't a favourable character in the book you must agree she had a gorgeous name. India is Ashley's sister who bitterly hates Scarlett for sabotaging her relationship with Stuart.

Honey Wilkes - Honey is Jamie Oliver's youngest daughters middle name and is sister to Ashley and India in Gone with the Wind.

Rhett Butler - Scartlett's third husband and a little bit of a rebel. He is at times, a loving father and husband but pride prevents him from showing his affection. To me this has a bit of a hippy vibe whist maintaining a classical feel.

Ashley Wilkes - Yes, that is on a boy. Believe it or not Ashley is a BOYS names. This one is definitely on my list. Ashley is the handsome and chivalrous love interest of Scarlett's. Please Oh Please don't feminise this name!

Wade Hampton Hamilton - Scarlett and Charles Hamilton’s shy, timid son. Wade has English origins and means Traveller. I think Wade would be a nice choice for Chase's brother.

Jonas Wilkerson - This Hebrew name means dove. He was the father of Emmie Slattery's illegitimate baby. This name was recently used for one of the octuplets.

Beau Wilkes – Melanie's and Ashley's lovable son, delivered by Scarlett. I love the meaning of this name; Handsome or Beautiful. Could be used as the short form of Beauregard or Beauchamp.

Other Gone with the wind names:
- Gerald
- Ella
- Will
- Belle
- Emmie
- Careen
- Suellen

Tom-Boys? Are masculine named girls the next big thing?

I try as hard as I can to keep up with new or possible naming trends. And for a while now, it seems to me that the new thing in naming is boyishly named girls.

I was hoping this might trend might fizzle out before it could get as popular as I fear it is about to become. But no, much to my dismay little Tom-Boys are popping out all over the place.

Now this is no cutting edge trend. Parents of young girls have been pinching names from the parents of young boys for.....I'd guess about 3 generations.

Courtney
Leslie
Addison
Avery
Peyton (sorry to all those who like this name but it has to be my least favourite name EVER!)
Ashley
Lindsay

And what do these names have in common? They are all originally masculine names and now, never in a million years would parents choose these old favourites for their sons.

However, it is my opinion that it has only been in recent times that parents are taking this uni-sex name thing to the next level. Last week in the Perth births and deaths section there was a Thomasina. And this week some unlikely names for girls have appeared.

-Tyler Rose
-Chelsea Hunter
-Ava Cruz
-Eliza Ivy John

Also, recently the name Jagger Joseph Blue was voted the worst celebrity baby girl name of 2008. Yes this name was for a girl. What were they thinking!?!?!?! These are all boys names!

And it's not just in the younger generation that names like the above. Obama's mother's given name is Stanley because her parents wanted a boy.

Sorry to say I just can't get into this trend. To me boys names are for boys, girls names are for girls and unisex names can be used for either. A girl whose name includes John doesn't work for me. Don't even get me started on Hunter! I hate this name for a boy or a girl! There are more way to achieve a name that is a bit more unusual than Jane Doe than by submitting to this trend. Please tell me that the general population has more sense than that!