Why Do Women Rarely Name Their Daughters After Themselves?

Would a daughter be called a Junior?

Alma Jr. was named after her mother.

Because it's confusing having Mary and Little Mary in the same house.

Because their husband pleaded for her to be named after HIS MOTHER.

Madonna's mother was a very pretty French Canadian lady.

Less narcissistic? Men have already occupied the right to give their surname to their children, so the step to sharing a first name is not as big as it is with the women.

Hello! You forgot about little old me!

Not as ego driven as men.

Ivanka was essentially named after Ivana -- I'm surprised you-know-who allowed such a thing.

I am not sure why but it seems somewhat taboo to name a daughter after her mother for some reason while it's fairly common to do with sons and fathers.

Other examples:

Courteney Cox was named after her mom (Courteney Bass).

Kathy (Kathleen) Hilton was named after her mom (Kathleen Dugan aka Big Kathy).

Edith "Little Edie" Bouvier Beale was named after Edith "Big Edie" Ewing Bouvier Beale.

Queen Elizabeth II is named after her mother (Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother).

Carolina Herrera named one of her daughter's after her (Carolina Herrera de Baez).

It happens but it's rare and not anywhere near as commonplace as with sons and fathers.

FDR and Eleanor named their daughter Anna Eleanor Roosevelt Jr. (Eleanor's full name). Eleanor became Eleanor Sr.

Mothers and daughters are natural enemies for the affection and attention of the father, and of all men in general.

There's an old Sicilian proverb advising pregnant women to pray for male babies, as girl babies "steal the mother's beauty even before they are born." Yes, women giving birth to boys are regarded as prettier and more desirable than those delivering daughters.

Ethel Merman's daughter was Etheline, but she was often called Ethel, Jr, until her premature death at 25.

Because it's stupid and narcissistic to name your kid after yourself. I always thought it was dumb when men did it too.

Fuck you, R12. Creepy men always pitting women against each other, even mothers and daughters. You think it's all about you, don't you? You think all women care about is to be sexually desirable to men? No. It's quite down on the wish list, actually. And the alleged hatred and envy between us is only in your narcissistic heads.

Lucille Ball wanted to name her daughter, Lucie Arnaz, something else. But Gary talked her into it.

Martha Stewart’s mother is called “Big Martha”

One of the drunken Real Housewives, Kim Richards, named her daughter Kim

R10 This reminds me (why I remember this, I do not know), didn't Courteney Cox want to name her daughter after HERSELF? But couldn't because David Arquette is Jewish and it's not traditional to name children after people who are alive? So they named her Coco for COurtney COx? I have NO IDEA why I remember this!! Help!!

R12,it's usually the male who's jealous of the female's children - in humans and in nature. Sometimes they kill those children, in humans and in nature.

R12,it's usually the male who's jealous of the female's children - in humans and in nature. Sometimes they kill those children, in humans and in nature.

Those americans are really quite stupid aren't they mum?

Let's not forget fathers who name their daughters after themselves. Gives us names like Ernestine, Raleign (I actually know one of those), Stanette (knew one of them, too), etc.

In ancient Rome ALL daughters were named after their father. Thus, if Servius Tullius had five girls, they'd be Servia Tullia 1, Servia Tullia 2 and so forth. Patriarchy, sir

Stanette. That’s an interesting name.

Women give their daughters the name they always wished they had.

[quote]r13 Ethel Merman's daughter was Etheline

Makes me think of ethylene-alcohol (Antifreeze)

Cuz they don't pass on the last name.

Sometimes a Mary/Maria is handed down to everyone with a middle name that is what the child is called.

But women do get all the big boats named after them, so it all evens out.

Maria Theresa of Austria, Holy Roman Empress.

Daughters:

Archduchess Maria Elisabeth

Archduchess Maria Anna

Archduchess Maria Carolina

Maria Christina, Duchess of Teschen

Archduchess Maria Elisabeth

Maria Amalia, Duchess of Parma

Archduchess Maria Carolina

Archduchess Maria Johanna Gabriela

Archduchess Maria Josepha

Maria Carolina, Queen of Naples and Sicily

Maria Antonia (Marie Antoinette), Queen of France

I think women know how much value is put on a girl being seen as pretty, so many try to come up with a pretty name in order to give their daughter at least one advantage as a head start.

Christina Crawford was originally named Joan but I guess there was a limit to Crawford's narcissism.

More likely Joan realized she'd never live up to the standards associated with that name.

Jonbenet was named after her father John Bennett.

[quote]r33 More likely Joan realized she'd never live up to the standards associated with that name.

She does look rather over it all, even as an infant.

Judy Garland was named Frances Ethel for both her parents.

Cybill Shepherd was named after the combination of the names of her grandfather Cy and her father Bill.

It's likely a combination of two key factors:

In most western countries, women take the surnames of their husband after marriage. So, naming a daughter after the mother makes no sense since the mother's birth name was not her "name" either. Mary Smith marries John Jones and becomes Mrs. Mary Jones. She would not be naming her daughter after herself. In turn, the daughter would likely resign her father's name when she married. However, men retained and passed on their name through generations.

Finally, if Mary Jones (née Mary Smith) named her daughter Mary Jones, it wouldn't necessarily be clear that the child was not a bastard and born out of wedlock which used to have extremely negative social connotations until relatively recently.

Neither of these two represented problems for men with male children.

Usually, women aren't narcissistic and pathological like men. Also, consider the many problems. I was friends with a wonderful family who had a tradition of naming the first son in the next generation after the father. They were on the 3rd. One volunteered that their files and records were a mess! Alcoholic and crazy bitch extraordinaire Joan Crawford originally called Christina Joan Crawford Junior, which was very unpopular and brief. She renamed her Christina.

Mothers and daughters sharing first names went out of fashion during the 20th century, it was popular from the middle ages (at least), to the 19th century. For some reason, female "junior" names became unfashionable, and male "junior" names did not.

I wish nobody had ever named their kid after themselves in the history of the world. Not just because of sympathy for kids who don't even get their own first names, but because it can get so damn confusing! I just read a history of the War of the Roses, and goddamit - all the men are named Henry or George, and all the women are named Elizabeth or Anne, for generation after generation. Hell, there was Queen Elizabeth Woodville (known by her maiden name to distinguish her from all the other Elizabeths, her daughter Queen Elizabeth of York, and her granddaughter Elizabeth the First... And then there's Henry VIII marrying three different women named Anne.

We don't want to call them Junior.

R22, I knew a preacher whose name was Kenneth and he named all his children a “Ken” name. Kenya, Kenyatta, Ken Jr., Kende, there might be more, I can’t remember.

I know of ONE family IRL where the daughter has the same name as the mother. In my whole life, knowing so many people, just the one instance.

Agrippina the Elder and her daughter, Aggrippina the Younger are ones I remember.

In my family, a number of the women, me included, have the same middle name, supposedly after a great-great aunt. I thought she looked like a toad and she was nastier than a wolverine.

It was common practice for Catholic girls to be named Maria- or Marie-Something R30. The name referred to Mary the mother of Jesus, not to their own mother.

I beg your pardon.

Hello?

Most women see their daughters as competition so giving them the same name just makes things worse.

The tradition in Norway was to name the first born female after her maternal grandmother and the second after he paternal grandmother.

The first born male was named after his paternal grandfather and the second after his maternal grandfather.

This was not a rule or law, but frequently followed back in the day. Not done any more.

Other scandinavian countries may have had similar tradition.

We have some names in our family that get passed along through the generations. Like Katharine, spelled with an A. There’s also a lot of double-names, which lets you use the initials as a nickname.

When my niece was born, my sister said “You know, for all my problems with Mom, I always thought she had a pretty name.” So she grudgingly gave my niece the same middle name...and now she and our mom have the same initials. (Even though seeing that monogram on her daughter’s stuff drives my sister a little crazy.)

"Most women see their daughters as competition so giving them the same name just makes things worse."

R47 = watches a lot of soap operas

Same in Scotland R48. Don’t know if it’s still done. Probably not.

Trump’s sister MaryAnn is named after their Scottish mom. And there’s Jayne Mansfield junior.

R52, in both cases you mentioned, there are slight variances. The Trump sister's name is spelled differently than the mother's. Jayne Mansfield's daughter is Jayne Marie Mansfield. The original was just Jayne Mansfield. Her birth name was Vera Jayne Palmer.

Big Ethel and little Ethel Merman, because Ethel is the perfect name.

What's worse is naming a girl after the father. I've met a Marvette, and Earline and a Waynetta.

Yep, I'm in Texas.

Nigella in England.

R56 I don't want to disrespect anyone, but Nigella sounds like something that grows in a petrie dish!

As others said, this used to be popular before the 20th century.

Also, consider that in the 20th century, giving your children "exotic" names from outside your own culture wasn't really done, so there were fewer first names to choose from. Even today in some countries in Europe (in Italy, for example), it is really frowned upon to give your children a foreign name.

R18. I also remember reading that

Also, less respect for elders.

Such a tired, tacky practice. Glad no one does it anymore!

I'm always amazed the Queen Mother named her daughter after herself, but I guess she felt she had to give her a name of a British queen regnant (because they have such an obsession with precedent), so that narrowed it down to Elizabeth, Mary, Anne, or Victoria.

I'm baffled in general why people want to give the child the same name as the parent--it is so confusing.

Hey what about me? Lucie Arnez Jr.

Princess Margaret was to be named Ann Margaret but George V hated the name Ann.

[quote]Let's not forget fathers who name their daughters after themselves. Gives us names like Ernestine, Raleign (I actually know one of those), Stanette (knew one of them, too), etc.

My parents have a friend named Ernest who insisted that his twins be named Ernest Jr. and Ernestina. The daughter ended up being called Tina.

r55 see r22

Huell Howser's name is a portmanteau of his parent's names, Harold and Jewell.

R67 cool. Thanks for using "portmanteau". Unfortunately, I needed to talk to a colleague who's a Trump supporter. I used that word and explained its definition. He still accused me of being off my rocker.

In "The Women" (which is on TCM right now!) Mary's daughter is Little Mary.

R17:

Ditto Joan Baez and her mother, "Big Joan" Baez.

A better question would be "what kind of woman would name her daughter after her husband"? An amazing one.

I'm always amazed the Queen Mother named her daughter after herself, but I guess she felt she had to give her a name of a British queen regnant (because they have such an obsession with precedent), so that narrowed it down to Elizabeth, Mary, Anne, or Victoria.

The Queen wasn't born a direct heir to the throne sweetheart. She really was never expected to be queen until her uncle abdicated in 1936. She was born in 1926. Learn your history.

R71, Mr. Ramsey's 1st name is not JonBenet. Why didn't Patsy confess before her death when the female officer asked? Patsy never requested absolvement by a priest or minister instead of risking Hell. After catholic school, I'd sometimes say to my dad he might go to Hell and he'd reply, "If I do, I'l have lots of company." Maybe Patsy felt likewise, but as Detective Smit stated, there's no evidence she killed JonBenet. In the USA, people can't be accused on a belief after a grand jury and the D.A. didn't indict.

The name a monarch is given at birth or is called by family doesn't necessarily have to be the name they rule under. Edward VIII was known as David, George VI as Albert or Bertie, and apparently Prince Charles will be known as George VII

The royal family call me Rotten Old Cunt, but I shall be known as Queen Camilla, queen consort

Princess Diana wanted to name Prince William "Prince Toilet"

True story, but the QEII put her foot down and let her name him after a slang term for penis.

I've never heard a penis called a William. That's Johnson and Dick.

R75 I think QE2 will do her best to live to 150 to ensure Prince Charles never takes the throne. I'm not expert on the monarchy, but I don't believe if he does, that hag Camilla can be crowned HRH or Her Majesty, Queen Camilla. A consort is not Queen. I'll never forget a documentary I saw where QE2 was in a tiff backstage, running around with her handbag on her gloved arm and she was in a jeweled, strapped gown. Her giant boobs were swinging around in that gown and I was like they got that on tape! LOL!

r77

English people call penis "Willie" and also "Peter"

R79 I've heard Peter, which was used by Americans of several generations past. Never heard Willie. A former female coworker who was white trash made a crude joke that included tallywhacker. She laughed at me because I never heard that.

My mother named my eldest sister after herself. Yes, she was very narcissistic.

I knew a woman named Rosamund who named her daughter Rosamund. WASP.

Donald - Donatella

I think I read in a book something along the line of "A woman gives life while a man gives a name" Of course, name here means a family name. And giving life is a French idiom meaning to give birth.

R73. Jiohn Ramsey’s full name is John Bennett Ramsey, which is how Patsy came up with JonBenet.

JonBenet’s middle name was Patricia, I think we know who chose that.

My aunt and cousin were both named Patricia: Pat and Patty, respectively.

Lourdes should have been named Madonka.

I girl who went to school with my daughter was named Shayna, had a father named Shane, a brother also named Shane. Shane, Shane and Shayna. I always wondered if the mother was mentally retarded or secretly beaten by the husband, or both.

Lineage in a patriarchal system makes it less important to name a girl after her mother.

FUCK YOU, EVIL FAGGOTS.

[quote] The Queen wasn't born a direct heir to the throne sweetheart.

Nor did I ever once say that she was.

[quote]She really was never expected to be queen until her uncle abdicated in 1936. She was born in 1926.

As the first of her generation of grandchildren of George V and Mary (and as the eldest child of the second in line to the throne, with the first in line to the throne still unmarried), she had to be named so as for the possibility of inheriting the throne some day. The monarch had to approve her name because, from the moment of her birth, she was third in line for the throne.

So: nice try, hon, but don't put words in other people's mouths next time.

R90, BD is one nasty, evil bitch! I'd say more than Bette Davis eyes are waiting for BDH, but she's going to Hell.

BD Hyman was not named for Bette Davis. Her full name is actually Barbara Davis Hyman. She was named for Bette's younger sister Barbara.

The customs of royalty are pretty irrelevant to this discussion. Royalty are the opposite of “most people.” Their naming customs are extremely complicated and specific.

To answer OP’s question, I think this doesn’t happen as often with mother/daughters as it does with father/sons because traditionally, the family name changes when a woman marries. The name a woman might bequeath to her daughter is not the same full name she was born with; that last name is the mother’s married name, but the daughter’s maiden name. Similarly, the daughter will presumably marry and take her husband’s name, so she won’t even keep the symbolism of a maternal “namesake.” This is why women are ‘t styled as Junior or Senior. It’s presumed that their last name will change so the practice would quickly become confusing and pointless.

[quote] I don't believe if he does, that hag Camilla can be crowned HRH or Her Majesty, Queen Camilla.

Believe what you like. She is already HRH the Duchess of Cornwall, and she can indeed be crowned HM the Queen.

[quote]A consort is not Queen.

Yes, she absolutely is. Elizabeth II's mother, the consort of George VI, was crowned HM Queen Elizabeth, and her grandmother, the consort of George V, was crowned HM Queen Mary, and her great-grandmother, the consiort of Edward VII, was crowned HM Queen Alexandra. Camilla can indeed be corwned HM Queen Camilla, and she almost certainly will be,.

[quote] The customs of royalty are pretty irrelevant to this discussion. Royalty are the opposite of “most people.” Their naming customs are extremely complicated and specific.

No one asked you to be thread monitor, dear.

R62 When QWII was born her parents were only duke/duchess, They didn’t expect her to be queen. But you’re right, the choice of royal names is / limited. I’m mean really, Queen Tiffini? Princess Candi?

Prince Archie?

Nobody expected Elizabeth to inherit the crown when she was born, they expected a bunch of sons to come along and supersede her place in the line. So while she should have been given an old-fashioned name held by previous royals, they weren't limited to naming her after a Queen Regnant. They could have named her Mary, or Anne, or Victoria, Eleanor, Charlotte, Caroline, Maude, Alexandra or Alexandrina, Joan or Jane, or Aethelflaed, for that matter.

R91 = the don't put words in my mouth troll

Quit your bitchin' .......

Not only do I not have parents, I don't even have a real name.

BD HYMAN ?

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

In a way, Madonna did name Lourdes after herself, both names are representative of the Virgin Mary.

[quote] Nobody expected Elizabeth to inherit the crown when she was born, they expected a bunch of sons to come along and supersede her place in the line.

That's not how the British royal family thinks. They have to prepare for every eventuality when each child is born to them in case that the child might inherit the throne. They cannot assume people will have children that have not yet been born.

When Elizabeth II was born, she was third in line to the throne. The Prince of Wales was unmarried and only dating women much older than he was; no one had any idea if her mother, the Duchess of York, would have more children. So they had to give her names that had royal precedent in case she inherited the throne (which indeed turned out to be the case). She was named Elizabeth Alexandra Mary, which are the names of her mother, great-grandmother, and grandmother. She could have used any of the three as a regnal name (she would have been Mary III or Alexandra I).

Princess Margaret was originally supposed to be named (as someone said above) Anne Margaret, but it turned out that King George V did not like the name Anne, so she was named Margaret Rose. Had her sister died before 1948, when Charles was born, she would have inherited the throne. Margaret is a name that has Scottish royal precedent, but Rose is a name that has none; she could have reigned as Queen Margeret I or as Queen Rose, which would have been very unusual for the royal family.

The BRF have to be very careful how they name their children, and they have to consider what happens if (as in Elizabeth II's case) someone further down the line winds up inheriting the crown. When Princess Beatrice was born, she was fifth in line to the throne, and Fergie and Andrew wanted to name her "Annabel" (it was even announced at first that it would be her name). But the queen told them they could name her that because there was no precedent for a Queen Annabel, so she was given the name "Beatrice" which was the name of one of Queen Victoria's daughters--similarly, "Eugenie" is the name of one of Queen Victoria's granddaughters).

The monarch now has to be consulted for the names of anyone in the top six places for the line of succession, and her/his word goes legally. Harry and Meghan's son was born seventh in line of succession, and so they did not have to consult the queen, which is why he has such a trendy name. Had Louis never been both, he would be sixth in line, and he almost certainly would not have been allowed to be named "Archie"--he would have a more traditional name in the royal lineage, like Richard or Alfred.

Harry's son Archie WILL become HRH Prince Archie of Sussex the moment Elizabeth II dies, under current British law. It may be that they change the law, since Harry and Meghan don't seem to want him to have a title, or just that they don't use it; but by current British law, all the grandchildren of the sovereign through male lines are automatically given the title of an HRH Prince or Princess. This is why Beatrice and Eugenie are HRH Princesses, but Anne's children are not. Edward's children are HRH Princess Louise and HRH Prince James, but they don't use those titles per their parents' wishes.

There's that annoying actress from Stan Against Evil whose name is Deborah Baker Jr.

Mary Louise Streep named her eldest daughter Mary Willa Gummer. That old narcissist!

Use of matronymics, on the other hand, is rare. Until the 1900s it was taken as the mark of a bastard, whose father either wasn’t known or had disowned the child.

[quote]r88 Shane, Shane and Shayna. I always wondered if the mother was mentally retarded or secretly beaten by the husband, or both.

Well, Shayna does have a meaning, at least.

It means "beautiful" in Yiddish.

Madonna's mom dying of cancer at thirty years old with six kids is so sad.

R44 It was a catholic tradition to name their children after saints.

Janet, Sr and Janet, Jr