akirlu | Would Smell as Sweet? (Reply)

Oddball thing just occurred to me: given the raft of Berties and Robbies and Bobbies and such, does there seem to be anyone whose parents had them baptized "Roberta" who actually likes her own name enough to use it? I mean, yes, you get lots of Lizzies, and Lizes, and Beths, and you used to get Elizas and Bettys and Libbys, too, but for each of them you also have a plain, forthright Elizabeth. That does not seem to be the case with Robertas, that I've noticed. But at least parents seem to have picked up on that. The Social Security Administration's popular names widget suggests that the name peaked in popularity in the thirties and forties and has been losing ground ever since, and, in recent years, has been dropping like a stone. From well into the top 100 to barely in the top 1000.