Rocket (Eruca sativa)

It’s a Girl: Flowers Climb the Baby Name Lists

As proud gardeners, we are thrilled to announce the arrival of flower names as a fresh trend on the best baby name lists. 

While Lily, Rose, and Daisy have been perennial list favorites, Violet has just cracked the top five on Nameberry.

What’s behind the trend? Celebrities, for starters. When Gwyneth named baby Apple a dozen years ago, some scratched their heads. Fast forward to 2012, and Blue Ivy Carter (Beyoncé’s first) sounded just right.

Petunia
Petunia sp.

Media has played a role, too. Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling surely knew her flowers: Harry’s mother was named Lily and his aunt, Petunia—and support characters that pop up are named Pansy, Lavender, and Poppy. And then there was Downton Abbey, with its worldwide audience that sighed with happiness when Lady Edith named the baby Marigold.

Speaking of England, behind today’s trend is an even earlier, Victorian-era trend rooted in the language of flowers. This is a topic near and dear to the Garden’s heart, as an amazing gift of 400 books related to the Language of Flowers was donated to the Lenhardt Library in 2015. 

The new exhibition at the Lenhardt Library, Language of Flowers: Floral Art and Poetry, is a great opportunity to examine some of the rarest of those volumes—we’re especially enamored of the 1852 Lexicon of Ladies’ Names, with their Floral Emblems. Modern books are out on one of the library tables for you to browse, too—and that’s where you’ll find these beautiful names for girls (and boys) and their language of flowers meanings.

See Language of Flowers: Floral Art and Poetry at the Lenhardt Library through August 7, 2016.

Angelica (Angelica gigas)
Angelica gigas

Angelica: Inspiration

Apple (Malus 'Adams')
Malus ‘Adams’

Apple: Temptation

Virginia bluebells (Mertensia virginica)
Mertensia virginica

Bluebell: Constancy

Daisy (Leucanthemum x superbum ('Darling Daisy')
Leucanthemum × superbum (‘Darling Daisy’)

Daisy: Innocence

China rose (Hibiscus 'Mrs. Jimmy Spangler')
Hibiscus ‘Mrs. Jimmy Spangler’

Hibiscus: Beauty always new

Holly (Ilex aquifolium 'Monvila') GOLD COAST™
Ilex aquifolium ‘Monvila’ Gold Coast™

Holly: Foresight

Hyacinth (Hyacinthus orientalis)
Hyacinthus orientalis

Hyacinth: Sport, game, play

Iris (Iris 'Superstition')
Iris ‘Superstition’

Iris: Message

Ivy (Parthenocissius)
Parthenocissus

Ivy: Fidelity, marriage

Jasmine (Jasminum polyanthemum)
Jasminum polyanthum

Jasmine: Amiability

Laurel (Laurus nobilis)
Laurus nobilis

Laurel: Glory

Lavender (Lavendula)
Lavendula

Lavender: Distrust

Lily (Lilium 'Acapulco')
Lilium ‘Acapulco’

Lily: Majesty

Marigold (Tagetes patula 'Janie Deep Orange')
Tagetes patula ‘Janie Deep Orange’

Marigold: Grief

Pansy (Viola x wittrockiana 'Matrix')
Viola × wittrockiana ‘Matrix’

Pansy: Thoughts

Pinks (Dianthus hybrida 'Valda Louise')
Dianthus hybrida ‘Valda Louise’

Pinks: Boldness

Poppy (Papaver sp.)
Papaver sp.

Poppy: Consolation

Rose (Rosa 'Medallion')
Rosa ‘Medallion’

Rose: Love

African violets (Saintpaulia ionantha)
Saintpaulia ionantha

Violet: Faithfulness

 

Don’t like the idea of an associated flower meaning? You can always choose Flora, Fleur, or Blossom. Or just stick with Sweet Pea as a nickname, because, girl or boy, what baby isn’t a “delicate pleasure”?

Rocket (Eruca sativa)
Rocket (Eruca sativa) by Alvesgaspar [CC BY-SA 3.0 or GFDL], via Wikimedia Commons

What About the Boys?

Sweet William (Dianthus barbatus) meant “gallantry” and Rocket (Eruca sativa) connoted “rivalry” in the language of flowers, but names for boys are few in the world of blooms. Expand into the wider world of plants and a few more names emerge: Sage, Forest, Ash, Bay, Glen.

What other nature-related names for boys can you think of?


©2016 Chicago Botanic Garden and my.chicagobotanic.org

Published by

Karen Z.

Karen Zaworski is a writer who likes to use as few words as possible, a photographer who still works with black-and-white film and a darkroom, and a gardener who actually likes to weed.

2 thoughts on “It’s a Girl: Flowers Climb the Baby Name Lists”

    1. Adorable additions to the list–and isn’t Basil one of the most sophisticated names of all time!

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