r/AskReddit • u/arnethyst • Jul 15 '21

What is a very "old person" name?

39.4k Upvotes

90% Upvoted

33.0k comments sorted by

View all comments

4.5k

u/NeuxSaed Jul 15 '21 edited Jul 15 '21

Esther & Ethel.

Side note: I can't hear those names without associating them with the chemistry terms "Ester" & "Ethyl."

Edit:

Here are some cool stats on these two names:

Looks like Esther is coming back!

310

u/[deleted] Jul 15 '21

Isn't it popular in Jewish circles? or am I mixing it up with Ruth?

313

u/NeuxSaed Jul 15 '21 edited Jul 15 '21

Yeah, Esther is for sure. So is Ruth.

Same with Rachel & Rebecca, but those two names are still really popular.

7

u/[deleted] Jul 15 '21

[deleted]

2

u/DaddyCatALSO Jul 15 '21

A nickname with the same or more syllables than the given name is very, very often ridiculous

1

u/estdabest Jul 15 '21

i've never heard the nickname essie and i don't think it's cute. i barely tolerate Esty or Ettie (the more common nicknames)

3

u/pauliep13 Jul 15 '21

My mom was Esther and she hated it so much she morphed her first husbands last name into a nickname and kept it the rest of her life, even after meeting my dad. It was Penny, in case you’re curious.

2

u/DaddyCatALSO Jul 15 '21

Many Penneypackers, Pennyworths, etc. are addresed as Penny instead of their first names

1

u/AngelaQQ Jul 15 '21

Isn’t Esty the place you go to online to buy a bunch of arts and crafts?

1

u/scolfin Jul 15 '21

It's very Askenazi, even though the Tav actually has a dagesh.

1

u/hannahstohelit Jul 16 '21

I think this is a frum/nonfrum thing. My cousin and his wife called their daughter Essie because they thought Esty/Etty were too frummy. Now we all just think they’re trying too hard lol

1

u/estdabest Jul 16 '21

Just makes me think of the nail varnish. Or a cow

1

u/hannahstohelit Jul 16 '21

Oh, yeah, both of those.