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First Names Only Used in the USA

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    #51
    Originally posted by Third rate Leszno View Post

    I know a female Lorn and a male Lorne - both of Scots heritage. Maybe some links to Canada there though?
    If neither of them has the nickname "sausage" then you've all gone wrong.

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      #52
      Originally posted by Hot Pepsi View Post
      Charles is sometimes shortened to Chaz. That's probably unique to the US.
      My grandad was a Chas (pronounced the same way) short for Charles, he also was Charlie.

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        #53
        Oh, Cindy. I was amazed to meet a real person called Cindy at university.

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          #54
          There are judges named Cindy here. It lacks a kind of gravitas somehow.

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            #55
            My uncle had five girls. He said he wanted to make sure they each had a name that would be respectable when they became president of US Steel. None of them are on track for that, but they are Deborah (Debbie), Karen, Juliette (Julie), Rachel and Laura. I think he succeeded.


            Cindy is usually short for Cynthia, isn’t it?

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              #56
              Not always. Or if it is it's infrequently used

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                #57
                Originally posted by Toby Gymshorts View Post

                If neither of them has the nickname "sausage" then you've all gone wrong.
                At the risk of descending into Carry On territory, the former was very much partial to one.

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                  #58
                  It was only when I googled the Branch Rickey Award that I discovered Branch Rickey was a person.

                  So, Branch for this thread.

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                    #59
                    Mackenzie

                    I thought the bloke who was on The Office was an exception that proved the rule, but I've just looked him up and it turns out that Mackenzie Crook is actually his stage name, and he's called Paul.

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                      #60
                      A lot of originally US-only first names presumably get adopted in the UK eventually due to the drift of popular culture eastwards over the Atlantic.

                      Anyway, I'll go with "Kent".

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                        #61
                        Originally posted by Amor de Cosmos View Post

                        Blair also seems mainly Canadian
                        I know two Blairs, both born locally.

                        Has no-one brought up Clyde yet?

                        And what about differences in pronunciation? Maurice as "More-RHYS" and Craig to rhyme with Greg seem to be uniquely USian.

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                          #62
                          Originally posted by gjt View Post
                          The US goes big on dynastic suffixes (like Jr., III, etc,), and derived from John Q. Citizen III is Trip or Trey.
                          I did not know this.

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                            #63
                            Is there a reason why some surnames catch on as given names, but not others?

                            For example, those based on occupations like Carter, Cooper, Hunter, Tyler seem quite common (although I haven't come across a Butcher). Perhaps the rhythm of two syllables appeals, as opposed to Smith or Jones.

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                              #64
                              Madison as a female first name seems very US to me but, as EEG says, they do spread.

                              I knew a Cindy in the West Midlands in the '80s but don't know whether it was shortened from something else. I can't think of any Sindys with an S, apart from the doll.

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                                #65

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                                  #66
                                  I love that he's got Nancy Banks-Smith in there. I can't imagine Sam Wollaston or Lucy Mangan making it into many televised comedy routines, even on BBC2.

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                                    #67
                                    haha, love that ad hoc, thanks for sharing!

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                                      #68
                                      Booker. Usually after Booker T. Washington, I presume.

                                      Melvin?

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                                        #69
                                        Originally posted by Evariste Euler Gauss View Post
                                        haha, love that ad hoc, thanks for sharing!
                                        I think Alexei Sayle is a national treasure.

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                                          #70
                                          My wife's name is Marcy, short for Marcia. Among my other female American friends are Jerri, Jenelle, Cyndee and Nicolette.

                                          A lot of these are contractions, aren't they? Hank is Henry, Zeke is Ezekiel, Randy is Randolph, Abe is Abraham, Jeb is Jebediah, Chet is Chester. So quite a few from the Old Testament, I guess.

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                                            #71
                                            Originally posted by caja-dglh View Post
                                            Jayden. Brayden. Kayden. Payton. Cooper. Dashiel.
                                            I regret to inform you that there are now many little children called Jayden, Brayden and Cooper in the UK.

                                            You can check exactly how many here: https://names.darkgreener.com/

                                            Jayden peaked at 2,567 boys given that name in 2010 which means most primary schools currently have at least one.

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                                              #72
                                              Originally posted by Bordeaux Education View Post

                                              Yeah, we had a Chas playing for Bath City and I remember a few at school.



                                              Indeed, I have all three often at schools in a myriad of different spellings.

                                              Hank
                                              Abe
                                              Moses
                                              Dwayne (we have Wayne)
                                              Clint (although we have one or two Clintons)
                                              Tex (although I am not sure that anyone is actually christened that)
                                              Kurt (although it is shared with any German-speaking country)
                                              Beau/Bo
                                              Roscoe
                                              Jesse (male)
                                              Cletus
                                              Jefferson
                                              Chad
                                              Dale
                                              Clay

                                              Yes I have gone through the Dukes of Hazzard cast list and NASCAR drivers' list
                                              I had a cousin called Dale though he sadly died from cot death.

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                                                #73
                                                A former colleague of mine has a son named Chadd.

                                                Which must make him nice and inconspicuous in the tiny Cumbrian hamlet where they live.

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                                                  #74
                                                  Originally posted by ad hoc View Post
                                                  Mackenzie

                                                  I thought the bloke who was on The Office was an exception that proved the rule, but I've just looked him up and it turns out that Mackenzie Crook is actually his stage name, and he's called Paul.
                                                  There was a Mackenzie (girl) born from my NCT group, but her parents were South African and then emigrated to Australia.

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                                                    #75
                                                    Originally posted by Benjm View Post
                                                    Madison as a female first name seems very US to me but, as EEG says, they do spread.

                                                    I knew a Cindy in the West Midlands in the '80s but don't know whether it was shortened from something else. I can't think of any Sindys with an S, apart from the doll.
                                                    I know at least two Madison / Maddison's in the UK. One is a teenager, the other a six month old baby, both female.

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