[name_u]Allison[/name_u] isn’t what most people would call a “popular” name the way [name_f]Sophia[/name_f], [name_f]Olivia[/name_f] ect. are. However, since 1985, [name_u]Allison[/name_u] has been in the Top 50 but never becoming more popular than #30. [name_u]Allison[/name_u] has been in the top 100 since 1974, and is most often found in the 60s-40s, but lately has been in the low 40s and 30s. And that’s not even counting the other spellings of [name_f]Alison[/name_f]/[name_f]Alyson[/name_f]/[name_f]Allyson[/name_f]/[name_f]Allisson[/name_f]/[name_f]Allysson[/name_f]/Alysson (and I guess you could count [name_u]Ellison[/name_u] too if you really wanted to). Personally, I don’t think it has such a great sound, it’s most attractive quality is the nn [name_u]Allie[/name_u]/[name_f]Ally[/name_f]. What makes [name_u]Allison[/name_u] such a great name? [name_m]How[/name_m] has it lasted so long?
It’s funny - I always think of girls’ names like [name_u]Emerson[/name_u] and [name_u]Addison[/name_u] as being very “modern” but somehow I’d forgotten about [name_u]Allison[/name_u] as a -son name (which has been around for ages)!
I’m not sure why it’s so popular - perhaps it’s the combination of a soft beginning and a stronger-sounding end? Perhaps this is the appeal of [name_u]Emerson[/name_u], etc.?
I don’t like [name_u]Allison[/name_u] but I [name_f]LOVE[/name_f] [name_f]Ally[/name_f] and have for a long time.
It’s lasted longer than you think–I have a book on [name_m]Chaucer[/name_m] in which [name_m]Geoffrey[/name_m] [name_m]Chaucer[/name_m] (author of Canterbury Tales) references [name_u]Allison[/name_u] and a few others as names common among the lower classes (or something to that effect).
@rkrd Wow that’s a lot longer than I thought! I knew it had been around a long time (and was originally a boys name), but I never thought it would be that old!
@banomi Maybe that’s how it has managed to still be current. Not everyone wants to name their kids [name_u]Addison[/name_u] or [name_u]Emerson[/name_u], and [name_u]Allison[/name_u] seems like a good alternative.