I’ve been thinking about lesbian and bisexual namesakes. (I’m not expecting; I’m just collecting names out of interest.) I already love [name_f]Sappho[/name_f] and [name_f]Frida[/name_f] (after [name_f]Frida[/name_f] [name_u]Kahlo[/name_u]). I would welcome any more suggestions of inspirational lesbian or bisexual women as namesakes. They can be historical, contemporary or even fictional.
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I was going to share one, but @Luminen introduced the name to me, so I’ll let her do the honors.
[name_f]Emily[/name_f] and [name_f]Grace[/name_f]
Summary
On the TV series, [name_m]Murdoch[/name_m] Mysteries, one of the characters is named [name_f]Emily[/name_f] [name_f]Grace[/name_f]. As the show takes place around 1900 in Toronto, [name_f]Canada[/name_f], she starts her time on the show trying to follow the conventions of the day. As her time on the show progresses, we see her grow more comfortable in her skin and move into a lesbian relationship, all while fighting for women’s rights alongside famous women’s rights activists of the day and working as the city coroner. She was only on the show from the start of season 5 through the 3 episode of season 9
I hope I didn’t give too much away about both the show and the character.
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Tessa
[name_f]Janelle[/name_f]
Persimmon
[name_u]Jodie[/name_u]
[name_f]Melissa[/name_f]
[name_f]Ellen[/name_f]
[name_f]Portia[/name_f]
[name_f]Rosie[/name_f]
[name_f]Kehlani[/name_f]
[name_u]Tegan[/name_u]
[name_f]Sara[/name_f]
[name_f]Clea[/name_f]
[name_f]Berenice[/name_f]
[name_f]Tove[/name_f]
[name_f]Katrina[/name_f]
[name_f]Dodie[/name_f]
[name_f]Bethany[/name_f]
[name_f]Paula[/name_f]
Netalie
[name_f]Eilish[/name_f]
[name_u]Fortune[/name_u]
[name_f]Jane[/name_f]
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That’ll be my beloved [name_f]Tove[/name_f], after Tove [name_m]Jansson[/name_m], a Finnish-Swedish writer and artist.
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Oh, and you might find a few more here, even though it’s not just bisexual & lesbian women:
//edit to add the list I posted there:
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I’m better with fictional but here’s a mix of both
Clarke
[name_f]Lexa[/name_f]
[name_f]Valkyrie[/name_f]
[name_f]Prudence[/name_f]
[name_f]Dorcas[/name_f]
[name_f]Agatha[/name_f]
[name_f]Zelda[/name_f]
[name_u]Marie[/name_u]
[name_f]Cara[/name_f]
[name_f]Cheryl[/name_f]
[name_f]Tara[/name_f]
[name_u]Willow[/name_u]
[name_u]Charlie[/name_u]
[name_u]Rue[/name_u]
[name_u]Toni[/name_u]
[name_u]Robin[/name_u]
[name_f]Eleanor[/name_f]
[name_m]Vanya[/name_m]
[name_f]Adelaide[/name_f]
[name_f]Rosa[/name_f]
[name_u]Harley[/name_u]
[name_u]Ruby[/name_u]
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Oooh this is my kind of thread!
I’ll need a few minutes to draft a list.
Very very historical sapphic names:
[name_f]Ann[/name_f]/ [name_u]Anne[/name_u] (for [name_u]Anne[/name_u] Lister and [name_f]Ann[/name_f] [name_u]Walker[/name_u])
[name_f]Christina[/name_f] ([name_f]Queen[/name_f] [name_f]Christina[/name_f] of [name_u]Sweden[/name_u])
[name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] (here for [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] [name_m]Butler[/name_m], one of the Ladies of Llangollen, but could also be for [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] [name_m]Roosevelt[/name_m])
[name_f]Hannah[/name_f] ([name_f]Hannah[/name_f] Snell, British naval officer and scoundrel)
[name_f]Isabella[/name_f] ([name_f]Isabella[/name_f], [name_f]Princess[/name_f] of [name_u]Palmer[/name_u])
[name_u]Julie[/name_u] ([name_u]Julie[/name_u] d’Aubigny, total badass who broke her lover out of a convent!)
[name_u]Maria[/name_u] (Archduchess [name_u]Maria[/name_u] [name_f]Christina[/name_f])
[name_f]Sarah[/name_f] ([name_f]Sarah[/name_f] Posonby, the other [name_f]Lady[/name_f] of Llangollen)
Historical through mid century sapphic names:
[name_f]Alla[/name_f] (silent film actress [name_f]Alla[/name_f] Nazimova)
A’[name_f]Lelia[/name_f] ([name_u]Harlem[/name_u] Renaissance socialite A’[name_f]Lelia[/name_f] [name_u]Walker[/name_u])
[name_f]Alice[/name_f]- (poet [name_f]Alice[/name_f] [name_m]Dunbar[/name_m]-[name_m]Nelson[/name_m])
[name_f]Audre[/name_f]- (author and activist [name_f]Audre[/name_f] Lorde)
[name_f]Babe[/name_f]/ [name_f]Barbara[/name_f] (althlete [name_f]Babe[/name_f] Didrickson, Ceciline “[name_f]Babe[/name_f]” [name_m]Franklin[/name_m], lawyer [name_f]Barbara[/name_f] [name_u]Jordan[/name_u], activist [name_f]Barbara[/name_f] Gittings)
[name_f]Bessie[/name_f] (blues singer [name_f]Bessie[/name_f] [name_m]Smith[/name_m])
[name_f]Betty[/name_f] (golfer [name_f]Betty[/name_f] Dodd)
[name_u]Billie[/name_u] (or [name_f]Eleanora[/name_f], for [name_u]Billie[/name_u] [name_f]Holiday[/name_f])
Ceciline (Ceciline “[name_f]Babe[/name_f]” [name_m]Franklin[/name_m])
[name_f]Dolly[/name_f]/ [name_f]Dolores[/name_f] ([name_f]Dolly[/name_f] [name_u]Wilde[/name_u], [name_m]Oscar[/name_m] [name_u]Wilde[/name_u]'s niece, romantically connected to many of the other women on this list, actress [name_f]Dolores[/name_f] del [name_u]Rio[/name_u])
[name_u]Dusty[/name_u] (singer [name_u]Dusty[/name_u] Springfield)
[name_f]Emily[/name_f] ([name_f]Emily[/name_f] [name_m]Dickinson[/name_m])
[name_f]Gladys[/name_f] (blues singer [name_f]Gladys[/name_f] [name_u]Bentley[/name_u])
[name_f]Georgette[/name_f] (opera singer [name_f]Georgette[/name_f] Leblanc)
[name_f]Gertrude[/name_f] (blues icon Ma [name_f]Rainey[/name_f])
[name_f]Florence[/name_f] ([name_f]Florence[/name_f] [name_u]Nightingale[/name_u])
[name_f]Greta[/name_f] (actress [name_f]Greta[/name_f] [name_f]Garbo[/name_f])
[name_f]Jane[/name_f] (for suffragette [name_f]Jane[/name_f] Addams)
[name_f]Josephine[/name_f] (entertainer and activist [name_f]Josephine[/name_f] [name_u]Baker[/name_u])
[name_f]Lorraine[/name_f] ([name_f]Lorraine[/name_f] Hansberry, author of A Raisin in the [name_f]Sun[/name_f])
[name_f]Lorena[/name_f] ([name_f]Lorena[/name_f] Hickok, journalist and [name_f]Eleanor[/name_f] [name_m]Roosevelt[/name_m]'s romantic partner)
[name_f]Margaret[/name_f]/ [name_f]Marguerite[/name_f] (anthropologist/academic [name_f]Margaret[/name_f] [name_u]Mead[/name_u], [name_u]Doctor[/name_u] [name_f]Margaret[/name_f] [name_m]Todd[/name_m], poet [name_f]Marguerite[/name_f] [name_u]Antonia[/name_u] [name_m]Radclyffe[/name_m] [name_m]Hall[/name_m].)
[name_u]Marion[/name_u] (power boat racer [name_u]Marion[/name_u] [name_f]Barbara[/name_f] “[name_m]Joe[/name_m]” Carstairs)
[name_f]Marlene[/name_f] ([name_f]Marlene[/name_f] [name_m]Dietrich[/name_m])
[name_f]Mary[/name_f] (socialite [name_f]Mary[/name_f] [name_m]Benson[/name_m], her daughter [name_f]Nellie[/name_f] was also a sapphic woman)
[name_f]Mercedes[/name_f] (for poet and author [name_f]Mercedes[/name_f] de Acosta)
[name_f]Natalie[/name_f] (playwright [name_f]Natalie[/name_f] [name_m]Clifford[/name_m] [name_m]Barney[/name_m])
[name_f]Patricia[/name_f] (author [name_f]Patricia[/name_f] Highsmith)
[name_f]Rhoda[/name_f] (anthropologist [name_f]Rhoda[/name_f] Metraux)
[name_f]Rita[/name_f] (author and activist [name_f]Rita[/name_f] [name_f]Mae[/name_f] [name_m]Brown[/name_m])
[name_f]Roberta[/name_f] (racer and fighter pilot [name_f]Roberta[/name_f] Cowell)
[name_f]Ruth[/name_f] (professor [name_f]Ruth[/name_f] [name_m]Benedict[/name_m], activist [name_f]Ruth[/name_f] [name_u]Ellis[/name_u])
[name_f]Sara[/name_f] (physician [name_f]Sara[/name_f] [name_f]Josephine[/name_f] [name_u]Baker[/name_u], not to be confused with [name_f]Josephine[/name_f] [name_u]Baker[/name_u], responsible for tracking down Typhoid [name_f]Mary[/name_f])
[name_f]Sophia[/name_f] ([name_u]Doctor[/name_u] [name_f]Sophia[/name_f] [name_m]Jex[/name_m] [name_u]Blake[/name_u])
Stormé/ [name_f]Storme[/name_f]/ [name_u]Storm[/name_u]/ [name_f]Stormy[/name_f] (Stormé DeLarverie, entertainer and activist credited with starting the [name_m]Stonewall[/name_m] rebellion)
[name_f]Sylvia[/name_f] ([name_f]Sylvia[/name_f] Rivera)
[name_f]Tallulah[/name_f] (actress [name_f]Tallulah[/name_f] Bankhead)
[name_f]Tamara[/name_f] (ballerina [name_f]Tamara[/name_f] Karsavina)
[name_f]Virginia[/name_f] (for [name_f]Virginia[/name_f] [name_m]Woolf[/name_m])
[name_f]Violet[/name_f] ([name_f]Violet[/name_f] Trefusis, author, Socialite, and later lover of [name_f]Vita[/name_f] Sackville-[name_u]West[/name_u].)
[name_f]Vita[/name_f] ([name_f]Vita[/name_f] Sackville-[name_u]West[/name_u], poet, garden designer, and at one point a lover of [name_f]Virginia[/name_f] [name_m]Woolf[/name_m]'s and was the inspiration for her character [name_m]Orlando[/name_m])
[name_f]Una[/name_f] ([name_f]Lady[/name_f] [name_f]Una[/name_f] Toubridge, artist and partner of the famous lesbian poet [name_m]Radclyffe[/name_m] [name_m]Hall[/name_m])
There are too many modern sapphic icons for me to list honestly but some noteworthy ones include:
[name_f]Alia[/name_f] (actress/comedian [name_f]Alia[/name_f] Shawkat)
[name_f]Alicia[/name_f] ([name_f]Alicia[/name_f] Garza, activist and blm cofounder)
[name_f]Beatrice[/name_f] (singer [name_f]Beatrice[/name_f] [name_m]Martin[/name_m] [stage name Coeur de [name_u]Pirate[/name_u]], Swedish musician [name_f]Beatrice[/name_f] [name_u]Eli[/name_u])
[name_f]Beth[/name_f] (or [name_f]Mary[/name_f]/ [name_f]Mary[/name_f] [name_f]Beth[/name_f], for musician [name_f]Beth[/name_f] Ditto)
[name_f]Brandi[/name_f]/ [name_f]Brandy[/name_f] (country/folk/rock singers [name_f]Brandi[/name_f] Carlile and [name_f]Brandy[/name_f] [name_m]Clark[/name_m])
[name_f]Brenda[/name_f] ([name_f]Brenda[/name_f] Fassie, anti apartheid singer)
[name_f]Carrie[/name_f] ([name_f]Carrie[/name_f] Brownstein of Sleater Kinney and Portlandia fame)
Clairo/ [name_f]Claire[/name_f] (singer-songwriter Clairo [Claire [name_f]Elizabeth[/name_f] Cottrell])
[name_f]Dodie[/name_f]/ [name_f]Dorothy[/name_f] (singer [name_f]Dodie[/name_f] [Dorothy [name_f]Miranda[/name_f] [name_m]Clark[/name_m]])
[name_u]Drew[/name_u] ([name_u]Drew[/name_u] Barrymore)
[name_u]Evan[/name_u] ([name_u]Evan[/name_u] [name_f]Rachel[/name_f] [name_m]Wood[/name_m])
[name_f]Hafsa[/name_f] (bi muslim activist [name_f]Hafsa[/name_f] Qureshi)
[name_u]Halsey[/name_u] ([or Ashley] for singer [name_u]Halsey[/name_u])
[name_f]Hayley[/name_f]/ [name_u]Haley[/name_u]/ [name_f]Hailey[/name_f] ([name_f]Hayley[/name_f] Kiyoko)
[name_f]Janelle[/name_f] (singer [name_f]Janelle[/name_f] [name_f]Monae[/name_f])
[name_f]Jessica[/name_f] (YouTube content creator and queer and disability activist [name_f]Jessica[/name_f] Kellgren-Fozard)
Katorah (rapper [name_m]Young[/name_m] M.A)
[name_f]Kristen[/name_f]/ [name_f]Kristin[/name_f] ([name_f]Kristen[/name_f] [name_m]Stewart[/name_m], [name_f]Kristin[/name_f] Ogata)
[name_f]Laura[/name_f]/ [name_f]Lauren[/name_f] (too many to list, but punk musicians [name_f]Laura[/name_f] [name_f]Jane[/name_f] [name_f]Grace[/name_f] and [name_f]Lauren[/name_f] Denitzio [non binary and sapphic identifying] come to mind, as well as arachnologist [name_f]Lauren[/name_f] Esposito, the only woman expert on scorpions in the world)
[name_f]Lea[/name_f] ([name_f]Lea[/name_f] DeLaria)
[name_u]Lynn[/name_u] (singer [name_u]Lynn[/name_u] [name_m]Gunn[/name_m] of PVRIS)
[name_f]Magdalen[/name_f] (singer-songwriter [name_f]Magdalen[/name_f] Hsu-[name_u]Li[/name_u])
[name_u]Marie[/name_u] (singer [name_u]Marie[/name_u] Ulven aka girl in red)
[name_f]Melissa[/name_f] ([name_f]Melissa[/name_f] [name_m]Etheridge[/name_m])
[name_f]Mikaela[/name_f]/ [name_f]Michaela[/name_f] ([name_m]King[/name_m] [name_f]Princess[/name_f])
[name_f]Phoebe[/name_f] (musician [name_f]Phoebe[/name_f] Bridgers)
[name_f]Rochelle[/name_f] (biologist [name_f]Rochelle[/name_f] [name_u]Diamond[/name_u])
[name_u]Romy[/name_u] (singer [name_u]Romy[/name_u] [name_f]Madley[/name_f] Croft)
[name_f]Samira[/name_f] ([name_f]Samira[/name_f] [name_u]Wiley[/name_u])
Sanisha (bi activist Sanisha [name_u]Wynter[/name_u])
[name_f]Tessa[/name_f] ([name_f]Tessa[/name_f] [name_m]Thompson[/name_m])
[name_u]Tegan[/name_u] ([name_u]Tegan[/name_u] [name_u]Quin[/name_u] of [name_u]Tegan[/name_u] and [name_f]Sara[/name_f])
[name_f]Vanessa[/name_f] ([name_f]Vanessa[/name_f] [name_m]Carlton[/name_m])
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As usual my, “I need a few minutes to draft my list” actually meant, “I need 4+ hours to remember as many names as possible that fit the criteria.” 
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Love [name_f]Audre[/name_f] Lorde!!
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Charlotte and [name_f]Cordelia[/name_f] are the lesbian couple from falsettos!!
And [name_f]Maureen[/name_f] and [name_f]Joanne[/name_f] from RENT!
[name_f]Alyssa[/name_f] and [name_f]Emma[/name_f] from the prom!
[name_f]Alison[/name_f] from fun home!
and i think that concludes my little musical theatre list
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Thanks so much for all your ideas, everyone! Especially @brittanyanitarose. I really appreciate it. Lots of women have been mentioned who did not even know were bisexual/lesbian.
In the fiction front, I also thought of [name_f]Korra[/name_f] and [name_f]Asami[/name_f] from The [name_u]Legend[/name_u] of [name_f]Korra[/name_f]. (There’s also [name_f]Adora[/name_f]/She-[name_m]Ra[/name_m] and Catra from the new She-[name_m]Ra[/name_m], but those names seem less usable.)
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The only one I can think of that I don’t think has been mentioned already is [name_f]Sally[/name_f] after [name_f]Sally[/name_f] Ride ([name_f]Sally[/name_f] was her legal name, not a nickname).
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Most people don’t know she was queer, but [name_f]Emily[/name_f] after [name_f]Emily[/name_f] [name_m]Dickinson[/name_m]. She wrote some really gorgeous gay love letters.
[name_f]Adora[/name_f] from She-[name_m]Ra[/name_m] and the princesses of power
[name_u]Ashley[/name_u] - [name_u]Halsey[/name_u]’s real name
[name_u]Billie[/name_u], or [name_f]Holiday[/name_f] - [name_u]Billie[/name_u] [name_f]Holiday[/name_f], duh
[name_u]Anne[/name_u] - after [name_u]Anne[/name_u] [name_m]Frank[/name_m]
[name_f]Alla[/name_f] - after actress [name_f]Alla[/name_f] Nazimoza
[name_f]Ruth[/name_f] - after [name_f]Ruth[/name_f] [name_u]Ellis[/name_u]
[name_f]Rachel[/name_f], or [name_u]Carson[/name_u] -After [name_f]Rachel[/name_f] [name_u]Carson[/name_u]
[name_u]Tracy[/name_u] - after [name_u]Tracy[/name_u] Chapman
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