I’m writing a book set in [name]Tennessee[/name] and [name]Alabama[/name] in the 1930s and need names for both boy and girl characters. Does anyone have any ideas?
Well, I’m from the South and my grandparents were born in the 20s and 30s, so I can share a lot of the names from them, their parents, and their friends!
Girls:
[name]Betty[/name]
[name]Mary[/name]
[name]Frances[/name]
[name]Maureen[/name]
[name]Nadine[/name]
[name]Beatrice[/name]
[name]Mattie[/name]
[name]Nita[/name]
[name]Edie[/name]/[name]Edith[/name]
[name]Anne[/name]
[name]Vivian[/name]
[name]Evelyn[/name]
[name]Marjorie[/name]
Marjanne
[name]Gloria[/name]
[name]Grace[/name]
[name]Madeline[/name]
[name]Juanita[/name]
[name]Ruth[/name]
[name]Elsie[/name]
[name]Judy[/name]
[name]Jessie[/name]
[name]Alice[/name]
[name]Gaye[/name]
[name]Susanne[/name]
[name]Annie[/name]
[name]Martha[/name]
Vista
[name]Jane[/name]
Boys
[name]Tommy[/name]/[name]Thomas[/name]
[name]Jim[/name]/[name]James[/name]
[name]Bill[/name]/[name]Billy[/name]/[name]William[/name]
[name]Phillip[/name]
[name]Ralph[/name]
[name]Jerome[/name]
[name]Don[/name]/[name]Donald[/name]
[name]Otha[/name]
[name]Albert[/name]
[name]Fred[/name]
[name]Jesse[/name]
[name]Howard[/name]
[name]Leonard[/name]
[name]Laurence[/name]
[name]Gilbert[/name]
[name]Edgar[/name]
My grandparents are from [name]West[/name] [name]Virginia[/name] and were both born in the early 30’s… here are their names and their siblings’, as well:
[name]Betty[/name]
[name]Dolores[/name]
[name]Geraldine[/name]
[name]Shelba[/name]
[name]Vera[/name]
[name]Charles[/name]
[name]Eugene[/name]
[name]Jack[/name]
[name]Jennings[/name]
I don’t have family in the south (most southern would be Maryland), but here are some names in the family of people born around that time frame:
[name]Barbara[/name]
[name]Betty[/name]
[name]Curtis[/name]
[name]Louis[/name]
[name]Ronald[/name]
[name]Patricia[/name]
[name]Willard[/name]
[name]Virginia[/name]
[name]James[/name]
[name]Howard[/name]
[name]Thelma[/name]
[name]Marilyn[/name]
[name]Shirley[/name]
[name]Mary[/name]
[name]Walt[/name]
[name]Emily[/name]
[name]Thomas[/name]
Gone With the Wind Names:
[name]Scarlett[/name]
Careen
[name]Suellen[/name]
[name]Ellen[/name]
[name]Gerald[/name]
[name]Charles[/name]
[name]Rhett[/name]
[name]Melanie[/name]
[name]Ashley[/name]
[name]Boyd[/name]
[name]Brent[/name]
[name]Stuart[/name]
[name]India[/name]
[name]Sally[/name]
[name]Cathleen[/name]
[name]Henry[/name]
[name]Nathan[/name]
[name]Dallas[/name]
[name]Levi[/name]
[name]Ella[/name] [name]Lorena[/name]
[name]Wade[/name]
[name]William[/name]
just some of the more memorable names…
Southern girl here and proud of it! From our family tree in that time frame-
[name]Ari[/name] [name]Leona[/name] ([name]Ari[/name] [name]Lee[/name])
[name]Lily[/name] [name]Beatrice[/name] (bee-at-triss) -[name]Lily[/name] [name]Bee[/name]
Anolia ([name]Nolie[/name])
[name]Vera[/name]
Gettie [name]Mae[/name]
([name]Mary[/name] [name]Louise[/name])
[name]Eva[/name] [name]Maude[/name]
[name]Dorothy[/name] [name]Ann[/name]
[name]Jeannie[/name]
[name]Charla[/name] [name]Lee[/name]
[name]Grace[/name] [name]Rebecca[/name]
[name]Doris[/name] [name]Patricia[/name]
[name]Glenda[/name] [name]Bess[/name]
[name]Sue[/name] [name]Lorraine[/name]
[name]Warren[/name] Gainer
[name]Albert[/name] [name]Ray[/name]
[name]Gus[/name] [name]Lamar[/name]
[name]Robert[/name] [name]Buck[/name] (R.B.)
[name]Howard[/name] [name]Martin[/name]
[name]Bryant[/name] [name]Ray[/name]
[name]Basil[/name] Kilby (B.K.)
[name]Palmer[/name] [name]David[/name]
Check out the SSA popularity lists from that time period. The names in TN and [name]AL[/name] during that time were pretty much the same as everywhere else. Please do not give all of your characters corny double names.
If it helps, here are the names of my great-grandparents and some of their siblings (they were born in the 10s and 20s). We’re from [name]AL[/name].
[name]Estelle[/name], [name]Nona[/name], [name]Fannie[/name], [name]Arthur[/name], [name]James[/name], [name]William[/name], [name]Myrtice[/name], [name]Earl[/name], [name]Eloise[/name], [name]Daniel[/name], [name]Juanita[/name], [name]Bernice[/name], [name]Betty[/name] [name]Sue[/name], [name]Jimmy[/name], [name]Donald[/name], [name]Wayne[/name], [name]Catherine[/name], [name]Dorothy[/name], [name]Jeff[/name], [name]Virginia[/name], [name]Chester[/name], [name]Eugene[/name], [name]Charlie[/name], [name]Emma[/name], [name]Winston[/name], [name]Barbara[/name], [name]Elmer[/name], [name]Ray[/name], [name]Guy[/name], [name]Lamar[/name], [name]Harold[/name], [name]Homer[/name], [name]Mildred[/name], [name]Gordon[/name], [name]Pearl[/name], [name]Walter[/name]
I could go on. It’s pretty much your standard old people names.
I thought of a few more:
[name]Estelle[/name]
[name]Delcie[/name]/[name]Dulcie[/name]
[name]Blanche[/name]
[name]Bernice[/name]
[name]Clarice[/name]
[name]Audie[/name]
[name]George[/name]
My grandparents, their siblings & friends (very blue-collar, these are mining & farming families in [name]Alabama[/name] and [name]North[/name] [name]Carolina[/name]):
[name]Clyde[/name]
[name]Lloyd[/name] (“Shine”)
[name]Gracie[/name]
[name]Charles[/name]
[name]Myrtle[/name]
[name]Daisy[/name]
[name]Stella[/name] (x2)
[name]Mayo[/name]
[name]Marguerite[/name]
[name]Evelyn[/name]
[name]Maggie[/name] (short for [name]Mary[/name] [name]Magdalen[/name], believe it or not)
[name]Wallace[/name]
[name]Ruby[/name]
[name]Eva[/name] [name]Clare[/name]
[name]Maude[/name]
[name]Lucille[/name]
[name]Elton[/name]
[name]Harold[/name] (x2)
[name]Donald[/name]
[name]Vernon[/name]
[name]Jessie[/name] [name]Pearl[/name]
[name]Mildred[/name]
[name]Lillian[/name] (two syllables, rhymes with “million”)
[name]Doris[/name]
[name]Gladys[/name]
[name]Dot[/name]
[name]Hazel[/name]
[name]Orpha[/name] (not [name]Oprah[/name], Or-fa
[name]Evie[/name] [name]Mae[/name] ([name]Evie[/name] rhymes with “[name]Chevy[/name],” not “[name]Stevie[/name]”)
[name]Mert[/name] (I don’t think it’s short for anything. It’s just [name]Mert[/name].)
**The key here would be avoiding names with an obvious foreign origin. Most Southerners are of a vague Scots-Irish background and there was very very little immigration here because of the lack of industry. So nothing like [name]Anthony[/name], [name]Leo[/name], etc. There are exceptions, such as the French Catholic-dominant Gulf Coast. It’s really fun (imo) to delve into the double-names, the [name]Evie[/name] Maes and [name]Jessie[/name] Pearls. I confess that those are my favorite.
I am from [name]Louisiana[/name]. Here is a list of my oldest female relatives:
[name]Dacia[/name] [name]Marie[/name]
[name]Maggie[/name] [name]Lea[/name]
[name]Charlotte[/name]
[name]Janet[/name] (prn. [name]Janette[/name])
[name]Yvonne[/name]
[name]Serena[/name]
[name]Janice[/name]
[name]Gertrude[/name]
[name]Ruby[/name]
[name]Callie[/name]
Libette
[name]Lou[/name]
Lureatha
[name]Reatha[/name]
[name]Della[/name]
[name]Ella[/name]
[name]Pearl[/name]
[name]Rose[/name]
[name]Iris[/name]
[name]Rose[/name]
[name]Daisy[/name]
[name]Odella[/name]
[name]Peggy[/name]
[name]Eva[/name]
[name]Mellie[/name]
[name]Nettie[/name]
[name]Ruth[/name]
[name]Marie[/name]
[name]Lula[/name]
[name]Edith[/name]
[name]Salina[/name]
[name]Margaret[/name]
[name]Charolette[/name]
[name]Charlene[/name]
[name]Elsie[/name]
Gerldine
Galetta
[name]Lynetta[/name]
[name]Kathryn[/name]
[name]Delores[/name]
[name]Nell[/name]
[name]Louise[/name]
[name]DeeDee[/name]
[name]June[/name]
[name]April[/name]
[name]May[/name] [name]Belle[/name]
[name]Mary[/name]
[name]Dora[/name]
[name]Claudine[/name]
[name]Clair[/name]
[name]Bessy[/name]
[name]Betsy[/name]
[name]Helen[/name]
[name]Emma[/name] [name]Lou[/name]
[name]Emma[/name]
[name]Remember[/name] they were often address by Mrs. last name. Mrs. Brenson, Mrs. Peavler, Mrs. [name]Arnold[/name], Mrs. Millsap, etc. Mom mother
who was born in 1923 in the South, always called the older ladies in the neighborhood by MRS. So and So.
MEN
[name]Thurman[/name]
[name]Austin[/name]
[name]Tommy[/name]
Corthral
[name]John[/name]
[name]Bill[/name]
[name]Richard[/name]
[name]Fred[/name]
[name]Theodore[/name] ([name]Ted[/name])
[name]Frank[/name]
[name]Remember[/name] in the south, they are often name just the condnesed time. IN other words…[name]BILL[/name] is often their full name instead of [name]William[/name]. [name]Kate[/name] instead of [name]Kathryn[/name], etc. THe formality is not there.