Conference oass::babynames

	My dictionary says Paige comes from "page" -- i.e., the guy
	who hung out around knights back in the Middle Ages.  This
	seems more reasonable than "youthful one."  What dictionary
	were you using?

	Paige also was once a surname, and was originally used as a
	first name just for boys.  Halsey is also a surname.  In fact,
	it's not listed in my dictionary (which is pretty complete)
	as a first name.  Because surnames are normally male, not
	female, when used as first names, Halsey sounds a little 
	unusual too me.  Were you using a surname dictionary or a 
	first name dictionary?

	So, basically you've got two male surnames.  I see two
	problems with this.  First, I hope Paige doesn't get a draft 
	notice.  Second, her name sounds awfully yuppy -- it really
	begs for a "III" at the end of it.  You know, Paige Halsey
	Warren III, Groton, Harvard, the Porcellian ...

		-- Cliff

    Cliff,
                                
    I'm sorry you don't approve of my daughter's name.  I better change
    it immediately! :-)
                  
    I don't remember the titles of the baby name books that I have off-hand
    since it's been a while since I've looked at them.  I'll cite them
    when I have a chance.  In the meantime, from memory:  Page (no i)
    was listed as Anglo-Saxon (I think), meaning "page," as you indicated.
    A separate listing for Paige (with an i) was listed as French, meaning 
    "youthful one."  They were both listed in the girl's section.       
                                                                   
    I first heard the name from my parents who had picked it out (22 years
    ago) for my brother David had he been a girl.  Since then, I've
    met two Paiges/Pages (one about 35, one about 22), both female.
    It's also been mentioned in this file a number of times for girls,
    mostly as a middle name (eg., Rachel Paige).   
                                              
    I'm sure Paige (actually Page) did start out as a boy's name.  But
    that can be said about many now-popular girl's names.  Ashley 
    and Tracy come to mind and, in fact, these two names are usually
    still found in the boy's sections of most babyname books.  Yet they
    are rarely used for boys anymore.  
    
    [BTW, I think this trend of taking over boys' names for use as girls'
    names is largely responsible for the tendency to stick with more
    traditional names for boys, mentioned in another note.  If you name
    your son Michael or David, it is less likely that his name will
    become a popular girl's name in five years.]
    
    More to follow...
        
                                     
                                     
                                     
                                     
    
    

    We had picked out the name Halsey before Paige was born, strictly
    after my late father-in-law "Hal."  After she was born, I found 
    it (and the meaning I gave) in a baby book that I was looking at
    in at a "Mothercare" store.
                                                            
    Personally, I like using family names as middle names.  I also think
    that, despite its origins, it doesn't sound _too_ masculine.  (I
    ruled out my own maiden name, Bryant, because I thought the total
    effect of that _was_ too masculine.)                            
                                                            
    My other daughter's middle name is Ryan, which was my mother's maiden
    name.  Her first name, Caileigh (I bet you don't like that one!),
    wasn't in any baby name books except as Caley for a boy.  
                  
    I guess it does sound sort of yuppy.  (What can I say, I drive a
    Jeep Cherokee.)  And she _is_ going to go to Harvard, of course.
    And I figure it's okay if she has surnames for first names, since
    she has a first name for a surname!
                                  
    Gee, if she were Paige Halsey Warren III, we could call her 
    "Paige Three" for short!              
                    
    
    -Tracy (Mary Tracy to you)                          
                                                            
                                                            
                                                            

    I was at that "Mothercare" store again last night.  The book I referred
    to is called "The Best Baby Name Book in the Whole Wide World" by
    Bruce Lansky.             
                              
    As I mentioned, Halsey was listed under boy's (first) names and
    Paige and Page under girl's names.  I did make one mistake: Page
    ("useful assistant") was listed as French; Paige ("youthful one")
    was listed as Old English.
                              
                              
    

	Not very familiar with the Lansky book, but my guess is 
	probably that he just gave you the ultimate source for the
	name, how it is used at the current moment, and nothing in
	between.  This is pretty typical for name books -- and can
	be kind of misleading.

	My guess at the history of Paige would go something like this:

	1  There's some Latin root that means "youth" (might have 
	   something to do with "puer," which means boy, and "puella,"
	   which means "girl)

	2  This became specialized in the Romance languages to mean
	   specifically the youth who hung around courts and knights

	3  This became a surname (a very common device is to create a
	   surname from an occupation: Barber, Miller, Taylor, Carter,
	   Cook, etc.)

	4  Page was probably spelled several different ways: Page and
	   Paige are both listed as surnames in my telephone book.  This
	   would reflect the way the occupation was spelt

	5  The surname became a first name for boys only -- there are
	   hundreds of examples of this: Douglas, Howard, Clifford, etc.

	6  The first name started being used for boys -- there are also
	   hundreds of examples of this: Kimberley, Leslie, Beverly,
	   Shirley, Ashley, etc.

	7  Because of our sexist culture, when a male name starts being
	   used for a girl's names it becomes verboten or at least very
	   suspect as a boy's name

	I can do a little more research if you're interested (the OED,
	for example).

		-- Cliff

    Thanks, Cliff.  Your scenario makes sense.  It looks like Paige
    has gone through both shifts that you've mentioned: from last
    name (which it still is also, of course) to male first name,
    and (currently?) from male first name to female first name.
    
    I agree with your linking of sexism with the assumption that it's
    okay for a girl to have a boy's name, but not vice versa.
    
    BTW, did you notice that all of the examples you gave end in "lee"?
    I guess we as a culture have decided that that is a sign of a feminine      
    name.
    
    I'd love to know more about the name if you feel like looking into
    it.  Thanks.
          
    -Tracy                                 
    
    

    My maiden name is Page.  My grandfather did a complete geneology on it. 
    You are correct that it became a surname as a result of working in the
    English court. Somewhere around the 16th century he started tracing it
    to Normandy.  He quit at that point because he didn't want to be
    French. In Normandy the name was LaPaige.
    
    My granddaughter is named Page for me, and I'm thrilled.