Unusual forenames

[Susan48]

I recently came across the girl's forename Lesbia in the 1901 census. The child was born in 1896 to a couple living in Layer-de-la-Haye, Essex. An older girl was named Aline, and a younger brother was more prosaically named William Henry. The father was a corn miller and the mother (my blood relative) came from a family of agricultural labourers. The name was unusual at the time - only 18 instances came up for 1901 on Findmypast, and 10 of them were variations on the name. So I ask myself - what led a couple from a humble background to choose such a name? I wonder if they were aware of its classical connotations, and where they'd come across it before.

 

[Stuart]

Both Aline and Lesbia are found listed among the names of ships in the 1800s, and they also appear as characters in fiction. So they are part of that large group of names that are known, but rarely used as given names. It's hard to say how common either was. Aline got a bit of a boost in popularity in 1877 as one of the main characters in The Sorcerer, Gilbert & Sullivan's first full-length opera. Lesbia also gets more hits in newspapers the 1880s, including on stage, though I don't think any of those pieces is well known now (e.g. has anyone heard of Lesbia, a classical comedy, by Richard Davey?).

 

[Susan48]

e.g. has anyone heard of Lesbia, a classical comedy, by Richard Davey?

No, I haven't, and neither the play nor the author merits a mention in The Oxford companion to English literature (ed. Margaret Drabble, 1985). But many thanks for the information.

 

[peter]

No, I haven't, and neither the play nor the author merits a mention in The Oxford companion to English literature (ed. Margaret Drabble, 1985). But many thanks for the information.

See Wikipedia for more information about the play.