Name of the Day: Eleanor

November 7

Eleanor

When former first lady Eleanor Roosevelt passed away on November 7, 1962, her serious name had been on a long downward slide since her husband Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s presidency in the 1930s.

But Eleanor reversed course in the 1980s, as the first generation of feminist moms began naming their daughters Eleanor in honor of Roosevelt’s humanitarian and personal accomplishments.

Today, Eleanor has become one of the premiere modern hero names.

Now at its highest point ever, Eleanor ranked Number 16 among the most popular girls’ names in the US last year. Not related to Helen or Ellen, Eleanor is a variation of the Middle French Aliénore, whose meaning is unknown.

Eleanor has a proper alternate version Elinor, the spelling used by Jane Austen for the heroine of Sense and Sensibility. Not surprisingly, Elinor’s character epitomized Sense.