Nameberry of the Day: Sidney
April 9
American film director Sidney Arthur Lumet passed away on April 9, 2011 at 86 years old.
Sidney’s films, spanning from 1957 until 2007, are highly regarded for their criticism of social injustices — some of his most famous including 12 Angry Men, Network, and Dog Day Afternoon.
The origin of the name Sidney has two possible theories — it is often considered a contraction of “Saint Denis”, related to the Greek god Dionysus of fertility and wine. Others consider it to stem from an Anglo-Saxon place name, meaning “at the wide island”.
Sidney was at its most popular as a boy’s name at the turn of the 20th century, but experienced a steady decline until falling off the charts completely in 2012.
This was likely in part due to Sidney (and even more so, Sydney) taking off as a girl’s name in the 90s, with the latter solidly in the US Top 30 for several years, and the original Sidney spelling holding its own just inside the Top 300.
Today Sidney no longer ranks for any sex and is essentially completely unisex — given to 166 boys and 165 girls in the US last year.
As a boy’s name, Sidney — and the nickname Sid — has that adorable old man charm many parents are searching for in a baby name.
In case you missed these Nameberries of the Day:
Nameberry of the Day: Jude
Best known as the son of John Lennon and the subject of The Beatles’ hit single, “Hey Jude”, Julian Charles John Lennon was born on April 8, 1963. So how did Julian become Jude? Following the breakdown of John Lennon’s marriage, Paul McCartney drove out to check in with Julian and his mother, Cynthia. As he drove, he dwelled on the difficult times ahead f…
Nameberry of the Day: Buddy
Bernard Rich, better known as Buddy, was an American jazz drummer and bandleader, who died on April 2, 1987. Taking up the drums at just 2 years old, Buddy Rich went on to become one of the most influential drummers of all time. Alongside creating his own band,