Amethyst

Precious stones have often inspired parents looking for a first name for babies - and let's face it, mostly little girls.  While you might refer to a man as a diamond geezer, there's not much chance of anyone saddling a son with a name like Diamond.  Even in Jubilee year.

We'll have to wait til this time next year to see if the celebrations of the Queen's sixty years on the throne inspire a wave of baby Diamonds.  But there's no doubt that jewels have come back into fashion when naming daughters.

Think of the number of Rubys - it was the second most popular name for baby girls in the UK in 2009 and although not as popular in recent years, it was still in the top ten list.

Amber is skirting around the top fifty.  And with Jack Osborne calling his new daughter, Pearl, there's a chance that little jewel of a name will start to crop up more often.

Back in the early part of the 20th century, when precious stone names were at their most popular, Rubys still dominated with Beryl the other high rankingn jewel on the list. Pearl was still a fairly regular choice while those who wanted to stand out wer opting for Diamond, Emerald and even Sapphire on a fairly frequent basis.

Amethyst was a different matter.  The purple jewel, birthstone for February, has never been a popular first name.  The ancient Greeks believed it protected anyone who wore it from the effects of strong drink but parents have rarely been intoxicated by it.  In 1911, there are just five women and girls on the census with the name.  Three of them are under 16 - and two of them have a sister called Ruby, showing their parents perhaps developing a theme.  And all of them were living in the southern part of the UK.

There's more on the five Amethysts on a separate page - and later this month, a look at Diamonds for the Diamond Jubilee.