Don and Betty Draper may have graced our screens once more with their outmoded glamour. But it seems their names are no long in vogue as their dapper styles.
The two most popular names of the era have fallen furthest from favour since 1940, according to this name study in conjunction with the U.S. Census 1940 release on 2 April. Although Donald ranked the 9th on the most popular list that year, with Betty nabbing fifth place, she no longer makes it into the 1,000!
"Baby names are like period pieces," says leading genealogist and spokesperson for FindmyPast.com, Josh Taylor. "Some [names] recall a particular era, which can make them useful clues when researching family history. Indeed, you can roughly guess when someone was born simply by their first name. In such cases, names can be to genealogy what carbon-dating is to archaeology."
This, despite many famous real-life Dons and Bettys—including Donald Trump (or 'The Donald' as he refers to himself) and America's golden girl, Betty White. Interestingly, the boy name which snagged the top spot in 1940—James—still holds classic appeal, just managing to stay in the top 20, while that for a girl, Mary, dropped more than a hundred places.
Will you be sad to see these names go in lieu of the Jacobs and Isabellas? Or will the power of Mad Men, now in its fifth series, lead to a resurgence in these names?
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