April 2011 Self Seekers Newsletter

SELF SEEKERS:

THE SELF FAMILY ASSOCIATION QUARTERLY ONLINE NEWSLETTER SUPPLEMENT

Co-Hosts
Tim W. Seawolf Self
Barbara Ann Peck
[email protected]
Volume 14, no. 2 April, 2011
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WELCOME

Welcome to volume 14, no. 2 of the quarterly online newsletter supplement to "Self Portraits: The Self Family NetLetter," the Website dedicated to Self family research at http://www.selfroots.com

You are receiving this newsletter because you were kind enough to join "Self Seekers: The Self Family Association." We appreciate all of your contributions, large and small, and we hope you will continue to support our page, our surname list, and this newsletter.

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IS 2011 WELCOME?

Last month's opening paragraph was full of optimism--"Welcome 2011!" Now, most of us are probably not so sure. Since the last issue, we've witnessed several large earthquakes, a devastating tsunami, and the meltdown of a nuclear energy plant in Japan. To see so much tragedy happen in the country most prepared for these types of disasters makes us stop and think. Of course, they have all happened before. With the exception of the power plant, the worst events seem to be natural ones over which our only control is preparation, and even that proves minimal when Mother Nature is on a rampage. We're used to small, but still violent, earthquakes here in California. But no place on earth is really immune from them. Remember the Selfs who moved to New Madrid, Missouri in the early 19th century? A quake is certainly the last thing the expected there. The lesson is that none of us should be complacent about the powers of Nature. The bright spot is that while we're better equipped to handle them, our ancestors--in much more primtive times--survived major quakes, tornadoes, and hurricanes. Now if we can only survive our own species, we'll be ready to face a happier future.
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SELF SEEKERS MEMBERSHIP FEES

Please send us your 2011 contributions. We'd really like to keep this little "Self Seekers" newsletter going!

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POPULAR GIVEN NAMES
by Barbara Peck
edited by Tim Seawolf-Self

In general, when Selfs named their children, they followed the conventions of the time. If we go back to the mid-16th century, in the days of Walter Selfe of Cripplegate, London, England, we find that most people were given Biblical names. Records up through the 18th century in both England and the United States usually give just a first and last name. Often there was a middle name, but it was either omitted from official documents or it was used as a substitute for one's given name because the individual in question was commonly known by it. By the beginning of the 19th century, two new trends began: the use of non-Biblical and more fanciful names; and the recording of middle names or initials in public documents. Whereas in earlier days the popularity of given names was based largely on the Bible and the names of parents and other relatives, names today follow trends. Sometimes a name is rather unique, dredged up from literature, radio and television, or ethnic roots--or even made up by creative parents; but then it "catches on," and an entire generation is populated with certain names that once again become rare after ten or twenty years have passed. For example, there were many little girls named "Barbara Ann" in the 1940s when I was born, but today it is seldom used unless the newborn is named for an ancestor or older relative.

SOURCE

The source for the data on given names is "Popular Given Names US, 1801-1999" at
http://users.erols.com/dgalbi/names/us200.htm

Please go to the Web site above for an explanation of the data and the official documents from which it was extracted.

The brief analysis below is our own.

The Excel Chart shows the Top Ten for each decade surveyed.

If you're interested in working with the data yourSelf, please take into consideration that the both the Census and the Social Security documents involved contain numerous mistakes. Oftentimes, the recorders misunderstood names, made spelling errors, blurred their ink, and accepted middle names or nicknames in place of given names. Also, many "ethnic" names are listed but probably were limited to families from their own respective cultures.

ANALYSIS

GIRLS

Not surprisingly, the most popular girls' names from 1801 to 1999 were mostly favorites that spanned the entire range of years. "Mary" shows up in the "Top Ten" throughout each decade, remaining at Number One until 1960. It's lowest place was Number Nine in the 1980s, but it was right back up in second place in the 1990s. "Elizabeth" fell out of favor between 1930 and 1960 when it suddenly jumped up to first place. From that point on, it declined in popularity, disappearing from the Top Ten entirely in the 1990s, but never really far below that grouping. Another girls' name with staying power is "Catherine" which shows up in the Top Ten in all years except 1920-1939.

Sometimes a name will be very popular for awhile and then drop off the Top Ten list. The early 1800s saw quite a few little girls named "Nancy"--from the latter part of the century on, not nearly as many appeared. My name, as discussed in the introduction, jumped up from Number 24 to Number 4 in the 1930s, but by the 1960s, not many children were being named "Barbara." Other examples of short-term "trendy" names can be seen in "Linda," "Susan," "Deborah," and "Jennifer." "Helen" first appeared at fourth place (up from 15) in the 1880s and never fell below that rank in popularity until the 1930s when it disappeared from the Top Ten. "Ann" had a long run, from 1801 to 1939 and made another brief appearance in the 1960s. "Sarah" was a favorite until the 1880s. It took 100 years for it to make a comeback into the Top Ten, part of a trend toward the revival of older names in the last part of the twentieth century. "Jane" is another name that appears and disappears throughout the centuries.

In the last few decades we can recognize names that became extremely popular, names that our young people wear today, such as "Caroline" (1950s and 1960s), "Karen" (1960s), "Kimberly" (1960s and 1970s), "Michelle" (1970s), "Jennifer" (1970s and 1980s), "Ashley" (1980s and 1990s), "Britney" and "Caitlin" (1990s). One name that surprised us is "Christine" which made a big jump into the Top Ten in the 1960s and has remained the Number One girls' name since 1970!

BOYS

The names for boys in both centuries not only held steady in the Top Ten but in many cases remained in the exact same spot within that ranking. For instance, "John" remained Number One through 1870 with "William" holding second place. In the decade beginning with 1871, the two names switched places until they reverted to their original locations from 1901 through 1920. When "William" gained the Number One spot again in 1920, "John" dropped to Third Place, supplanted by "Robert," which took over as most popular in 1930. "William" once again took Second Place while "John" lost one more place to "James." Basically, these names exchanged places throughout the first half of the 20th century until "Michael" rose seven places in 1950 with "John" regaining second place. These two names held their respective positions until the 1990s when "John" once again became the most favored name for boys. "William" finally dropped out of the Top Ten in 1980. "James" however, has clung tenaciously to the Top Ten, even in the 1990s when it dropped to 9th place. Looking at the total Top Ten for the 1990 decade, we can see that along with the consistent favorites, almost all of the other names are "old fashioned," most coming from the Bible. This trend seems to be present for both boys and girls, but perhaps moreso for boys whose names are a bit more conservative overall.

LEAST POPULAR NAMES

Most of the Top Ten names for both genders either began at a high position or worked its way up from a position below the bottom limit. Occasionally, a name becomes wildly popular because it's the name of a celebrity ("Britney") or because it's featured in a song ("Jennifer," "Michelle") or movie. The trend is reversed for the least popular names. These names are usually ones that have dropped from higher places or that are fanciful or ethnic names that may or may not show more usage in later decades. In the samples used in this particular survey, some of the least popular names are actually more popular names spelled incorrectly ("Kennth," "Doyl") or mistakes of gender (boys: "Carolyn," 1940).

In no decade do we see a name from the Top Ten at any point reaching the bottom of the list. Names that have dropped in popularity were, for the most part, those that were mildly favored in earlier times. And some names that we associate with various decades were indeed popular but never quite made it into the very top ranks.

SUMMARY

The compiler of the original data used a fairly large sample; but he/she obviously couldn't possibly count hits for each name in each decade and complete the project in a reasonable amount of time. Still, the total amount of information is impressive. Please do check out the site mentioned above because, in order to write this simple little article, we had to limit ourSelfs even further--in this case to the Top Ten and the Bottom Ten names for girls and boys. This means that some of our conclusions will seem even more solid when one examines, say, the Top Twenty or Top Fifty names.

In general, the turn of the nineteenth century was full of children named after Biblical characters or using just plain tried-and-true English-language selections. Surprisingly, many of these names retained their popularity nearly two hundred years later. But in the twentieth century, there was more deviation toward creative names, ethnic names, and names of celebrities and fictional characters. Girls' names were fairly consistent, but those for boys were extremely so. Most names rose slowly through the ranks and then fell to lower levels just as slowly. But some of them, especially those for boys, dropped several hundred places in just ten years.

Given the origin of names, it's somehow consoling to see how Biblical names like "John" and "Mary" have held up through time and still account for the majority of given names today.

(Next: Pitfalls of the Census)

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PLEASE CONTRIBUTE BIOGRAPHIES AND PHOTOS

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DEAD ENDS
part 8
"I, J"
by Barbara Peck and Tim Seawolf-Self

When we began "SelfSite at RootsWeb," our objective was to present as much unrelated Self data as possible in the hopes that these individuals and families would be recognized by someone out there. Because the Selfs married into many other surnames, it's just possible that a person surfing the Web could come across a Self connection that was previously unknown to them. We divided the entries into two groups: "Loose Ends" and "Dead Ends." The Loose Ends are Selfs for whom we have no ready ancestry. The Dead Ends are marriages of Self descendants for whom we are seeking descendants. We've decided to reprint the "Dead Ends" bit by bit in this netletter to make it easier for you to go through them and to give visitors to our sites one more point of access. Also there have been additions, deletions, and corrections. Please check your records to see if any of these couples are in your database. As always, information you may provide to us is for posterity. Living people will not be put on the Web.

INGLES, Unknown and WILLIAMS, Hannah married about 1880 in Blount County, AL
INGRAM, W. Harry and SELF, Lydia A. married 10 Apr 1873 in Fayette County, AL
INKS, William F. and SHIFFLETT, Mary M. married 25 Nov 1880 in Bureau County, IL
IRWIN, Benjamin F. and SELF, Sallie Matilda married 15 Jan 1885 possibly in KY
ISDOLL, J. T. and SELF, Sarah E. married 13 Aug 1911 in Bibb County, GA
JACHEM, Archibald and SELF, Emily married 1839 in Warren County, VA
JACK, William M. and SELF, Emily married 10 Aug 1865 in Jefferson County, AL
JACKS, Solon Patte and SELF, Rose married before 1900
JACKSON, Samuel A. and SELF, Elizabeth married 22 Aug 1852 in Floyd County, GA
JACKSON, Thomas R. and SELF, Margaret A. married 16 Jul 1864 in Madison County, IL
JACKSON, Wade and SELF, Mary married 11 Feb 1886 in Nacogdoches County, TX
JACOBS, John and RAMSEY, Irma married 28 Sep 1890 in Perry County, IN
JAGGERS, Charles Spurgeon and UNKNOWN, Unknown married 29 May 1889, probably in KY
JAGGERS, Elza and HUNT, Mary Ella married about 1916, probably in Edmonson County, KY
JAGGERS, Irvin and JAGGERS, Grace married about 1910, probably in Hart County, KY
JAGGERS, Loy and UNKNOWN, Ethel married before 1920, probably in KY
JAGGERS, Roscoe W. and MINTON, Donna married about 1914, probably in Edmonson County, KY
JAMES, Monroe and SELF, Cynthia married before 1920
JARRELL, Claiborn and SELF, Mary married 3 May 1824 in Pike County, GA
JARRETT, Lum and FLOWERS, Ruth J. married about 1895, probably in Union County, GA
JARVIS, Fred and SELF, Lucy married 1917 in Jefferson County, MO
JAY, George L. and SELF, Bettie married about 1915, probably in Collin County, TX
JEANE, Henry Milam and POLLARD, Lucinda married about 1904, probably in Vernon Parish, LA
JEFFERS, George S. and VANWINKLE, Alice married 24 Dec 1899, probably in Perry County, IN
JEFFRIES, Jeremiah and SELF, Lucy married 13 May 1835 in Northumberland County, VA
JELLY, Unknown and SELF, Mary Etta married about 1920 in Jackson County, MO
JENKINS, Carl and CORLEY, Jennie married 16 Oct 1912, probably in DeKalb County, TN
JENKINS, Dan and SELF, Lottie married about 1911, probably in Falls County, TX
JENKINS,, J. E. and SELF, Sarah married 13 Mar 1879 in Union County, GA
JENKINS, Jim and SELPH, Lillie married before 1920, probably in GA
JENNINGS, Charles and BLATTMAN, Nancy married before 1920 in Mora County, NM
JENNINGS, William N. and SELF, Clara E. married May 21, 1888 in Crawford County, AR
JOHNS, Curtis Columbus and ELLIS, Della Amy married 5 Jul 1910
JOHNSON, Albert William and SELF, Olive F. married Feb. 23, 1888 in Athens, OH
JOHNSON, Charles and WRIGHT, Vina Jane married 17 Oct 1882 in Washington County, AR
JOHNSON, Ezra and SELF, Tabitha married 24 Jun 1858 in Hot Springs County, AR
JOHNSON, Ira and SELF, Anna B. married Sep. 13, 1891 in Houston County, GA
JOHNSON, Jesse and NANCE, Louisia Alabama married about 1867 in Rusk County, TX
JOHNSON, Jesse Kirk and RAINS, Claudie Ann married 18 Jun 1911 in TX
JOHNSON, John F. and DEVINNA, Gertie L. married 24 Dec 1893 in Morgan County, MO
JOHNSON, Mardica and STORY, Mary Emily married 25 Jan 1823 in Maury County, TN
JOHNSON, Unknown and HORSLEY, Susan married about 1886, probably in St. Clair County, AL
JOHNSON, Unknown and LANCE, Sarah J. married about 1877, probably in Union County, GA
JOHNSTON, Morgan and SHADDEN, Sarah Lula May married before 1900 in Hopkins County, TX
JOHNSTON, Ralph Dewitt and SELF, Jessie Helen married before 1920 in Lincoln County, NB
JOHNSTON, Richard Sidney and HOBBS, Mattie White married 30 Nov 1916, possibly in MS
JOHNSTON, William Gladstone and JONES, Alma married about 1915, possibly in MS
JOINER, W. W. and SELF, Docia married 21 Mar 1900 in Clay County, AR
JONES, E. J. and SELF, Celia married 7 Feb 1861 in Union County, GA
JONES, James and SELF, Mary Ann married 11 Apr 1839 in Morgan County, MO
JONES, John D. and SELF, Margaret A. married 26 May 1878 in Cullman County, AL
JONES, Joseph and VINCENT, Jennie Lee married 8 May 1898, probably in MO
JONES, Joseph Robert and ELLIOTT, Alice Hoyle married about 1908, probably in NC
JONES, J. V. and ROBERTS, Myrtle Lee married before 1920
JONES, Peter and SELF, Lavina married 17 Nov 1831 in Bibb County, AL
JONES, Robert A. and SELF, Lillie M. married 8 Nov 1899 in Saline County, IL
JONES, Thomas and WATTS, Mary H. married about 1825 in NC, AL or AR
JONES, Wallace Robertson and SELF, Edith married about 3 Sep 1913 in Salt Lake City, UT
JONES, Walter Lee Norris and SELF, Maurine married unknown in AL
JONES, William and SELF, Ann Eliza married 8 Sep 1887 in Scott County, AR.
JONES, William Judson and ELLIOTT, Florence Bell married about 1915, probably in NC
JORDAN, Buck and BUTT, Minnie married about 1905, possibly in Union County, GA
JUDD, Maurice and GAVIN, Ivy Pearl married 15 Aug 1917 in Garfield County, UT
JUSTICE, Marshall and SELF, Julia married before 1910, probably in Collin County, TX

(Next: Dead Ends "K and L")

Maybe your ancestors used to tell stories about life in the "old days," stories you remember hearing as a child. Please tell us about them. We will even supply editing and formatting; but we'd all love to know about daily life in the Self families of old--and you may be able to help. Please contact us. And please state that your story is specifically for the newsletter.

LOOSE ENDS

Please go to our "Loose Ends" subsection at our SelfSite at RootsWeb.

DEAD ENDS

Please go to our "Dead Ends" subsection at our SelfSite at RootsWeb.

SELFS IN SPACE

What would you like to see here? This space is reserved for any topic of interest to Self cousins. Express YourSelf!!

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