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Do I Have a Boy's Name?
Filed under: Baby Names
My name is Tracy. I have been told by many that it is the male version of the name -- that the female version is supposed to be either Treacy or Tracey. I am a woman. Can you clear this up for me?
- Tracy
Treacy? Oh dear.
You've fallen victim to America's love-hate relationship with androgynous names. Parents of girls flock to unisex surnames and even traditional male names, but then a lot of them edge away. "We thought Aidan would be cool for a girl," they'll say, "but we spelled it Aidynn to make it more feminine." If you wanted something feminine, one might ask, why did you choose a boy's name to begin with?
Now these timid, semi-androgynous names are rebounding on your cross-gender classic.
Let's take a tour through your name's past. Tracy is a surname that came to be considered an elegant first name. At one time, it was also used as a nickname for Theresa. That kept the name's male/female ratio pretty even until the 1900s, when swanky surnames came into vogue for boys (think Sidney and Murray). Then a few decades later the name entered a new style jetstream alongside the likes of Stacy and Kerry. Just as with those names, girls eventually grabbed the Tracy lead. By the late 1960s more than 10,000 American girls were being named Tracy every year, and a couple of thousand boys for good measure.
That's Tracy, T-R-A-C-Y. Some parents did try to make the name more girlish by spelling it Traci or Tracie, but they were the minority. As for the other spellings people have tried to force on you, Tracey is an alternate spelling for both males and females and Treacy is another surname hardly used as a given name at all.
So Tracy, your spelling is the standard one, for women and men alike. Bear it proudly. Extra 'e's, 'i's and 'y's don't make anybody more of woman.
Do people harp on your name? Share your experiences here. And if you have your own question to Ask the Name Lady, drop her a line!
- Tracy
Treacy? Oh dear.
You've fallen victim to America's love-hate relationship with androgynous names. Parents of girls flock to unisex surnames and even traditional male names, but then a lot of them edge away. "We thought Aidan would be cool for a girl," they'll say, "but we spelled it Aidynn to make it more feminine." If you wanted something feminine, one might ask, why did you choose a boy's name to begin with?
Now these timid, semi-androgynous names are rebounding on your cross-gender classic.
Let's take a tour through your name's past. Tracy is a surname that came to be considered an elegant first name. At one time, it was also used as a nickname for Theresa. That kept the name's male/female ratio pretty even until the 1900s, when swanky surnames came into vogue for boys (think Sidney and Murray). Then a few decades later the name entered a new style jetstream alongside the likes of Stacy and Kerry. Just as with those names, girls eventually grabbed the Tracy lead. By the late 1960s more than 10,000 American girls were being named Tracy every year, and a couple of thousand boys for good measure.
That's Tracy, T-R-A-C-Y. Some parents did try to make the name more girlish by spelling it Traci or Tracie, but they were the minority. As for the other spellings people have tried to force on you, Tracey is an alternate spelling for both males and females and Treacy is another surname hardly used as a given name at all.
So Tracy, your spelling is the standard one, for women and men alike. Bear it proudly. Extra 'e's, 'i's and 'y's don't make anybody more of woman.
Do people harp on your name? Share your experiences here. And if you have your own question to Ask the Name Lady, drop her a line!
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ReaderComments (Page 1 of 3)
11-11-2010 @ 1:02PM
ThinkPink said...Your name is so important, so I wanted my daughter to have a unique name - without being over-the-top freaky. We decided on a very pretty name that is considered unisex, but is unique and we were sure she'd never have to use her last initial in school to identify herself. Lo & behold, if on her first day of kindergarten did we meet her same name male classmate! She now has that dreaded last inital designation that I was trying to avoid. I will say that her name fits her perfectly and I am happy we chose it.
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11-11-2010 @ 1:41PM
Brett said...Just curious as to the name you picked out. You don't mention it in your post. I am female and have a males name, Brett. My parents thought it would be a cute girls name and thought it to be unisex as well. I have never met or even seen another female with the name Brett. I am well adjusted to it now (as I'm 27) but when I was younger I hated it.
11-11-2010 @ 6:28PM
Jacki said...This is really in reply to Brett. There is at least one well known female Brett. Brett Butler is (was) a comedian popular in the 80's and 90's.
11-14-2010 @ 12:25AM
Nan said...Nan....yep, just plain N-A-N. Not Nancy. Not Nanette. It's a family name. I'll just say that I did not curse my girls with it (I'm the third female on my mom's side with the name). Even at 38 yrs old, I STILL hate it!!
11-11-2010 @ 5:24PM
Nancy said..."That kept the name's male/female ratio pretty even until the 1900s, when swanky surnames came into vogue for boys (think Sidney and Murray)."
Uhh - your surname is your LAST name. I think the author must have meant GIVEN name - which leads one to wonder what ELSE she doesn't know? I mean, how good is advice/commentary from somebody who doesn't even fact-check her article?
Reply
11-11-2010 @ 6:25PM
Jacki said...Nope, she meant surname. Tracy, Sidney and Murray use to be only last names for people and then in the 1900s, people began using them as first names. Many times it was a mother's maiden name that was used as a first name for a son, so that the mother's family name would also be carried on.
11-13-2010 @ 8:48PM
Merrily said...Nancy, I'm sure you think you are the smartest person in the world but, I fear you are wrong - and so supercilious.
11-13-2010 @ 8:47PM
Murigen said...I get kinda tired of boys names morphing into girls names. I particularly don't like it when spelling is changed a little to make it look more like a girls name. Yeah I have a particular pet peeve and that is Sean. It's a boys name. It's a boys name whether it's spelled traditionally or phonically as in Shawn and Shaun. You want to name your girl Seah/Shawn/Shaun please tell her she has a boys name. It's pretty lame when a woman with a boys name informs a little boy that his name is a girls name.
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11-13-2010 @ 9:44PM
Kelly said...Yes, but this isn't something that's just now happening. You read the article, right? I'm 50 years old, and along with those girls named Tracy or Kerry, many parents started naming girls Kelly in the late 1950s. The first other Kelly I ever met was a boy in my kindergarten class, and it never occurred to me that I should be bothered that we spelled it the same.
I gave my mother-in-law's family name to my son as his given name. It was a great decision, but it wouldn't have made a very good name for a girl.
11-14-2010 @ 12:44AM
Laurie said...I completely agree! I HATE it when people do that. Every time a cute boys name becomes popular people will start giving it to there girls. There are plenty of cute girls names why do they have to take all the boys names too?
11-14-2010 @ 1:58AM
Dustin said...Your post is ridiculious I am a female Dustin & love my name, its people like u that piss me off your the one that asks people what and why they have a boys name personally what the hell does it matter if your a female sean or a male as long as you are happy with your name it doesnt matter. Who is out there decideing what should be a female/male name you should never tell your child they have a boys name that is very sexest and rude. A name is a name and just remember it represents you so if people choice to change the spelling to a name for how they like it then that is there choice ther e are to many people out there assuming your one of them that like to go around finding someway to bitch about something
11-14-2010 @ 2:44PM
ryanne sunquist said...I couldn't agree more with Dustin. My name Ryanne is the feminine spelling variation of Ryan. In the past it was commonly used as a male name. Not once was I teased by anyone about my name. Just the opposite in fact I have always been complimented on it! Many names have crossed over from one gender to another. Kelly, Ashley, Lorn, Leslie, Tracy all originated as male names. It will continue to happen and honestly it's getting to the point were many names are just going to be considered genderless. If that bothers you than don't give your child one of those "cute" genderless names like Aidan, Ashton and Sam. Give them strong traditional names like Tiffany or Johnathan. But bottom line is judging someone based on their name is petty!
11-13-2010 @ 8:45PM
kc said...Tracy is a girls name no matter how it's spelled. Parents who name a boy Tracy, are giving him a girls name.
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11-13-2010 @ 10:18PM
jcrb said...First tracy I meet was a boy, so I think (thought) tracy is a boy's name. Same for Leslie, made a fool of myself first time I heard about a girl with leslie for a name. Both make nice names for girls
11-13-2010 @ 9:28PM
jb said...yes
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11-13-2010 @ 9:49PM
Devin said...Tracy is a name the in my opinion is related more to females than males so I wouldn't worry too much about it cause at least you are not in my situation. My name is Devin and I am a female but according to every phone call I get from anyone who doesn't know me personally I am a Mr instead of a Mrs. The same goes for my mail and anytime I introduce myself to someone and they say "your parents must have wanted a boy." Even though it bothers me to have a "male" name sometimes, I still take pride in it because it makes me different!
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11-13-2010 @ 10:28PM
Davon said...I scrren my calls/mail by whether they address me as MR. or not LOL I figure that if they do not know that I am a woman, then they are most likely solicitors.
My husband however, hates when a caller speaks to him as though he is Mr. Davon ----- and when he explains that "Davon" is his wife he usually has to repeat himself LMAO
11-13-2010 @ 9:57PM
Traci said...My name is Traci. My mom liked the name but my grandmother liked the spelling. My biggest problem is the fact that nobody knows how to spell it. When asked, people ask if it's spelld T-R-A-C-Y or T-R-A-C-E-Y. I almost always get weird looks when I spell it correctly for them.
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11-13-2010 @ 10:10PM
Christi said...Me and my lil girl both got unisex names. My dauther is Jessie Ray and my mom made my middle name real feminine - Christian Elise.
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11-13-2010 @ 10:12PM
Freddie Knuckles said..." I almost always get weird looks when I spell it correctly for them."
Gee, do you think you might be getting those weird looks because you're spelling it wrong and come from a family so trashy they didn't even know how to spell "Tracy"?
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