I was just pondering on the dearth of Blanches while I was in the kitchen blanching beans this week. Generous friends and family members, who are keen gardeners, have shared their bounty with me in recent days- and I know we cannot eat all this veg before it gets past its prime. So I have been preparing an assortment of fruit and veg for the freezer.
According to the US National Center for Home Food Preservation, based in the University of Georgia, "Blanching (scalding vegetables in boiling water or
steam for a short time) is a must for almost all vegetables to be frozen. It
stops enzyme actions which can cause loss of flavour, colour and texture. Blanching cleanses
the surface of dirt and organisms, brightens the colour and helps retard loss
of vitamins." Their website has helpful charts of times for preparing various vegetables.
Once the kitchen tasks were done, I checked up on the name Blanche- it was first registered in the US in the 1880s, but interestingly, Blanche Ingram appears in the UK in the Bronte novel Jane Eyre [pub 1847]. Clyde Barrow [of 'Bonnie and Clyde' fame] had a sister called Blanche Barrow. The name peaked around 1910 - but next to nobody used it after WW2. Like Lettice, it is one of those names which has drifted into obscurity.
Another child on the slide with her was called Sylvia. Liz and I both did a double-take when we heard Mum call to her. My cousin Sylvia has just died- she was in her mid 70s. Sylvia was very popular for babies born between 1930 and 1950 -all the Sylvias I know are a decade older than me. But the name is in the top 100 in Spain and Italy, so maybe we will hear it here more in future.
Angela is another name which is 'past its peak' in the UK - a popular choice between 1940 and 1970 - but I understand it is still in the top 100 in Canada for baby girls. Two of our deacons at Church are called Angela - it can get confusing sometimes when the three of us are together!
Is your name unusual? or are there lots of you sharing the same moniker? Have you modified/changed your name to make it more personal?
[Oh, and moniker is nothing to do with Monica, but is believed to be a corruption of the Irish word ainm, simply meaning 'name', which came over to London with itinerant workers in the mid 19th century]
You write about such interesting things, Ang. My beloved Aunt Sylvia died recently, she, like your cousin, was in her early 70s. And I have a very common name, which nobody chooses for their babies nowadays.
ReplyDeleteI think it is time for a revival of the Sue/Susie/Susan/Suzanne/Susanna family!!
DeleteMy parents named their children: Christopher, Martin, Andrew, Peter, Paul, Philip, Elizabeth, Margaret, Jane and Mark. Not particularly popular these days but neither do they indicate an era. When I was growing up there were two mothers a few doors away who each had the name Gloria. That’s one you don’t hear much of outside pop singing circles.
ReplyDeleteAll very good names though - and ten children is quite a number to have to find names for! And many of your siblings have names which are popular with the royals - not least yourself!
DeleteMy name, Mary, seemed until very recently to be a name that would go on for ever but I know no Marys under forty although a few girls/women still have it as a middle name.
ReplyDeleteI think it is still a popular middle name, esp among Roman Catholic families. As is Gloria [see above]
DeleteIt's a much older name in England than 19th Century – wasn't there a Blanche of Lancaster during the War of the Roses?
ReplyDeleteOh well remembered- she was John of Gaunt's wife. I'd forgotten about her
DeleteI am now over sixty and my name is Margaret although I'm mostly known as Maggie now - not a name hat is terribly popular these days.
ReplyDeleteIt's funny, I've spoken with friends about this and names are cyclical and often a clear indication of your age!
I belong to a social club and there are umpteen, Judy's (Judy Garland I presume) - many Susans or Sues - and a ton of Margarets, Margies and Marjories!
I do know a couple of Angela's - both of Italian background and that may be why it is still very popular here in Canada (there were a lot of immigrants from Italy in the 1960's).
I don't mind an unusual name - but some of the ones that get made up these days are truly astonishing - my friends who are teachers often find it very challenging!
My middle name is Margaret [my gran, mum and daughter have it as second name too]
DeleteI have three close friends, all with the same name as me, (Alison) and all born within 5 years of each other. But in all my years of teaching (1982-2000) I only ever taught one child with my name. Of course, she was a delightful child! Here in France Alys, or Alyssia, seems quite popular. I rather wish my name had been spelled with a "y", I think Alyson looks much more interesting!
ReplyDeleteYou could always change it. I know a Janet who decided she wanted to be Janette [but still kept the stress on the first syllable] and an Elizabeth who swapped to EliSabeth
DeleteMy name,Kavitha,which means poem in Hindi was very popular I think when I was born in 1970. I had two other girls in my class called Kavitha, through school. Later on as well I have met a lot of women around my age who share the name!! I don't think it is a name of choice today though..
ReplyDeleteKavitha is such a pretty name
ReplyDeleteThank you 😄
DeleteI was named after the poppy, because I was born on Remembrance Day. It is not a very common name (no, my name is not Poppy!)
ReplyDeleteThere's a line in the song, "Well did you evah?" from High Society, "Have you heard about Dear Blanche? She got run down by an avalanche!"
ReplyDeleteI don't know any in real life!
I do know some unusual names though. I know a Merlin, a Rudyard, a Caspian, a Xanthe, a Thisbee.
My name is Cornish and for the first 13 years of my life, I never met another one. Then one was in my youth orchestra- we were so happy to meet each other. We took part in the String festival and we happened to notice a girl's violin case saying her name was "Kerenza Jones" which we were both excited about. We lay in wait by her case and then when this young ginger girl arrived, we asked, "Are you Kerenza?" and when she answered in the affirmative, we both excitedly said, "So are we!!!". It spiralled from there- I met one when I worked at the Academy (violinist), an Australian dancer who learnt Balinese dance was called Kerensa who joined our groups, there was one in my sixth form and even now, there is one in my regular orchestra! So many!