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Extreme Surnames

April 20, 2022 namerology 1 Comment

Extreme Surnames

April 20, 2022 Namerology 1 Comment

Ready to look way, way beyond Mason and Carter? Look to the past.

Namerology Vintage Styles


Hunter, Harper, Cooper, Carter.
Mason, Grayson, Addison, Madison.
Kinsley, Presley, Bentley, Brantley.

From Easton to Weston, parents are embracing surnames as baby names—within limits. Today’s popular surnames fit certain molds, like energetic “doer” names or breezily preppy names. They’re flexible forms that can carry different images, from the jazz of Ellington to the cowboy of Colton. But they still only scratch the surface of the possibilities.

Once upon a time, surnames were bold not only in style but in sound. What mattered was the person who inspired the name, and if the name itself sounded like Spurgeon or Wadsworth, so be it. In fact, the cumbersome heft of the names may even have added to their appeal. They were substantial and impressive, so weighty with consonants that they couldn’t be trifled with.

I’ve identified 60 of these substantial surnames: 8+ letters long, packed with consonants, and many generations past their fashion peaks. You may find that what sounded impressive a century ago now sounds pompous or puzzling. Or you just might find yourself falling for the names’ ultra-old-school charm. All of the names on the list were given to boys in their time, but it’s easy to imagine some as girls’ names today.

NamePeak Popularity Year
Granville1880
Melville1880
Rutherford1880
Wellington1881
Littleton1882
Blanchard1883
Washington1884
Claiborne1889
Livingston1890
Mansfield1890
McClellan1890
Vanderbilt1890
Whitfield1890
Singleton1891
Spurgeon1892
Gladstone1898
Fleetwood1902
Fairbanks1904
Armistead1909
Saunders1912
Wadsworth1913
Churchill1914
Ellsworth1914
Sheffield1914
Bransford1915
Broughton1915
Halstead1915
Whitmore1915
Winthrop1915
Mcclinton1916
Woodford1916
Westmoreland1917
Woodward1917
Barksdale1918
Greenwood1918
Pershing1918
Wakefield1918
Worthington1918
Thornwell1919
Atherton1920
Etheridge1920
Radcliffe1920
Willoughby1920
Armstrong1921
Clarendon1921
Lauriston1921
Sherburne1921
Wentworth1921
Ridgeway1923
Coleridge1924
Covington1924
Pendleton1924
Stratford1924
Kilbourne1925
Chesterfield1927
Clairmont1929
Grantland1930
Lancaster1930
Ainsworth1933
Granderson1934

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1 Comment

  • Hannah April 20, 2022 at 3:32 pm

    You have to really admire the ‘named after’ person foe some of these. I’m suprised Spurgeon is on the list, i’ve only ever heard it used on a Duggar grandchild to much surprise as their names tend to the fashionable . Oh, it would be interesting if you had a look at fundamentalist names/particularly religious names!

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