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'Janet' dates back to the 14th Century.


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'Janet' dates back to 14th century

Janet Jackson appears at Omaha's Qwest Center tonight in her “Number Ones, Up Close and Personal” tour.

Janet was originally a pet form of Jane. Jane is a feminine form of John, which comes from the Hebrew Johanan, “Yahweh is gracious.”

The Normans brought the French suffix –et to England in 1066. Women called Janet are found in English records from 1300.

It took centuries in England for Janet to become a separate name instead of just a nickname for Jane. In Charlotte Bronte's 1847 novel “Jane Eyre,” Jane's husband calls her “Janet.”

Janet first became popular on its own in Scotland. The 16th century Scottish folk ballad “Tam Lin” tells of a Janet who falls in love with Tam Lin, a mortal captive of the Queen of the Fairies. Janet rescues him, and they live happily ever after.

In the 1851 United Kingdom census, 101,942 Janets lived in Scotland. Only 3,807 lived in England, though there were nearly 18 million people in England to Scotland's 3 million.

In the 1850 United States census, there were 1,338 Janets among 20 million Americans. Twenty percent of them were born in Scotland.

Janet began to rise along with the 20th century. Between 1899 and 1924, its use quintupled, with its rank going from 337th to 117th.

In 1924, an aspiring 17-year-old actress named Laura Gainor changed her name to Janet Gaynor. Her stepfather thought it sounded “more professional.” In the 1970s, Laura probably would have sounded more like a movie star name, but in 1924 Janet was rising while Laura's popularity was falling.

Janet Gaynor quickly became a big Hollywood star. Her career paralleled the popularity of the name. In 1928, Gaynor won the first best actress Oscar. That was the first year Janet was a top 100 name for girls.

In 1937, Gaynor played Vicki Lester in “A Star is Born.” In 1938, Janet reached its highest rank at No. 16. That year, 9,868 Janets were born, including former attorney general Janet Reno and Janet Guthrie, the first woman to compete in the Indianapolis 500.

Janet's use ebbed until 1947, when another aspiring actress named Jeanette Morrison changed her name to Janet Leigh. In 1949, Leigh appeared as Meg in the remake of “Little Women,” with Elizabeth Taylor playing Amy. In 1950, 16,190 (0.92 percent) of newborn American girls were named Janet.

The name has been falling ever since. When Janet Jackson was born in 1966, it ranked 57th. When she had her first No. 1 hit in 1986, it was down to 214th.

In 2004, the year of Jackson's famous Super Bowl wardrobe accident, the number of newborn Janets briefly rose almost 20 percent. Any sort of media attention inspires some parents to use a name.

Since then, Janet's fall has accelerated. The 344 born in 2009 ranked Janet 811th, its lowest point in more than 130 years.

In the country where Janet's popularity began, it's now completely out of fashion. Out of 28,000 Scottish girls born in 2010, not a single one was named Janet.

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Most random article ever, but good read lol. :thumbup:

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