Buster

[James A. Landau]

In a message dated 02/22/2003 2:39:16 PM Eastern Standard Time,
douglas at NB.NET writes:

> Probably there are good-sized classrooms wherein every third female student
>  is named Brittany or so ... but there were none with this name in any of my
>  classes (just a few years ago!) ... whence this name?

I agree that "Brittany" (various spellings) in my recollection emerged out of
the woodwork in the last generation.  Someone told me it was the name of the
girlfriend of one of Simon-Theodore-Alvin chipmunks.

Your own given name of "Douglas" is from a surname, which I believe means
"black water".

Was "Virginia" used as a girl's given name before the reign of Elizabeth I
the Virgin Queen?  Or was the ill-fated Virginia Dare the first girl known to
have borne that name?  If the latter, then we have a known coinage, since
"Virginia" comes from "Virgin Queen".

     - Jim Landau