160+ Sweet Old Lady Names Rooted In Tradition

Let’s face it: Naming your baby is one of the hardest decisions you’ll make. For many wannabe mamas and daddies, it’s something they’ve thought about and planned for their entire lives. If you’re like one of the millions of new parents who are close to their family, you might want something that seems nostalgic. But, let’s face it, going back one generation (to our parents) doesn’t necessarily give us names we love. After all, the generation before them loved the name… Karen.

We have to go a little further back and dig a little deeper into our roots to find more traditional (and increasingly popular) names. There are traditional names that will always be somewhat popular, like Elizabeth or Katherine. They’re gorgeous names. Everyone has a grandma or great grandma with that name. But everyone also probably has a sister or a cousin with that name. Sometimes picking an “old lady name” means using their nicknames. How many Betsys or Kittys do you know now? Both names are steeped in tradition, have their roots with more popular names but offer a decidedly vintage twist. Then, of course, there are names that people have genuinely stopped using for the last 60 to 100 years — names like Agnes, Mabel, or Naomi.

One of the best ways to pick an old lady name for your precious baby girl is to sit down with a family tree and examine the names of actual old ladies. You can also just ask your mama or grandma to list the relatives they remember. If, however, you want a traditional name but aren’t (or don’t want to be) tied to your actual family, we’d like to help. We scraped the database and these are the best old lady names we could find for your precious baby.