Trivia: Names or shortened forms of names which don't give away your gender

[pemma]

Under equal opportunities you often don't have to declare things like your age, gender, religion etc. However, most of the time giving your name gives away your gender but in some instances it may not.

For example:
Alex is used as a shortened form of both Alexander and Alexandra.
Ali is increasingly being used as a shortened form of Alison as well as being a male name of Arabic? origin.
Charlie is increasingly being used as a shortened form of Charlotte as well as Charlie.
Jo is normally a shortened form of Joanne/Joanna with Joe being a shortened form of Joseph but there's exceptions e.g. Jo Johnson and Swedish novelist Jo Nesbo.
Sam is used as a shortened form of Samantha and Samuel.

Are there many other names from which you can't tell the gender of the person from the name?

 

[Howardh]

Hillary as in Hilary Benn - but not sure if Hillary (as in Clinton) with the double l is the gender difference.
Alice as in Cooper and my old lady.
Pat.

 

[PeterC]

Ali is also a diminutive of Alastair / Alisdair

Sandy - For men a nickname but also diminutive of Sandra

When spoken Francis / Frances but both can be Frankie

and Leslie / Lesley

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Drew Barrymore (female actor) and myself (male non-celeb)...
Cameron Jerome (male footballer) and Cameron Diaz (female actor)...
Jerry Seinfeld (male comedian) and Jerry Hall (female model and apparent serial-marrier-of-ugly-old-men).
Oh, and:
Shirley Temple (female actor/diplomat) and Shirley Crabtree (male wrestler).

 

[pemma]

Alice as in Cooper and my old lady.

The Alice I know isn't a rock star or old. It's probably best to stick to people's actual names rather than stage names.

 

[Bletchleyite]

While spelling gives it away, speech doesn't - Toni and Tony.

 

[Y Ddraig Coch]

Danny / Danni (Danielle)

 

[Y Ddraig Coch]

Chris ( Christopher / Christine )

 

[Y Ddraig Coch]

George (George / Georgina)

 

[adrock1976]

Stevie (Stephen (or Steven) / Stephanie)

I was thinking of Stevie Nicks from the 1977 and 1987 line up of Fleetwood Mac that recorded the Rumours album and Tango in the Night album respectively.

Also Lindsey can be both male and female as well (Lindsey Buckingham).

 

[pemma]

I forgot about Laurie.

 

[507021]

Vic for Victoria or Victor.

Incidentally, I used to work with a lady called Christine who signed up to a casting agency for potential roles as an extra. One day, she was called by the agency about a role, although as she went by Chris, they assumed she was male. Apparently they were very embarrassed when she corrected them and said Chris was actually short for Christine, not Christopher.

 

[PeterC]

American guitarist D L Menard (1932 - 2017) was christened Doris which is probably why he was always known by his initials.

 

[trash80]

Sue, apparently is a boy's name too according to Johnny Cash

 

[AM9]

... and Hollywood hunk big John Wayne's given name was Marion Morrison.

 

[Groningen]

One could better call a list for names suitable for boys and girls; ok, some Dutch names included.

Alex Anne Bo/Beau Bobby Charlie/Charly Chris Daan/Daantje Dominique Gaby Guus/Guusje
Harper Henny Jack/Jacky James Jessie Jip Jos Jules Kim Luca Marijn Marlijn Maxime Nicky Noa/Noah
Pascal René/Renée Robin Ruby Sam Sanne Sasha/Sascha Senna Sydney Yaniek

 

[Crossover]

Jamie (not a shortening, but I know people of both genders with this name)

Nic - shortening of Nicholas/Nicola

 

[43021HST]

Hillary as in Hilary Benn
Pat.

Going on that theme, Tony as in Tony Benn and Toni as in Toni from Peep Show
Bobby as in Robert or Roberta

 

[Groningen]

Nic is also Nick in the Netherlands.

 

[PeterC]

Peter / Peta, easy to distinguish in writing but pronounced the same (as is the surname Petre)

 

[greyman42]

Terence / Terry.

 

[341o2]

Jordan, boy's name also Katie Price
Paddy can be Patrick or Patricia as in Spike Milligan's second wife

 

[341o2]

Also just reminded that Leo is normally masculine, once knew a Leona who called herself "Leo"

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Going on that theme, Tony as in Tony Benn and Toni as in Toni from Peep Show

Or even the impressively-mulleted (male) Austrian ex-footballer, Toni Polster.

 

[341o2]

The Alice I know isn't a rock star or old. It's probably best to stick to people's actual names rather than stage names.

A bit like the Francis Durbridge detective series Paul Temple, whose wife Louise adopted the pen name "Steve" in her capacity as a journalist, and the nickname stuck

 

[Aussie_Rail]

As far as pronunciation is concerned:

Billy and Billie.
Gene and Jean.
Michele and Michelle.
Joe and Jo.
Peter and Peta.
Bobby and Bobbi.
Nick and Nic.

 

[PeterC]

I have kn own women use Bobby and men use Nic. I have noticed that you are more likely to see women using the traditionally accepted "masculine" forms of diminutives that you would 40 or more years ago.

Getting back to names Kerry (or Welsh Ceri) is genuinely a unisex name.

 

[baz962]

Andy/andi

 

[61653 HTAFC]

I have kn own women use Bobby and men use Nic. I have noticed that you are more likely to see women using the traditionally accepted "masculine" forms of diminutives that you would 40 or more years ago.

Getting back to names Kerry (or Welsh Ceri) is genuinely a unisex name.

Kelly is another. I once worked somewhere with two people both named Kelly Kelly (matching forenames and surnames!) One was female and Kelly was her married name, but the other was male and presumably just had parents with either a cruel sense of humour or a lack of imagination!

I think society is more accepting of a woman with a traditionally masculine name than it is of a man with a traditionally feminine name. Not sure why, but there we go...

 

[The North Briton]

Andrea is usually female, unless you happen to be Italian..