Pronunciation purl Word/name English | Gender unisex Meaning "pearl" | |
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Region of origin English, French, German, and Dutch-speaking countries, Scandinavian countries | ||
Pearl is a primarily feminine given name derived from the English word pearl, a hard, roundish object produced within the soft tissue of a living, shelled mollusk. Pearls are commonly used in jewelry-making. The pearl is the birthstone for the month of June. Pearls have been associated with innocence and modesty. Because it comes from the sea, it also has associations with the moon and with water. Pearls are also traditionally considered appropriate jewelry for debutantes and brides.
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Pearl came into popular use along with other gemstone names during the late Victorian Era. It may also have been inspired by the name Margaret, which means "pearl." In Nathaniel Hawthorne's 1850 novel The Scarlet Letter, heroine Hester Prynne names her illegitimate daughter Pearl because the child is "of great price, purchased with all she had, her mother's only treasure." The passage refers to the Parable of the Pearl in the New Testament. The gates to Heaven are also commonly pictured as made of pearl.
It was among the 50 most popular names for girls born in the United States between 1880 and 1911, remained among the top 100 most popular names for girls between 1911 and 1926 and remained among the top 500 most popular names for girls in the United States until 1960. It was last ranked among the top 1,000 names for girls born in the United States in 1986 before it returned to the top 1,000 in 2007, when it was ranked at No. 993. It rose to No. 814 by 2011 and was given to 327 American girls born in that year. The name was among the top 1,000 names given to boys in the United States between 1880 and 1939. The name was the 223rd most common name for women and girls in the United States in the 1990 census. Authors Pamela Redmond Satran and Linda Rosenkrantz noted in their 2007 book The Baby Name Bible that Pearl is in fashion again with hipster parents in the United States.
Pearl can also be a surname, one which is common among Jews.
Famous Pearls
Zane Grey, the male American writer of Westerns, was born Pearl Zane Grey. Pearl Buck was a well-known female American author. Minnie Pearl was a country and western comedian and singer. The Poor Pitiful Pearl doll was a vintage doll manufactured by the Brookglad Corp., Gladtoy Company and later by the Horsman Doll Company in the United States from the 1950s through the 1970s. The doll was based on a cartoon character created by William Steig. One recently named Pearl, the then two-year-old Pearl McKay, was the star of the 2007 short film The Landlord.
Pearl Bailey was an American singer and actress. Pearl Richards Craigie was an Anglo-American novelist and dramatist, who wrote under the pen-name John Oliver Hobbes. Pearl Aday was an American singer-songwriter.
Pearl Fryar has a topiary garden described in the documentary film "A Man Named Pearl".