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{{trope}}
[[File:gunnerkrigg-genderblendername.jpg|link=Gunnerkrigg Court
{{quote|''I tell ya, life ain't easy for a boy named "Sue." ''
Most of the time, one can guess somebody's gender by reading his/her first name. Most first names have a well-defined gender, such as Alice or Robert.
...Well, ''most''.
Sometimes the only name you get is an ambiguous abbreviation, such as Sam. Or a gender-neutral name, such as Dominique or Claude in French. Or worse, a name whose "default gender" changes from a country to another (or even over time in the same country!), like "Andrea" which is typically female in the U.S. but typically male in Italy and Greece (And in Greek it means "manly"). And let's not forget the names that must be written down to determine the gender, such as Tony/Toni or Francis/Frances.
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If a character is fated to become a permanent [[Wholesome Crossdresser]] or the victim of a [[Gender Bender]] accident they will typically have had names like this, because [[Steven Ulysses Perhero|Fate is just funny like that]].
Can sometimes be considered the [[Embarrassing First Name]] or the [[Embarrassing Middle Name]].
[[Tomboyish Name]] is a [[Sub
{{examples}}▼
▲{{examples}}
== Chosen on Purpose ==
* The [[Butt Monkey]] main character in ''[[Bludgeoning Angel
* The journalist Dicky Chapelle (she of the pearl earrings) ... chosen over her original name of Georgette...
* [[Dropped a Bridget On Him|Bridget]] from the ''[[Guilty Gear]]'' [[Video Games]]. Chosen because he was raised as a girl, due to a superstition of twin boys being unlucky.
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** {{spoiler|Culminating in an ''epic'' fight when he finally tracked down his dad, which ends with reconciliation between the two (though he does make it a point to say he'd name his own son "any damn thing but Sue! I still hate that name!").}}
** A male character in the movie ''[[Swingers]]'' is named Sue. Apparently his parents were inspired by this song.
* ''[[Nancy Drew]]'' has a friend named George, although it's always made clear that she's a girl. At least one spinoff series has attributed this to her real name being "Georgia" and her being a tomboy.
* The ''[[Wayside School]]'' series has two characters named Nancy and Mac who eventually swap names to fit their corresponding genders. Nancy was named after his aunt, and Mac's mother named her after a dog.
* On ''[[
* Elliot from ''[[Scrubs]]'', her parents were expecting a boy.
** Also from "[[Scrubs]]," Jennifer Dylan Cox - Dylan comes from a Welsh sea god. But Jordan named her after JD just to screw with Cox. Jordan herself has an ambiguous name, and there was a running joke that all the women JD slept with for the first few seasons had unisex names.
* Jayne from ''[[
** Whether or not Jayne's father was a Johnny Cash fan remains frustratingly unclear, however.
** There's also Mal and Zoe's old war buddy, Tracey Smith.
* Holly on ''[[
* The AI 'Ziggy' in ''[[Quantum Leap]]'' turned out to have a female voice after yeas of referring to it as "he."
* [[Real Life]] example: [[Billie Piper]], her mother decided that either way she was going to be called Billie before she was born. She was registered on her birth certificate as Lianne but her parents changed their minds back and always called her Billie. And her middle name is Paul.
** It's debatable whether her first name (at least) is actually a gender bender, as "Billie" was a common girl's nickname at one point. Billie Jean King and Billie Holiday are perhaps the two best-known examples.
* Alex, from the webcomic ''[https://web.archive.org/web/20131006074232/http://www.gomanga.com/webmanga/index.php?series=aoi Aoi House]''. is a guy... But it's short for [https://web.archive.org/web/20130604094258/http://www.gomanga.com/webmanga/index.php?series=aoi&page=22 Alexis], which is in the Country-dependent list.
** Alex from ''Building 12'', on the other hand, is a girl...though everyone in the house pretends otherwise at her request. It's...[https://web.archive.org/web/20121110024647/http://www.building12.net/issue1/page23.htm complicated]
* Ichigo Kurosaki from ''[[
* The two more "masculine"-acting soldiers among the Sailor Senshi of ''[[Sailor Moon]]'' are named Makoto Kino (Sailor Jupiter) and Haruka Tenoh (Sailor Uranus); the former is a [[Huge Schoolgirl]] who loves martial arts, while the latter is a [[Butch Lesbian]]. Both names are traditionally male boys' names; however, in recent years, the name "Haruka" has become more of a unisex name.
* Pat from ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' was a [[Running Gag]] based on this trope. And then someone had the bright idea to make a movie revolving around that one joke.
* Not ''really'' on purpose, but [http://www.gunnerkrigg.com/archive_page.php?comicID=387 George Parley] of ''[[
{{quote|
* [[
** Manson's name is only a ''stage'' name, his real name being Brian Hugh Warner. Cooper legally changed his name from Vincent Damon Furnier.
* In Catholic countries, it is somewhat common to name boys "Maria" or some variation thereof as a middle name, or as a composite first name. Prominent examples include the Austrian poet [[
** Erich Maria Remarque, author of ''[[All Quiet
** In fact Jean-Marie Le Pen (full) real name is Jean Louis Marie Le Pen, making this a straight example. Jean-Marie is a nickname he started to use on the advice of his (now ex) wife in order to sound more Catholic, a traditional target for what passes for the far right parties in France.
** Likewise, Joseph sometimes turns up as a girl's middle name or as the second part of a composite first name.
** Maria José and José María are not uncommon names in Mexican history (sometimes get even a Jesus in the combination!!!) but most cases the first name matches the gender, as the Josés are mostly men and the Marías women.
** In France, at least until the 18th century, "Anne" also was used as a first name for boys. A prime example would be [[Four
** In Scotland, where family surnames are common as middle names (but not first names) girls often end up with middle names that sound pretty masculine. Or just plain unfortunate, such as "Duff".
** "Mariya" from [[Maria Holic]] seems to be example of this particular instance.
* Ukyo Kuonji has a few problems related to gender identity throughout her childhood in ''[[Ranma
* There is also Ryunosuke and Nagisa from ''[[Urusei Yatsura]]''. They also both fall under [[Wholesome Crossdresser]] and are ''engaged'' to each other.
* Novelist [[Anne Rice]]'s legal given name is Howard Allen O'Brien, because her parents thought it would be cute to name a girl Howard. Apparently, she didn't agree; on her first day of kindergarten, the teacher asked her name. She answered "Anne". Remarkably quick thinking for a five-year old.
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* And Fay Weldon's parents named her Franklin Birkinshaw (but started calling her Fay almost immediately). One can ''kind'' of see the -lin ending might work as a female name, were it not for the connotations.
* The poet Stevie Smith was female (originally named Florence). It's also been known as a shortening for Stephanie, as in Stevie Nicks.
* Stacey/Stacy is a common female name and uncommon male name.
** In ''Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry'', Stacey is the main character's brother.
** Stacy Keach's first name is actually Walter, but he chose to go by his middle name, Stacy, perhaps in honor of his father, Stacy Keach Sr., who was also an actor.
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* From the book Chartbreak, Finch (last name) and Christie. The former's a girl, the latter's a guy.
* Douglas Hofstadter of ''[[Godel Escher Bach|Godel, Escher, Bach]]'' fame wrote at least one dialogue where all three characters had gender-ambiguous names.
* One ''[[
* Vyvyan from ''[[The Young Ones]]''. His mum never did explain why she gave him a girl's name. It is a unisex name, but It's more commonly used for men in the UK, though.
* Actor [[Mandy Patinkin]], whose name is a shortened form of Mandel. Usually when you hear "Mandy", it's for a woman, and short for Amanda.
* United States President [[Barack Obama]]'s mother was named Stanley Dunham, after her father, but went by her middle name, Ann.
** US President [[Lyndon B. Johnson|Lyndon Baines Johnson]] had an aunt named Frank.
* The wife of Irish poet [[William Butler Yeats]] was named George.
* Claire Stanfield from ''[[Baccano
* Miyuki Tezuka, a.k.a. Kamen Rider Raia from ''[[Kamen Rider Ryuki]]'', is a guy. It only goes unnoticed because everyone [[Last-Name Basis|only uses "Tezuka" to refer to him]], but that's the character's official name.
* Rapper Tramar Dillard must not have cared that Flo was short for Florence, traditionally a female name, when taking [[Punny Name|Flo Rida]] as his stage name. And, yes, that is his home state.
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** Same confusion, different generation: Actress Michael Michele.
** Also actress [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0404924/ Michael Hyatt].
** [
** Also actress [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0635782/ Christopher Norris].
** And actress [https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0388839/ Cecil Hoffman].
* Adrian Andrews from the second and third games of ''[[Ace Attorney]]'', which is important because {{spoiler|her name sounds masculine (and her last name literally is). This helps derail Shelly de Killer's argument that Adrian is his client, since he states that he physically met Adrian to make the deal, but refers to her as male because he hasn't actually met her.}}
* Kamille Bidan of ''[[Zeta Gundam]]''. It might be a country-dependent choice given his French-sounding last name, but Kamille's [[Berserk Button|sensitivity about his name]] causes all sorts of things to happen in this series. Indeed, there may not even have been a Zeta Gundam if he were named Bob.
* Subverted in the book ''Beyond Rejection'' - a [[Gender Bender|former man whose personality has been transferred to a female body]] asks to be called "Patricia", aiming at this trope. The therapist points this out and starts calling her "Trish".
** Also subverted in Robert Heinlein's book ''I Will Fear No Evil'', character Johann Sebastian Bach Smith has his brain transplanted into the body of a young female murder victim named Eunice Branca. Johann then chooses the name Joan Eunice Smith. He states that if "Joan" is pronounced as two syllables, it sounds a lot like 'Johann.'
* Harold Belserius from ''[[Tales of Destiny
* The gynecologist brothers from ''Dead Ringers'' are named Elliot and Beverly. It's implied that their parents gave Bev a girl's name to help set their identical twins' childhood experiences apart from one another.
** "Beverly" was originally a male name that became a mostly female name
* Dr Rodney McKay from Stargate: Atlantis. Rodney is his middle name. His first name is Meredith. He does get teased for it.
** Meredith was originally a boys' name, and later became a unisex name (much like Jordan, Sydney, Riley, etc.) before becoming pretty much exclusively a girls' name.
*** Exclusive outside its native country, perhaps. In its native country (it's a Welsh name properly spelled Maredudd) it's still the boy's name that it always was. On this side of the Pond, Rodney's name completely normal.
* In [[Gateway]], the main character is Robinette Broadhead, a man. He usually goes by Robin or Bob. Still, being saddled with a woman's name is one of the things he talks about during his extensive therapy sessions.
* [[
* Kahn Jr. in ''[[King of the Hill]]''. Naturally, she prefers to go by 'Connie'. She explained she was named after her father because he wanted a son.
** The episode, "Uncool Customer" has the birthday girl name Michael.
* Sissel of ''[[Ghost Trick]]'' is quite male {{spoiler|even if he's not human}}, but has a female name. {{spoiler|This is because he's named after Yomiel's fiancee.}}
* ''[[
** As is Subject Delta, another Big Daddy and the protagonist of the sequel. He is actually addressed as simply "Delta" on at least one occasion. Not a common proper name, but a female character from ''[[Luann]]'' has it.
** One of the Little Sisters' random lines in the original was "That's a lady's name. ''Not'' a ''boy's'' name!" It's especially funny when she's traveling with a Rosie.
* The Soldier in ''[[
* {{spoiler|Jack}} AKA "Subject Zero" in ''[[Mass Effect]] 2'', named apparently solely to have a [[Samus Is a Girl]] moment...for everyone who avoided seeing [[Trailers Always Spoil|the several trailers]] she appears in.
** Not to mention that all in-game mention prior to first meeting Subject Zero conspicuously neglects any sort of gender identifying pronoun.
* Bryan Fuller likes to do this to his female characters. In ''[[Wonderfalls]]'' the main female character is named Jaye, which is a little ambiguous. ''[[Dead Like Me]]'' made this habit blatant, with the main female character George(tte) and her sister Reggie (Regina). Ned's love interest in ''[[Pushing Daisies]]'' is Charlotte... but goes by Chuck.
* The trope is used in the [[Older Than Steam|16th century]] madrigal ''"Of all the birds that I do know"'', which is ostensibly about a pet sparrow named Philip, but which is always referenced with female pronouns. There is probably some sort of [[Double Entendre]] that hasn't survived for 400 years, but the song is still beautiful. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vnr6Oxybkq4 Can be found here.]
* [[Superhero]] Mr. Mighty from ''[[Everyday Heroes]]'' is named Marion. (His two brothers are Michael and Morrison; their parents were big fans of [[John Wayne]].)
** [[Holes|Mr. Sir's]] real name Marion Sirvino. "It ''is'' a boy's name!"
* Lucia Raregroove, the ultimate [[Big Bad]] of ''[[Rave Master]]''. Yes, he has a girl's name. Since he's the embodiment of darkness, his name also means light. His stepbrother's name [[Who Names Their Kid "Dude"?|isn't much better]].
* African-American heart surgeon [
* Tohru from [[Fruits Basket]] explains that her father gave her a typically masculine name in order to emphasize her femininity, comparing it to adding a little salt to something sweet to enhance the flavor.
** Ayame and Yuki can both be female names
* [[Hanna Is Not a
* Although Edith, a male character from ''[[Ghost Dad]]'', claims his first name is a boy's name, he also explains he was named after his grandmother.
{{quote|
* In ''[[Kyon
* ''Bullet-Proof Monk'' actress James King wanted to defy naming conventions, but apparently switched to Jamie to avoid confusion.
* Ruby and Sapphire from ''[[Pokémon Special]]'', considering the protagonists are named after each game. Ruby from ''Pocket Monsters'' counts too.
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* Similar to Dr. Vivien Thomas above, the mother of NFL player [http://espn.go.com/nfl/player/_/id/9628/danieal-manning Danieal Manning] liked the name "Danielle", but had a boy instead. Perhaps she didn't like "Daniel" quite as much.
* ''[[Gunslinger Girl]]''. Rico and Claes are given male names by their handlers, who are somewhat uncomfortable working with brainwashed underaged girl killers, so the names help to disassociate them.
* Charlie from ''[[Khaos Komix]]'' is a male-to-female [[
* Gary, the owner of the shoe store where Al Bundy works in [[Married...
** Mary, the maker of the Bundys' couch, is a man. He insists that his name is a male name [[Its Pronounced Tropay|and emphasized on the last syllable]] whereas the usual female version is emphasized on the first syllable.
* In [[Duck Dodgers]] episode "Back to the Academy", Duck Dodgers was evaluated by a drill sergeant named Emily Dickinson Jones. Emily got this name because people's names in the 24th and a half century aren't choosen with basis on their gender and ''his'' mother was a fan of classic poetry.
* Julia gets quite a shock in [[Date Movie]] when Grant's "best man" Andy turns out to be an extremely attractive woman.
* Tiffany (a boy) and Gary the Mermaid Queen (a female) from ''[[
* ''[[
* In "[[We Will Rock You]]", Britney Spears is the very male "...the biggest, baddest, meanest, nastiest, ugliest, most raging, rapping, rock'n'roll, sick, punk, heavy metal psycho bastard that ever got get-down funky." And Meat Loaf is his girlfriend, who is called Ozzy in some versions.
* Dr. Edward Bunnigus from ''[[
* The titular character in ''[[Film/The Little Devil|The Little Devil]]'' is a little devil who [[Demonic Possession|possessed]] an Italian lady named Giuditta. He liked her name, so after his exorcism, he decided to keep it as his own.
* In ''[[Little Shop of Horrors]]'', the main character gets a [[Man-Eating Plant|bizarre-looking plant]] and names it "Audrey II", after Audrey, the girl he likes. The plant gets loosely referred to as female by the characters, but when it starts to ''talk'', it sounds and acts very male. Since plants sometimes are hermaphrodites and this particular plant is also {{spoiler|an alien}} the gender distinction thing gets weird if you think about it too hard.
* ''[[Fire Emblem Jugdral|Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War]]'' gives us Claude, a male Bishop ; and Eve, Eva and Alva, who are male [[Same Sex Triplets]]. Alva can actually be a male name (see [[Thomas Edison]], whose middle name is Alva), but Eve and Eva are decidedly feminine.
* Kevin from ''[[Up (
* Mary Palorocini of [[Homestar Runner|Limozeen.]]
* The mother in ''[[
* Beth Metatronim in ''[[
* [[Country Music]] singer Gus Hardin was a female. (Her real name was Carolyn Ann Blankenship.)
* A more common example is singer Charly McClain (short for Charlotte).
* In the NBC Television series "Sisters," the five sisters have female names but are given male nicknames by their father, who always wanted sons. Thus Alexandra, Theodora, Georgiana, Francesca, and Charlotte are called Alex, Teddy, Georgie, Frankie, and Charlie. Alex's daughter is named Reed, which is also typically a male name.
* [http://twewy.wikia.com/wiki/Megumi_Kitaniji Megumi Kitaniji], a major antagonist in ''[[
* [[Jessica Simpson]] named her daughter Maxwell.
* An episode of ''[[The Loony Toons Show]]'' has Bugs and Daffy at a spa, getting massages. Daffy sees that he's scheduled to get a massage from "Joe", while Bugs is going to get one from "Leslie". Daffy swaps the signs, so of course Joe turns out to be a beautiful woman named Josephine, while Leslie is a big, hairy man who twists Daffy into a pretzel.
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== Country-Dependent ==
* Adrian is almost always a masculine name in the United Kingdom, but occasionally a feminine name in the United States (and can be confused with the feminine form Adrienne).
** Hence Adrian Andrews from ''[[Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney]].''
** Or Adrian from the ''[[Rocky (
** Or Adrian [[Monk]].
* Alexis, Nikita and Sasha are actually masculine names of ''Greek'' origin. Alexis is the common French spelling of "Alexios", in Russian it is usually "Aleksej" or "[[Tetris
* As for Nikita, you have Khrushchev (Russian Prime Minister) and Koloff (Russian sounding stage name for an ''American'' pro wrestler), and Nikita from ''[[La Femme Nikita]]''.
* Nikita is a male's name in Russia (think Khrushchev) and Finland, but female elsewhere. Like France. ([[La Femme Nikita|La Femme]] of the same name).
** This puts a different light on [[Elton John]]'s mid-80s hit "Nikita" (the video featured a [[Did Not Do the Research|female East German border guard]]), but Elton John is gay... Could go either way depending on who's singing it.
** It possible that [[Alternate Character Interpretation|Nikita of the movie had knowingly adopted a masculine nickname]]; hence the ''femme'' of the title, to clarify that it is about a woman.
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** One of the women in a couple of [[James Bond]] films is named Andrea Anders.
** In MaryJanice Davidson's ''[[Undead and Unwed]]'', Betsy throws Sinclair's opera CDs from his car in revenge. Leading to (paraphrased):
{{quote|
** Comic book artist Andrea DiVito, Italian, was once frequently mistaken for a woman. Ironically, ''female'' artist Nicola Scott is ''still'' frequently mistaken for a ''man''.
** The (female) ''[[Survival of the Fittest]]'' character Andrea Vanlandingham.
** The female sprite AndrAIa in ''[[
** Many other Italian male names may fall into this category, especially if they are the "Hebrew-descent-angel-names-finished-in-el", among them Daniele (Daniel), Michele (Michael) and Gabriele (Gabriel). What sets them apart from English is that, when such names are used for girls, they are usually spelt with LL's (and thus, treated as feminine versions of the respective names), but some languages (Brazilian Portuguese prominently) admit the use of a single L.
* Likewise, the name Simon has identical or unambiguous cognates in most other European languages...except Italian. The ''masculine'' Italian version is Simone (even though it's pronounced "see-MAW-neh", unlike the ''feminine'' English and French Simone, which sounds like "sea-MOAN"). The Italian female version is Simona, if you were wondering. The reverse happens in Spanish: the masculine version, Simón, is spelled exactly like in English save for the accent, but is pronounced more like the female version.
* Angel is gender-neutral in English, but specifically male in, at least, Spain. [[Oh Crap|Oh]] [[Embarrassing First Name|Dear.]]
* The same goes for the Italian and American versions of the name Luca - some were confused about Suzanne Vega singing "My name is Luka (I live on the second floor...)".
** The song, though sung by a woman, is written to be from the perspective of a little boy named Luka.
** But what floor did [[Teen Genius]] Lucca from ''[[
* Anne, although a female name in most languages, is traditionally a male name in Frisian. Pronounched something like Oh-one-eh, but more fluent.
** Anna is commonly female as well. But then there's this activist guy from India: [
* If a person is unfamiliar with Armenian names, the endings of the names frequently leave the gender to the imagination.
* Artemis is the name of a Greek goddess.
** One should have told that to ''[[
*** And takes it all in stride just like a good little criminal with the highest IQ in Europe would. In the end of the book he answers to this insult from the antagonist: "Every now and then a male comes along with such a talent for hunting that he earns the right to use that name. I am that male. Artemis the hunter. I hunted you." Ba-zing!
**** Even better is that the phrase Artemis the Hunter is the signal to his allies to unleash hell.
** And the Robert Rankin character Hugo Artemis Solon Saturnicus Reginald Arthur Rune.
** And [[The Icewind Dale Trilogy|Artemis Entreri]], of R.A. Salvatore fame.
** In ''[[Codename: Sailor V]]'', the manga that led to ''[[Sailor Moon]]'', Minako calls Artemis a "transsexual cat", teasing him for having the name of a goddess. He's at the same time upset and impressed with her knowledge of Greek mythology... until she tells him she [[Taught
** It should be noted that the name Artemis is unisex in Greek. The female version is pronounced with stress on the first syllable and the male version with stress on the second (ART-teh-miss vs art-TEH-miss). But basically it's the same name.
*** There is also an anglicinized male-only version of the name, Artemus. Fairly rare today, but was somewhat popular in the US during the second half of the 19th century. Fictional bearers of the name include Artemus Gordon from ''[[The Wild Wild West (TV series)|The Wild Wild West]]'' and the Keeper Elder Artemus from the ''[[Thief]]'' game series.
* Blaise, a masculine name in most of Europe, has been used as a feminine name in the United States.
** Blaise Zabini from ''[[Harry Potter]]'' is male. Some fans had assumed that the name, mentioned in passing, belonged to a female character, until JKR clarified it.
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* Deri. A Welsh male name meaning 'oaks', can now be found as a female name.
* In Spanish-speaking countries, Jaime is a male name pronounced "Hi May", however in America, Jaime is typically a female spelling of Jamie. Other than that, the trope is largely averted in this language, due to it distinguishing names and words by gender.
* Jan is a Germanic male
** Although back in the 1960s there was the singing duet of [[Jan and Dean]], who sang "The Little Old Lady from Pasadena" and "Dead Man's Curve".
** Don't forget the (male) American actor Jan Michael Vincent and the comedian Jan Murray.
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* Kim, which at least in English tends to be feminine, while in Nordic countries it is masculine. Also Kimi (as in Räikkönen).
** However, we can point out at least two male English Kims: author [[Kim Newman]] and [[Rudyard Kipling]]'s ''Kim''. (There's also the spy Kim Philby, but in his case "Kim" was just a nickname, after the Kipling character, and his actual given name was Harold.)
** It is also masculine in the former Soviet Union, being one of the numerous "revolutionary" names that were invented after the [[Red October]]. It stands for "Kommunistichesky Internatsional Molodyozhy" ("the Communist International of the Youth", the youth branch of the Comintern). Most of these names have lost popularity, for [[The Great Politics Mess
** The fact that Kim is the single most common Korean family name just adds another layer of confusion.
** There's also the male Kim Thayil of Soundgarden, who is American, but of Indian descent.
* Mika is a fairly common name among females in Japan, but in Finnish it's distinctly male. Even so, several websites listing names from around the world claim it to be a girl's name in both Japan and Finland. Of course, some know better.
** [[Wartech|Senko no Ronde]], despite being a Japanese game, gets it right: the main character, Mika Mikli, is a guy.
** A similar bit of confusion starts off ''[[
*** The actual name is ''Meike'', but we'll let it slide for a movie that basically parodied [[Did Not Do the Research]]. (If it wasn't intended a parody, keep quiet and leave the Europeans that comfortable illusion.)
**** [http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mieke Mieke] is a [[Perfectly Cromulent Word|perfectly cromulent]] German name.
* Noah, generally considered to be a masculine name in English, is actually a feminine name in Hebrew. The man people are trying to name their sons after has a name ending in a sound that English doesn't have, so when [[
** "Noa" is also recently gaining popularity as a feminine name in Japan.
** Similarly, Shelah is a Biblical name that can go both ways but was most commonly on men. Now it's most common on women.
** The name Micaiah is used for both women and men in the Bible, though a [[Spell My Name
* In English, Ringo is usually more a nickname than a normal first name, but mainly given to guys. On the other hand, in Japanese the name Ringo is more usually a female name.
** In [[
* Robin was originally a diminutive form of Robert, but now can be given to either sex. According to Wikipedia, it is more popular as a boy's name in the United Kingdom and more popular as a girl's name in the United States, but it's not rare to have American boys or British girls called Robin ([[Robin Williams]] is American, mind you).
** To make the gender clear, the name has gained alternate spellings over time: e.g. Robyn (like the - female - Swedish pop singer), Robynne.
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* Yuri is masculine in Russia, but feminine in Japan.
** Yuri Hyuga from ''[[Shadow Hearts]]'' is [[But Not Too Foreign|half-Russian and half-Japanese]], so one assumes his Russian mother named him. [[Woolseyism|It's still better than]] [[Foreign Sounding Gibberish|"Urnmaf"]], mind you.
** Yuri Lowell from ''[[
*** There's also a male Karol in the same game, and a male Jade in one of the earlier names. The Tales series must enjoy putting names in the blender.
** Most Japanese media render the Russian version as Yu-ri (to simulate the stress on the first syllable) and the Japanese version as Yuri. Still a bit confusing, though.
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* Elis, Kai and Terje are feminine names in Estonia, but masculine in most other countries.
* Vanya is a diminutive of Ivan in Russia: a male name. In Brazil it became a girl's name.
** So then, [[The Umbrella Academy|Gerard Way]] ''did'' do the research when he gave a female character a male name. [[Wild Mass Guessing|Is 00.07 Brazilian, or was her mother Russian and had a Boy Named Sue moment!? Or did Hargreeves not do the research, if he was the one who named the kids? Did Way do all of this on purpose?]] Oh god, [[Mind Screw]].
* The Irish name Conor, sometimes spelt Connor (although thats usually reserved for surnames). It's unquestionably a mans name in its native Ireland and the neighboring UK. However it's apparently found some use as a female name in the United States. Americans not knowing its origins and simply liking the name is one thing, but there are seemingly some Irish Americans who have forgotten this too.
* While more common as a female name, in Mexico Guadalupe can also be male. Shortened to Lupe in both cases.
* Kida is a masculine name in Japan, but a feminine name in [[Atlantis:
* On ''Disney/Lilo andStitch,'' Pleakley's real first name turns out to be "Wendy." It apparently means "Great Warrior" in his home language, but [[Wholesome Crossdresser|even he]] seems embarrassed to use it on Earth.
* Carol/Karol vs. Carole. The former is often male in English-speaking and Slavic countries (as attested by the late Pope John Paul II, born Karol Józef Wojtyła); while the latter is feminine at least in French. Note that Carole is a recent construction, both a variant of Caroline and a modernization of the German "karl" root; this very root actually means "manly", by the way.
== Cultural transformation ==
* The long list of names which were originally male but have morphed into female because [[Double Standard|folks give girls "boy" names, but then don't like giving boys names that have been used for girls]]: Beverley, Courtney, Shirley, Laverne, Evelyn, Dana, Gail, Jocelyn (yes, really), Lesley (note the spelling), Lindsey, Stacy, Tracy, Morgan... Ashley and Sidney seem to be headed in this direction.
** And is the reason one [[Badass]] in the ''[[Evil Dead]]'' series goes by the name "Ash."
** Ash Crimson, from ''[[King of Fighters]]'' is called Ashley, probably due to his French origin. Maybe his true name generated the whole fruity behavior he has. Fitting.
** Ashley Winchester of [[Wild
** "Ashleigh", a male variant of "Ashley," has evolved, as in the case of author [
*** The "-ley/-leigh" names - including "Leigh" itself - were originally surnames (it refers to a meadow, or clearing), so gender-neutral. It's just a [[Double Standard]].
** There was a pro football player named Ashley (Ambrose) a few years back. Appropriately enough, he played for Atlanta (cue sports anchors doing their best [[Gone
*** There's Ashley Cole too. That black English footballer guy who plays for Chelsea, for those unfamiliar.
** Ashley is a great (and seemingly popular) example because it wasn't used for girls until [[The Seventies]], so it's in the midst of the switch (as noted above). Interestingly, as women co-opt male names, they abandon "old" sounding names like Dorothy and Margaret.
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** Wasn't always a [[Double Standard]], way, way back, Phillip and Philip were girl's names.
*** How far back? Alexander the Great's ''father'' was Philip of Macedon. The name was more or less abandoned in the West, but some Russians liked it, and western Europe re-borrowed it from them.
* Hayden, only recently having become extremely popular as a male name (along with Jaden, Aiden, etc.), is becoming a female name. A quick check of US Social Security records shows that the first significant use of Hayden for girls coincides with ... [[Hayden Panettiere]]'s [[Heroes (TV series)|breakout role]].
* The 1944 film ''Laura'' stars Dana Andrews and [[Gene Tierney]]. Guess which actor is male and which one is female.
* In [[Philip Jose Farmer|Philip José Farmer's]] [[Science Fiction]] novel ''Dayworld'', (set many centuries in the future) the custom of men's and women's names has died out. Several male characters have female names and vice versa.
* In ''[[Duck Dodgers]]'', the eponymous duck meets a very masculine-looking [[Drill Sergeant Nasty|drill sergeant]] called Emily Dickinson Jones, and when he remarks on that is told "we've left behind such concepts as names being for males or females". And his mother liked Emily Dickinson.
* Ariel is Hebrew for "Lion of God" and was exclusively male <s>until [[Disney]] appropriated it for their mermaid and it become popular</s>.
** As well as Niko's mentor on ''[[
** Ariel in ''[[The Tempest]]'' is genderless, and in modern productions is typically played by a woman.
** Actually, this is backwards. Disney picked the name because it was already an up-and-coming girl's name: in 1986, the year before production started on ''[[
** The Hebrew version is pronounced R-E-L, while the female version is usually Air-E-L.
* One of the interesting backcurrents in [[John Varley]]'s ''Eight Worlds'' stories and novels is the effect that [[Easy Sex Change]] (and easy name change) has had on gender-based naming conventions. Some change names when they change sexes, some don't, some adopt gender-neutral names, others prefer nicknames, etc.
* Tyson was previously exclusively a boy's name, but has started to be used as a girl's name in the past couple decades.
* MacKenzie(son of Kenneth) was originally a Scottish surname, then a masculine first name, but now is mostly feminine.
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** An example of this is found with the character Meredith in the webcomic ''[[Todd Allison and The Petunia Violet]]''
* A probably accidental occurrence in ''[[Dragon Age 2]]'': Petrice is actually a French form of Patrick. Not the sort of name you'd give to a scheming lying fanatic of a priestess.
* Joanne Harcourt in ''[[Black Butler]]'' is a boy. Joanne was a male name in the Victorian times where the story is set, but the name Joanne was in all likelihood chosen by the author because Harcourt is a very, very pretty boy.
* President of Hell Amy of the [[Ars Goetia]] is male. Supposedly the name is pronounced with a short a, but Ami is ''also'' a feminine name.
== Diminutives ==
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* Andy/Andie/Andi - Andrew, Andrea
* Angel - Angela, Angeline, Angelo, Angelina, Angelica. Strangely enough, "Angel" by itself is quite gender-neutral in the US and the Philippines.
** To quote Cordelia from ''[[
** [[
* Annie - Anakin, Antigone, Anne, Annica, Anders
* Bob (or Bobby/Bobbie) - Robert, Roberta. This means that "Me & Bobby McGee" can be (and is) sung about a man and his girlfriend (the original version), ''or'' [[The Cover Changes the Gender|a woman and her boyfriend]].
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** Cameron is also an example of Country Dependant/Cultural Transformation. Originally a Celtic warrior's name, and was a masculine name when it originally transplanted to America, where it gradually became unisex.
* Charlie/Charley/Chaz/Chas - Charles, Charlotte, Charlene (this one oddly enough, means "male")
** Chaz/Chas can also be short for "Chastity", as with [[
*** There's an alternative theory that it might also be derived from the german word for "mighty" or "warrior," which, while those are still rather masculine concepts, is better than outright naming your girl "man."
* C(h)ris/Kris - Kristopher, Crystal, Christine (And any one of them can be spelled a half-dozen ways, too.)
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** The last one giving us Fred from ''Angel''.
*** And the Carol Burnett vehicle ''Once Upon A Mattress''.
{{quote|
**** Oh lord, Once Upon A Mattress.
{{quote|
'''Dauntless:''' Winnie?
'''Fred:''' NO! Fred! }}
*** A one-off villainess from ''[[Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers (
* George/Georgie - George, Georgina, Georgette, Georgia
* Harry - Harold, Harriet
* Jo(e) - Joseph, Jocelyn, Josette, Josephine, Joanne, Joanna, Jodie
** Jo March from ''[[Little Women]]''. It's stated in the book that this diminutive is one of the things that [[Tomboyish Name|add to her image as a tomboy]]. In the sequels, her sister Meg has a daughter named after Jo, but they call her Josie to distinguish between them.
** In one episode of ''[[The Fresh Prince of Bel
* Ken - Kenneth, Kendall, Kendra.
* Kim - Kimberley, Kimball
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* Mickie/Mickey - Michelle, Michael
** Due to the nickname deriving from these names, Mike from ''[[Mike Lu and Og]]'' should fit in here. Her given name, however, is the [[Aerith and Bob|rathern uncommon]] Michelanne, but still [[Embarrassing First Name|she prefers Mike]].
* Nic/Nick/Nicki/Nicky - Nicole, Nicola, Nicholas... [[Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney|Phoenix?]] or possibly a full name. Also, Dominique..
** Phoenix is [[Justified Trope|not that much of a longshot]]. After all, it's pronounced "Fee-niks".
* Pat - Patrick and Patricia. This was the name of an SNL character whose whole joke was that nobody could tell whether the character was a male or a female.
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* Rosie - A fine girl's name on its own, or it can be short for Roosevelt (incidentally, Dutch for "Rose field"), as in Mr. Rosey Greer.
* Sam - Samuel, Samantha
** One notorious example is Samantha Carter, from ''[[Stargate
** Another notorious example is in [[John Scalzi]]'s ''The Android's Dream'', since Sam's sex is deliberately never mentioned in the book. The author noticed he hadn't mentioned Sam's sex after a few chapters, and ran with it.
* Sandy - Cassandra, Sandra, Alexander, Alexandra (say these last two aloud and you'll see why)
** Embarassing parents are those in NZ who proudly call their baby boys Alexandra because they are illiterate.
*** And those in [[Stroke Country|Belfast]] who write 'Alexander' on their baby girl's birth certificate, because the two names are homophones in that accent.
** There's also Alasdair, which is based on Alexander.
** Joked with on ''[[Scrubs]]''.
{{quote|
'''JD''': You know, Sandy isn't necessarily a girl's name.
'''Dr. Cox''': It's short for Sandra. }}
* Sasha - Alexander/Alexandra, in Russian. More typically used with males.
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* Terry/Teri - Terrance, Terissa
* Tommy - Thomas, Thomasina (though admittedly not a very common girls' name often now)
* Tony/Toni - Anthony, Antoinette, Antonio,
* Valya - Valentin, Valentina (from Russia).
* Vic/Vicki/Vicky - Victor, Victoria
* Wil(l) - Generally William, but can also be [[
* Zhenya - Eugene/Eugenia (from Russia).
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** Cayman: Mitchell (m), Ilika (f)
** Chase
** Cody
*** Dakota/Koda
** Dana ([[Saturday Night Live|Carvey]])
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** Evan
** Gale (Sayers)
** Haley/Hayley/Hailey etc. On the masculine side, we have actor Haley Joel Osment; on the feminine side, we have actress Hayley Mills, as well as Haley Starshine from ''[[The Order of the Stick
** Harley
** Harper (Beckham, daughter of David and Victoria)
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** Jo/Joe
** Jordan (Season 16 of ''[[The Amazing Race]]'' featured both a male and a female Jordan.)
*** Jordan Todosey (who is a girl) plays Adam (who is [[
** Kay
** Kelly (In fact, check out this article, in which a Kelly Hildebrandt marries a Kelly Hildebrandt:
*** Ever wondered how to pronounce Ceallach's name from Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones? Guess how the male form of Kelly is derived.
** Kelsey
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*** Reese Witherspoon isn't the greatest example as Reese is her mother's maiden name. Her real first name is Laura. That doesn't stop people from naming their daughters Reese, however.
** Riley/Reilly
** River (Phoenix and [[Firefly
** Robin/Robyn ([[Robin Williams|Williams]] and [[Star Trek III:
*** And Robyn Miller, co-developer of ''[[Myst]]''
** Rowan
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** Saoirse (although mostly female. Pronounced ''Seer-sha'')
* Japanese (Note, that anime/manga/otherwise fictional characters tend to have more extravagant names than RL people so take everything on this list with a huge grain of salt. Also, the kanji usually makes the gender obvious.)
** Akira ([[Professional Wrestling|Hokuto]], [[Fruits Basket|Sohma]], [[
** Akito ([[Fruits Basket|Sohma]] and [[Martian Successor Nadesico|Tenkawa]])
** Asuka ([[Neon Genesis Evangelion
** Ayumu ([[Azumanga Daioh
** Chiaki (Kuriyama, [[Samurai Sentai Shinkenger|Tani]])
** Chihiro ([[Kujibiki Unbalance
** Haruhi ([[Haruhi Suzumiya
** Haruka
** Hayate ([[Hayate the Combat Butler
** Hibiki ([[Kenichi:
** Hikaru ([[Kimagure Orange Road|Hiyama]], [[Martian Successor Nadesico|Amano]], [[Magic Knight Rayearth|Shidou]] or [[Hikaru no Go|Shindo]], [[Hikaru Midorikawa|Midorikawa]], [[Super Dimension Fortress Macross|Ichijo]].)
*** Notable as both male and female use the same kanji, making it a bona fide unisex name.
** Hinata ([[Naruto
** Hiromi
** Hitomi
** Itsuki ([[Haruhi Suzumiya
** Kai
** Kaoru ([[Neon Genesis Evangelion
*** In fact, the first of these examples is actually named [[Spell My Name
*** That's just using an old character that pretty much has been eliminated from modern Japanese post WWII (it's only used as a particle now). Since the "w" was silent anyway, they eliminated it and used "o" instead. And yes, Iwo Jima would be Io Jima nowadays for the same reason.
**** It's always been a non-standard spelling. The correct spelling of "Kaoru" in the old system was "Ka'''h'''oru".
** Kazuki (usually rather masculine, neutral-leaning-on-feminine depending on the kanji)
** Kei ([[Please Teacher
** Makoto ([[El
** Megumi ([[Fruits Basket|Hanajima]], [[Megumi Hayashibara|Hayashibara]], [[The World Ends With You
** Michiru ([[Kamichama Karin|Nishikiori]], [[Sailor Moon|Kaiou]] or [[Futari wa Pretty Cure Splash Star|Kiryuu]])
** Mieko
** Minato ({{spoiler|[[Naruto
** Mizuki (Male in ''[[
** Nagi
** Nagisa ([[Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch|Shirai]] and [[Futari wa Pretty Cure|Misumi]])
** Natsu [[Fairy Tail
** Ouka ([[Flame of Recca|Ouka from Flame Of Recca is male]] while [[.hack|Ouka from .Hack//Legend of the Twilight is female]] - also, [[Busou Renkin|Hayasaka]])
** Sakura ([[Bludgeoning Angel
** Shigure [[Kenichi:
** Shiki ([[Kara no Kyoukai
** Shinobu ([[Love Hina|Maehara]], [[Yu Yu Hakusho|Sensui]])
** Shion ([[Higurashi no Naku Koro
** Shizuka (typically female, but [[
** Sora ([[Digimon Adventure|Takenouchi]], or [[The Hero]] from ''[[Kingdom Hearts]]'')
** Subaru (either [[Tokyo Babylon|Sumeragi]] or [[
** Tsubaki [[Soul Eater|Nakatsukasa]] or [[One Piece|the Reporter]] and the [[Bleach|of the Shun Shun Rikka]]
** Tsubasa ({{spoiler|the real name of both protagonists, male and female,}} in [[Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles]])
** Tsukasa (The ambiguity is lampshaded early in [[.hack
** Yuki ([[Hello! Project|Maeda]], [[Suzumiya Haruhi|Nagato]], [[Fruits Basket|Sohma]])
*** For males, it's usually spelled "Yuuki," meaning courage, as opposed to "Yuki" = snow. (Example: [[
* Swedish:
** Kim
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* Fiction
** The webcomic ''[[Yang Child]]'' has an [http://yangchild.comicgenesis.com/d/20080515.html interesting] [http://yangchild.comicgenesis.com/d/20080520.html take] [http://yangchild.comicgenesis.com/d/20080522.html on this].
** Tedd from ''[[
== Homophones ==
(some of these may not be homophones in certain accents)
* Aaron and Erin (in accents with the [
* Adrian and Adrienne (in English, ''slightly'' more distinct in French)
* Carey and Carrie (in accents with the [
* Carroll and Carol (in accents with the [
* Daniel and Danièle (in French) and Danielle (in English)
* Don and Dawn (in accents with the [
* Francis and Frances
* Frédéric and Frédérique (in French)
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* Gene and Jean/Jeanne (in English)
* Pascale and Pascal (in French)
* Joe and
* Karol (Polish) and Carol (English) / Carole (French)
** Of course, Karol is the Polish version of Carol/Charles, just as Karel (as in playwright Karel Čapek) is the Czech version.
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* Michel and Michèle (in French) and Michelle (in English)
* Vivian and Vivien/Vivienne (the first spelling is gender-neutral)
* Peter and Peta (in [
** A woman (think she's a dress designer) in NZ is named Peter.
* Natan and Natane. The former is primarily male, the latter is primarily female.
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* René and Renée (in both French and English)
* Emmanuel and Emmanuelle
* Ian and Anne
** How is that possible that they can be homophones, really?
*** Maybe if you're a [
* Virtually any male name (or nickname) ending with "-y" (Bobby, Andy, Teddy, Tony, Danny, Johnny, Ricky) can become feminine by spelling it "-i" or "-ie".
** And Sandy is the reverse, as it's normally short for Cassandra (see above) but can also be used as a male name on its own, or as a shortening of Alexander.
** Names that don't end this way can change, too (Scott->[[
* Claire and Clare, leading to the male character in ''Baccano!'' having the feminine spelling of the name, while the female protagonists of Claymore uses the masculine spelling.
* Valer(i)y/Valerie: The former is a masculine Russian name.
* Ivan (Russian) and Yvonne/Ivonne (in English accents with the [
* Elisha and Alicia (averted if the former is pronounced like ''Elijah'')
▲== Titles ==
* See also [[She Is the King]].
* Ser Cauthrien is a female knight in ''[[Dragon Age]]: Origins''.
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* Dr. J. Langer [Jenny], from the film ''[[The Giant Spider Invasion]]'', which was featured on ''[[Mystery Science Theater 3000]]''. This lead to a painful sequence where the character who came to see her kept assuming "Dr. Langer" was a male relative, to which Servo quipped, "Humor of the 1840s!"
** A book about sci-fi [[B-Movie|B Movies]] said this was a virtual cliche of the genre, even in movies which didn't have a [[Samus Is a Girl]] scene. They might have simply been copying from ''[[Them]]!'' which has a female scientist with a male first name.
* When [[James Bond]] first meets Dr. Goodhead [Holly] in ''[[
** Just goes to show you how [[Genre Blind]] Mr. Bond can be.
* An episode of ''[[All in The Family]]'' revolved around the following puzzle: "A young man is seriously injured in a car accident. When he's taken to the hospital, the surgeon cries, 'I can't operate on this man! He's my son!' Yet the surgeon is not the young man's father. How can this be?" It took the entire half hour for the characters to figure it out {{spoiler|(the surgeon was his ''mother'')}}, and when the answer was finally given at the end of the show the live studio audience ''gasped'' in surprise. 1840s indeed.
** Same riddle was used on The Cosby Show, you know the one with a the wife character being a powerful attorney. Sadly this puzzle still continues to work nowadays.
* In ''[[Metal Gear Solid]]'', Naomi assumes reclusive genius Dr. Clark was a man. It's not until ''[[Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots]]'' that we learn it was {{spoiler|Para-Medic, a female character that was introduced in ''[[Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater]]''.}}
* In an episode of Get Smart, Max meets up with an invisible doctor. Knowing that there are KAOS agents guarding the entrance to the restaurant where they met, Max and the doctor have to sneak out another way. Max suggests sneaking out through the men's room, when finally the doctor says that that won't work... In a woman's voice.
* [[Hellsing|Sir Integra]] is a woman. A very scary woman who will kill you at a moments notice, hence the commanding name of "Sir", but a woman nonetheless.
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*** When females are knighted, their title is "Dame", i.e. "Dame Integra". Her using the masculine title fits the trope.
**** Another page on [[This Very Wiki]] states that she's legally a man as a requirement for holding her position. "Dame Integra" would therefore be legally incorrect.
*** Another reason is the the writer did not understand the British [
* The ''Tentei'' or "Heavenly Emperor" in ''[[Fist of the North Star]]'' is actually Lin's twin sister, Lui.
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[[Category:Gender Blending Tropes]]
[[Category:Gender Blender Name]]
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