Name of the day: Lynette
For those who favor “Lyn” and “Ette” names, Lynette blends the best of both worlds. This Welsh name takes the modern sounds of Evelyn and Everett pairs it with equal parts historical literacy and profound imagery.
Legend had it
Lynette was used by British poet Alfred Lord Tennyson in his 1872 poem Gareth and Lynette as part off his nineteenth century Idlylls of the King, about King Arthur. Tennyson took the name from the Mabinogion, a series of Welsh tales.
Before that, in medieval Arthurian literature, the French writer Chretien de Troyes used the form Lunete for the name of the heroine in Yvain, the Knight of the Lion.
The Origin of Little Lynette
The name looks French at first glance, similarly to Antoinette and Paulette. However, this mythological moniker is actually of Welsh origin. This Welsh name actually began as the anglicized version of Eluned, derived from the Welsh word eilun, meaning image or idol.
Lynette has been mentioned to have several other meaning behind her due to her connection to many other names. Beyond Eluned, it is often believe Lynette is related to the name Lynn and while that may be partly true, it is actually more accurately related to the name Linda meaning pretty.
In relation to Lynn however, Lynette is also though to have an aquatic meaning. In Welsh, llyn means lake. Which in turn, the name Lynn also means little lake. Lynn began as a surname which then transformed into a masculine given name that remained in the male top 1,000 until the 80’s. Lyn quickly got the attention to the girls side peaking in the 50’s herself. Coincidentally becoming a gender neutral name with an almost even split. Dare I say, a modern day Parker. Overtime Lyn eventually became recognized as feminine by default as Carolyn and Marilyn gained traction.
Another reason Lynette often gets mistaken as French is because of its fraternal twin Lunette we mentioned earlier. Lunette is based on the French word La Lune meaning moon which is commonly overshadowed by the lovely Luna. Everyone’s favorite little moon.
Lastly, let’s not forget Lynette’s songbird association. As aviation names are currently in flight (Mavis and Dove) could Lynette also count in this category? Potentially, yes. Due to another spelling variation. The Common Linnet or European Linnet as it’s also called, is a little bird belonging to the Finch family.
With the imagery of the moon overlooking the lakeside, it’s safe to say this name fits both air and water signs. Aquarians especially.
Rare To Find
The name Lynette entered the top 1,000 in 1923 and had many peaks and valleys since then. Lynette’s highest peak was in the mid 60’s as did most “ette'“ names thanks in part to actress Annette Funicello. After that “ette” names began to fade away and by the 90’s they were nearly nonexistent. Lynette was no exception. The name left the top 1,000 entirely in 1994 ranking at 1,000 exact.
Today, the “ette” has been shortened to just “et” with Charlotte, Scarlett and Violet rounding the top 50. Where as Lynette herself is a rare one to come by despite being a trendsetter in appearance. Only 77 girls were given the name in 2020, which seems to be the common amount over the last decade.
Will this name make a humble return? Only time will tell but our guess is that’s highly unlikely. The name has since been overshadowed by the other round table roundup contenders like Guinevere and even Gareth. Right now, we’ll love Lynette from afar but we’ll certainly smile at this idol every time we see her name.