Chastity is a feminine given name meaning chastity, referring to the virtue of exercising self-control over one's sexual behavior, which might mean practicing celibacy for a person who is unmarried, or monogamy for a person who is married. The name comes from the Late Latin word castitas. According to some sources, it was one of many virtue names in use by Puritans in the Colonial United States. The name increased in usage in the United States in the early 1970s after it was used by Sonny Bono and Cher for their child Chaz Bono, who was originally named Chastity Bono, in 1969. Chasity is a modern variant.[1] However, other sources state that the name was not actually in use by the Puritans.[2] Cher portrayed a character called Chastity in the 1969 film Chastity that was released the same year Cher named her child.[3][4] Other modern spelling variants and name variants in use include Chasidy, Chassidy, Chassiti, Chassity, Chastady, Chastidy, Chastitea, Chastitee, Chastitey, Chastiti, and Chastitie.[5] Some other variations of the name in use in the United States during the 19th century were Chassie, Chasta, Chasteen, Chastin, Chastina, Chastine, and Chasty.[6] Some sources note that a girl named Chastity might not resemble the meaning of the name.[7]
Chastity was among the 1,000 most popular given names for girls in the United States between 1972 and 1993. It peaked in usage in 1974, when it was the 311th most popular name and used for 0.048 percent of all American girls born that year.[8] Variant Chasity was among the 1,000 most popular names for American girls between 1972 and 2008. Both names remain in occasional use in the United States.[9][10]
People
Chaz Bono, (born Chastity Sun Bono; born 1969), American writer, musician and actor
Chastity Brown (born 1982), American singer-songwriter and musician
Chastity Daniels (born 1978), American rapper who performs under the stage name La Chat
↑ "Popular Baby Names". ssa.gov. United States Social Security Administration. Retrieved 30 December 2023.
Name list
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Related Research Articles
Salvatore Phillip "Sonny" Bono was an American singer, songwriter, actor, and politician who came to fame in partnership with his second wife, Cher, as the popular singing duo Sonny & Cher. A member of the Republican Party, Bono served as the 16th mayor of Palm Springs, California, from 1988 to 1992, and served as the U.S. representative for California's 44th district from 1995 until his death in 1998.
Chaz Salvatore Bono is an American writer, musician and actor. His parents are entertainers Sonny Bono and Cher, and he became widely known in appearances as a child on their television show, The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour.
Sonny & Cher were an American pop and entertainment duo in the 1960s and 1970s, made up of spouses Sonny Bono and Cher. The couple started their career in the mid-1960s as R&B backing singers for record producer Phil Spector.
Kaylee is a given name, most often for females. The name is a modern English combination of the name elements Kay and Lee.
Charity is an English feminine given name derived from the English word charity. It was used by the Puritans as a virtue name. An earlier form of the name, Caritas, was an early Christian name in use by Romans.
Florence is usually a feminine given name. It is derived from the French version of (Saint) Florentia, a Roman martyr under Diocletian. The Latin florens, florentius means "blossoming", verb floreo, meaning "I blossom / I flower / I flourish". Florence was in the past also used as a translation of the Latin version Florentius, and may be used in this context as a masculine given name.
Dorothy is a female given name. It is the English vernacular form of the Greek Δωροθέα (Dōrothéa) meaning "God's Gift", from δῶρον (dōron), "gift" + θεός (theós), "god".. It has been in use since the 1400s. Although much less common, there are also male equivalents in English such as Dory, from the Greek masculine Δωρόθεος (Dōrótheos). Dorofei is a rarely used Russian male version of the name. The given names Theodore and Theodora are derived from the same two Greek root words as Dorothy, albeit reversed in order.
Lily is a feminine given name usually derived from lily, the flower. The name became particularly popular along with other flower names for girls during the 1800s and early 1900s. The lily also has associations with and has been symbolic of innocence and purity in Christian art. Names beginning with or containing the letter L have also been particularly fashionable for girls. It is also occasionally used as a diminutive for other names such as Elizabeth.
Destiny is a primarily feminine given name meaning "destiny, fate", which is ultimately derived from the Late Latin word destinata. Commonly used spelling variants include Destinee, Destiney, and Destinie.
Diamond is a given name derived from the name of the diamond gemstone. The word is derived from the Greek adamas. The name was among the 1,000 most popular names for newborn girls in the United States between 1986 and 2014 and remains in regular use. Deimantė, a Lithuanian variant, was the 10th most popular name for baby girls born in Lithuania in 2007.
Alison is a unisex given name in English-speaking countries, traditionally feminine. It was originally a medieval French nickname for Alis, an old form of Alice derived with the suffix -on or -son sometimes used in the former French nicknames. The Middle English form was Alisoun.
Chastity is a 1969 American romantic drama film directed by Alessio de Paola and starring American singer-actress Cher, in her first film role without her then-husband Sonny Bono. Written and produced by Sonny Bono, as a star vehicle for her, it flopped badly and deterred her from acting in films for more than a decade.
Crystal is a common English language female given name. Variant forms of the name include Kristal, Krystal, Cristal, Kristel, Krystle and Kristol.
Alethea is an English-language female first name derived from the Ancient Greek feminine noun ἀλήθεια, alḗtheia, 'truth'. Aletheia was the personification of truth in Greek philosophy. Alethea was not in use as a name prior to the 1500s, and likely originated when Puritans started using it as a virtue name.
Hope is a given name derived from the Middle English hope, ultimately from the Old English word hopian referring to a positive expectation or to the theological virtue of hope. It was used as a virtue name by the Puritans. Puritans also used Hope as an element in phrase names, such as Hope-for, Hopeful, and Hope-still.
Virtue names, also known as grace names, are used as personal names in a number of cultures. They express virtues that the parents wish their child to embody or be associated with. In the English-speaking world, beginning in the 16th century, the Puritans commonly expressed their values through creative names, many in the form of virtue names such as Grace, Felicity, Faith or Hope. These names have entered the standard British and American usage, without the religious connection.
Leilani is a Hawaiian given name meaning "heavenly garland of flowers" or "royal child". The Hawaiian word lei refers to flowers and lani to the sky or heavens, with an association to royalty.
Cataleya is a feminine given name, a variant spelling of Cattleya, a genus of orchid named in honor of English botanist William Cattley. The surname Cattley is said to be a transferred use of Catley, a one-time English place name in both Hertfordshire and Lincolnshire. The place name was ultimately derived from the Old English words catte, meaning cat and leah, meaning meadow or clearing, giving the meaning “from the meadow or clearing where wildcats dwell.” Another name for the Cattleya orchid is cat orchid. Others have made a connection between the name and cats because of the name’s starting syllable.
Temperance is a primarily feminine given name usually given in reference to the virtue of moderation. Temperance was among the virtue names in regular use by Puritan families in the 1500s and 1600s. There was an increase in usage in the 19th century United States, with the hypocorism Tempy documented in the American South. The nickname is also spelled Tempe.
Velma is an English feminine given name of uncertain origin. It might have been created as a rhyming variant of the names Selma and Thelma. It might also have been influenced by the Scandinavian name Vilma or by Wilma, both short forms of the Dutch and German Wilhelmina and feminine versions of William.
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