not uncertain is its extraordinary cultural staying power.
Few male names can feel simultaneously medieval, literary, traditional, familiar, and completely usable in the modern world.
Arthur manages to do exactly that.
Arthur Was Once Far More Common in America
Look through American family records from the late 19th and early 20th centuries and Arthur appears again and again.
Historical U.S. baby-name records show that Arthur was among the country’s established popular choices for boys during the earlier decades covered by national naming statistics.
That meant generations of American boys grew up with the name.
There were Arthurs in schools, workplaces, military records, newspapers, sports, politics, entertainment, and family photographs.
Eventually, however, the same familiarity that made Arthur feel dependable also made it feel connected to an older generation.
How a Popular Name Becomes an “Old Man Name”
This happens to names constantly.
Imagine a name that is extremely fashionable during one period.
Thousands of babies receive it.
Those babies become teenagers and adults.
Several decades later, younger people mainly encounter the name among their parents’ or grandparents’ generations.
Nothing about the name itself has changed.
But its cultural image has.
A once-fashionable baby name suddenly sounds mature, traditional, or
