There was a Monty Python sketch portraying a bunch of Australians, and every one of them was named Bruce. Certain names do carry connotations of nationality.

For example, I never heard of an American man named Basil, Cecil, Clive, Colin, Cyril, Derek, Desmond, Ivor, Leslie, Maurice, Nigel, Noel, Percy, Reginald, or Trevor. Those names all sound British to me, but I suppose they could also be Australian or Canadian.

Likewise, I've never heard of an American woman named Daphne, Madge, Mavis, Sybil, or Zoe.

(As you can see, I've been collecting these for a while.)

Since the most common American given names are mostly British or Irish in origin, it seems odd that these names never made it over. I suppose they must have arisen in Britain after the bulk of emigration to America took place. Can anyone confirm this?

Has anyone else noticed any interesting patterns of naming? How do others view American names?