The Long History Behind the Popular Name ‘Tiffany’

The highly informative CGP Grey (previously) went on a remarkable etymological search to discover the origins of the name Tiffany. Despite its popularity in the 1980s, it turns out that the name has a very long history, beginning with the ancient Greeks.

Tiffany, is a very neon 80s name, and not without reason, it exploded in popularity during the decade. But despite Tiffany’s modern sound, the name wasn’t born in the 80s. Tiffany is at least, 80 decades old.

The name wasn’t very present in history, but it was there. It was only when the iconic Audrey Hepburn film Breakfast at Tiffany’s became available to watch on VCRs released in 1979, the name became one of the most popular for babies born in the 1980s.

But, remember, that in ye olden days of the 60s and early 70s? Movies could only be seen in theaters. But by the late 70s, there was a new invention. VHS. The video home system So you could watch movies, any time in glorious 480 pixels. And well, guess what?!? ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s happens to be the first Audrey Hepburn movie released on VHS in, wait for it,1979. And one year later total Tiffany’s doubled. Rolling into the 80s torrent of Tiffanies, where the name was Top Twenty for nine out of ten years.

The Tale of Tiffanys
Lori Dorn
Lori Dorn

Lori is a Laughing Squid Contributing Editor based in New York City who has been writing blog posts for over a decade. She also enjoys making jewelry, playing guitar, taking photos and mixing craft cocktails.