Effie

Derived primarily as a Scottish and English diminutive of the Greek name Euphemia, which translates roughly to well-spoken. It became an independent given name in nineteenth-century Britain before settling into American census rolls as a standalone entry in the eighteen-eighties.

The name brings to mind iron treadle sewing machines, handwritten recipes on index cards, and small-town postal counters. It spent most of the late twentieth century out of rotation while longer formal names took precedence. Hearing it on a child today suggests an antique piece of furniture brought down from the attic and polished up.