Femininity Perceptions of Cross-ethnic Forenames: A Comparative Analysis of Latina and European American Women

ABSTRACT

Research shows a tendency to ascribe high importance to the gender associations of a forename. To examine community-specific conceptions of gender as well as how groups position themselves in relation to others, this study analyzed the gender-marked perceptions of women’s forenames, with rater ethnicity and name ethnicity as independent variables. Bilingual Latina American and monolingual European American women assigned femininity ratings to a series of Hispanic, Anglo, and ethnolinguistically neutral forenames. The names also varied by the sub-attributes of translatability, letter ending, gender specificity, and semantic class, among others. Rater ethnicity significantly correlated with perceptual patterns, as both groups attributed more femininity to same-ethnicity names. However, neutral names received the highest ratings overall. Some ratings appeared to be highly dependent on experience, suggesting limited intergroup contact. The data also suggest a greater general sensitivity to gendered naming on the part of Latinas. The implications of perceptual differences for intergroup relations are discussed.