The Baby Name Wizard

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Contribute to, or edit, this collection of community wisdom on the name Piper!

Comments and insights on the name Piper: | Edit

Really cute and relatively original. I love this name!

Personal experiences with the name Piper: | Edit

I was named Piper in 1970 and still have troubles with it. Even though the TV show "Charmed" brought the name Piper into pop culture, people mispronounce it constantly - usually when they hear it first, instead of reading it. I've had people think I said a name as normal as Barbara, but more often than not, its misheard as Viper, Hyper, or Striper. Also, when people go to write my name, they frequently misspell it as Pipper. Rarely do people remember my name when my face is familiar, but whenever they hear my name mentioned they think immediately of me (cuz really, how many other Pipers are there?).

My parents were savvy and skipped giving me a middle name in order to make sure I was called Piper. They named me after the the 1968 Elizabeth Taylor/Richard Burton movie, "The Sandpiper," and the shorebird it referenced. I hated my name and my parents for giving it to me for more years than I can rememeber, but now I'm used to it and can't imagine being called anything else. I kinda feel like I own the name, as so few other people are named Piper, and I've never changed it because of that.

For all of you considering naming your daughters Piper, just a warning: She may hate you for a LONG LONG time for bestowing such a quirky name upon her that rhymes with so many unpleasant things. (You can imagine how taunted I was for my name in elementary school, I'm sure.) Please consider that your child will be forever stuck with this name and may forever hate you for sticking it on them. I know I did!!!

Nicknames for Piper: | Edit

We call my 1 year old "Pipes" for short! It definitely fits her given how loudly she can yell.

Our three year-old Piper is also called Pi and we sometimes write it as π.

We call our 3 year old Piper "Pipes" "Pippi" and "Pepper"

Meanings and history of the name Piper: | Edit

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Famous real-life people named Piper: | Edit

Piper Laurie, actress (born Rosetta Jacobs)
Piper Maru, daughter of Gillian Anderson, actress, from her first marriage.
Piper Palin, daughter of GOP VP candidate Sarah Palin
Piper Perabo, actress (Coyote Ugly, Cheaper by the Dozen, Imagine Me & You etc...)
Piper Gilles, American ice dancer

Piper in song, story & screen: | Edit

Piper Halliwell, character in the TV series "Charmed", played by Holly Marie Combs. The cranky but sensible sister.
"The Piper", song by ABBA
"Piper", song by Phish
The Pied Piper of legend used his magic pipe to lure a plague of rats into a river, then, when the villagers refused to pay the agreed-upon fee for this, lured their children away into the mountains.