Barbara’s Notebook: Personalized Journal for Barbara
Barbara's Notebook puts her name front and center, written in flowing script across a soft watercolor apple blossom design.
- 160 lined pages
- 6" x 9" paperback
- Watercolor apple blossom cover with "Barbara's Notebook" on the front
- Printed and shipped by Amazon
Barbara: meaning and origin
Barbara comes from the Latin barbarus, meaning “foreign” or “strange”, which in turn comes from the Greek barbaros, “foreign, non-Greek”. The name spread through the legend of Saint Barbara, a patron saint of architects, geologists and stonemasons, and came into general use in the Christian world in the Middle Ages. It became rare in England after the Reformation but was revived in the 19th century.
Nicknames and variants
Barb, Barbie and Babs are the classic English nicknames, with Bobbi and Bobbie for a Barbara who likes something sportier. Other languages have their own versions: Babette in French, Bärbel in German, Basia in Polish and Báirbre in Irish.
Famous people named Barbara
Barbara Walters was a pioneering American broadcast journalist who hosted Today and 20/20. Novelist Barbara Kingsolver wrote The Poisonwood Bible. In Britain, Dame Barbara Hepworth was a leading modernist sculptor, and Dame Barbara Windsor starred in the Carry On films before playing Peggy Mitchell in EastEnders.
Is Barbara a popular name?
Barbara was in the US top 200 from the 1880s onward, but it really took off in the 1920s. Social Security data has it at number 3 in both the 1930s and the 1940s, when more than 425,000 Barbaras were born, and still 6th in the 1950s. That makes it a name most people associate with a favorite aunt, mom or grandmother.
Barbara trivia
In the legend, Saint Barbara’s father was struck by lightning, which is why she became known as a protector against fire and lightning. Wikipedia also notes that early Christians sometimes called themselves “barbarians” in contrast to the pagan Romans and Greeks. And Barbra, as in Barbra Streisand, is a well-known variant spelling.
Gift ideas that suit a Barbara
- For an architect or engineer. Saint Barbara is their patron saint, so it suits sketches and site notes.
- For an artist. In the spirit of Barbara Hepworth, a place for ideas before they become sculptures or paintings.
- For a news lover. Interview notes, questions and opinions, Barbara Walters style.
- For a grandmother. Many Barbaras are grandmas now. A notebook for family memories and favorite recipes.
How Barbara can use it
Any Barbara, of any age. The 6" x 9" size is roomy enough for proper writing and small enough for a handbag or school bag. With 160 plain lined pages there’s no fixed layout, so it can be a diary, a gratitude journal, a study notebook, a recipe book or a home for to-do lists. Notebooks tend to multiply in drawers, but one with her name on the front is instantly hers.
The little things that make it hers
There’s something about seeing your own name in print. It makes a notebook feel like it belongs to you, which is a good reason to fill it. It also means Barbara can pick hers out of a pile in a second, at school, at work or on the kitchen counter.
Frequently asked questions
How big is Barbara’s Notebook? About the size of a trade paperback book: 6 x 9 inches (15.2 x 22.9 cm), 160 lined pages.
Where do I buy it? It’s sold on Amazon in the US, Australia and the UK. Amazon prints and ships each copy and handles delivery and returns.
Do you have other names? Yes, the same apple blossom design comes in hundreds of girls’ names. Start at all name notebooks or our personalized name notebooks guide.
Get Barbara's Notebook on Amazon
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Barbara's Notebook is published by Black Stag Publishing.