Bonnie

Meaning: Its source is bonne, a French name meaning "Good girl."

Languages: This girl's name is used in English and Scots Gaelic.

Alternative Spellings: Bonney, Bonni and Bonny

Variant Forms: Bonnell and Bonnin

Non-English Forms: Banee

Popularity: The name Bonnie ranked 88th in popularity for females of all ages in a sample of the 1990 US Census.

This name is highly rated in the 1990 U.S. Census popularity survey of all ages, but after 1960 does not appear in the state data listing the most popular baby names.

Narrative: Before unification with England, Scotland maintained close ties with France, a traditional enemy of the English. The term ''bonnie'' was developed by the Scots from a word borrowed from their sometime allies.

In America, use of Bonnie as a name was influenced by Margaret Mitchell's 1936 novel Gone With the Wind. Scarlett and Rhett's daughter was named after the popular Confederate tune ''The Bonnie Blue Flag,'' and Americans North and South followed suit.

Campers remember the name every time they sing ''My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean.'' This pleasant association counterbalances that of the 1967 movie Bonnie and Clyde, which portrayed (and romanticized) the real-life crimes of 1930s gangster Bonnie Parker.

Arts and Music

Bonnie Raitt (born 1949)
American singer and songwriter.
- Two-time Grammy winner for best female vocal performance: 1989, for ''''Nick of Time''''; and 1991, for ''''Something to Talk About'''' (see list of Grammy winners for Best Vocal Performance)
- Musical guest on ''''Saturday Night Live'''' (see list of Musical Guests on ''Saturday Night Live'')

Miscellaneous

Bonnie
- Hurricane or tropical storm (see list of Hurricane and Tropical Storm Names)
Bonnie Sherk
- 1971 Mademoiselle Award winner (see list of Mademoiselle Award Winners)

Science and Philosophy

Bonnie J. Dunbar (born 1949)
American astronaut and engineer.
- Astronaut on Challenger (1985), Columbia (1990, 1992), Atlantis (1995), Endeavour (1998) (see list of Spaceflight Veterans)

Sports

Bonnie Blair
American speed-skater.
- 1988 Olympic speed skating gold medal winner for 500m; 1992 gold medal winner for 500m and 1000m; and 1994 gold medal winner for 500m and 10,000m (see list of Olympic Gold Medalists in Speed Skating)
- 1994 Associated Press Athlete of the Year (see list of Associated Press Athletes of the Year)
- 1994 Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year (see list of Sports Illustrated Sportsmen of the Year)

Stage and Screen

Bonnie Bartlett
- Portrayed Grace Edwards from 1976-77 (see list of Actors on ''Little House on the Prairie'')
Bonnie Lynn Fields
- 1950s Mouseketeer (see list of 1950s Mickey Mouse Club)

The Literary World

Bonnie Blue Butler
Fictional character.
- Daughter of Scarlett O''Hara and Rhett Butler in Margaret Mitchell''s Gone With the Wind (see list of Characters in Literature of the American South)