When I told my boss that I was working on this article, he asked me whether the name was spelled “Antony” or “Anthony.” I told him it was spelled both ways, and he said, “Well then what’s the difference?” That got me thinking—what is this sudden surge in popularity of Antony? Is it just one of those things that happens every few years? Or is there something more to it? In this post, we’ll explore the possible reasons behind the trend and break down some other interesting facts about Antony and Anthony so that you can decide which spelling suits your child best.

Antony and Anthony are two different names.

Antony is a proper noun, while Anthony is a common noun. It’s important to note that this doesn’t mean Antony is more formal than Anthony–it simply means that it’s used as the name of something specific: in this case, Saint Antony of Egypt (the patron saint of horses). The use of both names has been tracked since 1880 (you can see their popularity over time here), but Antony has been on the rise since 2000 and will likely gain in popularity in the next few years.

Antony is more common than Anthony.

Anthony and Antony are both masculine given names that derive from the Latin name Antonius, which means “invaluable.” The two spellings are pronounced in similar ways, but they have different meanings and uses. As such, when you’re choosing between them it’s important to keep these differences in mind:

• Anthony is more common than Antony; however, both spellings are used interchangeably (the former being more popular).
• A proper noun refers to a specific person or place while a common noun refers to something general or universal (i.e., “cat” versus “kitten”).
• Formal language tends toward longer words with more syllables due to its use of complex sentence structures; informal language tends toward shorter words with fewer syllables because it uses simple sentences instead of complex ones.*

Antony is a proper noun, while Anthony is a common noun.

Antony is a proper noun, while Anthony is a common noun. Antony is the name of a Roman general and politician who fought against Octavian in the battle of Actium in 31 BC. Anthony was also one of several saints who were born during this time period and whose names have become popular with parents over the years.

Antony is more formal than Anthony and therefore less likely to be used on its own as part of someone’s first name; however, you can use it as both your first name or last name if you want to honor one of these historical figures!

Antony is more formal than Anthony.

Antony is more formal than Anthony. Antony is a proper noun, while Anthony is a common noun. Antony is also more common than Anthony, but this doesn’t mean that you can use it in place of your own name! If you want to refer to yourself with an alias (like Batman or Wonder Woman), then go ahead and call yourself whatever you want; but if you’re talking about yourself as “me,” then stick with plain old “I” or “me.”

For example:

Antony: Hey there! This is my friend Antony–he’s an actor who lives in New York City now.

The popularity of each name has been tracked since 1880, but Antony has been on the rise since 2000 and will likely gain in popularity in the next few years.

Antony and Anthony are both popular names, but Antony is more formal than Anthony.

Antony is more common than Anthony in the US, though not by much: it ranks #39 while its counterpart sits at #40 on the list of top 1000 names for boys born in 2017.

Both Antony and Anthony have been rising in popularity since 2000–Antony faster than his cousin–and we expect that trend to continue over the next few years!

Takeaway:

So, what’s the difference between Anthony and Antony?

Antony is a proper noun (the name of a person), while Anthony is a common noun (a word that describes something). It’s also more formal than its counterpart–think of it like this: If you’re introducing yourself to someone at an event or party, you might say “Hi! I’m Antony.” But if you were writing about yourself in an essay or blog post, you’d probably go with “Hi! I’m Anthony.”

So, if you’re looking for a name for your baby boy and want something more unique than the usual names like Christian or Jacob, then Antony might be just what you need!