The nameplate necklace as we know it took off in the 1970s and 1980s in Black and Latino neighborhoods of New York City, where hip-hop artists and local jewelers made gold names a symbol of identity and pride. The idea of wearing your name is much older, going back to ancient name amulets, but the script gold nameplate is a modern classic born on city streets.
As a family-owned jeweler in New Jersey, we have watched the nameplate stay popular for 30 years. Here is a short look at how it got here.
Where does the idea of wearing your name come from?
People have worn names and symbols for thousands of years. In ancient Egypt, a royal name was written inside an oval shape called a cartouche, and the cartouche was believed to protect the name it held. Over the centuries, people in many cultures wore initials, monograms and engraved lockets. The nameplate takes the same idea, a name worn close to the body, and turns it into the jewelry itself.
How did nameplates become popular in New York?
In the late 1970s and 1980s, gold jewelry became a big part of style in New York neighborhoods like the Bronx, Harlem and Brooklyn. Local jewelers, many of them small family shops, cut names from gold in bold script, often with hearts, underlines or diamond-cut details.
Nameplates meant something. They said who you were and where you came from, in a city that did not always see you. Hip-hop artists wore them on album covers and in music videos, and the look spread from the neighborhood to the rest of the country. Paired with big hoop earrings and gold rope or Cuban chains, the nameplate became part of a whole style.
Why did nameplates become mainstream?
By the late 1990s and early 2000s, nameplates were showing up in movies, on television and in fashion magazines. A well-known TV character in that era wore a script nameplate, and suddenly people everywhere were asking for one. Some fans did not know the style already had deep roots in the communities that started it.
Since then, the nameplate has come back again and again. Each generation adds its own twist, but the core idea has not changed: your name, in gold, worn with pride.
What makes a classic nameplate?
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Script lettering with a bold first capital.
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Solid gold, usually yellow, polished or diamond-cut.
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A small detail, like a heart, underline or crown.
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A chain attached at both sides so the name sits straight across the collarbone.
These details are not only about looks. Connected letters and an underline make the plate strong enough to wear every day. To learn about today's options, read our Custom Nameplate Necklace Guide.
How are nameplates worn today?
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Layered with a thin chain or a second, shorter nameplate.
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With a family word like Mommy, Abuela or a child's name. See Nameplate Necklace Ideas for Mom, Grandma and New Parents.
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In two-tone or with diamonds for extra sparkle.
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By everyone, from kids to grandparents, and men as well as women.
Why do nameplates still matter?
A nameplate is personal in a way most jewelry is not. It is made to order for one person, in their name, by hand. That is why it is still a go-to gift for birthdays, graduations, Mother's Day and new babies. It is a little piece of identity, and of history, that you can wear.
Visit or text us
Want to make a nameplate with roots? Come see us at 260 Main St, Orange, NJ, or call or text (973) 673-3800. You can also browse our nameplate necklaces and pair one with a classic pair of gold hoops.
A Short History of the Nameplate Necklace
The nameplate necklace as we know it took off in the 1970s and 1980s in Black and Latino neighborhoods of New York City, where hip-hop artists and local jewelers made gold names a symbol of identity and pride. The idea of wearing your name is much older, going back to ancient name amulets, but the script gold nameplate is a modern classic born on city streets.
As a family-owned jeweler in New Jersey, we have watched the nameplate stay popular for 30 years. Here is a short look at how it got here.
Where does the idea of wearing your name come from?
People have worn names and symbols for thousands of years. In ancient Egypt, a royal name was written inside an oval shape called a cartouche, and the cartouche was believed to protect the name it held. Over the centuries, people in many cultures wore initials, monograms and engraved lockets. The nameplate takes the same idea, a name worn close to the body, and turns it into the jewelry itself.
How did nameplates become popular in New York?
In the late 1970s and 1980s, gold jewelry became a big part of style in New York neighborhoods like the Bronx, Harlem and Brooklyn. Local jewelers, many of them small family shops, cut names from gold in bold script, often with hearts, underlines or diamond-cut details.
Nameplates meant something. They said who you were and where you came from, in a city that did not always see you. Hip-hop artists wore them on album covers and in music videos, and the look spread from the neighborhood to the rest of the country. Paired with big hoop earrings and gold rope or Cuban chains, the nameplate became part of a whole style.
Why did nameplates become mainstream?
By the late 1990s and early 2000s, nameplates were showing up in movies, on television and in fashion magazines. A well-known TV character in that era wore a script nameplate, and suddenly people everywhere were asking for one. Some fans did not know the style already had deep roots in the communities that started it.
Since then, the nameplate has come back again and again. Each generation adds its own twist, but the core idea has not changed: your name, in gold, worn with pride.
What makes a classic nameplate?
These details are not only about looks. Connected letters and an underline make the plate strong enough to wear every day. To learn about today's options, read our Custom Nameplate Necklace Guide.
How are nameplates worn today?
Why do nameplates still matter?
A nameplate is personal in a way most jewelry is not. It is made to order for one person, in their name, by hand. That is why it is still a go-to gift for birthdays, graduations, Mother's Day and new babies. It is a little piece of identity, and of history, that you can wear.
Visit or text us
Want to make a nameplate with roots? Come see us at 260 Main St, Orange, NJ, or call or text (973) 673-3800. You can also browse our nameplate necklaces and pair one with a classic pair of gold hoops.