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| Source -- Social Security Administration (link in article) |
I don’t come cross too many “young” Diane’s and I’m always pleasantly surprised when I come across anyone who share’s my name!
My test of a forename’s popularity is whether you find it “printed”
on merchandise when on vacation! Fortunately
or unfortunately for my children, we never find their names printed on
anything. Maybe I was a little too
successful in giving them unique names!
This comes to mind because last month findmypast.com
published a piece talking about baby names and their popularity as found in the
1940 census and today! Here is an abbreviated excerpt.
The most popular baby
names for American girls at the time of the 1940 U.S. Census have changed since
then seven times more than the top names for boys the same year, reveals a
study by genealogy website, findmypast.com...
Findmypast.com researchers analyzed the records of
the U.S.
None of
the top 10 girls' names in 1940 even make today's top 100, while seven of the
top 10 boys' names do so and three (James, David, William) make the top 20.
"Baby
names are like period pieces", says Josh Taylor, genealogist for findmypast.com. "Some
recall a particular era, which can make them clues when researching family
history."
Back to my name – Diane. I visited the Social Security Administration (Baby
Name Data)
website to learn more about names and their popularity! In the year I was born, my name was 19th
in popularity and the list includes my husband’s name, my sister’s name, her
husband’s name, etc. So, we definitely
seem to be a product of “our generation!”
And, how far my name has fallen! For 2011, the name Diane is NOT in the top
1000 names, though the variant Diana is found in the 203rd spot! I guess I’m more unique than I thought ....
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My middle name is Diane. But my first name, Heather, was so unknown in 1961 that the doctor who delivered me told my Mother not to give me dog's name. His hobby was breeding Scots Terriers! Twenty years later, when I was student teaching in a third grade ther were four Heathers in my class!
ReplyDeleteOn the theme of names, this post goes back 100 years and looks at the names that were popular. The name William is found on both. While other names have come and gone, the name William has stood resolute, http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/most-popular-baby-names-2011-vs-1911-william-163322452.html
ReplyDeleteMy three sisters name are on the list Donna, Deborah and Barbara. I was named by a nurse as my parents we expecting one child and got an added bonus a Denise Lynn. Over the years, they have complained about their name, but not me.
ReplyDelete