Where did the baby name Sommers come from in 1977?

Jaime Sommers, the Bionic Woman
Jaime Sommers, the Bionic Woman

The name Sommers was a one-hit wonder in the U.S. baby name data in 1977:

  • 1979: unlisted
  • 1978: unlisted
  • 1977: 7 baby girls named Sommers [debut]
  • 1976: unlisted
  • 1975: unlisted

What put Sommers on the map?

The popular TV show The Bionic Woman (1976-1978), which featured a main character named Jaime Sommers (played by Lindsay Wagner).

The character originated on an episode of The Six Million Dollar Man* called “The Bionic Woman.” In that episode, Jaime was severely injured in a skydiving accident. She ended up with bionic legs, a bionic right arm, and a bionic right ear that gave her superhuman speed, strength, and hearing.

In the spin-off series, she put her new abilities to use by going on dangerous missions for the government.

The more common names Jaime and Lindsay (and sound-alikes Jamie, Lindsey, etc.) also saw much higher usage while the show was on the air. The rise of Jaime (as a girl name) was particularly dramatic:

  • 1978: 4,002 baby girls named Jaime [rank: 71st]
  • 1977: 5,906 baby girls named Jaime [rank: 46th]
  • 1976: 7,836 baby girls named Jaime [rank: 29th]
  • 1975: 915 baby girls named Jaime [rank: 263rd]
  • 1974: 260 baby girls named Jaime [rank: 606th]

In fact, I remember quoting a person named after Jaime Sommers in name quote post a few years ago.

So what are your thoughts on the rare name Sommers? Would you use it? (How about the slightly more common Summers?)

Sources: The Bionic Woman – Wikipedia, The Bionic Woman – NBC.com

*See Taneha.

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