How popular is the baby name Pius in the United States right now? How popular was it historically? Use the popularity graph and data table below to find out! Plus, see all the blog posts that mention the name Pius.

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Popularity of the baby name Pius


Posts that mention the name Pius

Pi-names for Pi Day (3/14)

Pi Day pie

In mathematics, pi — the ratio of the diameter of a circle to its circumference — is a constant roughly equal to 3.14159. That means today, 3/14, is pi day!

What baby names start with Pi-? There are a bunch, but only a handful start with that same “pie” sound:

Other Pi- names that start with a different sound include:

Pia/Pio
Piedad
Pier
Pierce
Piero/Piera
Pierre
Pierrick
Pieter
Pietro/Pietra
Pihu
Pina/Pino
Pinchas
Pink/Pinkie
Piotr
Pip
Pippin
Pippa
Pilar
Piritta
Pixie
Piyush

What’s your favorite Pi- name?

Where did the baby name Cabrini come from in 1947?

Italian-American religious sister Frances Xavier Cabrini
Frances Xavier Cabrini

The Italian surname name Cabrini popped up in the U.S. baby name data for the first time in 1947:

  • 1949: unlisted
  • 1948: 6 baby girls named Cabrini
  • 1947: 6 baby girls named Cabrini [debut]
  • 1946: unlisted
  • 1945: unlisted

Why?

Because, in July of 1946, Italian-American religious sister Frances Xavier Cabrini (a.k.a. Mother Cabrini) was canonized by Pope Pius XII. This made her the first U.S. citizen* to become a Catholic saint.

Cabrini was born (as Maria Francesca Cabrini) in 1850 in Lombardy, which at that time was part of the Austrian Empire. (It’s now in Italy.) She took her religious vows in 1880, moved to the United States in 1889, and became a naturalized citizen in 1909. She died in Chicago in 1917.

She’s remembered especially for her work with Italian immigrants. In fact, she was proclaimed “Patroness of Immigrants” by Pius XII in 1950.

Since 1947, the name Cabrini has appeared in the U.S. baby name data over a dozen times, mainly in the 1950s and 1960s. The most recent inclusion was in 2019, when it was given to 7 baby girls.

I’m not certain about the etymology of Cabrini, but several sources suggest that, like the Spanish surname Cabrera, it’s derived from the Latin word capraria, meaning “pertaining to goats” or “place of goats.” (The Latin word for “goat” is capra.)

What are your thoughts on the baby name Cabrini?

*The first native-born U.S. citizen to be canonized was Elizabeth Ann Seton, in 1975.

Sources: Frances Xavier Cabrini – Wikipedia, SSA

Baby name story: Pio

The head of the Catholic church, the Pope, is both the Bishop of Rome and the sovereign of the state of Vatican City.

But one thing I didn’t realize until recently is that, while Rome has been around for centuries, Vatican City isn’t even 100 years old.

Vatican City, an enclave within Rome, has been an independent state only since mid-1929. It was established via treaty between the Holy See and Fascist Italy (under Mussolini).

How did I come to find this out? Via baby name, as usual. Here’s the full text of a tiny item I found in a 1929 newspaper:

The first baby born in the new papal state is named Pio (pius). He is the son of a papal servant.

Too bad there were no other details. Leaves me wondering if the name Pio was a tribute to the location, or to the pope at that time (Pius XI), or to something else…

Source: “First Vatican City Baby Is Named Pius.” San Jose News 19 Jun. 1929: 8.