How did Hakeem Olajuwon influence baby names?

Akeem Olajuwon emigrated from Nigeria to play basketball at the University of Houston from 1980 to 1984. He then played professional basketball from 1984 to 2002 — half of that time as Akeem, the other half of that time as Hakeem. (He changed the spelling of his first name in 1991.)

How did Olajuwon’s successful career affect the popularity of the baby names Akeem, Hakeem and Olajuwon? Let’s check it out…

	Akeem	Hakeem	Olajuwon
2003	56	86	5
2002	65	83	9
2001	63	115	11
2000	77	132	8
1999	61	134	15
1998	97	194	16
1997	116	226	24
1996	146	241	26
1995*	174	247	54
1994*	222	264	58
1993	242	166	16
1992	325	200	18
1991	419	241	24
1990	570	272	22
1989	459	279	19
1988	221	65	17
1987	178	55	23
1986	283	29	52
1985	160	36	22
1984	254	50	19
1983	192	35	15*
1982	32	22	.
1981	8	31	.

*These are the two years Olajuwon led the Houston Rockets to NBA championships.

So, why did Olajuwon change the spelling of his first name?

“It’s no big deal,” Olajuwon says. “I just want to go back to using the original spelling, the way it is meant to be spelled in Arabic.”

According to Olajuwon, “Hakeem,” in Arabic, means “a wise man; a doctor.”

But “Akeem,” which is the way it’s been spelled since he arrived in the United States in 1981, has no translation.

What does Olajuwon’s surname mean? According to NBA.com, Olajuwon means “always being on top.” In every Yoruba name that starts with Ola- that I’ve come across, though, Ola- means “wealth.” So I don’t know about that NBA definition. (I also don’t know what -juwon might mean.)

Finally, did you notice how the usage of Akeem and Hakeem jumped from 1988 to 1989, but the usage of Olajuwon stayed the same? The main inspiration here was Hakim of R&B group The Boys, which had a few hit singles out around this time. In fact, the names of all four of The Boys — Khiry, Hakim, Tajh & Bilal — got a boost in 1989.

Update, 9/5/2021: I think Jamie’s theory about the name Akeem getting a boost in 1989 from the 1988 movie Coming to America — in which comedian Eddie Murphy plays lead character Prince Akeem Joffer of the (fictional) African nation Zamunda — makes perfect sense! Off to add it to the timeline…

Sources:

• Hakim Olajuwon – Wikipedia
• “Olajuwon plans to change name.” Herald-Journal 11 Mar. 1991: D2.