The name Diamante first appeared in the U.S. baby name data — for both genders, notably — in the early 1990s:
| Boys named Diamante | Girls named Diamante | |
| 1993 | 35 | 17 |
| 1992 | 37 | 9 |
| 1991 | 30* | 6* |
| 1990 | . | . |
| 1989 | . | . |
What caused this dual-gender debut?
The Mitsubishi Diamante, a luxury sedan that went on sale in the U.S. in the spring of 1991. (It had been introduced in Japan a year earlier.)
Write-ups about the new car noted that diamante was the Spanish word for “diamond.” Despite this, “Diamante” was pronounced dee-ah-MAHN-tee (as opposed to dee-ah-MAHN-teh) in television commercials.
The car’s name was inspired by Mitsubishi’s emblem, which features three red diamonds.
What are your thoughts on the name Diamante?
P.S. Did you know that “Mitsubishi” essentially means “three diamonds”? It’s made up of the Japanese words mitsu, meaning “three,” and hishi, which denotes “a rhombus or diamond shape.” (The literal meaning of hishi is “water chestnut.”)
Sources:
- Mitsubishi Diamante – Wikipedia
- “New Cars.” Popular Mechanics May 1991: 112-115.
- “Mitsubishi designs luxury” [Advertorial]. Californian 19 Apr. 1991.
- Mitsubishi Mark – mitsubishi.com
- SSA
Image: Clipping from Popular Mechanics (May 1991)