Where did the baby name Tyrann come from in 2012?

Football player Tyrann Mathieu
Tyrann Mathieu

In 2012, the name Tyrann debuted in the U.S. baby name data:

  • 2020: 10 baby boys named Tyrann
  • 2019: 9 baby boys named Tyrann
  • 2018: 5 baby boys named Tyrann
  • 2017: 8 baby boys named Tyrann
  • 2016: 18 baby boys named Tyrann
    • 10 born in Arizona specifically
  • 2015: 15 baby boys named Tyrann
  • 2014: 8 baby boys named Tyrann
  • 2013: 18 baby boys named Tyrann
  • 2012: 15 baby boys named Tyrann [debut]
  • 2011: unlisted
  • 2010: unlisted

Why?

Because of football player Tyrann (pronounced tie-rahn) Mathieu.

The name’s debut followed Tyrann’s successful (if short) 2-year college football career with Louisiana State University. In 2011, not only was Tyrann a finalist for the Heisman Trophy, but he also picked up the fantastic nickname “the honey badger.” (That was the year the infamous Honey Badger video went viral.)

He has played in the NFL since 2013, starting with the Arizona Cardinals.

Since 2019, he has been with the Kansas City Chiefs. Notably, the Chiefs voted Tyrann team MVP over quarterback Patrick Mahomes in 2019.

What do you think of the baby name Tyrann?

Sources: Tyrann Mathieu – Wikipedia, The Chiefs’ MVP isn’t Patrick Mahomes, it’s Tyrann Mathieu, SSA

Image: Tyrann Mathieu trading card

Where did the baby name Tavares come from in 1974?

Tavares album "Hard Core Poetry" (1974).
1974 Tavares album

In the mid-1970s, the name Tavares suddenly popped up in the U.S. baby name data:

  • 1978: 163 baby boys named Tavares
  • 1977: 169 baby boys (peak) named Tavares
  • 1976: 169 baby boys (peak) / 5 baby girls named Tavares
  • 1975: 162 baby boys / 10 baby girls named Tavares
  • 1974: 60 baby boys / 8 baby girls named Tavares [dual-debut]
  • 1973: unlisted
  • 1972: unlisted

What was behind the debut?

Tavares, a soul/R&B music group consisting of the five Tavares brothers: Ralph, Arthur (called “Pooch”), Antone (“Chubby”), Feliciano (“Butch”), and Perry (“Tiny”).

They scored their first hit in 1974 with a cover of the Hall & Oates song “She’s Gone.” The cover reached #1 on Billboard‘s R&B chart and peaked at #50 on Billboard‘s Hot 100 chart. Over the next few years, the brothers put out a string of successful songs, including “It Only Takes a Minute” (1975) and “Whodunit” (1977).

The Tavares brothers were born and raised in New England, but were of Cape Verdean ancestry. Their Portuguese surname was originally a “habitational name from any of at least seven minor places” in Portugal called Tavares.

Variants of the name that also emerged in the data during the ’70s include Tavare, Travares, Tarvares, Tavaris, Tavaras, Tavarus, Taveres, Tavoris, and Tavores.

What are your thoughts on the baby name Tavares?

Sources:

P.S. Butch was married to Lola Falana from 1971 to 1975.

Popular and unique baby names in Alberta (Canada), 2020

Flag of Alberta
Flag of Alberta

Last year, the Canadian province of Alberta welcomed 49,030 babies — 25,160 boys and 23,870 girls.

What were the most popular names among these 2020 babies? Olivia and Noah.

Here are the top-10 lists by gender:

Girl Names

  1. Olivia, 236 baby girls
  2. Emma, 184
  3. Charlotte, 161
  4. Ava, 159
  5. Sophia, 151
  6. Amelia, 145
  7. Isla, 133
  8. Emily, 127
  9. Lily, 123
  10. Abigail, 114

Boy Names

  1. Noah, 239 baby boys
  2. Oliver, 229
  3. Liam, 206
  4. Benjamin, 182
  5. William, 178
  6. Jack, 169
  7. Lucas, 163
  8. Theodore, 159
  9. Levi, 153
  10. Owen, 152

In the girls’ top 10, Isla and Lily replaced Hannah and Elizabeth. In fact, Lily jumped all the way from 24th (in 2019) to 9th (in 2020).

In the boys’ top 10, Theodore and Levi replaced Ethan and Jacob. Levi, like Lily, saw a big jump from 27th (in 2019) to 9th (in 2020).

Rare baby names that were bestowed just once in Alberta last year include…

Unique Girl NamesUnique Boy Names
Aztrellina, Bellashae, Chloezel, Dexy, Electrona, Franzene, Goldwyn, Hirtoli, Iskra-Maurize, Jenebith, Kalkidan, Kikasia, Kisik, Larkspur, Lithuli, Magaty, Mirgisee, Nannally, Nomvela, Obsinet, Pkachhouk, Pulcherie, Qaroo, Rhemalie, Rielle, Roanix, Silk-Nightsun, Slyzze, Somadina, Tezlokai, Trixene, Ulita, Vallyn, Wapikwanew, Wicanphi-Peta, Xeene, Yatika, ZintayaArctic, Boajor, Chinook, Cyomoro, Dazzlo, Discern, Edline, Fendt, Greysky, Hananiah, Iforel, Jryxx, Kikisepaw-Kihiw, Kjerrand, Kodiak, Lelouch, Marlgrae, Moyo, Naatósíniipi, Nufuri, Outlaw, Psalmson, Qifan, Rionzed, Running, Sikapiohkitopi, Sîktogeja, Skydancer, StormRyder, Taiga, Tonderai, Ulfbjorn, Valois, Wapikihew, Wembley, Xylatar, Ynno, Zeuxis-Finn

Here are some explanations and/or potential influences for a few of the above:

  • Pkachhouk, or pka chhouk, means “lotus” in Khmer (Cambodian). Pka by itself is the word for “flower.”
  • Wapikwanew means “flower” in Cree.
  • Kikisepaw-Kihiw — kikisepaw means “morning, dawn” and kihiw means “eagle” in Cree.
  • Kjerrand is a Norwegian name ultimately derived from a Germanic name made up of elements meaning “army” and “rim, edge (of a shield).”
  • Lelouch Lamperouge is an anime character.
  • Sîktogeja means “wolf” in Nakoda.
  • Taiga could refer to the coniferous forest of the subarctic, or to the English word “tiger.”
  • Valois (pronounced val-wa) was both a historical region and a historical royal house of France.

Finally, here are the 2019 rankings for Alberta, if you’d like to compare.

Sources: Alberta’s Top Baby Names (PDFs: Girl Names, Boy Names), Olivia and Noah most popular baby names in 2020, Online Cree Dictionary, Nordic Names

Image: Adapted from Flag of Alberta (public domain)

Where did the baby name Toika come from in 1962?

Toika, a single-episode character from the TV show "Route 66."
Toika from “Route 66“

The intriguing name Toika first appeared in the U.S. baby name data in 1962:

  • 1964: unlisted
  • 1963: 6 baby girls named Toika
  • 1962: 6 baby girls named Toika [debut]
  • 1961: unlisted
  • 1960: unlisted

Where did it come from?

A single-episode character on the TV show Route 66. The episode was called “One Tiger to a Hill” and aired on September 21, 1962.

In the episode, main characters Tod and Buz traveled to Astoria, Oregon, to work on a fishing boat owned by widow Anna Gustafson. While there, Tod became interested in Anna’s daughter Toika, who was already in a relationship with a moody local fisherman named Karno. Toika was played by actress Laura Devon (born Mary L. Briley).

I’m not sure where the writers got the name Toika, but they may have been inspired by the Finnish surname Toikka, or the Finnish word taika, which means “magic.”

What are your thoughts on this name?

Sources: Route 66 “One Tiger to a Hill” (TV Episode 1962) – IMDb, Laura Devon – Wikipedia