Where did the baby name Saadia come from in 1954?

The character Saadia (played by Rita Gam) in the movie "Saadia" (1953).
Saadia from “Saadia“

The exotic-looking name Saadia first popped up in the U.S. baby name data in 1954:

  • 1956: 10 baby girls named Saadia
  • 1955: 17 baby girls named Saadia
  • 1954: 19 baby girls named Saadia [debut]
  • 1953: unlisted
  • 1952: unlisted

The source?

The movie Saadia, released at the end of 1953. (It was based on the 1950 book Échec au destin by Francis D’Autheville.)

The film was set in the Moroccan desert, and the primary female character was a young woman named Saadia (pronounced sah-dee-ah), played by actress Rita Gam.

Though the character was female, the earliest known real-life Saadia was male: Sa’adia ben Joseph, 10th-century Jewish philosopher and rabbi.

The name “Saadia,” which, so far as is known, he was the first to bear, is apparently an artificial Hebrew equivalent of his Arabic name, “Sa’id.”

The name Sa’id means “happy” or “lucky” in Arabic.

But, getting back to the 1950s…a comedic movie called 3 Ring Circus — filmed while Saadia was playing in theaters, and released at the end of 1954 — also included a character named Saadia (this time played by Zsa Zsa Gabor). This second film may have influenced expectant parents as well.

What do you think of the name Saadia?

Sources:

Image: Screenshot of Saadia

How did 4-H influence U.S. baby names?

4-H logo ("emblem").

The 4-H youth organization was officially established by the U.S. government in the 1914. (Those four H’s come from the group’s original motto, “head, heart, hands, and health.”) The initial focus was agricultural and home economics activities, and the initial participants were rural youth.

In 1922, 4-H started hosting an annual congress at which national-level awards were bestowed. And at least two of these top-level award winners — whose names and photos often ran in the papers — had a slight influence on U.S. baby names.

The first 4-H name to debut was Clarabeth:

  • 1937: unlisted
  • 1936: 6 baby girls named Clarabeth [debut]
  • 1935: unlisted

The second was Nawatha:

  • 1942: unlisted
  • 1941: 5 baby girls named Nawatha [debut]
  • 1940: unlisted

Both were one-hit wonders.

Clarabeth Zehring, 17, of Ohio.
Clarabeth Zehring

Clarabeth was inspired by 17-year-old Clarabeth Zehring of Germantown, Ohio. She was the national winner of the 4-H dress-making competition in late 1935. First she won in her category (“school dress”) and, along with three other category winners, received a gold wrist watch. Upon being the one chosen (out of the four) to win the national title, Clarabeth also got a solid gold medal.

Nawatha was inspired by 20-year-old Nawatha L. Krebs of Eufaula, Oklahoma. She was the female winner of the National Achievement Award (there was a male winner as well) in late 1940. She won a silver flatware set and a college scholarship.

And, check this out — I happened to find some proof that Nawatha’s name being in the newspapers had an influence on expectant parents:

About the time Nawatha was winning her 4-H award, a family in McAlester [Oklahoma] had a new baby, a girl. The mother had seen Nawatha’s picture in the paper, fell in love with the unusual name and named her baby Nawatha.

The two Nawathas later learned of one another after both had moved to California and both had tried to get a California license plate that said “NAWATHA.” The younger one, who had the idea first, got the plate. The older one was stuck with the plate “NWATHA” instead.

Which of today’s names, Clarabeth or Nawatha, do you like more? Why?

Sources:

Popular baby names in College Station (Texas), 2020

Flag of Texas
Flag of Texas

According to the government of College Station, Texas, the most popular baby names in the city in 2020 were Olivia and Noah.

Here are College Station’s top 3 girl names and top 3 boy names of 2020:

Girl Names

  1. Olivia, 11 baby girls
  2. Emma, 10
  3. Ava, Riley, & Sofia, 9 each (3-way tie)

Boy Names

  1. Noah, 9 baby boys
  2. James, Jackson, & Samuel, 8 each (3-way tie)
  3. Benjamin, Elijah, Ezra, & Oliver, 7 each (4-way tie)

On the girls’ side, the Ava-Riley-Sofia tie knocked Harper out of third place.

On the boys’ side, the top 3 names are entirely new (again!).

In 2019, the top two names in College Station were Olivia and Aiden.

Source: Noah, Olivia CS’s most popular baby names in 2020

Image: Adapted from Flag of Texas (public domain)

Where did the baby name Che come from in 1968?

Ernest "Che" Guevara (1928-1967)
Che Guevara

October 9th of this year will mark the anniversary of the death of guerrilla leader Ernesto “Che” Guevara, who was executed in 1967. He was born in Argentina and died in Bolivia, but most associate him with Cuba due to his involvement in the Cuban Revolution (1953-1959).

The year after he died, the baby name Che appeared for the first time in the U.S. baby name data. The name saw peak usage in the early-to-mid ’70s, following the release of the 1969 film Che!, which starred Omar Sharif. Usage was highest in California.

  • 1972: 79 baby boys named Che [rank: 902nd]
  • 1971: 86 baby boys named Che [rank: 877th]
  • 1970: 92 baby boys named Che [rank: 839th]
  • 1969: 56 baby boys named Che
  • 1968: 19 baby boys named Che [debut]
  • 1967: unlisted
  • 1966: unlisted

The name also started seeing female usage around this time, debuting in the girls’ data in 1969.

So how did Guevara, who was named Ernesto after his father, acquire the nickname “Che”? From his overuse of the interjection che (“hey!”) while he was living in Guatemala City (1953-1954).

Finally, here’s one more Che-related baby name: Aleida, which more than doubled in usage in 1960, the year after Che married his second wife, Aleida March.

P.S. Here’s a Turkish baby named Ernesto Cheguevara.

Sources: Che Guevara – Wikipedia, SSA

Image: Adapted from Guerrillero Heroico (public domain) by Alberto Korda