Popular baby names in Manitoba (Canada), 2019

According to Manitoba’s Vital Statistics Agency, the most popular baby names in the province last year were Olivia and Liam.

Here are Manitoba’s top 10 girl names and top 10 boy names of 2019:

Girl Names

  1. Olivia
  2. Emily
  3. Ava
  4. Amelia
  5. Hannah
  6. Charlotte
  7. Sophia
  8. Emma
  9. Abigail
  10. Avery

Boy Names

  1. Liam
  2. Noah
  3. Lucas
  4. William
  5. Mason
  6. Ethan
  7. James
  8. Oliver
  9. Benjamin
  10. Carter

In the girls’ top 10, Hannah, Emma, and Avery replaced Chloe, Isabella and Sophie.

In the boys’ top 10, James, Oliver and Carter replaced Logan, Jacob, and Alexander.

In 2018, the top two names were Olivia and Liam. (My 2018 post for Manitoba ranks Lucas/Luke first for boys because it was based upon provisional data.)

Sources: Annual Report – Manitoba Vital Statistics Agency, 2019-2020 VSA Annual Report (PDF)

Where did the baby name Iyone come from in 1927?

The single "Iyone My Own Iyone" (1926)
“Iyone My Own Iyone” single

The baby name Ione saw strong usage in the U.S. during the early 20th century. The spelling variant Iyone, on the other hand, was a mere one-hit wonder in the U.S. baby name data during that time period:

  • 1929: unlisted
  • 1928: unlisted
  • 1927: 7 baby girls named Iyone
  • 1926: unlisted
  • 1925: unlisted

What gave this particular version of the name a boost during the 1920s?

A song called “Iyone My Own Iyone.” It was copyrighted in mid-1926, and later the same year was recorded and released by various acts/bandleaders (including the Brox Sisters, Arthur Lange, and Ted Lewis).

Though “Ione” is typically pronounced eye-oh-nee — with a “long E” sound at the end, just like many of the other personal names (e.g., Chloe, Zoe, Phoebe) that come from ancient Greek — in the song, the name “Iyone” is pronounced eye-own, to rhyme with “I own.”

What are your thoughts on the name Iyone?

P.S. Ione returned to the U.S. data in 1989 after a brief absence thanks to the iconic ’80s movie Say Anything, which co-starred actress Ione Skye (who happens to be the daughter of Donovan, who had an influence on the baby names Lalena, Juniper, and possibly Jennifer in the late ’60s).

Sources: Addy Britt (lyricist) – Discography of American Historical Recordings, SSA

Where did the baby name Lucan come from in 1977?

Title of the TV series "Lucan" (1977-1978)

The name Lucan first appeared in the U.S. baby name data in 1977:

  • 1979: 21 baby boys named Lucan
  • 1978: 41 baby boys named Lucan
  • 1977: 16 baby boys named Lucan [debut]
  • 1976: unlisted
  • 1975: unlisted

The names Lucas and Luke were on the rise at the time, but the influence in this case was pop culture: Lucan, a television series that aired irregularly from mid-1977 to late 1978.

The show starred actor Kevin Brophy as Lucan, who’d been raised by wolves for the first 10 years of his life, then “civilized” in a university lab for the next 10 years. As a young man, he struck out on his own to solve the mystery of his identity.

In the show, the name “Lucan” was pronounced with equal stress on both syllables: loo-kan. Not like Duncan or Deacon, but like the name Lou followed by the verb can (“Lou can…”). The show’s creators likely based the name on the Ancient Greek word for “wolf,” which has been transliterated various ways (e.g., lukos, lykos, lukon, lykon).

Do you like the name Lucan? (Do you like it more or less than Lucas and Luke?)

Source: Strong’s Greek: 3074. lukos — a wolf

Where did the baby name Wynton come from in 1960?

The Wynton Kelly album "Wynton Kelly!" (1961)
Wynton Kelly album

Wynton is a name doubly associated with jazz.

First there was jazz pianist Wynton Kelly, born in Jamaica in 1931. He’s best known for being part of Miles Davis’ band starting in 1959, including an appearance on Kind of Blue (1959), which would become one of the greatest jazz records of all time. (He played in the song “Freddie Freeloader.”)

Around the same time, the baby name Wynton began appearing in the U.S. baby name data:

  • 1963: 6 baby boys named Wynton
  • 1962: unlisted
  • 1961: unlisted
  • 1960: 8 baby boys named Wynton [debut]
  • 1959: unlisted
  • 1958: unlisted

In 1961, New Orleans jazz pianist Ellis Marsalis welcomed a baby boy and named him Wynton in honor of his friend Wynton Kelly.

Jazz trumpeter Wynton Marsalis
Wynton Marsalis

Little Wynton went on to become an internationally famous jazz trumpeter, winning eight Grammy Awards from 1983 to 1987 and playing the national anthem at Super Bowl XX [vid] in New Orleans in January of 1986. His success not only gave new life to the name Wynton, but it put the name Marsalis on the map:

Boys named WyntonBoys named Marsalis
19881913
19872212
19862713*
198517.
198423.
1983..
*Debut

The surname Marsalis is thought to be a Dutch variant of the French surname Marchal, which was originally an occupational/status name meaning “marshal.”

I can think of just two other names that with similar usage stories (i.e., influenced twice by two different people working in the same field, with the second person being a namesake of the first): Ryne and Damita.

What are your thoughts on the baby name Wynton?

Sources:

Second image: Wynton Marsalis 2009