Which boy names emerged in the U.S. baby name data in 2022 for the first time ever?
A total of 536 boy names debuted in the data last year, and the most impressive debut was made by Maziyon. Here are the top debuts overall:
- Maziyon, 82 baby boys
- Kaiyzen, 67
- Jahkarri, 36
- Xacari, 20
- Amiriyon, 18
- Heziah, 18
- Airmiess, 15
- Nogivenname, 15
- Kaymere, 14
Airmiess comes from late rapper Nipsey Hussle. His legal name was said to be Ermias (the fastest-rising boy name of 2019) around the time he was killed. More recently, it must have come to light that the spelling of his birth name was actually “Airmiess.”
(“Nogivenname,” as I mentioned in the post about girl name debuts, is just a placeholder.)
Here are some more:
| 13 baby boys | Caylix, Khyrein, Monaco, Xaivius, Yoisel |
| 12 baby boys | Enael, Jaimeer, Kaymir, Neyzan |
| 11 baby boys | Asen, Caizer, Nawab, Uziyah, Zoro |
| 10 baby boys | Atlys, Boman, Cyre, Drakeo, Jahzeir, Jettsyn, Kalian, Prophecy |
| 9 baby boys | Amiko, Asun, Cheskal, Claysen, Culture, Dawensky, Ezz, Giveon, Jhream, Kreid, Raymari, Record, Zyarie |
| 8 baby boys | Aarshiv, Ahson, Ahziel, Arqam, Astrid, Baheer, Bellami, Bhodie, Cardiff, Cazmir, Demiri, Densley, Hendon, Ikaris, Kaiyir, Kosmo, Marvensky, Meruem, Muhammadomar, Oracle, Siddhik, Subhanullah, Xailen, Xandro, Zyland |
Zoro probably comes from One Piece character Roronoa Zoro. (The name Roronoa, listed below, also debuted in 2022.)
Giveon is a California-born R&B singer whose early 2020 song “Heartbreak Anniversary” didn’t become a hit until mid-2021.
Finally, here’s a sampling of the rest of the debuts:
- 7 baby boys: Alaska, Arceus, Boudreaux, Dasher, Eliante, Ezrakai, Johnkerry, Pluto, Rachamim, Rudiger, Shukuru, Skandha, Sofonias, Woodensky, Zeeland
- 6 baby boys: Alteo, Coa, Dumier, Fiorenzo, Grand, Hareth, Hyperion, Ionut, Jamazi, Kaoir, Kigen, Kobra, Lunar, Meadow, Metzli, Miami, Rakhari, Sacai, Spruce, Wit, Zypher
- 5 baby boys: Alchemy, Andor, Asmodeus, Azurite, Bilolbek, Brynjar, Crux, Dessalines, Eklavya, Euler, Imperial, Jeneral, Lassen, Lokela, Luxor, Matvii, Mojave, Mosaic, Nanakofi, Oguzhan, Reacher, Rival, Roronoa, Ryuk, Shire, Shoal, Sihtric, Swede, Tiamo, Tribe, Truist, Vandal, Zillion
Rudiger is the surname of German soccer player Antonio Rüdiger, Andor is the surname of Star Wars character Cassian Andor (now being featured in the TV series Star Wars: Andor), and Sihtric is a character from the TV series The Last Kingdom.
Other than that… Arceus is a Pokémon character, Asmodeus is a demon, Azurite is a (blue) mineral, and Tiamo means “I love you” in Italian.
If you can explain any of the above debuts, please leave a comment!
Source: SSA
Image: Adapted from LotusBud0048a (public domain) by Frank “Fg2” Gualtieri
