How popular is the baby name Charles in the United States right now? How popular was it historically? Use the popularity graph and data table below to find out! Plus, see all the blog posts that mention the name Charles.
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Here’s an interesting coincidence: A few years ago, I added the above image (a portion of a painting by Englishman Thomas M. M. Hemy) to a blog post about a baby named after the ship she was born on. Recently, I discovered that the artist’s full name is Thomas Maria Madawaska Hemy, and that “Madawaska” refers to the name of the ship he was born on!
His parents, Henri and Margaret Hemy, moved the family to Australia temporarily in the 1850s. On their way south aboard the Madawaska in 1852, they welcomed their sixth son, Thomas. Curiously, he was born “near the Brazilian coast.” (During the age of sail, routes weren’t as direct as they are today because sailors needed to utilize the prevailing winds.)
The Madawaska was a barque built in Quebec in 1847. “Madawaska” is the original name of the upper St. John River Valley, on the Canada-U.S. border. Several places in that region retain the name, including a county in New Brunswick and a town in northern Maine.
The etymology of Madawaska is unknown, but one theory holds that it derives from an Algonquin word meaning “place of the porcupine.”
Thomas M. M. Hemy — whose older brothers Charles Napier Hemy and Bernard Benedict Hemy were also marine artists — passed his unique middle name down to at least one of his children, daughter Eve Madawaska Hemy (b. 1880).
Of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada, Quebec is the second-largest both in terms of population (after Ontario) and in terms of area (after Nunavut).
Last year, Quebec welcomed 80,700 babies. The most popular names among these babies? Emma and Noah.
Here are Quebec’s top 50 girl names and top 50 boy names of 2022:
Girl Names
Emma, 520 baby girls
Olivia, 476
Charlotte, 465
Charlie, 462
Florence, 445
Alice, 433
Lea, 371 (tie)
Livia, 371 (tie)
Rose, 321
Juliette, 315
Romy, 314
Clara, 308
Beatrice, 292
Zoe, 278
Mia, 268
Eva, 261
Chloe, 260 (tie)
Mila, 260 (tie)
Rosalie, 250
Sofia, 249
Victoria, 239
Julia, 234
Leonie, 219
Jade, 214
Maeva, 202 (tie)
Raphaelle, 202 (tie)
Flavie, 182
Jeanne, 182
Amelia, 175
Eleonore, 169
Elena, 168
Billie, 167
Camille, 163 (tie)
Ophelie, 163 (tie)
Adele, 160
Elizabeth, 158
Sophie, 150
Ellie, 145 (tie)
Sophia, 145 (tie)
Lily, 134
Oceane, 125
Flora, 120
Maya, 118 (tie)
Simone, 118 (tie)
Eloise, 117
Alicia, 116
Mathilde, 114 (tie)
Romane, 114 (tie)
Gabrielle, 111 (tie)
Lexie, 111 (tie)
Boy Names
Noah, 650 baby boys
William, 616
Liam, 586
Thomas, 571
Leo, 563
Edouard, 482
Jacob, 451
Arthur, 446 (tie)
Louis, 446 (tie)
Nathan, 430
Emile, 429
Charles, 408
Felix, 400
Theo, 385
Logan, 384
Adam, 369
Arnaud, 349
Raphael, 344
Jules, 315
James, 294
Henri, 290
Victor, 289
Theodore, 277
Lucas, 270
Elliot, 261
Laurent, 260
Jackson, 259
Benjamin, 256
Nolan, 254
Samuel, 247
Alexis, 246
Gabriel, 244
Milan, 226
Olivier, 223
Antoine, 219
Eloi, 218
Ethan, 213
Matheo, 211
Jayden, 203
Axel, 200
Jake, 198
Eli, 197
Zack, 178
Leonard, 164
Robin, 163
Louka, 157
Mathis, 154
Hubert, 148
Zachary, 145
Mayson, 143
The girls’ top 100 included Laurence (53rd), Clemence (71st), Stella (75th), and Dahlia (97th).
The boys’ top 100 included Tristan (55th), Ludovic (61st), Tyler (75th), and Maverick (93rd).
Below are some of the baby names that were bestowed just once in Quebec last year:
Zotique can be traced back to the ancient Greek word zotikos, meaning “full of life, alive.”
Joanassie and Paulasie (which were mentioned in the post about Canada’s 2021 rankings) are two examples of Inuktitut-influenced Christian names.
And one last name I wanted to throw in was Minokimin, which was part of a longer boy name bestowed in Quebec last year. Minokimin refers to one of the eight Algonquin seasons — specifically, to the period in late spring during which ice thaws and plants begin to grow.
Usage of the baby name Winnie was generally on the decline in the U.S. from the 1920s to the 1980s. But there were several upticks here and there, including a series of three in the early 1930s:
1937: 254 baby girls named Winnie [rank: 406th]
1936: 263 baby girls named Winnie [rank: 393rd]
1935: 346 baby girls named Winnie [rank: 344th]
1934: 306 baby girls named Winnie [rank: 362nd]
1933: 354 baby girls named Winnie [rank: 333rd]
1932: 328 baby girls named Winnie [rank: 350th]
1931: 348 baby girls named Winnie [rank: 341st]
1930: 297 baby girls named Winnie [rank: 393rd]
1929: 320 baby girls named Winnie [rank: 376th]
You can see the three upticks — almost like three points of a little crown — on the popularity graph:
What caused them?
I think the answer has to do with aviation. Specifically, with a record-breaking airplane called the Winnie Mae that became famous at the height of the Great Depression.
The Winnie Mae — in full, the Winnie Mae of Oklahoma — was a single-winged, seven-passenger Lockheed Vega. It was purchased in June of 1930 by Oklahoma oilman Florence Charles “F. C.” Hall, who named the plane after his adult daughter Winnie Mae.
Hall’s personal pilot was a one-eyed man named Wiley Post. (He’d lost his left eye in an oil-rig accident in the mid-1920s, but the injury payout allowed him to purchase an aircraft and learn how to fly.)
1931
In 1931, Wiley Post attempted an around-the-world flight in the Winnie Mae. The trip was sponsored by Hall.
Accompanied by navigator Harold Gatty, Post set off from New York on June 23. The duo landed back in New York on July 1. They’d flown the Winnie Mae around the world in record time: eight days, fifteen hours, and fifty-one minutes. (The previous record of over twenty-one days had been set by a Graf Zeppelin in 1929.)
The two men were honored with a ticker-tape parade in New York City the following day.
1933
In 1933, after having purchased the Winnie Mae from Hall, Wiley Post decided to fly around the world again. This time, though, he would do it alone. In place of a human navigator, he installed an autopilot device (which he dubbed “Mechanical Mike“) and a radio compass.
Post set off from New York on July 15. He landed back in New York on July 22. Amazingly, he’d set another record: seven days, eighteen hours, and 49 minutes.
This flight made Post the first aviator to fly solo around the world, and also the first aviator to fly around the world twice.
Post was honored with a second ticker-tape parade in New York City several days later.
1935
The Winnie Mae was in the news for various reasons during 1935.
From February to June, Wiley Post attempted to make a transcontinental flight through the lower stratosphere. (The plane’s cabin wasn’t pressurized, so Post developed the world’s first pressurized flight suit in order to fly at high altitude.) Unfortunately, all four of his attempts were cut short due to mechanical issues. He subsequently retired the Winnie Mae.
Then, on August 15, tragedy struck: Wiley Post and Will Rogers perished in a plane crash while traveling through Alaska together. The very next day, the federal government purchased the Winnie Mae from Post’s widow (whose first name happened to be Mae). In November, the Winnie Mae was dismantled and transported, via railway boxcar, from Oklahoma to Washington, D.C.
The compound name “Winnie Mae” has never appeared in the U.S. baby name data before, but records reveal that a sizeable number of the baby girls named Winnie during the 1930s also got the middle name Mae. Many of those Winnie Maes were likely named with the airplane in mind.
Winnie Mae Kuempel, for instance, was born in Austin, Texas, on August 5, 1931. Here’s how she told the story of her name (at the age of 84):
I was named after a famous plane, the Winnie Mae. The day before I was born Wiley Post had just flown it around the world. The next day headlines told about Wiley Post’s adventure, and my dad said, “Let’s name her Winnie Mae.”
What are your thoughts on the baby name Winnie? How about the combo Winnie Mae?
Paris, the capital of France, has an area of 41 square miles and a population of about 2.1 million — making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world.
Last year, Paris’ most popular baby names were Alma and Gabriel.
Here are the city’s top 50+ girl names and top 50 boy names of 2022:
Girl Names
Alma, 211 baby girls
Louise, 210
Emma, 152
Jeanne, 150
Anna, 144
Adèle, 138
Rose, 136
Gabrielle, 133
Chloé, 131
Jade, 128 (tie)
Léa, 128 (tie)
Victoria, 126
Alice, 120 (tie)
Lina, 120 (tie)
Sofia, 117
Iris, 115 (tie)
Olivia, 115 (tie)
Juliette, 114 (tie)
Victoire, 114 (tie)
Romy, 113
Eva, 111
Joséphine, 106
Ava, 104
Fatoumata, 103
Alba, 98
Diane, 96
Ambre, 94 (3-way tie)
Nina, 94 (3-way tie)
Zoé, 94 (3-way tie)
Charlotte, 92
Mia, 90
Alix, 89 (tie)
Julia, 89 (tie)
Léonie, 88
Sarah, 87
Ella, 86
Lou, 83
Suzanne, 82
Charlie, 81
Nour, 78
Héloïse, 75
Mariam, 74
Romane, 72
Inaya, 68
Agathe, 64
Inès, 63 (tie)
Maya, 63 (tie)
Madeleine, 62
Céleste, 59
Aminata, 57 (tie)
Fatima, 57 (tie)
Boy Names
Gabriel, 332 baby boys
Adam, 254
Raphaël, 250
Louis, 223
Mohamed, 209
Arthur, 199
Isaac, 190
Noah, 180
Gaspard, 175
Léon, 173
Léo, 158
Joseph, 154
Paul, 150
Lucas, 145
Victor, 139
Hugo, 119
Alexandre, 118
Jules, 116
Sacha, 115
Ibrahim, 109
Noé, 103
Augustin, 101
Liam, 95
Oscar, 94
Samuel, 92
Maël, 91
Marceau, 89 (3-way tie)
Simon, 89 (3-way tie)
Timothée, 89 (3-way tie)
Nathan, 88
Basile, 81
Côme, 80
Aaron, 79
Ethan, 78
Auguste, 77 (4-way tie)
Eliott, 77 (4-way tie)
Moussa, 77 (4-way tie)
Naël, 77 (4-way tie)
Marius, 75
Eden, 74
Mathis, 72 (tie)
Rayan, 72 (tie)
Achille, 71 (3-way tie)
Andrea, 71 (3-way tie)
Valentin, 71 (3-way tie)
Antoine, 70
Charles, 69
Ismaël, 68
Léonard, 66 (tie)
Martin, 66 (tie)
And here’s a selection of names from lower down in the rankings, which includes all names given to at least five Parisian babies (of one gender or the other) per year.
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