How popular is the baby name Damita 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 Damita.

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Popularity of the baby name Damita


Posts that mention the name Damita

The Jackson 5…and their five other siblings

Seven of the Jackson siblings: Jackie, Michael, Tito, Marlon, Randy, La Toya, Rebbie, and Janet (in 1976)
Seven of the Jackson siblings

We’ve all heard of the Jackson 5, but did you know that there were actually ten siblings in the Jackson family?

Katherine and Joe Jackson of Gary, Indiana, welcomed ten children — seven boys and three girls — over the course of 16 years. Here are the names of all ten, in order:

  1. Maureen Reillette, “Rebbie” (b. 1950)
  2. Sigmund Esco, “Jackie” (b. 1951)
  3. Tariano Adaryll, “Tito” (b. 1953)
  4. Jermaine LaJuane (b. 1954)
  5. La Toya Yvonne (b. 1956)
  6. Brandon (twin, b. 1957) — he died soon after birth
  7. Marlon David (twin, b. 1957)
  8. Michael Joe (b. 1958)
  9. Steven Randall, “Randy” (b. 1961)
  10. Janet Damita Jo (b. 1966)

Here are Jermaine’s thoughts on some of the Jackson family names, from his memoir:

I have often wondered how many names my parents went through before agreeing on the final nine. Not that it mattered in the end, because the choice of “Sigmund Esco” for their first son morphed into “Jackie” when Papa Samuel thought it easy to refer to him as “Jackson boy,” then laziness shortened it some more. And “Tariano Adaryl” [sic] became “Tito” because it was easier for us all. I was forever curious as a child about how two people’s taste could go from the exotic-sounding “Jermaine LaJuane” to “Michael Joe.” From somewhere, and especially after Michael’s death, a rumor began that his middle name was Joseph. Maybe this myth prefers the echo with our father’s name because the crossover reads better about a father and son who struggled to see eye to eye. “Joe” was his middle name, as recorded on his birth certificate. His first name was almost “Ronald,” at the suggestion of Mama Martha, but Mother quickly quashed that one.

(Papa Samuel was Jermaine’s paternal grandfather; Mama Martha was his maternal grandmother.)

Which Jackson sibling name do you like best?

Sources:

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

Where did the baby name Damita come from in 1950?

Singer Damita Jo on the cover of Jet magazine (July 24, 1952).
Damita Jo on the cover of Jet in 1952

The name Damita first appeared in the U.S. baby name data in 1950, and it saw peak usage in the early 1960s:

  • 1963: 74 baby girls named Damita
  • 1962: 102 baby girls named Damita
  • 1961: 117 baby girls named Damita [peak*]
  • 1960: 49 baby girls named Damita
  • 1959: 20 baby girls named Damita
  • […]
  • 1952: 7 baby girls named Damita
  • 1951: 18 baby girls named Damita
  • 1950: 5 baby girls named Damita [debut]
  • 1949: unlisted
  • 1948: unlisted

Also in the early ’60s, the variant names Demita and Domita debuted.

What was the influence?

Singer Damita Jo DeBlanc, born in Texas in 1930 and known simply as “Damita Jo” for most of her decades-long career.

Though she was most successful during the early ’60s — her highest-charting songs were 1960’s “I’ll Save the Last Dance for You” and 1961’s “I’ll Be There” — her first solo singles (like “Believe Me” and “Anytime, Anyplace, Anywhere”) were released in 1950 and 1951, and she spent the rest of the ’50s performing and recording with the R&B group Steve Gibson & the Red Caps. She also appeared on, and won, an episode of the TV talent show Chance of a Lifetime in 1952.

In 1960, Jet magazine defined Damita Jo DeBlanc’s name as meaning “little lady of white” in “French and Spanish.”

My wild guess is that she was named after French-born movie star Lili Damita, whose Hollywood career began in the late ’20s. The Spanish word damita does indeed mean “little lady,” but Lili Damita’s claim that it was a nickname given to her by King Alfonso XIII of Spain is harder to prove.

Janet Jackson's album "Damita Jo" (2004)
Janet Jackson album

Speaking of namesakes…several of Damita Jo’s namesakes became famous in their own right. There’s Damita Jo Freeman (b. 1953), the memorable Soul Train dancer. There’s Damita Jo Nicholson (b. 1953), “Miss Miami Beach 1972.” And, most notable of all, there’s singer/actress Janet Damita Jo Jackson (b. 1966) – yes, Michael’s sister. Janet even put out an album called “Damita Jo” in 2004 — the year of her infamous wardrobe malfunction.

Do you like the name Damita?

Sources:

Top image: © 1952 Jet

*The name Damita would have entered the top 1,000 in 1961 if the six-way tie between Barrie, Callie, Damita, Freida, Staci, and Tonda — ranked 1,000th through 1,005th — hadn’t included a B-name and a C-name. As it happened, only Barrie made the cut and Damita technically ended up in 1,002nd place.