How popular is the baby name Dorothy 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 Dorothy.
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The word Sway popped up for the first time in the U.S. baby name data in 2001:
2003: 14 baby girls and 5 baby boys named Sway
2002: 12 baby girls named Sway
2001: 8 baby girls named Sway [debut]
2000: unlisted
1999: unlisted
For a long time I assumed the main influence was MTV personality Sway Calloway. But, while I still think Sway had an influence on male usage, I’ve since discovered a much better explanation for the 2001 debut as a female name.
One of the main characters in the 2000 car heist film Gone in 60 Seconds was mechanic-slash-bartender Sara “Sway” Wayland (played by Angelina Jolie). She was the love interest of protagonist Randall “Memphis” Raines (played by Nicolas Cage), who was tasked with stealing 50 specific, expensive cars inside of 72 hours.
The film didn’t get great reviews, but I do remember appreciating the fact that each of the 50 cars was assigned a feminine code-name:
So, how do you feel about the name Sway? If you were having a baby girl, would you be more likely to name her something modern, like Sway, or something traditional, like Sara or Susan?
The unusual name Stanja was a one-hit wonder in the U.S. baby name data during the 1960s:
1965: unlisted
1964: unlisted
1963: 6 baby girls named Stanja [debut]
1962: unlisted
1961: unlisted
Where did it come from?
TV actress Stanja Lowe — though it’s impossible to link the debut to a single TV appearance, as Stanja could be seen on multiple shows (Perry Mason, My Three Sons, Dr. Kildare, etc.) from 1962 to 1963.
She was born in Cleveland in 1929 with the name Sidney Stanja Lowe.
Her father, K. Elmo Lowe, was an actor and director with the Cleveland Play House from the early ’20s to the late ’60s; her mother, Dorothy Paxton, was an actress. (Her parents called each other “K” and “Paxton.”)
Stanja’s first name was sometimes misspelled “Stanya” in credits, and by the press.
I’m not certain about the etymology of Stanja, but my wild guess is Czech, based on the fact that I found it used as a character name in a play by Austrian-Bohemian writer Franz Werfel (who also wrote The Song of Bernadette).
If you’re on the hunt for baby names with a numerological value of 6, you’re in luck! Because today’s post features hundreds of 6-names.
Before we get to the names, though — how do we know that they’re “sixes” in numerology?
Turning names into numbers
Here’s how to calculate the numerological value of a name.
First, for each letter, come up with a number to represent that letter’s position in the alphabet. (Letter A would be number 1, letter B would be number 2, and so forth.) Then, add all the numbers together. If the sum has two or more digits, add the digits together recursively until the result is a single digit. That single digit is the name’s numerological value.
For instance, the letters in the name Weston correspond to the numbers 23, 5, 19, 20, 15, and 14. The sum of these numbers is 96. The digits of 96 added together equal 15, and the digits of 15 added together equal 6 — the numerological value of Weston.
Baby names with a value of 6
Below you’ll find the most popular 6-names per gender, according to the latest U.S. baby name data. I’ve further sub-categorized them by total sums — just in case any of those larger numbers are significant to anyone.
6
The letters in the following baby names add up to 6.
Girl name (6)
Boy names (6)
Ada
Abba, Baba
6 via 15
The letters in the following baby names add up to 15, which reduces to six (1+5=6).
Girl names (6 via 15)
Boy names (6 via 15)
Aida, Alaa, Adia, An, Ama
Jad, Aadi, Gabe, An, Ej
6 via 24
The letters in the following baby names add up to 24, which reduces to six (2+4=6).
There’s no definitive answer, unfortunately, because various numerological systems exist, and each one has its own interpretation of the number six. That said, if we look at a couple of modern numerology/astrology websites, we see 6 being described as “harmonious,” “loving,” “stable,” “compassionate,” and “responsible.”
We can also look at associations, which are a bit more concrete. Here are some things that are associated with the number 6:
Snowflake (six-fold symmetry)
Beehive (six-sided cells)
Guitar (6 strings)
Football (6 points for a touchdown)
Ice hockey (6 players per side, including the goalie)
Cube (six faces)
Six degrees of separation (the idea that all people are six or fewer social connections away from one other)
What does the number 6 mean to you? What are your strongest associations with the number?
P.S. To see names with other numerological values, check out the posts for the numbers one, two, three, four, five, seven, eight, and nine.
Just remember that the SSA data doesn’t become very accurate until the mid-to-late 20th century, so many of the numbers below don’t reflect reality all that well.
Same format as usual: Girl names on the left, boy names on the right. Numbers represent single-year decreases in usage. From 1880 to 1881, for instance, usage of the girl name Mary dropped by 146 babies and usage of the boy name William dropped by 1,008 babies.
I’ve already written about some of the names above (click the links to see the posts) and will write about others in the future. In the meanwhile, feel free to beat me to it! Comment below with the backstory on the fall of Shirley in the late ’30s, Linda in the early ’50s, etc.
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