How popular is the baby name Friedrich 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 Friedrich.

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Popularity of the baby name Friedrich


Posts that mention the name Friedrich

Where did the baby name Eitel come from in 1915?

SS Prinz Eitel Friedrich
SS Prinz Eitel Friedrich

In the 1910s, the uncommon name Eitel surfaced in the U.S. baby name data for three years in a row:

  • 1918: unlisted
  • 1917: 6 baby boys named Eitel
  • 1916: 7 baby boys named Eitel
  • 1915: 6 baby boys named Eitel [debut]
  • 1914: unlisted

The earliest decades of the Social Security Administration’s data tend to under-count actual usage but, in this case, the numbers from the Social Security Death Index (SSDI) look remarkably similar:

  • 1918: 3 people named Eitel
  • 1917: 6 people named Eitel
  • 1916: 5 people named Eitel
  • 1915: 7 people named Eitel
  • 1914: 3 people named Eitel

Most of the Eitels born in the U.S during this time period had German surnames (e.g., Boettcher, Steuer, Gelhaus).

So, what was the influence?

Well, the German emperor, Kaiser Wilhelm II, had a son named Eitel. But this particular son wasn’t the crown prince, and he didn’t play a prominent role in World War I.

A German ship named after this son, however, was mentioned in the U.S. newspapers regularly during the war years.

The SS Prinz Eitel Friedrich sank 11 vessels in the Pacific and South Atlantic Oceans over the course of 3 months (from December of 1914 to February of 1915). Significantly, one of those vessels was the William P. Frye — the first U.S. ship to be sunk during World War I.

"Raiding Cruiser Prinz Eitel Friedrich" newspaper illustration (Mar. 1915)
(early 1915)

In early March, the Prinz Eitel Friedrich — now low on supplies, and in need of repairs — headed for the then-neutral United States. It sailed into Newport News harbor in Virginia on March 10.

After several weeks, the ship was ordered to leave. But the ship’s captain, well aware that Allied vessels were lying in wait outside U.S. waters, chose to ignore the order.

So, on April 9, the ship was interned and moved (along with another interned German sea raider, the SS Kronprinz Wilhelm) to the Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, Virginia.

At first, the crew and officers of the two ships moved about freely in Portsmouth. The men, numbering roughly 1,000, were welcomed by the community:

In the afternoon they go to Virginia Beach, Ocean View and other nearby resorts. They smoke good cigars, eat the best, and appear to have plenty of money. […] The men have been taken into the homes of a number of citizens and entertained, and special services have been held for them in Protestant churches. They are made to feel at home.

But in October, after several incidents, their movements were restricted to their ships and a small section of land, for exercise.

On that land, the sailors did more than stretch their legs — they began building a miniature German village using scrap materials in the shipyard. Their village, dubbed “Eitel Wilhelm” (from the names of both ships), eventually featured about 50 buildings, most of which were small homes with brightly painted exteriors and picket fences.

Many of them have gardens, with cabbages, onions, corn, lettuce, and beets flourishing. Others have miniature chicken farms attached, and geese, ducks, and rabbits are also raised.

A building in the German village "Eitel Wilhelm" in Portsmouth, Virginia (1916)
The “telegraph office” in Eitel Wilhelm (1916)

Eitel Wilhelm also featured replicas of other buildings, including a church, a windmill, a telegraph office, a police station, a mayor’s office, a gymnasium, and a working bakery that produced “authentic cakes and pastries.”

The German village became a tourist attraction, welcoming “thousands of visitors from the local community.” The sailors donated proceeds from the entry fee (10¢) and from the sales of various items (e.g., baked goods, postcards, hand-crafted toys) to the German Red Cross.

In August of the following year, President Woodrow Wilson signed into law the Naval Act of 1916, which called for enlarging the U.S. Navy. Officials at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard would need “to find space for […] new shops and dry docks” — meaning that the internees (and their village) would have to be relocated.

So the sailors disassembled Eitel Wilhelm, boarded their two ships, and departed for the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard.

The German village "Eitel Wilhelm" reconstructed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (late 1916)
Eitel Wilhelm, reconstructed in Philadelphia (late 1916)

Upon arriving on October 1, they re-erected their village, and it became a tourist attraction once again — but only for a matter of months.

In March of 1917, a couple of weeks before the U.S. entered World War I, the German sailors were transported by train to internment camps in the state of Georgia.

When the U.S. officially declared war on Imperial Germany in early April, the internees became prisoners of war, and the SS Prinz Eitel Friedrich and SS Kronprinz Wilhelm were seized by U.S. Customs officials (then transferred to the U.S. Navy).

I don’t know what became of the village of Eitel Wilhelm.

But I do know that the personal name Eitel (which has several possible etymologies) is rarely used in Germany these days, as it happens to coincide with the German adjective eitel, meaning “vain.”

What are your thoughts on the name Eitel?

P.S. Did you know that hundreds of babies were named after the ill-fated RMS Lusitania in 1915?

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Popular and unique baby names in Scotland (UK), 2023

Flag of the United Kingdom
Flag of the United Kingdom

Last year, the country of Scotland — which covers the northern third of the island of Great Britain — welcomed nearly 46,000 babies.

What were the most popular names among these babies? Isla and Luca.

Here are Scotland’s top 50+ girl names and top 50+ boy names of 2023:

Girl names

  1. Isla, 274 baby girls
  2. Olivia, 266
  3. Freya, 254
  4. Emily, 232
  5. Amelia, 225
  6. Ella, 213
  7. Charlotte, 210
  8. Millie, 206
  9. Grace, 205
  10. Ava, 203
  11. Lily, 201
  12. Aria, 190
  13. Sophie, 189
  14. Orla, 173
  15. Maisie, 166
  16. Sophia, 164
  17. Rosie, 155
  18. Ivy, 149
  19. Evie, 146
  20. Lucy, 141
  21. Sofia, 140
  22. Harper, 139
  23. Willow, 138
  24. Bonnie, 128
  25. Jessica, 123
  26. Eilidh, 122 [tie]
  27. Ellie, 122 [tie]
  28. Maya, 119
  29. Mia, 118
  30. Daisy, 117
  31. Elsie, 116
  32. Poppy, 115
  33. Esme, 114
  34. Hallie, 111 [tie]
  35. Zara, 111 [tie]
  36. Ruby, 107
  37. Mila, 102
  38. Isabella, 101
  39. Anna, 96 [tie]
  40. Maeve, 96 [tie]
  41. Lottie, 95
  42. Robyn 92
  43. Emma, 90 [2-way tie]
  44. Georgia, 90 [2-way tie]
  45. Ada, 88 [2-way tie]
  46. Phoebe, 88 [2-way tie]
  47. Erin, 85 [2-way tie]
  48. Sienna, 85 [2-way tie]
  49. Layla, 84
  50. Eva, 80 [tie]
  51. Gracie, 80 [tie]

Boy names

  1. Luca, 344 baby boys
  2. Noah, 336
  3. Leo, 288
  4. Jack, 285
  5. Harris, 266
  6. Rory, 254
  7. Oliver, 250
  8. Theo, 238
  9. Archie, 235
  10. Finlay, 231
  11. Muhammad, 225
  12. James, 223
  13. Brodie, 220 [tie]
  14. Finn, 220 [tie]
  15. Alexander, 214
  16. Thomas, 195
  17. Jude, 193
  18. Lucas, 186
  19. Alfie, 182
  20. Lewis, 180
  21. Freddie, 172
  22. Arlo, 164
  23. Max, 155
  24. Charlie, 151
  25. Tommy, 149
  26. Arthur, 147
  27. Mason, 143
  28. Oscar, 139
  29. Logan, 134
  30. Blake, 129
  31. Sonny, 127
  32. Kai, 122
  33. Roman, 121
  34. Caleb, 120 [3-way tie]
  35. Cameron, 120 [3-way tie]
  36. Harrison, 120 [3-way tie]
  37. Adam, 118 [tie]
  38. Jacob, 118 [tie]
  39. Louie, 111
  40. Ethan, 110
  41. Ollie, 108
  42. Harry, 106
  43. Reuben, 104
  44. Albie, 103 [2-way tie]
  45. Angus, 103 [2-way tie]
  46. Daniel, 102 [2-way tie]
  47. Liam, 102 [2-way tie]
  48. Hudson, 100
  49. Aaron, 98
  50. Arran, 95 [tie] – likely inspired by Scotland’s Isle of Arran.
    • The similar names Aaron and Arran have been neck and neck for several years in a row.
  51. Carter, 95 [tie]

The fastest-rising names in the girls’ top 100 were Mabel, Delilah, Mollie, and Lottie.

The fastest-rising names in the boys’ top 100 were Oakley, Rowan, Ruairidh, and Muhammad.

And what about the names at the other end of the spectrum? Here’s a selection of the baby names that were bestowed just once in Scotland last year:

Unique girl namesUnique boy names
Angharad, Babel, Camellia, Doileag, Ellerby, Fenn, Griva, Hubavena, Iris-Davinia, Jafina, Kinvara, Linamandla, Mhuilinn, Neven, Orlie, Pollaidh, Quinza, Rhumer, Senga, Tweedie, Uxia, Vhairi, Welwitschia, Xiwei, Yolandra, ZarminaAonghas, Brandonlee, Caoimhin-Caolan, Dubhlainn, Excellent, Fragkiskos, Gibby, Howl, Ivaylo, Jophil, Kenai, Lavish, Malverde, Oakes, Padruig, Quinlann, Riordan, Seocaidh, Talorcan, Ultan, Venkata, Wullie, Xabier, Yuan, Zuriel

Possible explanations/associations for several of the above:

  • Pollaidh comes from the name of the Scottish mountain Stac Pollaidh (pronounced “stack polly”). The Scottish name is based on the Norse name for the mountain, Stakkr Pollå, which means “the pinnacle of the pool river.”
  • Senga could be Agnes backwards…or it could be based on the Scottish word seang, meaning “slender.” (Here’s a post about Scotland’s Senga syndrome.)
  • Talorcan is a Pictish name that belonged to several Pictish kings. It’s often spelled Talorgan.
  • Welwitschia (pronounced vel-VIH-chee-uh) is the name of a genus of plants that includes a single species, Welwitschia mirabilis, endemic to the Namib desert in Africa. The genus was named after Austrian physician/botanist Friedrich Welwitsch (1806-1872).

Here’s what Welwitschia mirabilis — often referred to as a “living fossil” — looks like:

Welwitschia mirabilis
Welwitschia mirabilis

(I haven’t been this fascinated by a science-y baby name since Petrichor popped up in Alberta in 2016!)

Finally, here are Scotland’s 2022 rankings, if you’d like to compare last year to the year before.

Sources:

Images:

Where did the baby name Liesl come from in 1965?

The character Liesl von Trapp from the movie "The Sound of Music" (1965)
Liesl von Trapp from “The Sound of Music“

The German name Liesl (pronounced LEE-zl), which is related to Elizabeth, first appeared in the U.S. baby name data in 1965:

  • 1967: 96 baby girls named Liesl
  • 1966: 100 baby girls named Liesl
  • 1965: 24 baby girls named Liesl [debut]
  • 1964: unlisted
  • 1963: unlisted

This was the year the Oscar-winning movie musical The Sound of Music was released. Set in Austria in the late 1930s, the film told the story of singing governess Maria (played by Julie Andrews) and featured the seven children of the von Trapp family: Liesl, Friedrich, Louisa, Kurt, Brigitta, Marta, and Gretl.

Eldest child Liesl (played by Charmian Carr) was “Sixteen Going on Seventeen,” as she explains in the song:

The movie was modeled after the Tony award-winning musical of the same name, which was ultimately based upon the 1949 memoir The Story of the Trapp Family Singers by Maria Augusta von Trapp. (Maria ended up marrying the children’s widowed father, Georg, and thereby becoming a von Trapp herself.)

In real life, the seven von Trapp children were named Rupert, Agathe, Maria, Werner, Hedwig, Johanna, and Martina. Later, Georg and Maria welcomed three more: Rosmarie, Eleonore (nn “Lorli”), and Johannes.

Sources: The Sound of Music – Wikipedia, SSA

Babies named for Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher

Prussian military leader Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher (1742-1819)
Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher

At the age of 71, retired Prussian military leader Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher returned to active service after war broke out (again) between Prussia and France in early 1813.

Later the same year, he was one of the victors in the Battle of Leipzig (the “largest military engagement in 19th-century Europe”), and, in mid-1815, he became an important contributor to the Allied defeat of Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo.

Many dozens of babies were named for Blücher in the early 1800s. Most of them were born in Germany and England, but others were born in the U.S. and elsewhere. Here’s a sampling…

  • Frederick Von Blucher Scrutton, b. 1814 in England
  • John Christoph Blucher Ehringhaus, b. 1814 in the U.S. (North Carolina)
  • William Blucher Dolton, b. 1814 in England
  • Christian Gebhard Lebrecht Karup, b. 1814 in Denmark
  • Blucher Wellington Macan, b. 1815 in England
  • Gebhard Leberecht Friedrich Wilhelm Klammrott, b. 1815 in Germany
  • Wellington Blucher Peirce, b. 1815 in the U.S. (Vermont)
  • Friedrich Gebhard Leberecht Conrad, b. circa 1815 in Germany
  • Henry Wellington Blucher Haggis, b 1816 in England
  • Blücher Wellington Bülow Leopold Herrmann, b. circa 1816 in Germany
    • His third given name no doubt refers to Bülow. :)
  • Franz Blücher Wellington Victor Fischer, b. 1816 in Prussia
  • Gebhard Lebrecht Weltzein, b. 1816 in Germany
  • Blucher Ingham, b. circa 1817 in England
  • Paul Gebhard Lebrecht Riebow, b. 1818 in Germany
  • Nelson Wellington Blucher Jefferys, b. 1819 in England
  • Wellington Blucher Fisher, b. 1819 in the U.S. (West Virginia)
  • Picton Blucher Liddle, b. circa 1820 in England
    • His first name refers to Gen. Thomas Picton, who was killed at Waterloo.
  • Marshall Blucher Dumford, b. circa 1821 in the U.S. (Ohio)
  • Friedrich Wilhelm Gebhard Leberecht Büttner, b. 1822 in Germany

A handful of German baby girls got feminized versions of the name, such as Blücherdine, Blücherine, Blüchertine, and Blücherhilde (hilde means “battle, war”).

Blücher’s middle name, Leberecht, was a relatively recent Protestant coinage made up of the German words lebe, “live,” and recht, “right.”

Sources: