How popular is the baby name Helen 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 Helen.

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Popularity of the baby name Helen


Posts that mention the name Helen

What gave the baby name Corliss a boost in the 1920s?

Movie actress Corliss Palmer (1899-1952)
Corliss Palmer

According to the U.S. baby name data, the uncommon name Corliss started seeing more usage in the early 1920s:

  • 1924: 30 baby girls named Corliss
  • 1923: 25 baby girls named Corliss
  • 1922: 21 baby girls named Corliss
  • 1921: 6 baby girls named Corliss
  • 1920: 6 baby girls named Corliss

Why?

Because of Corliss Palmer, a Georgia-born actress who was best known for her association with a married millionaire.

In 1920, Corliss entered the “Fame and Fortune” contest being advertised in a trio of fan magazines: Motion Picture Magazine, Motion Picture Classic, and Shadowland.

All three of these magazines were published by wealthy businessman Eugene V. Brewster, who hoped that hosting the annual contest would help him discover “prospective stars.” (The contest did, in fact, launch the careers of Glenda Farrell, Mary Astor, and Clara Bow.)

Corliss was declared the winner of the contest in early 1921, and, for the next few years, Brewster promoted her heavily in his magazines. She was the subject of numerous articles, and her name and image were used to advertise products like face powder and perfume.

More significantly, Corliss and Brewster became romantically involved. Corliss even moved into Brewster’s home — much to the chagrin of Brewster’s wife.

News of the affair broke when Mrs. Brewster filed a separation suit against her husband in late 1922. She named Corliss in the suit.

Corliss Palmer and Eugene V. Brewster (in 1924)
Corliss Palmer and Eugene V. Brewster

Further developments — such as Brewster buying a quarter-million dollar estate in New Jersey to share with Corliss in January of 1924, and Mrs. Brewster suing Corliss for alienation of affection three months later — kept Corliss Palmer in the headlines for several years.

Finally, in late 1926, Brewster — whose wife had refused to grant him a divorce — went go Mexico and got one anyway. The next day, he married Corliss.

Soon after, it was announced that the lawsuits had been settled out of court, and that Brewster had sold his movie magazines as part of the settlement.

During the latter half of the 1920s, Corliss appeared in a string of grade-B movies, usually as a secondary character.

In 1931, amid the Great Depression, Brewster filed for bankruptcy. Corliss and Brewster separated in 1932, and divorced in 1933.

The newspapers claimed that the actress’s full name was Corliss Modena Palmer, but she’s listed as “Helen” on the 1900 U.S. Census (as a one-year-old) and as “Caroline” on the 1910 U.S. Census.

The English surname Corliss derives from an Old Norse word meaning “careless” (i.e., a nickname for a carefree person). What are your thoughts on Corliss as a first name?

Sources:

Image: Clippings from Motion Picture Classic (Dec. 1920) and the Americus Times-Recorder (3 Dec. 1924)

Minnesota family with 22 children

kinderfest

In the mid-20th century, Alvin Joseph Miller and Lucille Rose Miller (née Kahnke) of Waseca, Minnesota, had 22 children — 15 girls and 7 boys.

Here are the names of all 22 siblings:

  1. Ramona Mary (born in 1940), who became a Franciscan nun
  2. Alvin Joseph, Jr. (b. 1942)
  3. Rose Ann (b. 1943)
  4. Kathleen Edith (b. 1945)
  5. Robert Vincent (b. 1946)
  6. Patricia Jean (b. 1947)
  7. Mary Lucille (b. 1948), nicknamed “Marylu”
  8. Diane Margaret (b. 1949)
  9. John Charles (b. 1950)
  10. Janet Irene (b. 1951)
  11. Linda Louise (b. 1953)
  12. Virginia Therese (b. 1954)
  13. Helen Rita (b. 1955), who wrote a book about growing up in a large family
  14. Arthur Lawrence (b. 1956)
  15. Dolores Maria (b. 1957)
  16. Martin Peter (b. 1959)
  17. Pauline Carmel (b. 1960)
  18. Alice Callista (b. 1961)
  19. Angela Mary (b. 1962)
  20. Marcia Marie (b. 1963)
  21. Gregory Eugene (b. 1964)
  22. Damien Francis (b. 1966)

Eight of the children had been born by April of 1950, when the Miller family was interviewed for the U.S. Census:

The Miller family on the 1950 U.S. Census
The Miller family (1950 U.S. Census)

Alvin and Lucille raised their children on a 300-acre farm that included a seven-bedroom farmhouse. Here’s how Diane (#8) described her childhood:

I remember a lot of rides in the wheelbarrow from the granary to the barn. I remember a lot of grinding feed, a lot of egg washing and packing, a lot of sitting by the wood stove in the basement, singing songs as we candled eggs.

Which of the names above do you like most?

P.S. Thank you to Destiny for letting me know about the Miller family a few months ago! (Destiny also told me about the Jones family of West Virginia.)

Sources:

Image: Ein Kinderfest (1868) by Ludwig Knaus

Popular baby names in Northern Ireland (UK), 2023

Flag of the United Kingdom
Flag of the United Kingdom

Northern Ireland — which was partitioned from the rest of Ireland more than a century ago — is a constituent country of the United Kingdom (along with England, Scotland, and Wales).

What were the most popular baby names in Northern Ireland last year? Isla and Noah.

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

Girl names

  1. Isla, 147 baby girls – pronounced IE-la
  2. Fiadh, 138 – pronounced FEE-a
  3. Grace, 137
  4. Emily, 136
  5. Olivia, 126
  6. Lily, 108
  7. Ella, 97
  8. Aoife, 94 – pronounced EE-fa
  9. Amelia, 92
  10. Freya, 90
  11. Charlotte, 87
  12. Annie, 84 (tie)
  13. Sophie, 84 (tie)
  14. Anna, 83
  15. Eabha, 79 – pronounced EY-va
  16. Ellie, 77
  17. Sophia, 76
  18. Evie, 74
  19. Ava, 73
  20. Maisie, 70
  21. Clodagh, 66 – pronounced KLOH-da
  22. Mia, 63 (tie)
  23. Sadie, 63 (tie)
  24. Rosie, 62 (tie)
  25. Ruby, 62 (tie)
  26. Ivy, 60
  27. Molly, 59
  28. Cara, 57 (4-way tie)
  29. Elsie, 57 (4-way tie)
  30. Lottie, 57 (4-way tie)
  31. Meabh, 57 (4-way tie) – pronounced mayv
  32. Zara, 56
  33. Aria, 54
  34. Erin, 53
  35. Ada, 52
  36. Hannah, 51
  37. Saoirse, 50 – pronounced SEER-sha or SAYR-sha
  38. Bonnie, 48
  39. Cora, 47 (4-way tie)
  40. Isabella, 47 (4-way tie)
  41. Lucy, 47 (4-way tie)
  42. Phoebe, 47 (4-way tie)
  43. Katie, 46 (tie)
  44. Niamh, 46 (tie) – pronounced neev or NEE-iv
  45. Rhea, 45 (tie)
  46. Willow, 45 (tie)
  47. Rose, 44
  48. Sofia, 42
  49. Daisy, 41 (tie)
  50. Sienna, 41 (tie)

Boy names

  1. Noah, 152 baby boys
  2. Jack, 146
  3. James, 131
  4. Cillian, 128 – pronounced KIL-ee-an
  5. Charlie, 123
  6. Leo, 119
  7. Oisin, 116 – pronounced UH-sheen or OH-sheen
  8. Oliver, 114
  9. Luca, 108 (tie)
  10. Theo, 108 (tie)
  11. Tommy, 105
  12. Thomas, 103
  13. Jude, 93
  14. Arthur, 91
  15. Alfie, 85
  16. Daniel, 84
  17. Daithi, 82 – pronounced DAH-hee
  18. Harry, 77
  19. Ethan, 74
  20. Caleb, 73
  21. Finn, 71
  22. Henry, 70
  23. Ezra, 67 (tie)
  24. Jacob, 67 (tie)
  25. George, 66 (tie)
  26. Oscar, 66 (tie)
  27. Archie, 64 (3-way tie)
  28. Isaac, 64 (3-way tie)
  29. Ollie, 64 (3-way tie)
  30. Ronan, 63
  31. Lorcan, 62
  32. Reuben, 61 (tie)
  33. Shea, 61 (tie)
  34. Fionn, 60 (tie)
  35. Rory, 60 (tie)
  36. Darragh, 59
  37. Rian, 57
  38. Conor, 55 (tie)
  39. Freddie, 55 (tie)
  40. Arlo, 53 (tie)
  41. Patrick, 53 (tie)
  42. Luke, 52 (tie)
  43. Tom, 52 (tie)
  44. Jonah, 51 (tie)
  45. Odhran, 51 (tie) – pronounced OH-rawn
  46. Joshua, 50
  47. Max, 49 (tie)
  48. Theodore, 49 (tie)
  49. Michael, 47
  50. Mason, 46 (tie)
  51. Teddy, 46 (tie)

The names that qualified as the “top climbers” of 2023 were…

  • Rebecca, Rhea, Aurora, and Raya (for girls), and
  • Leon, Donnacha, Albie, and Seth (for boys).

And here’s a selection of uncommon names that were given to just three babies each:

Rare girl namesRare boy names
Aizal, Blathnaid, Colleen, Dianaimh, Everly, Georgina, Helen, Ivie, Juniper, Keeley, Laney, Meabha, Neala, Orlagh, Paisley, Searlaith, Tillie, Vera, YasmineAngus, Barney, Connlan, Darren, Ewan, Finbarr, Gearoid, Hamish, Jameson, Kieran, Lughan, Milan, Ned, Orhan, Paraic, Ruaidhri, Scott, Tate, Zayn

What about middle names? The top picks for the middle spot were…

  • Rose, Grace, Mary, Elizabeth, and Marie (for girls), and
  • James, John, Patrick, William, and Thomas (for boys).

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

Source: Baby Names 2023 | Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency

Image: Adapted from Flag of the United Kingdom (public domain)

Where did the baby name Neleh come from in 2002?

Neleh Dennis, a contestant on the reality TV show "Survivor: Marquesas" (2002)
Neleh Dennis

The name Neleh first appeared in the U.S. baby name data in 2002:

  • 2004: 7 baby girls named Neleh
  • 2003: 6 baby girls named Neleh
  • 2002: 26 baby girls named Neleh [debut]
  • 2001: unlisted
  • 2000: unlisted

Where did it come from?

Neleh (pronounced nuh-LEE-uh) Dennis, a 21-year-old from Utah who was featured on the competitive reality TV show Survivor: Marquesas during the first half of 2002.

She had a “charming, sunny disposition” and was known for her frequent use of the Utah Mormon expression “Oh my heck.” Neleh made it all the way to the final episode, but ended up losing the title of Sole Survivor to fellow contestant Vecepia “Vee” Towery.

Neleh’s first name was Helen — the name of her maternal grandmother — spelled backwards. (The similar name Nevaeh, a backwards spelling of Heaven, was extremely trendy in the early 2000s.)

Following her success on Survivor, Neleh Dennis worked as a morning news reporter at Utah television station KUTV. After that, she became a stay-at-home mom. (She has two sons named Kai and River and a daughter named McKay.)

What are your thoughts on the name Neleh? How would you pronounce it?

Sources:

Image: Screenshot of Survivor: Marquesas