How popular is the baby name Iniki 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 Iniki.

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Popularity of the baby name Iniki


Posts that mention the name Iniki

Interesting one-hit wonder names in the U.S. baby name data

single flower

They came, they went, and they never came back!

These baby names are one-hit wonders in the U.S. baby name data. That is, they’ve only popped up once, ever, in the entire dataset of U.S. baby names (which accounts for all names given to at least 5 U.S. babies per year since 1880).

There are thousands of one-hit wonders in the dataset, but the names below have interesting stories behind their single appearance, so these are the one-hits I’m writing specific posts about. Just click on a name to read more.

2020s

  • (none yet)

2010s

2000s

1990s

1980s

1970s

1960s

1950s

1940s

1930s

1920s

1910s

1900s

  • (none yet)

1890s

As I discover (and write about) more one-hit wonders in the data, I’ll add the names/links to this page. In the meanwhile, do you have any favorite one-hit wonder baby names?

Image: Adapted from Solitary Poppy by Andy Beecroft under CC BY-SA 2.0.

[Latest update: Dec. 2023]

Baby name predictions: Ellar, Iselle, Seanix

Prediction time!

Here are three names that might see increased usage in 2014, thanks to popular culture…

Ellar

I’ve been hearing a lot about Boyhood (2014) recently. The movie, which took 12 years to film, stars Ellar Coltrane as a boy named Mason. The baby name Mason has become quite popular within the last 12 years, but Ellar remains entirely off the radar. Is that about to change?

Iselle

Tropical Storm Iselle
Tropical storm Iselle closing in on Hawaii (August 8)

Two of the biggest storms to hit the state of Hawaii, Iniki and Iselle, both happen to start with the letter I. We know Iniki influenced the baby name charts back in the early 1990s, but we’ll have to wait and see about Iselle. What do you think — will we see more babies named Iselle in 2014?

(Ignacio, Isis, Irwin, Ileana and Ivo are the I-names on reserve for future storms in the area.)

Seanix

Never overlook reality TV when it comes to baby names. A relatively new series called Treehouse Masters includes a cast member/carpenter named Seanix (pronounced SHAWN-icks). If the name Carmindy can last on the charts for 6 years, I think Seanix certainly stands a chance. What do you think?

Other 2014 predictions so far include Lacey and Zarina. Do you have any more to add to the list?

Source: Pacific Tropical Cyclone Names (Central Pacific Hurricane Center)
Image: 8/8/2014 0152Z Tropical Storm Iselle by SSAI/NASA, Hal Pierce

Baby born during Hurricane Hilda, named Hilda

hurricane

Hilda was a Category 4 hurricane that made landfall in Louisiana in early October, 1964.

While the storm was raging, “a baby girl was born in a Morgan City school being used as a refugee center. She was promptly named Hilda.”

The name Hilda comes from the Germanic word hild, meaning “battle.” It was originally a short form of names containing hild, like Hildegard and Brunhilde.

Other hurricane baby names: Alicia, Andrew, Elena, Gloria, Iniki, Isabel, Barbara & Florence, Charlie & Gilbert

Source: “Hurricane-born twisters rip Gulf Coast; many dead.” Press-Courier 3 Oct. 1964: 1+.

Image (Hurricane Elena) by NASA

Where did the baby name Iniki come from in 1992?

hurricane

In September of 1992, Hurricane Iniki struck the Hawaiian island of Kauai. Iniki was the costliest and most powerful hurricane to hit the state of Hawaii in recorded history.

Like hurricanes Alicia, Andrew, Elena, Gloria and Isabel, Iniki ended up inspiring a few baby names. Unlike those other storms, though, Iniki’s name wasn’t a human name to begin with. It came from the Hawaiian word ‘iniki, which the National Weather Service defines as “sharp and piercing wind.” The Hawaiian dictionary I consulted was a bit more specific:

‘iniki. vi. To punch, nip; sharp and piercing, as wind or pangs of love.

In 1992, the name Iniki popped up in the U.S. baby name data for the very first time:

  • 1994: unlisted
  • 1993: 17 baby girls named Iniki
  • 1992: 28 baby girls and 7 baby boys named Iniki [dual-debut]
  • 1991: unlisted
  • 1990: unlisted

According to news reports, one of the baby boys, Iniki Thor Faamausili, was born in Hawaii to mom Saipisa Faamausili at 2:53 p.m. — not long before Hurricane Iniki made landfall.

In 1993, at least 17 more babies were named Iniki. After that, though, so few babies were named Iniki that the name stopped appearing on the SSA’s annual list.

P.S. Iniki Faamausil’s older brother, Iran, was named after the Persian Gulf War.

Sources:

  • The 1992 Central Pacific Tropical Cyclone Season (Central Pacific Hurricane Center)
  • Pukui, Mary Kawena and Samuel H. Elbert. Hawaiian Dictionary. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1986.
  • Sanchez, Sandra, Anita Manning and Mary Smaragdis. “What’s in a Name.” USA Today 14 Sept. 1992: 3.A.

Image (Hurricane Elena) by NASA