How popular is the baby name Joaquin 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 Joaquin.

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Popularity of the baby name Joaquin


Posts that mention the name Joaquin

Popular baby names in Chile, 2021

Flag of Chile
Flag of Chile

According to data from Chile’s Servicio de Registro Civil e Identificación, the most popular baby names in the country last year were Sofia and Mateo.

Here are Chile’s top 10 girl names and top 10 boy names of 2021:

Girl Names

  1. Sofía, 2,401 baby girls
  2. Emma, 2,352
  3. Isabella, 2,156
  4. Emilia, 2,047
  5. Mia, 1,923
  6. Agustina, 1,820
  7. Julieta, 1,723
  8. Trinidad, 1,722
  9. Isidora, 1,698
  10. Josefa, 1,687

Boy Names

  1. Mateo, 3,272 baby boys
  2. Lucás, 2,057
  3. Agustín, 2,055
  4. Benjamín, 2,030
  5. Santiago, 1,809
  6. Gaspar, 1,759
  7. Tomás, 1,645
  8. Maximiliano, 1,533
  9. Vicente, 1,485
  10. Matías, 1,405

In the girls’ top 10, Julieta replaced Florencia.

In the boys’ top 10, Maximiliano replaced Joaquín.

Also popular is the interesting name Facundo, which has ranked inside the top 20 for the last few years.

The indigenous Mapuche people make up about 12% of the Chilean population, so Chile’s rankings included a number of Mapuche names, such as…

NameMeaning in MapucheUsage
LautaroHispanicized form of Leftraru (see below)219 boys (rank: 85th)
Rayen“flower”173 girls (91st)
Millaray“gold” + flower”157 girls (105th)
NahuelHispanicized form of Nawel (see below)137 girls (115th)
Eluneybased on elun, meaning “to give”89 girls (135th), 66 boys (180th)
TahielHispanicized form of tayül, meaning “sacred song”83 boys (154th), 1 girl
Ayelenbased on ayelen, “laughing,” ayliñ, “clear,” or aylen, “ember”63 girls (182nd)
Antu“sun” (the sun god in Mapuche mythology)38 boys, 15 girls
AukánHispanicized form of Awkan (see below)29 boys
Nawel“jaguar”24 boys
Ayün“love”15 boys, 6 girls
Newen“force”15 boys
Leftraru“swift raptor (crested caracara)”8 boys
Aliwen“tree”5 boys, 4 girls
Relmu“rainbow”4 girls, 2 boys
Likan“stone”5 boys, 1 girl
LihuenHispanicized form of Liwen (see below)4 girls, 1 boy
Awkan“rebellion, war”4 boys
Mankeform of mañke, meaning “condor”4 boys
Kallfuform of kallfü, meaning “blue”4 girls
Liwen“morning”3 girls, 1 boy
Küyen“moon” (the moon god in Mapuche mythology)3 girls
Milla“gold”2 girls
Quimey“beauty”2 boys
Kallfüray“blue” + “flower”1 girl
Lafken“sea, ocean”1 boy
Lihue“life”1 boy
Likanrayen“stone” + “flower”1 girl
Llampüdkenform of llampüdkeñ, meaning “butterfly”1 girl
Millalikan“gold” + “stone”1 boy
Millantú“gold”+ “sun”1 girl
Millarelmu“gold” + rainbow”1 girl
Pangui“mountain lion”1 boy

I also noticed a lot of names with similar elements (mainly toward the bottom of the rankings). Some of the repeated elements that caught my attention were…

  • Wid-
    • e.g., Widencia (f), Widmayer (m), Widnaido (m), Widnalem (f), Widnelson (m)
  • Wil-
    • Wilbenson (m), Wilchinia (f), Wilciano (m), Wilferman (m), Wilyana (f)
  • Wood-
    • Woodentz (m), Woodgina (f), Woodison (m), Woodjeny (f), Woodmerry (m)
  • -(s)ley
    • Dawensley (m), Frantzley (m), Jamesley (m), Phidensley (m), Roodensley (m)
  • -sky
    • Bervensky (m), Ferdensky (m), Lorvensky (m), Marvensky (m), Rodlensky (m)
  • -aïca/aica
    • Anaica (f), Ednaica (f), Janaïca (f), Onaïca (f), Phidnaïca (f), Schaïca (f)

Plus there were plenty of combinations thereof, like Widensley (m), Wildanaïka (f), and Woodjonsky (m).

Finally, here are some of the rare baby names that were bestowed just once in Chile last year:

Unique Girl NamesUnique Boy Names
Astroïcha, Auraluna, Berveline, Crismnia, Dillexy, Duciél, Evadorie, Ferlandina, Freiberlyn, Gibernica, Hashlyn, Huskerly, Inanga, Ingibor, Jephterline, Judelca, Kenverlin, Kimpavita, Lindiana, Lircay, Mashely, Mipsy, Nilvia, Nuntai, Oromanga, Phedjine, Quisdelina, Rhominna, Ribencia, Siarel, Silfidalinda, Texeline, Thiamara, Unay, Viozelin, Wisberline, Wismia, Xi, Yohanella, ZabinaAubincliff, Aztron, Bivenson, Chedelin, Daftan, Denberth, Everzon, Flandy, Fraynell, Genghini, Holiver, Hvitserk, Idvian, Iphadson, Jeymack, Jorvenqui, Kessnerl, Kontiki, Lebis, Leevoydwens, Mamlaka, Malkocoglu, Naylorby, Nilton, Olifirt, Phibens, Quedlin, Rodnord, Royber, Sphendy, Samadhi, Taypi, Tervenson, Unax, Vamsi, Wissander, Worlph, Xing, Yandidier, Zarueth

Kontiki is one of the names of the Inca creator deity Viracocha. (In the 1940s, it was used as the name of the Kon-Tiki expedition across the Pacific.)

Malkocoglu was likely picked up from a character in the Turkish TV series Muhtesem Yuzyil, which has become particularly popular in Chile (as El Sultán).

Sources:

Image: Adapted from Flag of Chile (public domain)

Pop culture baby name game, 2020

Happy birthday, Elvis!

It’s hard to put into words just how bizarre 2020 was.

Despite this…people still had babies in 2020, and people still paid attention to pop culture in 2020. (In fact, thanks to quarantine, many people probably paid a lot more attention to pop culture than usual last year.) So, let’s put the seriousness of 2020 aside for a second and kick off the annual Pop Culture Baby Name Game!

Of course, “pop culture” includes not just things like movies and music and social media, but also anything that was in the news — including COVID-19, Black Lives Matter, and the U.S. presidential election.

Which baby names will see higher usage — or appear for the very first time — in the 2020 SSA baby name data thanks to pop culture?

Here are some initial ideas (plus some context):

  • Aalam, DJ Khaled’s baby
  • Ahmaud, shooting of Ahmaud Arbery
  • Amala, Doja Cat album
  • Azula, character from Avatar: The Last Airbender (made available on Netflix in mid-2020)
  • Breonna, shooting of Breonna Taylor
  • Bryant, death of Kobe Bryant
  • Casme, contestant on season 19 of The Voice
  • Catori, Chris Brown’s baby (suggested by alex)
  • Chadwick, death of Chadwick Boseman
  • Charli, singer Charli XCX
  • Corona, coronavirus
    • Not to mention the brand new Daddy Yankee song “Corona” [vid]…
  • Crozier, naval captain Brett Crozier (suggested by elbowin)
  • Daisy, Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom’s baby
  • Desz, contestant on season 19 of The Voice
  • Doja, singer Doja Cat
  • Domhnall, Irish actor on (canceled) HBO series Run
  • Dua, singer Dua Lipa
  • Esty, character on the Netflix miniseries Unorthodox
  • George, killing of George Floyd
  • Gianna, death of Gianna Bryant
  • Greta, Swedish activist Greta Thunberg
  • Isaias, hurricane
  • Jack, death of Chrissy Teigen and John Legend’s unborn baby
  • Kamala, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris
  • Kamiyah, character in the Lifetime movie Stolen by My Mother: The Kamiyah Mobley Story*
  • Kaori, Kevin Hart’s baby
  • Katara, character from Avatar: The Last Airbender
  • Kobe, death of Kobe Bryant
  • Kraken, NHL expansion team (Seattle)
  • Larriah, contestant on season 19 of The Voice
  • Laura, hurricane
  • Lenin, Starbucks barista Lenin Gutierrez (suggested by elbowin)
  • Liberty, Meghan McCain’s baby
  • Lovella, singer Matt Bellamy’s baby
  • Lynika, death of Lynika Strozier (suggested by elbowin)
  • Lyra, Ed Sheeran’s baby
  • McGivney, beatification of Fr. Michael McGivney
  • Neowise, comet (suggested by elbowin)
  • Onyx, Iggy Azalea’s baby
  • Raddix, Cameron Diaz and Benji Madden’s baby
  • Rayshard, shooting of Rayshard Brooks
  • River, Joaquin Phoenix and Rooney Mara’s baby
  • Robinette, President-elect Joseph Robinette Biden (suggested by elbowin)
  • Rona, coronavirus
  • Rue, Teyana Taylor and Iman Shumpert’s baby
  • Rumble, model Lucky Blue Smith’s baby
  • Ruth, death of RBG
  • Sovereign, Usher’s baby
  • Tchalla, death of Chadwick Boseman (who played T’Challa in 2018’s Black Panther)
  • Wenliang, Chinese doctor Li Wenliang (suggested by elbowin)
  • Willa, Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner’s baby
  • Win, Ciara and Russell Wilson’s baby
  • Yara, actress Yara Shahidi
  • Zuko, character from Avatar: The Last Airbender (here’s one Zuko from 2020)

Some of the names from the 2019 game could be applicable to the 2020 data as well.

Also, feel free to zoom out and consider name trends this year. Here are a few ways in which baby-naming may have been influenced by our collective experience of COVID-19, for instance:

  • “In my opinion this unprecedented situation will affect naming towards something “bolder” or “more badass” baby names and so you’ll probably see a spike of certain names like King, Major or Royal.” (Gheba)
  • “I’d bet on the rise of virtue names, or at least modern version of virtue names, like Brave/Bravery, Courage, Honor, etc. And I’d say names like Legend, Messiah, Legacy, Major, King, will probably rise some more too.” (Skizzo)
  • “I think it will also affect which media influence names this year. Eg we’ll miss out on names inspired by Olympic athletes, but might see even more from Netflix and YouTube.” (Clare)

What other names (or name trends) should we add to the list? Let me know by leaving a comment below. Just remember to make a note of the pop culture influence!

I’ll post the results as soon as I can after the SSA releases the 2020 data (in May of 2021, hopefully).

*Did you know that the actress who played Kamiyah in that Lifetime movie is named Rayven Symone Ferrell? Certainly a nod to Raven-Symoné

Baby names in the news: Twifia, Víðir, Kent

Some recent baby names from the news…

Kent: A baby boy born in Michigan in September while his parents were on their way to the hospital was named Nolan Kent — middle name after the road on which he was born. (Fox 2, via Clare’s Name News)

River: The baby boy born to actors Joaquin Phoenix and Rooney Mara in mid-2020 was named River, after Joaquin’s late brother River Phoenix. (Harper’s Bazaar)

  • More on River Phoenix’s name here and here.

Twifia: A baby girl born in Graubünden, Switzerland, in October was given the second middle name Twifia — based on the name of Swiss internet provider Twifi — in exchange for 18 years of free internet. (Kidspot)

Víðir Þór Almarsson: A baby boy born in Iceland in May to quarantining parents Almar Þór Jónsson and Kristín Vigdís was named Víðir Þór Almarsson after Iceland’s COVID-19 trifecta: “Chief of Police Víðir Reynisson, Chief Epidemiologist Þórolfur Guðnason, and Director of Health Alma Möller.” (Reykjavik Grapevine)

Zuko: A baby boy born in California two weeks after the state’s stay-at-home order was issued (Mar. 19) was named Zuko after a character from the animated TV series Avatar: The Last Airbender. (CBS8)

Popular baby names in British Columbia (Canada), 2019

According to British Columbia’s Vital Statistics Agency, the most popular baby names in the province in 2019 were Olivia and Oliver.

Here are British Columbia’s top 10 girl names and top 10 boy names of 2019:

Girl Names

  1. Olivia, 263 baby girls
  2. Charlotte, 176
  3. Emma, 167
  4. Ava, 153
  5. Sophia, 149
  6. Amelia, 141
  7. Chloe, 137
  8. Mia, 136
  9. Isla, 128
  10. Evelyn and Ella, 122 each (tie)

Boy Names

  1. Oliver, 233 baby boys
  2. Liam, 217
  3. Lucas, 216
  4. Ethan, 207
  5. Noah, 200
  6. William, 191
  7. Benjamin, 181
  8. Theodore, 171
  9. Leo, 163
  10. Logan, 156

In 2018, the top two names were Olivia and Liam.

In the girls’ top 10, Mia, Evelyn and Ella replaced Emily and Abigail.

In the boys’ top 10, Theodore replaced James.

Finally, some of the names bestowed just five times each in British Columbia last year include…

  • Girl names: Anhad, Baani, Constance, Darya, Emberly, Gillian, Haisley, Ila, Jiayi, Kaelyn, Linden, Mina, Niya, Opal, Ravleen, Saanjh, Tayla, Veronika, Wendy, Zaynab
  • Boy names: Arie, Baker, Casper, Douglas, Elon, Garrett, Henri, Israel, Joaquin, Kye, Leonidas, Malek, Navraj, Orson, Reginald, Sajjan, Thatcher, Vladimir, Wilfred, Zoravar

Source: Baby’s Most Chosen Names in British Columbia, 2019