While doing some name research recently, I noticed a whole bunch of typos like “Christop” and “Alexandr” among the top 1,000 U.S. baby names of 1989.
I figured all the typos must be coming from a single source, so I checked the SSA’s state-by-state data, starting with the larger states. Didn’t see anything in California, didn’t see anything in Texas…but then I checked New York, and there they were:
| Name | # in U.S. | # in NY | % in NY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Christop (m) | 1,082*† | 1,082 | 100% |
| Christin (f) | 926† | 499 | 54% |
| Stephani (f) | 636† | 489 | 77% |
| Elizabet (f) | 445† | 419 | 94% |
| Alexandr (f) | 301*† | 301 | 100% |
| Alexande (m) | 301† | 299 | 99% |
| Katherin (f) | 277† | 248 | 90% |
A few of the above may not be typos, but the fact that so many are concentrated in a single place suggests that most are.
Given the time period and consistent truncation, my guess is that one of the counties in New York started using a computer system in 1989 that only allowed the input of up to 8 characters per name.
Now the big question: Did this glitch skew the national baby name rankings?
Yes, but only for Alexandra:
| Name(s) | # in U.S. | Rank in U.S. |
|---|---|---|
| Alexandra (f) | 7,679 | 43rd (old) |
| Alexandra (f) + Alexandr (f) | 7,980 | 41st (new) |
All 301 of the baby girls named Alexandr were born in New York, so it’s likely that all of them are typos. If we add these 301 to the total for Alexandra, the new number nudges Alexandra up two spots to #41. (This would bump the names Brittney and Hannah down one spot each.)
UPDATE, Apr. 2020: I recently combed through the rest of the 1989 baby name data and found even more typos:
| Name | # in U.S. | # in NY | % in NY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jacqueli (f) | 157*† | 157 | 100% |
| Cassandr (f) | 152*† | 152 | 100% |
| Gabriell (f) | 144† | 115 | 80% |
| Christia (m) | 82*† | 80 | 98% |
| Nathanie (m) | 58† | 55 | 95% |
| Elisabet (f) | 51† | 25 | 49% |
| Jacquely (f) | 50*† | 47 | 94% |
| Kristoph (m) | 44* | 44 | 100% |
| Mackenzi (f) | 42 | 26 | 62% |
| Salvator (m) | 41† | 37 | 90% |
| Johnatha (m) | 34† | 31 | 91% |
| Katharin (f) | 23† | 23 | 100% |
| Anastasi (f) | 22*† | 20 | 91% |
| Francesc (f) | 19*† | 19 | 100% |
| Kimberle (f) | 17 | 12 | 71% |
| Dominiqu (f) | 15*† | 15 | 100% |
| Nicolett (f) | 15* | 12 | 80% |
| Annemari (f) | 14*† | 13 | 93% |
| Kassandr (f) | 13*† | 13 | 100% |
| Johnatho (m) | 12*† | 12 | 100% |
| Mackenzi (m) | 11*† | 9 | 82% |
| Sebastia (m) | 11*† | 11 | 100% |
| Bernadet (f) | 9*† | 9 | 100% |
| Demetriu (m) | 9*† | 9 | 100% |
| Geneviev (f) | 9*† | 9 | 100% |
| Kristofe (m) | 9*† | 9 | 100% |
| Alejandr (m) | 8*† | 6 | 75% |
| Antoinet (f) | 8*† | 8 | 100% |
| Cassondr (f) | 8*† | 8 | 100% |
| Constanc (f) | 8*† | 8 | 100% |
| Francisc (m) | 8*† | 7 | 88% |
| Priscill (f) | 7*† | 7 | 100% |
| Annamari (f) | 6*† | 6 | 100% |
| Angeliqu (f) | 5*† | 5 | 100% |
| Francesc (m) | 5 | 5 | 100% |
Many of the above were one-hit wonders, which makes sense.
P.S. Here are three more glitches I’ve found since writing this post: the Korea/Kansas mis-codes, the New York state data gaps, and Essfa in Vermont.
Image: Adapted from Data loss of image file (public domain)
[Latest update: Feb. 2025]