How popular is the baby name Pierre 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 Pierre.

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Popularity of the baby name Pierre


Posts that mention the name Pierre

Boy names beyond the top 1,000 of 2022

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Have you seen any of the boy names beyond the U.S. top 1,000 yet? If not, here’s the next thousand for you.

Last year, the 1,000th most popular boy name in the U.S. was London, given to 222 babies. After that, we find…

1,001st to 1,100th

Massimo, 222
Mordechai, 222
Branson, 221
Deandre, 221
Maurice, 221
Graysen, 220
Ulises, 220
Wren, 220
Carl, 219
Coen, 219
Kristopher, 219
Boaz, 218
Decker, 218
Fox, 218
Blaise, 217
Rogelio, 217
Shai, 217
Beck, 216
Brett, 216
Crosby, 216
Lev, 216
Aspen, 215
Billy, 215
Bishop, 215
Kole, 215
Mariano, 215
Ollie, 215
Veer, 215
Campbell, 214
Kolt, 214
Jireh, 213
Karsyn, 213
Tiago, 213
Blaine, 212
Cristiano, 212
Foster, 212
Hollis, 212
Yadiel, 212
Bobby, 211
Teddy, 211
Beaux, 210
Jaxtyn, 210
Kyng, 210
Ronnie, 210
Syncere, 210
Benny, 209
Genesis, 209
Kace, 209
Mike, 209
Rishi, 209
Howard, 207
Kendall, 207
Reginald, 207
Aizen, 206
Davion, 206
Gianluca, 206
Lyle, 206
Danilo, 205
Dominik, 205
Frankie, 205
Granger, 205
Kamdyn, 205
Lyric, 205
Eliezer, 204
Montgomery, 204
Rowdy, 204
Zabdiel, 204
Gerald, 203
Jahmir, 203
Laith, 203
Dereck, 202
Kacey, 202
Link, 202
Merrick, 202
Yaakov, 202
Ash, 201
Cashton, 201
Dhruv, 201
Izan, 201
Jamal, 201
Joan, 201
Josias, 201
Kenai, 200
Lucien, 200
Jabari, 199
Jakobe, 199
Palmer, 199
Dimitri, 198
Dayton, 197
Denzel, 197
Ephraim, 197
Knowledge, 197
Yitzchok, 197
Bowie, 196
Kruz, 196
Elon, 195
Gus, 195
Kross, 195
Marc, 195
Azaiah, 194

1,101st to 1,200th

Scout, 194
Adrien, 193
Menachem, 193
Zayan, 193
Zephyr, 193
Jad, 192
Jair, 192
Kody, 192
Makari, 192
Jordy, 191
Slade, 191
Ulysses, 191
Abner, 190
Benito, 190
Mikael, 190
True, 190
Matheo, 189
Achilles, 188
Hakeem, 188
Jesiah, 188
Ramiro, 188
Emil, 187
Shlomo, 187
Trent, 187
Aydin, 186
Ernest, 186
Gadiel, 186
Ren, 186
Zeus, 186
Cedar, 185
Landry, 185
Nazir, 185
Avraham, 184
Maison, 184
Ozias, 184
Azai, 183
Bronx, 183
Ralph, 183
Cory, 182
Jasiel, 182
Malakhi, 182
Marley, 182
Zakari, 182
Jessie, 181
Eleazar, 180
Jerome, 180
Keenan, 180
Keon, 180
Jethro, 179
Kashmir, 179
Bastian, 178
Coleman, 178
Daylen, 178
Shimon, 178
Isael, 177
Kaius, 177
Pierre, 177
Terrance, 177
Tzvi, 177
Wiley, 177
Vaughn, 176
Casper, 175
Kolten, 175
Kyaire, 175
Toby, 175
Will, 175
Caysen, 174
Harris, 174
Javon, 174
Jovani, 174
Krue, 174
Rylen, 174
Willie, 174
Yaseen, 174
Cayde, 173
Kaine, 173
Maxim, 173
Ever, 172
Gino, 172
Jakobi, 172
Turner, 172
Yasir, 172
Booker, 170
Jaxen, 170
Jeffery, 170
Lenox, 169
Sol, 169
Tylan, 169
Gio, 168
Kenan, 168
Torin, 168
Elmer, 167
Jacari, 167
Norman, 167
Ziggy, 167
Bentlee, 166
Bilal, 166
Edmund, 166
Harlow, 166
Sekani, 166

1,201st to 1,300th

Sidney, 166
Amado, 165
Draven, 165
Giancarlo, 165
Gray, 164
Juelz, 164
Mael, 164
Mayson, 164
Rami, 164
Khyree, 163
Nikko, 163
Rolando, 163
Carlo, 162
Jacoby, 162
Korbyn, 162
Viktor, 162
Aayan, 161
Lucius, 161
Arham, 160
Deon, 160
Giannis, 160
Jeriah, 160
Kenny, 160
Kilian, 160
Xzavier, 160
Zeppelin, 160
Gilbert, 159
Isai, 159
Jai, 159
Jet, 159
Sunny, 159
Terrell, 159
Zymir, 159
Alessio, 158
Eason, 158
Maddux, 158
Monte, 158
Semaj, 158
Sire, 158
Umar, 158
Zackary, 158
Anson, 157
Dov, 157
Dovid, 157
Kolby, 157
Oakland, 157
Jettson, 156
Rayyan, 156
Skylar, 156
Arden, 155
Benton, 155
Hasan, 155
Huxton, 155
Immanuel, 155
Khamari, 155
Krish, 155
Raheem, 155
Andreas, 154
Greysen, 154
Jermaine, 154
Kentrell, 154
Mattias, 153
Thorin, 153
Cormac, 152
Denim, 152
Ender, 152
Mazi, 152
Randall, 152
Canyon, 151
Carmine, 151
Clifford, 151
Elvis, 151
Jenson, 151
Laken, 151
Markus, 151
Terrence, 151
Caius, 150
Demari, 150
Macklin, 150
Milton, 150
Rian, 150
Aydan, 149
Cristopher, 149
Kylin, 149
Ross, 149
Malikai, 148
Pharaoh, 148
Archibald, 147
Ayman, 147
Bernard, 147
Dwayne, 147
Finnick, 147
Giovani, 147
Kyzer, 147
Tristen, 147
Koah, 146
Simeon, 146
Zaylen, 146
Bernardo, 145
Malaki, 145

1,301st to 1,400th

Sultan, 145
Tayden, 145
Agastya, 144
Ansel, 144
Efrain, 144
Lamar, 144
Micheal, 144
Shia, 144
Aleksander, 143
Eitan, 143
Gannon, 143
Kaycen, 143
Lazarus, 143
Reagan, 143
Zakariya, 143
Adiel, 142
Derick, 142
Eros, 142
Lyam, 142
Marcello, 142
Payton, 142
Seamus, 142
Zack, 142
Freddy, 141
Henri, 141
Makoa, 141
Noa, 141
Syed, 141
Taj, 141
Eliot, 140
Kallen, 140
Kyren, 140
Mikah, 140
Quintin, 140
Youssef, 140
Alister, 139
Davi, 139
Kolter, 139
Kymir, 139
Marquis, 139
Noble, 139
Octavio, 139
Oren, 139
Rashad, 139
Tahj, 139
Cru, 138
Gentry, 138
Harper, 138
Isiah, 138
Justus, 138
Kasey, 138
Kodi, 138
Renzo, 138
Rodolfo, 138
Rush, 138
Tristian, 138
Truth, 138
Kit, 137
Oziel, 137
Vince, 137
Zayvion, 137
Aslan, 136
Jaire, 136
Kreed, 136
Loki, 136
Oskar, 136
Perry, 136
Tariq, 136
Aryeh, 135
Aubrey, 135
Azlan, 135
Brent, 135
Cian, 135
Clarence, 135
Demir, 135
Garrison, 135
Jaylin, 135
Jean, 135
Yair, 135
Braydon, 134
Dominique, 134
Eliyahu, 134
Jiovanni, 134
Kaleo, 134
Nick, 134
Amar, 133
Ripp, 133
Yakov, 133
Zealand, 133
Anton, 132
Clinton, 132
Cove, 132
Deklan, 132
Draco, 132
Fredrick, 132
Huck, 132
Kalvin, 132
Nickolas, 132
Reyansh, 132
Yoel, 132

1,401st to 1,500th

Avion, 131
Camdyn, 131
Hans, 131
Kendrix, 131
Presley, 131
Atreyu, 130
Aurelius, 130
Benaiah, 130
Taylen, 130
West, 130
Benji, 129
Deshawn, 129
Elyas, 129
Ewan, 129
Jahseh, 129
Jelani, 129
Jessiah, 129
Perseus, 129
Wolfgang, 129
Zaxton, 129
Braxtyn, 128
Francesco, 128
Gerard, 128
Axle, 127
Chad, 127
Everette, 127
Karl, 127
Slater, 127
Warner, 127
Anas, 126
Darrell, 126
Ean, 126
Glenn, 126
Guy, 126
Haven, 126
Jordyn, 126
Keagan, 126
Niam, 126
Orson, 126
Ranger, 126
Brysen, 125
Kip, 125
Linus, 125
Teagan, 125
Wylie, 125
Zamari, 125
Arman, 124
Cristobal, 124
German, 124
Isa, 124
Jael, 124
Kassius, 124
Nikola, 124
Tyree, 124
Ved, 124
Viraj, 124
Alder, 123
Arrow, 123
Aston, 123
Barry, 123
Deangelo, 123
Jadon, 123
Jaylon, 123
Krishiv, 123
Osiel, 123
Pierson, 123
Sami, 123
Todd, 123
Truman, 123
Westen, 123
Akeem, 122
Aksel, 122
Eiden, 122
Emmet, 122
Finnian, 122
Ilyas, 122
Ismail, 122
Kelly, 122
Kymani, 122
Lenny, 122
Obadiah, 122
Ozzie, 122
Rogan, 122
Shaun, 122
Steve, 122
Townes, 122
Barron, 121
Chozen, 121
Kaizer, 121
Rafe, 121
Ramsey, 121
Shea, 121
Syrus, 121
Tyrone, 121
Uziel, 121
Vivaan, 121
Aamir, 120
Alexzander, 120
Carver, 120
Coy, 120

1,501st to 1,600th

Craig, 120
Darien, 120
Haziel, 120
Ivar, 120
Jonathon, 120
Steele, 120
Antony, 119
Bailey, 119
Cam, 119
Finneas, 119
Gilberto, 119
Hansel, 119
Javion, 119
Jayvion, 119
Oaklee, 119
Ravi, 119
Riaan, 119
Storm, 119
Ammar, 118
Arnold, 118
Brexton, 118
Cree, 118
Faris, 118
Malek, 118
Armon, 117
Brentley, 117
Edson, 117
Ezio, 117
Indigo, 117
Jahir, 117
Mahir, 117
Mauro, 117
Santi, 117
Fynn, 116
Jamarion, 116
Levon, 116
Lucio, 116
Mikel, 116
Natanael, 116
Roan, 116
Vernon, 116
Brayson, 115
Honor, 115
Jovan, 115
Kent, 115
Monroe, 115
Stephan, 115
Aven, 114
Dale, 114
Don, 114
Gonzalo, 114
Kaladin, 114
Zephaniah, 114
Akiva, 113
Asiah, 113
Cecil, 113
Channing, 113
Coby, 113
Leeland, 113
Mars, 113
Mavrick, 113
Rylee, 113
Sammy, 113
Savion, 113
Xavion, 113
Aarush, 112
Iverson, 112
Jahziel, 112
Judd, 112
Karsen, 112
Kysen, 112
Osvaldo, 112
Smith, 112
Aariz, 111
Adnan, 111
Amare, 111
Amaris, 111
Artemis, 111
Camryn, 111
Destin, 111
Dev, 111
Eddy, 111
Holland, 111
Luther, 111
Makhi, 111
Percy, 111
Ransom, 111
Sky, 111
Zyan, 111
Aariv, 110
Canon, 110
Chevy, 110
Devonte, 110
Kamarion, 110
Khyson, 110
Lazaro, 110
Revan, 110
Ruger, 110
Evren, 109
Haiden, 109

1,601st to 1,700th

Jru, 109
Leander, 109
Nile, 109
Shivansh, 109
Wilmer, 109
Antoine, 108
Cai, 108
Davon, 108
Jhett, 108
Jules, 108
Neal, 108
Reynaldo, 108
Riot, 108
Ryver, 108
Sulaiman, 108
Avian, 107
Axell, 107
Dezmond, 107
Hampton, 107
Jamar, 107
Kaidyn, 107
Kiran, 107
Nate, 107
Ripley, 107
Said, 107
Sebastien, 107
Gionni, 106
Kahari, 106
Mickey, 106
Tyrell, 106
Yasin, 106
Abdul, 105
Boyd, 105
Eder, 105
Kiyan, 105
Linkin, 105
Massiah, 105
Montana, 105
Olin, 105
Phineas, 105
Rico, 105
Saif, 105
Vladimir, 105
Yunus, 105
Amarion, 104
Amin, 104
Ashtyn, 104
Ilan, 104
Irving, 104
Jacobo, 104
Kennedy, 104
Keoni, 104
Trevon, 104
Aaryan, 103
Cortez, 103
Darryl, 103
Hiram, 103
Kadence, 103
Klay, 103
Masiah, 103
Maverik, 103
Micaiah, 103
Ramses, 103
Roderick, 103
Tamir, 103
Yeshua, 103
Zavian, 103
Ajani, 102
Brighton, 102
Carsen, 102
Denis, 102
Eamon, 102
Izael, 102
Kaeden, 102
Kamron, 102
Khaled, 102
Klayton, 102
Marquise, 102
Neel, 102
Rylo, 102
Shay, 102
Tymir, 102
Yazan, 102
Brewer, 101
Bryer, 101
Divine, 101
Jasai, 101
Kain, 101
Myron, 101
Oaklen, 101
Oden, 101
Artist, 100
Deion, 100
Jetson, 100
Leopold, 100
Nael, 100
Rip, 100
Yousuf, 100
Zaidyn, 100
Cosmo, 99

1,701st to 1,800th

Giuseppe, 99
Jasir, 99
Journey, 99
Kacen, 99
Lake, 99
Lloyd, 99
Mordecai, 99
Quinten, 99
Rudra, 99
Viaan, 99
Yohan, 99
Armaan, 98
Avyan, 98
Baron, 98
Corbyn, 98
Hussein, 98
Kashtyn, 98
Kyzen, 98
Marcelino, 98
Nakoa, 98
Xavi, 98
Adolfo, 97
Amauri, 97
Eliab, 97
Elvin, 97
Ervin, 97
Jovi, 97
Riyan, 97
Usman, 97
Uzziah, 97
Wolf, 97
Clint, 96
Gibson, 96
Ishmael, 96
Jaleel, 96
Joao, 96
Konnor, 96
Orin, 96
Taylin, 96
Wendell, 96
Advik, 95
Ansh, 95
Aris, 95
Armoni, 95
Ayansh, 95
Braulio, 95
Cypress, 95
Darnell, 95
Henley, 95
Kove, 95
Quadir, 95
Alek, 94
Azari, 94
Aziah, 94
Chester, 94
Gerson, 94
Josh, 94
Kailo, 94
Kenton, 94
Lars, 94
Linden, 94
Oslo, 94
Sir, 94
Stellan, 94
Valor, 94
Ayce, 93
Cornelius, 93
Hagen, 93
Kaisyn, 93
Kyngston, 93
Lyndon, 93
Shaya, 93
Taysom, 93
Braylin, 92
Gryffin, 92
Issa, 92
Karmelo, 92
Mecca, 92
Samar, 92
Yuri, 92
Amani, 91
Dashiell, 91
Deegan, 91
Lester, 91
Levy, 91
Maykel, 91
Noam, 91
Raylen, 91
Summit, 91
Urijah, 91
Yuvaan, 91
Ayven, 90
Domingo, 90
Donnie, 90
Haze, 90
Humberto, 90
Jakhari, 90
Johnathon, 90
Johnpaul, 90
Jordi, 90

1,801st to 1,900th

Karam, 90
Koe, 90
Kyran, 90
Paulo, 90
Akai, 89
Auden, 89
Avrohom, 89
Demarcus, 89
Geovanni, 89
Hardin, 89
Hendrixx, 89
Isidro, 89
Izayah, 89
Jarvis, 89
Morris, 89
Mykel, 89
Shalom, 89
Xaiden, 89
Zakaria, 89
Asad, 88
Calder, 88
Dan, 88
Ellison, 88
Hussain, 88
Irvin, 88
Keller, 88
Meyer, 88
Ragnar, 88
Sanad, 88
Shiv, 88
Woodrow, 88
Woods, 88
Xion, 88
Zade, 88
Aharon, 87
Azaan, 87
Basil, 87
Camari, 87
Colsen, 87
Jacobi, 87
Johann, 87
Mikhail, 87
Rain, 87
Reggie, 87
Theodor, 87
Zohan, 87
Aidyn, 86
Angus, 86
Cordell, 86
Esai, 86
Giovanny, 86
Hoyt, 86
Kahlil, 86
Kasyn, 86
Emrys, 85
Giorgio, 85
Hadi, 85
Ignatius, 85
Izhaan, 85
Konner, 85
Lisandro, 85
Lonnie, 85
Quest, 85
Riggins, 85
Ronaldo, 85
Taha, 85
Vito, 85
Alton, 84
Charley, 84
Egypt, 84
Eydan, 84
Fidel, 84
Jaquan, 84
Jibreel, 84
Kaito, 84
Kasper, 84
Klaus, 84
Makaio, 84
Octavius, 84
Richie, 84
Sloan, 84
Vander, 84
Zacari, 84
Austyn, 83
Brenton, 83
Ciaran, 83
Keylor, 83
Kyden, 83
Maksim, 83
Malcom, 83
Obed, 83
Shayan, 83
Valen, 83
Ahmari, 82
Arvin, 82
Braiden, 82
Fred, 82
Holt, 82
Kru, 82
Maxx, 82

1,901st to 2,000th

Maziyon, 82
Ori, 82
Tevin, 82
Abdulrahman, 81
Blair, 81
Constantine, 81
Dakoda, 81
Ishan, 81
Jaycob, 81
Jennings, 81
Kalen, 81
Koby, 81
Kyron, 81
Lamont, 81
Lathan, 81
Lex, 81
Lukah, 81
Muhammadali, 81
Orhan, 81
Riker, 81
Roscoe, 81
Tahir, 81
Ajay, 80
Alakai, 80
Arlen, 80
Caison, 80
Camron, 80
Conway, 80
Daemon, 80
Elan, 80
Hudsyn, 80
Iman, 80
Jarrett, 80
Kanaan, 80
Kota, 80
Matheus, 80
Mayer, 80
Naim, 80
Neymar, 80
Rivers, 80
Sylvan, 80
Thor, 80
Virgil, 80
Amadeo, 79
Brantlee, 79
Damarion, 79
Donte, 79
Elton, 79
Halston, 79
Haroon, 79
Jaron, 79
Kurt, 79
Mahdi, 79
Neythan, 79
Radley, 79
Rigoberto, 79
Rockwell, 79
Shaurya, 79
Stratton, 79
Clifton, 78
Earl, 78
Fredy, 78
Hernan, 78
Keelan, 78
Merritt, 78
Miran, 78
Rayaan, 78
Alias, 77
Arin, 77
Armin, 77
Beauden, 77
Brenden, 77
Daryl, 77
Eastyn, 77
Edmond, 77
Esdras, 77
Estevan, 77
Gavriel, 77
Kyrin, 77
Manolo, 77
Niall, 77
Samarth, 77
Sora, 77
Syaire, 77
Xavien, 77
Zaine, 77
Andrei, 76
Aram, 76
Camren, 76
Everardo, 76
Gurbaaz, 76
Henderson, 76
Marlin, 76
Marlo, 76
Mylan, 76
Nehemias, 76
Reyan, 76
Ridley, 76
Rishaan, 76
Xavian, 76

See anything you like?

Source: SSA

Image: Adapted from Scattered stars in Sagittarius by ESA/Hubble under CC BY 4.0.

Where did the baby name Cybele come from in 1963?

The character Cybele from the movie "Sundays and Cybele" (1963).
Cybèle from “Sundays and Cybèle

The ancient name Cybele first appeared in the U.S. baby name data in relatively modern times — the 1960s.

  • 1965: 14 baby girls named Cybele
  • 1964: 16 baby girls named Cybele
  • 1963: 15 baby girls named Cybele [debut]
  • 1962: unlisted
  • 1961: unlisted

The variant spelling Cybelle debuted the same year.

Where did they come from?

A 1962 French film called Les dimanches de Ville d’Avray (The Sundays of Ville d’Avray), which was later re-titled for English audiences: Sundays and Cybèle. It won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in April of 1963.

The movie followed an emotionally damaged war veteran named Pierre (played by Hardy Krüger) as he starts an innocent friendship with a neglected schoolgirl named Cybèle (played by 11-year-old Patricia Gozzi). Their relationship “ultimately ignites the suspicion and anger of his friends and neighbors in suburban Paris,” with tragic results.

Cybele was pronounced sih-BELL by the American media at the time. The name ultimately comes from the name of the Greco-Roman mother goddess, Cybele.

What are your thoughts on this name?

Sources: Sundays and Cybele – Wikipedia, Sundays and Cybèle (1962) – The Criterion Collection

Quotes about the names of politicians

U.S. President John Quincy Adams (1767-1848)
John Quincy Adams

From the National Park Service’s biography of 6th U.S. president John Quincy Adams:

Born on July 11, 1767 in Braintree, Massachusetts, he was the son of two fervent revolutionary patriots, John and Abigail Adams, whose ancestors had lived in New England for five generations. Abigail gave birth to her son two days before her prominent grandfather, Colonel John Quincy, died so the boy was named John Quincy Adams in his honor.

(Quincy, Massachusetts, was also named after Colonel John Quincy.)

From the humorous remarks given by U.S. President Barack Hussein Obama at the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner in October of 2008:

Many of you — many of you know that I got my name Barack from my father. What you may not know is Barack is actually Swahili for “that one.” And I got my middle name from somebody who obviously didn’t think I’d ever run for president.

(In truth, Obama’s first name a form of Barak, which means “blessing” in Arabic.)

From a 2010 article about Virginia political candidate Krystal Ball, who was asked about her name during her congressional campaign:

The answer: Her father has a doctorate in physics and did his dissertation on crystals.

So after her mother named older sisters Heidi and Holly, it was dad’s turn.

Ball said she doesn’t mind the questions, though, or the jokes.

And she’ll certainly be hoping a lot of people remember that name now that she’s running for Congress.

From Kenneth Whyte’s book Hoover: An Extraordinary Life in Extraordinary Times (2017), which describes the naming of Herbert Hoover (who was born in 1874 to Quaker parents Jesse and Hulda Hoover):

Hulda had shown [her sister] Agnes a bureau drawer full of handmade clothes prepared for the baby, all of them suited for a girl, to be named Laura. Several decades later Agnes recalled that the newborn, a boy, was “round and plump and looked about very cordial at every body.”

Naming the child was a problem as Laura, obviously, would not do, and the mother had no alternative in mind. Another sister reminded Hulda of a favorite book, Pierre and His Family, a Sunday school martyrology set among the Protestant Waldenses of Piedmont. The hero of the story is a spirited boy named Hubert who is dedicated to his Bible and longs to become a pastor. Hulda’s sister remembered Hubert as Herbert, and the baby was called Herbert Clark Hoover. He shared his father’s middle name.

(Discovered via a Midwest National Parks Instagram post.)

From Nelson Mandela’s 1994 autobiography Long Walk to Freedom:

Apart from life, a strong constitution, and an abiding connection to the Thembu royal house, the only thing my father bestowed upon me at birth was a name, Rolihlahla. In Xhosa, Rolihlahla literally means “pulling the branch of a tree”, but its colloquial meaning more accurately would be “troublemaker.” I do not believe that names are destiny or that my father somehow divined my future, but in later years, friends and relatives would ascribe to my birth name the many storms I have both caused and weathered.

From a 2022 article about British politician Penelope “Penny” Mordaunt (b. 1973):

It was a position she was well cut out for, given her strong military background — her father was a parachuter and she was a member of the Royal Navy from 2010 to 2019, making her the only woman MP currently who is a navy reservist. … (Fun fact: Penny was named after the Royal Navy frigate HMS Penelope.)

On the origin of Harry S. Truman’s given names, from the book Truman (1992) by David McCullough:

In a quandary over a middle name, [parents] Mattie and John were undecided whether to honor her father or his. In the end they compromised with the letter S. It could be taken to stand for Solomon or Shipp, but actually stood for nothing, a practice not unknown among the Scotch-Irish, even for first names. The baby’s first name was Harry, after his Uncle Harrison.

(Ulysses S. Grant likewise had a single-letter middle.)

From a 2020 CNN article about how to pronounce Sen. Kamala Harris’s name:

Harris wrote in the preface of her 2019 memoir, “The Truths We Hold,” “First, my name is pronounced ‘comma-la,’ like the punctuation mark. It means ‘lotus flower,’ which is a symbol of significance in Indian culture. A lotus grows underwater, its flower rising above the surface while its roots are planted firmly in the river bottom.”

From a 2019 article about how to pronounce the name of presidential candidate Robert Francis “Beto” O’Rourke:

He was named after his grandfathers. His mother Melissa O’Rourke said on the campaign trail during his U.S. Senate run that “Robert” — her father’s name — didn’t seem to fit when he was a baby.

The family has deep roots in El Paso, Texas, and “Beto” is a common shortening of the name “Roberto,” or “Robert.” If you’re wondering, it’s pronounced BEH-toe and O’Rourke is oh-RORK.

Image: John Quincy Adams (1858) by George P. A. Healy

[Latest update: Oct. 2023]

How did Rudolph Valentino influence baby names in the 1920s?

Actor Rudolph Valentino (1895-1926)
Rudolph Valentino

Rodolfo Alfonso Raffaello Pierre Filibert Guglielmi di Valentina d’Antonguolla was born in Italy in 1895 and immigrated to America in 1913.

He began getting bit parts in silent films in the mid-1910s. As he progressed to larger parts in the later 1910s, he started being credited as “Rudolph Valentino” or some variant thereof.

He finally achieved fame in 1921 with his breakthrough role as Julio in The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, the top-grossing film of the year.

He went on to make more than a dozen other films — including The Sheik (1921), which turned Valentino into America’s first sex symbol.

But his superstardom was cut short when, at the age of 31, he died suddenly (of peritonitis, after suffering from a perforated peptic ulcer) soon after the premiere of his final film, The Son of the Sheik (1926).

rudolph valentino, vilma banky, the son of the sheik, movie poster

The death of Valentino not only “caused worldwide hysteria, several suicides, and riots at his lying in state, which attracted a crowd that stretched for 11 blocks,” but also influenced U.S. baby names.

The name Rudolph, which had been on the rise during the early 1920s, saw peak usage in 1927. (So did the spelling Rudolf.)

  • 1929: 1,220 baby boys named Rudolph [rank: 140th]
  • 1928: 1,308 baby boys named Rudolph [rank: 134th]
  • 1927: 1,687 baby boys named Rudolph [rank: 110th]
  • 1926: 1,636 baby boys named Rudolph [rank: 111th]
  • 1925: 1,243 baby boys named Rudolph [rank: 136th]
Graph of the usage of the baby name Rudolph in the U.S. since 1880
Usage of the baby name Rudolph

Similarly, the name Valentino saw a spike in usage in 1927, reaching a level that wasn’t surpassed until the late 1990s.

  • 1929: 30 baby boys named Valentino
  • 1928: 49 baby boys named Valentino [rank: 991st]
  • 1927: 90 baby boys named Valentino [rank: 682nd]
  • 1926: 49 baby boys named Valentino [rank: 990th]
  • 1925: 43 baby boys named Valentino
Graph of the usage of the baby name Valentino in the U.S. since 1880
Usage of the baby name Valentino

What are your thoughts on the names Rudolph and Valentino? Would you use either one? (If so, which?)

Sources: Rudolph Valentino – Wikipedia, Rudolph Valentino – Britannica

P.S. One factor — beyond style — that could have contributed to the decreasing usage of the name Rudolph from the mid-20th century onward is the song “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” It was the top song in the nation at the end of 1949 — a year before “Frosty the Snowman” hit big — and went on to become a holiday classic, cementing the association between the name Rudolph and not just reindeer, but Christmastime in general.