How popular is the baby name Ringo 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 Ringo.

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Popularity of the baby name Ringo


Posts that mention the name Ringo

How did John Lennon’s murder affect U.S. baby names?

Musician John Lennon and wife Yoko Ono in Amsterdam (Mar. 1969)
John Lennon and Yoko Ono (in 1969)

John Lennon — a founding member of the massively popular English rock band The Beatles, and the voice behind hits like “I Want To Hold Your Hand” (1963), “A Hard Day’s Night” (1964), “Strawberry Fields Forever” (1967), “Come Together” (1969), and, as a solo artist, “Imagine” (1971) — was shot and killed by a fan outside his New York City apartment building on December 8, 1980.

What followed was a worldwide outpouring of grief.

In lieu of holding a memorial service, Lennon’s widow, Yoko Ono, asked fans to remember him with a silent vigil on December 14 (the following Sunday).

Millions around the globe participated.

By far the biggest crowd gathered at Central Park in New York. More than 100,000 people … braved stinging cold to listen to recorded music and pray in silence at 2 p.m. EST.

[…]

Simultaneously, somber crowds in Philadelphia, Memphis, Tenn., Raleigh, N.C., Atlanta, Hartford, Conn., Concord, N.H., Cincinnati, Columbia, S.C., Miami, Los Angeles, Chicago, Detroit and numerous other communities across the nation fell silent for 10 minutes.

The following year, the baby names Lennon and Yoko both saw an uptick in usage:

Babies named LennonGirls named Yoko
198322 boys14
198222 boys14
198148 boys + 6 girls*24†
198015 boys11
19799 boys.
*Gender-specific debut, †Peak usage

So what do “Lennon” and “Yoko” mean?

John Lennon’s Irish surname can be traced back to either the Irish word lon, meaning “blackbird,” or the Irish word leann, meaning “cloak, mantle.”

And Yoko Ono’s Japanese forename is written using a pair of kanji characters meaning “ocean” and “child” — though the name can be written with other characters as well.

These days, the name Yoko remains rare among U.S. babies (though not as rare as Ringo).

The name Lennon, on the other hand, has become quite popular. It now ranks well inside the top 1,000 for both baby boys and baby girls. (Female usage surpassed male usage in 2014.)

P.S. Did you know that Yoko Ono, who was born into an affluent family, went to school with future Japanese emperor Akihito?

Sources:

Image: Adapted from John Lennon and Yoko Ono photo by Eric Koch via Nationaal Archief under CC0.

Where did the baby names Cully and Case come from?

The characters Cully and Case from the TV series "Johnny Ringo" (1959-1960).
Cully and Case from “Johnny Ringo

The TV Western Johnny Ringo, based loosely on the life of Old West outlaw John Ringo, only lasted from 1959 to 1960. But that was long enough for two characters from the short-lived series to boost two new baby names onto the charts.

The first name was Case, which popped up in 1959:

  • 1962: 5 baby boys named Case
  • 1961: 6 baby boys named Case
  • 1960: 5 baby boys named Case
  • 1959: 5 baby boys named Case [debut]
  • 1958: unlisted

The corresponding character was Case Thomas, played by actor Terence De Marney. Case was an older man who spoke with an Irish lilt and owned the town general store. He was also the former town drunk.

The second name was Cully, which debuted in 1960:

  • 1962: 12 baby boys named Cully
  • 1961: 5 baby boys named Cully
  • 1960: 31 baby boys named Cully [debut]
  • 1959: unlisted
  • 1958: unlisted

Not only was Cully the top debut name for boys that year, but it’s now tied for 47th biggest debut of all time with Omarian and Yul.

This one was inspired by the Deputy William “Cully” Charles, played by actor Mark Goddard (who later co-starred in Lost in Space).

But here’s the wrinkle: friendly old-timer Cully Wilson from the TV show Lassie (1954-1973) was introduced to TV audiences in 1959. He could have been an influence here as well.

The name Cully, despite its impressive start, never really gained traction among American parents. The name Case, on the other hand, entered the top 1,000 about a decade ago and is currently ranked 601st in the nation.

And while Johnny Ringo didn’t do much for the baby name Ringo, that one eventually showed up in the data thanks to The Beatles.

Source: Johnny Ringo (TV series) – Wikipedia

P.S. Like Trackdown (which gave us Hoby), Johnny Ringo was one of five shows spun off from Zane Grey Theatre. The Ringo episode aired in March, and the series premiered just siven months later, in October. In the episode, Case’s full name is revealed to be “Cason.”

Popular baby names in England and Wales (UK), 2015

Flag of the United Kingdom
Flag of the United Kingdom

According to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the most popular baby names in England and Wales last year were (again) Amelia and Oliver.

Here are the top 10 girl names and top 10 boy names of 2015:

Girl NamesBoy Names
1. Amelia, 5,158 baby girls
2. Olivia, 4,853
3. Emily, 3,893
4. Isla, 3,474
5. Ava, 3,414
6. Ella, 3,028
7. Jessica, 2,937
8. Isabella, 2,876
9. Mia, 2,842
10. Poppy, 2,816
1. Oliver, 6,941 baby boys
2. Jack, 5,371
3. Harry, 5,308
4. George, 4,869
5. Jacob, 4,850
6. Charlie, 4,831
7. Noah, 4,148
8. William, 4,083
9. Thomas, 4,075
10. Oscar, 4,066

In the girls’ top 10, Ella and Mia replaced Lily (now 13th) and Sophie (now 11th).

In the boys’ top 10, Noah (the top name in the U.S. right now) replaced James (11th).

In the girls’ top 100, Penelope, Mila, Clara, Arabella, Maddison and Aria replaced Lydia (now 103rd), Faith (104th), Mollie (105th), Brooke (107th), Isabel (110th) and Amy (117th).

In the boys’ top 100, Jaxon, Roman, Reggie and Carter replaced Owen (now 101st), Robert (105th), Joey (117th) and Finlay (123rd).

Here are some of last year’s rare baby names, each given to either 3, 4 or 5 babies:

Rare Girl NamesRare Boy Names
Aarzoo, Autumn-Lily, Boglarka, Comfort, Edna, Enxi, Euphemia, Flourish, Fozia, Gabia, Jupiter, Lady, Lleucu, Llio, Merveille, Nectaria, Pebbles, Peony, Prisca, Purity, Quorra, Reisel, Sloka, Tuba, Venice, Vimbainashe, YlvaAlffi, Bam, Bright, Crimea, Cuthbert, Efezino, Elimelech, Fyfe, Ghyll, Gryff, James-Dean, Jamesdean, Kushagra, Ignatius, Marmaduke, Math, Mio, Osagie, Otso, Pip, Przemyslaw, Sherlock, Swayley, Ringo, Testimony, Thierno, Zephyrus

(Crimea is intriguing, isn’t it? It was used as a baby name in the 1850s, during the Crimean War, but this is the first time I’ve seen it on a modern name list.)

And how did Welsh names fare in Wales specifically?

Welsh Girl NamesWelsh Boy Names
Seren (“star”) ranks 17th in Wales
Ffion (“foxglove”), 20th
Megan, 27th (and 76th overall)
Mali, 45th
Alys, 66th
Carys (“love”), 72nd
Efa, 73rd
Cadi, 82nd
Lili, 85th
Lowri, 88th
Eira (“snow”), 92nd
Ela, 97th (tie)
Elin, 97th (tie)
Dylan, ranks 13th in Wales (and 38th overall)
Osian, 25th
Harri, 27th
Jac, 33rd
Rhys, 34th
Evan, 37th
Tomos, 47th
Cai, 51st
Ioan, 56th
Morgan, 67th
Elis, 66th
Hari, 82nd
Gethin (“swarthy”), 88th (tie)
Iestyn, 88th (tie)
Macsen, 92nd (tie)
Owain, 92nd (tie)
Ifan, 96th

Finally, if you’d like to go back another year, here are the England and Wales rankings for 2014.

Source: Baby names in England and Wales: 2015 – ONS

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

Popular and unique baby names in Alberta (Canada), 2014

Flag of Alberta
Flag of Alberta

According to data from Service Alberta, the most popular baby names in Alberta in 2014 were (again) Olivia and Liam.

Here are Alberta’s top 10 girl names and top 10 boy names of 2014:

Girl Names

1. Olivia
2. Emma
3. Emily
4. Sophia
5. Ava
6. Isabella
7. Abigail
8. Ella
9. Charlotte
10. Hannah

Boy Names

1. Liam
2. Ethan
3. Benjamin
4. William
5. Logan
6. Noah
7. Jacob
8. Oliver
9. Lucas
10. Carter

In the girls’ top 10, Isabella, Ella, and Hannah replaced Avery, Chloe and Lily.

In the boys’ top 10, Oliver replaced Mason, and Lucas dropped from 2nd to 9th.

A total of “6,110 distinct boy names and 7,409 distinct girl names” were registered last year. Here are some of the more unusual picks:

Unusual Girl NamesUnusual Boy Names
Aafreen, Acadia, Adefolarin, Alimothy, Aluex, Anemone, Angelbert, Athens-Ava, Azhettea, Bandit, Baybee, Borbala, Brisbane, Caylex, Ceroxity, Cersei, Clairity, Cleony, Cyzarine, Daydence, Dazzlin, Ddendyll, Denali, Dibdrisht, Eiffel, Elisapea, Ellyndriel, Ethiopia, Felizity, Finfinne, Gai-Inn, Gnouma, Hattie-Kay, Izna, Iztlixochitl, Jeinezt, Jimiefer, Kestrel, Koblenz, Leiralita, Louange, Maghfira, Maisley, Marshall-Heigl, Melon, Mentallah, Mintge, Morning-Star, Nof, Nomingoo, Phahannah, Qiersteine, Raineeville, Rhadio, Rteel, Schneidine, Selvaria, Serastella, Sixx, Syaffa, Talimia, Thumbelina-Jane, Vando-Vandu, Vermond, Vhia, Via-star, Vimbai, Vinoruveze, Wahpan-ah-chak, ZethandraAlecvander, Agbomk, Arcadian, Arkham, Bellicose, Border, Beowulf, Brenor, Bronxdyn, Cadillac, Clarenziel, Clarksicnarf*, Clench, Cobain, Colt-Wesson, Confucius, Dazareth, Dokter, Drew-Donnelly-Donald, Drizelle, Erbenstan, Eulliejhay, Evanescence, Fteen, Gavisht, Gibson-Rush, Helix, Jaffredson, Kakwa, Kgotso, K’i, KiiyosaahKomapii, Kreydd, Macxinier, Madiba, Markonal, Mavallus, MC-Jerry, McYusef, NorthernSky, Ollivander, Pitch, Qambarali, Quark, Reech, Ricarlisle, Ringo, Seanex**, Shaddix, Soloolo, Spur, Strife, Tenor, Tesla, Thaxter, Theologis, Thrain, Thunderboy, Uel, Uzuvira, Vangelis, Venzuela, Whizkie-Czar, WindyBoy, Xeighdrey, Xyber, Zabartor, Zabit, Zarillious, Zegee

*Clarksicnarf is the combination of Clark (forwards) and Francis (backwards).
**Seanex is very close to Seanix.

Sources: Alberta’s Top Babies Names – Service Alberta, Liam and Olivia top baby names for 2014

Image: Adapted from Flag of Alberta (public domain)