How popular is the baby name Rizzo 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 Rizzo.

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Popularity of the baby name Rizzo


Posts that mention the name Rizzo

Where did the baby name Rajai come from in 1980?

Iranian politician Mohammad-Ali Rajai (1933-1981)
Mohammad-Ali Rajai

The name Rajai first appeared in the U.S. baby name data in 1980, and its usage increased in 1981:

  • 1982: unlisted
  • 1981: 13 baby boys named Rajai [peak usage]
  • 1980: 9 baby boys named Rajai [debut]
  • 1979: unlisted
  • 1978: unlisted

After that, though, it dropped out of the data again (and didn’t return until the early 2000s).

What was influencing the name in the early ’80s?

Iranian politician Mohammad Ali Rajai, who served briefly as Iran’s second president in 1981.

Rajai was born into poverty the early 1930s, and became politically active as a young man. He was involved in the Iranian Revolution (1978-79), which overthrew the monarchy (under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi*) and established an Islamic republic (under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini).

After Rajai was selected as Iran’s prime minister in August of 1980, his name started to pop up in the U.S. newspapers.

Those newspaper mentions became a lot more frequent the following summer. Rajai was elected president in late July, and he began his term in early August. But on August 30 — after less than a month in office — Rajai and many other government officials (including the new prime minister) were killed by a bomb blast in Tehran.

I haven’t been able to figure out the etymology of Rajai, but it could be related to the Arabic names Raja (meaning “hope”) and Rajiya (“hopeful”).

Interestingly, one of the 1980 babies named Rajai is former professional baseball player Rajai Davis (who played against Anthony Rizzo in 2016 World Series).

What are your thoughts on the baby name Rajai?

*Two of the Shah’s wives, Soraya and Farah, also had an influence on U.S. baby names…

Sources: Mohammad-Ali Rajai – Wikipedia, Mohammad Ali Raja’i – Britannica, Iranian Revolution – Wikipedia, Behind the Name, SSA
Image: Adapted from Banisadr & Rajai

Where did the baby name Rizzo come from in 2016?

Baseball player Anthony Rizzo (upon catching the final out of the 2016 World Series)
Anthony Rizzo (2016 World Series)

The curious name Rizzo first appeared in the U.S. baby name data in 2016:

  • 2018: 7 baby boys named Rizzo
  • 2017: 10 baby boys named Rizzo
  • 2016: 7 baby boys named Rizzo [debut]
  • 2015: unlisted
  • 2014: unlisted

Why?

Because of baseball player Anthony Rizzo. He was a key part of the Chicago Cubs’ successful 2016 season, which was capped with a World Series win over the Cleveland Indians. This famously ended the Cubs’ 108-year drought.

Notably, Rizzo caught the “final out” balls in the final games of both the National League Championship Series (against the Dodgers) and the World Series.

The Italian surname Rizzo is a variant of Riccio, which comes from the Italian word riccio, meaning “curly.” Originally, Riccio was a nickname for someone with curly hair.

What are your thoughts on Rizzo as a first name?

Sources:

Image: Adapted from Rizzo celebrates the final out of the 2016 World Series by Arturo Pardavila III under CC BY 2.0.

P.S. “Rizzo” of the Pink Ladies (from Grease) was actually named Betty Rizzo.

The top boy-name debuts of 2016

lotus bud

Yuvin was the boy name that debuted most impressively on the U.S. charts in 2016.

In order for a rare baby name to debut on the Social Security Administration’s annual baby name list, it has to be given to at least 5 babies of either one gender or the other within a given year.

Of all the boy names that debuted in 2016, the following were the most popular:

1. Yuvin, 34 baby boys
2. Kaulder, 32
3. Negan, 24
4. Anuel, 19
5. Noxx, 16
6. Huckson, 14
7. Shivaay, 13
8. Bento, 12
9. Eizan, 12
10. Kasiah, 12

Other boy names that debuted were Eadric, Barkot, Dansby, Bexar, Calcifer, Maccabee, Naz, Grizzly, Hirving, Isco, Mox, Rizzo, Astro, Crown, December, Krash, October, Olivander, Pinny, Range, Chrisander, Hux, Kloud, Klutch, Luffy, Nexus, Ocelotl, Ozlo, Quigley, and Wilco.

Where do these names come from? Here are a few explanations/guesses:

  • Kaulder – from the movie The Last Witch Hunter.
  • Negan – from the TV show The Walking Dead.
  • Shivaay – from the movie Shivaay.
  • Dansby – from baseball player Dansby Swanson.
  • Calcifer – from the book/movie character created by author Diana Wynne Jones…?
  • Hirving – from Mexican footballer Hirving Lozano.
  • Isco – from Spanish footballer Isco (real name Francisco Alarcón Suárez).
  • Rizzo – from baseball player Anthony Rizzo.
  • Wilco – from the ’90s alt-rock band…?

Do you know what events/people might have inspired the others? (I’m especially curious about Bento. It’s making me hungry…)

Here are the top boy name debuts of 2015.

Source: SSA

Image: Adapted from LotusBud0048a (public domain) by Frank “Fg2” Gualtieri