How popular is the baby name Rocket 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 Rocket.

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Popularity of the baby name Rocket


Posts that mention the name Rocket

“American Gladiator” names vs. Real-life baby names

american gladiators trading card
I had no idea American Gladiators trading cards existed before I wrote this post.

Ready for a game?

The original American Gladiators TV show (1989-1996) featured 32 American Gladiators and 31 mostly-tough-sounding Gladiator names. (Why 31? Because “Lace” was used twice.) Here are the 31 names:

  1. Atlas
  2. Blaze
  3. Bronco
  4. Cyclone
  5. Dallas
  6. Diamond
  7. Elektra
  8. Gemini
  9. Gold
  10. Havoc
  11. Hawk
  12. Ice
  13. Jade
  14. Jazz
  15. Lace
  16. Laser
  17. Malibu
  18. Nitro
  19. Rebel
  20. Sabre
  21. Siren
  22. Sky
  23. Storm
  24. Sunny
  25. Tank
  26. Thunder
  27. Titan
  28. Tower
  29. Turbo
  30. Viper
  31. Zap

The short-lived American Gladiators remake (2008) featured 20 new gladiators and 18 new tough-sounding gladiator names. (Why 18? Because Siren and Titan were recycled from the original.) Here are the 18 new names:

  1. Beast
  2. Crush
  3. Fury
  4. Hellga
  5. Hurricane
  6. Jet
  7. Justice
  8. Mayhem
  9. Militia
  10. Panther
  11. Phoenix
  12. Rocket
  13. Stealth
  14. Steel
  15. Toa
  16. Venom
  17. Wolf
  18. Zen

So here’s the game: Try to guess what percentage of the 31 original Gladiator names and what percentage of the 18 new Gladiator names have appeared on at least one of the SSA’s annual baby name lists. (To appear on a list, a name has to be given to at least 5 U.S. babies in a single year.)

Come up with your guesses before reading on!

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Ok, here are the answers.

Of the 31 original American Gladiator names, 23 have appeared on an SSA list: Atlas, Blaze, Bronco, Dallas, Diamond, Elektra, Gemini, Gold, Havoc, Hawk, Jade, Jazz, Lace, Malibu, Rebel, Sabre, Siren, Sky, Storm, Sunny, Tank, Thunder and Titan. That’s 74%.

Of the 18 remake American Gladiator names, 9 have appeared on an SSA list: Fury, Jet, Justice, Phoenix, Rocket, Steel, Toa, Wolf and Zen. That’s exactly 50%.

How close did you get to 74% and 50%?

Where did the baby name Raghib come from in 1990?

Raghib Ismail on the cover of Sports Illustrated (Sept. 25, 1989)
Raghib Ismail

The name Raghib first appeared in the U.S. baby name data in 1990:

  • 1992: unlisted
  • 1991: 10 baby boys named Raghib
  • 1990: 10 baby boys named Raghib [debut]
  • 1989: unlisted
  • 1988: unlisted

It remained for just one more year before disappearing again.

What was the influence?

College football player Raghib Ismail (pronounced RAHG-ib ISS-my-el), who was a wide receiver and kick returner for Notre Dame for three seasons (1988-1990).

Popularly known as “The Rocket,” he was a finalist for the 1990 Heisman Trophy and the “only college football player among the finalists for the 1990 Sullivan Award as the best amateur athlete in the nation.” He also made the cover of Sports Illustrated twice (in 1989 and 1991).

Though Raghib was called “Rocket” constantly, he didn’t have any affect on the baby name Rocket, which didn’t start popping up in the data until a decade later.

He went on to play professional football in both Canada (1991-1992) and America (1993-2001).

What are your thoughts on the baby name Raghib?

Sources:

Image: © 1989 Sports Illustrated