How popular is the baby name Sam in the United States right now? How popular was it historically? Find out using the graph below! Plus, check out all the blog posts that mention the name Sam.

The graph will take a few moments to load. (Don't worry, it shouldn't take 9 months!) If it's taking too long, try reloading the page.


Popularity of the Baby Name Sam


Posts that Mention the Name Sam

What gave the baby name Clarissa a boost in the early 1990s?

The character Clarissa Darling from the TV series "Clarissa Explains It All" (1991-1994)
Clarissa Darling from “Clarissa Explains It All“

The baby name Clarissa had already been on the rise for several decades when, in 1992, usage increased more sharply than usual. Several years later, the name reached peak popularity:

  • 1997: 1,091 baby girls named Clarissa [rank: 266th]
  • 1996: 1,157 baby girls named Clarissa [rank: 241st]
  • 1995: 1,201 baby girls named Clarissa [rank: 239th] – peak usage
  • 1994: 1,185 baby girls named Clarissa [rank: 237th] – peak ranking
  • 1993: 1,074 baby girls named Clarissa [rank: 258th]
  • 1992: 1,141 baby girls named Clarissa [rank: 244th]
  • 1991: 909 baby girls named Clarissa [rank: 305th]
  • 1990: 853 baby girls named Clarissa [rank: 322nd]
  • 1989: 759 baby girls named Clarissa [rank: 335th]

Here’s a visual:

Graph of the usage of the baby name Clarissa in the U.S. since 1880
Usage of the baby name Clarissa

What accounts for this?

My guess is the TV series Clarissa Explains it All, which aired on Nickelodeon from early 1991 to late 1994.

The show’s main character was witty teenager Clarissa Darling (played by Melissa Joan Hart), who frequently broke the fourth wall — speaking directly to viewers about the things that were going on in her life and how she felt about them.

Two other memorable characters were Clarissa’s obnoxious younger brother Ferguson (who was a Republican, just like Alex P. Keaton of Family Ties) and her best friend Sam (who always climbed a ladder up to Clarissa’s second-story bedroom window).

Interestingly, Clarissa introduces herself in the very first episode of the series with some commentary about her name:

Hi, I’m Clarissa. Clarissa Darling. Ok, I didn’t choose the name. I wanted Jade. But by that time, it was too late already.

Anything without a last name would be better, like, Martika. Or Madonna would have been great. But no one asked me.

The name Clarissa is based on the name Clara, which is derived from the Latin word clarus, meaning “bright, clear.”

What are your thoughts on Clarissa?

(And, if we pretend for a second that the sitcom never happened, do you think the usage of Clarissa would have kept rising past the mid-1990s? If so, how high do you think the name could have climbed in the rankings?)

Sources: Clarissa Explains It All – Wikipedia, Clara – Wiktionary, SSA

P.S. Another early ’90s prime-time TV show that featured a quirky teenage girl (with an equally quirky sense of fashion) was Blossom.

Popular baby names in the Netherlands, 2022

The Netherlands

The country of the Netherlands, located in Northwestern Europe, is bordered by both Belgium and Germany.

Last year, from January to November, the Netherlands welcomed more than 168,000 babies — over 82,000 girls and over 86,000 boys.

What were the most popular names among these babies? Emma and Noah.

Here are the Netherlands’ top 50 girl names and top 50 boy names of 2022:

Girl Names

  1. Emma, 677 baby girls
  2. Julia, 655
  3. Mila, 624
  4. Sophie, 620
  5. Olivia, 591
  6. Yara, 559
  7. Saar, 532 – short form of Sarah
  8. Nora, 524
  9. Tess, 509
  10. Noor, 501
  11. Milou, 489
  12. Sara, 486
  13. Liv, 482
  14. Zoë, 473
  15. Evi, 466
  16. Anna, 455
  17. Luna, 451
  18. Lotte, 423 (tie)
  19. Nina, 423 (tie)
  20. Eva, 405
  21. Emily, 389
  22. Lauren, 386
  23. Maeve, 384
  24. Lina, 383
  25. Elin, 379
  26. Maud, 368
  27. Sarah, 350
  28. Nova, 345
  29. Loïs, 340 (tie)
  30. Sofia, 340 (tie)
  31. Mia, 339
  32. Sofie, 332
  33. Lieke, 330
  34. Fleur, 328
  35. Isa, 325
  36. Fien, 324 – short form of Josefien
  37. Lynn, 319
  38. Hailey, 312
  39. Roos, 297
  40. Julie, 290
  41. Livia, 288
  42. Fenna, 284 – feminine form of Fen (a Frisian short form of Ferdinand)
  43. Ella, 279
  44. Sophia, 275
  45. Bo, 274
  46. Lily, 252
  47. Ivy, 248
  48. Romée, 246
  49. Lena, 244
  50. Noé, 241

Boy Names

  1. Noah, 871 baby boys
  2. Liam, 666
  3. Luca, 664
  4. Lucas, 652
  5. Mees, 621 – short form of Bartholomeus
  6. Finn, 596
  7. James, 594
  8. Milan, 591
  9. Levi, 585
  10. Sem, 582
  11. Daan, 538
  12. Noud, 533 – short form of Arnoud (the Dutch form of Arnold)
  13. Luuk, 518
  14. Adam, 508
  15. Sam, 495
  16. Bram, 470
  17. Zayn, 447
  18. Mason, 440
  19. Benjamin, 409
  20. Boaz, 369
  21. Siem, 360 – short form of Simon
  22. Guus, 356
  23. Morris, 353
  24. Olivier, 349 (tie)
  25. Thomas, 349 (tie)
  26. Teun, 346 – short form of Antonius
  27. Gijs, 335 (tie) – short form of Gijsbert
  28. Mats, 335 (tie)
  29. Max, 326
  30. Jesse, 317
  31. Julian, 315
  32. Otis, 314
  33. Floris, 312
  34. Lars, 307
  35. David, 304 (tie)
  36. Jake, 304 (tie)
  37. Moos, 303 – short form of Mozes
  38. Rayan, 300
  39. Jens, 291
  40. Joep, 289
  41. Owen, 286
  42. Thijs, 273
  43. Jan, 270 (3-way tie)
  44. Oliver, 270 (3-way tie)
  45. Willem, 270 (3-way tie)
  46. Mick, 269
  47. Jack, 262
  48. Jurre, 259 – short form of Jurryt (the Frisian form of Gerard)
  49. Abel, 254
  50. Kai, 253

Dutch onomastician Gerrit Bloothooft noted that, if similar names had been counted together, the name-groups Saar/Sara/Sarah and Luca/Lucas/Luuk would have topped the girls’ list and the boys’ list, respectively.

The girls’ top 100 included Cato (55th), Veerle (60th), Puck (75th), and Merel (83rd).

The boys’ top 100 included Jaxx (56th), Sven (64th), Hidde (72nd), and Jip (78th).

Finally, here are the Netherlands’ 2021 rankings, if you’d like to compare.

Sources: Kindernamen home | Kindernamen | SVB, Emma en Noah de populairste kindernamen van 2022, Population growth almost doubled in 2022, Behind the Name

Rugby fans name baby boy Cardiff

rugby

We’ve talked about a Tongan baby named Leicester after a rugby win in Leicester, and a Samoan baby named Wales after a rugby win against Wales. Today we have a third baby from the Pacific Islands whose rugby-inspired name is both a location and a reference to Wales.

On November 16, 2012, a rugby match between Samoa and Wales was held at Millennium Stadium in the Welsh capital of Cardiff.

The same day, a baby boy was born in Samoa to parents Tala’i Jr. Lene and Falute Va’auli-Lene (who was Miss Samoa 2005, incidentally).

Samoa ended up winning the match, beating Wales with a score of 26-19.

Tala’i and Falute, both devoted rugby fans, decided to mark the occasion by naming their fourth son Cardiff Va’auli Asotoelau Lene. (Their older sons are named Jeremiah, Sam, and Christian.)

The name of the city was likely derived from the settlement’s original Welsh name, Caer-Taff, meaning “fort on the (river) Taff.”

Sources:

Image by Margaret Decker from Pixabay

Where did the baby name Quisto come from in 1984?

The character Quisto Champion from the TV western/soap opera "The Yellow Rose" (1983-1984).
Quisto from “The Yellow Rose“

The curious name Quisto debuted in the U.S. baby name data in the middle of the 1980s:

  • 1986: unlisted
  • 1985: unlisted
  • 1984: 9 baby boys named Quisto [debut]
  • 1983: unlisted
  • 1982: unlisted

While Quisto was only in the data once, it debuted impressively enough to tie for top one-hit wonder boy name of 1984.

Where did it come from?

The short-lived nighttime soap opera/western The Yellow Rose (1983-1984), which was set in West Texas on the sprawling “Yellow Rose” ranch. The ranch had been built by the late Wade Champion, but was now being run by Wade’s young widow Colleen (played by Cybill Shepherd) and his sons Roy and “Quisto” (real name Ramon).

I don’t know how the character acquired his nickname (if anyone out there watched the show and remembers, please leave a comment!), but I can tell you about the cowboy slang term quisto. It refers to a quirt — a woven-leather whip with a short handle and “a lash of three or four heavy, loose thongs.” The word quirt is derived from the Mexican Spanish word cuarta, “whip,” which comes from the Spanish word cuerda, “cord.”

And Quisto wasn’t the only Yellow Rose character to have an impact on baby names. Chance McKenzie — a “lanky, taciturn” ex-convict and ranch-hand played by Sam Elliott — gave the baby name Chance a boost in 1984:

  • 1986: 508 baby boys named Chance [rank: 368th]
  • 1985: 650 baby boys named Chance [rank: 313th]
  • 1984: 880 baby boys named Chance [rank: 249th]
  • 1983: 230 baby boys named Chance [rank: 555th]
  • 1982: 186 baby boys named Chance [rank: 636th]

What are your thoughts on the names Chance and Quisto? Which one would you be more likely to use?

Sources: