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Just Your Average Name Of The Year
Filed under: Baby Names
American culture was dominated by politics this past year, and according to Laura Wattenberg, the baby-naming business was no exception.Wattenberg, author of the book The Baby Name Wizard and founder of the website of the same name, tells ParentDish that this year's Name of the Year might come as a bit of a surprise. When she invited readers of he Baby Wizard blog to contribute nominations for the 2008 Name of the Year, many votes were political.
So what was the big winner?
Joe.
Joe the lumberjack, Joe Six-pack, Amtrak Joe Biden, and, of course, Joe The Plumber. Joe made a huge come-back this year.
"Everything was politics, and so many people suggested the name Joe," she says. "This is a name that represents the Everyman. Now that is an anachronism, because your average Joe isn't named Joe anymore."
According to Wattenberg, whose book and website are based on an algorithm that takes into account thousands of pieces of historical and cultural data, the name represents the salt of the earth, the guy next door who always has the right wrench and whose favorite after-dinner libation is a cold can of Budweiser. The guy who lives in, say, Iowa.
However, Joe is less likely to live in Iowa than in New Jersey, Wattenberg adds, pointing out that the name Joe is one of the lowest-ranked names in the Hawkeye state, which is one of the most prominent political barometers in the nation. Joe is a name, says Wattenberg, that suggests a certain comforting nostalgia, a kind of cultural unity that doesn't exist anymore. It ranked 403 in popularity in 2007, according to the list released annually by the Social Security Administration; Jacob and Emily topped as #1 for boys and girls, respectively. In another name survey by Baby Center, Emma and Aiden were most popular for 2008.
Ironically, the name is more likely to be co-opted by the so-called "urban elite," says Wattenberg. So just what is the average Joe naming his kids in Iowa?
"Brayden, Jayden, Cayden," says Wattenberg. "People who used to name their kids Joe are inventing names, to make their kids more special, more unique." People like former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin, perhaps, who spoke of small-town American values, but named her kids Trig and Bristol.
"Trig the Plumber" just doesn't have the same ring to it, does it?
Despite it's zeitgeist, the name is unlikely to catch on in a big way, although it may take hold in communities where Max, Sam and Jack are popular, Wattenberg says.
What about last year's Name of the Year? What moniker captured the nation's fancy in 2007?
Why, Barack, of course.
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ReaderComments (Page 1 of 2)
12-07-2008 @ 10:43PM
CT Reader said...I find the trend towards outlandish and invented names in the more
conservative states and traditional names in the more liberal states
fascinating. Does it also mirror the trend whereby the more educated vote liberal and the less educated conservative?
The name voyager and name mapper tools at the http://babynamewizard.com website
are well worth a visit (warning you may spend hours there!)
CT Reader
Reply
12-08-2008 @ 10:17AM
dave said...You certainly don't mean "more educated". Having a 190 IQ myself, and having attended the biased colleges you refer to, clearly you mean "more indoctrinated". Liberal brainwashing, as found in almost every educational institution, only works on the weak.
12-08-2008 @ 6:53PM
Mary Anne said...The name Joe is uncomplicated; easy to say; easy to remember; easy to spell. This name evokes fond memories of uncles, great uncles, neighbors, classmates of years gone by. It reminds me that even though we are looking for change, we still fall back on what we know and believe.
12-08-2008 @ 10:11PM
Chris said...OK, Dave, I guess you supergeniuses from the top universities like to spend your time on AOL chatting. LOL. Nobody here is as stupid or as gullible as you are. Wait a minute! I get it, you accidentally typed a 1, your IQ is 90, now your post makes sense.
12-08-2008 @ 10:41PM
Shannon said...I believe Joe has a 190 IQ like I believe in Santa Clause too. News flash, Joe: People with 190 IQ's don't have the need to hang out on the internet bragging about it to strangers on blogs. 90 IQ is more likely.
12-09-2008 @ 2:10AM
Mary said...dave 12-08-2008 @ 10:17AM
You certainly don't mean "more educated". Having a 190 IQ myself, and having attended the biased colleges you refer to, clearly you mean "more indoctrinated". Liberal brainwashing, as found in almost every educational institution, only works on the weak.
Oh, dave. Were your IQ really 190, you would know that the punctuation goes INSIDE the quotation marks. Then you would be "more educated." Or, if you insist, "more indoctrinated." Additionally, your unfortunate sentence ending in a preposition would have been replaced with, "Having a 190 IQ myself, and having attended the biased colleges TO WHICH YOU REFER ...." But perhaps you are just too strong to have succumb to "liberal brainwashing." And "standard American grammar." 190? Sure, dave. We believe you.
12-08-2008 @ 1:15AM
Melissa said...And even Joe the Plumber isn't really named Joe! The GOP's naming of "Joe" the plumber was merely an attempt to undermine Joe Biden's authentic Joe-ness.
Reply
12-08-2008 @ 9:57AM
Len Greiner said...I'm surprised it wasn't Barack, Hussein or Obama. Was the Joe for Biden or the plumber? I guess next year's names will be more to similar to the President-elect.
Reply
12-10-2008 @ 3:17PM
Celiz said...Barak wasn't eligible because it was Name of the Year last year.
12-08-2008 @ 10:13AM
Bob Gifford said...Joe the plumber, Just a prop to get away from talking about
the ecomony, or anything importment. A lot of time spent
on this Guy and no one ever knew what he stood for.
Reply
12-08-2008 @ 11:01AM
Donna said...I myself have a Kaiden i loved the name thought it was unique i also have a Landon loved that name too then i have a more common name Corey. I love all my childrens names! I am not however a fan of Joe.
Reply
12-08-2008 @ 11:09AM
Karine Aguilar said...A big Joe Schmoe to this stupid Hoopla !
Reply
12-08-2008 @ 1:39PM
calmdown said...Dave, lighten up. "More educated" just means more years of school. It doesn't mean superior value, superior intelligence, greater intelligence or anything else. It means more years of school. Given our culture, it is also likely to mean higher income. I think what the poster was trying to say is that people in higher income brackets may be more likely to use a traditional, rather than invented, name. I have no idea whether that is true. It is an interesting hypothesis; it may relate as closely to stuffiness as to education if it is true. Who knows. As someone with an unusual name, I know that people make cultural assumptions about you that are not justified, but the name hasn't significantly affected me. The assumptioins of people who don't know you are their problems, not yours. It is, however, a pain to have to correct every new teacher, acquaintance, telemarketer about pronunciation, gender, etc.
Reply
12-08-2008 @ 2:09PM
draoya said...who the hell would name their kid barack?! (puke!)
Reply
12-08-2008 @ 6:50PM
SMRTNUP said...Some here say it's Liberals vs. Conservatives which determines whether or not people jump on the "NAME GAME" band-wagon. . .
I believe it's a matter of CONFORMING in general. . . People needing to find ways to FIT IN and Go Along with the "HIP" Crowd. . . Personally, I find INDIVIDUALITY to be most desirable and preferrable. . . Especially when you consider that your kid will have to carry around a Name which You picked because of A WHIM, . . Rather than profound THOUGHT or to Honor a Family Member who you would wish for your child to emulate and aspire to be more like in life.
What joy can this bring: ??? . . . Mama, why'd you name me JOE ?. . . That's after a plumber that was on T.V. just before you were born. . . . Did you KNOW him ? . . . No, . . I just saw him on T.V. while I was pregnant with YOU . . .
..
Reply
12-08-2008 @ 8:38PM
Young at Heart said...Do you mean Joe or Joseph, which is the real name. Joe is just a nickname, just like Jack is a nickname for John. I think a move to the old stand-bys such as John, Robert, Joseph, Thomas, etc. would be nice. They're not fad names like Jayden, Kayden, etc. They also show more class.
Reply
12-08-2008 @ 8:58PM
Marcy Shamb said...I grew up with classmates called Sandra, Mary, Kathy, Sue, John, Tom, Andy, Joey, David, John, etc. Gave my two kids bibical names. Both hate em, not because they are bibical but because they would have preferred a Joe, John, Mary or Sue. LOL..while their friends were out naming their children crystal, Shana, Star, etc... LOL...can't win.
Emma.....amazing that thats back. An Emma would have been the name of one of our aunts or parents friends... was considered for a long time to be a rather ugly name sort of like Bertha. My parents generation were named after their parents, grandparents, uncles and aunts. My husband and I also after family...myself after a grandmother and husband after an uncle. I guess each generation has its own idea of the why and what to name their kids. And each
generation of kids tend to hate their name more than not no matter how the parents choose.. Its eather too traditional or not enough, too plain or not enough, too religious or not enough... get the picture.
Reply
12-08-2008 @ 9:26PM
leoganz said...Funny that nobody names their kid Adolf anymore but Joe is ok even though the greatest mass murderer in history was Joe Stalin.
Reply
12-26-2009 @ 11:12AM
Jack said...why would any one ever name their kid aiden or what ever i think it is great joe is number one again
Reply
12-08-2008 @ 10:14PM
Chris said...The parents of the future, and first non-white, president of the United States, that's who!
Reply