Middle Name Statistics

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Middle names are something we all like to talk about, but unfortunately, the Social Security Administration doesn't record middle names of babies, only first names. So you can imagine how thrilled I was when I saw that my high school graduation program included most peoples' middle names--this offered me a set of data. Now, my high school only graduated 736 people, and some don't have middle names, or didn't want it to be listed in the program. However, my area is extremely diverse--racially, socio-economically, and religiously--so the small set of data I do have is still worth anaylzing. So, here's the data for the most common middle names among the Class of 2015 ('96 and '97 babies).

Girls
1. Marie (15)
2. Elizabeth (14) and Elisabeth (1)
3. Ann (4) and Anne (5)
4. Nicole (7) and Nykole (1)
5. Rose (8)
6. Grace (5)
7. Lee (2) and Leigh (3)
8. Jean (3) and Jeanne (1)
9. Louise (4)
10. Lynn (3) and Lynee (1)

Notable Trends

• Alex- Names: Alexandra, Alexandria, Alexis (2)
• An- Names: Analiese, Angelin, Anna, Ann (4), Anne (5), Annie
• -Ay Names: Kay, May, Monet, Rae, (2), Shae
• El- Names: Elaine, Elena, Elisabeth, Elizabeth (14), Ella, Eloise, Elvira
• Esme Names: Esme (2), Esmeralda
• Iman- Names: Iman (2), Imani
• La- Names: Lanae (2), Lan'Yel, Larae, Lashae, Lashay, Latasha, Latefah, Latoya
• Heritage Choices: Abu, Fatima, Fionnuala, Guadalupe, Inez, Keiko, Ondina, Roisin
• Only two: Claire, Catherine/Katherine, Mary

Gems

• Bartholomew
• Bean
• Beata
• Chiffon
• Elvira
• Hopes
• Houston
• Love
• Magaly
• Saffia
• Salome

Boys
1. James (10)
2. Edward (7)
3. William (7)
4. Charles (6)
5. Thomas (6)
6. Joseph (5)
7. Michael (4) and Micael (1)
8. Anthony (4)
9. David (4)
10. John (4)
11. Patrick (4)

Notable Trends

• Al Names: Alan, Alexander (3), Allen
• Ed- Names: Edmond, Eduardo, Edward (7), Edwin
• Mark Names: Marcus, Markus (2)
• Zach: Zachary (2), Zachery
• Brit Picks: Basil, Edmond, George, Phillip (2), Sinclair, Tucker (2)
• Heritage Choices: Angel, Azriel, Enahoro, Hong, Mitja, Sohail
• Only two: Lee, Matthew, Peter, Robert

Gems

• Aksel
• Basil
• Jewel
• Kirby
• Moss
• Sinclair
• Soliman
• Winter
• Wolfgang

*I'm taking next week off for the holiday. Sorry for the infrequent posting--this has been a busy summer for me!*

Chicago Names: City Streets

I'm all about subtle honor names--names that honor someone in a way that isn't obvious or flashy. Using the name of the street such honoree grew up on definitely fits into the "subtle honor" category. In fact, I have the name of the street I was born on on my short list for potential middles. Today I'm featuring Chicago street name--this is the city I live in, after all. I would love to make this a series to compare street names of cities around the country. Let me know which city you'd like to be featured next!