About Names: Dr. Cleveland Evans on the Top Baby Names of 2024

Dr. Cleveland Evans writes about names for the Omaha World-Herald. In his May 18th column, he discusses the top baby names of 2024.

Sophia, Liam, and Noah continued their reign as top baby names in 2024, while the Hawaiian derived “Ailany” had one of the biggest and most mysterious booms ever.

On May 9, the Social Security Administration released the United States’ top baby names of 2024.

On SSA’s lists, Liam and Olivia have been No. 1 since 2019.

SSA counts every spelling separately. I add together spellings pronounced the same, creating lists I think show popularity more accurately.

When alternative spellings like Jaxon were added, Jackson was first on my list from 2013 through 2020. Jackson’s now swiftly declining, ranking only fifth in 2024. Liam, Noah, and Oliver are the top three on both my “combined spellings” list and Social Security’s single spelling version.

Liam rose 6.7% and Noah 7.4% last year, despite the total number of births only increasing 0.3%.

Noah’s an international star. Latest figures show it’s No. 1 in Australia, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Northern Ireland, Norway, Scotland, Sweden, Switzerland, and both French and English speaking Canada. Noah is also among the top ten in Austria, Denmark, England, France, Ireland, Lithuania, Puerto Rico and the Philippines. One wonders if young parents are unconsciously preparing sons to deal with climate change caused floods.

The latter seven of my 2024 boys top ten were Mateo, Jackson, Luca, Lucas, Elijah, Theodore and James. Theodore rose 8.5% to replace Aiden. Aiden, No. 1 between 2006 and 2012, dropped to 13th.

About Names: Dr. Cleveland Evans on the name “June”

Dr. Cleveland Evans writes about names for the Omaha World-Herald. In his June 1st column, he discusses the name “June”.

“June is bustin’ out all over,” and rising as a baby name, too.

June’s derived from Latin Junius, originally the fourth and later the sixth month on the Roman calendar. It’s named after Juno, Rome’s patron goddess. Juno probably meant “young one,” related to the word “junior.” Rare English surname June is from French “jeune (young).”

The index to 1850’s census includes 57 male and 661 female Junes. Most of the former were probably either instances of the rare surname being turned into a given name, or of June used as a nickname for Junius, a Roman clan name brought back during the early 19th century Classical Revival. 688 men were listed as Junius in 1850.

Most of the female Junes in 1850’s index are probably mistakes. It’s difficult to distinguish June from Jane or Irene in old handwriting, and the great majority of 1850’s Junes turn out to really be Jane or Irene when other records are consulted.

Some 19th century slaveholders named slaves of both sexes after months. The oldest woman I’ve found in the 1850 census really named June was June McAfee, a Black woman in Jeffersonville, Indiana, born in Virginia in 1773. In 1870, the first census after emancipation, 437 of the 713 male Junes and 466 of the 1,933 female Junes were Black.

The first non-Black female June I’m sure of was Ohio-born June Rose Colby (1856-1941). Her parents Lewis and Celestia liked creative botanical names. Her older sister and brother were Vine and Branch. Her first name was inspired by her June 4 birthday.

In 1886, June Rose Colby became the first woman to receive a Ph.D. in English literature at the University of Michigan. After 1892, she was a professor at Illinois State Normal University, and became a leader of Illinois’ women’s suffrage movement.

Though Colby published several books on literature, she didn’t help the name June spread since she used “J. Rose Colby” professionally.