Those of you who couldn't stand the suspense of discovering how your surname ranks among the most common 55,000 in the U.S. will find equally irresistible this Web site that maps the popularity of your first name against every Tom, Dick and Sally dating back to 1880.
The graphics alone -- powered by a custom-written Java applet -- are worth the click.
Even if your name is among the more common -- Paul, for example -- you can still learn all kinds of useless trivia about it and others, such as:
The popularity of Paul has plummeted from a lofty 17th in 1957 when my parents chose it for their first of what would be four sons to a pedestrian 130th today. … My reactions run the gamut from wounded to curiously snobbish.
The name Emma, which barely cracked the top 50 when my wife and I thought it was such a cool/retro choice for our daughter in 2001, now ranks No. 2 -- behind only its pale imitator, Emily -- thanks in large part to the fictional child who will be forever known in our house as That Evil "Friends" Baby.
My father's first name -- Burke -- has failed to crack the top 1,000 in any of the 13 decades this site chronicles. In fact, Dad says he's never even met anyone whose first name is Burke, although his eldest son and grandson both carry Burke as a middle name. Oddly enough, my ex-wife's last name also happens to be Burke, meaning that had we chosen the hyphenated route I would have been Paul Burke Burke-McNamara until divorce did we part.
Have fun. And thanks/blame to reader Doug Larson for any time you waste.
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