A Now-Viral Study Shows The Stark Difference In Popular Baby Names Between Blue And Red States
Their findings are...pretty jarring.
Naming a whole human life is pressure. A person’s name is pretty permanent (unless they choose to change it later on), and there is just something about a person’s name that shapes who they are somehow. So, yeah, expectant parents tend to mull over this decision with care and consideration. But does that consideration change based on where people live? Apparently very much so!
Nameberry — the online resource that features basically every name known in history — released data that shows the most popular baby names in Republican-leaning states vs. the most popular ones in Democratic-leaning states.
To determine “blue” vs “red,” Nameberry took a look at data from those who voted during the 2020 election as well as the 2023 Social Security card applications to chart the most popular red and blue names.
The findings were beyond fascinating.
For instance, the top names in blue states are 84% derived from non-English sources. These states also tend to be more diverse with larger Irish, Spanish, Italian, Arabic, and Jewish populations.
Meanwhile, 90% of the top names from red states have English origins.
Also, all the top 25 of the "reddest" boy names are surnames that have been appropriated as first names.
“Our findings show an America deeply divided on baby names in ways that point to larger and more profound conflicts in American culture and ideals,” says Nameberry creator Pamela Redmond.
Check out the full lists below!
Bluest Boy Names
- Moshe
- Santino
- Muhammad
- Yusuf
- Kieran
- Ari
- Aidan
- Ibrahim
- Ali
- Nico
Reddest Boy Names
- Kohen
- Baylor
- Stetson
- Kyson
- Tripp
- Sutton
- Briggs
- Cohen
- Gunner
- Baker
Bluest Girl Names
- Fiona
- Liana
- Mira
- Maryam
- Kira
- Miriam
- Nina
- Aisha
- Paige
- Kayla
Reddest Girl Names
- Hattie
- Oaklynn
- Oakleigh
- Gracelynn
- Wrenley
- Blakely
- Collins
- Oaklee
- Saylor
- Oakley
After review, the lists appear to show that the “reddest” baby names tend to lean more towards an “Americana” feel yet rebel against naming conventions around gender, spelling, and the very definition of a first name.
The Bluest baby names, by contrast, lean toward diversity, celebrating America as a mosaic of different cultures coming together to make something more beautiful.
According to Nameberry, baby names chosen predominantly by parents in the Democratic-leaning Blue States tend to be time-honored first names from a diverse range of international, historical, and religious sources.
It’s important to note that name choices reflect the political leanings of the states where the babies were born, not necessarily the voting habits of the individual parents who chose them.
See the full study here.
