3.16.2012

Ohio County or Popular Baby Name?

We all know that Ohioans give their towns weird names. I was looking at a map naming the counties of Ohio the other day and it dawned on me - I know a lot of kids with similar names. Very odd. I started thinking, I wonder how many of our county names are also on the most recent baby names list? Turns out, some of them are! Check out the list of names below, and cast your vote: is it a Ohio County, Popular Baby Name, or Both?

  1. Adelaide
  2. Allen
  3. Avery
  4. Harper
  5. Harrison
  6. Henry
  7. Jackson
  8. Knox
  9. Lawrence
  10. Logan 
  11. Lucas
  12. Madison
  13. Morgan
  14. Violet
  15. Wyatt 

How did you score? Check your work against the answers below. 


  1. Baby name. Sounds old fashioned enough to be a place, but is actually the number 58 name on BabyNames.com's 2011 list (where all my data is from).
  2. County. It's a often used as a middle name but didn't make the top 100 last year. It houses the town of Lima, Ohio.
  3. Baby name. Number 26 on the female names list, but I always think of paper when I hear it.
  4. Baby name. Really popular among celebrities - David Beckham, Neil Patrick Harris, Dave Grohl, and Paul Simon all have kids named Harper.
  5. County. As cool as Harrison Ford is, people just aren't naming their kids after him.
  6. Both. This classic name is holding on at number 23 on the list, and the county was named after Patrick Henry who said "Give me liberty or give me death."
  7. Both. Jackson is holding strong at #4 on the baby name list; the county is named for president Andrew Jackson.
  8. County. I went to college in Knox county. And despite the Jolie-Pitts naming their son Knox, it isn't a top name right now.
  9. County. No where near the top 100 baby names. The county is named for naval officer James Lawrence, famous for saying "do not give up the ship." Apparently Ohioans like naming counties after popular historical figures.
  10. Both. Logan is #26 on the top list, and houses the city of Bellefontaine.
  11. Both. Lucas county houses Toledo, Ohio and is #12 on last year's male names list.
  12. Both. The county is named after president James Madison, and the name is at 86 on the girl's list. I like to pretend the popularity is from the Tom Hanks movie Splash where mermaid Daryl Hannah names herself after the street she's walking down. Probably not really the case.
  13. County. This is my middle name, and my niece's name, but it's not popular right now. The county is named after a Revolutionary War soldier. I told you we liked history in Ohio.
  14. Baby name. There is a Violet Township in Fairfield County, but no counties with this name. Number 14 on the list, probably because Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck named their daughter Violet.
  15. Baby name. Sure sounds like it could be a place up by the lake, but it's actually #34 from last year. 


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