About MyNameStats.com

MyNameStats.com numerically describes the prevalence and distribution of names in our society. Simple statistics are used to describe the populations of people that share the same names. You can find information about first names, family names and full names.

Why does this website exist?

The goal of the website is to provide relevant, reliable and meaningful statistics pertaining to a wide spectrum of names of people, from some of the most uncommon names to the most popular. The idea for the site came while I was researching names for my first son. Actually I had the name picked out. It was a name I had first discovered while travelling in Scandinavia, where it is quite popular. But in North American the name was uncommon. I had to convince my partner that the name was not as uncommon as it first appeared. So I turned to the web where I found plenty of websites describing the latest and greatest baby names but these sites generally focused on the trendiest names, and viewed them in a very subjective and colloquial manner. I needed numbers to prove my point.

I kept searching the web, but to no avail. I eventually gave up looking for the data, switched focus and convinced my significant other on the many other merits of the name. When my son was born he was given the name. Today he is the only child in his class, among his friend and in the neighborhood with this name.

I never really gave up looking for the statistics, instead I devised a method of compiling my own statistics for names using data obtained from a variety of directories and other similar sources. From this came the basic concept of this website. While doing this research I discovered other sources of data and research on the topic. Blending all this together has resulted in what you see on this site today.

Where does the data come from?

All the data and information displayed on this website is the result of statistical inferences and estimates. No personally identifiable information of any kind is displayed on this website. The primary data source is not available to the public or to any users of the website. The primary data only contains names and partial address information, it is impossible to use this data to identify any single person with any reasonable degree of confidence. Please see our privacy policy for more about the use and protection of data.

As mentioned above the data was compiled from multiple sources mostly from directory listings. Given that the data comes from multiple sources it is difficult to date it precisely. I estimate the date range to be between 2010 and 2012.

The data has been thoroughly cleaned up, duplicate, nonsensical and objectionable entries have been deleted to the greatest extent possible. Even though a significant effort has been made to delete this type of content there still may be certain potentially offensive words that have slipped through the filters. If you come upon such a page, please feel free to let us know and the content will be removed.

Who is behind MyNameStats.com?

This website has been created and is maintained mainly by myself and with the technical assistance of one other person who provides help with the servers and software issues. I have a university education, background and interest in business statistics and have applied this knowledge to this topic. I am constantly striving to extend my knowledge in this field and have plans to add innovative new features to the site in the futures as the models are perfected.

Onomastics

Onomastics is the study of proper names (source: ICOS). This field encompasses a wide range of topics that covers all types of names from people and pets to places and things. MyNameStats.com only touches on a small subset of these topics, more specifically the distribution and popularity of particular names of people in the United-States. MyNameStats.com carries out all its research with highest quality standards and rigor possible within the constraints of the tools and data available to it.

Homepage image

The home page image was taken from US Census bureau website. The photo shows a census record from the seventeen hundreds.

If you would like more information on the history of the US Census Bureau and the many technological innovations it has fostered, I urge you to visit the US Census Bureau website. There are also many more historical photos to be found there.

Important note: The use of the photos on our home page does not imply the U.S. Census Bureau's endorsement of this website or its content.

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