Jay

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[edit] ORIGIN AND HISTORY

The name Jay originated as a shortened version or pet form of various names beginning with the letter “J.” It has derivations stemming back to the Sanskrit “jaya” meaning “victory.” Additionally, it is associated with “blue jay,” as in the bird. Additionally, some believe it to stem to the Latin “Gaius” meaning “happy.” In modern times, Jay is bestowed as a given name in its’ own right.

[edit] POPULARITY

According to the 1990 United States Census ^[1], Jay ranked as the 152nd most popular male first name, the 2,126th most popular female first name and the 3,741st most popular last name. In the United States, the name ranked in the Top 1,000 most popular boy's names every decade since 1880.

According to the Social Security Administration ^[2], in the 21st century, the name ranked in the Top 400 most popular boy's names every year from 2000 (328th) through 2006 (351st).

United States Popularity of the boy's name Jay in the 21st Century:

• Year: 2006 Rank:351st
• Year: 2005 Rank:352nd
• Year: 2004 Rank:350th
• Year: 2003 Rank:348th
• Year: 2002 Rank:335th
• Year: 2001 Rank:317th
• Year: 2000 Rank:328th

[edit] FACTS

• “Jay” is a given first name of babies of celebrities Bob Allen, George Osmond, Sandra Day O'Connor and Doctor Phil. ^[3]
• “Jay” is a name given to towns in Florida, Maine, New York, Oklahoma and Vermont, USA.
• “Jay” is the title of the 2000 debut album of Chinese singer and songwriter Jay Chou. ^[4]

[edit] NAMESAKES

• “Jay Gatsby” is a main character in the novel “The Great Gasby” written by Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald in 1925.
• The “Blue Jays” are a Toronto, Ontario, Canada, based Major League Baseball (MLB) team.
• “Jay,” played by Jason Mewes, is a stoner character in various Kevin Smith films, including “Clerks” (1994), “Chasing Amy” (1997), “Dogma” (1999) and “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back” (2001). ^[5]

[edit] FAMOUS PERSONS

• Jason “Jay” Gould – 19th century American financier and railroad developer who had a reputation for being unscrupulous. He died of tuberculosis in 1892. ^[6]
• John Jay – First United States Supreme Court Chief Justice who was in office from 1789 to 1795. He was also the second Governor of New York from 1795 until 1801. ^[7]
• James Douglas Muir "Jay" Leno - American comedian and television personality who hosts the late night talk show “The Tonight Show” since 1992 when Johnny Carson concluded hosting the show; he is scheduled to finish hosting the show in 2009, when Conan O'Brien is scheduled to succeed him. ^[8]

[edit] NOTES

1. ↑ http://www.census.gov/genealogy/www/namesearch.html
2. ↑ http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/babynames/
3. ↑ http://www.yeahbaby.com/celebrity-baby-names.php?name=Jay
4. ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_%28album%29
5. ↑ http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0001313/
6. ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_Gould
7. ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Jay
8. ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_Leno

Author: Rich Kachold