# Do You Know Any YOUNG Men Named Wilbur, Floyd, Elmer, etc.? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 4, 2009, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877 "2009-09-04T16:24:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2009, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/21 "2009-09-04T21:09:51Z")
> [@wierdaaron](#): > > Deh-ko-ay-tuh? No, like the state North Dehkoata or the other one, South Dihcoattah. Someone really should teach state history around here. ---
**Author:** ![Drain\_Bead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47774/32.png) [@Drain\_Bead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drain_Bead)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2009, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/22 "2009-09-04T21:15:34Z")
Two women at my workplace recently had little boys…Oliver and Ned. ---
**Author:** ![Dragwyr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dragwyr/32/2855_2.png) [@Dragwyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dragwyr)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2009, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/23 "2009-09-04T21:27:08Z")
I know a son on of a friend of ours who is named Bryce. Does that count? ---
**Author:** ![dangermom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2009, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/24 "2009-09-04T21:43:09Z")
> [@picker](#): > > I know a 3yo named Oliver. > I know a 6yo named Jed(ediah). > I know a 12 named Ethan. I also know a Jed, age 7, and a whole lot of Ethans under 12. I do actually know an Elmer who is 35. It was a family name. He goes by his middle name, though. ---
**Author:** ![wierdaaron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/eada6e/32.png) [@wierdaaron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wierdaaron)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2009, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/25 "2009-09-04T22:01:35Z")
My grandpa’s first and middle names were Roman and Lawson. He chose to go by Lawson, it being the less wacky one. Made for some interesting legal conundrums near and after his death when his legal name was Roman Lawson but he used the name Lawson Roman for every form he ever filled out. ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2009, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/26 "2009-09-04T22:23:25Z")
I used to know a kid who is 21 now named Carl. Also went to high school with a Carl (I’m 32). ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2009, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/27 "2009-09-04T22:37:36Z")
> [@Dragwyr](#): > > I know a son on of a friend of ours who is named Bryce. Does that count? I don’t think so. Bryce was trendy for awhile, 10-15 years ago. > [@](#): > > I find it rather refreshing at a time when everyone I know seems to be naming their boys Aidan/Jaden/Braden/Caden or some horrible, misspelled variant. **Yellowval** , one of hubby’s great-grandkids is a Kayden. Or maybe Caiden. I’d have to look at the birth announcement to make sure. My hairdresser is Tara (yeah, she’s in her 20’s). Her daughter is Kailyn. I chuckled this week when Tara talked about all the “odd names” in Kailyn’s preschool. Your daughter is named Kailyn! (Or maybe it’s Kaylynne.) One of the names was Jory, which I think is kinda cool. Unless it’s spelled Joree. I know tiny Ethans and grown Ethans. Cool name. ---
**Author:** ![wierdaaron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/eada6e/32.png) [@wierdaaron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wierdaaron)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2009, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/28 "2009-09-04T22:56:34Z")
Interesting statistic: If you combine multiple spellings of the same name (considering Jonathan & Johnathan are the same, for instance), Aiden was the #1 most popular boy’s name recently (2006 I’m pretty sure). **But** , if you _don’t_ combine them, no version of Aiden was in the top 20. That means there are _so many_ different ways to spell Aiden that together they are the most popular, but individually they don’t even register. ---
**Author:** ![Mahna\_Mahna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e47c2d/32.png) [@Mahna\_Mahna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahna_Mahna)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2009, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/29 "2009-09-04T23:35:18Z")
As I mentioned in the other thread, I know an Oscar who’s under 10. I also know: Felix (age 6) Olivier (age 4) Emerson (age 20-something) ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2009, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/30 "2009-09-05T01:06:17Z")
I saw a little Finn the other day. (Inspired no doubt by Phinneas, Julia Robert’s offspring). Cute! I like odd and unused names, but some of them defy shortening into a nickname - what do you do with, say, Felix, for short? “Feel”? Oliver: “Ollie”? Webster: “Webby”??? ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2009, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/31 "2009-09-05T01:10:06Z")
One of my coworkers has a 15 year old son named Howard. They are Asian (AFAIK Howard was born in the US, but mom and dad are Chinese immigrants), and as has been mentioned these old-fashioned names seem more common among the children of Asian immigrants. I think it’s often because the parents are using names from old books and movies, and sometimes because they first came up with an Asian name for the kid and then tried to think of a similar-sounding Western name. I guess recent immigrants are also unlikely to be up to date on trendy baby names. ---
**Author:** ![Flymaster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c4cdca/32.png) [@Flymaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flymaster)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2009, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/32 "2009-09-05T01:20:55Z")
I know a Wilbur who is probably 28. He might be a Wilber. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2009, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/33 "2009-09-05T01:27:43Z")
My Japanese-American dentist is named Elmer. ---
**Author:** ![PatriotGrrrl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9dc877/32.png) [@PatriotGrrrl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatriotGrrrl)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2009, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/34 "2009-09-05T01:29:10Z")
> [@salinqmind](#): > > I saw a little Finn the other day. (Inspired no doubt by Phinneas, Julia Robert’s offspring). Cute! I would have assumed it was a Celtic name, as in [Finn McCool.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fionn_mac_Cumhail) ---
**Author:** ![C3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/c3/32/3108_2.png) [@C3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C3)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2009, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/35 "2009-09-05T01:37:56Z")
My (41 yo) husband is named Murray, which saw it’s height of popularity in the 1920s. I mentioned in the other thread that my youngest son’s name is Henry (but we call him Harry). When old ladies in the grocery store ask me what his name is, they’re always delighted. ETA: thought of another one…I know a 6 yo named Kirby. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2009, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/36 "2009-09-05T02:12:26Z")
> [@salinqmind](#): > > I saw a little Finn the other day. (Inspired no doubt by Phinneas, Julia Robert’s offspring). I had a Finn in my preschool class last year, but he was a Finnegan. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2009, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/37 "2009-09-05T02:32:36Z")
There should be a young 20-something Otto running around out there. After he was born, my mother was talking to her coworker about her new baby boy, and oh what did you pick for a name? When the coworker said Otto, my mom laughed heartily and asked, no really, what did you name him? :smack: Hopefully the young man has a better opinion of his name than that. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2009, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/38 "2009-09-05T02:38:38Z")
I have nephews Maximilian and Mark Augustine (Gus). I have a cousin named Solomon. He would be in his late teens or twenties, I think. I have a cousin Dismas, but he must be 40. I work with an Elmer, but he’s in his mid 50s. He goes by “Junior.” I also work with a Milton Gilbert and a Glyness (male. His wife’s name is something like Faustina), and once worked with Micah. ---
**Author:** ![Rubystreak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Rubystreak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rubystreak)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2009, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/39 "2009-09-05T02:44:27Z")
Ethan is not an old man name. It’s been in the top 10 since 2000 and top 25 for longer. Sam is ridiculously popular, in the top 30 since 2000, and I had 3 of them in my classes last year. Bryce has been within striking distance of the top 100 for the past 10 years. Oliver is also pretty popular, in or near the top 300 since 2000 and climbing every year. Finn has been steadily climbing and is in the 300s now (I know a 9 year old Finn, short for Finnian). So either none of these are old men names, or they, like the “old lady names” in the other thread, are experiencing a revival. But I would never have put Ethan, Samuel, Bryce, Oliver, or Finn in a category with Elmer, Floyd, or Wilbur anyway. My source is the [Social Security name database.](http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/babynames/) ---
**Author:** ![DZedNConfused](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dzednconfused/32/15991_2.png) [@DZedNConfused](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DZedNConfused)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2009, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877/40 "2009-09-05T03:04:48Z")
I have two Oscars and an Edgar on my bus, all Latino boys. My son is named Josiah, which is a name I haven’t seen used much since the 1920s. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-any-young-men-named-wilbur-floyd-elmer-etc/508877.md?page=3)