# Have you ever met a man over the age of 50 with one of the following names? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 31, 2017, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612 "2017-12-31T03:51:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Lamoral](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lamoral/32/16078_2.png) [@Lamoral](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamoral)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2018, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/41 "2018-01-01T00:29:03Z")
How does it break down by ethnicity? I get the impression that Adam is more common among Polish people, just like how Anthony and Paul are common among Italians and Sean and Patrick are common among the Irish. Among my generation, as far as Biblical names go, Michael, Mark, David, James, John/Jonathan, Paul, Sam, Daniel, and Joseph are really common with my generation _and_ really common among the “people’s dads” generation, and probably also very common among our grandparents’ generation. Those are sort of the “timeless” Biblical names that never go out of fashion. As for the Biblical names that seem to be more common in my generation than the older ones, I think those would include Adam, Josh, Jesse, and Nathan/Nathaniel. I grew up with a lot of guys with those names, but never encountered anyone’s dad with them. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2018, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/42 "2018-01-01T00:50:22Z")
Running through my brain of people my age (60) I recall one or more Adam Ryan Evan Kyle and I did know a Zach but that wasn’t his actual first name. That was one of the mysteries that made up his basic personality. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2018, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/43 "2018-01-01T02:30:49Z")
> [@Jacquernagy](#): > > Among my generation, as far as Biblical names go, Michael, Mark, David, James, **John/Jonathan** , Paul, Sam, Daniel, and Joseph are really common with my generation _and_ really common among the “people’s dads” generation, and probably also very common among our grandparents’ generation. Those are sort of the “timeless” Biblical names that never go out of fashion. > > As for the Biblical names that seem to be more common in my generation than the older ones, I think those would include Adam, Josh, Jesse, and **Nathan/Nathaniel**. I grew up with a lot of guys with those names, but never encountered anyone’s dad with them. You write “John/Jonathan” as if they are just variants of one name, but I kinda think they aren’t. Jonathan is a Old Testament name, and comes from Hebrew words meaning “Jo [short for Yahweh] has given”. “John” is strictly a New Testament name as far as I know, and I’m not sure if it arose simply as a shortened form of Jonathan, because of the spelling “John” rather than “Jon”. (Just my totally lay etymology there.) “Nathaniel” means “God has given” (the -el suffix being short for Elohim). I’m not sure if “Nathan” arose simply as a short version of that; it simply means “gave” or “has given”, from the Hebrew verb נָתַן (natan), past tense of “give”. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2018, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/44 "2018-01-01T03:54:27Z")
I’m 52. While it’s a small sample size (n=75), I went to an all-boys Catholic high school, and we didn’t have any boys with any of those names in my class. We did, however, have 8 Michaels, including myself (it _was_ the most popular baby boy name for most of the 1960s). While I know a number of adult men with some of the names listed by the OP, none of them are over 45. ---
**Author:** ![SeniorCitizen007](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8baadc/32.png) [@SeniorCitizen007](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeniorCitizen007)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2018, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/45 "2018-01-01T04:15:41Z")
My great grandfsther was Laban Csrdy … the only person in the UK (since registration of births began in 1837) ever to have this name. There’s also a Lilith Death in my family tree.(Death was a fairly common name in parts of 19th century Suffolk) ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2018, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/46 "2018-01-01T04:25:44Z")
I had classmates named Adam and Kyle; I am 59. ---
**Author:** ![ZonexandScout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zonexandscout/32/544_2.png) [@ZonexandScout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZonexandScout)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2018, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/47 "2018-01-01T17:10:54Z")
I’m 64 and I currently have friends or business acquaintances with all of these names, except two. They are all at least 55 years old. In fact, MY name is on the list, though it is spelled slightly differently. ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2018, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/48 "2018-01-01T17:17:13Z")
I went to school with a Josh(ua), a Ty(ler) and a Ryan, and I’m over 50. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2018, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/49 "2018-01-01T18:06:01Z")
> [@Jacquernagy](#): > > How does it break down by ethnicity? I get the impression that Adam is more common among Polish people, Yep, two of the older Adams I know are Polish. The third is British (and Jewish.) ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2018, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/50 "2018-01-01T19:17:36Z")
Tyler Durden would be pushing 50, but I haven’t seen him in a while. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2018, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/51 "2018-01-01T21:50:01Z")
I know someone named Adam in his fifties. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2018, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/52 "2018-01-02T23:58:15Z")
I’ve personally known people named Adam, Josh, Ryan, and Justin who would all be over 50 (mostly over 60, actually) by now. > [@FairyChatMom](#): > > When I was a kid, there was a Kyle up the street from us. This was in the 60s, so he’d be in his 50s now. > [@Sattua](#): > > I’ve met a Kyle who is exactly 50 this year. > [@Loach](#): > > One of my best friends growing up is named Kyle. We will be 51 this year. > > Another friend had a sister named Kyle who is probably 55. But were their moms bitches? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2018, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/53 "2018-01-03T01:08:06Z")
> [@Jacquernagy](#): > > Zach > Tyler > Adam > Chad > Ryan > Evan > Josh > Chase > Kyle > Justin > Dustin One Zach that lived a couple door down from me when I was young (I’m now in my mid-fifties). It has definitely become more popular since then in my world. One Evan. I went to college with him. Again, more common since… No Tylers, Chads, Ryans, Chases, Kyles, Justins, or Dustins. That I can recall. To be honest, I’m not sure I’ve met more than one or two people named Chad or Chase or Dustin ever (and I work with kids). The two on your list that surprise me are Adam and Josh. I recognize both have probably become more common than they were in the sixties or earlier, but I can think of four Adams in my life through high school and at least another one or two in college. My son’s partner has an uncle named Adam, who I’ve met, and he’s in his early sixties. So that’s a bunch. And Josh–two of my closest friends in high school were Joshes (Josh L. and Josh L., not very helpfully), and I knew quite a few others. Josh was probably not as common a name in my neighborhood as Michael, David, or Peter, but pretty darn close. (It was a heavily Jewish area, so there’s that…) --Anyway, Josh and Adam seem to me like they’re in a different category from the others. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2018, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/54 "2018-01-03T21:14:48Z")
Over in the Pit, there was a mention that Roy Moore’s (remember him?) son has been in trouble with the law. (That “Jew lawyer” actually represented the son.) Just yesterday, I saw it mentioned somewhere that the son’s name is Caleb. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2018, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/55 "2018-01-03T21:29:44Z")
On the other hand, a while back I was talking with my dad, who’s pushing 70 and hasn’t lived in the States since 1981. We were discussing U.S. politics, when he suddenly said, “What kind of name is ‘Jared’, anyway? Sounds like something from Star Trek.” So that’s one name that wasn’t popular 50 years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2018, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/56 "2018-01-03T21:45:48Z")
[Jared Kirtland](https://www.cmnh.org/science-news/blog/january-2015/jared-potter-kirtland) (1793–1877) is a locally famous icon in Cleveland. A wing of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History is named for him. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2018, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/57 "2018-01-03T22:50:33Z")
No doubt, it’s quirky, arbitrary, and quixotic which of those Old Testament names will be in fashion from one generation to another. Here are a few more I haven’t seen lately, to name just a few: [ul][li] Enosh[/li][li] Kenan[/li][li] Mahalalel[/li][li] Methuselah[/li][li] Lamech[/li][li] Shem[/li][li] Arphaxad[/li][li] Peleg[/li][li] Serug[/li][li] Nahor[/li][li] Terah[/li][li] Kohath[/li][li] Amram[/li][li] Gershom[/li][li] Shebuel[/li][li] Amminadab[/li][li] Nahshon[/li] Rehoboam[/ul] ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2018, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/58 "2018-01-04T20:23:13Z")
Kenan Thompson on SNL! But yeah, good list. ETA - Arphaxad is kind of awesome > [@susan](#): > > If you don’t think there are men over 50 named Zack, Adam, or Josh, you’re probably not in a Jewish family. Yep! Add Evan to my list too. ---
**Author:** ![purplehearingaid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@purplehearingaid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehearingaid)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2018, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/59 "2018-01-05T00:40:09Z")
> [@susan](#): > > Yes to > Zach(ary) > Adam > Chad > Ryan > Josh(ua) > Chase > Dustin > > If you don’t think there are men over 50 named Zack, Adam, or Josh, you’re probably not in a Jewish family. I am Jewish and I never heard of men with the names you listed at any ages. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2018, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612/60 "2018-01-05T17:26:04Z")
Do girls named Kyle count? I had one in my French Class, she’s 60 now. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-you-ever-met-a-man-over-the-age-of-50-with-one-of-the-following-names/805612.md?page=4)