Latinos Say “No Way” To José As A Baby Name

José, what’s been one of the most popular Latino name for boys in the United States since the Social Security Administration started keeping track, has fallen off the list. When you look at the list of top 10 boy and girl names from the SSA, there are names that could be Latino names.

But as The New York Times reports, some people think that the change in baby names points to assimilation. José has been the number one name for all newborns in Texas since 1996 and has been in the top 50 since 1972. Latinos have among the highest birthrates of any ethnic groups in the country, but “Latino names” are not high on the baby name list. The Times reports:

Jose has been in the Top 50 every year except one since 1972, though it has been declining in popularity (it ranked 28th in 2004, 43rd in 2009 and 51st in 2010). Nationwide, the most popular name for baby boys was Jacob, which has ranked first since 1999, and for girls, Isabella, which edged Emma for first place in 2009.

Two Hispanic names (Garcia and Rodriguez) made the Top 10 list of surnames in 2000 for the first time, and the popularity of Isabella this year might suggest that acculturation works both ways, changing “the nature of U.S. culture to a certain extent,” said Prof. Alberto Moreiras, head of the Department of Hispanic Studies at Texas A&M University. “As it happens everywhere, name preference goes through cycles, and the name Jose has been overused over the last 20 years or so, and there are too many Joses.”

Fewer Joses were born last year, though, (7,656 of them) than in any year since 1978.

Trying to gauge latinidad, or whether someone is Latino, based on names alone is tricky. We’ve written about how Latino surnames in and of itself is difficult, and now as we see with this list, trying to decipher whether someone is Latino when they’re named Daniel or Emma can be just as difficult.

I personally like Latino names, but I don’t think I’d name a son José, what do you think?

Follow Sara Inés Calderón on Twitter @SaraChicaD