Multicult namingways

Ed Tom Kowalsky previously commented as follows:

Perhaps we could track the frequency of first names with the prefixes La, Sha, Ja, and Ty. My guess is these began appearing roughly the same time multi-culti struck.

The Baby Name Wizard is a great resource for tracking the popularity of American names extending back into the late 19th Century. Name popularity is amalgamated by decade up until 2003, at which point statistics for individual years are available.

Keep in mind that names are tracked by newborns receiving them, not the number of people in the US who shared the name at the time. There are hordes of toddlers named Mia and Brayden toddling around right now, but if you don't have small children of your own or have friends who do, you're probably unaware that these are the Susies and Johnnys of today.

Onomastics is a fun topic (and an overwhelming one--name lists seem to stretch out to infinity!) that I've previously dabbled around in, though my knowledge of the subject even in the US is certainly not academic or comprehensive. So the names included in the proceeding table are arbitrarily selected (with the aid of personal experience and online name lists).

The following table shows (a non-exhaustive list of) names that have one of Ed's prefixes and that have also been among the 1,000 most popular in the US at some point in the last 130 years, along with a brief description of their histories. For names with identical pronunciations but varied spellings, the most common variant is used. Asterisks indicate exceptions to Ed's observation, which appears to be the rule. For clarity and consistency, eloquent variation is not attempted:

Name	History
Jacob	Old as naming records (it's biblical, after all!), resurging in the 60s, reaching an all-time high in the 90s as the 5th most popular boy's name of that decade
Jada	On the map in the 70s, exploded in the 80s, peaked in 2004
Jaden	Exploded in the 90s, peaked in 2007
Jamie	Present in the 1890s and extant since then, but exploded in the 60s and peaked in the 70s
Jamison	On the map in the 70s and up from there, with a lull in the 80s and 90s before exploding in the oughts, with its peak still in the future
Janae	Exploded onto the scene in the 70s, peaked in the 90s
Janelle	Traces back to the 20s, but exploded in the 60s and peaked in the 80s
Janessa^	On the map in the 80s, gaining steadily in popularity for two decades, finally peaking in 2009
Janine*	On the map in the 40s, topping out in the 60s, dead now for over a decade
Jaquan	Exploded onto the scene in the 90s, topped out in 2004
Jaron	Exploded onto the scene in the 80s, topped out in the 90s
Jasmine	On the map in the 70s, exploded in the 80s, topped out in the 90s
Jason	As old as the Argonaut leader, but uncommon until the 50s, before a tremendous explosion in the 70s (becoming the 3rd most common male name of that decade), dropped off since then, down to the 69th male spot today
Jayla	On the map in the 90s, exploding in the oughts and topping out in 2003
Lakeisha	Exploded onto the scene in the 70s, topped out in the 80s
Lamar	Old as naming records, reversed its decades-long decline in the 60s, peaked in the 80s
Larissa	Exploded onto the scene in the 60s, hit a high in the 80s, declined a bit in the 90s, peaked in 2003
Lashawn	On the map in the 60s, peaked in the 70s
Latisha	Exploded onto the scene in the 60s, peaked in the 80s
Laura	Around forever (ask Petrarch!), peaked in the 60s, having previously peaked in the 1880s
Lauren	Barely existent in the 40s, picked up steam in the 60s, peaked in the 80s, and has dropped back to 70s-level popularity today
Layla	On the map in the 70s (thanks Eric!), exploded in the 90s with its peak still in the future
Shanice	Exploded onto the scene in the 70s, peaked in the 80s
Shaniqua	Exploded onto the scene in the 80s, peaked in the 90s
Shanna	Exploded onto the scene in the 60s, peaked in the 70s
Shannon	On the map in the 40s, exploded in the 60s and peaked in the 70s
Shaquille	Exploded onto the scene in the 80s, peaked in the 90s (just like Shaq!)
Sharla*	On the map in the 40s, peaked in the 70s
Sharlene*	Exploded onto the scene in the 20s, peaked in the 50s
Shawn	On the map in the 50s, exploded to a peak in the 70s, dropped precipitously since then
Shayla	Exploded onto the scene in the 70s, finally peaking in then early oughts
Tyesha	In the top 1000 exclusively in the 90s, the 981st most popular girl's name of that decade
Tyler	Barely on the map in the 50s, gained some prominence in the 60s, exploded in the 80s to peak as the 9th most popular boy's name of the 90s
Tyrell	Exploded onto the scene in the 80s, peaked in the 90s
Tyrone	On the map as far back as the 30s, steadily increasing from there until peaking in the 70s
Tyson	Exploded onto the scene in the 70s, lulled a bit in the 80s before climbing again, with its peak still in the future

^ In my opinion the sexiest female name in existence