New York babies can thank their parents. The Social Security Administration recently released America’s most popular baby names of 2013, and 257 boys and five girls were named Kale. But New York isn’t following the sprouting trend.
No boys or girls from the Big Apple were reported as being named Kale in 2013, according to the SSA’s list of state-specific data. That said, the SSA only lists a name if there were five or more occurrences, so up to four lucky New Yorkers could have been tossed the name.
Americans were naming their kids Kale long before the “Eat More Kale” movement. The first Kale baby budded in Kansas in 1962.
In New York, despite Brooklyn’s gaining hipster infamy, the popularity of the veggie namesake in the state is decreasing. Kale first appeared on the SSA’s New York list in 1990 with five baby boys. The name reappeared in 2008 and held its place until vanishing in 2013.
According to Bon Appétit, California currently boasts the highest crop of Kale babies. Apparently Bushwick’s yuppies put their foot down while Oakland’s have not.
