Sudden increase in Angel as a name for Hispanic boys -- Why?
I wasn't sure if this was more of a factual or opinion question so I'm asking on both boards-- I have received an inquiry from a reporter about why the name Angel has shown a sudden increase in the USA for Hispanic boys. Checking the SSA records, I found that the male name Angel jumped by 15% between 2004 and 2005, after actually falling in use between 2003 and 2004. Evidently Angel was suddenly the #1 name for Hispanic boys born in New York City in 2006 (according to the reporter). I can't find a Hispanic celebrity named Angel who could account for this, but there must have been something that caused it to happen. Are any of you familiar enough with Hispanic culture to know if there is any sort of celebrity, TV or movie character, or sports figure in the Hispanic world that could have caused this sudden jump? The only thing I've found that's about the right date (2004 or early 2005) is the telenovela called Angel Rebelde, but that title translates as "Rebel Angel", and Angel was NOT the name of any of the main characters in it, plus the "rebel angel" reference of the title seems to have been to the female lead, not the male one. So, any other ideas out there? Thanks for your help!
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The only thing that I can think of is the show "Angel." http://imdb.com/title/tt0162065/The series ran from 1999 to 2004. Yet, it was unpopular from October 2002 to May 2003 (Season 4).
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Lately, in Argentina Angel is not very usual, used as a simple name. Generaly, boys are named Miguel Ángel or José Ángel because this name is considered "out of fashion". Among celebrities, Ángel Pericet (spanish dancer), the spanish poet Ángel González and there´s this colombian futbol player (now in Aston Villa, England) Juan Pablo Ángel (in this case, Ángel as a surname).
Anyway, I think the most famous Ángel in this century is... Angel, by Thierry Mugler.
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haha i don't know if this is helpful, but one of the main characters in the broadway musical "Rent" is a Hispanic guy named Angel. He has an awesome role, it might have a small something to do with it.
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Actually, it probably doesEspecially since the jump was seen in NY.
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