Comments on: There are 300,000,000 people in the U.S. How many have your name?

There are 300,000,000 people in the U.S. How many have your name?

aerotive — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 19:41:12 -0800

By: bunglin jones

bunglin jones — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 19:44:36 -0800

None, apparently. Not even one with the same first name as mine.

By: blahblahblah

blahblahblah — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 19:45:20 -0800

Cool idea, but as someone with a (relatively) uncommon last name, it is not that satisfying, returning 0 people with my last name, and explaining "Around 1 out of every 10 people will have a last name not on the list." Too large a margin of error for me...

By: zardoz

zardoz — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 19:46:37 -0800

93 people share my name. Neat.

By: quonsar

quonsar — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 19:53:18 -0800

Matt Haughey

By: Opposite George

Opposite George — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 19:53:48 -0800

My namesake cousin will be disappointed to hear that he doesn't exist. Of course, somebody will have to tell him for me since I don't exist either. And that person will have to be from outside the family because... well, you get the idea. I guess if your name is "John Smith" or something this could be fun...

By: Pseudoephedrine

Pseudoephedrine — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 19:54:04 -0800

5761 of me in the US. I don't even appear when you google my name. Though, for this, I had to leave out my middle names, which usually serve to set me apart somewhat.

By: jourman2

jourman2 — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 19:57:24 -0800

lol Opposite George. Although you'd think there'd be more people with the first name Opposite. :-)

By: jourman2

jourman2 — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 19:57:44 -0800

120 of me in the US btw.

By: diddlegnome

diddlegnome — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 19:58:35 -0800

It's wrong. It says there are none of me in the U.S., and I *know* there's at least one.

By: Busithoth

Busithoth — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 19:59:49 -0800

there is no me.

By: Opposite George

Opposite George — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:00:25 -0800

I *know* there's at least one. ?!? The internets never lie.

By: lordrunningclam

lordrunningclam — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:04:05 -0800

12,319 That explains a lot.

By: mss

mss — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:04:19 -0800

39849 me, 39681085 first name 3017684 last name. Although there are 39 people named Richard Hertz

By: Infinite Jest

Infinite Jest — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:05:13 -0800

Four of me in the USA. Which seems like far too few. There's at least one person in my small (400K) town with the same name as me. OK, I'm outside the USA, but you would think that in a country of 300 million, there would be more than 4. What's more, I've found at least 4 Americans online who share my name.

By: joshjs

joshjs — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:10:20 -0800

there is no me. Only Zuul?

By: Alex404

Alex404 — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:12:12 -0800

0 people have my exact name. And though there are historical reasons why this is, it is still rather dishearting to me that 99.9 percent of people named Sacha are female. At the same time, that sounds a little high, as I do in fact know other male Sachas (or Sashas).

By: Alex404

Alex404 — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:15:53 -0800

Also, RussellFilter: A name is an incomplete statement waiting for its unique object. Do not confuse the meaning of a name with its reference. Point: You are not your name.

By: joshjs

joshjs — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:19:49 -0800

Of the Simpsons references I tried, only one worked: Anita Bath.

By: Goofyy

Goofyy — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:20:23 -0800

I typed in a friend's name, and it claimed that no one had his first name, which is Johan (and no one has his last name, either). For my own name, it says there is one. I don't find this site at all credible.

By: localhuman

localhuman — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:24:27 -0800

thanks for the russelesque statement, alex. anyways, i'd like to ask whether it is proper grammar to pluralize 'me' with an apostrophe s. (it's hard for me as a fan of english to see the apostrophe used so often to indicate plural when that is not its proper duty , and i'm beginning to feel that it's becoming a standard practice... i.e. the sign down the street advertising "condo's from the 190s". anybody else notice this phenomenon happening?)

By: localhuman

localhuman — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:25:09 -0800

proper duty of apostrophe

By: dobbs

dobbs — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:31:23 -0800

Yeah, not credible at all. No one with the first name Cooper? I don't buy it.

By: dobbs

dobbs — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:33:48 -0800

localhuman, yes it's happening more and more and yes, it's incorrect. CD's drives me bonkers. There's an ad on the side of buses these days in Toronto that say "Rejoin the Have's". It looks ridiculous.

By: localhuman

localhuman — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:37:16 -0800

and it's here

By: bob sarabia

bob sarabia — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:40:00 -0800

1. which I guess is me.

By: weapons-grade pandemonium

weapons-grade pandemonium — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:46:12 -0800

The FAQ page. The program returns an estimate based on available data. It should be considered a "ballpark figure". It will usually return an answer in the right general area, but the chances of the figure being exactly right are very low. There is 1 person in the U.S. named Dick Cheney. There is 1 person in the U.S. named Winston Churchill.

By: weapons-grade pandemonium

weapons-grade pandemonium — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:47:59 -0800

Does the program really know how many people have the same name as me? No.

By: maryh

maryh — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:52:32 -0800

If I'd taken my husband's name, there would be almost 40,000 of me. Thank goodness I kept my own and am only one of 277.

By: Guy Smiley

Guy Smiley — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:52:53 -0800

"There are 8 people in the U.S. named Guy Smiley." (and I'm not even one of them)

By: cholly

cholly — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:55:19 -0800

It returned 3 for me. There's a similar site at yournotme.co.uk. I believe it searches the electoral roll in the UK for names similar to yours. It gave me 4. I suppose that means there's at least 8 'me's in the world.

By: weapons-grade pandemonium

weapons-grade pandemonium — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:56:33 -0800

There's an ad on the side of buses these days in Toronto that say "Rejoin the Have's". It looks ridiculous. Not to the Have Not's on the bus.

By: Opposite George

Opposite George — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:57:27 -0800

IANA copy editor but to me, the apostrophe thing is debatable - rules demand exceptions when overly-simplistic obedience makes text difficult to read. IMHO, mes would be hard to parse and "me"s would be ugly. And I don't know that the CDs over CD's thing is universally accepted (though things seem to be heading that way.) Back in the late Stone Age when I took English "CD's" would have been preferred and the NY Times was certainly fond of the construction in recent memory - maybe they still are.

By: cholly

cholly — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 20:59:01 -0800

However, searches on both sites return zero on cholly for first names or last names. *tear*

By: fenriq

fenriq — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 21:03:51 -0800

There are none of me, does that mean I'll cease to exis.........

By: weapons-grade pandemonium

weapons-grade pandemonium — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 21:04:45 -0800

How many me's are there? There are 630 people in the U.S. with the last name Me. There are 390 people in the U.S. with the last name Them. There are 2,160 people in the U.S. with the last name You. There are 2,910 people in the U.S. with the last name He. There are 420 people in the U.S. with the last name Us. There are 390 people in the U.S. with the last name Why.

By: brain cloud

brain cloud — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 21:08:05 -0800

There's just one with my name, but I'm not sure if it's me or not.

By: arto

arto — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 21:14:41 -0800

There is 1 person in the U.S. named Dick Cheney. There is 1 person in the U.S. named Winston Churchill. There's also apparently 1 person in the U.S. named Adolph Churchill. Poor bastard must have the world's lowest self-esteem. However, there are no Ted Hitlers. Which means Stephen Colbert--if that's his real name--lied to me. The bastard.

By: WetherMan

WetherMan — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 21:15:51 -0800

Well, it turns out at least 2 people in the US are named "Harry Balls" Yea, it's juvenile, but my mom had a great story about a guy named Harry Balls she worked with...

By: Opposite George

Opposite George — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 21:35:10 -0800

But, *sniff*, no Harry Balzacs.

By: vagabond

vagabond — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 21:36:15 -0800

There are 19 of me. But does it still count me, as I moved outside of the US?

By: joshjs

joshjs — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 21:45:31 -0800

There are a couple of poor guys named Jeffrey Dahmer.

By: wendell

wendell — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 22:12:05 -0800

There is no Wendell Wittler, which is OK, because that's not my legal name. But it says there is only one of my legal name out there and I know there is a second because I found him (and his different middle initial) while searching for myself on a phone directory site. But then, maybe I've spent too much time online as Wendell and now... I'm neither! Either that or their calculations are screwy.

By: CeruleanZero

CeruleanZero — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 22:22:06 -0800

Sarah Connor

By: anjamu

anjamu — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 22:25:01 -0800

I'm relatively confident in saying that I'm likely the only person in the world with my combination of first + last names. This search has done nothing to disprove that because my last name didn't come up.

By: stirfry

stirfry — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 22:37:03 -0800

There are 0 people in the U.S. named Turd Blossom.

By: Schlimmbesserung

Schlimmbesserung — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 22:39:36 -0800

I'm only available in Canada!

By: Opposite George

Opposite George — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 22:57:53 -0800

My name is Harvey Pekar. That's an unusual name, "Harvey Pekar." 1960 was the year I got my first apartment and my first phone book. Now imagine my surprise when I looked up my name and saw that in addition to me, another Harvey Pekar was listed. Now, I was listed as "Harvey L. Pekar" -- my middle name is Lawrence -- and he was listed as "Harvey Pekar." Therefore his was a - was a purer listing. Then in the '70s, I noticed that a third Harvey Pekar was listed in the phone book. Now, this filled me with curiosity. How can there be three people with such an unusual name in the world, let alone in one city? Then, one day, a person I work with expressed her sympathy with me concerning what she thought was the death of my father, and she pointed out an obituary notice in the newspaper for a man named Harvey Pekar. And one of his sons was named Harvey. And these were the other Harvey Pekars. And six months later, Harvey Pekar Jr. died. And although I've met neither man, I was filled with sadness: "What were they like?", I thought. It seemed that our lives had been linked in some indefinable way. But the story does not end there, for two years later another "Harvey Pekar" appeared in the phone book. Who are these people? Where do they come from? What do they do? What's in a name? Who is "Harvey Pekar?"

By: Alex404

Alex404 — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 23:47:13 -0800

"Rejoin the Have's". It looks ridiculous. That ad has sparked many a hate-on among my friends.

By: Jelreyn

Jelreyn — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 23:56:13 -0800

0 first name, 0 last name, 0 combination (obviously) sucks to be me.

By: id

id — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 00:13:19 -0800

"Rejoin the Have's" Immediately, the thought that came to me was that this is a Hummer ad. I threw up a little in my mouth. Is it a Hummer ad? I want to know that my bile didn't go to waste.

By: mhh5

mhh5 — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 00:19:32 -0800

quonsar: try "matthew" instead of matt.. then there are 5 Matthew Haughey's...

By: Rumple

Rumple — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 00:22:38 -0800

There is one of me in the US. And it isn't me. Odd. Appears he is a high school basketball player in the midwest.

By: maxwelton

maxwelton — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 01:40:06 -0800

There is one me. It appears to be me, oddly enough. I'm not sure where to claim my prize.

By: hal9k

hal9k — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 02:02:16 -0800

There are exactly 666 with the same name as my daughter. Cue theremin.

By: maryh

maryh — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 02:03:22 -0800

There are 8 people in the U.S. named Chuck Norris. 7 of them (including that fake columnist) will be discovered, by dental records alone, in the slit-open belly of the eighth.

By: antifuse

antifuse — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 03:14:10 -0800

45 with my name in the States. I'm obviously not one of them. 500,948 with my first name and 26,997 with my last name. I'm surprised there's so many Waddells out there.

By: Faint of Butt

Faint of Butt — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 03:46:41 -0800

Apparently 22 people in the US have my name, but my wife doesn't exist at all. Neither does her grandmother.

By: quonsar

quonsar — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 04:13:01 -0800

quonsar: try "matthew" instead of matt.. then there are 5 Matthew Haughey's... wow. just... wow.

By: Lazlo Hollyfeld

Lazlo Hollyfeld — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 06:25:18 -0800

There is another one of me?!? What the hell? There are 720 people with my last name and *2* with my exact name. Who is this guy? How can I meet him? Oh, and my girlfriend doesn't exist. Which might explain some things.

By: Lazlo Hollyfeld

Lazlo Hollyfeld — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 06:31:24 -0800

So, with this wonderful tool I have learned the following things: There are 12 of my dad. I have a doppleganger. My mom is unique. My sister, brother in law and girlfriend all don't exist. I'm not sure I trust this thing...

By: LordSludge

LordSludge — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 06:37:36 -0800

You are not a beautiful, unique snowflake.

By: JJ86

JJ86 — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 07:51:47 -0800

Apparently even I don't exist. There is nobody with my first name.

By: Floydd

Floydd — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 08:04:27 -0800

0 Floydds, 0 Foonts. I am a figment of my own twisted imagination.

By: tkchrist

tkchrist — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 09:01:30 -0800

You fools. Don't you see what is going on here? This site is constructed by a serial killer obsessed with numerology. Better change your locks.

By: davy

davy — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 09:34:49 -0800

"99.75 percent of people with the first name David are male." I wondered about that other .25% till I remembered this actress. But she's not named David.

By: davy

davy — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 09:39:30 -0800

On the other hand, "There are 0 people in the U.S. named Adolf Hitler." But pace Chevy Chase (who does not exist), "[t]here are 26 people in the U.S. named Francisco Franco."

By: chuq

chuq — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 13:04:37 -0800

I can't imagine this this is accurate, but that said ... it says there is only one of me. I'm unique. :) Then again, if you change "Chuck" (which is what I go by) to "Charles", it says there are 80 of me. I know of at least one other with the same name, because I once got a notification that there was a warrant out for his arrest that they decided to send to my address, apparently due to same lazy name-address matching. Two days later I got pulled over for (apparently) no reason, with the cops approaching the car with guns drawn. They immediately sheathed them when they noticed that I'm not in fact a 6'2" black guy as the warrant said, but a 5'8" fishbelly white guy. That was ... quite an experience.

By: Smedleyman

Smedleyman — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 13:42:56 -0800

"0 people have my exact name" Wow, I'll have to tell my grandfather he doesn't exist.

By: sour cream

sour cream — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 15:00:48 -0800

Their math is obviously flawed, because it doesn't take into account that first and last names will be correlated to a certain degree along ethnic and linguistic lines. For example, it tells me that there are just as many people called Pilar McDonald (seven) as there are people called Pilar Gomez. Somehow I don't think that's true. Similarly, Jesus Quintana and Walter Sobchak are going to be more likely than Walter Quintana and Jesus Sobchak.

By: Citizen Premier

Citizen Premier — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 15:01:36 -0800

There are 5 John Publics, but not a single Everyman. Also, there are 295 John Doe's but only 22 Jane Doe's.