Michaels in all shapes and sizes on campus

By Kurt Wagner

They live in the dorms, they share the same classrooms and attend the same parties. They're involved in clubs, go to the gym and even work for the student newspaper. From Michael Abbott to Michael Zosky and hundreds of Michaels in between, Santa Clara is covered in Michaels.

Michael is the most common name on Santa Clara's campus, according to GroupWise. There are a total of 490 Michaels at the university and an additional 15 people who go by the name Mike. There are also three other students on campus who pronounce their name Michael, but spell their name in an original way: Mykell, Mikel and Mikell. In total, there are 40 variant forms of the name.

"(My parents) wanted me to stand out in my own creative, original way," said sophomore Mykell Bates, who said he likes to mess with people by telling them alternate pronunciations of his name. "I just have fun with it."

The name Michael comes from Hebrew origin, meaning "Who is like God." The name has other religious ties as well and is mentioned in the Old Testament of the Bible on multiple occasions. The most famous biblical Michael is St. Michael the archangel who was known as a warrior and is often proclaimed to be the greatest of all God's angels.

On a Jesuit campus, numerous Michael's stressed the tie between their own name and the archangel.

"It had a little bit to do with the archangel Michael and Michelangelo," said freshman Michael Caracciolo. "My mom's big into art."

Added junior Michael Ryle, "As far as being named after any saint, an archangel is pretty much the cream of the crop. I like it."

Michael has always been a popular name, dating back to the middle ages when rulers of Russia, Poland and Portugal all sported some form of the name. Currently, Michael stands fourth on the list of most popular male names in the country, accounting for just over 2.6 percent of the nation's male population. James, John and Robert hold down the top three spots respectively.

There is no shortage of famous Michaels in the United States (see table). NBA Hall of Famer Michael Jordan won the NBA Championship six times and the NBA MVP award five; swimmer Michael Phelps won an Olympic record eight gold medals at the 2008 summer games in Beijing; singer Michael Jackson, better known by some as The King of Pop, created the best-selling album ever, Thriller, and has sold over 110 million copies world-wide since its debut in 1982.

"I've always been proud of being a Michael," said Bates. "Knowing that the greatest basketball player was a Michael. One of the great runners was named after Michael. And then me being a Michael, only great things are gonna happen."

Even Santa Clara President Fr. Michael Engh, S.J. is a Michael.

Due to the high number of Michaels present at Santa Clara, both Bates and Adair have found that classes can get confusing at times because there are too many people with the same name in the same classroom. Bates said that on his soccer team, he is referred to by his last name when there is another Michael on the team. Adair is also a proponent of calling all Michaels by their last name.

"In my psych class I'm one of like four or five Mikes. I kind of hate it," said freshman Michael Adair. "I feel like everyone should be called by their last name."

Other Michaels choose to use nicknames to separate themselves. Junior Michael Kawamoto goes by "Moto" and said many people do not even know his first name. Fellow junior Michael Taylor goes by the nickname "MT," his initials, to distinguish himself from the other Michaels around. Taylor said that he is currently one of three Michaels in his political philosophy class.

"It seems like every class I go to there is at least one other Michael," said Taylor, who also lives with another Michael. "It's a cool bond."

Despite the religious connection and mass popularity of the name Michael, not all people enjoy sharing that part of their identity with so many others across the country.

"It's a bit discouraging I'd say," said Adair. "You're kind of lame, kind of just like everyone else. Just following the sheep herd."

But for some Michaels out there, sharing the name is a treat in itself.

"I think that boys especially should have a really strong first name," said Taylor. "A real traditional name."

Added Ryle, "sometimes I judge people who are letting the name down."

Contact Kurt Wagner at jwagner@scu.edu or at (408)554-1918.