New York Magazine has reported that “Washington” is the ‘blackest’ name in America. In other words, Washington is the most common last name for African Americans.
Jesse Washington, an Associated Press writer, investigated as to why “Washington” is so common.
Washington, the writer, speculates that African Americans during the Reconstruction Era may have chosen the name to show national pride. George Washington died in 1799. Therefore, he was still very popular even after the Civil War.
Washington also states that it is a myth “that most enslaved blacks bore the last name of their owner.”
Alternatively, Washington speculates that her last name and the last name of so many other African Americans may have been used to maintain ties to plantation owners, who still remained powerful figures even after emancipation.
Tony Burroughs, an expert on black genealogy, called the commonality of the name a coincidence. Jesse Washington countered Burroughs, pointing out that many day African Americans with the last name are surprised to learn that there a white people with the same last name.
The inspiration for the name is interesting as, despite his abolitionist writings, George Washington owned hundreds of slaves and actively tried to recover his slaves who had escaped.
