I smirked in the middle of reading a news story last week.

A small story from the Upper Peninsula about a rare Gulf Coast bird quoted a member of Green Bay, Wisconsin’s Parks, Recreation, and Forestry Department about dozens of birdwatchers who hoped to catch a glimpse of the bird in the Euers Nature Area.

That official’s name? James Andersen.

I’m not famous by any stretch of the imagination, but I can’t help but chuckle sometimes whenever I see my name — that is, someone with the same name as me — pop up somewhere. Sometimes it’s in print, like that Associated Press article. Sometimes it’s on TV or online or even in person.

I don’t know how common my name is and I certainly don’t know how famous it is. Quick Web searches show that both James and Anderson (which my last name commonly gets misspelled for) are among the most common first and last names in the United States.

According to NameCensus.com, Andersen is 963rd in a list of common U.S. surnames. But it is more common in Scandinavian countries, such as Norway and Denmark, where my dad’s family is originally from — and is apparently the fifth-most popular last name in Denmark.

I may not be famous, but James Andersen has certainly made a mark on history over time. James Andersen was once a brigadier general in the U.S. Army. James Andersen was also a Norwegian badminton player and a judge in Washington state.

James Anderson/Jim Anderson are well known, too, including:

∫ A former writer for “Saturday Night Live” who collaborated on sketches like the Californians.

∫ A former NFL linebacker who once had an impressive game against the Detroit Lions, because the announcers said his name a lot.

∫ A former first-round NBA player who spent time with four different teams.

∫ The current news editor for the Iron Mountain Daily News.

Web searches also turn up instances of James Anderson/James Andersen/Jim Anderson being a star in sports like cricket and soccer (or football), making contributions in the field of computer science, serving in politics, and a lot more.

I’ve even run across a few of them, myself.

The best same-name encounter I’ve ever had happened when I was about 16 and headed to Canada for a day of fishing. While filling out paperwork for a Canadian fishing license, the cashier exclaimed after I told him my name, “Jim Anderson? That’s my name!”

A few years ago, my wife and I took a weeklong trip across the Upper Peninsula and made our way over to Duluth, Minnesota for a daytrip. A man pushing two pugs around in a wagon approached us and we started chatting. Eventually, he passed us a business card with social media channels for the dogs, Lexi and Lena.

I took a look at the business card later in the afternoon, and, sure enough, the dog owner’s name is Jim Anderson.

I may not share a famous name with someone like Will Smith, John Wayne, or Jack Black, but that’s OK with me.

My name suits me just fine.

James Andersen can be reached at 989-358-5686 or jandersen@thealpenanews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ja_alpenanews.