Was Kermit named after a childhood friend of Jim Henson?

There have been rumors that Kermit was named after the original Sesame Street Muppet designer, Kermit Love. However, since Jim Henson had worked on Kermit since he was in the eighth grade, this cannot be the case. Henson said Kermit was named after one of his childhood friends, Theodore Kermit Scott, who is now a Professor of Philosophy at Purdue University.