KellyGirl Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 Add me to the list of expectant moms struggling to find a name for this little one. We're expecting number 4 in November and dh and I rarely find names we can agree on anymore. My dilemma is this - I would really like to stay away from anything popular (top 10) or trendy, but right now our top boy name (Ethan) and one of the few girl names we can even agree on (Isabella) are both top 10. He thinks it's crazy to worry about if the name is popular or not, esp. since we homeschool. I think we still intereact with lots of other people and it's annoying when you and three of your friends have the same name. However, I don't think we know any Ethans at all and have only heard of a few Isabellas in our circles. We know TONS of Aidens and Sophias, and Hannahs - and Aiden isn't even top 25. So, what do you think? I'm more concerned with Ethan than Isabella right now (I don't know if Isabella is our top girl pick or not), but am wondering what you think about top 10 names in general. And do you actually know lots of kids with top 10 names? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 Well, one thing to note is that a "top ten" is not what it once was. People are using so many more names now than generation or two back, that being a "top ten" name no longer guarantees that there will be 3 of that name in every classroom. The pool is just a lot more diluted with a variety of names. That said, *I* would avoid Isabella (Isabelle, Isabela, Isabel, Belle, Bella, etc), because I *have* been surrounded by them for ten years or so, and because of the popularity of the Twilight books (with movies set to continue coming out for the next several years). The books are giving a boost to an already popular name... And I wouldn't want people to assume that a pop culture phenomenon was where my child had gotten his / her name. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jewel7123 Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 How about Lorelai? That's my eldest daughter's name. You can also spell it Lorelei, but I chose to spell it the Gilmore Girls way. My second daughter's name is Caitlyn, WAY common and popular (DH chose it!) and my youngest is Bethany. I love the meaning of Bethany (daughter of the Lord). Meanings are important too! Lorelai does mean alluring, lol, but her middle name is Elizabeth, so she's beautiful but consecrated to God! =) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teachermom2834 Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 One of mine has a top 10 name. I knew it was popular at the time but it is a family name. I have to admit that it does bug me now. Yes, we know many others with this name. He goes by a nickname for it and even though I think it is a little babyish he likes that it sets him apart. I might do that one over if I had a chance. Everyone is different. A friend of mine that grew up with an unusual name was determined to give her dd a top ten name. I know a lot of Ethans and just a couple Isabellas. I think you just have to decide whether or not it bugs you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haiku Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 Here's a link to the Social Security Administration's lost of the top 1,000 most popular baby names. You can see how popular a name is and what it's popularity trend has been since the late 1800s. I just looked at the top 10 names for boys and girls, and I know at least one child with each of the names, and for a lot of the names, I know multiple kids with that name. We wanted a name that was not in the top 1,000, and we wanted a name that would mean our child to the people who said the name, not multiple children they knew who had the same name. Tara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladydusk Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 My grandmother was Emma Belle (isn't that beautiful?!) and I planned for *years* on using that for my first daughter, and then Rachel on Friends had to go and use Emma [frown]. Needless to say, I have no Emma, because it got too popular. Especially with girls, I don't like to use popular names ... I don't know how many Jennifers I went to school with, it seemed like half of the girls in my class of 400 was named Jennifer (which is a lovely name, it just gets confusing when there are 100!). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melinda in VT Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 DH and I wanted to avoid popular names. (His name is very, very popular and has been for at least the last hundred years.) However, we also didn't want made-up names. So of course we ended up with popular names for all four of our kids. :glare: Among other things, let's just say it would have been nice to have read abbeyej's post about 10 years ago. Clearly, we were not the only ones who thought that was a good name. The trouble with looking at the kids you know is that you might move. Even among popular names, there is a regional bias. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blessed2fosteradopt Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 I know that I will be absolutely no help but I just had to say that popular or not, I love the name Ethan! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amy g. Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 I don't have a name for baby number 5, partly because I don't want a name that is even on the top 100 list. The names NOT on that list feel too obscure and strange to Dh. I guess he is just going to trust me that they will become popular in 10 or 15 years. You should have heard the comments I got from naming Ds Henry. Now everyone is copying me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidsnbooks8 Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 My neighbor has 2 children and their names are Ethan and Isabella!! Both beautiful names and beautiful kids!:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hsmamainva Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 My youngest son's name is Matthew, and it's always in the top 10! But we haven't met that many boys his age with the name Matthew, so it's not like he hears the name every time he turns around. For example, there are close to 100 children in our homeschool group and I think there are only 2 other boys named Matthew in the group. So if you love one name in particular, go for it!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cathmom Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 I think it matters more for girls than for boys. My dh had 3 good friends all named Chris. So they just called each other last names. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hsmom27 Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 Well my boys both have popular names and we know no one with those names. Now my DD also has a popular name and I can think of 2 other girls in our HS group with her name. Also remember when looking at the SS list, every spelling counts separately. I'm a Katherine and it never makes the top 10. However, when you add number of girls being named any spelling of Cathryn, it soars up near #1 every year. I think that is more common among girl names and potentially an issue for Isabelle. Good Luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amy g. Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 This may be too long to post, but I just sent this list to Dh to see if he could find any names on it that he would agree to. Girls Names: Ada Adelaide * Adeline * Agatha Althea Amelia * Annabelle Arabella Athalie Augusta Aurelia Beatrice Bertha Belle Beulah Camille * Cecilia * Cecily Celeste Charlotte * Clara * Clarinda * Clarissa * Claudia * Clementine Constance Cordelia Corinne Christabel Cynthia Daphne * Delia Dolores Dorothy Edith Eleanor Elise * Eliza * Ellen Elnora Eloise Elsa Elspeth Emmeline * Erma Ernestine Esme Estelle Ethel Etta Eudora Eugenia Evangeline Felicity * Francine Frances Genevieve Georgia * Georgiana Gillian * Gladys Gwendolyn Harriet Hazel Helen Henrietta Hester Ida Iris * Isadora Jemima Josephine Judith Lavinia Leona Leonora Lila Lisette Louisa Loretta Lucia Lucinda Lucretia Lydia * Mabel Marion Martha * Matilda Mavis Melinda Mena Meredith * Millicent Miriam Myra Myrna Myrtle Nadine Naomi Octavia Opal Pearl Phoebe Priscilla Prudence Ramona Regina Roberta Rosalind Rosemary Ruth Simone Sonya Stella Susannah Sylvia * Theodora Theodosia Ursula Vada Viola * Violet * Virginia Vivian Wilhelmina Willa Winifred Zella Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amy g. Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 The stars next to the names mean that they are gaining in popularity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy loves Bud Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 (edited) Nymbler Here you can type in the names that you like and it will come up with bunches of names with similar styles. It's great if you want siblings to have a similar style of name, or if you want to find some less popular names in the style of Isabella and Ethan. Here is what it came up with for Isabella and Ethan for girls: Hannah Ella Mila Abigail Lena Anna Olivia Isabelle and for boys: Jonathan Nathan Isaac Tobias Ezra Aiden Benjamin Now you can take that list, eliminate the ones you don't like, add names you do like to the inspirations, and continue generating lists that are fine-tuned to your tastes. Watch out, it's quite addicting! ETA: Being an Amy, I avoided highly ranked names, because I always had a few other Amy's and it drove me nuts. Here is a great little toy that let's you look at name trends over the past century: Name Voyager Edited September 23, 2009 by Amy loves Bud answering original question Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KellyGirl Posted September 23, 2009 Author Share Posted September 23, 2009 Wow, Amy... Nymbler is really cool, I hadn't come across that sight before. Thanks! When I put in the names of my other boys, it pulled up a few of the names we have been talking about. It's interesting that a few of you said popularity matters more with girls names than with boys. Maybe that's why it bugs me more than it bugs dh. That and Kelly was pretty popular in the late 70's, while Todd has never been... Someone else recently pointed out the whole Isabella/Twilight thing to me, and that has the name just about crossed off for me. I keep hanging on to it just because it is something we had agreed on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wildiris Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 About unusual names, I gave both my sons what I though were strong male names, older more romantic names that in another country would be considered normal, but not here in the states. They both disliked their names as preteens--too feminine. However, when they became teenagers girls loved their names, and in fact the discussion of their names became an invitation to conversation. Their father wanted to name them a more common names such as Joe--too plain for me. After the two boy names I was fired from the naming staff and he named the two girls flower names. When I thought about naming my kids I thought about how that name would sound when they were 3, 30 and 60. Is it a name a person can grow into? What is the name's meaning and cultural connotation? Does the name fit the little person just born? As for naming from the top 10 list, I'd never do that. If I called my Isabella and six kids came running toward me thinking I called them, that warm, fuzzy feeling of having my child run to me would be lost. I guess I would want my kid to be as individual as thier name. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2denj Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 They are unique. My baby dd is Jamie-Lynn and my friend has a baby dd named Amelia-Grace. Yes, they go by the entire name. Just a thought.:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Katiebug_1976 Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 We never worry whether our favorite name is on a top list somewhere. Generally, we do not like to name our children after anyone we know, including family, with the exception of dd # 3 that was named after my grandmother & dh's grandmother. We also have the "a" thing going on w/ our kids names. They all ended up w/ names that start w/ "A," but not on purpose. But now w/ baby #6 coming in November, we cannot change it now. He would be the odd ball, so to speak. So we have chosen Aiden for his name (not sure about the spelling yet). I know it is a very popular name, and we even have an Aiden in our homeschool group, but it's a name that we like, and that's all that matters to us. Hope you find a name that fits for you. * I think Ethan and Isabella are both wonderful names! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KidsHappen Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 Three of my six ended up with top ten names for their time periods even though I made an extreme effort to avoid that with the girls. My son's name is Michael which has been a top ten at least since Biblical times but it was a family name and that was more important to me. The other two girls were picked from obscure sources only to find that apparently everyone else was doing the same thing. They might as well have been named Jennifer and Hannah. My oldest dd's name is Asia given the fact that she was born there. At the time, I had never heard of anyone named Asia but it turns out to not be that uncommon epsecially in children younger than her. I scored with two of the girls though. One I have only heard of the name used once before and never with the same spelling. The other, I have never heard of another girl with the same name. Even if you pick names that are not in the top ten right now. There is no telling if they will be in the top ten when you are due or a year after or two years after. Try to go with something that sounds similar (especially the ending) but is totally different. For instance someting like Michaela and Ayden. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danestress Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 as much as a "top ten" name that isn't also classic. William and Elizabeth are classic names - they are usually on the top ten list, but when you meet an Elizabeth, I don't think you can guess what decade she was born in. Madison is a top ten that isn't really "classic" sounding to me. I think it's very trendy (though lovely) and I think you can pretty much tell when you see the names, "Madison" "McKenzie" "Brittany" "Dakota" or "Sierra" what decade they were born in (or what era, anyway). That's not a bad thing for some people, but if you don't like 'top ten' names, I wonder if that's what you don't like about them. I don't know about Isabella or Ethan. I think maybe those would both be really classic sounding, even though they are also very trendy. They weren't used as much for a while, and now they are popular again, but if I write the name, "Ethan Smith" on a piece of paper, you probably don't know what century that person was born in, because it's more classic. Isabella is popular, but I think it has a timeless sound to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sara K Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 I wish I could offer a suggestion.....but I'm in the same boat. :lurk5: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yslek Posted September 23, 2009 Share Posted September 23, 2009 We try to avoid very popular names as well. I like the babycenter.com baby name site for gauging popularity. They list babycenter & US popularity rankings, along with a graph showing rise/fall in popularity. :) If our baby had been a girl, we would have named her Silvia Beatrice (or possibly Sophie Catherine, although Sophia is a bit too popular for our tastes right now. We'd probably have gone with Silvia.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amy g. Posted September 24, 2009 Share Posted September 24, 2009 Hooray! We agreed on a girl name today. Emailing the list helped. I'm excited that we are naming our forth daughter Vivien. It's not in the top 100 popular names, and it goes with our other girl names. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmrich Posted September 24, 2009 Share Posted September 24, 2009 Vivien what? It seems like it would go great with so many middle names. Congrats - my kids loved knowing the baby's name and I think it helped them prepare a little for her arrival - almost 8 years ago! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amy g. Posted September 24, 2009 Share Posted September 24, 2009 Vivien Jackson We had already agreed on the middle name Jackson after my grandfather who was named after Stonewall Jackson. We are going to watch Gone with the Wind with Vivien Leigh to celebrate! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zaichiki Posted September 24, 2009 Share Posted September 24, 2009 I know that I will be absolutely no help but I just had to say that popular or not, I love the name Ethan! :D Oooh... yeah... me too. No help here, but I LOVE Isabella! That's become popular, huh? I remember when I was a kid and it was an "old lady" name. Ha! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cathmom Posted September 24, 2009 Share Posted September 24, 2009 Vivien Jackson We had already agreed on the middle name Jackson after my grandfather who was named after Stonewall Jackson. We are going to watch Gone with the Wind with Vivien Leigh to celebrate! I really like that! Congrats on picking a name! It took us forever to figure out our 7th child's name! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zaichiki Posted September 24, 2009 Share Posted September 24, 2009 One of mine has a top 10 name. I knew it was popular at the time but it is a family name. Oh yeah... same here. Dd was named after her great grandmother. The name was given nearly a hundred years ago halfway around the world. But... it's uber-popular in the US now apparently. Sigh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Natalieclare Posted September 24, 2009 Share Posted September 24, 2009 Even if you pick names that are not in the top ten right now. There is no telling if they will be in the top ten when you are due or a year after or two years after. QUOTE] Boy will I attest to that! The names of my oldest 2 were ranked 75 and 92 when they were born! (Look at 'em now:tongue_smilie:) Then, when I was pregnant with my son Charles, I thought of using the name Ava. I loved that name so much that I tried talking several of my friends into using it after we learned we were having a boy. (I thought we were done having kids.) Fast forward 7 years to my next pregnancy, I was looking up names on the name voyager site with my daughter Sophia next to me when I saw that Ava was in the top 10. I groaned out loud. I said, "Well, that axes that name!" My daughter, 9 at the time, reprimanded me, "Mom, you raised us to like what we like regardless of what anyone else likes." What could I say to that? We named our next daugher Ava! So I now I have mixed feelings on the top 10 names. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brenda in FL Posted September 24, 2009 Share Posted September 24, 2009 Here's a link to the Social Security Administration's lost of the top 1,000 most popular baby names. You can see how popular a name is and what it's popularity trend has been since the late 1800s. I just looked at the top 10 names for boys and girls, and I know at least one child with each of the names, and for a lot of the names, I know multiple kids with that name. We wanted a name that was not in the top 1,000, and we wanted a name that would mean our child to the people who said the name, not multiple children they knew who had the same name. Tara My daughters name was in the top 10 at the turn of last century! It's really low on the list now!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mama2cntrykids Posted September 24, 2009 Share Posted September 24, 2009 I'm glad you found something! I'm pretty sure that my boy's names especially won't be on the top 100 list anytime soon. They are really cool names though, if I do say so myself, lol~! My dd otoh, her name is climbing. It's a classic and very pretty and uncommon, apparently many ppl are thinking that way though, lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swellmomma Posted September 24, 2009 Share Posted September 24, 2009 2 of mine have top 10ish names. Austin is a 5th generation name in our family so I didn't care how popular it was that year his name was set in stone the minute I knew I was having a boy. We now know tons of Austin's but that is the way it goes. Isabelle is not specifically a top 10 name but everyone seems to call her Isabella which is of course not her actual name. If I had more kids I have chosen the girl to be named Ariana, and a boy to be named Tristan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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