Crimson Wife Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 The names are for the most part lovely, but totally boring at this point as most of them have been in the top 20 since when I was pregnant with my oldest back in 2002. http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/babynames/ Aren't we due for some turnover at the top at least among the girls? How many more Emmas, Olivias, Sophias, Isabellas, and Avas does this country need? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustEm Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 Well I named my 2015 baby Persephone but I doubt that will ever be in the top 20 list or even close. 16 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 Emma still isn't nearly as popular as it was 100 years ago, when the most popular names took up a much greater share than they do today. Out of every million births, there are about 6000 Emmas. That's not so many. In the 1880s there were 8000 of them out of every million births. (Source: Baby Name Wizard.) None of those names comes close to the historical predominance of Mary (30,000 out of every million births back in its heyday) or Jennifer (16,000 per million). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poppy Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 The girl names are very familiar, but I was surprised by the #1 boy name. It's not because of Russell Crowe is it? Also surprised to see Ethan roaring back. Very 1990s. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 The girl names are very familiar, but I was surprised by the #1 boy name. It's not because of Russell Crowe is it? Also surprised to see Ethan roaring back. Very 1990s. I shouldn't think so. Noah began rising dramatically in the 80s and especially 90s. The factors which lead to name trends are generally more complex than a single movie or a single star. Ethan also had nothing to be "roaring back" from. Its popularity never declined after the 90s. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingersmom Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 I'm happy my daughters name ranks above 200 and my sons name is in the 25-50 range. They rarely meet kids their own age with their names, apparently they are not unusual enough :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poppy Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 I shouldn't think so. Noah began rising dramatically in the 80s and especially 90s. The factors which lead to name trends are generally more complex than a single movie or a single star. Ethan also had nothing to be "roaring back" from. Its popularity never declined after the 90s. I've never met a Noah. Perhaps it's regionally popular. I was kidding about Russell Crowe. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 I've never met a Noah. Perhaps it's regionally popular. Maybe? You can find the top five baby names by state in 2013 on the SS Website as well. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted May 8, 2015 Author Share Posted May 8, 2015 Out of every million births, there are about 6000 Emmas. And somehow I seem to know a zillion little girls named Emma, Emily, Emilie, Emme, Emmeline, etc. Ditto for Sophia, Sofia, Sophie, Zofiya, etc. And Isabella, Isabelle, Isabel, Izabela, etc. And Ava & Eva (pronounced with a long a rather than long e). Pretty names but I'm so over them by this point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KrissiK Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 Four of my five children have hit the top 100 in the past 20 years. "Annabeth" has never reached the top 1,000, ever. Hmmm! And it's such a pretty name! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 And somehow I seem to know a zillion little girls named Emma, Emily, Emilie, Emme, Emmeline, etc. Ditto for Sophia, Sofia, Sophie, Zofiya, etc. And Isabella, Isabelle, Isabel, Izabela, etc. And Ava & Eva (pronounced with a long a rather than long e). Pretty names but I'm so over them by this point. Well, either your area has ALL the Emmas (and Avas and Isabellas and Sophias) or you're suffering from a frequency illusion. I'd be surprised if you honestly know more child Emmas and Sophias than you do adult Jennifers and Lindas. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joker Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 It always surprises me to see my dd's name on the list. We found out after we named her that her name was the most popular that year, and it's been in the top ten for the past 15 years since her birth. Yet, she rarely ever meets a peer with her name and we've lived in four states since (traveled from west coast to east coast). She's never had someone with her name in a class of hers either. I wonder where they all are? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
purpleowl Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 If you look at "Popular Names by Birth Year" (from the link in the OP), you can change it so you can view the top 1000 names. And if you go here: http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/babynames/limits.html, you can download a zip file where you can see all the names given to at least 5 babies in a given year. It gets a lot more interesting past the top 20. :) (Not that there aren't perfectly lovely names in the top 20! Just that it's more interesting trends to see beyond those.) hjffkj, there were 199 baby girls named Persephone in 2014, up from 169 in 2013. I wonder if 2015 will be the year that Persephone hits the top 1000? My oldest's name has been slowly but steadily rising over the last several years, and is at #108 for 2014. (I don't mind you guys knowing her name, I just don't want to type it here.) My other two have names that are not in the top 1000. DD#2's name had 242 births in 2014, up from 167 in 2013, and I wouldn't be surprised if it breaks into the top 1000 for 2015. DS's name, well, he was one of 11 born last year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.Michelle. Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 Two have mine have moved from the 90s at their naming to the 30s now. The other two are in the 200s and 300s and there they will probably remain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sassenach Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 I always find it interesting to look at the top names by state (that list hasn't been published, yet), because the regional differences can be pretty pronounced. As for the top ten, I know 3 baby girls born so far this year- Mia, Melia, and Melina. I wasn't surprised to see one of those names on the top 10, and I bet more and more M---A names will be showing up. I was surprised that Daniel is back in the top 10. I love that name, but I haven't really seen it around much since the 80s/90s. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 My youngest is named Mason. When we picked that name, several people had never heard of it. (We originally chose it in 2003, but had a girl.) I think it was hovering around #50 on the SSA list then. But it rose meteorically. It was number one or two in my state a year or two ago. Most Masons we meet are around five years old or younger. The lesson here is that it is hard to guess when a name will become popular, although you're probably safe from that if you pick something that hasn't broken five hundredth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kewb Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 I am surprised my husband's name dropped out of the top 20. My son's is in the top 100 for 2014, although I have only met one other boy with his name. My daughter's is not in the top 100. The year she was born it was a top 20. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 I always find it interesting to look at the top names by state (that list hasn't been published, yet), because the regional differences can be pretty pronounced. As for the top ten, I know 3 baby girls born so far this year- Mia, Melia, and Melina. I wasn't surprised to see one of those names on the top 10, and I bet more and more M---A names will be showing up. I was surprised that Daniel is back in the top 10. I love that name, but I haven't really seen it around much since the 80s/90s. http://www.babynamewizard.com/voyager#prefix=daniel&sw=both&exact=true Daniel's been in the top ten. It only left in the last few years, and even then it was ranked 11 and 12. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alisoncooks Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 When my Charlotte was born, it wasn't even a top 100 (it was 125 in 2006). Now it's #10! Wow. My youngest's name is still fairly unused. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 It's pretty easy to see what many of the top names were 14 - 18 years ago when one works in a public high school. Some of them haven't changed a bit. I had 4 Courtneys in one class today (some with different spellings). I had 4 Jacobs in one class yesterday. There are plenty of Emmas and Mackensies and Daniels and, well, all of the top names. I'm not sure if it makes it tougher or easier to remember the kids with those names. It definitely can make it easier to guess a name. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MistyMountain Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 Two of my kids names are really climbing. I knew my youngest's name was getting more popular but it has been going up more then I anticipated and is in a higher position then I thought it would get. The other name wasn't rising but seems to have really jumped this year. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catz Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 Madison is still popular!? I know Madisons that are graduating high school now. I never understood why that got popular. It's a president. It's the capitol of Wisconsin (which is somewhere I travel through regularly). It was the mermaid's name in the movie Splash. Seems very dated to me. I don't know any kids named Mason. I know a bunch of Liams though. My dd's name climbed many, many points in the rankings the year after her birth annoyingly. I don't think either of my kids has ever been in the top 20 since they were born anyway. My son's was popular for a little bit before he was born. But it's also my maiden name, so it has extra significance to us. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted May 8, 2015 Share Posted May 8, 2015 My youngest's name is towards the bottom of the boy list, but IRL, I only know one other little guy with his name (he's a few years older than my toddler). I've known a handful of them over the years, not nearly as many as I've known of all ages with my own name, which isn't currently in the top ten but is generally hovering close to it, for the last hundred years or so. What I do know several of are my second son -- his name seems to be everywhere, especially in the younger crowd -- and several of my third son as well. I think both of their names are both reasonably recent popular trends: classic, Biblical names that happen to be in fashion recently. (DS1's name was allegedly popular the year he was born, but I only know a couple of those as well. And I do tend to run in circles where Biblical names are popular.) DD's name is less common than my name, but I've always known a few of them at every age. It's not an unusual name at all, but I'm not sure the last time it was in the top ten. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustEm Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 Of my 4 children, 2 don't even make it in the top 1000, one is ranked in the 900's, and one is in the 200's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pod's mum Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 My name pegs my decade. My eldest's name has remained constant, rarer, but used for centuries. Youngest is also an older name. Didn't rank on this chart for decades, until a few years after her birth and is now rapidly rising up the chart. Sigh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacia Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 My dc, w/ the ways their names are spelled, each showed up with a message: "_____ is not in the top 1000 names for any year of birth beginning with 1900. Please enter another name." :lol: Looks like the highest my name has ever been is 577th place. :laugh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeachyDoodle Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 When my Charlotte was born, it wasn't even a top 100 (it was 125 in 2006). Now it's #10! Wow. My youngest's name is still fairly unused. Mine either. My Charlotte was 2005. I thought I had the perfect not-common-but-not-strange name. It will probably hit the top 5 or higher now that Princess Charlotte has arrived. Maybe we're just trendsetters? :glare: Actually, both of my dc are at #10 this year. But ds is named for a dear family member we lost, so I wasn't trying to pick a less common name in his case. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted May 9, 2015 Author Share Posted May 9, 2015 Well, either your area has ALL the Emmas (and Avas and Isabellas and Sophias) or you're suffering from a frequency illusion. I'd be surprised if you honestly know more child Emmas and Sophias than you do adult Jennifers and Lindas. No, I *DEFINITELY* knew more Jennifers, Jessicas, Amandas, Michelles, Stephanies, Kristins/Kristens/Kristines, etc. growing up. There were SIX girls named "Jennifer" in my kindergarten class alone. Lindas are older than me. Ditto for all the Karens, Sharons, Donnas, Deborahs, Susans, Pamelas, etc. A wider variety of names are used now, but it seems like there is slower "turnover" in popularity than there used to be. The '50's had a distinct set of popular names vs. the '60's vs. the '70's vs. the '80's. But the names that were popular in 2000 are still for the most part the ones that are popular today in 2015. The only one that I'm hearing a lot less frequently on babies now than when my oldest was little is Caitlin/Katelyn/etc. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 I have one kid in the top 10, at the time we named them we had no clue, we knew one kid with the same name. Even now I am more likely to run into kids with the same name as another one of my kids, whose name was in the top 20s but is no longer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 Neither of my children's names appear on the SSA lists for their respective birth years. This means fewer than five children of the same gender were given that same name that year. I haven't searched all the years, but neither will ever be likely to run into someone with their name. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daffodil Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 My kids' names are all ranked somewhere between 50 and 80. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anne in CA Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 LOL,my youngest is Elizabeth Francis. The nuns who came to visit me at the Catholic hospital where she was born really approved. I had no idea how far down the list those names were. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxbridgeacademy Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 When I chose DD's name (Aubrey in 2002) it was barely in the top 200, it's now consistently in the top 20, this does not make me happy. ETA: My name of course has never appeared in the top 1000, Thanks, Mom. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DesertBlossom Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 Mine either. My Charlotte was 2005. I thought I had the perfect not-common-but-not-strange name. It will probably hit the top 5 or higher now that Princess Charlotte has arrived. Maybe we're just trendsetters? :glare: Actually, both of my dc are at #10 this year. But ds is named for a dear family member we lost, so I wasn't trying to pick a less common name in his case. My Charlotte is 2007. It's a family name and I love it, but I prefer not to use names that are trendy and popular. So this ascent to #10 really bugs me. Oh well. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 For fun, here's the latest official ones I could find in England and Wales for boys and girls. And here's Scotland. My boys' names don't make the top 100, despite being completely normal and normally spelled saint's names. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
medawyn Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 My sweet little Josephine is one of 2255 for 2014. The name is ooching up the charts, but I wouldn't mind if it stayed put in the mid-100s. My name is now in the top 10 (and has been for a while) but was in the mid-100s when I received it. It's strange to hear my name and turn around to find someone addressing their toddler. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucyStoner Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 A wider variety of names are used now, but it seems like there is slower "turnover" in popularity than there used to be. The '50's had a distinct set of popular names vs. the '60's vs. the '70's vs. the '80's. But the names that were popular in 2000 are still for the most part the ones that are popular today in 2015. The only one that I'm hearing a lot less frequently on babies now than when my oldest was little is Caitlin/Katelyn/etc. Emily had a 12 year run as #1 until 2008 when Emma, Isabella and Sophia started trading spaces. Before Emily, 9 years of Jessica broken up by 2 years of Ashley. Jennifer was number one for 14 straight years until 1985 and before that it was Lisa for 8 years. I don't think there's that much less turnover and there sure is more than when it was all Mary for 40+ years excepting a six year Linda break. http://www.ssa.gov/oact/babynames/top5names.html 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 I accidentally gave one of my kids the #1 name of the year s/he was born. This was before the internet when it was a lot harder to follow naming trends so I honestly had no idea how popular it was. The child forgives me anyway. Neither of us can imagine any other name fitting. Emily had a 12 year run as #1 until 2008 I wanted to name my '88er Emily, but XH nixed it as an "old lady name", lol. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tsuga Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 Well I named my 2015 baby Persephone but I doubt that will ever be in the top 20 list or even close. That was on my list as well. I love Persephone. My daughter's name is trending upwards with many other Classics-themed names. I don't mind. I think it's beautiful. If it were in the top ten that would be fine with me. I used to care about names being popular or non-teasable and now I think it's all about that beautiful baby as an individual. Are brown eyes less beautiful, because they are more common? Not in my opinion. :) 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 I'm happy my daughters name ranks above 200 and my sons name is in the 25-50 range. They rarely meet kids their own age with their names, apparently they are not unusual enough :) That's what I aim for, too. Classic, simple, but not highly common names with no weird spelling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RioSamba Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 Here is a link to a fun .gif map that shows the most popular name in each state starting in 1960: http://cdn.theatlantic.com/assets/media/img/posts/2013/12/ku_bigpicgirls/e0f4637d6.gif I was very surprised to see which states first broke away from Jennifer. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 For fun, here's the latest official ones I could find in England and Wales for boys and girls. And here's Scotland. My boys' names don't make the top 100, despite being completely normal and normally spelled saint's names. My kids' names aren't listed there, either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter's Moon Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 I adore the name Sophia - love the sound, love the meaning, and love that it's used in the church I am part of during the service (Orthodox Church). I'd be very uneasy about using it, however, due to its popularity. Who knows, maybe a few years from now if I still love it I'll use it anyways. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelli Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 I have a Sophia and it was the #6 name the year she was born. The funny thing is that we only know one other girl with that name and her name is legally Sophie not Sophia. My dh and I loved the classic name and the meaning so we didn't care about popularity trends. We never had any other names on the table for her. We both loved it and agreed to it instantly. I also loved the international appeal of the name. It can be found as a name in a LOT of different languages and cultures (Russian, Arabic, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Greek, etc.). Our oldest, Grace, was #13 the year she was born, but we have yet to meet any other Graces. Lots of combo names that have Grace in it like Emmagrace or Annagrace, but no just plain Grace. I really wanted to name her Evelyn, but dh vetoed that because it would make her initials spell EGG. Evelyn was #88 the year she was born so that would have been more rare, but now it's shot up to #16 this past year! Our youngest, Levi was the oddball. His name was ranked #70 the year he was born. The other name we considered was Seth (#164) which was much less popular than Levi. All of our kids names have special meanings to us so it doesn't really matter in the end how popular they are. Plus all the kids love their names which makes me happy. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cottonwood Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 D's name not in top 1000 ever with my spelling (dropped a letter at the end). Add the letter and its in the top 200-300 in the last decade. Dd, not in the top 1000 till 2005 when it broke through at 965.lol. A slow increase till 2010 when it jumped to 400 something and now its 269. Wonder if Good Luck Charlie had anything to do with that. She has never met another female Charlie until last week when she was in the same room with one and it nearly flipped her out. Lol 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelli Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 D's name not in top 1000 ever with my spelling (dropped a letter at the end). Add the letter and its in the top 200-300 in the last decade. Dd, not in the top 1000 till 2005 when it broke through at 965.lol. A slow increase till 2010 when it jumped to 400 something and now its 269. Wonder if Good Luck Charlie had anything to do with that. She has never met another female Charlie until last week when she was in the same room with one and it nearly flipped her out. Lol I know two female Charlies! One is in her mid-30's and the other is only 2. :hurray: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cottonwood Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 I know two female Charlies! One is in her mid-30's and the other is only 2. :hurray: That's awesome! Dd just leaned over my shoulder and said she's learned all female Charlie's are not created equally...because 100% of the people who meet her want to know what Charlie is short for. They all think of Charlotte or Charlene. But she was just named Charlie. Her dads name is Charles and she was the first born. She is still on the hunt for a female whose birth certificate has Charlie on it. She says that "they" are truly unique and oh so rare. Lol. Teens! But really, I always ask those who know female Charlie's if that is their given name, too. It never occurred to me when naming her that it was a nickname, short for something, too. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted May 9, 2015 Author Share Posted May 9, 2015 The funny thing is that we only know one other girl with that name and her name is legally Sophie not Sophia. Our oldest, Grace, was #13 the year she was born, but we have yet to meet any other Graces. They must all live near me, LOL! There were a Sophia, a Sofia, and a Grace on my little one's soccer team. Not as bad as my 6 kindergarten classmates named Jennifer though. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alisoncooks Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 That's awesome! Dd just leaned over my shoulder and said she's learned all female Charlie's are not created equally...because 100% of the people who meet her want to know what Charlie is short for. They all think of Charlotte or Charlene. But she was just named Charlie. Her dads name is Charles and she was the first born. She is still on the hunt for a female whose birth certificate has Charlie on it. She says that "they" are truly unique and oh so rare. Lol. Teens! But really, I always ask those who know female Charlie's if that is their given name, too. It never occurred to me when naming her that it was a nickname, short for something, too. My cousin named his firstborn daughter (born a year ago) Charlie. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelli Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 That's awesome! Dd just leaned over my shoulder and said she's learned all female Charlie's are not created equally...because 100% of the people who meet her want to know what Charlie is short for. They all think of Charlotte or Charlene. But she was just named Charlie. Her dads name is Charles and she was the first born. She is still on the hunt for a female whose birth certificate has Charlie on it. She says that "they" are truly unique and oh so rare. Lol. Teens! But really, I always ask those who know female Charlie's if that is their given name, too. It never occurred to me when naming her that it was a nickname, short for something, too. Both of these Charlies are birth certificate Charlies, so let your dd know that there are at least two more out in the world besides her! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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