As I work toward naming my coming babies, and I fall harder in love with names like [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] and [name_f]Theodora[/name_f] and [name_f]Evangeline[/name_f] and [name_f]Hazel[/name_f], it has occurred to me to wonder what will be popular as my little ones grow up. Clearly, it seems that many of my fellow name enthusiasts on this site are seeing the beauty in these (type of) names too. Not to mention nbs (rather distressing) habit of listing names by number of searches and leading me to believe that some of my favorite names were far more in use then I was happy with, until I realized the difference between local hospital and social security lists and nbs lists.
So, I now wonder. Is Nameberry, with its many name enthusiasts, a sort of subculture, where loving names like [name_f]Agnes[/name_f] or [name_m]Beau[/name_m] or [name_m]Walter[/name_m] (because they are awesome) en mass is sort of encapsulated, at least to a degree, or is the English speaking world in general beginning to wake up to these names? In other words, is my (very potential) [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] or [name_f]Freya[/name_f] or [name_f]Evangeline[/name_f] going to be in college classes with ten more girls with the same name? While I see the beauty in [name_f]Sophia[/name_f] and [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f], I wouldn’t use them because they are just too popular for me. What do you think? Are these names “old fashioned” names still obscure enough to be safe for a while longer?
I think it’s a little bit of both. Yes, people are reaching for older names, because they are starting to sound fresh again after a century of dormancy. But I do think that Nameberry tends to make these names sound way more popular than they are in the real world.
Mmm I don’t really think so, at least not where I live (in the US). I think you’re safe. I could see [name_f]Evangeline[/name_f] and [name_f]Hazel[/name_f] getting more popular but still not super popular. But I think you’re definitely safe with [name_f]Theodora[/name_f] and [name_f]Matilda[/name_f].
Among the wealthier/yuppie/yupster folks in [name_u]London[/name_u], it’s not just new babies but toddler and preschooler brothers and sisters who are named [name_u]Stanley[/name_u], [name_m]Rufus[/name_m], [name_f]Elodie[/name_f], [name_u]Evelyn[/name_u], [name_m]Jago[/name_m], [name_f]Sylvie[/name_f], [name_f]Xanthe[/name_f], [name_f]Primrose[/name_f], [name_f]Eliza[/name_f] etc. - names which on this site are often considered either unusual vintage choices or just under the radar. While this is a particular subset of people in a particular place, they do tend to be the types who trendset when it comes to names (or pretty much anything else), which makes me think that some of these names will be huge in the next few years. [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] and [name_f]Freya[/name_f] are already really quite popular. Damn these tastemakers who have beaten me to it!
These varying points of view are what goes through my mind lol. I’m in the USA, but I know that my lovely [name_f]Freya[/name_f] is popular over in [name_f]England[/name_f]. I didn’t know about [name_f]Matilda[/name_f]. I’ve always been sensitive to what names are in the top 100. Doesn’t mean I can’t love them (as in [name_m]Julian[/name_m]'s case, who insists on being in the top 50), but it has always meant that they aren’t as usable to me as names not so popular. Then it occurred to me to wonder, if I and so many nameberries love, say, [name_f]Matilda[/name_f]…will my little potential [name_f]Tillie[/name_f] be surrounded by Tillies? Maybe there is no help for it? [name_f]England[/name_f] seems to be on a slightly faster track with these names…is that true?
Yes, I know at least one baby born in the last 5 years with all of name you mentioned (I’m English), but that doesn’t mean that they will be popular in [name_u]America[/name_u] at all.
These names are all somewhat popular in [name_f]England[/name_f] (I know 2 [name_f]Freya[/name_f] [name_f]Jane[/name_f]'s just the combo itself, as well as knowing people with the other names) so I can’t answer truly, but Nameberry does have a way of making names seem more popular than they actually are.
Since you’re in the States I think you’re fine. Twenty years from now, if you can find a college class with 10 Matildas or Evangelines I’ll eat my shoe.
I didn’t realize these names were quite so popular over there. So interesting. But I am encouraged that it’s not such an epidemic here. Lol @southern.maple—fantastic!
I searched [name_f]Theodora[/name_f], [name_f]Matilda[/name_f], [name_f]Evangeline[/name_f], and [name_f]Hazel[/name_f] in the SSA’s records over the past 100 years.
[name_f]Theodora[/name_f] last appeared in the US top 1000 in 1954. [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] was #241 in 1914 but after it hit #933 in 1964, it disappeared from the top 1000 until 2008. It was at #645 for 2013. [name_f]Evangeline[/name_f] has a similar pattern - it was in the 400s from 1914 until 1935, then tapered down and disappeared after 1966 until 2006, and it was #300 for 2013. [name_f]Hazel[/name_f] was #26 in 1915, very slowly tapered down and disappeared after 1975, and then reappeared in 1998 and climbed to #157 in 2013.
So of those four names, in the US they have completely different courses popularity-wise and I think you have to take them on a case-by-case basis. While they share the vintage feel that lots of us like on NB, their actual use varies a ton. That said, when you look at the percentages of names’ use, [name_f]Hazel[/name_f] was used on 0.1068% of girls born in 2013, meaning that out of 1000 randomly selected girls born that year, only one would be likely to be named [name_f]Hazel[/name_f] (though of course there can be regional pockets where any name gets either a lot of use or very little use). So that’s still a far cry from there being 10 Hazels in a single class. Looking at the data from 1993, #157 was [name_f]Jillian[/name_f], and the name closest to 0.1068% was [name_f]Rebekah[/name_f], if that’s useful.
I have lived in four different states (worked with families and children) and I would say that these types of names are not currently becoming popular, and cannot see it happening in the near future.
I wouldn’t worry about your favorite names becoming too popular, only due to the fact that it doesn’t matter one bit. Sure there might be chance that [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] or [name_f]Theodora[/name_f] will be on the most popular baby name list but then again maybe it won’t. Like you, I love the name [name_f]Evangeline[/name_f] and I could care less if every girl in her class was named [name_f]Evangeline[/name_f] (but that would be weird tho). So if you really love those names, you should worry about it’s popularity. It should only matter that it means a lot to you personally.
I actually have both [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] and [name_f]Theodora[/name_f] on my longer list for girls…so while I may search their names frequently and try to find the perfect combo, ultimately, I’m not going to use either name, and I find that may be the case here. I’m guilty of this and I see several lists with a dozen gorgeous combos for little girls. Unless the user is literally planning on having twelve daughters, several of those names will never be in any use. So I never get too concerned when I see a list of six-twelve names and see a few names I love on there. Chances are, they’ll go with something else, just like [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] is in my top five and [name_f]Theodora[/name_f] is in my top 10, but neither made it to my top 2 (and I don’t think I plan on having more than 2 kids).
I think Nameberry is a somewhat skewed lens to look at names. If I were to tally up the names of the children born around me, I don’t see even one classic name I’d consider. Instead, it’s all names that end in -son, -en/an, ly; anything in the “[name_u]Aiden[/name_u]” or “[name_m]Brantley[/name_m]” family, etc. There’s nothing wrong with these names, but they just aren’t like the classic names I swoon over. In my area, my [name_f]Vivienne[/name_f] and [name_f]Cecelia[/name_f] will be fairly safe, I would like to think. I usually ask my friend’s mom who is a labor and delivery nurse what names she sees most, and I always run my list by here. Where I live, she says she has never seen a [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] in over twenty years. This pleased me.
I agree, they won’t be like ten in a class, although they are steadily climbing. [name_f]Matilda[/name_f], [name_f]Evangeline[/name_f], and especially [name_f]Hazel[/name_f] seem to appeal to the hipster masses. (Note [name_f]Hazel[/name_f] and [name_f]Matilda[/name_f] in my sig… I’ll neither deny nor confirm being a hipster!)
I think the popular names on Nameberry are definitely different than the popular names in the US. I personally have never met a [name_u]Jude[/name_u], [name_f]Freya[/name_f], or [name_f]Clementine[/name_f], but these names are mentioned all the time in the forums. I know far more Jacks, Sophies and [name_m]Wills[/name_m] than more unusual names. That being said, I do think [name_f]Hazel[/name_f] is an up and coming name, that is jumping up the charts due to some celebrities choosing it, and because of the Fault in Our Stars book/movie. Good luck choosing names for your twins! I’ll look forward to seeing what you decide!
[name_m]Long[/name_m] and detailed answer.
There are two things going on, one is the general concern for popularity for a name which I will address first. I’m sure you’ve read how name popularity just isn’t what it used to be and this is true. Statistically speaking, none of us should even really worry about the number one names. [name_u]Noah[/name_u] is under 1% of babies and [name_f]Sophia[/name_f] is a little over 1%. That means that that for every 100 students in the US you would expect to find ONLY ONE [name_f]Sophia[/name_f] or [name_u]Noah[/name_u]. So it’s pretty unlikely to share an initial these days even with the most popular names. Of course names don’t spread out evenly, they clump and the best way to find that is to look at the state stats or even better yet, listen to the names being called on the playgrounds in your area. I have yet to meet a little [name_f]Sophia[/name_f], [name_f]Isabella[/name_f], [name_u]Noah[/name_u] or [name_u]Mason[/name_u]. I have however, run into several children with the name [name_f]Charlotte[/name_f], [name_m]Henry[/name_m], [name_f]Violet[/name_f] and [name_u]Elliot[/name_u] (only boys) which are rated #11, #37, #69, #241. So trying to win the statistics game is really hard, it’s like trying to predict the stock market. It can be fun when it’s just a game but essentially futile and frustrating for a parent to be. People really just worry too much about it.
Not to mention, it’s a ways away. It’s not worth worrying about now what will happen then. By that time you’ll very likely have changed your mind about which names you’d like to use. Very few parents actually use their favorite childhood names and tastes change even in the few years in between children. This is very common, just ask some parents of multiple aged children!
Now on to Nameberry. Berries are name nerds and so they pay way more attention to names than the average person. Not to mention this site skews very young. There are many teenagers and many of them are very vocal and their conversation tends to dominate many threads. Teenagers though, are in a particular stage. [name_m]Young[/name_m] children want to fit in and so in grade school it’s likely that your son or daughter would want to have a popular name and be a [name_f]Sophia[/name_f] or [name_u]Noah[/name_u]. In the teenage years though, those are the years where you want to be a special snowflake and fit in by standing out. An [name_f]Elizabeth[/name_f] would have a fun time during those years as she would have many nicknames to try and explore a bunch of different identities. But for many of the younger people here, names aren’t about the child, they are a statement that reflects their own tastes. So they don’t always give very good advice. It’s all a game or a competitive sport about being the most fashionable and tasteful and not a thought to what the actual needs of a child are. In addition, in your grade school years and even into college years you are surrounded with other people just at the same age as you so that is why so many here complain about how there are just SO MANY with the name [name_f]Emily[/name_f] or [name_m]Jacob[/name_m]. There is a little bit of popular names were just more popular even only 15 years ago but also younger people are just more preoccupied with that kind of thing. By the time you are out in the work world you are in a group of people around 40 years apart and those generational differences just aren’t as noticeable anymore. I don’t remember the last time I met a [name_f]Jennifer[/name_f], which I remember there being SO MANY of in grade school, and that was over 3% of babies the year I was born. (Yes, I am an older mother) So to sum it up, the idea of popularity is greatly distorted in Nameberry forums.