please excuse my edit
This may seem odd, but I’m more okay with popular boys names than girl names. However, I prefer not having names in the top 1000 b/c my name isn’t in the top 1000. My ideal number is anything below 150 babies.
If I truly truly love a name, I would use it no matter what. My favourite names aren’t very popular in [name]England[/name]… mainly because I’m in love with french names (most of them are in the top 100 in [name]France[/name] & we’re considering moving to [name]Paris[/name]). I used to want really special, unique names, but now that I am pregnant, and it’s an actual baby I’m naming, I just want a name I love.
I don’t think that popularity alone should deter you from using a name you love. If you love the name, and it’s a name you can see an adult having, I say it’s fair game. Many popular names are popular because they are beautiful names!
I think there are varying degrees. For example, [name]Elizabeth[/name], [name]Catherine[/name] or [name]Charlotte[/name] could probably never get too popular to deter me entirely from considering there. But if say, [name]Araminta[/name] or [name]Sterling[/name] skyrocketed to the top 50, it would be out for sure. But I do think one of the most important factors is where you live, especially if you’re planning to stay there. For example, I know 4 local girls named [name]Sophie[/name] or [name]Sofia[/name] so anything similar would be out.
Depends on the size of your state? (useless answer, lol) A name being in the top 100, even the top 50 doesnt bother me. I get a little nervous if I see it in the top 5 in my state, but really, I’m even starting to reconsider this a little (DH loves [name]Olivia[/name] and doesnt show any sign of getting over that).
I try not to dwell too much on numbers just because you never know how things will pan out: just because there are 300 Madelines and only 30 Phoebes in your state (made those numbers up, dont read into them!) doesnt mean you wont land in a classroom with another [name]Phoebe[/name] and no Madelines. [name]One[/name] of the classes I taught last year had 2 Lydias, 2 Amayas and no Sophias or Isabellas, the dreaded class roster repeat can happen to anyone. (Now I’ve scared every popularity-phobe for miles around…)
Depends on the name I guess. I’ve got my names picked out, and I can’t see anything changing them, but for others I think it would depend on how significant the name is to them, family significance or some personal assicaition for example. Although I don’t know how I would personally feel about being one of 4 [name]Isabella[/name] [name]Rose[/name]'s in my class. The thing is, it is a gorgeous name combination and I can see why it’s so popular. I think in that case it depends on the person, and whether or not they think that their name really defines their personality and defines them as an individual etc etc… Not sure if this is really on track or not, but that’s my 2 cents worth!
I went crazy researching popularity when we were naming my son and then we ended up choosing a top 20 name (possibly top 10–I didn’t check the lists again after naming him) because it felt right and we love it. So next time, I’m going to really try not to let the popularity thing bother me (though it is very easy to get sucked in). I think if you love a name and it feels right, you can’t worry about popularity. Your child’s personality will make their name special and your child will be unique and wonderful even if they are one of 2 or 3 Sophies in their class.
I feel the same way! Well, not that I’m more okay with it, but that I tend to have more popular boys’ names on my list.
I am 100% in love with the name [name]Alexander[/name] for a boy, and always have been. For that reason, I would use it, as long as my SO agreed to it, even though it is the #1 name in my state from last year! I was disappointed when I first saw that, but I’m over it. I posted about it on here a long time ago, and everyone convinced me that it is too great of a name to pass up. People have said before that popular names are popular for a reason (not talking about trendy names).
My name is [name]Kathryn[/name], but I have always gone by [name]Katy[/name]. I was one of several [name]Katy[/name]/[name]Katie[/name]'s in school, though the only one that spelled it with a “y.” It didn’t bother me at all to share my name with other girls–I actually enjoyed meeting other [name]Katy[/name]/[name]Katie[/name]'s. The last job I worked was at a movie theater concession stand, and at one time, there were four [name]Katy[/name]/[name]Katie[/name]'s (one spelled Caty actually) and two Kates, and we all loved it!
So if you love a name, I don’t think it could ever be too popular.
I HATE popular names and do whatever I can to avoid them. I typically don’t like, and won’t even consider names that are in the top 50. That being said, of my 3 children, I have a son and a daughter who have top 10 names. Ugh. With my son, I don’t really mind it because it was not a top 10 name when he was born, so he’s never one of several wherever he goes. With my next son’s name, we did well. His name has remained comfortably out of the top 100. I have always received many compliments on their names.
My daughter’s name is the one that upsets me. See, I wanted to give her a name that is #400 and something on popularity lists. Then I made the mistake of telling it to a friend who turned around and used it for her daughter first. I then chose a name that isn’t even in the top 1000. I loved it. It’s a great name with a great meaning and my original girl name could have been a nickname for it. DH would not agree to it, though. He “brilliantly” came up with a name that was 1 letter off from our original girl name - that also happens to be the #8 girl name in our state for 2011. I did not want to give my daughter that name, but that’s what we ended up naming her after 2 days of arguing in the hospital. I try to think of the positives, but she’s almost 2 months old and I’m still upset about it. When I think of her being one of 5 in her class, it almost makes me physically sick. [name]Even[/name] though the name is pretty, I nearly bring myself to tears when I think of how unoriginal it is, because I never wanted a name like that for my only daughter.
Popular names don’t bother me at all. Sometimes I get sick of names I hear often, and then I don’t like them. But if I love a name that happens to be popular it’s not a big deal to me.
Names being in the top 200 bugs me. But I would use one below the top 150 if I really loved it. I just don’t want my child being one of a number of Sophias, Olivias, etc. Popularity does bug me. I want my child to stand out in his/her life, not be “just another” whatever the name is.
I’m not saying it would bug me if we ran into another child with the same name OCCASIONALLY. But, 3 in one classroom would drive me nuts.
I’d say that when I fall in love with a name and I find that it is in the 300-400 range on the popularity list, it just makes me love the name even more and can be a deciding factor when I am choosing it.
I know people say “if you really love a name then you won’t care.” But, that is not how I feel. But I’ve never really liked any of the popular names, either, such as [name]Sophia[/name], [name]Emma[/name], [name]Olivia[/name], [name]Elizabeth[/name]. I absolutely HATE [name]Elizabeth[/name], actually. Horrible name.
I do really love [name]Emily[/name] though, and I know that is up there. [name]Anna[/name] is sweet too.
It all depends on the name but I’d say I would not use anything above the top 150 if I absolutely loved it and names I sort of like need to be in the 300-400 range.
I’ve been having an internal debate on these questions for a while now. I sort of gave it an arbitrary “outside the top 20” cut-off. However, I feel it is more important to look at regional, state, or if possible local trends rather than the whole nation. For example, my name was in the twenties when I was born, and while I have known several people with my name I have never had to share it within the same classroom growing up so it was really a non-issue.
I really like the name [name]Gage[/name], which sits comfortably outside the top 100. However, my wife whom is a teacher has had about 4 Gages in a very short period of time in our town and the name is ruined for her, and by proxy, me.
I think there are many factors at play. For starters, I am a [name]Jennifer[/name] who grew up in the 80’s. [name]Even[/name] the [name]Emma[/name]'s, [name]Emily[/name]'s, [name]Isabella[/name]'s and [name]Sophia[/name]'s of today will never experience the “[name]Jennifer[/name] factor” of their very popular names being that the % of the top 10 names are not nearly as large in the naming population per year as the top 10 were back when I was growing up. So, if I loved let say [name]Sophia[/name] and used it, she will most likely run into a few but not have the gazillion [name]Sophia[/name]'s in her graduating class like I did with [name]Jennifer[/name].
My youngest has a name that has risen a lot over the past few years due to I believe her having a name that is the trifecta of old fashioned, a flower name, and chosen by a celeb a few years before. I do see it rising and while it does bother me to a degree (I must admit, I do like when strangers comment on my other childrens name and how unusual they are, I live in the US in an area where trendy/common names are the norm) and while we do run into other little [name]Violet[/name]'s every so often, there isnt nearly the % of them to make me uncomfortable in that my child/ren will have to don their last initial in large group situations like I did and be known as one of many with that name (which I experience even now…just scrolling down on FB and typing in “[name]Jen[/name]…” there are so many people i know having my same name!).
Like a pp said, its different when naming an actual person then it is to dream about names and name combos and what you like and might use it. If one of my kids names shot up significantly (top 5) in the next few years then so be it, we chose what we did because we loved the names and thought they fit. My [name]Bronwen[/name] would be just as adorable as an [name]Emily[/name] and just as sweet even if I would meet other girls with her name often. 
Well I would use any name I loved regardless of popularity. The most popular name in my State was given to only 102 girls last year.
The names I tend to like are out of the top 100 so I don’t really have a problem. The only thing that would prevent me from using a name I love is if I knew 5 other babies with the same name. I knew 5 [name]Sarah[/name]'s, 3 [name]Emily[/name]'s, and 4 [name]Katie[/name]'s growing up (all the same age) it was annoying for them and us as friends because when we said [name]Sarah[/name], no one knew who we were talking to. It was hard on teachers and usually they resulted to calling them by their last names. So I would definitely try to avoid that.