I’m just curious. Does a name’s popularity affect your choice/love it of it? Or is that important to you at all?
I always struggle with loving a name when I see that it’s super popular. But then I think- does popularity really matter if it is a name that DH and I love? [name_m]Will[/name_m] my child really care if they are Name # 2 in their class?
Popularity matters quite a bit to me for a variety of reasons.
We have an extremely common last name, so by choosing a popular name we not only run the risk of our child being [name_f]Sophia[/name_f] R., but also the very real possibility of someone in our child’s class/activity sharing the EXACT same name.
I find it incredibly annoying to have to specify which person you are talking about. My husband, my brother, and our best friend all share the same name. It gets confusing to say the least, and while giving our child a relatively uncommon name wouldn’t prevent that from happening, it would drastically reduce the likelihood.
In occasions where you do have to specify which individual with the same name you are referring to, the possibility is opened up for upsetting descriptions. For example, I went to school with two girls that shared the same first name and last initial. Behind their backs, they were commonly referred to as “Big Name” and “[name_m]Little[/name_m] Name”. The girl referred to as “Big” was only ~5’2" so the name was a description of her weight much more than her height. I wouldn’t wish that on my kid if I could potentially prevent it.
I just get bored of names I hear all the time. They lose their luster to me, and I’m always disappointed when someone I know chooses a super common name.
Popularity doesn’t matter to me at all. You can not predict the names of everyone that will be around your child for their lifetime. When you are naming an actual child you need to use the names that really speak to you. You will say, write, see, yell this name millions of times throughout your lifetime. The name will become that person. Who cares what some chart says. The name needs to be special to you.
I may already strongly associate the name with someone else and I want my kid to have his/her own unique identity.
That being said, yes, in general I avoid ultra popular names. Execption being names I really love for a long time, because if I already love it that much, I think the popularity and popularity alone should not be a dealbreaker. In that case I’d just pair it with more uncommon middle(?), like in my [name_f]Isabelle[/name_f] combo (on the sig.).
It matters a lot to me
[name_f]Maria[/name_f] is a really popular name here, the most popular, and all the [name_f]Maria[/name_f]'s I know hate their name because of it, your child probably will care. You dont want your kid to hate their name, its the worst feeling, i’d know
If a name is popular it loses its charm, since everyone uses it and its not special anymore
I care a lot. I have an unusual name, and have always liked being the only one in the room. My husband has a very common name and always has at least one other in any group. I also know that my friends with really common names generally dislike it. ([name_f]Rebecca[/name_f], [name_f]Samantha[/name_f], and I know a ton of [name_f]Brittany[/name_f]'s as well.) I want to give my kids something under the top 100 to try and avoid that. (popularity in our state matters too.)
Popularity is a really big thing for me. Based on my own experiences of having quite an unusual name, I’d much prefer my kids have different, interesting, but great names that make people go ‘Wow! That’s a cool/interesting name!’, but they’d maybe not be brave enough to use themselves, and that are memorable in a good way. Of course I can’t guarantee any children I have will like that or care if they shared their name with anyone in their class, but it’s not like it can be predicted either way, and generally I prefer names that aren’t heard much everyday. More popular names that are just everywhere, can get boring very quickly, unless I have an amazing association that really pushes me to a name. At this point, I just don’t think I’d personally feel comfortable using a really popular name; below the top 1000 (where I live) is actually my perfect popularity haha. So I’d definitely avoid giving my children popular names, but there are a lot of them that I do really love or like.
Yes and no. If I were to have a very common surname or if I hear the same name over and over everywhere I go, I would probably be deterred from using a popular name. However, if I love a name, I would still want to use it. I might give them an unusual middle name though, just in case they do hate having a popular name when they get older.
For me, popularity may be a useful tool for deciding between two names I love equally, but I wouldn’t reject a name that I felt was right for my child just because it’s in the top 100. Nowadays a lower percentage of babies are being given popular names anyway. The No. 100 name for girls in [name_f]England[/name_f] and [name_m]Wales[/name_m] last year, [name_f]Aria[/name_f], was only given to 562 babies.
Popularity does not matter to me. If I love a name I’m going to using it regardless of the popularity. I’ve known lots of people with the same name. In fact, I’ve met someone who had the name of all 5 of my cousins on both sides of my family. It doesn’t seem to bother me. I love well-known names that tend to not be overly popular here in [name_u]America[/name_u].
Popularity matters to a point. My future children will have an extremely popular surname, so anything to jazz it up. Although if I fall in love with a name and it stuck then popularity probably won’t matter.
Growing up I had a semi popular name. My maiden name was very unique so it worked out when I went by my first name and last initial.
It absolutely matters to me. I lose interest in a name if it gets too popular. Popularity is definitely my number one concern, and if my favorite name gets too common, I’ll drop it in a hot minute.
I grew up with a popular name and I hate it. It’s so annoying to share your name with so many people. There are seven girls in my tap class and three of them are named [name_u]Abby[/name_u]! It gets so confusing for the teacher to have to figure out a way to specify which [name_u]Abby[/name_u] she’s talking to. I would much rather have an uncommon name.
I could go on and on about my experiences with name popularity and how much I hate it. Once, a person said “Ugh, not ANOTHER one!” when I introduced myself. And it wasn’t sarcastic or jokingly, it was genuine. I would never wish this experience on my kid. [name_m]Just[/name_m] ONCE, I’d like to introduce myself and have someone tell me that my name is interesting, instead of the usual response of a list of all the girls they know named [name_u]Abby[/name_u]. Like, I get it, there’s nothing special about my name. Hopefully none of my future kids will ever have that experience.
Somewhat for a first name.
I have a very unusual last name though (though I’m not married) - so that probably plays a part. Usually I do get turned off a bit if a name goes up in popularity in my country (like [name_m]Elijah[/name_m] & [name_m]Alexander[/name_m]) - but I’m yet to meet any so they stay on my list for now - probably wouldn’t use them though over other names I like just as much or more.
It can actually be very surprising what names can be popular in a class and what aren’t - I’ve been in a class with (90’s/00’s) multiple: [name_u]Rain[/name_u]/[name_f]Raine[/name_f], [name_u]Justice[/name_u], [name_u]Rowan[/name_u] & [name_f]Emmeline[/name_f](I know it’s more popular now - think 15+ years ago though…) but never had any: [name_m]Jack[/name_m], [name_u]Michael[/name_u], [name_m]Oliver[/name_m], [name_f]Sophia[/name_f], [name_f]Emma[/name_f], [name_u]Alex[/name_u], [name_f]Rachel[/name_f], [name_f]Megan[/name_f] and the list goes on. You never know who your child is going to come across. As a [name_f]Caitlin[/name_f] in the 90’s, I only ever came across one [name_f]Kaitlyn[/name_f] in over 20 years.
I’d rather pick a popular name that I love than something I’m not particularly fond of - though it is important to think of the child over yourself. Either way: some people hate their popular/unusual name. There’s no way of telling…
On another note: I absolutely despise ‘cr8ive’ spellings of names just to make it different. There is a difference between multiple spellings like ‘[name_f]Caitlin[/name_f]’ vs ‘[name_f]Katelyn[/name_f]’ that have been established for a while - compared to ‘[name_f]Emily[/name_f]’ vs ‘Emahliy’.
Popularity can affect my opinion of a name only because when I hear a name a lot I start to find it boring. But that really only applies to the very top of the popularity charts. My own name ranked somewhere up in the 70s when I was born and I went from preschool through college without sharing my name with a classmate, and it’s still fairly uncommon for me to meet or come across anyone with it.
I also wouldn’t avoid using a name I really love just because it happens to be popular at the time I named my kid. [name_m]Even[/name_m] the most common names can end up being the only one in a class so avoiding them solely for name-sharing reasons is a bit silly since there are no guarantees. I remember reading somewhere about how someone’s child was in a class with 2 girls named [name_f]Cleo[/name_f] and that name isn’t even in the top 1000.
To be completely honest, I think this is not the best place to ask. If you ask outside of this site (or any other name site) most people do not care unless that names is very used in their circle of family and friends or the name has been the number one in that country for years. But if you ask here, in a site full of name nerds and people obsessed with names (like yours truly) most people will say it worries them because they want a special name for their kid (Absolutely not, they won’t have a [name_f]Emma[/name_f] R.).
I think a lot of people just project into their name choices their own frustrations with having a popular name. I have a MEGA popular name, a name that has never been outside the top 5. I grew up hating it because of that. Ironically, joining this site made me appreciate it more. Seeing people drop names just they entered the top 1000 (yes, the top 1000, not even the top 100 or top 10) it’s madness. I grant you that most kids would rather choose to be named [name_m]William[/name_m] over [name_m]Arrow[/name_m] or [name_m]Wolf[/name_m]; or would rather prefer being called [name_f]Isabella[/name_f] or [name_f]Sophia[/name_f] over [name_f]Ophelia[/name_f] and [name_f]Theodora[/name_f].
That’s my opinion, anyway. I understand the concerns of people who have a very popular last name, tho (who wants another [name_m]John[/name_m] [name_m]Smith[/name_m]?), but aside of that, I think it’s way more important to do your best and give your kid a name you truly love. Popularity, for me, it would only help me if I love 2 names equally.
If you truly love a name you will never regret it. If you used [name_f]Isabella[/name_f] to name your kid in 1990 when the name was at #894, would you have hated that choice when it became the number 1 in 2009? Would you have been unhappy with your choice if you had name your baby a name outside the top 1000 and when they joined school you realized there is 2 more with that name in their class? If the answer is yes, [name_f]IMO[/name_f], it means you never truly loved the name, just the fact that it was a non popular choice. “Special”. It’s something to think about. I would rather pick a name that I adore, but this is subjective, and everybody has their own opinion.
Popularity is my number one concern. I grew up with an uncommon name and I loved not having to be [name_f]Samantha[/name_f] B. Now when I’m talking about a [name_m]Mike[/name_m], I have to specify “[name_m]Mike[/name_m] my brother” or “[name_m]Mike[/name_m] your boyfriend”. I do not want that for my child.
Plus, it’s so boring to hear the same name over and over. 9 baby Sophias have been born in my circle in the past few years. I used to be able to see the appeal but I really can’t anymore.
I married into a very common last name and it’s even more common in the country we’re moving to. It’s likely if I name my kid something like [name_f]Ava[/name_f], they’ll be one of many [name_f]Ava[/name_f] “Smiths”
ETA: My name is now in the top 10 for births. I [name_u]LOVE[/name_u] seeing little babies or kids with my name. It used to only be popular for cats/dogs. So I’d get “awww I had a dog named [name_f]Zoey[/name_f]. She’s dead now!” or visiting people’s houses and they’d yell at their dog and I’d think they were yelling at me! But I was always the only [name_f]Zoey[/name_f] in my school and it made me feel very special to be honest.
I used to fret over the creeping popularity of my favourite names, but I don’t worry about it anymore. For me, what would be important in a name for a son or daughter is that we love saying it, that it means something to us, and most importantly, that we have an intuition that it is the name for our child. If a name truly fit these criteria, nothing should get in the way of the child receiving that name. Of course, if I were to have a feeling that this child did need a more special, less heard-of name, that would be the way to go, because I would be naming an individual and would need to find a name for this person as an individual.
That’s how I feel about it at this point, but perhaps my opinion will change when I’m closer to having children of my own. It’s all hypothetical for the meantime.