[name_m]Henry[/name_m] is our top choice if baby #1 is a boy. DH and I both love the name and it has several family connections. We don’t know a lot of little kids since we don’t have any of our own yet, but should I be worried about [name_m]Henry[/name_m]'s popularity? Its ranking is the same as the national average in our state.
If you could pick two middles for [name_m]Henry[/name_m], what would you suggest?
Thanks!
Should you be concerned? It depends if you think a popular name is a terrible thing. [name_m]Henry[/name_m] is indeed a popular name and rising, but what’s so bad about that anyway? If you like it and it has meaning to you, I wouldn’t worry that he might not be the only little [name_m]Henry[/name_m] you ever meet.
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] is definitely popular. My son knows at least three under the age of three and it’s also my son’s MN. This could vary on where you live!
I don’t think you should be worried about it. It’s supposedly really popular where I live as well and I have never met one in my state or the surrounding states.
Suggestions:
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] [name_u]Michael[/name_u] [name_u]Tate[/name_u]
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] [name_u]James[/name_u] [name_m]Matthew[/name_m]
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] [name_m]Lucas[/name_m] [name_m]Benjamin[/name_m]
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] [name_m]Oliver[/name_m] [name_m]Weston[/name_m]
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] [name_m]Dominic[/name_m] [name_u]Lane[/name_u]
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] [name_u]Elliot[/name_u] [name_m]Levi[/name_m]
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] [name_m]Sebastian[/name_m] [name_m]Kane[/name_m]
Thank you sky85! I have never personally known a [name_m]Henry[/name_m] of any age although I do have an out of state friend with a 2 year old [name_m]Henry[/name_m]. I never imagined myself picking a popular name so I’m trying to convince myself it will be ok!
I’m replying again but FWIW, if you do not spend any time with children then it is very difficult to judge what is popular and what isn’t. [name_m]Just[/name_m] because you don’t know one doesn’t mean they aren’t out there!
I’ve yet to meet a little [name_m]Henry[/name_m]. It just isn’t popular in my area. Personally, I don’t think having a popular name is a bad thing. Besides, [name_m]Henry[/name_m] is a classic man’s name. [name_m]Even[/name_m] if it is very popular, it’s never going to sound dated.
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] is popular but also timeless enough to move up and down the charts without becoming trendy. Also even a popular name isn’t really shared by that many people anymore.
I honestly don’t think I’ve ever met a [name_m]Henry[/name_m] in my life. I think if you absolutely love it go with it. [name_m]Even[/name_m] if it’s popular at least you’ll have your own [name_m]Henry[/name_m] at home. 
One of my favourite names is [name_u]Noah[/name_u] and it’s very popular but it wouldn’t stop me from using it because I just love it.
I have a 7-year-old nephew named [name_m]Henry[/name_m] and even though it’s more popular in my state (Northeast) it still strikes some people as unexpected. I think that’s because some boomers still expect to see the names they used on their kids, and some young parents only know kids with more modern-sounding names ([name_m]Cayden[/name_m], [name_u]Jace[/name_u], etc.). I know OF some other Henrys, most a few years younger than him, but don’t actually know them.
For what it’s worth sometimes names travel in clusters and there’s no way you can predict that. I know about 8 Theodores and it just cracked the top 100, but I don’t know a single [name_u]Noah[/name_u] and that’s number 1. If you like [name_m]Henry[/name_m], I’d use it. It’s well-known but not ubiquitous, and depending on your neighborhood or friend group he may be the only one you ever meet.
Maybe two less popular middles would kind of offset the popularity of [name_m]Henry[/name_m]?
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] [name_u]Everett[/name_u] [name_u]Quinn[/name_u]
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] [name_m]Conrad[/name_m] Ames
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] [name_m]Jasper[/name_m] [name_m]Rhett[/name_m]
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] [name_u]Ira[/name_u] [name_m]Davis[/name_m]
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] [name_m]Silas[/name_m] [name_u]Oak[/name_u]
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] [name_u]August[/name_u] [name_m]Cole[/name_m]
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] [name_m]Cyril[/name_m] [name_u]Pax[/name_u]
I have come across a few here, so it has occured to me it probably is well-used. I don’t think it’s at the point of being over-used though and still makes a good choice. I’ve had it on my list before, but it’s sunken down, not because of popularity just because my tastes have altered. [name_m]Henry[/name_m] gives me a great impression as a name and I’d be happy to meet more little ones.
I think of it as an ultra-popular name - I know a lot of little boys named [name_m]Henry[/name_m]. It’s like the male equivalent of [name_f]Amelia[/name_f] in my mind - a solid respectable old established name that nevertheless isn’t fully timeless, and is currently having a resurgence.
I’ve met two little [name_m]Henry[/name_m]'s in the last couple years.
I wanted to name our last son Henry but my husband just didn’t like it enough to use. I will say that there are many, many little Henrys in our area and I as a mom to 7 I am around a lot of children, but I still love it. I know of more young boys named Henry than those named James (my 5 year old’s name) which is higher up on the list.
EDA: Based on this observation I just checked my state’s data. Henry was #4 in 2015 while James was #10!
As I’ve been struggling with something similar, I checked out another name-sites charts, and based on that even a name as popular as [name_m]Henry[/name_m] (#29) will statistically only go to about .25% of babies. So 1 in 400 babies might be named [name_m]Henry[/name_m]. To me that makes a name that when looking at rank seems very popular seem a little less common. There’s no way to guarantee that the name you choose won’t belong to another child you meet or in their class, but it would be highly unlikely that every little boy you meet after choosing would be named [name_m]Henry[/name_m].
[name_f]Hope[/name_f] that helps. I too thought I would never be able to use a top 100 name at all, and while my favorites are not, my husbands fav is top 10.
I don’t think I’ve every met a [name_m]Henry[/name_m]…
I guess it really does depend on the area. At #29 in [name_f]Virginia[/name_f] I am feeling better about it because I have still never met a [name_m]Henry[/name_m] of any age. While it may be more popular now, at least I can feel confident that its not a fad name and will still remain timeless.
Some names are popular for a reason and I think [name_m]Henry[/name_m] is one of them. As it has been around since the Middle Ages I wouldn’t worry about it being a fad, either.
If family names are important to you, I think you should weigh that value more heavily than the name’s popularity. We want to avoid very popular names as well, and although [name_m]Henry[/name_m] is experiencing a renaissance, it’s a classic name that will go in and out of fashion without ever disappearing. We keep it on our list because it’s my partner’s grandfather’s name, despite knowing several boys (baby, kid, and teenager) in our town with the name.