OH and I have a really hard time picking names we like individually, which gets even trickier when we bring those names together and can’t agree- thus our list is short at best.
We like the name [name_u]Mason[/name_u], which has been super popular but is declining quite rapidly in Australia. I work with children and have only ever met one.
Our issue- we have a DS [name_m]Lucas[/name_m], whose name we had picked out for years and never looked at charts etc when pregnant, come to find when we had him [name_m]Lucas[/name_m] has jumped to number 4. Both our names are very common so we have always been one of many in a room which we didn’t particularly want for our children.
So what to do? Go with the name regardless of popularity or go with something you like less for the sake of being the only one?
The name would be [name_u]Mason[/name_u] [name_m]Atticus[/name_m].
Popularity does not bother me. The important thing is choosing a name you love, a name that feels like “the one”. Popularity on the charts doesn’t mean the name will be popular in the circles you and your son will move in. My son, up until the neighborhood we live in now, had at least one other boy with his name living on our street. Didn’t bother him, the other boy/s, or any of the parents. Name your child what you love. You will have many decades, hopefully, of using that name.
Plus any other name you choose can become popular in your child’s lifetime.
We don’t want a popular name for our kids. My name is very uncommon and I love it. My partner’s name is very common. He likes it but doesn’t like the fact that his name is very super popular. But… It’s a personal feeling. Some parents would prefer to choose a classic or popular name and some people are happy to wear a classic or popular name. There is nothing wrong with this.
Would you be sad if your little boy is in class with 3 other boys named Mason? Do you think it would bother him? Would you regret to not name your son Mason?
I’m set on a boy name since 8 years. It’s getting popular but it’s still not in the top 100, which is fine to me. I love this name so much that even if it becomes more popular I would still choose it. However, we will probably choose uncommon names for our next kids.
I probably would be a little sad if he was one of three [name_u]Mason[/name_u]'s in a class, but nothing too over the top. I feel we will be facing this a lot more with [name_m]Lucas[/name_m] than we will [name_u]Mason[/name_u].
[name_u]Mason[/name_u] ticks all our combined boxes so I probably would be a little disappointed if we chose to go another way and met a [name_u]Mason[/name_u] down the road (if that makes sense?).
I really doubt that he’d be one of three Masons, even if it were the no. 1 name right now. As is often mentioned on here, the actual percentage of children receiving each name, even the top name, is decreasing steadily over time, as more parents branch out and consider a wider range of options.
I’ve posted on this before, but I find that what I think of as “too” popular is really different for girls and boys anyway. I love a lot of top 100 boys’ names and wouldn’t hesitate to use one, except perhaps if it were in the top 10. I just happen to have much more mainstream taste in boys’ names, and I’ve decided to embrace it rather than scrape the barrel for a name I like less but which falls lower in the popularity rankings.
FWIW, I think [name_m]Lucas[/name_m] and [name_u]Mason[/name_u] are great together. If you know you’d be disappointed if you didn’t get to use it, I think you have your answer: use it!
We did have [name_u]Blake[/name_u] locked in for a while but it just doesn’t feel perfect for me. I still like it but not 100% sure.
And I am big on choosing names I don’t mind shortened for example I like [name_m]Luke[/name_m] for [name_m]Lucas[/name_m] and [name_m]Mace[/name_m] for [name_u]Mason[/name_u], I like [name_m]Isaac[/name_m] but hate the nn [name_m]Zac[/name_m] so just wouldn’t go there just in case.
I find we like more mainstream boys but unusual girl names- odd.
[name_u]Mason[/name_u] is currently at 14 meaning on 1139 [name_u]Mason[/name_u]'s were born in 2014 (just 148 in my state yet is in the top 10) so it’s very unlikely he would be one of 3 in a kindy class. My brothers an [name_m]Isaac[/name_m] in Australia who has never gotten [name_m]Zac[/name_m] and the two other [name_m]Isaac[/name_m]'s I know are the same. If you feel you’ll be disappointed if you don’t use [name_u]Mason[/name_u] then use [name_u]Mason[/name_u].
[name_m]Even[/name_m] the most popular names are being used with less frequency than 20 years ago.
According to the U.S. Department of Social Security (which registers every baby born) [name_u]Mason[/name_u] is was the the 3rd most common name in the U.S. in 2014, but only accounted for 0.84% of all baby boys.
But in 1996 when [name_m]Matthew[/name_m] was the 3rd most common name it accounted for 1.6% of all baby boys, twice as many.
I don’t know any Masons. I know 3 boys under the age of 3 named [name_m]Lucas[/name_m].
That’s what’s happening over here. Maybe seeing some actual numbers for Australia will help you decide?
& yes, I’m a nerd who loves analyzing this kind of stuff
