I love discussing names and naming styles, and I find it interesting how some people love popular/common/trendy names and others are almost desperate to find something unique or uncommon. I know myself I prefer uncommon names.
For those of you who have chosen or will choose a common/popular/trendy name for your child, I am curious as to why. Is it because you want your child to have a normal name or maybe a family name? Or maybe because you just really love a name and popularity be damned! For those of you have a child with a common name do you ever regret your name choice?
[name]Even[/name] though I lean toward uncommon names, there are some really popular names that I love ([name]Sophie[/name], [name]Jack[/name], [name]Ryan[/name], [name]Jacob[/name], [name]Benjamin[/name], [name]Chloe[/name] and [name]Emily[/name] etc) but would never use out of fear that I would regret it.
I think people choose popular names because the first time they hear of it the name has already become ‘trendy’ and by then they are too hooked to consider something else. Or it could be a name used to honor a relative regardless of how common it is. I have been in love with the same boy name since I was 10 years old and read it in a book, and I have never met anyone with that name, but now it is in the top-30. I still planned on using it, but then I didn’t think it suited my son when I saw him. =]
The percentage of parents naming their children names in the top ten is far less then in years past. When I became pregnant with my first, I did not want him to grow up with a “[name]Jennifer[/name]” type of name…like mine, insanely popular for a few years and being one [name]Jennifer[/name] out of many in a classroom, or, public place. So I know I am more sensitive to this then many people, even though a little [name]Sophia[/name] may know others but its not of [name]Jennifer[/name] proportions.
I did choose [name]Violet[/name] for my youngest, a somewhat trendy/popular name, much more then my others for our location in the USA. And while I have seen posts on here where people consider it too common, I did choose it because,my husband’s favorite color is purple so it has meaning to us.
[name]Even[/name] if a top 50 name had meaning, I probably wouldn’t choose it personally, as I said, my view is tainted being one of so many [name]Jennifer[/name]'s in my early 30’s. [name]Even[/name] if realistically, my childs top 50 name is not overly common, like I said, I am very adamantly about not having any of my children be one of many.
I love uncommon names and love it when I hear of a child with a non-trendy or non-popular name.
My daughter’s name is [name]Catherine[/name], which is obviously a very common name. I chose it because I’ve loved the name since I was a child, it never really goes out of style (i.e. the name [name]Isabella[/name] right now will be seen as out of style 30 years from now, you’ll be able to pinpoint around the year an [name]Isabella[/name] was born) and other names that I’ve really liked in the past, I’ve lost fondness for as years, or even months, passed. I wanted something classic.
Pretty much the same for [name]Henry[/name], although in his case, it’s also his grandfather’s name. It is a little more trendy than [name]Catherine[/name], but I weighed the pros and cons and still chose it.
I think a lot of people choose popular names because they really don’t know how popular the name is. Like “Oh I’ve never known a [name]Sophia[/name], it must not be popular!” and I think a lot of parents do want a ‘common’ name but I doubt any parent would want to give their child the number one name in the country! A lot of people just choose to ignore popularity in favor of a name they love.
I think for most people I know it’s that when they first heard and started liking the name, it wasn’t on the top 10, 20 or 30. It’s just that the sort of spreads like wildfire and many other parents are feeling the same thing at the same time and the next year or two you get this surge of popularity on the name.
I personally had always liked the name [name]Sadie[/name]. I decided on it for my daughter. [name]One[/name] of these unofficial babycenter.com lists came out and it showed that [name]Sadie[/name] had become more popular in that last year. I loved her name and there was no turning back. Sometimes people tell me how when they first heard that I named my daughter [name]Sadie[/name], they had never heard of it before, but now they’ve met a few Sadies. It’s still not [name]Sophie[/name] or [name]Isabella[/name] or whatever, so that’s okay with me.
The interesting thing with the trendy names is that they are seemingly names that were not at all popular and suddenly become the “it” name. I think of all the little Liams, Lucases, Jaydens and they are very much a 5 and under set. I can’t tell you how many little Olivias and Madisons I know, but I know of very little my age or my younger sister’s age.
I am always a little surprised though by people’s name suggestions sometimes. When they suggest, [name]Olivia[/name] or [name]Isabella[/name] or [name]Sophia[/name] as if they just came up with it. I’m a little shocked.
I guess my DH and I have one trendy name and one popular name for our children.
We chose [name]Kyle[/name] in 1997 (some people consider it trendy) for its Celtic roots, as my DH’s side is very Irish. It was also a compromise, as DH vetoed everything else I liked - [name]Daniel[/name], [name]Patrick[/name], [name]Liam, Aidan[/name].
We chose [name]Emily[/name] in 2000 for our daughter - [name]Emily[/name] was the only name we could agree upon! [name]Emily[/name] is a beautiful classic, and DH vetoed everything else again - [name]Caroline[/name] and [name]Julia[/name], for example.
So far, the name Kyle has not been that trendy or different - there are a few he knows in school, and it doesn’t bother our son (or us), plus it does flow so nicely with our Irish last name. Interestingly enough, Kyle heard the list of names that I had when I was pregnant with him, and he didn’t like any of them - just Kyle!
Emily hasn’t been as popular as we thought it would be - the name Emma around here has been, however. Our daughter loves her name, and says she wouldn’t have it any other way - not even Caroline or Julia!
I have loved the name [name]Jackson[/name] forever… I love [name]Jackson[/name] Browne, the musician and just connect the name to him, I guess. have loved the name long before it became “trendy” so we will name our son [name]Jackson[/name] (if we have another son). we have a son, [name]Evan[/name], named for his Grandpa:-)
This is something I have been thinking about a lot especially since 3 out of 5 of my top names are in the Top 50. But every time I look at uncommon names I feel like they all seem like I was trying to hard to be different so I always go back to the classics.
I would prefer my children weren’t one of say 2 or 3 [name]Ryan[/name]'s or [name]Ben[/name]'s in their class but most of the more classic names are popular for a reason. I am ok with a more classic name that is popular and has stood the test of time than a trendy name that screams 2012 to me. I also find alot of people try so hard to be different and it backfires. I know 3 [name]Anderson[/name]'s and 2 [name]Paulo[/name]'s in one classroom at my son’s school and there is not one [name]Aidan[/name], [name]William[/name] or [name]Alexander[/name] to be found.
My boy choice is top 70 but trending down, its primary nickname is lower 200s and trending up. Very very familiar in the English-speaking world, and probably outside of it. This qualifies as popular in my book.
This is in contrast to my girl choices… some are in the top 1000, but most aren’t. On purpose. I don’t even consider anything in the top 400. I had an unusual name growing up and loved that, and the goal with a daughter would be something so unusual that most have never heard it before.
So why the discrepancy? I fell in love with my boy choice when I was twelve and still love it now, 10+ years later. It’s stood the test of time for me, I know there’s no risk whatsoever of loving it less after giving it to a son. So that’s why I feel confident in using it even though it’s vastly more popular than anything else I’d consider for subsequent children.
If it were top 10, I’d probably feel differently… I’d probably let it go.
Of all of my daughters, my 4th daughter, [name]Lucy[/name], has the most “trendy” name in my opinion. It has had a more recent surge in popularity and I knew this when I chose it. I fall into the “popularity be damned” category. I just really love this name.
I think my 1st daughter’s name, [name]Alice[/name], is getting trendy now, but it wasn’t popular at all when I named her. I loved it for years and years before she was born. [name]Even[/name] if it was the #1 name at the time of her birth, I still would have used it.
I normally prefer more uncommon names. However, if I loved a name I would use it regardless of popularity.
For instance, [name]Elias[/name]’ name was chosen because I just knew it was his name. No charts were examined or opinions asked. It just was, popular or not.
[name]Both[/name] of my daughters names fall into the trendy catergory…they are both “unisex” and can be surnames. [name]Delaney[/name]'s name was going to be [name]Allison[/name] ([name]Allison[/name] [name]Delaney[/name]) but when she was born, she just looked like she needed a name that was a little “different”. It was number #190 the year she was born (2005). But we have come across 5 other Delaneys…she actually has one in her grade, they were even in the same class last year…Yet in the three years she has been in school, she has never had a [name]Sophia[/name] or [name]Isabella[/name] in her class or even an [name]Emma[/name]. (a couple Emilys and Olivias though).
[name]Ryley[/name] was her dads pick. I like it, but we have come across a lot of Rileys (boys and girls of various spellings). I honestly didn’t know how popular the name [name]Riley[/name] was when we named her. I really like her name and couldn’t imagine her being named anything else (maybe [name]Kate[/name]…her mn, my fn choice for her;)).
The thing i have noticed is that popularity depends on the area. I absolutely adore [name]Elijah[/name] and just stumbled across it on accident not knowing how popular it is nationwide in the U.S., the same thing with [name]Caroline[/name]. [name]Caroline[/name] is super popualr in [name]Georgia[/name] but not in [name]Florida[/name], where i live. In my opinion, it might be a bad choice in [name]Georgia[/name] but i should be safe in [name]Florida[/name].
I’ve been in love with the name [name]Charlotte[/name] for a girl since I was 6 years old. That was in 1993 when [name]Charlotte[/name] was ranked #292 for most popular baby names. I’ve been cringing as [name]Charlotte[/name] has been climbing the charts, especially in the last 5 years. I told my husband I might not use it if it gets into the top 10…but I don’t know…I just don’t love any other girl names in the same way, so I might have to use it for my future daughter regardless of what it is ranked!
My oldest son has a popular/trendy name. I chose it because I just loved it so much. I fell in love with it about 10 years before he was born (while it was still popular back then, it wasn’t as popular). I’m more concerned about how much I like a name.
[name]Logan[/name] was #17 the year he was born. [name]Reid[/name] was #296. Our boy and girl names for a future child are #177 and #50, respectively. And for a while I was convinced I would use the name [name]Dashiell[/name], which isn’t even in the top 1000. So I guess I’m all over the place. As long as I love the name, and can picture saying it every day, then I don’t really care how popular and trendy it is.
I’d prefer my children to share their names with a few other people than to have names that are so unusual that they are constantly having to explain how to spell or pronounce them. I had a popular name growing up and knew many people with the same name and was never bothered by it. That’s not to say that I don’t love some names that are less popular/trendy, I just see them more as my guilty pleasures.
I really could care less about about popularity. I had a popular name, and it really worked for me, but I do appreciate having a non-top 10 name. I have [name]Isabelle[/name], [name]Olivia[/name], [name]Hannah[/name], [name]Jack[/name], [name]Caleb[/name], [name]Lily[/name], [name]Grayson[/name], [name]Brody[/name], etc. on my list because I love them, for no other reason. [name]Hannah[/name] and [name]Jack[/name] honor family, as does [name]Lily[/name] and [name]Grayson[/name], but otherwise, it’s just because I love them. [name]Everett[/name], [name]Helena[/name], [name]Eleni[/name], [name]Eve[/name], [name]Zane[/name], etc. are on my list because I love them, too.
As someone who was very shy growing up, I guess I just find myself drawn to names that are popular, that would make my child feel like he/she would fit in well. Besides, the majority of my children will likely be adopted, and I can imagine they’d like to feel like they can fit in, too.
I grew up with a popular name and it never bothered me. Very rarely have I been the only [name]Sophie[/name] - in both primary and secondary school and on my course there’s been other Sophies in my year, and in after school clubs there’d often be another [name]Sophie[/name] or two as well, but I did like the fact I was able to find things with my name on and that, and that most people knew how to spell it. My top two girls names I have loved for years and though they’re both top 50 in the UK I would still use them in a heartbeat as I love them so much. I guess I’m drawn to more popular names because my sister had a lot of spelling problems with her more uncommon name, and I’d want to avoid that for a child.
I have several kids with top ten names, but those names are also traditional classics that have been around forever. I don’t think there are any names anymore where your child is going to have 3 or 4 kids in her class with the same name. So that argument is just out-dated and is just an excuse at this point. I wanted to choose names that I love and that have family meaning and if those names are popular at the same time, I’m fine with that. It’s not a contest to see who has the coolest, most unique name.
If I really loved a name, I think I’d still use it, particularly if it had real meaning to me.
Take the names [name]Violet[/name] and [name]Nora[/name], which are my grandmothers’ names, both are “on trend” right now and who knows how popular they’ll be by the time I have children (I’m only 17, so it won’t be for a few years yet). Yet I’d still consider them, because of their meaning to me.
I think working with kids has taught me that the most annoying naming trend is kre8tive spellings. Those kids constantly have to spell out their names and teach adults how to correctly pronounce them! It doesn’t really matter if you are naming your kid [name]Nathaniel[/name] or [name]Willow[/name] Tree [name]Sky[/name] but please don’t spell them Nahthaniyel or Wyllough [name]Trie[/name] Schye! You might think it’s special but your child will have to deal with that forever!
I personally gravitate to traditional/vintage names because I love things that are rooted in the past. I’m also obsessed with name meaning and the context around them (thus I can never warm to [name]Ophelia[/name]!) so the meanings of names are way more important to me than how popular they are.
so we will name our son [name]Jackson[/name] (if we have another son). we have a son, [name]Evan[/name], named for his Grandpa:-)