Your lists from long ago

[Ameliaanwen]

I’ve been into names and etymology since before I was a teenager and I’ve just come across my old lists! I find it interesting that I can see where my taste has changed and thought I would share the first name list I ever made with you guys!

Does anyone else remember or still have their lists from way back? Has your style changed? Any names that you dislike now but loved back then? Or names that you’ll always love?

EDIT: My ‘name journey’ started when I was about 11 and I used to watch the credits at the end of films or TV programmes to see all the names! Anyone else?! When I was about 12 I was intrigued by my family tree and pinched lots of names to use in middle spots and roughly partnered them with first names I liked. I also made male names in the family female e.g. Philippa was to honour a Philip and Martina was to honour a Martin. The first image is my name list from this time. Then, over the next couple of years I added more names and rewrote them into new notebooks so this is a rewritten list of accumulated names from about age 12 to 15. This is the last rewritten list (if that makes sense!) from when I was 15. You can see that I liked a lot of girls names and found it easy to make girl combinations but boys names and combinations were a bit harder! Also you can see, from my user card, that I still use the honour names I picked when I was little as middles e.g. Emmeline Maude is now Willa Maude, Eleri Josephine is now Pearl Josephine, Bronwen Ruth is now Gwendolyn Ruth and Roxie Lynette is now Birdie Lynette etc. I’ve never really had a favourite name because my top few would change all the time but I remember loving Jacqueline Rachel, Tillie Wilhelmina and Guinevere Florence a lot.

[MargotAbeline]

Wow that’s so cool, i’m always finding my old lists in old notebooks and things too it’s so funny. [name_f]My[/name_f] taste in names had changed a fair amount. I remember my future kids list used to be:
[name_f]Elodie[/name_f] [name_f]Grace[/name_f]
[name_f]Macie[/name_f] [name_f]Emilia[/name_f] (eww)
[name_f]Georgia[/name_f] [name_u]Tegan[/name_u]
[name_m]Harrison[/name_m] [name_u]Blake[/name_u]
[name_u]Finley[/name_u] [name_u]Jackson[/name_u]

not a huge fan of these anymore (except elodie)

[dogs_books]

I didn’t make written name lists when I was younger (although I’m sure that when I’m an adult I’ll stumble across my google doc from right now) but I do remember that in like second grade, I made up a name for myself. It had like 20 names in it . I don’t remember all of them, but the first name was [name_f]Lavinia[/name_f] (I was obsessed with [name_f]Lavinia[/name_f]!) It also contained the “name” [name_f]Canada[/name_f] and [name_u]Kenya[/name_u]. I don’t think I knew [name_u]Kenya[/name_u] was a country, I just thought it was a pretty name . Oh, I do have a list from last summer- it has [name_u]Aspen[/name_u], [name_u]Robin[/name_u], [name_u]Wren[/name_u], [name_u]Holland[/name_u], [name_u]Willow[/name_u], and [name_f]Fern[/name_f] on it, among others. I guess I really liked nature names. I still do, but the only one of those that I still love is [name_f]Fern[/name_f].

[emelfem]

I didn’t have lists but I did have sims.

Went through a phase of giving them Irish names out of my Irish mythology book and other gifts from Irish family. Downside is that by that point my Irish family had either died or we were estranged from them so I couldn’t pronounce any of the names I give these poor sims. I still feel bad for [name_f]Aoife[/name_f].

[almostactually]

Most of my name lists have been on paper until this year, but the earliest one is gone, unfortunately. It was a piece of notebook paper from elementary school with lots of word names, and my best friends went through it with colored pens and starred their favorites. I think I might have gotten rid of/lost it in middle school when I was making a more comprehensive name list, and I absolutely shouldn’t have!

[findemaxa13]

I also gave a lot of my favorite names to sims in middle school! My first ever sim family had siblings named Clarissa, Elizabeth, and Nicholas, which I blatantly lifted from a friend of my brother’s and his two sisters because I loved their names. Later I had a family with Tracee, Temple (girl), and Tennyson, and then another one with Lennon (boy) and Kaeden. My taste has changed a lot.

I really used to love Tracee with that spelling, I found it in a baby name book my parents had got when they were naming me in the 1990s and even though it was very off-trend by the time I discovered it, I thought it was THE coolest name. I think I found Tennyson in that book too, I’m pretty sure I hadn’t heard of the poet at that age.

[sophia_elena]

My top two names when I was younger were [name_u]Ashley[/name_u] and [name_f]Michelle[/name_f]! I was obsessed with them since they were my older sister’s favorite names! Although I’m positive it was hugely inspired by Full House.

I also went through a phase where I really liked unisex names on girls like “[name_u]Parker[/name_u], [name_u]Porter[/name_u], [name_u]Dylan[/name_u], [name_u]Ryan[/name_u]”

[rosepip]

When I was really little, I loved the name [name_f]Amy[/name_f]. Like, really loved the name [name_f]Amy[/name_f].

I remember also dreaming of naming my future children:
[name_f]Liberty[/name_f] ([name_f]Libby[/name_f])
[name_f]Amaryllis[/name_f] ([name_f]Amy[/name_f])
[name_f]Tigerlily[/name_f]

I also felt like I should probably include a boy, so I chose the name [name_u]Alfie[/name_u]. I didn’t like the name [name_u]Alfie[/name_u] then. I do not like the name [name_u]Alfie[/name_u] now.

There was also a brief period when I was super into kreatyve names like Jazzmyne, [name_f]Braelyn[/name_f] and [name_f]Everleigh[/name_f]. [name_f]My[/name_f] tastes have definitely changed.

[rosajune]

wow!! You were a dedicated child, and with great handwriting lol. I was nowhere near as sophisticated with names as you clearly were. in fact I didn’t really come up with combinations or think of middle names, I was just always fascinated by other people’s names. the only exception was that I desperately wanted my own name to be [name_f]Chrissy[/name_f] and settled on using it for my barbies

I’m in my early/mid 20’s, and I only have a shortlist that I can recall from when I was about 17

Hollis
[name_f]Susannah[/name_f]
[name_f]Maisie[/name_f]
[name_f]Shirley[/name_f]
[name_f]Winona[/name_f]
[name_f]Eva[/name_f]
[name_u]Everly[/name_u]
[name_f]Georgia[/name_f]
[name_u]Hadley[/name_u]

these are the only ones I remember, and all of them I still love or like, but [name_f]Maisie[/name_f] and [name_f]Shirley[/name_f] probably stayed the most consistent as far as my style evolution (short, vintage, girly, nicknames)

[w8src]

I posted this a while back in another thread, but I thought you’d like to see my names story!

As a kid I loved names with K sounds and had several friends with those names (e.g. Kendall, Katelin, Kerrigan). I also had a really great friend named Elliott and I loved his personality. When I first heard his name I thought that it was the coolest name ever! In fact, I was told that I was almost named Elliott.

A few years after that, in my teen years, I thought about what names sounded as great on a child as they do on a teen as they do on an adult, and Carey was that name for me for a girl. I also was finding out, as a licensed amatuer radio (or ham radio) operator (where my username comes from), that most of these operators are males born in the 1950s and ’60s, and I didn’t like the sound of many of the nicknames that are constantly heard in conversations between these operators (Bill, Jim, Mike, etc.); they weren’t as interesting to me as the ‘90s names I was used to (I guess I like those names because that’s the decade I was born in).

After I was introduced to the Fox program MasterChef Junior in March 2018, I noticed that many of the contestants had unusual names, at least to me (e.g. Afnan, Dara, Jacelyn, Shayne). This show was also where I first discovered and fell in love with the names Addison and Avery (both girls). I began to love similar sounding names with short As and long As. My geek-ish passion for names was then born.

Two months later I had a Latin professor who had the coolest accent to me when he said the Latin word “terra” (meaning Earth) and similar words. I then remembered a character on a show that my brother watched as a kid (Goosebumps) whose name was Tara (at the time I imagined the spelling Terra), and I immediately fell in love with that name and the “air” sound. Plus, Tara looked a lot prettier to me than Terra. I would always try to imitate my professor’s accent when I was talking to people on the ham radio whose names were, for example, Terry or Harry. I also own a small FM radio station that serves my college apartment complex and whenever I come across names like that when I read, for example, someone’s birthday, I try to say them with that accent.

I started creating lists of my favorite names in July 2018 and I would revise them each month. I would also record and edit audio versions of them so that I could hear myself saying the names. Eventually, there were so many names on my list that I stopped creating audio versions in September 2018 and tried to find an online group who shares my newly found interest. Once the first result in my search stopped working, I found this site (which is even better!). I’m so happy to find such a positive and encouraging group of people with which to share my passion!

I kept adding more names to my list in late 2018 and early 2019 that I stopped ranking them entirely (other than my top 20 names for both boys and girls) and alphabetized them. I’m always adding to my ever-growing list of faves (which now has over 1,800 names, where there are roughly two girl names for every boy name), and I’m also updating my top 20 names according to my tastes!

Here’s the first top 20 names list I’ve ever created from July 28, 2018 (arranged from most favorite to least favorite, which is how I arrange my user card here - feel free to compare!):

Boys: Caleb, Terrance, Calvin, Cory, Aaron, Kevin, Aiden, Elliott, Evan, Payton, Terry, Eric, Harry, Alex, Harrison, Tyler, Kellen, Chad, Alec, Tanner

Girls: Tara, Katie, Casey, Carey, Cara, Katelyn, Taylor, Kaylee, Hailee, Kayla, Avery, Erika, Karen, Kelly, Clara, Carolyn, Claire, Tabatha, Kerrigan, Amy

And here’s the audio version of my complete July 2018 list (I can’t find the text version apparently):

[may.rose]

I found the ones I made when I first joined nameberry!

[MichelleM]

That’s awesome! I wish that I had written my names down. I used to be on a baby name message board in ivillage many moons ago. Probably from about 1998-2008? I was 14 when I joined. I think those boards have disappeared though along w/any virtual lists I may have had.

I do remember a lot though from when I was a teenager/college student. I’m 36 now.

For girls I used to love:

Amber-I’m pretty meh on it now

Adeline-still love it. [name_m]Just[/name_m] so sad that [name_f]Adelyn[/name_f] is way way popular.

Delia-I still like it, but not as much as before. Not sure why.

Elizabeth-I still like it, but it doesn’t sparkle.

Estella-I still love it in theory. Like, I love the way it looks & sounds, but I don’t like saying it. Is that completely bonkers?

Esme-I still like it a lot, but it’s lost a little sparkle. [name_m]Just[/name_m] because it’s not as unique as it used to be when I read in in a J.D. [name_m]Salinger[/name_m] short story cicra 2002.

Guinevere-I heard it in a Death [name_m]Cab[/name_m] for Cutie song in 2001, & it’s been my #1 girl ever since.

Hayley-I named my cat this when I was eight, so I mainly loved it because it was her name. I still do, but it’s sort of a guilty pleasure. Totally not my normal style.

Josephine-I still like it a lot. [name_m]Just[/name_m] not really the nns, which is a turn off.

Lilia-I still love it! [name_f]Lilia[/name_f] was my favorite gymnast when I was twelve, & I’ve loved the name since. [name_f]My[/name_f] mom did too, so she named her cat this about thirteen years ago. She makes a great little [name_f]Lili[/name_f] though.

Madelyn-I totally don’t like this any more. I like [name_f]Madeline[/name_f], but still not in love w/it.

Nicole-I don’t like this at all anymore.

Olivia-I still like it a lot, but obviously the popularity kind of makes it less interesting. I’ve recently fallen hard for [name_f]Olive[/name_f].

Zoe-I always think that I like this, but really being honest w/myself I don’t. [name_m]Way[/name_m] over done.

For boys I use to love:

Andrew-I still like it, but it is rather boring.

Austin-I went through a phase of really disliking it after it being my top boy name for a while when I was really young. Now I think it’s pretty good, but not a favorite.

Brandon-I’m just meh on it now.

Finlay-I was so ahead of the trends here! [name_f]My[/name_f] family went on a road trip when I was fourteen (1998), & I passed the time by reading a baby name book. Came across this name, & fell in love. I still like it [name_u]Finlay[/name_u] a lot, & it bugs me so much that it’s being used for girls.

Finn-Same as above, but I still would consider using this one. Especially since I married into an Irish ln.

Henry-I still like it a lot. It’s just so darn popular.

Joseph-I still like it, but it’s not that special anymore. And I don’t like [name_m]Joe[/name_m] or [name_u]Joey[/name_u], so that puts a damper on it.

Julian-Have loved it since high school & haven’t faltered. It’s been in my top five since. I think it’s maybe in my top two now. Maybe just more because dh likes it.

Lucas-Meh, I don’t care for this one at all anymore. It got really trendy. That may be why.

Luke-I used to love [name_m]Luke[/name_m], then I started liking [name_m]Luc[/name_m]. Then I started being just okay w/either, & that’s where we stand now.

Matthew-I still think that it’s a really beautiful name. [name_m]Don[/name_m]’t care for [name_m]Matt[/name_m] though.

Nicolas-It’s okay. I think I like it, but then being honest really don’t. I think that [name_u]Nico[/name_u] is great as a nn or just fine on its own.

Phineas-I used to love this after reading it in ‘A Separate [name_u]Peace[/name_u]’ in high school. Then I found out that a possible meaning for it has to do w/a snake, & now I don’t like it anymore!

William-I still find it very handsome, but not that interesting.

Zachary-Same as above.

[almostactually]

My sister and I together had [name_f]Victoria[/name_f], [name_f]Olivia[/name_f], [name_f]Polly[/name_f], [name_f]Alice[/name_f], and [name_f]Alexia[/name_f] for dolls!

[EagleEyes]

I have my 2016 list from when I first joined Nameberry- I was 13 (maybe 14?) at the time. It was…

Girls:
[name_f]Elizabeth[/name_f] [name_f]Joy[/name_f]
[name_f]Millie[/name_f] [name_f]Elisabeth[/name_f]
[name_f]Tabitha[/name_f] [name_f]Elinor[/name_f]
[name_f]Clarisse[/name_f] [name_f]Lillian[/name_f]
[name_f]Caoimhe[/name_f] [name_u]Louise[/name_u]
[name_f]Louisa[/name_f] [name_u]Brooke[/name_u]
[name_f]Elodie[/name_f] [name_f]Locklyn[/name_f]
[name_f]Annabeth[/name_f] [name_u]Blue[/name_u]

Boys:
[name_m]Samuel[/name_m] [name_m]Clark[/name_m]
[name_u]Eden[/name_u] [name_u]Asher[/name_u]
[name_m]Vincent[/name_m] [name_u]Oberon[/name_u]
[name_m]Patterson[/name_m] [name_u]Chase[/name_u]
[name_m]Lucas[/name_m] [name_u]Reid[/name_u]
[name_m]Darwin[/name_m] [name_m]Calix[/name_m]
[name_m]Thatcher[/name_m] [name_u]James[/name_u]
[name_m]Nathaniel[/name_m] [name_m]Emrys[/name_m]
[name_u]Percy[/name_u] [name_m]Alaric[/name_m]

Elizabeth [name_f]Joy[/name_f], [name_m]Samuel[/name_m] [name_m]Clark[/name_m], [name_m]Thatcher[/name_m] [name_u]James[/name_u], and [name_m]Nathaniel[/name_m] [name_m]Emrys[/name_m] are still on my list. I still like [name_f]Millie[/name_f] [name_f]Elisabeth[/name_f], [name_f]Louisa[/name_f] [name_u]Brooke[/name_u], [name_u]Eden[/name_u] [name_u]Asher[/name_u], and [name_u]Percy[/name_u] [name_m]Alaric[/name_m], but not as much. Some of the others I still think make good combos, but not necessarily good combos for my current taste.

When I was little, I didn’t make combos or name my future children, but I loved to play name games like “how many people do I know who have names starting with J” and list them all out

[Eliza_Dot]

Auvyn *totally made up name I used in a story that I wrote in 5th grade
[name_f]Courtaney[/name_f]
[name_f]Evangeline[/name_f]
[name_f]Jessa[/name_f]
[name_f]Julietta[/name_f]
[name_u]Lark[/name_u]
[name_f]Lucy[/name_f] *still my favourite name
[name_f]Olivia[/name_f]
[name_f]Sabrina[/name_f]
[name_f]Violet[/name_f]

Austin
[name_m]Benedict[/name_m]
[name_m]Henry[/name_m] *this one has stood the test of time
[name_u]James[/name_u]
[name_m]Jason[/name_m]
[name_m]Lance[/name_m]
[name_m]Oliver[/name_m]
[name_u]Spencer[/name_u]
[name_m]William[/name_m]
[name_m]Vincent[/name_m]