Names Riding Off Into the Sunset
Posted November 19th, 2008
We’re often asked to talk about and predict names that are on their way up, but recently someone posed the reverse question, about names that have peaked and are trending downwards. So here are a few thoughts on some categories of names that have gone from cool to hot to lukewarm, and their possible replacements.
WESTERN PLACE NAMES: Adios to cowboys and girls Dakota, Montana and Sierra, hello to more distant and exotic locales such as Rio, Vienna, Geneva, Sahara, Peru, Kenya
JADEN & CO: Even if it hasn’t quite happened yet, parents are bound to rebel against the megapopularity of all the nouveau Aidan siblings–Jayden, Caden, Cayden, Brayden, Kaden et al–and go back to the original (now spelled) Aiden, which is rising in popularity all the time.
BIBLICAL GIRLS’ NAMES: Rebecca, Rachel, Hannah and Sarah may be eternal classics, but many parents feel they have been way overused during the past few decades, and are seeking out less common examples in the Good Book–Dinah? Jael? Salome? Tamar? Michal, anyone?–or choosing virtue names like Honor and Verity instead. Biblical boys’ names, on the other hand, continue to thrive, with Jacob holding fast at Number One.
PREPPY SURNAMES: Upscale nineties favorites, such as the seriously striving Parkers and Porters, Carsons and Carters, seem to have lost their relevence in this changed economy, replaced by livelier, cheerier, unpretentious Irish family names like Sullivan, Brady, Reagan, Riley and Rafferty. For what it’s worth, though, Cash is on the rise.
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Tags:
Aiden, baby name popularity, biblical names, Boys' Names, cowboy names, Girls' Names, Irish baby names, Jayden, name trends, popular names, surnames, Uncategorized, virtue namescomments
3 Responses to “Names Riding Off Into the Sunset”
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linda Says:
November 20th, 2008 at 10:40 pm
That’s a great idea–and we’ll be sure to think about it and address it in a blog soon.
IzzyQ Says:
October 16th, 2011 at 3:52 pm
I love this post! I totally agree with all of it – though Carter was on the rise this year.
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What about trends that are on the way up right now, have not peaked yet and so still seem fresh, but you think will be very short lived? I think that would be really helpful for parents thinking about names…as they will want something that can last, and its easy to get caught up in the current craze (my best friend is pregnant and debating all of these things).