There’s an entire generation of new baby names that are moving rapidly up the popularity list and that distinguish themselves by being recently minted–and by the fact that grandparents do a double take the first time they hear them. For even if they existed as surnames or place names or occupations, they’ve rarely been used before as first names.  Many of these new baby names are morphed versions of names that were used in another form earlier, while others have been spun from thin air.

Some are clearly celebrity-sourced—as when Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale gave their son a name inspired by their own personal associations with the island of Jamaica—and it wasn’t long before the name Kingston jumped onto the list.  Similarly, the singular name Miley has spread like wildfire with the fame of its onetime exclusive bearer.

Putting aside the legion of offshoots and variations—in rhyming and spelling—of  names related to Riley, Ryan, Bailey, Aiden, Tyler and Tyson, which already seem so 20^th century– we’ve come up with a list of some of the most prominent nouveau names.  Although a precise demarcation can’t be drawn, and some of them were coming onto the radar in the 90s, these are the new baby names that definitely have a 21^st century feel.

Girls (mostly)

ADDISON
AINSLEY
ARIA
ASHBY
AUDRINA
CADENCE
CALI
ELLE
HADLEY
HARLOW
HAVEN

Read More

You might also like:

Will Maisie Be the Next Daisy?

Sci-Fi Names: Beyond Zorg and Zalga

Video Game Names: Will any of them catch on?

Regional Name trends: Different states of mind

TV Names: Let TV be your guide