Every Name that's been in my Top Ten

  1. Winter
    • Origin:

      Word name
    • Description:

      Fresher, brisker and, yes, cooler than Summer or Autumn or Spring, Winter is now a full-fledged female choice, especially since Nicole Richie and Joel Madden used it for daughter Harlow's middle name, and Gretchen Mol picked it as her daughter's first, as did media mogul Sean Parker. Winter continues to be the preferred spelling and has risen in popularity significantly over the past few years.
  2. Peyton
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "fighting-man's estate"
    • Description:

      Peyton is a unisex surname that rose to fame in the 90s, with parents drawing inspiration from football star, Peyton Manning, and, oddly enough, from "Peyton Flanders", the villainess of the 1992 film, The Hand That Rocks The Cradle. Combining gentle sounds with contemporary style and the naughtiness of Peyton Place, the name remains a popular choice in the US today.
  3. Ginevra
    • Origin:

      Italian variation of Guinevere or Jennifer
    • Meaning:

      "white shadow, white wave"
    • Description:

      Arty and elegant, Ginevra is one of the most popular girls' names in Italy at the moment, ranking at #3 in a recent year. Ultimately from the Arthurian Guinevere, it's a relative of Jennifer, meaning "white wave, white shadow" or "white phantom".
  4. Bay
    • Origin:

      English word, Old English
    • Meaning:

      "an inlet of the sea where the land curves inward; berry"
    • Description:

      One of the most usable of the pleasant, newly adopted nature/water names (like Lake and Ocean), especially in middle position. It's gentle, slightly whimsical, but grounded by its similarity to May or Rae.
  5. Rebekah
    • Origin:

      Hebrew
    • Meaning:

      "to tie, bind"
    • Description:

      Many parents prefer this spelling of Rebecca, used in some versions of the Bible. Still, it's slipped considerably since its heyday in the eighties and nineties and fell off the US Top 1000 completely in 2023.
  6. Hanna
    • Origin:

      Spelling variation of Hannah
    • Description:

      This simplified version is not nearly as popular as the original (it also destroys a perfectly good palindrome), and has been on the decline in recent years.
  7. Madilyn
    • Origin:

      Spelling variation of Madelyn
    • Description:

      Madelyn is the most popular, phonetically-clear spelling of the lovely and stylish French name. Madilyn edges it toward Marilyn, though that isn't necessarily a bad thing.

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