Baby Name Trends 2019

Baby names 2019 will include lots of names from new sources around the world and in nature, trends reflecting spirituality and nonbinary ideals, an F and a U and a goodbye to a longtime favorite group. Here, Nameberry’s 12 leading baby name trends for 2019.

Biggest Big Picture Trend: International names

As the world gets smaller, the pool of international names becomes larger, with new choices from ever-more-diverse origins entering the global lexicon every day. At Nameberry we’ve added thousands of new names from around the world: Maori names and Xhosa names, ancient Greek names and South American Indian names, Korean names and Israeli names. With the appetite for unique and meaningful names expanding all the time, parents are looking to these original choices with deep roots as baby names in 2019.

Newest Gender Bend: Nonbinary names

Parents who want to raise their children free of gender stereotypes are looking for truly
gender neutral names. That means no names that end in son like Madison, no names that were originally boy or girl names that have migrated to the other side, such as Charlie. And if the names also evidence a gender-free ideal such as Justice, all the better. The nonbinary baby names of 2019 include the following.

Hottest Direction in Baby Naming: East

Names related to Eastern religions and non-European mythology have taken over from Biblical and saints’ names as the favorite spiritual names. The mainstreaming of yoga, meditation, and non-traditional spiritualism has sparked the trend, along with a search for meaning that transcends the name’s surface qualities such as style and sound. Eastern-influenced baby names we’ll hear in 2019 include the following.

Coolest New Color Names: Muted Hues

All color names are, well, colorful, but we’re beginning to see a shift in tone as vibrant shades like Scarlett and Ruby and Poppy are giving way to softer pastels. Grey/Gray is starting to replace Blue as a first and middle color name du jour, while popular Violet has been joined by other vintage pale purplish hues. Another prediction: More Crayola names for boys. Soft color names 2019 include these.

Richest New Nature Names: Rare gems

For a long time the most popular jewel names for babies have been those usually assigned to girls—Ruby, Pearl, Amber— all of which came into favor at the turn of the last century, along with flower and other nature names. But one of the most interesting new areas to be mined is the more unusual gem names which can be not only for girls, but for boys, or sometimes both. The rare gem names we’ll hear in 2019 include the following.

Latest Vintage Trend: Old-School Nickname Names for Boys

We’re seeing charming vintage boy nickames like Archie and Alfie and Freddie beginning to join their sisters Millie and Maisie and Josie, but more surprising to us is the nascent revival of early 20th century faves like Johnny and Jimmy and Billy on birth certificates, names which once were confined to comic strips and old radio and TV shows. Even more startling is the reappearance of some generic/badass appellations now appealing to the hipster sensibilities of celebs and others.

Most Fashionable Consonant: F

For a letter that had been sitting quietly in the shadows for decades, F has suddenly rocketed forward, with
boy names that start with F led by Irish Finn and pack and fashion-forward girl names that start with F ranging from the florals to the Frans and beyond. F is a first initial just beginning a steep climb upward to lead baby names 2019.

Coolest Vowel: U

U finally gets its turn in the spotlight as the leading vowel for baby names 2019. There are fewer baby names starting with U than any other letter in the alphabet, and U hasn’t featured in any major baby name trends in….forever. But now U – and its oo sound – features in many newly stylish names. Is it the influence of little Prince Louis? His unexpected name may have simply upshifted the trend to major.

Trendiest Name Length: Three letters

Four letters might be a marker of name popularity, ala Number 1 Emma and Liam, but minimalist three-letter names are the sleek, sweet names of the future. The short sweet baby names hot in 2019 include these.

Wildest Middle Name Trend: Animalia

Parents who want to add a touch of fierceness or individuality to more conventional first name choices are turning to animal names in the middle. As in many other trends, celebs have led the way, starting with Mariel Hemingway’s daughter Langley Fox back in 1989 to the number of more recent starbabies bearing Bear as their middle name.

Trendiest Trend-Related Trend: Celebrity surname-names

Celebrities have influenced baby names since the days of Shirley Temple, and surname-names such as Morgan and Carter have been rising since the conservative 1980s. Now those two trends have combined into one megatrend: Celebrity surnames for girls and boys. Goodbye, Shirley; hello, Temple.

Trend Ready to Jump the Shark: Em– Names

We predict that baby namers are about to become all Emmed-out when it comes to baby names in 2019. After all, we had Emily in the Top 25 for 35 years, at #1 for 12 of them. Then came Emma, in the Top 25 since 1998, and still reigning in first place. A number of dueling names that start with Em followed in their wake and we predict that the consensus is about to be that enough Em is enough.

With contributions from Emma Waterhouse, Clare Green, Sophie Kihm, Esmeralda Rocha, and Abby Sandel.